Wrapped Paper Hearts Tutorial

Licia Politis sent over this photo of wrapped paper hearts she's been working on and I immediately had the thought, Oh good, another Licia-DIY! She's the idea person/photo-taker and I write up the steps... gotta love teamwork. :)

Licia was inspired to make these hearts after seeing natural, cane-wrapped stars in the shops at Christmas. They look like fun and are easy to do.

two heart shapes wrapped randomly with red and gold quilling paper strips

Make them as Valentine's Day decorations or as a crafty activity at a birthday party. Metallic paper adds a bit of glam. Young girls can add a jump ring and chain to wear as a necklace. You could also glue one on a card along with the sentiment Wrapped in your love... or I'm so wrapped up in you! 

Supplies:

Pre-cut quilling strips or any medium-weight paper cut into strips
Round object to use as ring coil form
White glue
Quick drying glue
Straight pins
Cork board
Necklace chain - optional

Quilling and paper craft supplies I recommend can be found in my Amazon shop

Steps:

1. Make a ring coil as the heart base:
a. Roll a paper strip around a glue bottle, jar, or whatever object is on hand that is roughly the diameter you would like your heart to be. There's no need to glue as you roll, as long as the paper is held firmly. When the strip end is reached, glue it in place.

b. Glue one end of a second strip immediately next to where the first one ended. The two ends should meet, butting up against one another. Continue adding strips to the ring coil until it is sturdy and about 1/8 inch thick. Slip the coil off the form.

Wrapped Paper Hearts Tutorial

2. Make the heart shape:

Pinch the ring coil to indent it. Smooth a coating of glue on one side of the coil, pin it on a cork board to preserve the shape, and allow the glue to dry. (There's an excess of glue shown here for illustrative purposes.)

3. Now the fun part - randomly wrap paper strips around the heart:
a. Apply a dot of quick-drying glue on the end of a strip and press it to the back of the coil. Wrap the strip around the heart until a good stopping place is reached on the back. Glue it in place and trim excess paper.

b. Glue the next strip on the back of the heart ring anywhere you like and continue wrapping. As more strips fill in the heart, glue the strips where they happen to end, overlapping another strip slightly. Make sure the strips are always joined on the back of the heart for a tidy look.

Wrapped Paper Hearts Tutorial

For a pendant:
Make a small ring coil by wrapping a paper strip around the indentation of the heart. Check to be sure the opening is large enough for the chain to slide through. Glue the end in place.

Here Licia has added an extra charm to the chain - cute!

paper heart frame on chain and wrapped with quilling strips to wear as a necklace

Here's another Valentine project from Licia!


Ann Martin
Ann Martin

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Comments

  1. Wow...Superb..Thanks for sharing, Ann!

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  2. Very pretty!!!. Looks easy too . Sure will give it a try.

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  3. Not too sure what you used for ring coil, but this is so pretty. On similar lines had made a star ornament last Christmas.No paper though. http://craftideasforall.blogspot.com/2012/12/chenille-stem-star-ornament.html
    Will try this too. Thanks for sharing

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    Replies
    1. The ring coil is quilling paper, but you can cut your own strips if you prefer. Thanks for the link to your cute star ornament.

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  4. This is really nice. By looking at it I would never guess that the heart you are wrapping is also paper

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  5. Gotta give this a try! Very unique!

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  6. Fun project! I had the same question about the 'ring coil'...which looks like metal in the photos.

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  7. the ring coils have all been made with quilling strips which has been wound around a piece of rigid card. the more strips used the thicker the ring coil. i used metallic egded quilling strips in the red heart...therefore giving the illusion of metal. hope this helps. licia politis

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  8. Excellent!

    What is very interesting is that the framing is paper strips also. I initially thought it was wire.

    Its a great idea for using recycled papers too...gift wrap, magazines, junk mail... All kinds.

    Thank you so much...its really pretty and a wonderful project.

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  9. I love this idea with the quilling paper. Always something new coming along...

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  10. Have been looking for some information about quilling, never tried it before and would really like to. This looks like a great place to start.
    Thanks so much, looking forward to making this and other paper crafts.

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  11. I'm happy to hear that, Phanti. Yes, there are lots of quilling tutorial links at the top of the page. Have fun with paper rolling.

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  12. Might be a silly question, but how do you get the heart shape?

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    1. Suzanne, check out steps 1 and 2. A ring coil is another way of saying a circle. Once you've built up layers of paper as shown, pinch the circle to create two 'bumps' that will be the top of your heart shape.

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  13. I answered my own previous question. ;) But, I totally love this project.

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    Replies
    1. I'm happy to hear that... I hope you'll make it!

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