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Sorting through and cleaning out a couple of large piles of papers today (thank you, Alice), I uncovered these decorative paper strips I bought in London years ago. I suppose I thought I’d decoupage something as a commemoration of my trip. But I’m pretty sure I never will. So now that I’ve scanned the sheets and posted them on my blog, I am happy to bid them a fond adieu.

Here’s a bit of history on scrap reliefs from the producer at Mamelok Press Limited:

“Scrap reliefs first appeared at the beginning of the 19th century in the form of simple black and white engravings; later they were often tinted by hand. By the 1820s, scrap reliefs had become more elaborate and were sometimes embossed to give them a raised, three-dimensional appearance. Many of the best quality scrap reliefs of this period were produced in Germany, where bakers and confectioners used them to decorate cakes and biscuits for special occasions. Mamelok Press, founded in Breslau in the 1820s, emerged at this time as the leading manufacturer of scrap reliefs.

Scraps, as they had become known, were pasted into autograph books, scrapbooks and diaries, onto calling cards and the extravagantly romantic valentines of the era, with scraps always featured as the central image. They were used in decoupage: an arrangement of scraps pasted onto a box, screen, chair or other surface, and then varnished many times. The final effect was as if the design had been painted on.”
— Mamelok Press Limited

Mary Maru

PS: If you like to decoupage and would like these four 6″ x 9″ sheets, email me with your U.S. mailing address and I’ll send them to you. They really are quite nice in person…embossed and a bit shiny. I found postage stamps today, too.

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