Quilling for Kids... and Adults Too!

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Twirled Paper by Klutz Brand Books
Reported by Melissa Norris

I have always had a fascination with quilling but have been too intimidated to try it. For those of you who aren't sure exactly what quilling is, it is the art of creating shapes from tiny strips of paper. It's a very old art form, dating to the 17th century, but has recently found a resurgence in the paper crafting boom. The first time I had ever really taken notice of quilling was in an issue of Martha Stewart Living Magazine. Yes, I was the girl in college who had a subscription to MSL instead of Cosmo like everyone else. Well, we all know that sometimes the projects in MSL look a bit more daunting then we are ready for, and that was definitely the case for me. But last year when I finally had to cut back on my magazine stash I saved that article, along with others, determined to try that one day.

I went to Barnes & Noble receintly and I was over in the children's section with my daughter and noticed the Klutz brand books. Well I loved these books when I was younger. I had the one on polymer clay, magic tricks, friendship bracelets, etc. So I started looking through them and noticed one called Twirled Paper. It was definitely the perfect thing for me to try quilling. It came with everything I needed, the paper strips, quilling tool (twirling wand as it's called in the book), glue, and googly eyes (you have to keep things fun). The only other items you need for quilling are a piece of cardboad covered in wax paper (so the glue doesn't stick), some straight pins, tweezers, toothpicks, and a ruler. How easy is that? I already had everything I needed and was ready to try it out.

Now keep in mind, this product is made for kids (who cares, right?!) so the designs aren't the elegant work you might expect and the colored paper is bright. But it will teach you how to do the basic shapes and give you super practice before going on and trying other things. The book starts with the basics and then has directions for flowers, bugs, butterflies, animals, and even aliens. But there are also other pictures in there for stuff you can try and figure out on your own.

From the basics I learned in the book, I tried some of the more detailed items in the MSL article. Quilling isn't just about spirals. You can fold the paper to form roses, fringe your piece to make a flower, or print text off the computer and then twirl the paper to make a calligraphy greeting.

There are also tons of resources on the internet where you can order the precut paper strips (strips are on averge 1/8 of an inch and can be difficult to cut with a standard paper trimer), get patterns, find additional tools and techniques, and even participate in some online classes. Just google "quilling" and check out all of the options.

Over all I think this book is wonderful for learning the basic techniques and after you learn the basics, share it with your kids and let them make some things while you are working on your crafty projects. The book retails for $16.95 (USD) and is definitely worth it for learning as well as getting the tools you need to try out your first projects.

The book and the materials it comes with (in my own tin)

The quilling tool (sorry I couldn't get a close up...it has a thin slot in it for the paper)


The monkey I made with the instructions in the book