Book Review: Paper Quilling for the First Time

Paper Quilling for the First Time by Alli Bartkowski. Published by Sterling Publishing Company, 2006. 112 pages.

I rate it … very good!

4.4/5.0

See my post about book reviews for details about my review criteria and biases.

If I had an adult friend who was interested in learning quilling, this is probably the book I would get for them.  This book almost has it all, and what it does have is nicely photographed, well detailed and a pleasure to use.  I don't think I'd use it for a young person (projects are more functional rather than just fun), but I think the book is well suited for an adult.

What I liked:

This book is laid out a little differently than others, focusing on beginners and their questions.  Each section (such as Section 2, The Basics) is motivated by subheadings in the form of questions (such as How do I make a folded rose?).  This lends a relaxed feel to the book that I think would appeal to a beginner.  The quality of the quilling is very good throughout the book.  The tutorial shows examples of good and poor quilling, and what can cause problems.  All the necessary techniques are illustrated, and then some.  Pictures are plentiful, and instructions are clear.

What I liked less:

I really missed a history section, but you know my bias there - I just think a beginner's book needs some history.   I thought the projects got a little too difficult too quickly, but this is a minor point.  The projects were not as appealing to me as some other books, but given I'm not a beginner, the book isn't targeted to me.  I thought some of the projects needed more detailed line drawings of the actual patterns.  The gallery of projects at the back is nice, but I wanted more.  (I always do :)

Overall, I'd recommend this book for an adult beginner.  As a collector I'm glad to have it on my shelf, and there are a few tidbits here and there that help spark the imagination even of a seasoned quiller.

Ideas for Quilling - Designs and Motifs of Ancient Mexico

Books on designs and motifs.

As I mentioned in my post "Ideas and Inspiration for New Quilling" one of my sources for new ideas are books with designs and motifs around a given theme.  My theme for today is "Ancient Mexico."  In this case the motifs are from the native cultures of that part of North America.

The classic calendar - I'd love to
quill it, but just haven't
quite figured out how, yet.

I lived for 14 years in southern Arizona, and came to appreciate and enjoy a lot of the native art from both that part of the US and of Mexico.  I've always wanted to spend some time quilling some related art of my own, but just haven't focused on it yet.  There always seems to be something more pressing.  Still, I have the books as well as so many pictures taken during those years, and so I can't say I don't have quite a bit of inspiration right at hand.

A smaller motif perfect for
a quilling project.

At first I was concerned that all the designs would be too difficult.  The initial designs I encountered were very complex - like the Aztec calendar.  I thought designs like this were amazing, but I didn't want to quite commit to figuring out how to quill a highly involved scene (at least back then).  But as I looked, I eventually started finding smaller motifs, and began to find a bit more practical inspiration.

These native motifs are not quite the same as say Celtic ones, where you have a lot of ready made knots and spirals right there to follow.  Instead, these designs have other elements, such as dots, feathers, and plenty of curving shapes.  They are really perfect for quilling, just in a different way.  I'm planning to quill the motif above.  I can envision places for fringe, feathers, long coils of paper, and more.  Now I just have to figure out what all the colors should be :)  And I'm not giving up on quilling the calendar.  Just ... maybe not right now.

Image Credit:  My pix from my books.  They are:  Ancient Mexican Designs by Gregory Mirow, and Design Motifs of Ancient Mexico by Dover Clip Art.

Ideas For Quilling - Celtic Designs and Knots

As I mentioned in my post "Ideas and Inspiration for New Quilling" one of my sources for new ideas are books with designs and motifs around a given theme.  I'm going to post about a few of them here on the blog.  Today's theme is "Celtic."

This celtic cat is a purrrfect design
for expression with quilling.

Celtic designs seem perfectly matched for quilling, since they so often include spirals, knots, and other flowing forms.  I have picked up a selection of books over the years, and whenever I need some inspiration on this theme, I flip through them.

Design books might include CDs with images you can load right up on your computer for manipulation.  And the best part is that many of these sorts of resources are specifically created to be copyright-free.  (Always be sure to check the copyright - even Creative Commons licenses are usually not for commercial purposes.  But quilling them for your own personal use is often allowed.)

A piece I've copied and started
coloring in.  Making multiple
copies allows you to experiment
with colors without damaging
your book.

The designs will range from simple motifs, to stand-alone drawings, to complicated scenes.  Many of my Celtic motif books have smaller designs that seem ready to go for quilling, such as animals.  I've been known to take a nice line drawing, blow it up to the size I need using a copy machine, and then color it in with my colored pencils.  It's then easy to use as a pattern for quilling.

Instructions for how to
draw your own knots.

Some books will specifically have instructions for you to make designs yourself.  My book of Celtic spirals does not just have lot of examples, it shows you how to start with basic spiral elements and turn them into a chain of connected knots.  Something like this would be great inspiration for a picture border or the frame of a Celtic central piece, quilled or otherwise.  My only concern is getting all those spiral pieces of paper to intertwine so nicely ... I'll need to practice that :)

Have you done quilling along a Celtic theme?  Where did you get your ideas, and how did to go about making the complex curling forms?

Image Credit:  My pix of my own books.  They are: Celtic Spirals and Other Designs by Sheila Sturrock, Celtic Designs by Mallory Pearce, and Celtic Designs for Artists and Craftspeople by Dover Clip Art.

Looking for Artists to Interview!

Real flowers - always inspiring!

Are you an artisan who makes:  quilled items, origami, paper or gemstone jewelry, or the like?  Do you have a penchant for spirals and enjoy wrapping/coiling/folding?  Then I'd like to chat with you about a possible email interview!

Interviews are one feature I really want to have here on the blog.  I am looking for the opportunity to learn more about these arts and crafts as well as the people who do them.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who would be fascinated by the stories of quillers and other crafters, so what could be better than a bit of an interview, along with a few featured photos of completed work?

You don't need to be an 'expert' or have been doing your art for a long time.  I'd like to get email interviews from a range of people at different stages in their artistic careers, various ages, and in different places on the planet.

If you think you might be interested in being interviewed via email and having some of your work featured here on the blog, let me know by commenting on this post.  Make sure to give me some idea how I might email/contact/message you.  (If you are on DeviantArt you can always send a note to my profile there, SpiralArtisan.)  It would be helpful to send a link to a website/gallery/facebook page/whatever that has some of your art on it, so I know you are 'for real.'  After that, I'll email a list of questions, and request that you let me post about three pieces of your art, along with the answers to the questions.  And that's all there is to it!  I'll try to get posts up within a week of getting answers back, as long as life does not interfere.

And in the mean time, if you have a blog, website, or other resource you think I should be checking out, make sure to mention it!

Image Credit - My flowers, my photo.  A good one for a change :)