Creative Papercrafts : Products : Quilling : Tips

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Always tear your quilling strips before using them, do not cut the paper. The tearing feathers the edge of the paper so the seam blends when you glue the end to hold the shape in place.
The needle tool will enable you to produce a fine hole in the center of your tight circles which the slotted tool will not. The start of the paper in the circle will be bent if you use the slotted tool.
Always dampen the end of the Quilling paper (on your tongue) before rolling on the needle tool. This will make the paper bind together at the outset instead of slipping off the needle. This, actually, is the basic trick to using the needle tool ... get started!
Always roll your Quilling paper as close to the tip of the needle tool as possible. You will also have the tightest circle when working at the tip of the needle.
The slotted tool is the easier tool to learn Quilling with but it does leave a larger hole with a slight bend in the paper in the center of the rolled shapes whereas the needle tool makes the tight circles perfectly. We have a super deal on a Designer Board (with sizing holes) and slotted tool you may want to check out. You basically get the board thrown in - our original board retailed at about $24.95 when we started carrying Quilling Tools.
The needle tool is required to make the spirals.
The slotted tool is our preferred tool for making long rolls such as those required for bells or flower pots. It is very difficult to keep the roll even on the needle tool over a longer length of paper. If the paper slips off to the side while rolling it will show when you push out the shape into the bell or flower pot.
There is a trick to managing a tighter center and having it stay in place using the slotted tool. When you first slip the Quilling paper through the slotted tool it should extend past the slot a little .. this bends as you roll. By placing a very small dab of clear white glue on the top side of the paper, not the side that will lay against the tool, as the paper is rolled the next layer will glue in place to the starting end of the paper and hold together. This is very helpful when you remove the large circle from the slotted tool as sometimes the center will tend to pull out.
The slotted tool makes wonderful folded roses, as illustrated in The Weekend Crafter by Melinda Johnston.
The slotted tool will also be required to create our new Papercraft Rose using the 5/8" paper. The instructions for the Paper Rose, the folded rose and a new zinnia are all included with the 5/8" Bright Mixed Quilling Paper. You will require the scalloped edge scissors (medium) for the Papercraft Rose. You will require the scalloped edge scissors (small) for the Zinnia. You do not even want to try to cut an even scalloped edge without the scissors! You may have first noticed the scalloped edges used in Martha Stewart's Valentines Issue.
Fringing Flowers by Hand. We actually prefer hand-fringed flowers and would like to share our trick for teaching "newbies" the way to create their own

Using short straight scissors, (these are great scissors), 3/8" quilling paper, cut about a 12" length. Draw a pencil line the long length of the paper about 1/8" from the edge. This is your cutting guide. Do not cut beyond it. Balance the scissors on your second finger for stability, hold the paper between your thumb and first finger. Feed the paper through the scissors right down to the base of the blades, making fine cuts up to the pencil line. Stop cutting when you have about 2" of straight paper left. Cut along the pencil line for this 2" section. This forms the center of your flower. Using your slotted tool, starting with that 2" end, roll and apply a dab of glue from time to time until your entire flower is rolled. Secure at the end with glue. Remove carefully from the tool. Hold the flower between both thumbs and first fingers, peel the fringed petals outwards with your thumbs. Wonderful! For larger flowers, use a longer length of paper.

For curly "Mum" flower petals, angle your scissors to the left and your cuts will curl, cut with the scissors straight up and down, you will have straight cuts.
New Innovation. Sometimes even a purist will want to cut a few corners or introduce something new and innovative to their creations. Let us introduce the Teardrop Punch to you. We use this tool to punch out petals from our wider papers to create small flowers. A circle of 4 or 5 petals will make quick and easy small flowers. Finish the centers with a small pearl or seed bead. We use our needle tool and shape the teardrops. To assemble the flower quickly, apply a generous dab of white glue in the center and, using your tweezers, place the pointed tip of each petal in the glue. Finishing with a bead in the center will cover any excess glue that shows. You can also use the teardrops to create instant leaves.
New Innovation. Our latest idea to share with you - Leaves the easy way. We have a really neat and easy-to-use punch that punches out three leaves with a stem all in one and ready to use. How cool is that! Come Christmas, you will welcome the Holly Punch.
Tweezers may not be necessary but working without them is tedious. The right tweezers will make all the difference. These fine-tipped tweezers are the best tool for picking up and placing your fine Quilled work.
If you are introducing friends or students to the craft of Quilling without benefit of their own supplies, provide them with round toothpicks and this will suffice to start them out. While a round toothpick will enable a student to produce limited rolls and scrolls, it will not produce the fine detail effect the needle tool will. As a base for their work, foam-core used in framing stores is great to them start with. The cork boards are, of course, far better to use once the student makes the decision to take up this craft.
If you are teaching with a limited funding for supplies, start the student with a needle tool. All the basic rolls and scrolls can be completed with this tool. As you may have noted from the information above, we use the slotted tool for the more complicated but less used shapes and designs. Also, it is a little more difficult to master the needle tool and a student may not want to do that after working with the slotted tool. Starting them with this tool in class will enable them to become familiar with the tricks to using the needle tool that they might not otherwise learn.
Use pre-embossed cards ready to place your design on an embossed background to set off your design.

Whether you are a Scrapbooker or card-maker, setting off your individual Quilled creations in a simple setting is both elegant, easy and quickly accomplished. There is a large selection of pre-embossed cards and envelopes available. The embossed backgrounds on the cards can also be colored easily using chalks or ink pads. Check out the samples in our Quilling Design Gallery. Check out the range of cards and envelopes available in the Accessories section.
Among the latest innovations in Quilling is the coloring of the surface of the finished designs to further enhance their appearance and detail them. You can use a fine round paint brush to apply coloring from a multitude of sources, like your stamping ink pads, your Watercolor Palettes or your Tombow Markers to name some. You may also notice that the Quilling papers themselves are coming with a selection of metallic finishes on the edges.