Versatile Quilling Artist - Stacy Bettencourt of Quantum Artistic

Paper filigree designs by Stacy Bettencourt of Quantum Artistic and Quantum Artistic on Etsy (formerly Mainely Quilling) have a beautiful, precise style... each coil is placed with thoughtful attention. I met Stacy via Instagram, and then again when I joined the Contemporary Quilling Facebook group. It was Stacy's idea to start the vibrant group where members are encouraged to share information and photos, ask questions, and post links that are of interest to all.

While Stacy has a Master's degree in Technical Writing, she is currently working as an accountant and has been an adjunct professor and adult education teacher. However, it is safe to say that some of her favorite hours are the frequent evenings she spends quilling in the company of three cockatiels.

Stacy also has dogs and a cat and is an animal lover in general... many of her quilling subjects have been animals, although a recent project currently receiving rave reviews on IG is this eye-catching blue and white mandala.

Lion; a mix of 1/8 and 1/4-inch strips, in progress - 17 hours in

I asked Stacy if she would like to be interviewed and was glad when she agreed... I've been curious how she is able to be so prolific and quickly switch gears from perfectly symmetrical mandalas and on-edge monograms to playful animals.

Tell us about your quilling style and process.

I often feel like the tomboy of quilling... on Instagram all I see are flowers, bright colors, hearts and other ultra-feminine quillwork, and then I look at mine and I see nothing but animals and other less-than-frilly subjects. For a while, my quilling stash rarely had a rainbow color in it! I was always ordering browns and greens and natural tones.

I quill because it's an outlet and without it I go crazy. I always need to be in the process of releasing the creative energy that builds up inside me. I often work almost manically on a project and when it is finished it's like I can finally experience calm inside. It's a fulfilling process when I'm doing it for myself or loved ones.

How do you go about choosing your next subject?

When I'm creating something for myself, I choose the subject with my heart. I will think of a memory or a feeling I had and the object that represents it becomes my subject. For example, my mother's house and the church where I was married in Maine.

 State of Maine

I'm a nature photographer during the summer so birds are a big theme with me. I stalk them with my lens when it's warm and with my quilling tool when they've flown south. The lion was made to symbolize my birth sign and its companion was supposed to be a scorpion to symbolize my husband, although I was sidetracked with a horse.

What is it about quilling that you find particularly special? 

I still draw and paint on occasion, but I like the challenge of the paper, as well as the fiddly nature of it. I'm a bit of a compulsive and I absolutely LOVE being able to let my inner perfectionist loose on a project. It's like heaven for my brain... micromanaging every single tiny piece of paper and putting it exactly where I want it.

Targaryen Sigil from the Game of Thrones books

2020 Edit: Stacy took an extended break from quilling and closed Mainely Quilling, but she is back now as Quantum Artistic on Etsy and has a website, Quantum Artistic.

 

By the way, Julide Belen, another terrific quiller I met via Instagram and the Contemporary Quilling Facebook group, has just started a YouTube quilling channel where she shares tutorials that are very well done... just in case your fingers are itching to give quilling a try after seeing these appealing works!

 

All Things Paper is an AWIN (Etsy) affiliate.