Paper Craft

Shelley Aldrich Explores Paper Craft Traditions as a Way to Bring Wild Worlds to Life

March 31, 2025
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Illustrated tunnel book by Shelley Aldrich - exquisite paper craft

Illus­tra­tor Shel­ley Aldrich brings wild worlds to life through tun­nel books and oth­er clever paper engi­neer­ing. Inspired by tales like The Chron­i­cles of Nar­nia and The Hob­bit, she cre­ates hand-paint­ed and hand-assem­bled books and cards that blend her charm­ing, col­or­ful style with tra­di­tion­al paper craft. (Tun­nel books were first devel­oped in the 18th cen­tu­ry!) The inter­ac­tive pieces reveal new ele­ments through lay­ers of paper we peek through, tak­ing us through a sto­ry as we play with what Shel­ley has created.

Shel­ley is a self-taught illus­tra­tor who, while always lov­ing crafts, didn’t begin paint­ing until she was 45 years old. “It has been a jour­ney,” she writes, “with many late nights learn­ing and tossed paint­ings, but I love the chal­lenge of unty­ing the com­plex knot of creativity.”

Shel­ley works most­ly in gouache and col­ored pen­cils. Once she got the hang of that, she began to explore paper art. “I love the idea of a sto­ry unfold­ing and a phys­i­cal con­nec­tion to the art. There are many lost tech­niques to dis­cov­er and reinvent!”

Check out some of her tun­nel books, Vic­to­ri­an puz­zle purs­es, and wheel cards. Then, fol­low her on Insta­gram to see what she’s work­ing on next.

Illustrator Shelley Aldrich brings wild worlds to life through tunnel books and other clever paper craft.

She’s created pieces inspired by tales like The Chronicles of Narnia and The Hobbit.

 

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“I love the idea of a story unfolding and a physical connection to the art,” Shelly says. “There are many lost techniques to discover and reinvent!”