Friday, January 6, 2012

Last Card Making Bonanza

Ok, I know it's after Christmas but I just didn't get to getting this one up.  These are most definitely Christmas cards!  I found it on Two Friends Stamping (with instructions on how to complete) and I have managed to copy it almost exactly with my own stash of materials.  I used Dimensional Magic for the icicles with glitter sprinkled in like this:
Even in the warmer weather, it needed overnight to dry and it was a little brittle so be careful.  Definitely use the plastic wrap to create this as suggested on Two Friends Stamping's blog.  My end products looked like this:

Two slightly different looks just by changing up the roof colour and ribbon.  I didn't have a woodgrain embossing folder but I had paper with a similar texture that worked well.  This is not as hard as it looks.  I thought it would take me ages but I whipped these out within a couple of hours (after the icicles were dry).

I also made this:
 I used Tim Holtz Distress Papers for the circles and sanded them to make the embossing show.  The embossing folder was a Cuttlebug one (snowflakes).  Then I highlighted parts of the ornaments with Diamond Stickles.  I drew on the "strings" with a zig marker and the sentiment is from Stampin' Up - Snow Swirled.  The border is the scallop punch from Stampin' Up.

The last card I want to show, you I've done the tutorial for.  I found this idea on Simply One Of a Kind who entered hers into the Less is More challenge.

I am still putting this up because you can do this technique at any time - it doesn't have to be a Christmas theme.  Change the stamps and colours and you could have a birthday card, sympathy, Thinking of you, etc and it is really simple.  So here is the finished products:




As you can see, I used different stamps for each one (the first was a roller graph).  I also changed my embossing powder for the last from sea foam white to silver.  I was so involved in doing these, I forgot to take pictures until the last one so here is how the silver trees was made - the technique is the same for them all.
Cut your card to size (I chose A5 but you could do larger or smaller).  I chose to score my lines in before I stamped but upon reflection of the finished product, I would probably leave that until the last step now.
Mask off the area that you want to stamp in with post it notes (or some other form of removable paper).  This will stay until you are finished with the inking so I suggest overlapping your post it notes so that you don't get bleeding of the ink between them.  To make sure they are straight, use the edge of a ruler or draw a light pencil line that you can erase later.
Next, wipe over the entire exposed area (including the post it notes) with an embossing buddy.  This insures that your embossing powder only sticks to the image and not anywhere you don't want it (you can use corn starch or baby powder if you don't have an embossing buddy).
Load up your stamp with Versamark ink and stamp it several times across the card.  If you are using multiple stamps, that is fine as the ink stays wet for a long time so there is no real hurry.  Having said that, don't leave it sitting for ages either :0)
 Sprinkle the image with your embossing powder (silver used here) and tap off any excess.  The easiest way to do this is to have a piece of folded paper underneath that has been wiped with an embossing buddy.  Then pour your embossing powder on your image.  When you pick it up, it will fall off onto the paper.  Then fold the paper in half and use the crease to empty the extra back into the container.
Heat the image with your heat gun.  You will see the powder go from dull to shiny.  Continue to move across the card until all the powder is shiny.
Side view so you can see the shiny!
Now it's time to ink.  I chose distress inks in Stormy Sky and Chipped Sapphire as I was going for a night sky look.  Always start with the lightest colour first.  I chose to use the ink blending tool but a make up sponge will do the same thing.  Always start off the page or area you want to ink to test the colour first.
 Here is the first layer.  I chose to leave an area at the bottom white to look like snow.
Second layer done.
As I think you all know by now, I like my shiny things so I added a layer of Perfect Pearls Mist - Pearl to the image.  The cool thing about this is that  the Distress Inks react with the liquid of the mist so they have blended even better together.  Can you see the extra shine?
Now you can remove your post it notes.  If you have drawn a line, erase it.  Now would be the time to score your lines if you haven't done so already.
 Add your sentiment under the image.
In the end, I decided I needed to make the white area look more like snow so I added a thick layer of crystal Kindy Glitz.  And you are done!

Thanks for keeping up with me during the busy season.  I will have some more cards and some scrap book pages for you shortly along with my date for my first class!

xoxo
Kim

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