Make a Quilled Halloween Witch Card

What a hoot it was to make this Halloween card that has just a bit of quilling to give it dimension. I had a good time adding all sorts of extras like shiny table confetti spiders from a party decades ago... yes, of course I'd saved them since that's what DIY card makers do!

 

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Also a metal stake of some sort that looks pretty lethal (you just can't see the pointy tip in these photos), and then I had the idea to twist several colors of embroidery floss and tie them around the card's spine. The beads were leftovers from a kit my sons had been given when they were in elementary school. Considering they're now in their thirties, many witches have flown past the moon in the years since then.

 

 

I printed the greeting on white printer paper, placed a layer of black card stock underneath and a deckle edge rectangle of orange vellum on top, and adhered all three with a couple of spiders and the stake, raising them on adhesive dots.

I drew the legs on lime green card stock, cut them out, and added 1/8-inch (3mm) strips of black quilling paper as stripes. The rectangles the legs are placed on are black card stock and white printer paper. I used double-stick tape to adhere them to one another and the card - and lastly orange vellum, held in place with spiders (glue shows through translucent vellum so it's usually best to find an alternative).

 

I came up with the idea to make this leggy design after seeing some rubber stamps that featured witch legs a la The Wizard of Oz, and then this photo (above) shared on Instagram by @piipislife in Finland, cemented the idea. I had metallic copper paper on hand so cut out a pair of buckles with small, sharp scissors instead of fooling with teeny laces.

 

 

Notice that four quilled shapes make up each shoe - or shall we assume this is an on-trend witch and call them booties instead? Let's!

 

Experienced quillers will recognize how to replicate the shapes just by looking at them, but even if you're new to quilling, with practice I'm sure you'll be able to do it. To get started, see my beginner quilling tutorials: basic flower and leaf and simple seashells. You may also find this page of Frequently Asked Quilling Questions helpful. By the way, I'm always happy to answer your quilling questions.

 

To make each quilled coil, roll a 10-inch (25.4cm) strip of black 1/8-inch (3mm) quilling paper on the quilling tool of your choice. Many beginners start with a slotted tool as it grabs and holds the end of the strip. This is easier than controlling the strip on a needle tool.

 

When you've reached the end of the strip, slide the coil off the tool, pinch it to make one of the following shapes, and glue the end. (Make two of each shape.)

 

1. inverted triangle for the top of the bootie

2. arrow for the heel

3. rectangle for the instep

4. shaped arrow for the pointed toe

Glue the four shapes together to make each bootie. I prefer clear gel adhesive, but white craft glue is fine too. Be sparing with the glue... it doesn't take much! Glue the copper buckles in place, dab a bit of glue on the back of each bootie and position them on the legs. Voilà!

Do you like to send Halloween cards or is it all about the candy in your house?