Techniques Revisited - Part 5 (Shaving Cream)

Good morning!

One of my favorite techniques uses shaving cream.

It's very easy to do and can make your paper smell yummy!

I use a disposable dish for this.

• I squirt a layer of shaving cream into the dish. You need a dish large enough to put your paper in without bending it. 
• Then I put a few drops of re-inkers on top of the shaving cream and swirl it around a bit.  Don't swirl too much or the colors will get muddy.  In the above example I used a gray, a coral and a gold.  
• Lay your cardstock face down onto the shaving cream.  Pull it up and you can either wipe away or shaving cream concoction or you can put another piece of cardstock face down on the first.  At any rate, pull them apart and remove the shaving cream.  I use a spatula for this.  
• You can add re-inkers and do more, but eventually the shaving cream will get too muddy to use.  At that time, you can dispose of it and use other colors.

Then I stamped the swirls and bird on the paper and cut it out.  


Hope you have enjoyed this stroll down memory lane.  Let me know what other techniques you would like to see, or other things in your stash that you haven't used in awhile.


Have a colorful day...

Techniques Revisited - Part 4 (Spirelli)

Good morning!

Today I want to share a lovely pendant/ornament I received with you.  It's the Spirelli technique. Makes you think of a spirograph doesn't it?

My friend Carol sent me this lovely piece:

This technique works well with any scalloped shape (and is a good way to use up some of those fibers in your stash).  

• I start with a piece of double sided tape on the back of my shape.  
• I lay the end piece of the thread onto the tape and bring up through one of the indentions.  
• Then take the thread down one of the scallops indentions. The look of the finished piece will change, depending on the spacing of your threads.  You can make a tight pattern with a lot of inner space (for stamping), or you can make a smaller pattern (or even no spacing at all if you put your thread straight across).
• Bring your thread back up in the next indention and continue with an over/under pattern until you are completely back around the piece.  
• The above piece goes through every indention twice to make the pattern.

My friend used a metallic thread and used a metal button for the center.

Other uses for those fibers you've been saving:

• Use instead of ribbon when wrapping presents.
• Use to make animal fur for stamped images
• Hair on your stamped people
• Use to make borders on your scrapbook pages (or cards)
• Use them to "hang" charms or embellishments
• Use them for "fence" wire.

Come on, let's add to this list...Just leave a comment and tell me what your favorite use for fibers are. Then pull them out and use them.

Put some color in your day.

Techniques Revisited - Part 3 (Bingo Markers)

Good morning!

Today, I want to show you how to use bingo markers to make a background.

I basically did this like the fossil stone technique.  

• I dabbed the bingo markers on the inside of a page protector.  
• Then I spritzed with a little water and smooshed it together to blend the colors.  
• Then I opened the page protector and put two pieces of glossy cardstock (backs together) inside and closed the page protector.  
• I smooshed it with my fingers and pulled the page protector open and removed the cardstock. 
• I let dry (it will lighten a bit), and cut into the background shape. 

 I love the look of this.  Fossil stone is one of my favorite techniques.  


For those of you who don't know what bingo markers are, they are the liquid dabbers you buy at the store to mark your bingo numbers.  The other technique using them on this blog is called Bingo Blast.  You can search for that.

Have a colorful day...

Techniques Revisited - Part 2 (Holeless Marbles)

Good morning!  Today we will use those little holeless marbles you have in your stash.

I used the holeless marbles on the tree.  If you click the picture, you will get a better look. I colored the tree and cut it out, then I used double-sided red-liner tape on the tree.  I removed the liner, then poured the clear holeless marbles on the tree.  I used a brayer to make sure they were adhered securely.

Easy peasy!

Hope you have a colorful day.

Techniques Revisited - Part 1 (Lace)

We have been having a discussion on the Stamptalk Yahoo Group about old techniques and using up our stash, so I decided to do a few old techniques.

Today's post uses lace and glitter.

The background behind the woman is made with a lace background.  Remember that?  The technique is simple but stunning.

• I bought some half sheet labels, which give you two backgrounds per sheet. Just peel the liner off and lay down your piece of lace.  Make sure the lace is adhered really well.  
• Pour your first color of glitter on the sheet. I usually lay a piece of copy paper over it at this point and brayer it to make sure the glitter adheres really well. Put that color of glitter back in the jar. 
• Pull the lace off and put your 2nd color of glitter down.  Again put the copy paper over it and brayer. Put the 2nd color of glitter back in your jar.  
• Your background is now ready.  If you die cut a circle, square, oval, etc., you will be able to use the negative space, too. And you can use the lace over and over.

Here are some examples of glitter backgrounds made using this technique and different kinds of lace. 

Hope you have fun with your supplies and this technique.

Stippled Envelopes

As promised, here are some stippled envelopes.

I used a lot of different colors on this envelope. I added pieces of sticky notes to the address areas to keep them white.  I used a light hand so that if I want to add some stamped images (collage style), they will still be visible.

I love the colors on this envelope.  I stippled the envelope first, then stamped the leaves.  The stippled background made them easier to blend when I used my markers to color them in.  Makes for a very festive fall envelope.  You can add bits of glitter to the leaves for some sparkle if you wish, but I kind of like them plain.

Hope you have enjoyed seeing my stippling efforts.  Add some color to your day...

Stippling

Good morning!

Recently on one of the Yahoo Groups I belong to, someone mentioned stippling.  I had forgotten about that technique, and I love the look of it, And it just so happened that I had embossed a piece of white cardstock with a cuttlebug embossing folder that had gotten a smudge on it.  Not one to throw away a perfectly good piece of cardstock, I decided to stipple it to cover the smudge.

Here are the results:

After it was stippled, I used permanent markers to color in the raised parts.  I think it turned out very nicely, and I will be able to use it as a background for a card.  That's better than throwing it away because it had a small blue smudge on it.

In the next post I'll share some stippled envelopes.

Add some color to your world today...

Negative Shapes

Good morning!  Hope you enjoyed your holiday yesterday.  I know I did.  I'm just counting down the days until I get a week off for vacation. I don't have any plans to go any where, but it will be nice just to be able to have the time off.

Connie, who has Midwest Stampers, issued a challenge to use the negative shapes from punches in your art. You know what I mean - not the punched piece, but the piece that's left.

Anyway, here is one of my entries:

The white cardstock is what was left when I punched out the fern. I made a border using my Scor-It, then layered it onto a piece of glossy cardstock that I had made using the fossil stone technique. Stamped "thinking of you" (stamp by The Angel Company), added a little bling and I was done.  The picture isn't real sharp, but you get the idea.

Add a little color to your day!

Envelope Art

I love to stamp!  I should belong to a 12-step program for stampers.  Seriously, I just love to stamp. I like to try out new techniques, and I've been known to take a technique and tweak it and come up with something completely different.  And I'm not afraid to get my hands messy.  :-)

So, not only do I make cards (and candles, etc.), I also stamp on my envelopes sometimes.  Today I would like to share a couple that I made this weekend.

The first one uses pastel ink and shadow stamps. I stamped the front as well as the back of the envelope. The colors here don't do the envelope justice, it's very pretty in person.

Stamp credits: Butterfly-unknown, Daisy-TAC, Sparkles-My Paper Moon, 

Shadow Stamps - Hero Arts and My Paper Moon

 This envelope is a little bolder. Again, I stamped the front and back of the envelope. I used a shadow stamp for the addresses.

Stamp credits: Writing - A Stamp In The Hand, Palm Trees - My Paper Moon and Stampa Rosa, 

Wish - Cat's Life Press, Shell stamps - unknown, Shadow Stamp - My Paper Moon

I hope you put a little bit of color into your day.

Have a Safe and Happy 4th of July.