Stencil Shadow

Picnic - "I love you so much I could squish you."

Make your stencil images pop with this clever shadow technique!

Here is how it's done . . .

1. Stencil the Tin Tiles image at an angle onto white paper using Ash Ink.

2. Move the stencil slightly to offset the image.

3. Fill in the stencil with turquoise chalk ink.

The ink was a goodie in the Artifacts Lite kit.

4. Remove the stencil to reveal the shadowed art.

5. Cut the art into four 4x5.25" panels.

6. Attach the panels to four Salsa Blue 5.5x8.5" folded cards.

7. Time to add your sentiments. Don't be afraid to mix up your kits. I chose stamps from PSL Bugs and Picnic.

8. Too much white space? Stamp a sentiment onto white paper and layer with a coordinating mat.

Picnic sentiment

Take Wing - "Make today ridiculously amazing."

There have been many amazing stencils created by Club Scrap during the past fifteen years. Which one is your favorite?

Julie

Homemade Embossing Plate

I would bet that everyone has purchased something they just had to have and never got around to using it. For me, it was this filmstrip die by Sizzix & Tim Holtz. It sat in my craft room for years . . . alone . . . just waiting for this month's Cinema kit to come along. A match made in heaven.

I could simply die cut these strips and use them on my page or card, but instead I decided to create something unique and fun -- a homemade embossing plate! Check out this video for more details. 

Follow these steps to create a filmstrip plate:

1. Die cut five film strips from sticker paper.

2. Adhere the strips together, stacking them one on top of the other. (Tip: I left the backing on the bottom one until I was ready to adhere to the base plate.)

3. Cut the film strip into three unequal parts.

4. Cut a piece of thin chip board (base plate) to 4x5.25"and adhere the film strip pieces to the board.

5. Create your embossing "sandwich" and run paper through an embossing machine.

The "sandwich" will vary with different embossing machines. I use the Big Shot by Sizzix.
My "sandwich" from bottom to top - clear acrylic base plate, multipurpose platform tab 1, homemade embossing plate, silicone rubber, and impression pad.

Oopsie Daisy Gray paper held up nicely to the embossing.

The plain White cardstock was a bit thin for this technique and tore.

Bonus embossing plate: 

1. Adhere leftover film strip scraps together in stacks of five. 

2. Adhere onto base plate chip board in random pattern.

Embossed Oopsie Daisy Gray paper.

Once you have a nicely embossed piece, it is time to assemble a card.

1. Stamp Borders and Backgrounds images onto de-bossed (indented) side of plain White paper.

2. Continue to add color with a sponge tool in Amethyst, Orchid and Fuchsia hybrid inks over the de-bossed filmstrip image.

3. Nest the panel onto a 4x5.25" Wine matte.

4. Add embellishment (Spring Chorus rhinestone stickers) and the card is complete!

I added a little bit of spritzing with the Tim Holtz spritzer tool and a Dusty Concord Distress marker.

I hope you enjoyed this fun tutorial and will give it a try. Have a show-stopping week!

Julie

Easy Digital Hybrid Cards, Part 2

In my last blog (CLICK HERE if you missed it), I showed you how to create a few simple hybrid cards using the Picnic Digital Kit. Truth be told, in the course of figuring out what those cards would look like, I printed out a few extra sheets of that paper, including one with the blue checkerboard background. Being the true hoarder crafter that I am, I kept those extra sheets and have been looking for a different way to use them..

Then, I saw Tricia's post - New Formulas for Picnic Papers - and I was inspired. Thanks, Tricia!

I took those extra backgrounds and cut some into 1" squares and punched some into 1" circles.

I arranged them on two card bases made from one sheet of the 8.5x11 Dark Green paper from the Club Stamp kit. They looked okay, but I felt something was missing. I thought about inking the edges, but then saw a piece of sand paper on my craft table and thought, "Hmmm, would that work?" You bet it did!

I'm sure you have some kind of sanding tool in your craft supplies - I have several!

I really like that shabby, sanded look and it's so easy to achieve with digital background paper that you make yourself! This technique will work with the printed text weight paper in the Club Stamp kit, but be careful - if you sand too hard, you'll go right through the paper. (Go ahead. Ask me how I know.) That white edge really makes the shapes pop on the dark card base.

I had a little extra space on the left card, but a 1/4" strip of green filled that nicely!

For the sentiments, I simply flipped a few pieces over and stamped on the white side. Yup, I actually stamped those, although you could print out the digital stamps and then cut or punch as needed.

So there you have it . . . two more quick and easy hybrid cards. I hope you'll give this a try.

Until next time, thanks for stopping by!

-Ron

Torn Gelli Plate Technique

The look of torn paper and a Gelli Arts Printing Plate creation all in one . . . I think I am in heaven.

Gelli prints stamped with Picnic Greetings UM sentiments. Picnic card bases and panels.

The funny and talented Barbara Gray created this technique video, and I couldn't wait to try it and share the results.



Are you ready to get creative? Grab a Gelli Arts Printing Plate, and let's go!

Allow the first layer of blue acrylic paint to dry. Brayer a thin layer of fuchsia paint and immediately apply Geometrics stencil. Use copy paper and bubble wrap to remove layers of fuschia paint while wet. Allow to dry completely.

 Brayer on thin layer of green acrylic.

Use torn copy paper to mask area of paint removal.

Lay white paper over the torn paper and gel plate. Rub firmly to ensure a successful print. 

Carefully peel off the print, making sure all layers of paint adhere to the white paper.

Peel the torn paper off the gel plate.

Save torn paper mask for use on ATCs. 

Achieve several unique looks by using various stencils and paint colors.

ATCs inspired by Karen's post!

Adhere scraps from gel prints onto 2.5x3.5" Dungarees Light Blue and Picnic Dark Blue ATC bases. Embellish with Picnic Borders & Backgrounds and Greetings UM watermelon slices. Stamp with Black India ink and paint with matching green and fuchsia acrylic paints.

What are your favorite Gelli Arts printing techniques?

I hope you have a terrifically crafty week.

Julie