Quilling

What is QUILLING?

Quilling is a form of art that involves the use of strips of paper that are rolled, shaped, and glued together to create decorative designs. (wikipedia.com)

Here's a simple instruction of how to quil:

1. Take a strip of paper

2. Roll it

3. Glued

4. Shape it

5. Create decorative (?) designs 

That last bit of instruction, as you may notice is from the definition in wikipedia. I think the definition is very simple, especially the last bit which is "glued together to create decorative designs", honestly, made me laugh so hard. Not because it's funny, but because that last bit which sounds like the most simple part, is actually the hardest!

I took an interest in quilling when I saw a book of quilling in a bookstore. I just randomly open the book and think that it looks cool. Then, I bought some strips of paper and start quilling the very next day. FYI, I didn't buy the book, I just read through some pages. 

Well, this needed more time than I thought it would be. 

• First, the rolling part need some time and some trial along with some errors for me to get used to it. Well, maybe because I didn't use a quilling needle (some kind of tool to make you roll your strip of paper easier). 
• Second, the gluing part is especially disastrous. See the picture? That little space need just a bit of glue which will stick it forever. But 'a bit' is not sticky enough! So I put more (apparently a mistake), which lead to my description of 'disastrous' gluing part. Through a 'don't wanna lose' feeling (yea...I feel like a loser if I can't glue those little roles I made with so much effort!), I found out that it's easier to use a double tape (it's cheap, but don't use cheap brand cos it won't stick properly. Well, glue is cheaper but it won't be easier. Need extreme control or super small tip or experience). 
• Third, the shaping part is not that hard. Just a bit of pushing in certain areas. And some googling along with streaming. So many shapes to try! This is the most exciting part!
• Lastly, the part where you design your own stuffs. For some, it is the easiest part. For others, it is the hardest part. I belong to the second group. This designing stuffs is the hardest one for me. When I did a project, I keep rearranging the quilled paper. To make it easier, I usually design some kind of pattern or picture on a piece of paper before starting a project. However, the project will almost always look different from my initial drawing on the paper. I cannot make up my mind of how it should look like in the end. Hence, the hardest part for me.

This quilling is so time consuming. So, it is a great activity to pass time without knowing. I was so into it that I forgot to eat dinner. By the time I felt hungry, it was already 9:00 p.m. 

Jesie S.

Medan, Sat, 1 August 2015.

p.s. In the picture, I didn't use double tape to stick the paper. Instead, I use a small tip clear glue. I ran out of double  tape when I took that picture, so....bear with me, people.