Scroll Saw Village

One of my favorite sites belongs to the German pattern designer, Arnold Volkner. He is best known for his lichterbogens (lighted arches) and Christmas pyramids. His patterns reflect a lot of German tradition that has a quaint old-world feel. He has a section on his website where he offers a free pattern. I like to keep my eye on that section because he rotates a new pattern every few months. Right now he’s offering a lichterbogen with a wonderful winter scene. Check it out. While you’re there, check out his other patterns. His website is in German, but with the aide of Google Translator, you shouldn’t have too much trouble navigating his site.

Many times, us scrollers only think about cutting hardwoods and plywoods. But there are a number of other materials that we can cut as well. The folks at Woodworker’s Journal has a great article on how to scroll saw a snowflake ornament out of brass! The article includes the free pattern, detailed instructions and accompanying photos. You can find brass and other sheet metals at your craft store or hobby store. If you still can’t find any brass, check your home improvement store. You should be able to find a brass kickplate for entry doors that would work great. After you cut this pattern, dig through some of your other Christmas ornament patterns. That will give you plenty to cut out with this great material.

Long ago, dinosaurs ruled the earth. And the king of all “terrible lizards” was the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

I designed this pattern for my nephew who really wanted a dinosaur picture for his room. The pattern is provided in PDF format for easy printing. It is sized at 8×10″ so it can easily fit into a premade picture frame. Give it a try. When you’re done, be sure to learn more about T. Rex to find out why he was the king of dinosaurs.

Yost69 of HuhDoWhat.com has a nice collection of original scroll saw patterns he made available to those who want them. He covers a wide variety of subjects from Whistler’s Mother to sports cars. He has a little something for everybody. While you’re there, be sure to check out his cuttings in his gallery. He has a lot of great pictures that will surely inspire your next project!

Arpop of Free Scroll Saw Patterns by Arpop has put together a nice collection of Halloween designs free to download. He has 9 Halloween scroll saw patterns to choose from. From blood suckers to late night mistresses to thing that go bump in the night. Check it out! And while you’re there, check out his other patterns. Arpop is a talented designer with a lot of great stuff to choose from.

Here’s another great Halloween craft pattern for the scroll saw provided by Accents Woodcraft Designs. This is a layered design that adds depth and makes painting much easier. This free pattern is provided in 3 separate GIF files with detailed instructions for sawing, assembly and painting. Check out this quick and easy project and add to your Halloween spookiness! While you’re there, be sure to check out some of their other great Halloween projects.

Here’s a fun little witch decoration designed by Trish from Trish’s Crafts. It can easily be made out of scrap 3/4″ stock. Trish provides a printable pattern in JPG format. She also includes detailed painting and assembly instructions. The painting may look intimidating, but you can be as elaborate or as basic as you want. Either way, this free project will be sure to please all the ghosts and goblins in your home.

Here’s a ghostly box to hold all of your Halloween treats. This free pattern was designed by Heidi Markish of Heidi Markish Designs and hosted by FreeCraftz.com. Heidi includes a materials/supplies list, printable pattern, assembly instructions and a great painting guide. This is a quick and easy cutting, but the painting may take a little longer. Even if you don’t think you have talent with a brush, I think you’ll still be able to put together this great design to add to your Halloween decor! Boo!

Here’s a great idea by TLT on the BT3Central.com forums. Rather than cutting pumpkins this year, he decided to take a few of the free pumpkin carving patterns available on the internet and use them as patterns to make his own luminaries. He used corner blocks with dadoes cut to hold the plywood panels, which really dresses up the project. However, you can easily glue the corner blocks to the inside instead. You can read the details of the thread here. Registration is required to see pictures, but it’s easy and free. So check it out. And to get you started, I listed some of my favorite pumpkin pattern sites below.

• Zombie Pumpkins
• Pumpkin Lady
• Pumpkin Masters
• Hershey’s
• SpookMaster
• Pumpkin Glow
• JP’s Jammin’ Pumpkins
• HP
• DLTK
• Cyberhaunt
• Jack-O-Lantern

Sue Mey is tempting fate by inviting black cats over for Halloween. Bad omen or not, you can’t deny, this is a great pattern. This Black Cats Only design is available free on her website. This design is provided in JPG format for easy scaling. While you’re there, check out some of her other Halloween patterns. She has some really great looking haunted house designs. Check it out!