Last year I reviewed some pre-cut shapes from Quilled Creations to make flowers (Spiral Roses.) When I circled back around to their booth this year at CHA, I was super-excited to see that this year, they have quilling dies! Now you can use your favorite papers to make your lovely quilled paper flowers.
There are four different sets available, all shown above.
- Blooming Roses Dies: includes three square dies to make small, medium and large roses. Will also make two leaves.Â
- Garden Favorites Dies: Includes three square dies to make a gardenia, peony and a daisy. Will also make two leaves.
- Wildflower Dies: Includes three long dies for stamen, round petal and pointed petal flowers.
- Fringed Mum Dies: ncludes three long dies for small, medium and large mums.
There is also a set of cutting plates, which are highly recommended.
The dies themselves, are VERY thin- very similar to Sizzix Framelits.
So I decided to test out the dies with the 2 machines I had on hand- the Cuttlebug and the Spellbinders Grand Calibur.
First, the Cuttlebug:
When I went to use the Grand Caliber using the same configuration (the base plate that comes with the machine and then the Quilled Creations Dies/plates on top) it was too thick to go through the machine. After a few experiments, it became clear that you cannot use the Quilled Creations plates at all- just use the Grand Caliber base and cutting plates for perfect cuts.
So, okay- so far, so good. You can use different machines (remember that the Sizzix machines are very similar to the Cuttlebug) and it will cut cardstock. (I didn’t try different materials, because theoretically you’d still want to quill the material- so that means paper.)
I spritzed the die cuts with some Tattered Angels Chalkboard Mist and let it dry. Now to quill!
To turn these shapes into flowers (that is, for the dies that make spirals) you start on the outside of the spiral and insert the end into the slotted tip of the quilling tool. Then twirl the tool, which will cause the paper shape to twirl round the tool. Remove it from the tool and let it open a smidge. Then ad a dab of glue to to the “pad” in the center to keep it from losing it’s shape.
Presto! Quilled flowers!
I also got a little adventurous and cut some Post-It paper from the “Wildflowers” die. Yes, it cut through the adhesive paper perfectly AND made an interesting border on this card.
Just goes to show that you don’t even have to make flowers every time to use these cool shapes. Personally, the negative space of the peony kind of looks like a nautilus to me. I think I might use it as a stencil for misting spray inks. And the Fringed Mum dies would be perfect for making dimensional grass out of paper without buying fringing scissors.
I love that for about $17 USD you can get a set of THREE dies in the package- that’s a great value- AND you can use up all sorts of scraps to make custom flowers. AND you can go even further by misting your papers so that they match your projects perfectly. Think of all the money you an save on flower stickers and embellishments by making your own!
And it’s easy too- just look at this video from Quilled Creations, showing you how to cut the shape, quill it up, and secure it.
I’m going to have a ball making flowers. What do you think? Leave me a comment or ask a question!
Disclosure: samples provided for review.
If you are considering purchasing these products, please support CTD by using our affiliate links:
- Spooky Spider Halloween Bookmark Craft - October 24, 2018
- Review and Demo of LDRS Hybrid Ink Pads - October 15, 2018
- Review and Demo of Nuvo Hybrid Inks - October 1, 2018
- Craft Studio Tour and Organization Ideas - September 20, 2018
- Wax Paper Resist Background Technique - March 20, 2018
- Comparison of Liquid Watercolor Markers/Pens - March 16, 2018
- SAI Japanese Traditional Watercolor Brush Markers- Review & Demo - February 23, 2018
- Rinea Metallic Foil Paper & Ghost Ink Review - February 21, 2018
- Jane Davenport debuts at Creativation 2018 & Watercolor Card - February 13, 2018
- Creativation 2018: New Product Showcase - January 20, 2018