Quilling Technique

Scrapbooking has come a long way in the last 10 years. There are so many scrapbooking resources, tips and techniques available to eager scrappers. Scrapbook magazines feature projects, new trends and crafting techniques like quilling.

Quilling or the art of rolling paper strips into designs is an old crafting technique that will make your scrapbook pages unique. Here is what you will need for quilling on your scrapbook pages:

• A quilling tool. This is a tiny metal tool that looks similar to a dry embossing tool, but it has a point on the end with a needle-like head.

• Thin strips of paper. Using lightweight paper is best because cardstock doesn’t roll as easily. Cut your strips about 1/16” to 1/8” wide.

• Scrapbooking glue. Liquid adhesive will probably be the easiest to work with.

The first step is to thread your paper through the needle head on your quilling tool, you can easily do this by slightly wetting the end of the strip of paper so it is easier to thread. It will also make it automatically roll around the needle so you can start to make your first paper roll. Practicing a couple of times might help you to familiarize yourself with the quilling tool and the paper rolling process.

You can choose to roll your paper strips tightly or more loose. For a tight roll, you will want to glue the end of the paper right when you take it off the tool, while holding it in place. For a looser paper roll, you can set the roll down and let it loosen a little before you glue the end.

The paper rolls don’t have to be just circles. Once you get the hang of the quilling technique you can experiment with different shapes by rolling each end of the paper or pinching one end to create a different shape. Quilling rolls can be made into flowers, balloons, bows, leaves, etc. Decorating your pages with quilling designs will give you a distinctive look for your scrapbook layouts. With quilling, your only limitation is your own imagination.