Quilled Monogram

   If you have ever wanted to try your luck at crafting, I would say that quilling may be a good place to start.  Materials are inexpensive, you can be as simple or as elaborate as you'd like and the most crucial decision you make is where you want to put the pretty little quills you make. 
 Quilling is the art of twirling and folding  paper to make three-dimensional artwork.  One of the best quilling artist I know of is Christine Donohue.  Her work is impressive and Into Craft did an article about her work, which you can see here.
 I hope you enjoy making your own!

  Materials:
1. Aleene's Tacky Glue
2. Quilling Paper Strips
3. Tweezers (Fine Point if you have them, I used a pair of beading tweezers).
4. Scissors
5. Quilling Tool
6. Wooden Letter
7. Quilling Guide (a printed out paper that can be your visual help and inspiration, here is one from WEDREAM ). 

Most of my materials were bought at Hobby Lobby, not sure if other stores carry them (I did not check, sorry).  Some tutorials claim that you can use hot glue, but I tried this and the glue dries before you have time to remember where you were going to put your quill.  The tweezers helped get portions of the paper glued down that I was not able to with my fingers.  I suggest starting out with a small wooden letter, to see if you actually enjoy doing the quills (it does require a bit of patience).  If you choose a small letter, you get to see the end result sooner which is reinforcing too.

To get started, pick your colors of paper and insert one of the corners into the quilling tool and twirl the paper around it.  For tight scrolls you twirl the paper in the tool tight. For loose scrolls you twirl the paper on the tool loosely.  When you are done twirling, remove the paper carefully so it does not rip.  If you are satisfied, figure out where you want it on your letter.

For my wooden letter, I wanted to make flowers and butterflies, so I started making parts to what would be a flower.  First the center, then the petals, all round shapes.  But in quilling you can make different shapes by pinching your quills or folding the paper strips.  Two pinches, one of each side of a scroll will make a leaf looking pattern.  One pinch or fold will make your scroll look like a teardrop. Two teardrops together will make a heart shape, etc. 

When I began making scrolls I started experimenting with the different shapes I could make and the sizes.  The paper comes in one long strip, so I cut it in half, or into fourths to make smaller quills. Slowly I knew, how I would make the different parts of my garden scene.  Once I had everything on my wooden letter how I wanted it, I started gluing.  The tweezers come in really handy.  I would place the scroll using my fingers as close as I could to the place I wanted it and then, I would wiggly it in place with the tweezers.  I was very proud of my design, for it being the first time I quilled!  What do you think?
EEC Jay