New Thaumatrope Designs

The quaint paper thaumatrope of the 1800's seemed like magic to children who watched the two spinning pictures become a harmonious one. Like the bird-and-cage combination, our thaumatrope images draw on the tradition of two matching objects, but with a subject twist that modern kids (and kids at heart) will find appealing.

Our all-new Circus sheet depicts miniatures scenes from the Big Top, including a highwire act, trapeze artists, and a clown with a car. Our new Action sheet depicts a motorcyclist jumping barrels, King Kong atop a skyscraper, and a stunt skydiver doing tricks as a sopwith camel plane sails through the air.

Assembling thaumatropes is easy, with several online articles for making your own, including step-by-step articles with free designs HERE, as well as a traditional thaumatrope pattern and history HERE from Wikipedia.

The Ghost Cat Returns

Cordwood Cabin's favorite kitty returns ... only this time for all-year-round fun. The inquisitive white Ghost Cat reappears as a digitally-designed paper doll in our Etsy shop. His tailored costumes are included on the printed sheet, four items ranging from a sailor suit to a spooky costume.

Both doll and outfits are ready to be cut out and displayed, with directions for cutting the slots in the Cat's hats (use an x-acto knife for best results) and corresponding accessories (such as a sword and rubber ducky).

Visit the paper Ghost Cat HERE to see the original cutie kitty from our "Haunted Hollows" series.

Stars-and-Stripes Sam

Decked out for a summer picnic in a coat worthy of the barbershop quartet serenading the crowds, Uncle Sam is ready for the Fourth of July.

Red stars decorate the dark blue fabric; hand-drawn features peer from inside a frame of painted white whiskers. A bamboo skewer transforms him into a simple stick puppet ready for display in a Fourth of July centerpiece or propped in an old-fashioned crock or canister.

Sam is joining the summer crowd in our Etsy shop -- see them HERE in Cordwood Cabin's "Cabin Crafts" lineup.

The Old Sailor's Dreams

His ship but a memory, his days of glory now golden stories, the Old Sailor scans the shore with his spyglass in search of long-ago pirate ships, epic battle scenes, and the occasional siting of lost treasure washing ashore.

The spyglass in his arms is made of rolled paper painted with golden trim. Loose, bendable wires in his arms help him pose majestically with the telescope cradled in his hold.

A wooden stand fashioned with a sand-and-shore motif is included; the Old Sailor's bamboo skewer pole is removable for an alternative means of display if desired.

See him HERE in our Etsy shop as part of our all-new summer lineup!

The Fiji Mermaid

A prim and painted figure of old, the Fiji mermaid appears in bright colors and faded fabrics in honor of P.T. Barnum's celebrated sideshow humbug.

Her raggedy hair is made from strips of fabric, her face hand-drawn. Her primitive make-do knots and stitches close the back of her mertail and add scales to her fishy lower half.

The Fiji Mermaid emerges from the sea to appear in Cordwood Cabin's Etsy summer shop HERE.

Old Lady Liberty

Our most faded and primitive Lady Liberty yet! Cut from raggedy muslin and sewn together with extra knots and make-do patches, Lady Liberty's hand-drawn face is faded beneath the drawn black curls which frame it.

Simple stripes run jaggedly down her faded white blouse; white stars are faintly visible on the raggedy strips of blue that help form her skirts.

See her HERE in our Etsy shop summer lineup!