Pictured: Blue Heron paper filigree from Artisans' World Marketplace. Photo by Wyatt Kostygan.

Coming all the way from Vietnam, the quilling cards at Artisans’ World Marketplace put the art back in card-making with handcrafted paper sculpture adorning each one. Also called paper-scrolling or paper filigree, some say that quilling began with the ancient Egyptians, but it remains best known for its use in the Renaissance period, when nuns and monks in particular would make use of the gilded paper trimmings left over from bookmaking. Spooling the strips of paper into tight coils, the artisan shapes and glues them into intricate, striated patterns and images, creating a three-dimensional adornment for everything from cards to balsa eggs. At Artisans’ World Marketplace, find quilling cards for special occasions—birthdays and anniversaries—or simply to dress up your correspondence. Between swans and butterflies, dogs and cats, manatees, dolphins and sailboats—all realized in vibrant looping paper construction—finding the perfect card is a breeze. And shopping at a store dedicated to fair trade, rest easy knowing the artisan is fully compensated.

Pictured: Blue Heron paper filigree from Artisans' World Marketplace. Photo by Wyatt Kostygan.

Artisans' World Marketplace, 128 South Pineapple Ave., Sarasota, 941-365-5994.