Quilling Letters 101 - Part 3 Joining Corners

When joining corners in quilling, I usually end up snipping off the excess. However, when joining corners in letters, there is less leeway because it can offset other areas, causing the disruption to be noticeable in other parts of the letter. Here is a tip for the times when trimming the excess is not an option.

I use two pieces of plastic dividers (from my storage bins) and tape them together as shown, offsetting them to get a perfect 90° corner. Place the letter with the unjoined corner facing the plastic corner and practice the movement needed to bring the two ends together — don't kiss the glue yet!

When I say "movement", I simply mean that I often test what I plan to do before I commit to it. Testing how a join will happen allows me to if notice something is wrong (maybe I didn't trim at a 90˚ angle), and then I have a chance to fix it before I have to undo the work. It gives me a sense of confirmation without worrying about the glue drying.

After "kissing" (as shown in Part 1) my glue with the horizontal strip, I am placing the vertical strip (on left) up against the corner and then pinning it with my horizontal end. I then hold this in place for about half a minute until the glue has time to set and dry.

OK, I will admit that sometimes I'll take a peek ahead of time and ensure the join is to my satisfaction, and then hurriedly putting it back in place. I even run my tweezers gently along the join to press it more firmly together. If there is any glue seeping out from the join, now is the time to remove it with a tissue before it dries.

Here is my finished letter B. If this series helps you make quilled letters, I'd love to hear about it in the comments below.

My newsletter subscribers will receive a PDF pattern to make this letter B! To receive the download link, simply subscribe and confirm. A thank you email will be sent to you automatically after confirmation, where you'll find the download link (if you have any difficulty, please email me at paperzeninfo (at) gmail.com.

In my next post, I'll be showing how to quill the letter E.

For those of you who enjoy my digital die cutting, here is a project in progress – party favor for treats in the shape of Santa's hat, and elf hat, and a Christmas tree. I'm so distracted decorating it!