Quilling Cafe blog

Tutorial – Christmas decorations quilling

Filed under Guest blogger, Tutorials by Elena Hoang on December 17, 2012 at 10:24 pm {2 comments}

Christmas is fast approaching and I imagine you already started to prepare your quilled decorations.

Here is tutorial for lovely decorative star made by Kasia.

You will need:

six strips 60cm long and 0,3cm width
twelve strips 45cm long and 0,3cm width
four strips 30cm long for middle coils
glitter glue (optional)
and of course glue and a comb and

The leaves are made using a quilling comb (or normal comb)

To make the small part of the star leave 6cm of the strip to wrap at the end. Wrap paper around third tine from loose part of paper strip . Pull the strip to the other side of comb and also wrap third tine (don’t forget to glue strips always after you make these two loops around the opposite comb tines (loot 3 photo) And we are wrapping six tines of the comb (each side)

That’s how it should look at the end

First photo shows small part (6 loops), second photo shows big part of the star ( 8 loops)

and that’s how it look when you took strips from the comb

you have to bend this to make leaf (upside down) It was hard to keep it in whole making photo but normally it shouldn’t fell apart like that…

and the final effect

Have fun!!!

http://kasiascreatives.blogspot.fi/

A celebration of all things quilling!

Filed under Guest blogger, News by Elena Hoang on December 11, 2012 at 2:37 pm {2 comments}

Lutterworth September 2012: the Quilling Guild’s annual celebration of all things quilling. Were you there? If so, like Elena and Andy Hoang, you are hopefully still glowing from the excitement and sheer pleasure of the experience … and if not, this article may at least give you a flavour of what you missed!

The main display room

As soon as the doors opened at 9.30am, the halls of Lutterworth College quickly began to ‘buzz’ with the excitement that always seems to be generated when the Quilling Guild comes to town! As old friends greeted one another and the regional displays were set out, the tables in the competition room quickly began filling up with quilled treasures before our very eyes!

Competition room with all the participating quilling on the tables

One of the first displays to greet visitors featured quilling from Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, brought specially to the UK for the event by Farah Al-Fardh. Continuing the international theme, we were also treated to exhibits from the Netherlands (Janetta van Roekel’s amazing ‘quilled shell’ projects), and a breathtaking display of floral cards from Japan, brought over by Shiro and Noriko Ono. A whole room was set aside for an exhibition of quilling by Diane Boden (formerly Diane Crane), giving many of us our first chance ever to see her amazing Teddy Bears’ Picnic, Mouse Wedding, Honey Bee and Sheep Boxes ‘in the flesh’. These, plus a huge array of Diane’s other masterpieces, inspired and humbled us all in equal measure!

Diane’s work

Three Guild members – Don Williams, Rosemary Record and Roxann Dragula – were presented with certificates acknowledging their recent attainment of Accreditation in respect of their quilling skills. Roxann then went on to draw an appreciative audience for her post-AGM demonstration of cup coils, followed by further demonstrations given by Margaret Lock (Christmas tree decorations), Angela Herring (vortex coils) and Jane Jenkins, who dressed up in 18th century costume to share the secrets of her quilled lavender sticks!

In between these popular demonstrations, everyone attending had the opportunity to browse through the absolute wealth of quilling strips, tools and crafting materials on offer for sale in the extensive traders’ hall.

As we lingered over these delights, the accreditation submissions and breathtaking regional displays, tension began to mount as the time drew near for the competition room to re-open following the counting of votes. For many, this was the crowning moment of the year, to discover that their creations had received the unqualified approbation of their fellow quillers.

All too soon, the presentations were made, the exhibits cleared away and the highlight of the quilling calendar was over for another year. Those who stayed on in Lutterworth over the weekend were able to get together again the following day to enjoy an informal yet highly instructive quillers’ Shared Ideas Day. All eyes are now focused on Liverpool next year, when the Guild’s long-held plans for a very special 30th anniversary celebration of quilling will come to fruition over the weekend of 9th – 11th August 2013. Further information will be published here in the Quilling Cafe, on the Quilling Guild’s website and on the Quilling Guild Facebook page. Get the dates in your diary NOW, for this is a quilling event that you definitely won’t want to miss!!

By Philippa Reid

United Arab Emirates’s display

Somerset’s display

Jordan’s display

Quilled Cards

Japan’s displays

Lancashire and Greater Mancester displays

South Yorkshire’s display

A quiller’s heaven – Quilling paper from JJ Quilling

UK Quilling Guild annual meeting

Filed under Events, Guest blogger by Elena Hoang on July 31, 2012 at 1:23 pm {one comment}

This year’s event will be held on Saturday 15th September 2012 at Lutterworth College, Bitteswell Road, Lutterworth, Leicestershire, LE17 4EW, UK from 9.30am – 5.00pm, and really should be a ‘must’ for every quiller’s diary.

Then, on the following day (Sunday 16th September), quillers are invited to a ‘Shared Ideas Day’ in the village hall at Cotesbach, close to Lutterworth, from 10.00am – 4.00pm. This event provides another great opportunity to get together with other quillers, meet the experts and share techniques and inspiration in a friendly, relaxed and informal way. Everyone who attends is simply asked to bring along one idea or design to share with the others. For this event, there is an entry fee of just £6.00 per person, to include tea and coffee.

Both days provide wonderful opportunities to socialise with other quillers and exchange ideas.

You don’t have to be a member of the Guild to attend these two events – but becoming a member actually makes a great deal of sense when you consider all the other amazing benefits that go along with it.

In case you have never thought about it before, here are just some of the many excellent reasons for quillers to consider joining the Quilling Guild:

* Be inspired by our seasonal 32-page colour magazine for members only, packed with patterns, ‘how-to’ articles and quilling news

* Exhibit your work at our annual displays

* Learn from the experts at our Shared Ideas Days

* Keep up to date with happenings in the quilling world through our exclusive members-only blog (COMING SOON …)

* Make contact with other quillers in your area through our friendly regional network

* Go for glory in our annual competitions

* Save money with special discounts on selected workshops, demonstrations and quilling supplies

* Obtain recognition for your quilling skills through our highly-regarded Accreditation Scheme

* Enhance your quilling knowledge with our specialist publications

* Be part of an internationally-recognised quilling organisation that has your interests at heart.

Members of the Quilling Guild don’t just come from the UK – they also include quillers from throughout Europe, America, the Middle East, Asia and Australia. In fact, the Guild has an active presence right across the globe.

View Larger Map

So don’t miss out! To become a Member of the Quilling Guild, simply complete and return the downloadable application form that you can access via this link: http://www.quilling-guild.co.uk/membapplicform.pdf or send an email to: bethqgms@hotmail.co.uk. We look forward to welcoming you!

By Philippa Reid

Quilling maple leaf tutorial

Filed under Tutorials by Elena Hoang on June 13, 2012 at 12:10 pm {3 comments}

I found a wicked quilling leaf tutorial on Kate’s blog and I wanted to share it with you.

It looks complicated but it’s easier than you think. She made a nice step by step tutorial with snapshots and description. Click here to get the details.

Do visit her blog as she is a talented quiller and among other stuff she posts there you’ll find beautiful quilled artworks.

Happy St. Patricks Day from Quilling Cafe!

Filed under Competitions by Andrew Hoang on March 19, 2012 at 11:28 pm {no comments}

Quilled Irishman by Gordana Mudri

This weekend was a big weekend for the Irish and we wanted to celebrate St Patricks Day with our network of quillers. Late last week, I put out a call on the network for quilling that celebrates all things Irish, and because we didn’t have much time we only got a single entry, but my what a good one!

This little cheeky Irishman was quilled by, who else, Gordana Mudri! For her excellent effort, she gets a special shamrock badge on her profile this month.

It’s not too late to join in the fun. If you want to make something belatedly for St Patricks day, drop by the Quilling Cafe network and upload your Irish themed creation today!

Easter Quilling Competition

Filed under Competitions by Elena Hoang on March 14, 2012 at 11:16 pm {no comments}

Easter Bunny by Gordana Mudri

This year, Easter Sunday falls on April 8th and with just under a month to go, we’ve noticed some exceptional examples of Easter quilling on the Quilling Cafe network already. We thought it would be nice to see what other great quilled Easter creations you can come up with, so for our first ever competition we want you to upload your Easter creations for the chance to win some card-making goodies. We’ve got some blank cards, envelopes (not pictured) and die-cut paper up for grabs for the winner.

To be in with a chance of winning, you need to be a member of the Quilling Cafe network. It’s free to join and full of quilling artists from beginners to seasoned artists, but everyone has an equal chance of winning.

To enter, just upload a photo to the network of your Easter creation before April 8th. The most popular photo on Easter Sunday wins the prize!

So how do you find out if your photo is popular? The Quilling network has a very cool “Most popular” section where you can see who the most active members are and how popular content is on the site. Content that people have commented on and shared is recorded by the system and becomes more popular, so the more people that like your photo the more likely you are to win!

So, what are you waiting for? Good luck!

Easter prize up for grabs - card making papers

Quilling network featured member – Gordana Mudri

Filed under Featured Artist by Elena Hoang on March 8, 2012 at 6:23 pm {no comments}

The Qulling Cafe network has now been open for 3 months and it’s time we celebrated some of the amazing talent that has joined us on the site since it started.

Gordana was one of the first artists to join the site and a relative beginner. She is from Croatia and this is what she says:

I have been doing quilling for 4 months. I discovered it by accident and since then, I do it in all my free time. Here in Croatia there are no tools or strips but this doesn’t prevent me working.

And it’s true! Take a look at her blog at to see how she improvised her quilling tool from an embroidery pin with the head cut off. Gordana is modest and puts her progress down to learning from other quillers on the internet:

I’ve learned from other bloggers. I thank them for generously sharing their experience and techniques. Quilling has completed my life. I wish that I had discovered it earlier. It works as a therapy and relaxes me from everyday worries.

We hope that others feel the same way and that the Quilling Cafe network can help quilling artists to meet and share their art and techniques. It’s a wonderful art and we love it. If you haven’t tried it yet, why not drop into the network and learn from some of the artists there or just look and be inspired.

Gordana is this months featured member as she is always active on Quilling Cafe network welcoming new members. She has natural talent having just started quilling and she gets better every day. She made loads of quilling so far and here are some examples.

If you like Gordana’s work, check out her personal blog and her page on quilling network.

Quilling cafe opens!

Filed under News by Elena Hoang on December 12, 2011 at 11:57 pm {one comment}

Hi all and welcome to Quilling Cafe! Quilling cafe is a labour of love by me, Elena Hoang, a UK-based quilling enthusiast and I aim to bring you the most up to date news, events and links from the world of paper quilling and filigree.

Over time, I’ll be adding tutorials, pictures and projects that will help you develop your quilling passion and I hope that you will help to build the site into the first stop for paper quilling on the internet.

The site is still a work in progress, and I suspect that the best contributions on this site will come from you, so I’ve tried to make it as easy as possible for you to contribute. For example, on the Events page you can easily put in details of any quilling events you know of.

In addition, The Quilling Cafe Network has been set up to help quillers to network with other quillers and show off their own work. Sign up today, it’s all free!

I look forward to seeing you around on the site, and do please feed back and tell me what you would like to see

Elena