Quilling Shapes

Published by Charlotte Coils

Tight Coil: Roll a strip of paper tightly around your tool (slotted tool, needle tool, or toothpick), being sure to deep the paper in alignment as you roll. Place a small dab of glue at the end of the strip, glue end to the roll, and hold until set. Remove the tool.

Loose Coil: Roll a strip into a tight coil; remove the tool and allow the roll uncoil to the desired size. Glue the loose end to the coil.

Teardrop: Make a loose coil. With your index finger and thumb, pinch the coil into a point, allowing the opposite side to remain round.

Shaped Teardrop: Make a loose coil and pinch it into a teardrop, curving the pinched end slightly so that it flairs out. Marquise: Make a loose coil. Holding the coil between the index finger and thumbs of both hands, pinch the coil into two points, leaving the center of the coil round and loose. Shaped Marquise: Make a loose coil and pinch it into a marquise. With your fingers or curling tool, curl the ends in the opposite direction. Elongated Marquise: Make a VERY loose coil and pinch it into a long, narrow marquise.

Pressed Heart: Make a loose coil and pinch into a teardrop. With your fingernail or a toothpick, indent the center of the round end to form a heart.

Square: Make a loose coil and pinch it into a marquise. Rotate the marquise 90 degrees between your thumbs and index fingers and pinch again, forming two more points. Each side should be the same length.

Rectangle: Make a loose coil and pinch it into a marquise. Rotate the marquise slightly between your thumbs and index fingers and pinch again, forming two more points near the original ones to form two long sides and two short sides.

Triangle: Make a loose coil and pinch it into a teardrop. While holding the teardrop by the pinched end, press down on the rounded end and pinch two more points. You can vary the height of the triangle by placing these two pinched points closer or further apart.

Half Circle: Make a loose coil and pinch it into a teardrop. Pinch the paper a second time closer to the first point. You can vary the height of the half circle by placing the two pinched points closer or further apart.

Crescent: Make a loose coil and pinch it into a half circle. Press in the center of the half circle while curving the ends to form a crescent moon shape.

Elongated Crescent: Make a VERY loose coil. Press in the center while curving the ends to form an elongated crescent moon shape. Scrolls

Loose Scroll: Loosely roll a strip into a coil. Remove the quilling tool and allow the roll to uncoil. Do not glue.

S-Scroll: Loosely roll one end of a paper strip half-way down. Flip and loosely roll the other end in the opposite direction forming an S shape. Do not glue.

C-Scroll: Loosely roll each end of a paper strip to the center to form a C shape. Do not glue.

V-Scroll: Fold your strip of paper in half. Loosely roll each end outward to form a V shape. Do not glue.

Heart Scroll: Fold your strip of paper in half. Loosely roll each end toward the center to form a heart shape. Do not glue.

5 Quilling Tips Every Beginner Should Know

Published by Charlotte at 8:32 pm under Quilling Tips I first learned about quilling in 1973BI (thats Before Internet LOL!) when I happened upon an instruction book in a local craft store and was instantly hooked. There was very little information available at the time on this wonderful art and certainly no classes. So I did what any self-sufficient crafter did in those days, I picked up bits and pieces here and there and taught myself. It would have been nice, however, if I had known a seasoned quiller who could have shared her experiences with me. It is in this spirit that I offer you these five quilling tips.
1. Your rolls and scrolls will be unique to you. They will not look exactly like mine (or

anyone elses). Everyone uses different tension when they curl the paper strips resulting in variations in the coils and scrolls. Not only that, but your own quills will vary from each other depending on your mood and how you feel at the time. To see for yourself, compare coils that you made when you were tired or frazzled with those made when you were relaxed and rested. Youll notice a big difference. A great quilling tip is to prepare all of your strips for a project at one time. This allows you to roll your strips one right after the other, producing quills with more consistent tension. 2. All quilling paper is not created equal. You would think that one package of 1/8 wide paper would be the same as another, but thats not the case. As we all know, paper comes in different weights and even among those of the same weight, some papers simply have more body than others making them more suitable for quilling. The weight of the paper used to create the strips will vary slightly between manufacturers and even within the same manufacturer. In fact, there is one manufacturer out there selling quilling strips made from thin card stock that is very difficult to work with since it cracks and splits. If you are having trouble, before you give up out of frustration, try a strip of paper from a different company. You may find that the problem with your coils is with the paper and not you. 3. Quilling paper has a right and a wrong side. If you examine a strip of quilling paper, you will notice that one side has smooth edges that curve down ever so slightly. The other side has edges that slightly curve up. This is because the paper cutting blade pushes down on the paper as it cuts. The smooth side is considered the right side of the paper and you will want to keep it to the outside of your coils and scrolls. This difference is especially noticeable when joining several strips together end-to-end to form a large tight coil for use as a base, etc. 4. Neatness counts control the glue. Nothing will ruin the look of a piece of finished quilling more than seeing bits of glue all over it or gobs of glue under it where it is

attached to its backing. It only takes the tiniest drop to seal the end of a coil to itself or to attach one coil or scroll to another as you build your design. A bit more adhesive may be needed to attach the paper quilling to the box or frame back, but not much. Clean hands are an absolute must when working with paper filigree and youll want to wash your hands before starting any quilling project. The best quilling tip Ive found to help keep glue off the fingers is to have a wet paper towel handy to wipe your fingers on as you quill. Also, keep hand lotions to a minimum so the oils dont discolor the paper. 5. Use the quilling tool that works for you. There are many commercial tools available for curling paper, both slotted and straight needle types. A round toothpick or corsage pin can also be used. As for me, I prefer the most basic tool of all my fingers. Keep in mind that quilling tools are just that, tools to help you create the desired coil or spiral. By all means, follow the instructions that come with the tool or those you find on the internet, but if the directions just dont seem to work for you, dont hesitate to try using the tool in a slightly different way. The instructions that came with my first slotted tool told me to curl the paper toward me. I tried many times, but my fingers struggled with that motion. However, when I rolled the paper away from me it felt right and that is how I use that tool today. If after several tries you find that you still have trouble using a tool, it is perfectly OK to put it away and try a different one for curling your paper. All tools are not for all quillers. You will soon find the one that is right for you. If you have any questions about these quilling tips, just ask. Id love to hear from you.

Lets Start Quilling Tools of the Trade

Published by Charlotte at 6:55 pm under Quilling How-To,Quilling Tips

Are you a paper crafter who has never quilled before? Are you curious and want to find out if youd like it, but cringe at the thought of purchasing even more crafting supplies that might end up unused and forgotten in some drawer or plastic bin? If this sounds like you, then fear not. Basic quilling supplies are few and very inexpensive. In fact, you probably have many of the supplies currently on hand. If you find that you enjoy

quilling and want to do more (and I truly hope you will), then you can go wild and build up your stash of quilling tools, papers, and embellishments. Three Must-Haves for Quilling: Paper Strips, Glue, Curling Tool
1. Quilling Paper Strips. As I mentioned in a previous post, the most common width of

paper strip used in quilling is 1/8. However, other widths are available. Narrower strips (1/16 ) are used for fine, detailed quilling, while wider strips, 1/4, 1/2, and 3/8, are used primarily for fringed flowers and 3D sculpting. My advice is to purchase one package of 1/8 multi-colored strips. You will appreciate the variety of colors you have to choose from as you make your first designs. 2. Glue. Any good quality white tacky craft glue that dries clear will work fine. Over time you will notice some slight differences and no doubt choose a favorite, but for now, use what you have on hand. 3. Curling Tool. You will need to use something to curl your paper strips. A corsage pin, hat pin, round toothpick, needle quilling tool, or slotted tool can all be used. With the pins, toothpick, and needle tool, the paper strip is curled by rolling it around the center shaft. A slotted quilling tool grabs the end of the quilling paper and you wind the paper into a coil by turning the handle. There are pros and cons for each type. The needle tools make a smaller center to the coil, but starting and rolling the coil can be a bit tricky. The slotted quilling tool leaves a tell-tale bend in the paper at the center of the coil, but is by far the easiest tool for beginners to use. My advice is to buy a slotted tool with a long cushioned handle. Once you get the hang of quilling, you can branch out and try the needle tool or finger rolling. If you simply refuse to spend another dime on supplies, then try the toothpick. It is easier for paper to grab onto the wooden surface than the smooth shaft of the needle tool or pin. A quality slotted tool manufactured by Lake City Craft Co. is available from Scrapbook Super Center where you will also find their brand of quilling paper (just enter quilling into the search menu). Custom Quilling carries a larger variety of quilling tools and supplies from several major manufacturers. (Note: Please avoid the strips that are sold in a tube. They are very difficult to work with and I dont want you to become easily discouraged.) Other Useful Quilling Tools and Supplies

Workboard. You can purchase one of the many nice ones available on the market today, or make your own from a sturdy piece of corrugated cardboard. A good size is 6x8, but any size will do as long as it is larger than your quilling pattern. Cover the front of the workboard with a piece of wax paper or clear plastic sheet cut to size and held in place with a few straight pins. Straight Pins. Besides holding the workboard covering in place, pins are used to hold your coils and scrolls on the board as you work on your quilling pattern. This allows you to dry fit the pieces and make any adjustments before gluing.

Ruler. You will usually want to measure the length of your paper strips so you can form shapes that are uniform in size. Your quilling pattern instructions will tell you the length of the strip needed to form each coil or scroll. Tweezers. Some of the individual shapes you create will be pretty tiny. You will find tweezers quite helpful in achieving perfect placement of your coils and scrolls into your quilling design. Toothpicks. Besides being an all around handy tool to have in your crafting arsenal, toothpicks are excellent for aplying glue to your quilled shapes.

Thats it all of the quilling tools and supplies you need to get started. So gather them together and come on back.

How To Quill Beginning Instructions

Published by Charlotte at 3:14 pm under Quilling How-To,Quilling Tips

The first thing you want to do is to tear a strip of paper to the desired length. Tearing the paper creates a frayed end that is less noticeable when glued down than a cut end. Your pattern instructions will tell you how long your strip of quilling paper needs to be. For practice, a 4 strip is a good size. Now that you have your strip of quilling paper, you will want to loosen the fibers to make it easier to create a smooth roll. Look at your paper and find the right and the wrong side (explained earlier here). Now, gently run the wrong side of the paper strip over your quilling tool or thumbnail. The paper will start to bend with the smooth side out which is what you want. When using your quilling tool of choice, be sure to roll the paper in the same direction it is now bending. Instructions for using a slotted quilling tool should come with the package, but it is quite easy to use. Simply insert one end of the paper into the tool (just enough to catch in the slot) and turn the handle. I roll paper away from me, so I insert the strip with the smooth side facing me and

the curl of the paper that we created by loosening the fibers is toward the floor. If you are more comfortable rolling paper toward you, insert the paper with the wrong side up (the curl in the paper ends will be towards you) and roll towards you. Either way, use your other hand to guide the paper, keeping the edges aligned as evenly as possible. Use an even tension on the paper strip when rolling your coil. Quilling with a needle tool, pin, or toothpick, is a bit trickier and may require more practice, but certainly can be done by a beginner. Place the end of the paper between your thumb and index finger and pinch the paper edge around the shaft of your tool and start rolling the paper. If you have difficulty in beginning the roll, try moistening your finger tips or the tip of the paper. As with the slotted tool, if you roll away from yourself, start the paper with the smooth side towards you; if you roll towards yourself, start with the wrong side towards you. The beginning of the coil should be tightly wound to ensure a small round center. Loosen your tension slightly as you roll to the end of the strip.

Five Basic Quilling Coils

Published by Charlotte at 10:52 pm under Quilling How-To Coils are the building blocks of most quilling patterns. They can be made in all shapes and sizes, but the one thing all coils have in common is that after the strip is rolled, the loose end of the paper is glued to itself.

Tight Coil: Using your quilling tool of choice, roll your strip of paper tightly, being sure to keep the paper aligned as you roll. Place a small dab of glue at the end of the strip, glue to the roll, and hold until set. Remove the tool. Loose Coil: Roll a strip into a tight coil. Remove the tool and allow the roll to uncoil. Glue the loose end of the paper to the coil. Teardrop: Make a loose coil. Hold the coil between the index fingers and thumbs of both hands. Using one hand, pinch your finger and thumb together catching the paper and forming a point. Leave the other end rounded. Marquise: Make a loose coil. Hold the coil between the index fingers and thumbs of both hands. Instead of pinching the paper with one hand to form the teardrop, pinch the paper with both hands at the same time, leaving the center of the coil round. Pressed Heart: Make a loose coil and pinch it into a teardrop. With your fingernail or toothpick, indent the center of the round end to form a heart shape. Next time, Ill show you how to make the basic quilling scrolls.

5 Basic Quilling Scrolls

Published by Charlotte at 12:49 pm under Quilling How-To,Quilling Tips Open scrolls help create the beautiful lace-like quality quillwork is known for. They are made by rolling one or both ends of a paper strip, but, unlike coils, the rolled ends are not glued down. I

mentioned earlier that you should tear your strips since the frayed end is less noticeable when glued. This is the method followed by most quillers. For extra neatness, however, I like to cut both ends of the paper strip that I use for makeing scrolls since it gives a sharp definition to the ends. This is strictly a matter of preference. When making scrolls, you will want to condition the paper in the direction you want to roll.

Loose Scroll: Using your quilling tool of choice, loosely roll a strip into a coil. Remove the quilling tool and allow the roll to uncoil. Do not glue. S-Scroll: Loosely roll one end of a paper strip half-way down. Flip the paper and loosely roll the other end in the opposite direction to form an S shape. Do not glue. C-Scroll: Loosely roll one end of a paper strip half-way down. Flip the paper and loosely roll the other end toward the center until it meets the loose coil made from the other end and forms a C shape. Do not glue. V-Scroll: Fold your strip of quilling paper in half. Loosely roll each end outward to form a V shape. Do not glue. Heart Scroll: Fold your quilling strip in half. Loosely roll each end twoard the center to form a heart shape. Do not glue.

S-scrolls and C-scrolls make wonderful filler quills for larger projects. V-scrolls and loose scrolls are often used as beautiful tendrils to accent quilled blooms. Scrolls can also be combined to form some lovely designs for interesting special effects. We will explore just some of the many variations possible in future posts.

Make Your Own Quilling Workboard & Design Guide

Published by Charlotte at 5:57 pm under Quilling How-To,Quilling Tips If you are going to make more than just one or two small pieces of quilling, you owe it to yourself to purchase one of the quilling workboards and design guides that are currently available. These are quality boards made of dense self-healing cork or durable foam that are sturdy and made to last for years. The design grid guides and circle templates help you create precise, uniform quills, which is very important when working with symmetrical patterns such as snowflakes. A variety of quality designer boards, grids, and templates are available from the Scrapbook Super Center (just enter quilling into the search menu) and Custom Quilling. However, if you are working with a group (Scout troop, church group, craft club, etc.), it is not always practical to purchase each member their own quilling workboard. You can make one instead.

A simple, temporary board can be made from any sturdy sheet of cork board, plastic foam, corrugated cardboard, or other similar material. A nice size is 6 x 8, but use what you have. For my quilling classes, I have taken inexpensive 12 x 12 cork squares, cut them into four 6 x 6 squares, and edged them with masking tape. These work very well, and if one happens to get away from me, it can easily be replaced. Go green with a quilling workboard made from corrugated cardboard cut from a box that was headed for the trash. When it has too many holes to be useful, just place it in the recycling bin.

Wax paper makes a serviceable cover sheet for your workboard; it is handy and certainly cheap enough. However, a word of caution is in order if too much glue is used and the quillwork is accidentally glued to the wax paper, when you remove the quillwork the wax will come up with the quilled design. I prefer to use clear plastic sheets cut from scrap (think old plastic sheet protectors or office transparencies) or recycled plastic packaging (not the hard stuff toys are packaged in, but the thin plastic scrapbook embellishments are wrapped in, heavy-duty food baggies, etc.). You can either pin the workboard cover in place, or wrap it around and tape it to the back. Slip your quilling pattern underneath the cover sheet (plastic or wax paper), pin in place, and create your quilled masterpiece.

For symmetrical work, a design grid can be created from a piece of graph paper cut to fit your quilling workboard. Using a ruler and black pen or fine-tip marker, draw in your vertical and horizontal lines to divide your sheet roughly into fourths. Continue to draw in intersecting lines as needed for your pattern. Circles can be added to the grid with the aid of a compass or circle template. If you find that you need to make many coils of the same size, you can create your own template by tracing small round objects of various dimensions (coins, bottle caps, washers, brads, etc.) onto scrap paper or card stock. Place this guide (shown in the top photo) under your workboard cover sheet and allow your quills to uncoil to the size of the desired circle.

Quilling Tip: Use glue sparingly, especially when creating your design over wax paper so the wax on the wax paper does not become glued to the bottom of your quillwork.

How To Glue Your Quilling to a Background Surface

Published by Charlotte at 6:31 pm under Quilling How-To,Quilling Tips

Unless you are creating a stand-alone, 3D paper sculpture, you will probably be attaching your finished quilling to some type of backing. This might be a card, scrapbook page, or a piece of mat board that you intend to frame. No matter what the surface, you will want to glue the quilling securely and cleanly with no glue showing to detract from your art. There are several methods for applying the glue to the back of your quilling.

Spread a very thin layer of glue as large as your quilllwork onto a flat surface like a plate or plastic lid. Using a pair of tweezers, pick up your quilling, touch the bottom edges of the paper to the glue, then place it on the desired backing. A thin glue (such as Elmers) works best for this technique. If you normally use a thick, tacky glue for quilling, you might try thinning it with a drop or two of water. You want the glue thin enough to spread thinly and evenly over your flat work surface. A foam brush helps to spread the glue. If the glue is too thick, the loose center of the coils will stick to the gluing surface, pulling them apart and ruining your piece. This method works especially well when tendrils and vines are part of the design. Once you have the glue on the back of your quillwork, you need to attach it exactly where you want it. If you try and slide your quilling into the correct placement, you will leave glue smudges. Any glue you see will turn shiny and even though it is clear, it will be noticeable.

You can also use a small paintbrush to paint the glue onto the back of your quilling. Use care in touching only the bottom edges of the paper with the glue to avoid unwanted globs or smudges. Again, a thinner glue is easier to spread with the paintbrush. Tweezers are useful to help hold the quilling and assist in placement when glued.

I actually dont use either of these methods. I spread glue on the back of my quilling using a toothpick. I pick up a little glue on the tip of the toothpick and roll the toothpick over the quills. Depending on the design, I apply glue to the tight rolls and centers of the quills to allow a little more wiggle room when placing the quilling on my background. If glue is not over the entire back, I can slide the quilling just a tad if needed without the glue showing. If I do end up with a bit of glue on the background, I slightly moisten a fresh toothpick (you dont want it dripping) and gently wipe up the glue. Quilling Tip: Make sure your background surface is ready before you apply glue to the back of your quillwork. You dont want the glue to dry before you have a chance to attach the quilling. If not, you will have to apply more glue which increases your chances of having glue showing on your finished art.

Resizing a Quilling Pattern

Published by Charlotte at 12:39 pm under Quilling How-To,Quilling Pattern,Quilling Tips It is very easy to change the size of a quilling pattern to fit your specific background simply use a shorter or longer strip of quilling paper to make your quills. (A quill is just a generic name for your scrolls and/or coils.) With some practice, you will discover the size of the paper strip that will give you the size quill you need.

For example, I found the cutest matchbook notepad template from Mirkwood Designs and thought that the floral pattern from Quilling a Twinchie Beginner Pattern would be perfect on it. After printing out the matchbook template I

discovered that the actual space available for the quillwork was only 1 x 2 which was too small for the twinchie pattern. To make the quilling design fit the new project I needed to reduce it, so I cut the length of the quilling strips called for in the pattern in half (except for the tight coil used for the flower center I kept that at 1 since smaller than that is difficult to work with).

So instead of: (5) 6 marquise coil, blue (1) 6 teardrop coil, blue (1) 1 tight coil, white (1) 7 V-scroll, green (1) 4 V-scroll, green the quilling pattern used for the matchbook notepad is: (5) 3 marquise coil, pink (1) 3 teardrop coil, pink (1) 1 tight coil, white (1) 3-1/2 V-scroll, green (1) 2 V-scroll, green As you can see in the comparison photo, the pink floral on the matchbook is just about half the size of the blue floral twinchie. Dont shy away from a quilling pattern just because it isnt the exact size you need. Now that you know how to adjust the length of the quilling paper strips to make your quills larger or smaller, you can make any quilling design work for you.

Metallic Quilling Papers

Published by Charlotte at 8:28 pm under Quilling How-To,Quilling News,Quilling Tips

Even though it is scorching outside, Im busy working on inventory for a big Christmas show I participate in each year. With this in mind, I decided to quill some metallic cross ornaments to add to my offerings. I remembered some metallic papers I purchased from Quilled Creations and thought they would be perfect (Metallics Sparkling Quilling Paper, Silver & Antique Gold).

These are really nice, heavy papers that hold their quilling shapes well, but, as I soon found out, they can be a bit tricky to work with. Here are some general tips I discovered while quilling my ornaments: 1. It takes longer for the glue to set when creating your coils and assembling your pieces. You have to be patient! Hold the glued end of your coil down longer than you think is necessary and then hold it just a little longer. Use pins to hold your pieces as you glue your design together to speed up the assembly process and help ensure a secure bond.

2. On the plus side, because this paper is slicker than regular quilling paper, it is super easy to remove excess glue and have a really clean piece of quill art when you are done. 3. Because it is a heavier paper, you can really see the glued seam on your coils, even when gluing down a torn edge. I have found that burnishing the seam with a clean toothpick does wonders in smoothing out the seam and making it much less noticable.

The biggest thing I learned is that while the papers themselves are metallic and look great from the side, the edges are quite dull. As you can see, this cross quilled from Antique Gold look like is it made from a plain brown paper (Figure 1), but the sides of the cross are nice and glitzy (Figure 2).

To solve this problem, I used a gold metallic pen (I used one made by Krylon) and colored the edges (Figure 3). What an amazing difference! Now I have a stunning gold quilled cross ornament to sell at the show.

The same holds true for the silver metallic paper which has a dull gray appearance when quilled. Just run a silver metallic pen over the edges to turn them a dazzling silver.