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Tuesday Tutorials

I Can’t Help Foiling in Love!

Hey There!  Today’s card is embracing the Random Act of Cardness Facebook Challenge word “foil”!  I can’t help foiling in love with foil!  I have been enjoying the We R Memory Keepers Foil Quill so much that I wanted to share another card with you!

The Foil Quill can be used for a variety of different projects (not just cards) and it comes in a few different varieties.  There are the foil tip pens which you can buy in the bold, standard and fine tip as well as the calligraphy pen.  However, today I am going to be showing you the All in One Kit for an electronic die cutting machine like either the Silhouette or Cricut machine. I also have some FANTASTIC GIVEAWAY news!  One lucky blog follower will win their very own We R Memory Keepers All in One Foil Quill set for their electronic die cutting machine!  This is a prize value of $147.00 dollars!  WOW!  All you have to do is comment below and let us know what is the first thing you would make with the Foil Quill All in One set if you won!  The winner will be chosen randomly by the close of business on Friday, August 14, 2020 and will be announced over at the Facebook Challenge Page!

Now, let’s get to today’s card.  This one is fairly simple but has such an elegant look.  I will be using the Silhouette machine and Silhouette Design Studio (Business Edition) to create today’s card.  If you need a more detailed version of how this card was made I encourage you to head over to watch the YouTube video here:

https://youtu.be/6jycrOj3XHA

I started off ink blending a standard A2 size card panel with one of my favourite Distress Ink combinations:  Tattered Rose, Abandoned Coral and Seedless Preserves.  You can use either the regular Distress Inks like I did or the Distress Oxide inks.

I then chose and elegant dandelion image and created a custom sentiment that says “Make a Wish”.  The wonderful thing about the Silhouette Design Studio is you can totally create your own design or choose one from the Design Store.  There is always a free file of the week and the images are a fairly reasonable price point.

There is a bit of fine tuning that you need to do with the image.  You will have to select the images and change the setting from cut to sketch and then choose your sketch lines.  I recommend you watch the video as I show this process as well as link to my Beginner Video that I made going into greater detail of how best to choose your settings.

Once you have your settings selected you can then get your project ready to foil.  Now, I again I embraced a few “learning opportunities”  (aka: mistakes”) and I feel it is important to share them with you in hopes that it helps you with your project.

I am using the We R Memory Keepers Magnetic Mat and I have to say I really like it!  If you are just using the regular adhesive mat you have to put down some scrap paper then tape your project to the scrap paper and then tape your foil over top.  If you do not do this and simply apply the foil straight onto the adhesive mat you the foil will come off onto the mat and you will ruin it (This surprisingly was not the mistake I made).

Silhouette has also come out with a new version of their adhesive mat which I like much better than the old one.  They have smaller grid lines and have made the mat so that there are arrows on both the top and bottom of the mat allowing you to feed the mat in either way.  This will extend the life of your mat as well.

With that said, you will want to place the magnetic mat onto the adhesive mat.  The magnetic mat comes with 4 magnets.  Two short ones and two long ones.  I had originally planned to do a foil border around my card so I did not end up using them this time.  However, I think they will be very handy on future projects.

Once my magnetic mat was adhered to the adhesive mat I placed my panel down (this is where my mistake came in).  I place my project so that it was not lined up with the top left side.  Rather, I chose to place it one inch to the right and once in down.  I used a small amount of Thermo Web Purple Tape on the corners to hold it in place and then layer the foil over top.  Again, using a small amount of the purple tape I began adhering the edges of the foil down ensuring that it was laying tight and smooth.  Then I loaded the mats into the machine.

Now I can go back to my computer.  Here is my mistake.  On the design window of Silhouette Studio I forgot to move my project down one inch and over one inch.  So, when I sent my project to the machine it was not foiling in the correct area.  I quickly stopped it and removed it from the machine.  I could see that it was going to foil beautifully (YAY!).  However, I now could not use this panel (BOO!).  I will trim off the little bit of foiling and save this for another card (YAY!).  This means I had to redo my ink blending panel (BOO! sort of….I find ink blending therapeutic).

After I had the new panel completed I repeated the process of securing it to the magnetic mat (ensuring everything was smooth) and then I changed the position of the project within the program.  I double check my settings and sent it to the machine.  SUCESS!

The process took a while as I chose to have it do two passes just to be sure everything foiled nicely.  I was not disappointment.  Once the project was complete, I removed the mat from the machine and then removed the foil from the project.  Again, the outcome was stunning!!  As I said before, I originally planned to have a foil border around it, but I really liked it without it so opted not to send it through again (I could have done it all at once, but wanted to see what it looked like first – glad I did that!).

I trimmed 1/8″ off each side and then adhered the panel to a standard A2 size side folding white card base.  You could add gems or other embellishments if you want, but I really liked the simplicity of this card.

I really want to try doing this technique overtop of watercolour, as well as playing around to see if I can foil with alcohol inks and the Yupo Paper.  Stay tuned for a future post to see how this turned out!

I hope that you are inspired to add some foil to your cards!   If you don’t have an electronic die cutting machine you can always use the freestyle pens!  There are a ton of amazing foil colours to choose from and you can check out some of them here.

Remember to comment below for your chance to win the amazing We R Memory Keepers All in One Foil Quill  set for your electronic cutting machine!

Thanks for stopping by and have an amazing week!

~Chala

I Can’t Help Foiling in Love! Read More »

Tuesday Tutorial – Dreamweaver Embossing Paste

Hello everyone! Thanks for dropping by for another Tuesday Tutorial.

Today I am going to show you another really cool technique that you can do with your Dreamweaver Stencils – Paste Embossing. It is so much fun and you can create fabulous effects. When I first learned how to do this technique I was totally blown away by how versatile and easy it was.

Today I want to tell you a little about the embossing pastes and then show you step-by-step how to paste emboss. It’s important to understand the difference between the Dreamweaver embossing pastes so that you get the result that you want on your projects as each paste has different properties and applications that it works best on.

So…here we go!

Dreamweaver Regular Embossing Paste:

Regular embossing paste is an opaque, 100% acrylic medium that is acid free. It dries to a matte finish and can be colored with chalks and pigment inks when dry or pigments can be mixed into it before it is applied to the stencil. It is very porous so it will absorb color easily. Another option is to add glitter on top of the paste when it is still wet. A thin application of this paste will dry in about 15 minutes whereas a thicker application will take 30 minutes or more.

(Regular embossing paste is also available in colors and both a matte & glossy finish).

Dreamweaver Translucent Embossing Paste :

Dreamweaver Translucent Embossing Paste dries clear and smooth. It is a 100% acrylic medium that is acid free. This paste is nonporous, dries very slowly and has a very glossy finish. You can use it on dark colored papers to give your image an embossed, watermark look or you can stencil your image with inks to add color (on light colored papers) and then apply the paste to enhance the colors. Because the paste is transparent you can also mix color into it by adding pigment powders.

Here are some samples showing Translucent Embossing Paste on dark paper and over an inked background.

Dreamweaver Metallic Embossing Paste :

It isn’t always easy to find metallic pigments or paints to mix into paste and it’s hard to know how much to use to really make the paste shimmer. With the Dreamweaver Metallic Silver, Gold or Copper Embossing Paste you get just the right amount of shine. This paste uses the Translucent Embossing Paste as it’s base so it will dry more slowly. Metallic pigments have been mixed in so that you achieve opaque coverage with an even metallic finish. It’s easy to create dramatic effects on both light and dark papers. The samples here show how beautiful these pastes look on dark papers.

Dreamweaver Crackle Embossing Paste :

This unique paste creates a crackled, aged look when applied over a dry base coat of Matte Black paste. Add color to the crackled paste by sprinkling with mica powders or glitter while wet or stenciling with color when dry.Because it is a 2-step process extra drying time is needed.

So now that you know a little bit about the embossing pastes, let’s get started paste embossing!

You are going to need a few supplies – a Dreamweaver stencil, embossing paste of your choice, Scotch Removable Tape, a palette knife, cardstock or watercolor paper and a pan of water with a little bit of dish soap in it for cleaning your stencil.

The general techniques for applying Embossing Pastes are the same but you will want to use a lighter touch when working with the Translucent Embossing Paste as the consistency of this paste is very smooth. Always remove your stencil as quickly as possible as both types of paste become tacky fairly quickly and if they remain on the stencil too long they may adhere to the brass or stainless and tear the paper when you remove the stencil. Have a container of warm, soapy water handy to put your stencils into if you are not able to wash the paste from them right away.

Step 1 :

Before you apply your embossing paste the stencil should be securely fastened to the paper with a border of removable tape. This special tape will not tear the paper when it is removed later and is well worth having on hand. Position your stencil onto your paper where you would like your image to appear and then apply the first piece of tape (referred to as the “hinge”). It is important to remember to leave this piece of tape on until the very end of the paste embossing process. If you always place your first piece of tape at the top of the stencil, you will alway know which piece of tape went down first and should be removed last.

Make sure the hinge piece and all the other pieces of tape extend at least a half inch past the edge of the stencil. Now tape down the sides and then the bottom making sure that each piece tape overlaps. The taping process is very important because it keeps your stencil flat against the paper and protects the outside edges from any excess paste that may slide off.

Step 2 :

Work quickly when applying the paste. The paper starts absorbing the moisture from the paste right away and if you spend too much time applying the paste the paper will warp and pull away from the stencil which will allow paste to seep underneath.

Pick up the paste on one edge of your palette knife as if you were picking up icing for a cake. Smooth the paste over the stencil area in one gentle motion keeping the knife blade at an angle. The paste will probably be about 1/8″ – 1/4″ thick on the stencil. Run your knife over the surface again and remove any excess paste and make sure that all the areas are filled. This should result in a smooth, even application. Try not to overwork the paste.

Step 3 :

Quickly remove the tape from the bottom and then the sides. Leave the top, “hinge” tape in place. Now, pull up against the hinged tape so that the stencil is not pulled through the wet paste.

Set your paste image aside to dry. Don’t be surprised if your paper warps, it will flatten out when your paper dries.

Immediately place the dirty stencil in a pan of water and mild detergent and clean it. If necessary use a soft scrub brush or old toothbrush to remove excess paste. Dry with a soft cloth. If there is any residue on the stencil you may be able to remove it with rubbing alcohol.

Adding Color to Embossing Pastes :

There are several ways to add color to your embossing paste projects, some when the paste is wet and others after it has dried. Here are a few suggestions :

  • Sprinkle glitter onto the wet paste after removing the stencil. Tap off the excess and let dry.
  • If you are using Regular Embossing Paste you can add color with chalks or pigment inks after the paste has dried by repositioning the stencil over top and applying color with stencil brushes.
  • Metallic and pigment powders (like Pearl Ex) can be added to both the Regular and Translucent Pastes to create an unlimited number of beautiful colors and effects.

These are just a few of the ways that you can add color to your stenciled images. If you would like more information or ideas you may want to get the Dreamweaver’s book – New Dimensions In Cardmaking – Using Embossing Pastes with Metal Stencils. It’s a great reference book and has a gallery of card samples that is sure to inspire you.

We have added lots of samples to our Gallery in a special album using Dreamweaver stencils so be sure to check them out. I hope they inspire you and you give this wonderful technique a try.

Happy crafting!

© Scrap ‘n Stamp Canada 2010

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Digital Basics – How to Download & Save Digital Files

Studio K Digital products like stamps, clip art and printables are so much fun to work with. They give you more options and flexibility than ever before and once you have downloaded them you can print and use them over and over again – whenever you need them.

If you are new to Digital products the whole thing can be a bit intimidating but once you learn the basics you are going to absolutely love using digis.

The first step is downloading and saving your digital files on your computer. How do you do this? It’s easy!!!

After you have purchased your Studio K Digital products you will receive an email with links to each of the items on your order. Your email will also give you complete download instructions so you can print them if you need to.

Note: You will receive a separate link for each item that you order and will need to follow these steps for each item.

Step 1 – Click on the link and log into your account. Once you have logged in this is what you will see…

Step 2 – Click on the link at the bottom to download the file. You will receive your digital product as a zipped file that you need to save to your computer – usually under Downloads. Click OK to save the file.

Digital products are sent to you in a Zipped (or compressed) file because they are smaller and will download faster. Now that you have the Zipped file on your computer you need to ‘unzip’ or extract the items in the file so they will be put back to their original size.

Step 3 –

Locate the file folder on your computer, open it and then click on ‘Extract All’ (in the top menu bar)

You will be asked to select what folder you would like to save your images to. Select the folder and click ‘Extract’. Your digital products will now be saved in a folder on your computer and shown as separate files if there were several items in your download. Now your digis are ready for you to use.

HOT TIP: Make a new folder on your Desktop called Scrap ‘n Stamp Digis and save all your files there. It will make it easier for you to find and use them later.

Want to learn more? Check out our Tuesday Tutorials for step-by-step instructions that will show you how to use your Studio K Digital products.

IMPORTANT: Always back up your digital files to a disc or external drive so they are not lost if something happens to your computer.

* These instructions were written using a PC with a Windows Vista operating system. If you are using a MAC or a different Windows operating system you may find the procedure is slightly different.

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