Papel Picado

Papel Picado are traditional Mexican tissue paper fiesta flags.  Mexicans are known for their flair for bright colors, lively music and their ability to throw fiestas like no one else on earth!  Papel Picado is directly translated into English as “perforated paper” and is the Mexican paper-cutting art form, whereby the tissue paper is cut into elaborate and intricate designs.  The papel picado artists use a guide and small chisels to cut as many as forty tissue paper banners at one time.  Traditional and common themes of papel picado include floral designs, birds, and skeletons.  These papel picado designs are often displayed for holidays such as Easter, Day of the Dead, and Christmas, as well as special occasions such as weddings or christenings.  Additionally, papel picado can be made by folding tissue paper and making use of smaller, sharp scissors.

In addition to the intricate designs that are chosen for different papel picado to coincide with the theme of the holiday or special occasion, color schemes of the papel picado are also chosen to follow the same theme of specific celebrations of Mexican culture.  Pink and white or sky blue are often used for festivities which honor the Virgin Mary, yellow and white for the Patron saints of the Catholic Church, shades of purple are used at Easter.  The colors of the Mexican flag (red, white and green) are used for patriotic celebrations such as Mexico’s Independence Day, which is September 16.

When traveling through Mexico, these flags of papel picado are a tell-tale sign that there is a fiesta happening.  They are as common an occurrence at fiestas as music, food and dancing.  But just because the papel picado flags are common at celebrations, don’t be fooled into thinking that papel picado is an easy form of art to learn.  It takes years of practice and lots of natural skill to be able to craft these intricate and beautiful designs out of tissue paper.

Mi Fiesta is proud to offer a variety of papel picado options for your next Mexican-themed party.  We can also feature your corporate logo into a papel picado design.  You can experience the Mexican culture at your company’s event by placing your logo in papel (paper) or plastico (plastic) picado.  Each and every strip of papel or plastico picado is handmade, contains 10 flags and is 15 feet long.  You choose whatever colors you want for your celebrations.  Please ensure that you leave plenty of time for the production of your hand made papel or plastico picado.  Once your design is approved, it usually takes 30 days to complete.

Mi Fiesta is your one-stop Mexican fiesta party stop.  We carry a full range of party and festivities supplies, from sweets, to food to decorations.  Shop at www.mifiesta.com for all your party supply and papel picado needs.  We are pleased to help you make your next celebration a day to remember!  You can also visit our candy shops in the Atlanta area.  Look for further information on our website!

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