Double embossing tutorial.

I've seen and tried so many different techniques for embossing I was surprised but delighted to come across one more while watching a Tim Holtz video on Scraptime. Even though I didn't have the texture paste he used yet, I had to try the technique right away with what I did have. I love to find a technique to use supplies I already have or to try it even if it's not exactly the same. It's like experimenting and I did like chemistry way back when...

 When I went looking to see what texture paste I had  to use I found a few and decided to try them all. Here, from left to right are Liquitex Modeling Paste, DecoArt Terra Cotta Texture paste, Golden Crackle Paste, Tri Art modeling paste, Jo Sonja Texture paste and DecoArt Media Crackle Paste white. I do like my texture pastes!! They all worked great and most of them came out quite similar. While most of them had a somewhat smooth surface the two DecoArt products looked different then all the others with more texture on one and crackle on the other. 

   The Terra Cotta Texture paste had a gritty texture when applied and this showed in the end result which was interesting. The DecoArt Media crackle paste white, shown above, resulted in a great crackle effect. The Golden Crackle paste has the smoothest end result. 

   But I am getting a little ahead of myself. Here is how I went about trying this technique and making the tag.

 

I started off by using a tag in my stash that already had some colour on with Distress inks and Glimmer mist. I added the pattern on with Dusty Concord Distress Ink and part of a Crafters Workshop stencils.

                                       

As part of the background I used this die cut feather and embossed it by tapping the embossing ink all over it and then sprinkling embossing powder on it before melting it with the heat gun. It was then glued on to the background.

Now for the fun part, double embossing. Mask off the part of the stencil to be used. This is another Crafters Workshop stencil with a variety of leaves or feather, depending who you ask. Today it's a feather!

With a palette knife gently smooth the paste over the stencil. Don't over work it or it will bleed under the stencil. Take the stencil off and wash right away. I used the DecoArt Media Crackle paste white for this project. I really liked the crackle effect on it. I love using the texture paste just like this, it can be inked or painted once dried. But this technique kicks it up a notch. While the paste is still wet, sprinkle embossing powder all over and shake off excess. I used copper embossing powder for my project. So it's double embossed, hence the name I gave it. 

Now the hard part, wait until it's dry before heat embossing the powder. If it's heated before it's dry more texture will result, which could be a good thing too. At this point it's very fragile and can be damaged easily if touched, so place it out of the harms way. Mine was very dry before heating it since once I walk away to let it dry I'm off on another project and it doesn't get done until I happen to remember or come across it again. 

Once the feather was heat embossed I noticed the paste leaked under the stencil so I used a black Stabilo All pencil and water to darken around the feather a little. It didn't completely cover the white but made a nice shadow around the feather. This is before the pencil. I then add the sentiment stamp and some ribbon and charms at the top.

The wonderful puffiness of this technique really makes the central feather standout and it needed little more to finish it.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Please let me know if you have any questions or comments about it. And if you try this technique or have already tried it please share your creations here. I'd love to see and hear how you used this double embossing technique.

Happy Creating!

Wendy

Faux metal embossing tutorial

To start off my year of exploring more creatively I tried this faux metal embossing technique. As much as I love to emboss with real metal I was drawn to this faux metal embossing when I saw it on Pinterest from Mel Stampz. I used her great tutorial to get started and then continued to explore what else I could do with this technique.

To get started here are the supplies I used:

• card stock- sized for project no larger than embossing folder
• aluminum foil-yes the foil from your kitchen
• glue stick or 2-sided tape
• scissors/exacto knife
• Big Shot and embossing folders
• Alcohol inks and applicator.
• Gesso/acrylic paint
• Stazon or Archival ink.

Adhere one side of card stock to foil with tape or glue stick. I tried with both and they both worked fine. The tape was easier but it needs to cover the whole piece or you can see the lines where it is.  Trim excess foil around card stock with scissors or exacto knife.

Place foil covered card stock in embossing folder and run through Big Shot.

Voila, instant embossed metal. This is where I noticed that I can see where the tape is. Now the fun part of colouring it. The possibilities are almost endless. 

As you can see I had fun trying all kinds of inks, paint and combinations of these.

Probably the easiest method is using a few colours of Alcohol ink with a felt applicator and dabbing it all over.

This was dabbed with alcohol ink first and then the Archival ink was swiped over the top.

This has 3 colours of alcohol ink dabbed on at the same time, Caramel, Rust and Sunset Orange. It is the background on the card above.

It's not noticeable but this was lightly sponged with Archival ink first and then dabbed with Pesto, Ginger and Rust Alcohol ink. The Archival ink blended in with the Alcohol ink to make it a little darker than it would other wise have been.

This is the same as above with the Archival ink sponged all over and then Pesto, Rust and Ginger Alcohol ink dabbed lightly on top here and there. If the alcohol ink gets over worked the Archival ink disappears into the colours.

Archival ink was rolled on with brayer. Simple yet very effective.

A dark brown acrylic paint was brushed all over this piece and then wiped off while still wet. Rust, Sunset Orange and Caramel Alcohol ink were then dabbed all over. This make an interesting mat look.

I think this is one of my favourites. It has black acrylic paint based on and wiped off first and then Rust, Sunset Orange and Caramel Alcohol ink dabbed all over.

Again these are painted with a black acrylic paint and wiped off. A few light touches of brown and green were added on top. When painting a second coat be careful not to play with it too much as it will lift the first coat of paint. Just gently placing a bit of paint where you want it works well.

This piece gets a mat look with a start of Gesso all over and then Rust, Caramel and Sunset Orange Alcohol ink dapped all over. To finish it off I lightly sanded to show some of the metal through again.

Although this worked well on a card I can see using it in some of my altered art pieces too. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and if you try it or have already tried it leave a comment with a link where I can see your creations.

Happy Creating!

Wendy

New technique

So my friend Sheila and I are trying to commit to a once a week creative play day. We hope to try out a new technique each week to expand our creative mind and spirit. Although we are both creative in many ways it helps to set aside and commit to a time for trying something completely different than what we usually create with.

This week I found an article in the Jan/Feb 2007 issue of Clothe, Paper, Scissors magazine by Shari Beaubien to try. It's a mixed media piece on canvas using tissue paper, gel medium, gesso and paint for texture and colour on the background. I had every intention of using a large heart for the focal point just as Shari did in the article but once I got to that point I decided I would use this canvas for my word of the year which is FOCUS. So I used random letters I had already to finish off my canvas. Now I have a daily reminder to focus.
It was a fun and easy technique that I will definitely use again. I especially liked the tissue paper for the background texture. I think I'd like to try it with some crackling texture paste next...