Rolled Paper Pendants

While trying to think of new ways to introduce quilling to all ages at a craft demonstration, I had the idea of rolling and stacking discs to make necklace pendants... it would be easy to do and by using a wide variety of colorful paper strips, I hoped they would appeal to children and adults alike.

I'm picturing young girls making them at a crafty-themed birthday party or as holiday presents for their friends. They could also be a mother-daughter project some weekend afternoon.

For the trio above I used metallic quilling paper in jewel tones which really dresses them up. A variety of pendant shapes can be clustered on a necklace or dangled from a backpack keychain. They'd even work well as miniature tree ornaments.

This colors of this one make me think of summer and striped buoys at boating events that mark the race lines. A complete tutorial can be found at Craftzine.

Happy Halloween! Here's a little something appropriate for the occasion - and I do mean teeny-tiny. Erica of Elated Life saw the post about paper eyelashes a while ago and decided to try making some with her die cutter to wear as part of her costume. It worked perfectly - here she is modeling the starry-eyed results - cute!

Julie Dodd - Paper Eggs

I came across the thought-provoking work of Julie Dodd recently via Twitter. She's an installation artist in England who uses discarded paper as her material of choice to focus on environmental issues.

Julie's concern about the decreasing number of migrating bird species due to loss of habitat (trees) and climate change in the UK, is what prompted her Paper Eggs project. She worked with magazines because of their fleeting nature, translating them into objects that possess a sense of permanence.

Julie says she often feels compelled to work in multiples. Her creations mimic life, growth and regeneration, thus this stunningly beautiful collection of eggs. Julie stacked and glued layers and layers of magazine pages, returning the paper to a wood-like substance which she then sculpted.

On a related note, she recently spent a year on a fellowship project at Wirral Metropolitan College in England where her body of work was similarly based on the declining number of trees and its impact on the planet. Julie created a miniature paper forest canopy to emphasize that carbon dioxide absorbing trees are the lungs of the world. A Year of Trees is well worth a look.


And now a new feature...

For those of you who don't get over to the All Things Paper Facebook page, (that's okay!) I occasionally share spur of the moment links there. Here are some Facebook Finds you might enjoy from this past week:

Stylish manifold clock
Intricate cut leaves (not paper per se, but amazing!)
Pretty printable gift boxes
Customizable printable 2012 owl calendar
Easiest design transfer method ever
Victorian newspaper dress

Coco Delay - Folded Paper Jewelry

Marti Emmons describes herself as a self-taught artist, jewelry designer, lover of all things paper, tiny, weird, and found... which made me like her right away.

Bird on a Wire

And then when I learned the name of her Etsy shop, Coco Delay, is actually her dancer - ahem, stripper name... you know, the little game where you take the name of your first pet and the first street on which you lived - well, that just drew me in even more.

Marti stocks the shop with necklaces she makes using folded bits of beautiful paper from exotic places. She says her paper passion keeps evolving; her current geometric line is the latest creation from a world that seems to offer limitless artistic inspiration.

This origami-inspired pendant features red and gold paper from Japan.

Teal green paper makes a tri-pendant look very much like leather.

And lastly... this "you draw" ring is nickel, brass, and wood - no paper - but I just have to show it to you anyway. Chalkboard paint is one of the most popular decorating trends at the moment, but this is the first I've seen it used for anything other than home decor - mighty cute!

By the way, I'm Ruby Henry. Please feel free to share your alternative name with the world too, if you're so inclined. :)

Oh, and one other quick thing... Diane Gilleland of Craftypod recently resumed her popular podcasts in which she interviews a variety of folks within the crafting community. (.99 via iAmplify) Yesterday I listened to the latest episode while working on a new project. Diane and paper-extraordinaire Jeff Rudell discuss finding your creative mission. You might enjoy it; I sure did.

Two New Books for Young Readers

You might remember the impressive magazine collages of Megan Coyle that caught my eye more than a year ago. Megan has been very busy since then creating thirty vivid designs to illustrate a charming story for small children.

It's about a sweet mallard and flying fish who meet one another at the beach and ponder what it would be like to live the life of the other. (Aw look, they're smiling!) Most of us wouldn't be able to bring personality and dimension to bits and pieces of flat magazine pages, but Megan makes it look easy.

Will Duck and Fish decide to trade places? I must say Fish looks pretty upset while flying over an airport!

But on the other hand, Duck seems to be getting along swimmingly in the underwater world. I wonder how things will work out?!

Duck and Fish can be previewed and purchased on Blurb.



Saskia Akyil and I met when she asked me for photography advice regarding the cover she'd just quilled for her first young adult novel. Yes, a quilled design on a book cover - what an eye-catching idea!

We struck up a conversation... Saskia, a young American mom living in Germany, was inspired to do the cover art after seeing Yulia Brodskaya's work. She's the first to admit she's a novice quiller. "I'm sure I'm not the only person who saw Yulia's artwork in Oprah magazine and thought "Wow, what is that? I want to do it!" Regardless of Saskia's skill level, the colorful designs on both the front and back covers will grab the attention of young readers everywhere. Maybe they'll even be enticed to give quilling a try - that would be nice!

I guarantee a teen adventure story involving summer romance in a foreign land (Turkey in this case, the homeland of Saskia's husband) would have appealed to me when I was a young teen. Wait... who am I kidding? It appeals to me now. :)

Secrets of a Summer Village, is listed worldwide on Amazon as a print book, as well as Barnes and Noble. It's also available electronically as a Kindle download from Amazon. The first chapter can be previewed here. Enjoy!

Halloween Die Cuts Giveaway

***This giveaway has ended. Scroll down to see who won!***

If you happen to be the proud owner of a digital die cutter, here's a quick giveaway that might interest you.

With Halloween drawing near, Cecelia Louie of Etsy shop Crafting Creatures will be emailing a set of digital files to make these coffin treat boxes to one lucky winner. The clever favors just might be the hit of your party... Death by Chocolate, Rest in Pieces, haha!

Cecelia says, Who has time to watch glue dry? Origami fold your die cut paper Halloween coffin into shape. The creepy coffin top and bottom comes with 6 cover designs and 3 extra spooky props. The digital die cutting file types include SVG, DXF, and STUDIO. Photographed folding instructions in PDF complete the package.

To enter, leave a comment that names the treats (or tricks?!) you plan to put inside the coffins. If you happen to be on Facebook, you may Like Crafting Creatures as an extra entry - be sure to state in your comment if you did so.

The giveaway will end Saturday night - yep, tomorrow! - at 9 PM Eastern. The winner will be selected by Random.org and announced on this post soon afterward. Cecelia will email the files to the winner, so please be sure to include your email address within your comment if you don't have a blog or website where it is readily available. Good luck!

For those of you who don't have a Silhouette or other die cutter, we can't have you feeling left out... perhaps make a whole colony of origami bats this weekend instead!

Congratulations to Kathy of Not Just Embroidery! Cecelia will be emailing the files to you soon. Thanks for entering everyone - you all had great ideas for filling the boxes. Sweet Tart Bones and white pretzel bones - I never would have thought of those!

Quilled Reindeer from Wintergreen Design

I don't know where I first came across Christa Cunningham's quilled 3D figures, but I do remember it was during the heat of the summer. As cute as they are, it's no wonder they've stayed on my mind all this time, just waiting to share when the calendar had moved a little closer to the holidays.

There's something so endearing about this little reindeer's big antlers and nose, not to mention the jaunty wreath around his neck.

Christa credits her mother with getting her started on quilling a couple of years ago after they saw quilled ornaments at a craft show. This led to her mom giving her a stash of supplies. Christa has been making original ornaments ever since and sells them via her Etsy shop, Wintergreen Design. She's created a collection of quilled Santas, elves, and angels.

I'll be back in just a moment with Part Deux of today's post - a very quick giveaway for those of you with an interest in digital die cutting.

Quilled Card and Digital Quilling

A couple of years ago I did a Quilling Basics article for CardMaker Magazine. The editor contacted me last summer about a special issue of card making techniques that was being compiled, to ask if I would send in a new pattern to supplement the original article. I submitted this floral design which is affixed to one of my favorite pre-embossed card blanks from DCWV.

Because the coils are quite small, it's not a quilling pattern I would necessarily recommend for beginners, but with the information provided in the article, it's one that could be built up to with practice.


The 37 Popular Techniques for Card Making - Fall issue - is now available from Annie's Attic as a digital download or as a print copy.

Speaking of digital, perhaps you remember my post about digital quilling that had been created by The Observatory in the Channel Islands. It generated a great discussion about traditional vs. digital quilling. Yesterday I was pleased when one of the graphic artists, Robbie, commented on the post. I'm sharing his response here, in case anyone is interested in his generous offer:

Hi there. I was one of the 2 guys that created these images and would just like to say thanks for the kind words. For those of you that are interested in how they were made, firstly Paul (one of our designers) created the flat vector in Adobe Illustrator using the work of the amazing Yulia Brodskaya as a point of reference (http://www.artyulia.com/).

I imported this vector in Cinema 4D and extruded it, setup the lights and camera and experimented with the final look. As the 'Artist Directory' image was the final piece for a client, we decided to strip out all colours we'd previously used and have plain 'paper' against a grey background.
If anyone is interested in a more in-depth process, let us know at beobserved.com and we could do a tutorial.

This is another digital example created by The Observatory for an exclusive events company. Really lovely, I think.

Spooky Halloween Silhouettes

Perhaps you remember the long list of amazing paper tutorials Jeffery Rudell wrote for CraftStylish.com a few years ago. I featured him here on All Things Paper when this blog was practically brand new, and believe it or not, his name still shows up as a top search term. Yes, Jeff's work is truly that memorable due to his gift of combining impressive, yet doable projects with a talent for storytelling.


You may have already seen the announcement on Craftzine or a number of other blogs recently, but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that Jeff has a newly released book. Out just in time for Halloween decorating, it's called Spooky Halloween Silhouettes: Punch-Out Window Shadows for a Haunted Home. The 28 designs look to be a simple and effective way to ready your house for any tricksters who come a-treating.


The impetus for the book was this Victorian home that Jeff decorated for a client by creating huge silhouettes for every window and door. Doesn't it look eerie-fantastic?!


Be sure to check out the new tutorial Jeff wrote for Craftzine that features three creepy silhouettes to get you started. He also gives instructions for enlarging the images to full window size.

Have you seen the lovely little video titled Whale Fall that's been flying around the internet the past few days? It uses paper cuttings and puppetry to demonstrate the decomposition of a whale carcass after it sinks to the bottom of the sea. Sounds pretty awful, but it isn't... in part due to the wondrous music by Rachel's that accompanies the rustic artwork.

The Paper Mojo Giveaway for two pounds of decorative papers from around the world ends at midnight tonight. Winners will be notified and their names will be posted tomorrow morning. Good luck!

Pixelated Watercolor

Amanda Wright, a designer of "stylish-y quirky" greeting cards and paper goods at Wit and Whistle in North Carolina, has shared a tutorial on her blog that shows how she created this very cool, pixelated painting.

I'm crazy about it... both the soothing colors and the concept, not to mention I can relate to what she said about doing the actual watercoloring: "I gravitate toward time consuming, monotonous tasks (especially when they provide a beautiful end result), so I thoroughly enjoyed the process."

You really need to see what inspired the painting to completely appreciate it, so yes, I'm foregoing my Fab-Friday-one pic-only mantra.


Amanda was editing photos from a trip to Iceland and mistakenly scaled down an image to just fifteen pixels wide. Truly a lucky accident, she liked what she saw and grabbed her watercolors.

The painting reminds me in the best possible way of the pixelated fabrics, furniture, and fashions of artist/designer Cristian Zuzunaga, whose work I had admired in the NYTimes Style Magazine not an hour before seeing Amanda's post. Kismet!

***Reminder: The Paper Mojo Giveaway for two pounds of decorative and handmade papers ends Monday, the 17th. Two winners; open worldwide.***

Quilling Tools

When I featured Licia Politis's incredible Quilled Day at the Races recently, I promised she would introduce us to the quilling tools that help her create such magic. Take it away, Licia!

The wooden handled tool is the very first one I used when learning to quill. It has a small slot that doesn't go all the way through the metal shaft - this is a different feature than most slotted tools. The advantage is that it makes it possible to produce a coil with a clean, smooth center (i.e. no crimp), as long as you roll the tool a few extra revolutions after the coil end is glued.

I used the wooden tool to make the checkerboard cylinders because it's great when you want to roll very, very fast. I can roll about a hundred per hour at my fastest rate...that's with the paper pre-cut and no interruptions. [Ann interrupts to say, Who says quilling is slow?!]

The other tool with the pink handle was homemade using a hair perm rod and tapestry needle, size 26. A hot air gun (embossing tool) was used to heat the pointed end of the needle, which was then carefully inserted into the plastic using pliers. The very tip of the eye of the needle was cut off, also with pliers, to create a slot where a strip is inserted. If the needle prongs are a little sharp, I file them on cement or bricks.

Using this needle tool you certainly can get the crimped result if you allow it. With a bit of extra rolling though, the coil will release from the tool. The pressure of the needle against the paper smooths the crimped end, making the center circular. When I start the strip in the needle, the paper is only just in the slot, not through the other side. This is important, as otherwise you won't be able to get the needle to release the paper when rolling those extra revolutions. It will also cause the fine needle to break, as the constant extra turns put a lot of pressure on it. I always miss an old, "broken-in" tool when a prong snaps!

I use the perm rod needle tool more than the metal tool, but the metal one has been very useful over the years. Instead of a perm rod, the tapestry needle can be inserted into a wooden dowel, but the soft rod is more comfortable to grip. The needle attaches so much better to the hot plastic too, and stays in place, unlike the way it can loosen inside a dowel, rendering it useless.


The slotted tool that Licia uses (slot doesn't go completely through the shaft) is available in Australia via Card Craft.


Charli and Gene from the quilling supply site, Two Bad Dogs, in the U.S. offer a somewhat similar handmade tool in which the slot doesn't go completely across the shaft (pictured above).

Denise at CustomQuilling, also in the U.S., has been working to have one produced. She's just waiting for the prototype so it can be tested.

Thanks Licia, for sharing your tool tips with us!

Welcome New Advertisers

***Reminder: The Paper Mojo Giveaway for two pounds of decorative and handmade papers ends Monday, the 17th. Two winners; open worldwide.***

Today I'd like to introduce you to the site's newest sponsors, naomi lynn and Navanka Creations.

A graphic designer in the printing industry by day, Naomi Lynn of Iowa enjoys designing cards and stationery as a way of expressing her artistic side. Visit Naomi's Etsy shop to see a modern assortment of paper goods.

For her line of floral note cards, she photographs flowers and then tinkers with the images digitally to create stylish silhouettes to great effect.

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Into vintage finds? Naomi can tailor-make these typewriter cards just for you!

I love using personalized stationery myself, and think it makes the perfect gift for both women and men. Naomi offers a full range of designs, colors, and font choices.

Navanka Creations is owned by sisters Amrita and Nimisha who hail from the state of Washington. They make artfully crafted home decor and gift items, many of which are quilled. An example: these bright and festive coasters composed of rolled paper coils.

Their Etsy shop's name is a combination of their children's names, so appropriate because they say the children have inspired them to make the world beautiful, one creation at a time.

Such precise quillwork and attention to detail! The shop's selection includes pretty greeting cards, gift tags and boxes, hair accessories, holiday ornaments, and wall art.

naomi lynn and Navanka Creations

Paper Mojo Giveaway

***This giveaway is no longer accepting entries. Scroll down to see who won!***

If you haven't heard of Paper Mojo, you're in for a treat!

paper covered tray

The company provides the finest decorative papers to designers, artists and paper enthusiasts, and at the same time bolsters the creative process of paper makers. It favors suppliers who are committed to supporting fair trade and environmental responsibility.

Paper Mojo was founded in 2003 by mother and daughter, Shelly Gardner-Alley and Megan Alley. When they relocated to North Carolina from Pennsylvania a few years ago, Sara Joyce joined the team. All three women are self-confessed paper addicts who enjoy working directly with customers to help them find the exact paper they're seeking.

glossy decoupaged eggs

embossed paper favor boxes

When you browse Paper Mojo's selection of papers from all over the world, I guarantee your creativity will be inspired... Japanese prints, marbled patterns, batik and spot dyed, iridescent and metallics, watermark lace, flecks and threads, embossed and embellished... well, you get the idea! They also offer decorative accents, tools, adhesives, and cardstock packs.

paper covered pencils

paper covered tins

Along with selling a huge array of papers by the individual sheet, Paper Mojo features an enticing Creativity Box. Each box contains two pounds of decorative and handmade papers - that's a lot of paper!

Scraps vary from 3 x 3 inches to 8.5 x 11 inches, perfect for collage making, scrapbooking, card making, or any other paper art project you can name. No two boxes are alike and each includes a variety of colors and textures with very few duplicates.

Paper Mojo has generously offered to send a Creativity Box to two lucky winners worldwide. To enter, just leave a comment on this post. Be sure to include your email address within your comment if you don't have a blog or website where your address is readily available. You may earn up to two extra entries by liking All Things Paper and/or Paper Mojo on Facebook. Tell me if you've done this within your comment or as a separate one.

The giveaway will close at the end of Monday, October 17th. Winners will be announced on this post and on the All Things Paper Facebook page the next day. They will also be notified by email. Good luck!

a beautiful paper flower made by Megan Alley

look how big it is!

Please note: I've not received compensation in any form from Paper Mojo in exchange for doing this giveaway.

Congratulations to Witchylana and Kiddo, who were selected by the random number generator at Random.org. The comments were so much fun to read - there was even a poem! I've enjoyed keeping a running list, adding in the Facebook mentions as they rolled in.

Phiona Richards - Book Sculptor

One thing I know to be true... wearing paper jewelry is a great way to get conversation started. I'm positive that would be the case with the captivating pieces Phiona Richards makes from retired books. She combines stitching with folded book pages in a myriad of ways - for example, this playful Four Bead Necklace that looks both vintage and modern.

Phiona began her career as a book sculptor while at De Montfort University in England by carving reclaimed books with a band saw, blade, and scissors. "As a child I was brought up with the importance of 'make do and mend', a phrase that stays with me to this day. I take my inspiration from needlework techniques that historically form part of a woman's ritual domestic routine."

Shortly after graduating in 2008, Phiona was named a Young Meteor at Lustre, a Contemporary Craft Makers Market. She was requested by the event organizers to create a new body of work for the show, which led to her signature jewelry line. Phiona calls the collection Organic Repose as it embodies femininity - natural, but sophisticated.

See more of Phiona's work in her Rare Notions gallery.