Jul 29 2009
Coffee-Stained Quilling Experiment
I was having lunch one day with a good friend of mine, Marsha (hi, Marsha!) right after the launch of my blog and she was kind enough to listen to me as I told her about a tea-stained tag I saw on the ‘net and that I thought it would make good vintage background for a piece of quilling. Marsha made the comment, “I guess you couldn’t stain the actual quilling because it would fall apart because of the glue.” That comment stopped me in my tracks. I had never thought about staining the quilling. Could it be done? What would be the best technique to use? And most importantly, what would it look like? 
My curiosity was piqued and I had to find out.
My curiosity was piqued and I had to find out.You may be wondering about my use of coffee to stain the papers since tea is usually used. In our household, however, my husband is a coffee drinker and I make two small pots a day. So, instead of wasting a teabag, I used the coffee grounds still in the used filter for the staining.
The Process
I started by creating a quilled rose card (Fig 1) to use as the control for this experiment (remember your high-school science class?) to see what difference the staining made. The card consists of a quilled pink rose with mint green leaves on a white tag which is then layered on a rose stem printed paper and plain pink card stock. This was adhered to an ivory card (note: the actual folded card was never stained).
I then made a duplicate card, except I did not mount the pink card stock background to the actual folded card. I placed the piece on a plastic plate and dabbed it with the used coffee grounds (Fig 2). You’ll notice that only the tops of the quills were stained (Fig 3).
After the quilling dried, I adhered the stained quillwork to the folded card (Fig 4).
Next, I decided to stain the individual quilling papers and background papers used to make the quilled rose card (Fig 5).
The staining changed the look of papers giving them a more antique feel (Fig 6). You can see that the staining is more even on the quills when the individual papers are stained (Fig 7).
Fig 8 shows the completed card made from pre-stained quilling strips, tag, and background papers.
The final photo (Fig 9) shows the comparison of each card. (9A is the original control card, 9B is the card stained as a whole piece, and 9C is the card made from pre-stained pieces). My Thoughts
Staining the quilling as a whole piece is my least favorite technique. Already assembled, it was too hard to control the staining. I had a hard time getting into the nooks and crannies around the rose and the overall look is a bit too blotchy for me.
Staining the pieces individually gave me a lot more control. It was much easier to wipe away some of the stain if needed. The quilling papers crinkled up, but were easy enough to smooth out with my fingernail before rolling. You’ll note that I left the crinkle in the paper used for the tassel in this card since I thought it gave it more of a “fiber” effect. 
Overall, I like the looks of the card made with this technique. I think it looks like it was aged with time and gives a very romantic feel to the quilling.I would love to know what you think about my coffee-stained quilling experiement.
Please take a moment to send me a comment!
Spread a very thin layer of glue as large as your quilllwork onto a flat surface like a plate or plastic lid. Using a pair of tweezers, pick up your quilling, touch the bottom edges of the paper to the glue, then place it on the desired backing. A thin glue (such as Elmer’s) works best for this technique. If you normally use a thick, tacky glue for quilling, you might try thinning it with a drop or two of water. You want the glue thin enough to spread thinly and evenly over your flat work surface. A foam brush helps to spread the glue. If the glue is too thick, the loose center of the coils will stick to the gluing surface, pulling them apart and ruining your piece. This method works especially well when tendrils and vines are part of the design. Once you have the glue on the back of your quillwork, you need to attach it exactly where you want it. If you try and slide your quilling into the correct placement, you will leave glue smudges. Any glue you see will turn shiny and even though it is clear, it will be noticeable.
You can also use a small paintbrush to paint the glue onto the back of your quilling. Use care in touching only the bottom edges of the paper with the glue to avoid unwanted globs or smudges. Again, a thinner glue is easier to spread with the paintbrush. Tweezers are useful to help hold the quilling and assist in placement when glued. 
I actually don’t use either of these methods. I spread glue on the back of my quilling using a toothpick. I pick up a little glue on the tip of the toothpick and roll the toothpick over the quills. Depending on the design, I apply glue to the tight rolls and centers of the quills to allow a little more “wiggle room” when placing the quilling on my background. If glue is not over the entire back, I can slide the quilling just a tad if needed without the glue showing. If I do end up with a bit of glue on the background, I slightly moisten a fresh toothpick (you don’t want it dripping) and gently wipe up the glue. 
The beauty of this system is that it not only allows me to capture a brief description of my idea, but to include a sketch, crude as it may be, or attach the actual picture that provided the original inspiration. I scanned one of my cards to show you what I mean. It’s not “pretty” and I certainly had no idea at the time I made it that anyone else would ever see it, but I think it accurately 
