Tutorial: Embossing Templates, Paste and Glitter (Oh My!)

So, I'm on a bit of a glitter roll right now. At our shoebox swap on Saturday we were discussing the many ways that you can use microfine glitter and one of the ideas we bantered about was using glitter and embossing paste. This is a technique I've done in the past but I thought it might make a nice little tutorial.

You probably bought a few brass embossing templates back in the day and maybe you haven't taken them out and dusted them off for a while. If so, this is a nice technique to try. If you don't own any metal embossing templates I would encourage you to check out the vast selection of them available. There are several manufacturers but the two big one's that come to mind our Lasting Impressions and Dreamweavers. A lot of LSS are carrying the embossing pastes now which come in a variety of colours and can be mixed with other colour mediums to make custom shades. In this technique I'm just using the white paste since its covered with the glitter anyway.

For this project you will need: Cardstock and patterned paper of your choice, thick cardstock for the embossing, microfine glitter, plastic drinking straws, removeable tape, embossing tape, brass or metal embossing template, embellishments and tools as desired for your finished card.

Step 1. Tape your embossing plate down on your heavy cardstock using removeable tape. Make sure to tape down all four sides starting at the top (the top will act as a hinge).

Step 2. Using a palette knife (or a metal spatula), get a thick dollop of embossing paste from the jar and spread over the template, as though you were icing a cake.

Step 3. Scrape off the excess paste using the edge of the palette and return it to the jar. Its not necessary to have a completely smooth surface for this technique so don't worry if you have some peaks and valleys.

Step 4. Remove the tape from each edge one piece at a time. When just the top piece of tape remains, lift up the template (using the tape as a hinge) and check to make sure your image is complete. If everything is okay, remove the template from the paper. This is the paste embossed image you will be left with.

Step 5. For this image I'm using multiple colours of glitter and I want to start at either the top or the bottom of the image and work my way to the other side. Cut your plastic straws at an angle and use them to pick up a small amount of glitter. The angled straw will allow you to have more precise control over where your glitter lands.

Step 6. You will want to "waterfall" your glitter over the image by tilting up the card and sprinkling the glitter over the area you are colouring. It will not stick to areas that are already glittered which is why you work from one end to the other. The straw will allow you to have pretty good control over where your glitter ends up but it won't be perfect and you will probably get a little bit of overlap. Since we're creating cards and not building bridges, I figure that's okay. Tap off the extra glitter onto a scrap piece of paper and pour back into the jar. Be careful not to touch the embossing paste as it is still wet and will be damaged.

Step 7. With the excess tapped off it will look something like this. Don't worry about the stray bits - they can be brushed off once the paste is dry. Here I have already done three colours. I started with the orange for the flame, then the yellow for the candle and finally the pink for the icing.

Step 8. When you have completed all your colours your image will look something like this. Allow about 1 hour to dry depending on how thick you laid down the paste. Once dry you can brush away all the stray glitter with a makeup brush and burnish the glitter with your finger to make it shine.

Another way to do this technique is create a graduated colour effect over a single image or word. Here I've used gold, red and green to on the word Joy. Between each colour be sure and tap of the excess and put back in the jar. If you end up with a halo effect around your image like I did here - do not panic. It it easily fixed. The glitter has just adhered itself to the temporary adhesive on the tape used to hold down the template.

Simple take an adhesive remove tool (looks like a nubbly eraser) and rub to get the adhesive and glitter off. It will come off easily and leave you with a clean image.

Here's a little tip when using your Nestabilities with an already stamped or embossed image like I have here. Simple centre your image with the die face down onto the cardstock and tape in place with a removeable adhesive. Then run through your die cutting machine as usual. Your image will be nicely centred when it comes out.

Here's the finished card using this technique. The layout is from Taylored Expressions latest Cupcake challenge (which I was too late to enter).

Thanks for looking - I hope you found this technique useful.

Supplies: Cardstock (Bazzill, PTI), Embossing Template (Dreamweaver Templates), Glitter (Glitter Ritz), Patterned Paper (Crate Paper), Dew Drops (Robin's Nest), Stamp (My Favorite Things - sentiment), Nestabilities (Spellbinder), Ink (Palette), chalk, ribbon

P.S. - this is what happens when good craft desks go bad. I've been too busy creating and not busy enough "cleaning up" so I think I've got some work ahead of me tonight because I can no longer find the stuff buried under the mess...

Card Tutorial - Copic Colouring, Scoring and Glitter Masking

I will warn you that this tutorial is long. I wanted to do a card that incorporated a lot of different techniques for a shoebox swap I'm doing tomorrow so I thought I would "document" its making for the benefit of the other participants. Since I took the photos I may as well post the tutorial to my blog as well.

This card uses three main techniques: scoring, colouring with Copics and glitter masking.

For this card you will need the following items: card base (5.25 x 10.5) scored in centre, card front (5x5), coordinating patterned paper (4.75 x 3 - it will be trimmed later), scraps of white and coordinating cardstock for card front, glitter (transparent base colour and coordinating opaque colour), scoring tool (I've used a scor-pal here), corner punch , stamp of choice, Copic markers (you can use another colouring medium if preferred), embellishments and ribbon of choice.

Cut your card base, cardstock and patterned paper to size. Score your card base in the centre and round the two bottom corners (the fold should be at the top). Use your scoring tool to score a 1/4" border around all four sides of your card front.

Turn your card front 45 degrees and score down the centre and every 1/2 inch in either direction. Start and stop each diagonal score mark at the 1/4" border score lines (don't go all the way to the edge).

Turn your card stock in the opposite direction and repeat the score lines every 1/2".

Your card front piece should look like this when you're finished scoring all the lines. You may want to go over the 1/4" border lines once again once you've finished the diagonal lines. When you have finished scoring, round the two bottom corners of the cardstock.

Select your stamp and find the appropriate sized Nestability to go with it. I usually just put my stamp on the table and hold my dies over it until I find the right size one. You want a size that fits your stamp but that doesn't leave an excessive amount of white space around it. Keep in mind that if you emboss the inner edge that will reduce your stamping space. Also pick out the "matching" scalloped edge die at this time. Die cut the rectangle from white and the scalloped rectangle from a coordinating piece of scrap cardstock with your preferred die cutting machine. (I use a Revolution but a Cuttlebug or Wizard are both perfectly good for Nestabilities)

Because I'm using a pre-cut piece of cardstock to stamp my image, I always use a stamp positioner to ensure that I get my stamp centred on the cardstock. This is not an issue if you are using clear stamps, but for wood mounted stamps these systems are a life saver. There are several different kinds on the market but essentially they all include a flat, clear piece to stamp your image on and a corner piece to push your stamp into. Put your stamp in the corner tightly and stamp down on the flat portion. Then you position your flat portion over your cardstock until the image is in the right place. Once its positioned, fit the corner piece in next to it and remove the flat piece. Be careful not to either move the corner piece or the cardstock. I often tape my cardstock down with removeable adhesive to avoid jostling it by accident.

Make sure that your stamp is butted into the corner of the stamp positioner again and stamp straight down onto your cardstock. And there you have it, a perfectly placed stamp.

These are the Copic markers I have used for the next section: Colouring the stamped image. Additionally I have used a blender pen (0) and two shades of grey.

Now for the colouring. There are probably as many different ways to colour with Copic markers as there are Copic owners so I will show you the way I do it for the purpose of this tutorial. I always start with the lightest colour and fill in the entire section to be coloured with that light colour. In this case I am using YG11 here.

Next I will add the next darkest shade I plan to use to create the shadow areas. A lot of Copic tutorials talk about defining your light source - where your light is coming from. This is important to determine where the lightest and darkest shades of colour will be on your image. In this case my imaginary light source is coming from the top right corner above my turtle. However, remember that shadows also should fall where one element of the image is in front of another. In this case the shell of the turtle is "shadowing" the tops of the turtle's legs and the head of the turtle is "shadowing" the turtle's neck. Make sure to add the darker colour to those areas as well.

Although not required, I have added a third, darker shade to this image to define the darkest areas of shadow - the tops of the legs under the shell and the very top of the turtle's neck.

Finally, take your lightest shade and colour over the entire area again to blend the three colours together. I usually do this with a circular motion of my marker. You can go over the area as many time as your require to blend the colours to your liking. Its hard to go wrong with these markers so don't worry about over-applying the colour.

Here's another example of colouring with the frog part of the image. Remember, the light source should be the same for all parts of your image. I recommend that you use at least two colours for each large area which are several shades apart. Don't use colours really close together or you won't get good shadow definition.

Continue colouring in each part of the image and shade as you go. Your final image should look something like this.

A final step in the colouring process is to "ground" the image using a shadow of some sort. This helps to prevent that look of the image just floating on a white background. I use two or more shades of grey to great a free form shadow under the image. Use the lighter colour to create your shadow, then use a darker colour very close to the image. Afterwards blend them together with the lighter colour. You can also feather the edges of the shadow by blending them with the blender pen so they fade into the cardstock without a defined edge.

After you have finished colouring your image, adhere the white rectangle to its matching scalloped rectangle. I've opted to "pop" mine by using a dimensional adhesive but that is completely optional.

The next step in this card is to create the sentiment and sentiment background which will go on the bottom part of the card. I am using a piece of 4.75" x 3ish" patterned paper for my sentiment piece. This glitter technique requires that you have some diecut letters to mask off an area of the background. I recommend that you take the letters you plan on using and place them on the paper to ensure you have enough space. I'm using Quickutz Cookie Cutter dies here (Rockstar) but you can use any letter dies (Cuttlebug, Sizzix) for this technique.

Place a piece of double sided tape over your patterned paper and press down to adhere securely to the paper. Take a SPARE piece of tape covering (don't use the one from the piece of tape you've just adhered as you will need it later), and die cut your letters from the tape cover. You must use the tape cover and not another material because its important that the letters do not stick to your tape permanently.

Remove the tape cover from your patterned paper and set aside. Place your diecut letters carefully on top of the tape in the position you want them. DO NOT TOUCH THE TAPE WITH YOUR FINGERS!!! The oils from your hands will prevent the glitter from sticking to the tape. Use tweezers or a Quickutz tool to carefully place the diecut letters.

Gently place the piece of tape cover you put aside back on the paper and rub to press the letters into the tape so they don't fall off when you apply your glitter. Be careful not to touch the tape with your hands.

Remove the tape cover and apply the clear/transparent glitter (here its Glitter Ritz warm highlight) over the entire surface of the tape. Pick up the piece and gently tap off the excess glitter. I do this over a piece of paper so that I can tip the leftover glitter back into the glitter bottle.

This is what you will end up with. The transparent glitter will highlight the paper while still allowing the pattern to show through. Where the diecut letters are there is still bare tape so you can apply your next shade of glitter. Remove the diecut shapes carefully with tweezers and apply your next shade of glitter (I used Glitter Ritz orange). Tap off the excess and use a makeup brush to brush any stray pieces. Pour the remainder back into the bottle.

This is what your glittered piece will look like. Use the tip of your finger to rub or burnish the glitter to a nice shine. Don't worry about rubbing it off - it will stick well to the double sided adhesive.

Trim your paper to just the glittered portion and use a corner rounder to round the two bottom corners

Adhere the patterned paper sentiment to the bottom of the scored cardstock front.

If desired, add a ribbon to the top of the patterned paper. There are probably a million ways to tie a ribbon on a card but this is how I do it. Run a line of adhesive across the area where you want to attach the ribbon. Leaving a slight overhang on each end, secure the ribbon and bring the excess into a loop above where you want your bow/tie to be. Clip the ribbon in the middle of the loop. Tie into a knot or bow and secure the overhang on the back of the cardstock with adhesive.

This is what it will look like.

Adhere your card front to the card base and then add your stamped image. Embellish as desired. On this card I've used Prima flowers with Dew Drop centres.

Supplies: Cardstock (Prism, PTI, Bazzill), Patterned Paper (Chatterbox) Ink (Adirondak), Nestabilities, Quickutz (letter dies), ribbon, Prima flowers, Glitter (Glitter Ritz), double sided adhesive, Dew Drops, Copic Markers, Scor-Pal, corner rounder.

Edumicate Me - Cuttlebug Mania!

I am participating in a shoebox swap on Saturday and I thought I would try and do a little Father's Day gift box instead of a card as my project. This is basically a 2,5,7,10 box as you can find on Splitcoast, however, I wanted to try using some of the tools and tricks on my Cuttlebug to embellish it. I often have a hard time making "masculine" cards and gifts so I'm always looking for new ideas. Cuttlebug embossing folders are great for card fronts given their A2 size, but they can also be used to emboss larger areas.

Here's what you'll need for this project: Cardstock for box and embellishments, Cuttlebug, embossing folder - preferably one with a repeatable pattern, Nestabilities, sticky strip or redline tape, scissors and adhesive, ink, removable tape, eyelets, assorted stamps of your choice, ribbon, transparency sheet, paper cutter, scoring tool and hole puncher and eyelet setter (a Crop-a-dile works best for this project).

I always by 12x12 paper so if you are using that size you will need to cut your paper down to 8.5x11 (letter size). Score the paper at 2, 5, 7 and 10 inches.

Flip the paper 90 degrees and score at 2 inches and 7 inches.

For the next step you will need to cut out the sections indicated by my messy scribbles. Make sure that the right side is facing up.

Fold the cardstock along its long edges.

Line up your embossing folder with the edge of your box template and fold the bottom flaps underneath the folder. Its important to use a folder with a repeatable pattern in this project (such as Diamonds in the Rough or Swiss Dots).

Put your template and embossing folder in the Cuttlebug sandwich and roll through your machine (A plate, B plate, embossing folder and template, B plate).

Move your embossing folder up on your cardstock so that the pattern just touches the embossing you've already done. Then put back in your sandwich and roll through again. Repeat until you get to the end of your cardstock (3 turns through). The flap will have the reverse embossing on it but it works just fine.

This is what your box template should look like.

Fold along the remaining score lines.

To make the rounded, scalloped flap, insert your flap through an oval scalloped nestability so part of your paper is in front and some is behind. Tape with a piece of removeable adhesive so that the die doesn't move.

This is the view from the other side.

Put in your Cuttlebug sandwhich (C plate, A plate, cardstock and Nestability die, B plate). Make sure that the die is blade side up in your sandwhich and roll through.

This is what your flap will look like. You can do this with any appropriately sized die. You could make a rectangular or square flap if you so desire.

I wanted a window in my box so I used a square Nestability to create an opening in the front panel. Put your die where you would like the window to be and tape with removeable tape. Run through your Cuttlebug, die cutting side up. Make sure the only part of the box template on top of the die is the part you want cut. Everything else should be folded underneath. Once its cut out, adhere a piece of acetate (transparency) behind the window.

Take an ink pad and brush it over the top of your template. The raised diamonds should pick up more ink, giving the box a nice distressed quality.

Place sticky strip on the edges and assemble the box. (Note, the sticky tape on the smaller flaps is on the wrong side in this photo - it should be horizontal - not vertical. I learned the hard way that once you've got your sticky tape adhered - its very hard to unstick!)

Your assembled box. Pinch in the sides to close and flip the flap over the front. Use your hole punch to make two side by side holes through all layers.

Using an eyelet setter, set two eyelets in the holes of the flap. Do not set through all layers or you will not be able to open the box.

The rest is just decoration - so embellish how you would like. I stamped a sheet of adhesive labels with stamps from PTIs Limitless labels set and used them to decorate some miniature chocolates for the box. I also added a tag that says Happy Father's Day. Tie a ribbon through all the holes in the top of the box to close it and you're done!

The finished product.

Supplies: Cardstock (Prism, Bazzil), Ink (Palette, SU!), Stamps (Crafty Secrets, PTI), ribbon, Embossing Folder (Cuttlebug), eyelets, chocolates