Paper Quilling

09 Aug 2010 4 Comments

by cydlee61 in Crafting, paper art, paper quilling

Paper quilling, sometimes known as paper filigree, is a very old but sometimes not terribly well-known craft. Examples of it are seen from back in Renaissance times when cloistered nuns would decorate sacred items with it as well as in Colonial times when it was often used to enhance every day items like sconces, trays, tea caddies, cribbage boards, furniture and more.  The name “quilling” is said to come from the Native American and European colonists practice of using a porcupine quill as their quilling tool.  Young ladies’ schools in the 18th and 19th century advertized quilling as one of their classes and it had a resurgence in mainstream popularity in the 1970’s, which is when I first learned it.  Today, quilling techniques have evolved into including such things as husking, fringing, and forming shapes by almost more sculpting the paper rather than simply coiling it.  Some of the new die-cutting machines even cut strips of quilling paper out to make some of the more elaborate quilled shapes. There’s a video demonstration here: http://cuttlebugchallenge.blogspot.com/2010/02/provo-craft-new-folders-and-quilling.html

Today, I demonstrated some basic simple traditional quilling techniques on Cool2Craft webtv (click the link to see the archived show).  To begin, some basic supplies that I suggest having for your quilling are:

Quilling paper strips (you can also cut your own – some people use a paper shredder but you need to ensure that it cuts straight strips and that they’re the width you desire.  You can also cut by hand or by using a paper cutter):  Today I used the ones I consider a basic width – 1/8” wide and they were 12” long.  Quilling paper comes in various thicknesses as well.  I used a paper that is a high quality acid-free lignin-free paper today.  It’s a bit thicker than some of the standard quilling paper that you can buy.  The closest thing I can relate it to in terms of thickness is a good quality construction paper.  The other type that I use is quite a bit less expensive but I’m not sure if its archival and it’s thinner – more like the thickness of photocopy or printer paper.  The one advantage to the latter is that it doesn’t get creases in it as easily as the thicker paper.  You can use construction paper,thicker magazine pages, scrapbooking paper, origami paper and so on as well.

A slotted quilling tool:  These come in a variety of handles but basically the tip is a little metal piece that has a slit in it for you to place your quilling paper in.  You then twirl the tool around in your fingers to coil up the paper around the tip.  You can also use things like hat pins or toothpicks but I find them trickier because the end of the paper wants to slip off whereas with the slotted tool, the slit holds the end in place for you.

A circle design board:  Again, this isn’t absolutely necessary but there are advantages to having one.  The circles on it allow you to place your coils into the desired size circle, glue the end to the coil, and have the circles on the board hold your coil in place until the glue is dry.  The other advantage is that by using the circles on the board, you can ensure that each coil you make is of a uniform size – important if trying to make each petal of a flower the same size for example.

Little scissors:  Handy for fringing and for trimming where necessary.  They make fringing tools as well but you may want to wait until you’re sure you’re really interested in quilling as they can be somewhat costly.

Tweezers:  Handy for picking up each of the shaped pieces you’ve made and placing them into your design.  I find I can feel kind of “all thumbs” without my tweezers if I’m doing an involved design.

Glue and a toothpick:  For gluing the basic coils (i.e. securing the loose end to the rest of the coil to hold it in place) I find that Aleene’s Tacky Glue Stick works very well.  I’ve not had any luck with any other glue stick for paper quilling.  For assembling your shaped pieces into a design, I prefer to use a liquid glue – my favourite for this is Aleene’s Quick Dry Tacky Glue.  I pour a little puddle (you don’t need much because it takes just the tiniest bit for each quilled piece) onto a piece of waxed paper and use the toothpick to apply the glue.  I find I can control the amount of glue much better this way as you want to use the tiniest amount possible so it doesn’t glob through and show.

A ruler:  When demo’ing today, I used the full 12 inch lengths of paper because I wanted my coils to be as big as possible to show up on cam.  But in the pictures, you can see that I’ve got shapes of various sizes.  This is accomplished by using different lengths of paper.  The smaller the length, the smaller your shape will be.  For example, when I made a flower using 12” lengths of paper for each petal, my flower ended up being about 2 1/2 inches in diameter.  When my pieces for each petal were 5” each, my finished flower was about 1 1/4 inches in diameter.  When I used pieces that were 3” in length for each petal, my flower was about 3/4” in size.  You will get the hang of how long a piece to use for your desired results as you practice but if using a pattern, they always specify the lengths you need.

Wax paper:  I like to place wax paper over the design that I’m creating.  It’s clear so you can still easily see the design but then you can place and glue your shapes right on top of the design without ruining your book or design sheet.  Plus, when you’ve finished, the design peels right off the wax paper – no stuck glue problems there!

Straight pins:  I like to use straight pins to secure each individual piece to the next when making a design so that they will hold together properly as they dry.  Hat pins will also work.  Some people also use hat pins for shaping some quilled shapes.

To make the basic quill, you simply place your strip of paper into the slit on the the quilling tool, extending it only slightly and then twirling the tool in your one hand while using the other to guide the paper to form into a coil.  Depending on what you are making and your desired outcome, you can form this into a tight or loose coil.  Put a dab of glue (this is where I like using the glue stick) when you reach the end of your piece of paper to hold the end securely against the rest of the coil.  This is when I place it in my circle design board to ensure that it’s the proper size and that it holds in place while the glue dries.

You can leave these coils in the round shapes that they’re in and glue them into a circle with another circle in the center to form one type of flower shape.

To form a different flower, you want to use coils that are somewhat loosely formed.  Pinch one side of the circle (the coil) and you will form a teardrop shape.  I like to pinch right where the end has been glued because I find (especially if I’m trying to rush my creation a bit) that the pressure helps to secure the glue even further and it helps to hide that end in the final design.  Again, if you place some of those teardrops into a circle (you can put a tight coil in the middle as your flower center if you wish), you will form a flower.

For another variation, start with a coil that you have made into a teardrop.  Now you want to pinch it again directly across from where you made the first pinch to form what’s known as a marquise shape.  Some people refer to it as an eye shape or an oval (but it’s really a pointy oval!).  Once more you can put a circle of those marquise shapes together to create a third flower design.

To demonstrate what a pretty picture you could create with just a few simple shapes, the picture above shows flowers I made from today’s demo.  All of them use only the 3 simple shapes I am showing you today.

There are many many more variations of shapes that can be made with paper quilling techniques but I find that the basis of most patterns are the coil, the teardrop, and the marquise.  If you’re interested in learning more quilling techniques I’ll be teaching a class online at Craftech University.  I also have a basic quilling kit available at the Cool2Craft Marketplace:  http://www.cool2craft.com/shop/cynthia-gagen.htm Some people were asking about metallic quilling paper and I have found a supplier for this and will be adding that to the Marketplace this week as well.

The cross above is also made from only the shapes I’ve shown you today.

Today I demonstrated the simple techniques and how they could be formed into flowers but really, the possibilities of designs you can make with quilling are endless.  Once you get the hang of the basic shapes, you may want to buy some colouring books.  I use the outlines in these as designs for quilling and then simply “fill in” the outlines with a variety of quilled shapes.  If you’d like some quilling designs that have already been worked out for you, I highly recommend books by Malinda Johnston.  I have two of hers:  The Book of Paper Quilling and one in the Weekend Crafter series called Paper Quilling:  Beautiful Paper Filigree to Make in a Weekend.  These show you simpler and more traditional techniques as well as some of the more elaborate and more modern ones.  I also have a couple classic quilling design books in my library (from back in the 70s) that I still refer to all the time.  One is The Art of Quilling by Carol Dreeson and the other is Hazel’s New Designs for Quilling by Hazel Pearson.  Tiffany said on Cool2Craft today that she might be able to put copies of Hazel’s book in the Cool2Craft marketplace so I’ll keep you updated and let you know if and when that’s in place.

This heart shaped necklace is made of 2 teardrops and a tight coil.

Quilling can be used as a picture in itself (I generally place it in a shadowbox frame – follow this link and you can see a quilled butterfly I made for my grand niece http://cynchronicity.wordpress.com/2009/12/01/butterflies/) but it can also be used to make and adorn many other things.  I’ve glued it to candles, vases, boxes, greeting cards, scrapbook pages, Christmas ornaments, Heidi Borchers’ water bottle bracelets, and made it into necklaces, brooches, and earrings among other things.

If you have any questions about quilling, please feel free to contact me on Facebook under Cynthia Gagen or at my email address: creativeedventures@gmail.com If you need any help finding any specific quilling supplies, please let me know and I’ll do my best to track some down for you.  I have an excellent supplier right here in town now!