Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Not Forgotten...

My dream is still heavy on my mind... making Reves En Papier, truly what I envision. Unfortunately, time is not readily available and in large quantities at that so it has been VERY difficult to quill and work on Reves En Papier's name.

BUT I never forget its progress, my dream, the possibilities, and all I CAN and WILL eventually do to build REVES EN PAPIER!!!

In the meantime, I am engaged, happy, and EXTREMELY busy. With 2 jobs (working 7 days a week) and planning my wedding - it has been quite hectic. This year teaching is going better than expected and certainly WITHOUT A DOUBT better than my past experiences so I look forward to each day at work... for new experiences.

With that said, I have not forgotten and look forward to orders that will bring me back to another happy place of mine. Or maybe even me coming up with a unique project idea...

We'll see and PLEASE don't forget about me and Reves En Papier.

Feel free to drop me a line, send me some suggestions, put in a request.

With love,
Jenni

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Wow! Summer has flown by...

I cannot believe it's September already! It's been a fantastic summer and I'm looking forward to a good year. Let's catch up!

The end of summer camp in New Rochelle went really well! My students really LOVED quilling and everyone finished their awesome projects! It's always a bonus when the students go above and beyond expectations! They were excellent all summer long and their artwork displayed their creativity, their new knowledge of quilling, and their freedom to express their interests!! Check out some of the photos of the kids working hard and the GREAT finished pieces of work the students created:


Working Photos:






Adding details!


For those that needed guidance on their final paper, they resketched their idea as an outline for their quilled pieces! Differentiation! =) (It's the teacher in me!)


Coming along!


Example of the sketching.





Notice the sketch before the gluing. I like my students to sketch their idea out onto paper BEFORE making and gluing all of their quilled circles. By doing this, they know what they need for their project and when they do start gluing on the final pieces, there are less opportunities for accidents or mistakes. The students seemed much more confident when doing their final pieces since they had their sketch to guide them!


Practicing using the tool and the glue pens (Day 1)


Yay! Quilling!




Finished Works of Art:
WARNING: PREPARE TO BE WOW-ED!!!!!!!


Check out the sting ray in this ocean scene!


Grass, flowers, and a sun... wow, a cloud too!!


Awesome creativity on this one! Celebrating the New York Yankees.


Rain and butterflies!!


Under Sea Adventure!! It's a shark!!! Ahh!!


Check out the swimmer in the middle!
Great details added too!


Pink jellyfish, blue octopus, bubbles... Wow!


Great design/pattern on this Yankee symbol!!




This student incorporated their favorite cartoon too: Spongebob!
Check out the fish and the eyes of the fish!


What a great sun! I love when the kids do their own thing and don't follow models or their friends!


The Yankees were popular!



This student went for the pinstripe effect! Great work!


Tropical sea!




Some students did their names. Ashley was very organized and neat!
Love it!


Teaching the summer program students how to quill was a great experience and so much fun! They learned quickly and LOVED EVERY SECOND OF CLASS!!
They asked questions, explore different ideas, and in the end, IMPRESSED ME with their great work and positive attitudes! Every child was pleased with their finished project and practically BEGGED me not to keep them for the display in school this September. I promised they'd get it back from the summer program coordinator in September! I bet they'll be excited!

Friday, August 6, 2010

Haven't forgotten...

I haven't forgotten about quilling. Actually, the complete opposite- I'm on a roadtrip and wish I had my hundreds of colors to work on some projects. It's been a great time so far and am full of new ideas for when I return so check back soon!!

If you haven't done so already, click "Follow" on the right side of the screen to follow my blog!

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Dancing Nancy... Fire Dancer

In the past 3 years, I have become a true Dave Matthews Band fan. My boyfriend collects posters and with my recent concert performances, I've purchased the latest woman's shirt. Mike asked me if I would create a poster replica! I couldn't wait to begin! This was the first time I had used a new surface and a new step into the process.

Here's the image I found online that he liked and wanted me to replicate:



Typically, I use foamboard or oaktag as a base or foundation. Sometimes cardstock. If I can find the oaktag or foamboard in the base color I need - PERFECT! If I can't I usually color in the base to my liking. For example, my classroom floor was a white foamboard but I wanted a checkered floor. I sketched the tiles and shaded the base with colored pencils. Then, I quilled on top.

For this paper creation, I use a near poster-size canvas! The canvas was also white. I purchased some black acryllic paint and gave the canvas a nice coat. Since I couldn't use a Sharpie or colored pencil (my usual shading/coloring tools) that would really cover the canvas properly, this was a great base! Once it was dry I was able to glue my quilled pieces.

Here are some pictures as I'm working on it. They were taken on my phone camera so I apologize for the poor quality. I need to order black quilling strips to finish it up so check back soon to see the finished product. I can't wait to finish and frame it to add to Mike's music room!!

In the first photo, I had already painted the canvas, sketched the Fire Dancer and the letters "D, M, B", and began outline the Fire Dancer using very small, metallic silver tight coils. Instead of standing the coils up, they are laying down for a more distinct outline.


Getting through more of the Fire Dancer.




The Fire Dancer BEFORE I fill it in. I filled the Fire Dancer with loose coils.



The finished Fire Dancer.



Next time, I'm going to finish the entire canvas in black loose coils!

Just a quick hello...

It seems much easier to create and construct a blog than it really is. I find that my ideas are so extravagant that it takes a little longer to get where I want it to be. BUT good things come to those who wait and I'm rolling along happily.

I'd love some feedback on things that people may want to see on the blog or learn about.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Teachable Moments

This summer, I'm teaching 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders how to quill. I only see them for seven (7) 40-minute classes but they LOVE quilling. It's so incredible how much they love art class. Apparently, it's a "funner" than their gym days (which alternate with my art class).

As with ANY teaching, there are many TEACHABLE MOMENTS.

Here's one of the BIGGEST lessons I learned.

1. Create a lesson on HOW to use glue and HOW MUCH to use.

Seems like a strange lesson to give (at least that's what I thought) until now. I supply my students with glue pens. They are great for kids! It's got a finer tip than a regular glue bottle but isn't as tedious as a toothpick and glue (my preference). While the glue pens definitely help manage the quantity of glue they're using, it doesn't curb the usage completely. Allow me to show you an example of what happens when a lesson on glue usage DOESN'T happen. =)







I love these learning lessons so that in my future workshops with little ones, I can better teach and better model for them. =) Despite this sticky situation, wait until you see the final masterpieces!! I am so proud of my students and happy to share my passion and knowledge of quilling!!

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Reves En Papier

Reves En Papier is french for Paper Dreams or Dreams of Paper.

I love the challenge of quilling new things. Whatever your dream may be (any hobby, interest, sport, special occasion) I can quill something for it.

I look forward to challenges!
Feel free to challenge me on a new project!
Give me your best shot! =)

If you have any questions or comments or orders, please feel free to contact me:
RevesEnPapier@gmail.com.

How It All Began...

Oftentimes I'd walk into Target and the card section would suck me in like a black hole. I loved the 2D cards!! They were simple but so much more exciting than the traditional cards. I thought to myself, "How hard could it really be to create those cards myself?"

So off I went- craft store after craft store, buying cardstock and stickers. At Sew Crafty in Yonkers, I came upon a quilling kit. Not knowing what it was, but liking the potential it had, I purchased the kit and realized at home that the kit was missing the most important piece- the slotted tool.
It took another year before I picked up the quilling slotted tool from Michael's during my summer vacation. It was then that I began to practice quilling. I began with simple projects- flowers, clouds, balloons. Shortly thereafter, my boyfriend's grandmother had passed away. Being a special woman to my boyfriend, and having been honored to meet Edith before she passed, I was honored when my boyfriend asked me to create a piano for her. I had really only focused on cards and knew that a card with something resembling a piano was not enough. I wanted to do something more. And so, I moved onto 3D quilling. Overnight, I created my very first 3D quilled piano. I googled pictures of pianos to get myself familiar with the structure and detail (I’m anal when it comes to perfection), I sat with tweezers and slotted tool in hand. The next morning I presented my boyfriend with the piano I made for his grandmother. He was in complete awe. Seeing how happy he was and knowing I was able to give something special to the family (especially his grandmother) was the true reward in itself. It was on display during her ceremony and in the end, she took the piano with her. It really is an honor. Below are the only 2 photos I have of the piano. The quality isn't very clear. =(



I love quilling. It allows me to be as creative as I want and despite its need for patience and extreme detail- it soothes me after long days and is fun for me! My favorite part of quilling is seeing the reactions of the people around me. To see others appreciating my hardwork feels great!!

And the birth of Reves En Papier happened! I began making gifts for friends and family and soon received a couple of orders from acquantainces.


Some of my 3D projects include:

* A band with a piano, guitar, standing bass, mic, and drum kit.
* A replica of the Miami Hurricane football field.

* A classroom including a teacher's desk and 6 unique student desks.

The blog title includes pictures of my classroom and on the bottom of my blog is a picture with my band. I'll post mor
e photos up of my work soon including cards, final projects, and 3D works-in-progress.


I'm working on a 3D 1966 GTO and a replica of a Dave Matthews Dancing Nancy Poster!

I hope you enjoy my blog and will share your feedback and questions!!