Mardi Gras Party Masks

Fat Tuesday is approaching – have you ever hosted a Mardi Gras party? It’s marked as the last day before the Lenten season begins. Some may decide to have friends over for some a big celebration, or simply spend time with family and stay in. Either way, this project will be a fun addition to the day. It’s also a great project to have your guests (or kids!) decorate their own!

One of the prettiest papers I’ve come across with CutCardStock is the Curious Metallic Violette card stock. It’s a nice, heavyweight paper that will hold up well to make sturdy masks, and it has an amazing shine too! I’m starting with an 8.5″ by 11″ sheet, cut in two even sides, then folded in half.

I recommend making your fold with a scoring tool, so your lines are nice and straight. This line becomes the rim of the nose for your mask.

Next, I’ve picked 2 different die cut shapes: a heart and an oval. Take these die cuts and lay them so they slightly overhang the fold and run them through a die cut machine.

Unfold your masks, and mark with a pencil the areas that line up well with your eyes – you may have to measure to make sure. Then, take a smaller oval shape and cut 2 eyeholes in your Curious Metallic Violette masks, again with a die cut machine.

Some Mardi Gras masks are held up to the face with a stick, so for this I’ve attached a paper straw to the back of one of the masks. Others can be tied behind the head, and this can be done by punching holes on each side and looping ribbon through them. I had a model try it out for me – what do you think?

The rest is decorating and is really up to your imagination. I’ve done a couple different styles to show what ideas you might want to try. For these masks, I’m sticking with the traditional gold, green and white colors.

I’ve picked a couple swirled die cuts and cut pieces in Classic Linen Gold Pearl and Stardream Metallic Pluto White. I’ve also cut some smaller pieces by hand in squares and triangles, to create a mosaic design. These papers are Mirrisparkle Gold Glitter and Mirrisparkle Glitter Evergreen.

You can also try punching some pieces with a punch you have at home – I did stars in the Mirrisparkle Glitter Evergreen paper.

These pieces are glued on with a fast-drying glue. If you are not needing the masks right away, you could also decorate them with some feathers (glued to the back), gemstones and glitter glue in assorted colors.

The possibilities for these masks are endless! I can’t wait to give these to a few of my friends and host a party soon. How would you decorate yours? I’d love to hear if you try this project – please leave a comment below and let me know. Cheers!