• Whimsical Bird Card
• Bright Floral Card

Whimsical Bird Card

Design by Ann Martin

Materials

• 5 1/2 x 5 1/2-inch white pre-embossed floral cards with envelope
• 2 x 2-inch green card-stock square
• 1/8-inch-wide graduated-color quilling strips: blue, purple, yellow
• Multicolored fibers
• Quilling tool: needle or slotted
• Plastic container lid
• Straight pins
• Corkboard
• Toothpicks
• Tweezers
• Small scissors
• Clear-drying glue

Project note: Refer to Quilling Techniques and Quilling Shapes.

Roll two 12-inch purple strips into loose coils. Referring to photo, pinch coils to form bird's head and body. Roll a 12-inch blue strip into a loose coil and pinch into a triangle shape to create the upper wing.
For top head feathers, make three V scrolls, one from a 2-inch purple strip, one from a 2-inch blue strip and one from a 2 1/2-inch yellow strip. Stack and glue the V together at their creases as pictured.
For legs, fold a 4-inch yellow strip in half and roll each end to create feet. Curve legs as shown.
For tail feathers, make two open scrolls using 2-inch purple strips. Make two open scrolls using 2-inch blue strips. Make three S scrolls; two using 3-inch blue strips and one using a 3-inch purple strip. Create the tail by clustering the scrolls as shown; glue uncoiled ends together.
To assemble, place quilled pieces on corkboard. Begin to connect pieces together, using toothpicks to apply a thin coat of glue where coils meet. Use straight pins to hold the pieces in place while glue dries.
Spread a thin layer of glue in a plastic container lid. Gently grasp the bird with tweezers and lightly touch its underside to the glue and position bird directly onto a green card-stock square.
Repeat the same process with the tail feather bundle and S scrolls using the picture as a placement guide.
Adhere green square to center front of card. Cut four quilling strips to fit around quilled bird as a frame; glue in place. Wrap multicolored fiber through card and tie a knot at top; tie several small pieces of fiber onto knot.

Copyright© March 2008 CardMaker magazine. All rights reserved.