The Technique Zone

Piecework using Friendly Plastic

2011-04-25T00:08:00.002+01:00

Friendly plastic piecework technique
Supplies needed:
3 strips of friendly plastic, rolling pin or tube, strong scissors, cooking oil, small towel, strong tin foil, pokey tool or similar, heat source, heat gun, thermometer

The friendly plastic will only work if the water temperature is between 60 - 70 degrees celsius. Any lower and it will be too cool to melt the plastic, any higher it will be too hot and the plastic will go all gooey!!!!

You can simply have a pan on the gas or the electric hob. If you have the choice I would recommend the hairdryer style heat gun opposed to the other type. If you only have the other type, it's not a problem, but just keep in mind it gets hotter quicker.

Cut some strips off your plastic in differing widths.

Arrange them in a pleasing order.

Taking the opposite ends you are going to 'tack them together using the hot water.

Place the opposite ends in the water for about 10 seconds.

Bring them out and push them together as above.

They should look like this. They won't feel that stable, as you've only attached them together at each end.

Carry on with the pairs tacking them together as above.

Once they are done, take 2 sets of 2 and tack them together using the same process. So above I have tacked a 2 and a 2 and a 2 and a 2 and a single piece.

I then took the 2 pieces above and tacked them together, so now I have a full strip.

Place the full strip on a piece of tin foil.

Float it in the hot water.

After about 10 - 15 seconds, push the tin foil in the water and the strip should submerge itself. Leave in for about 20 - 25 seconds.

You can tell if the plastic has melted enough as when you pull it out it will 'bend' on the foil. If it does not bend, it needs to stay in longer.

Once out of the water, rub a tiny bit of household cooking oil on your finger. Rub it over the creases. This will smooth it and fill in any gaps without leaving your finger prints on the plastic.

Take a small rolling pin / tube and roll once over the strip.

Then place in cold water to cool.

After 20 seconds pull it out of the water and dry it off. The tin foil can be used again and again and again.

Take your strip and cut thinner strips off in different widths again, this time length ways as shown above.

Mix the strips until you are happy with the way they look the same as above.

Using the exact same process, 'tack' the first 2 pieces together and so on

until all 5 strips are tacked together.

Dunk in the hot water again, exactly the same as you did when making the first strip.

Pull it out the hot water, put some cooking oil on your finger, rub along the joins.

Roll once with your rolling pin or tube.

Dunk in the cold water to cool for about 20 seconds.

Dry off on the towel.

And this is your piece of piecework friendly plastic.

The piecework technique was founded by Liz Welch and I strongly recommend that you check out both her blog and her DVD, 'Bend it, shape it'. Without it this tutorial would not have been possible.

Texture

2011-01-15T18:30:00.000Z

Nail and wood background texture

Supplies needed:

Small nails, wood shavings, tissue paper, pva/mod podge, paint brush, chip board shapes / shapes made from thick cardboard, 2 contrasting colours of acrylic paint

Cover the shapes with pva/mod podge and arrange the nails and wood shavings as desired.

Scrunch up a piece of tissue paper larger than the area you want to cover. Uncrumple the paper and press over the shapes. Do not be too heavy handed or you will tear it, but ensure that it is stuck down.

Give the shapes a further coat of pva/mod podge and when dry tear or cut the excess tissue paper away.

Next paint the shapes (I used the eco friendly acrylic green patina paint)

Once dry, take your contrasting colour and rub it over the hi-lighted areas. I like to use my finger but you can use whatever suits you best. Don't put too much on to start with, you can always add more.

I used the bronze eco friendly acrylic paint and this is the end result.

You can use any material under the tissue paper, don't just stick to wood and nails - experiment!!!!

Beeswax

2009-10-28T19:55:00.000Z

you will need some beeswax and a means of heating it - if you don't have a melt pot an oil burner with a nightlight will work perfectly ok. I keep a pan for my melt pot especially for beeswax. I also use a brush kept again just for beeswax

A photo and some cardstock

Paint the beeswax on - gradually bulding up the layers until you can hardly see the photo

I scraped the wax away from the faces then soften the wax with my heat gun and stamped all around with swirl image.

Gorgeous smell in my craft room - I'll probably use this piece on the front of one of my books

Masking Tape Background

2009-09-18T16:52:00.005+01:00

You will need:-

Card stock
Masking tape
Dye inks
Clear embossing powder
Heat gun

Start by tearing up your masking tape and putting it on to your card stock

Cover the whole of the card stock leaving no spaces

Ink over the card stock - I used Butterscotch

Sponge some contrasting ink on - I used ginger

Add another colour if you want to - I added a bit of lettuce

Cover the whole sheet with clear embossing powder - no need for a holding medium

Use your heat gun to melt the powder

The finished piece all ready to cut to size and use on your cards, atc's or whatever

Peeled Paint Magazine Rack

2009-08-17T13:55:00.005+01:00

You will need

magazine Rack - I got mine at Ikea
Acrylic paint - 2 colours
Gesso
Torn Papers
Vaseline
Kitchen Roll

I painted my Rack with Gesso and left to dry

I then coated it with watered down acrylic in yellow and let dry

I stuck on pieces of torn paper

I put vaseline over some of the paper and here and there on the paint

I then painted a coat of green acrylic all over - allow to dry

I wiped off all the vaseline with kitchen roll - a bit messy but I like the finished result

This is the spine

And this is one I have done using yellow and brown acrylic and leaving out the torn paper stage.

They are both ready now to add embellishments of your choice

Slide Mount Box

2009-03-21T12:11:00.018Z

Supplies Needed: Silde Mounts (approx 8), Acetate, Main Image, Backing Paper, Cuttlebug, Embossing Folders, Sanding Block / Paper, Window Lead or Metalic Tape, Scissors, Glue

Place a slide mount into the cuttlebug folder being careful where you place is as this pattern will create the top of your box - I did a couple

Run it through

And you should end up with something like this

Choose the one you want to use and sand it down

Using double sided tape (or other glue), start to prepare some of the slide mounts ready to be stuck together

Cut a piece of backing paper big enough to cover the hole and stick it down on one of the slide mounts - This will be your back piece

Stick another slide mount directly over the top to create a sandwich - Put to one side for the moment

Take your embossed slide mount and a plain one. Stick a piece of acetate on the inside of each one

Take your image and place it on the acetate side of the plain slide mount. When you have it in the right place, stick it down

Then take your embossed slide mount and stick it over the top of the plain one with the image on - so in effect you have sandwiched your image between two pieces of acetate - set aside for the moment

Go back to the slide mount with the backing paper on and mount another 5 or 6 slide mounts on top, thus building up a stack

Once these are all stacked, take your top embossed piece with the image sandwiched in acetate and stick it on top of your stack

From a side view, they should look something like this

And from the top, like this

Using a range of different products you can enhance the embossing or leave plain if you wish

I chose to use the gold rub n buff

To make the edges of the box I used a piece of window lead. It is very, very soft, goes though the cuttlebug and bends very easily. But as an alternative you could use metalic foil tape

I measured the amount I needed

Chose an embossing folder and ran through the bug

Turned it round and did the same to the other end, unfortunately they didn't meet in the middle and there was a space of about a centimetre!!!

I peeled the backing tape off and then began to carefully wrap the lead around the stack of slide mounts

Finished edges

Final piece - obviously you can add any further embellishments or colours as you wish

This tutorial was created and inspired with the permission of Sue Abbott formerly of Paper Paraside. Please take time to check out her blog for other inspiring creations

Acetate in your Cuttlebug

2009-02-15T18:16:00.003Z

Supplies Needed: Cuttlebug (or alternative), Embossing Folders, Alcohol Inks and Applicator, Acetate

Ink up your acetate until you have your desired colours

Cut the acetate into pieces to fit in your embossing folder(s)

Place the acetate in the embossing folder

Run throught the Cuttlebug or alternative

Take it out the folder and voila, you have a piece of coloured acetate with an embossed pattern ready to create a background

Check out what I did with mine here

Eggshells

2009-02-15T17:48:00.006Z

Supplies Needed: Paintbrush, Eggshells, Mod Podge or PVA glue, card stock or piece to decorate, paint or colouring materials

Wash the eggshells in bleach

Leave to dry out

Crush the shells into desired sized pieces

Use your mod podge or pva glue to stick the shell to your desired piece

Once covered and you are happy with the coverage, leave to dry

When all the white has disappeared and the shells are clear, cover with another coat of mod podge or pva glue

Give it a good coverage and leave to dry

You will know when it's dry as the shells will be clear and no white will be visable compared to above

Start to paint in your chosen colour and medium

Continue covering until you are happy with what you have

You can obviously mix colours etc but I decided just to leave mine silver

When dry add an image to finish

Blog Candy Winners

2009-01-31T21:46:00.003Z

Thank you to everyone who took part in the swap and gave themselves the chance to win the blog candy. Above are all the entries.

These are the lucky winners. I gave every piece a number (except for mine and Hilda's), duplicated them and put them in a box. Martin, my OH then picked out 3 pieces of paper as above.

So, well done to the first one out - No1 belonging to Alison Jordan, second one out - No12 belonging to Sarah Hempill, and last but not least - No2 belonging to Dawne James-Clarke.

They will all be posted Monday, weather permitting so I can get to the post office!!!! Along with everyones fab swaps.

Well done ladies and thanks again to everyone who took part.

Stamping in Soot

2009-01-10T13:01:00.002Z

You will need

Glossy Card Stock
Tea Light
Hairspray
Stamps

Hold the glossy card stock over flame and move about - be very careful that you don't set it alight!!!

This is what it will look like when done - be careful not to touch the soot - you'll end up with fingerprints on your work

Stamp in to the soot and then spray with hairspray or Acrylic Sealant to set - clean your stamps!!!

These are 2 atc's I made

Love the effect - now you try it!!!

Blog Candy Stuff

2009-01-03T20:20:00.004Z

Here's what's up for grabs and don't forget you get a piece of art in return too as long as you enclose an SAE with your work unless you are entering from overseas.

See post below this one for how to enter.

There are now 3 lots of fab give aways as Hilda has kindly donated too.

Set 1 - A pad of 36 Kay & Co 6 x 6 designer papers - hopscotch, a set of brown fibres, 2 clear corner stamps, a pack of brads and a tag board book

Set 2 - A pad of 36 Kay & Co 6 x 6 designer papers - roam, a set of blue fibres, 2 clear corner stamps, a pack of brads and a tag board book

Set 3 - 3 mini canvas's and a set of tools handy for using on some of your own projects

Good luck everyone

Winners will be posted on here after the closing date

Blog Candy Giveaway

2008-12-24T18:42:00.004Z

Sincere apologies for not posting any further techniques up this year, but for those of you who read my personal blog, you'll understand why.

So to make up for it I thought we could do a swap and I could give a bit of stash away.

All you have to do is send something to me, but you have to have used one of the techniques on this blog. You can send anything, but please enclose a pre-paid envelope for your return swap. For anyone who doesn't have my address, please email me at sam21@ntlworld.com tell me who you are and why you want my address, or I'll just think it's junk mail and ignore it!!!! (sorry!!!)

For everyone that sends something, your name will go into a draw and at the end of January, thats 31 January 2009, 2 names will be picked out and they will win blog candy

If anyone from overseas wishes to join in, please do so and I will take care of the return postage costs

Haven't decided on the blog candy yet, but when I do I will post up a photo

Hope you will join in

Happy Christmas to each and every one of you

xxxxxxx

Resist Stamping

2008-09-26T16:54:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: Rainbow ink pad, brayer, high gloss card stock (the glossier the better), stamps of choice, clear ink pad

Ink up your stamps with the the clear ink pad

Randomly stamp on your piece of glossy card stock, be careful not to let the stamp slip

Load your brayer with lots and lots of ink. Keep rolling it over the rainbow ink pad until you have a good amount of ink and ensure you have all round coverage

Roll your brayer backwards and forwards in a quick motion applying pressure, until all or most of the ink has disappeared off the brayer. By doing this you are pushing and spreading the coloured ink away from the clear ink, thus creating a resist. If you do not follow these steps, the technique will not work properly. You will know if you are doing it right as the stamped images will just 'pop' out at you. It does take a bit of practise

This is something like what you will end up with - the glossier the card the better

I did this in exactly the same way but used the Big n Juicy spice ink pad

I then decided to pick a colour from the rainbow pad and overstamped using the same images. Again, be careful not to let the stamp slip

These are my two finished pieces

Acrylic Adirondack Dabbers

2008-09-12T17:44:00.013+01:00

Supplies needed: Acrylic dabbers, black permanent ink pad, medium gel, splodger (or an old credit / store card), tag / card stock, text from an old book, peel offs, rubber stamps, heat tool, craft sheet

Apply a thin coat of the medium gel to the tag / card stock using your splodger (or an old credit / store card)

Stick you tag / card stock to the page from an old book

Give it a quick blast with the heat tool but don't completely dry it

Take hold of the excess paper and gently pull

You will end up with something like these

Cover the whole of the tag with the lightest of your chosen colours

Heat set

Add peel offs (I'm sure you own more interesting ones than I do!!!)

Cover the peel offs with a darker colour, adding further colour where you would like. Heat set

Remove your peel offs

This should reveal the lighter colour you started with

Add another colour if you wish

Use the dabber to 'ink' up your stamp

Stamp the image but be sure to clean your stamp straight away

Ink up your main image using a permanent black ink (ie stazon)

Stamp your images onto your tag / card stock

Add fibres / embellishments to finish

Faux Linen

2008-09-12T13:49:00.003+01:00

You will need

Glossy paper
sandpaper
inks
sponge

Sponge on your ink - I used vintage photo distress ink

using sandpaper scratch card in one direction

Turn it round and scratch in opposite direction

You can use it as it is as background paper or add more ink. I added aged mahogony - I've put more ink on the left hand side and brightened it up digitally so you can see the scratches better.

I then cut my card up and one piece I added background scrolls (I'll use this piece to make a card) My next piece I made into a skinny by stamping and embellishing. My final piece I made in to a topper by stamping on tissue and framing

Clay and Alcohol Ink Toppers

2008-09-07T18:26:00.006+01:00

Supplies needed: Light coloured clay, alcohol inks, rubber stamp, paint brush, water spritzer bottle, pasta machine or equivalent to roll clay with

Roll clay out

Spritz your stamp with water

Stamp your image into the clay

Remove stamp

Cut into sections if necessary

Apply alcohol ink direct from the bottle to the brush

Colour in your pieces using the alcohol inks

Pre-heated oven to 135C

Put on a tray lined with greaseproof paper and bake for 20 minutes

Remove from oven and leave to cool

You can add acrylics when cooled, if desired

Bandana Technique

2008-09-06T19:27:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: An assortment of stamps, an assortment of brightly coloured ink pads, black permanent ink (stazon), ink applicator (cut n dry), white pen, card stock

Stamp a collage of images onto your card stock using your black permanent ink, try to fill the whole area

Ink up a piece of cut n dry with one of your brightly coloured inks

Apply the ink directly to areas of your card

Completely cover your card stock using different colours of brightly coloured inks

Using your white pen, outline just off the stamped images trying not to touch any of the black ink

Continue until you have outlined all the images

Waxed Paper Cuttlebug Embossing

2008-08-27T21:24:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: Cuttlebug or other embossing machine, embossing folders, glossy card stock, waxed paper, iron, craft sheet, brayer, ink pads (rainbow if possible)

Run the waxed paper through your embossing folder

Take a piece of glossy card and place it gloss faced up

Place your embossed piece of waxed paper on top of the glossy card

Now place another piece of glossy card on top, gloss side faced down. So you should have a sandwich of glossy card, waxed paper and glossy card. The glossy sides should be in contact with the waxed paper

Using a warm iron, iron your sandwich. You should get a feel for when it's done as the card will 'slip' due to the wax being transferred from the paper onto the glossy card

You will end up with your waxed paper which has lost its wax, and a negative and positive of the pattern on the glossy sides of your card stock

Ink up a brayer, preferably a rainbow one

And brayer your glossy card - I used the Kaledicolor bouquet ink pad for this one

The Kaledicolor birthstone ink pad for this one

The woodlands Adirondack ink pad for this one

The Adirondack rueberry ink pad on this one, but I also used a babywipe to wipe away some of the ink

Cracked Glass Effect

2008-08-25T12:24:00.007+01:00

Supplies needed: Johnsons Klear floor wax, clear embossing powder, re-inkers, heat tool, craft sheet, permanent ink pad, stamps, walnut crystals, card stock, paintbrushes

Stamp the card with your image(s)

Cover your card in Johnsons Klear floor wax

Dip your brush into the walnut crystals

Move the crystals around the card using a paintbrush

Avoiding the main image(s)

Dip your brush into the re-inkers and start to colour in your main image(s)

When you have finished colouring your image(s), tear around them

Cover the whole of the card in clear embossing powder

And heat

Give your card another coat of Johnsons Klear floor wax

Add another coat of clear embossing powder

And heat again - you can do this as many times as you wish to create depth

When cool fold your piece

Then fold the opposite way (to create squares)

Your cracked glass effect is now completed

Memory Glass & Stampbord

2008-08-22T20:25:00.007+01:00

Supplies needed: Stampbord, co-ordinating size memory glass, alcohol inks, blending solution, applicator, embossing powders, clear embossing pad / pen, heat tool, craft sheet, super sticky red line tape, permanent ink pad, stamp of choice

Apply three colours of alcohol ink to the applicator

Apply sparingly to your stampbord

Use your blending solution and more colour if required to create your desired background colour

Stick your super sticky double sided red tape to the edges of the memory glass

Cover all 4 edges

Dip 2 sides into embossing powder, hold with tweezers and blast with heat tool

Do the same to the other 2 sides

When cooled down, cover the edges you've just heat embossed with the clear embossing ink

Apply another coat of embossing powder in the same colour and heat again. Apply a further coat of clear embossing powder

Ink up your stamp

Stamp your image on the memory glass

Attach the memory glass to the stampbord (I used diamond glaze around the edges)

Fabric Transparency Transfer

2008-08-21T20:27:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: Medium gel, transparency image, cotton fabric (the finer weave the better the result), heat tool and craft sheet (optional)

Apply the medium gel to the cotton fabric with your finger

Cover an area big enough to take your image. Don't apply it too thick but at the same time make sure you put enough on so that you can not see the fabric

Place your image in the medium gel, ink side down (usually the rough side)

Gently rub over the surface of the image, start in the centre and work outwards. After about 1 minute apply firm pressure. You should feel the medium gel 'grab' the transfer. Lift up the bottom corner to see if the ink has transferred, if it hasn't continue to apply pressure

When you are happy, peel off the acetate

Your image should now be transferred to your fabric. If you wish you can blast with a heat tool to ensure it is fully dry or just set aside for a few hours to dry au naturel

If your image is blurred you have either applied too much gel medium or too much pressure when attempting the transfer

If your image has scratchy lines you have either not used enough gel medium or not applied enough pressure when attempting the transfer

Cuttlebug Embossing with Distressed Inks

2008-08-18T22:24:00.006+01:00

Supplies needed: Cuttlebug (or other embossing machine), small embossing plates, card stock, distressed inks, cut n dry foam or a sponge

Place your embossing folder at an angle on your card stock. Run it through your embossing machine

Do this several times at different angles until you are happy with the design

Take a distress ink pad and swipe it over the top of the card stock. It will catch all the raised bits

Take your cut n dry and colour the background around the embossed pattern

If you turn the card stock over you can do exactly the same to the other side but you get a reverse of the pattern, so the ink catches more of the background and leaves the pattern white

Take your piece of card stock and screw it up

Unfold it, and you should have some nice creases

Take another colour distressed ink pad and swipe it over your card stock

Continue adding colour until you are happy with with it

You can do the same to the other side

You can tear the card stock into suitable pieces to add to your creations or leave it as it is to use as a background

Tissue Paper on Canvas

2008-08-18T07:59:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: Canvas, acrylic paint, mod podge, tissue paper, stamps of choice, permanent ink pads, paintbrush

Choose a couple of colours of paint to cover your canvas

Add more colours if you wish

Stamp some images onto your tissue paper using permenant ink

Tear around your stamped images

Completely cover your canvas in mod podge

Place your tissue paper images on the wet canvas, gently smoothing them down to ensure no air bubbles or wrinkles appear

Give your canvas another coat of mod podge

Leave to dry and your tissue paper should be invisable

Faux Leather Backgrounds

2008-08-17T11:01:00.006+01:00

Supplies needed: Mod Podge (or pva glue), ink pads, heat tool and craft sheet (optional), card stock, paintbrush, sponge or cut n dry foam, tissue paper

Apply ink to the card stock

Completely cover the card stock using various complimentary colours, remember you are going to create a leather looking effect

Tear off a piece of tissue paper slightly larger than your card stock, scrunch it into a ball and open it out again

Completely cover your card stock with mod podge or pva glue

Cover your card stock using your crumpled piece of tissue paper. Do not flatten the tissue paper too much, you want it to have creases and texture. Leave to completely dry or use a heat tool to speed up the process

Now add more colour. Using your cut n dry or sponge, completely cover the tissue paper with the same set of colours you started off with. Allow the inks to dry (at this stage it doesn't look anything!!)

When the inks are dry, apply a further coat of mod podge

Set aside to dry or use your heat tooll to speed up the drying process

When completely dry you will be left with a wonderful shiny waxed leather look

Trim the excess tissue paper and your background is ready to use for your project

I also experiemented with Adirondack dye inks, following exactly the same process as above and got fantastic results. These inks seemed to bleed more, therefore the finished piece wasn't as dark

Acrylic Paint Transfer

2008-08-16T17:47:00.009+01:00

Supplies needed: Acrylic dabbers, photocopy of an image, water spritzer bottle, paintbrush, card stock, craft sheet and heat tool (optional)

Take the lid off the dabbers and brush the paint onto the card stock, ensure you get a good coverage

Take your photocopied image ( remember that you will get a reverse of the image, so don't use bold words), flip it over and place it in the acrylic. Lightly press it down making sure it's smooth and not wrinkled

Leave to air dry for at least 15 minutes and then if you wish give it a blast with the heat tool

Only move onto this step when you are sure your paint is completely dry

Take your water filled spritzer bottle, spray the back of the paper no more than two squirts, you don't want it too wet

Next start to rub the paper very gently with your finger

Keep rubbing and extra spritzing if you need too

Eventually you will get rid of all the paper, but it does take a bit of patience as you have to be careful not to wet it too much and rub the image away

You can do exactly the same on a canvas

Apparently the paint in the acrylic dabbers is slightly different to other acrylics as it is more chalky and that's why the transfers work best with these paints. But you can use other mediums. I tried it with Jo Sonia's background paints but didn't get such a good effect

wax and walnut crystals

2008-08-16T14:07:00.004+01:00

You will need:-

Glossy Paper
Klear wax
Paintbrush
Tissue paper
Walnut Crystals (I got mine on ebay)

Paint the glossy paper with wax

Dip wet brush into crystals

Dab brush covered in crystals on to waxed card stock

Place torn tissue randomly over piece then add another coat of wax

Sprinkle more crystals on to piece here and there

The crystals will melt leaving lovely blemishes

Your background is now ready for cutting and using wherever you want to

Make a stamp with Kitchen Roll!

2008-08-15T21:47:00.002+01:00

Take a piece of Kitchen roll

Fold it about 3/4 inch at a time until it is all folded

Roll it and secure with elastic band

Using any inks Randomly stamp on to your card.

Using a second colour stamp again - all ready now for decorating

Just a bit of silly

2008-08-15T21:40:00.003+01:00

made this Sun out of a tealight holder this afternoon - has loads of potential :):) can be used on a collage / cut in half/ cut in quarters whatever.

Just gets you thinking about things lying around that can be used in your art.

Ring pulls look great with ribbon/fibres threaded through

Lolly sticks can be painted/cut/stamped on all sorts

What sort of things from around the house have you used on your art???

Credit Card Backgrounds

2008-08-15T18:09:00.008+01:00

Supplies needed: Acrylic paints, old credit card, store card, mobile phone top up card etc, card stock

Take your plastic card, apply a few blobs of paint at one end

Turn the card over, press the inked end onto your card stock and 'scrape' the plastic card down the card stock

The ink merges and transfers itself onto the card and looks like it's been brayered on

In this example, I pressed down on the plastic card too hard and spread the paint too much, so if you get one like this, next time apply less pressure when scraping

Another idea is to blob the paints directly to the card stock and scrape

I wasn't as keen on this method as it left blobs at the end where the paint had started off from

Another method, and my favourite, as it's the messiest!!!
Randomly cover a piece of card stock with blobs of paint

Scrape the inks in all directions so that they all merge together

Spritzed Re-Inkers

2008-08-14T20:05:00.008+01:00

Supplies needed: Heat tool, craft sheet, re-inkers, spritzer bottles, card stock

Place a few drops of ink into the spritzer bottle

Add water to create your desired shade, if too light, add more ink, if too dark add more water

Shake well

Spray onto your card stock

Use your heat tool to dry

Add a different colour

Use heat tool to dry

Add further colours if required. If you do not heat dry between colours they will run into each other and become muddy

A combination of three colours were used on the examples below

To add a shimmer to your pages you can create a metalic spritzer by using metalic perfect pearls. Tip some of the powder into a spritzer bottle, add water, and ensure you shake very well. Again it's trial and error as to how much you put in and how much water you use depending on the colour you want to create

This is a pewter colour although it doesn't show up very well

And then I've added spiced marmalade and peeled paint

This is how I created the pages for the travel beer mat book that I recently made

Raster Screen

2008-08-14T19:39:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: Masking tape, chalks, cotton wool balls, card stock

Tear your masking tape into thin strips and stick on the card

Once you have got your masking tape in a pattern you like, lift it off your work area and onto a piece of scrap paper, making sure it is firmly fixed

Next apply the chalk in your preferred colour, ensuring you work it into the edges

Cover the whole piece, you can use more than one colour if you wish

Carefully peel off the masking tape ensuring that you don't touch the card stock

Once you have peeled all the masking tape off, bang the card stock on your work area to get rid of the excess chalk

You can spray your card stock with a cheap hairspray to set it, but personally I don't bother

Distressed Ink Watermark Background

2008-08-14T18:32:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: Distress ink pads, water, cut n dry foam, heat tool, craft sheet, card stock

Apply a generous amount of ink to the card stock using the cut n dry foam - you don't have to use this, you can apply it any way you like

Add a further colour (if you wish) and completely cover the card stock

Take some water in the palm of your hand

And literally 'throw' it onto you inked card stock

Use a heat tool to dry, if you don't have a heat tool, set aside to dry

Once dry your inked card stock should have watermarks

This is another one I did in exactly the same way, but this time I just let the water 'drip' out of my hand onto the card stock

2008-08-11T14:28:00.004+01:00

Gesso is a brilliant medium to use on your art work - a large tub costs about £5 - it can be used as a primer on wood/metal and canvas and in various ways to age and enhance your work - I've shown just a few ways today - there are many more uses.

For this example I used an alchol ink background - put about 2 teaspoons of gesso in a spray and added 4 teaspoons of water - just sprayed on and let it dry. Love the gungy look it gives to the background.

These are examples of how a "coffee cup stain" can be added to your work - all I did was paint the bottom of a glass with Gesso and stamp it.

I have used some of my stamps for these examples Gesso stamps really well but be sure to clean your stamps straightaway or you'll ruin them!!!

For this example I prepared my card to completion then washed over with a thin coat of Gesso I left it a little while to partially dry - about ten minutes then swiped over it with a babywipe - this brought off some of the Gesso but leaves a dreamy look.

For this last one I prepared my card - put vaseline over key areas of my work - painted with Gesso - once fully dry I wiped over the card with kitchen roll - this brought off all the Gesso and vaseline that was on my key areas. I love the finished look

Masking with stamps

2008-08-11T11:44:00.003+01:00

You will need

Stamps/inks
Cardstock
Scrap paper

Stamp your image on to your cardstock and on to a scrap piece of paper. Cut around the stamped image on the scrap.

Cover your stamped image on your card with the scrap paper image and restamp on to your card

Remove the mask

Put scrap paper over your images on your card

Stamp with background stamp

My card fully stamped

I then used chalks to add colour

Stamping on Candle

2008-08-11T11:16:00.002+01:00

You will need

Candle
Stamps/ink
Tissue paper
Greaseproof Paper
Heat Gun

Stamp your image on to tissue paper - I used a quote and Black Stazon

Place stamped tissue on to candle

Wrap greaseproof paper around candle leaving enough at the back to keep it nice and tight.

Go over the image with heat gun - keeping the greaseproof tight all the time - you will know when its working 'cos the greaseproof will look wet.

I added more quotes to my candle

Masking with Peel Offs

2008-08-11T11:06:00.004+01:00

You will need:-

Peel offs
Card
Chalks/inks

Place peel offs on card - make sure they are well stuck down.

Chalk or ink over the card I used a circular motion

Carefully remove peel offs - Voila

Caught In Crystal

2008-08-09T20:06:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: Acetate, tissue paper, fine glitter, paint brush, heat tool, Johnsons Klear Floor Wax (approx £3 from any large supermarket), liquid inks (re-inkers, alcohol inks), kitchen towel, rubber stamp, permanent ink (stazon)

Apply floor wax to the acetate, but do not paint too close to the edges

Sprinkle on a small amount of glitter, don't add too much or the tissue paper will not stick

Take a piece of tissue paper large enough to cover the acetate. Crumple it up into a ball, open it up and place it over the piece of acetate. Lightly pat it down

Apply more Johnsons Klear floor wax to your paint brush and gently stipple the surface of the tissue paper until completely covered

Next add your colour randomly over the tissue paper, one colour at a time - I added spiced marmalade first

I then added a second colour - china blue

And a third colour - mustard seed. If you are applying the inks with a brush, remember to clean your brush between colours.

Dip your brush into the Johnsons Klear floor wax and coat the piece of tissue paper with it. Your inks should blend together and possibly change colour as below

Take another piece of tissue paper, again bigger than the piece of acetate, and place it over the newly inked and waxed surface

Using a piece of kitchen towel, pat the new piece of tissue paper to absorb the excess ink - this bit is messy, but I love it!!!

Pull off the piece of tissue paper that you have just applied. Be careful only to take the one sheet

Set this aside, as it makes great backing paper for other projects

Take your heat gun and dry the piece of tissue paper still attached to the acetate. Be careful not to over heat at this stage, do not melt the acetate underneath!!! The hair dryer type heat tool is better for this than the heat gun

When dry, apply a final layer of Johnsons Klear floor wax to the tissue paper to seal. Again use a heat tool to dry. I left mine for a couple of hours to completely dry

Once dry turn the whole thing over so that the acetate is to the top. Ink your chosen stamp with permanent ink (black stazon) and stamp your image directly onto the acetate, cut to size

You can, if you wish, stamp your image onto the acetate before you apply the first application of the floor wax, but doing it this way, you have no control of where the colour is going to go. Stamping your image last gives you the choice of where you would like to place the image in relation to the colours and patterns you've created

Adirondak Colour Layering

2008-08-09T19:18:00.004+01:00

Supplies needed: Adirondack spray colour, or any other type of spray colour (glimmer mists), garden leaves, glossy card stock, newspaper, a cardboard box

Line your box with newspaper, arrange your leaves on your glossy card stock

Spray into your cardboard box over your arrangement onto the glossy card stock. There is no need to stick the leaves down as they will not move

You can either leave as it is with the white background showing or add more colour. I used alcohol inks to colour. The A4 sheet is now ready to be cut up into various sizes for background pieces

Newspaper Print Backgrounds - Clear Tape

2008-08-09T18:38:00.005+01:00

Supplies needed: Clear tape, newspaper, card stock

Tear a strip of clear tape off and place it onto your newspaper. Don't press on too hard as it's only the print you want to lift off

Carefully lift your tape off the newspaper

Left - just pressed very lightly and taken the print
Right - pressed too hard and taken the paper too

Now this is where I had my happy accident. I stuck the tape with the 'too much paper' attached to my card stock, but the work space was a bit wet, the paper started to come away

I then took a paint brush and completely wet the back of the tape

I rubbed away at the paper gently with my finger

To my amazement not only did all the paper come off with ease, but the tape remained tacky

I decided to try the same process with a photo from the newspaper. It worked in exactly the same way. The tape was still tacky enough for it to stick directly onto a piece of card stock

I then took the first piece of tape with the print on and cut it into smaller pieces and stuck it around the edge of the photo. Again I did not need to apply any further sticking applications as it was still tacky and stuck directly to the card stock

I then applied butterscotch alcohol ink to the edges

And topped it up with meadow

Newspaper Print Backgrounds - Masking Tape

2008-08-09T18:13:00.006+01:00

Supplies needed: Masking tape, newspaper, card stock, mediums to colour with

Tear a strip of masking tape off, stick it onto your newspaper, press down firmly and pull of the tape, you should have picked up some of the print. Repeat this until you have as much print on your masking tape as you like

As you can see my print runs in various directions

Tear this strip into smaller pieces and stcik them to a piece of card stock in a random fashion

Completely cover the piece of card stock

Colour with your choice of medium - I chose green chalk

Your background is now ready

You don't have to lift off the newspaper print, you could just cover your card stock with plain masking tape

Stamp your image directly on top of the masking tape

Lemon Juice Burning

2008-08-09T17:32:00.006+01:00

Supplies needed: Heat gun, craft sheet, lemon juice, various types of card stock, paint brush or anything else you wish to apply the lemon juice with

You MUST use a craft or heat resistant sheet for this technique

Take your card stock and apply the lemon juice. I ripped the edges off my card stock and applied the lemon juice with a paint brush, but you can spritz it (I didn't have a spare spray bottle), dribble it, smear it, smudge it, whatever you like really - also experiment on different types of card stock ie hammered, linen

Take your heat gun and heat the lemon juice, keeping the gun moving at all times, the nearer you place the nozzle the more burn you will get - you really need to use a heat gun as opposed to a hair dryer type heating tool as a heat gun is more intense

I held mine fairly close as I wanted a good brown burnt colour - by the way, it does smell like it's burning too, this is why you need to use a heat resistant or craft sheet because of the intense heat

The colour burnt up nicely

I used glossy card stock, tore around all the edges and applied the lemon juice just around the edges

You can see how different they both look using the different card stock

This time I used cream linen card stock and applied the lemon juice with a piece of cut n dry foam

Heated it up

And this is my end result

All three look totally different but were done in the same way

Try experimenting with different card stock and applying the lemon juice in different ways

Shaving Foam

2008-08-09T16:35:00.008+01:00

Supplies needed: Cheap shaving foam, glossy card stock, a lid or tray (mine is an ice-cream tub lid), liquid inks (re-inkers, alcohol inks etc), kitchen towel

Spray shaving foam into your lid / tray (about an inch thick)

Add drops of colour as below - I used a peeled paint distressed re-inker

Move the colouring medium around until you get a look that you like (I used the end of a paint brush)

Once you are happy, press the glossy card firmly into the foam ( glossy card works best)

Peel the card off the foam

Leave to stand for a minute or two

Wipe off all the excess foam with a kitchen towel - This bit is messy!!!

This is the end result

You can add more colours if you wish - I added spiced marmalade

Followed the same procedure, moved the colouring medium around the foam (using a paint brush) until I got the look I liked

Placed the glossy card firmly on top of the foam

Peeled it off again

Left it to stand for a minute or two

Wiped the excess foam off with a kitchen towel and we now have two colours on the glossy cardstock

I went through the same steps again, this time adding a third colour - china blue from the distressed range of re-inkers

Pressed it firmly in the foam, peeled it off, left to stand and wiped the excess off with a kitchen towel - another fab result

These are the three different backgrounds I made from the same tray of foam just by simply adding more colours - now you try it

Toilet Tissue Technique

2008-08-09T13:42:00.003+01:00

You will need

Stamps - deep etched are the best
Toilet Tissue
Water
Stipple brush or similar
Inks

I've used 2 of my favourite stamps

Covered the stamps with folded toilet tissue - I used 2 sheets on each folded - making a wad of 4 pieces

I then sprayed and soakened them with water. I used a stipple brush to press the tissue in to the crevices and push out any air bubbles

I carefully peeled the tissue off the stamp and put it to dry

When it was fully dry I used inks to add colour

All ready now for trimming and adding to my card for embellishing

Tape Lift Stamping Technique

2008-08-08T21:06:00.003+01:00

Supplies needed: 2 inch wide masking tape and clear tape, a rubber stamp, card, a permanent black ink (I used stazon)

Ink up your stamp. You need to use a stamp whose image is no wider than your tape. Also be aware not to use a stamp with any bold words or writing as the image will be reversed.

Take a piece of either type of tape and tear a piece off to cover your image. Place the tape over the top of your inked rubber stamp and gently press down on the tape to transfer the ink from the stamp to the tape

Peel the tape off your rubber stamp and tape it to your piece of card. The image has now been transferred from your inked stamp to your card

This transfer was created using the masking tape

This transfer was created using the clear tape

There are various things you can do with the tape lift stamped image. Here I have used masking tape and stuck it directly to an acrylic background that I created earlier. Even though the masking tape has a cream tinge to it, you can still see the background through the tape

You can also use alcohol inks over the clear tape image or you could sponge on dye inks over the masking tape image

Have a play and have fun

Acrylic Backgrounds

2008-08-08T20:44:00.002+01:00

Supplies needed: Any type of acrylic or background paints, paintbrush, card

Choose a colour, dip your brush into the paint and flick the brush along the card

Clean and dry your brush and apply another colour in the same way

On applying the third and forth colours I flicked the brush across the card, instead of using the up and down motion

Your background is now ready to be stamped on

Rock Salt Rocks!!!

2008-08-08T14:28:00.004+01:00

Rock Salt Rocks!!!

You will need:-

heavy paper (Watercolour is good)
Adirondack colour Wash (one or two colours) or Walnut Ink
Rock salt (From supermarket)
Sunny day!!!

Cut paper in to 3.5ins x 2.5ins
Spray with colour wash or walnut ink.
Sprinkle rock salt
Immediately place in the sun to dry
The rock salt absorbs the ink and creates a stunning pattern

Sample 1 uses colour wash
sample 2 walnut ink

Gesso Background Technique

2008-08-07T09:31:00.006+01:00

You will need:- Some card, Gesso,Inks or paints

I cut 2 pieces of card to atc size. Covered one with Gesso and then put the other one on top creating a sandwich. I then pulled the top one off. The gesso was now peaked. I left these to dry completely before going on to the next step.

I run a spiced Marmalade distress ink over the first one. The second one I inked using a sponge and Shabby Shutters distress ink before swiping over with Brushed Corduroy. Acrylic paints would work just as well as inks as would any Inks you may have - try it!!!

All ready now for adding images, adornments etc and creating your ATC