still playing with pastes...

but first...I need to answer several questions about the last post...

#1...how did you glue the jar to the page?

   haha...that's why the jar has a label...the adhesive is hiding under   the label...the rest of the jar has no adhesive, but the jar is firmly attached...

#2...what pointsettia stamp you were referring to when you said you cut it apart for the flourishes?

it's the poinsettia stamp from my very first release...

the set number is LCS007 and the set name is "art of making it merry"

here's what the poinsettia looks like...UNCUT...

#3...you said the poinsettia was an old stamp. I couldn't find it at my store. can I still get it?

YES...because they're made here in the USA, Ted can make 1 or 5000...you can ask for a special order from your store or order right from Stampers Anonymous...

moving on...

I've been making lots of art journal pages lately, so I wanted to play with a little home decor piece...

this post is about using embossing pastes on fabric & art parts...

and I'll show you how to alter some products and how to create custom embellishments...

to play along grab one of tim's burlap panels...

I used this one...

it's 6 inches x 4 inches...

you get 2 in one package for double the fun...

at $4.00 it's a very reasonable price for a solid base...

spread translucent embossing paste ...

thru the checkmate stencil, over the center of the canvas & allow to dry...

when the translucent paste is dry, use gathered twigs distress paint...on your finger or a piece of Cut N Dry foam & add the paint to the top & bottom of the panel to darken the burlap...

don't cover up the paste!

when dry, use tarnished brass distress paint (on a finger) to accent the panel edges...

now grab the black embossing paste...

and spread it over the dots stencil, to create a polka dot border on the top & bottom of the panel...

when the black paste has dried, line up the checkmate stencil, over the stenciled translucent paste...

use scattered straw distress paint, on  a blending tool 

or with Cut N Dry foam...

to pounce over the translucent paste...

adding the paint changes the paste from shiny to more matte...

the distress paint sticks to embossing pastes very well...

and the stencil helps control where the paint is added...

here's what it looks like so far...

on a side note...the large art part heart in the photo below was originally red...

I had inked it, stamped it & didn't like it one bit, so I covered it with gold metallic embossing paste so I could start again...

it's good to know that the pastes can cover up an OOPS...

add a thin layer of gold metallic paste first to cover the heart...

that makes the crackled texture paste stick securely...  

dry, then add a layer of crackled texture paste and allow to dry and crackle...

you'll see the gold paste coming thru the cracks...

now it's time to add color over the dry paste...

I used leaf green, fern green, forget-me-not, cornflower blue & a bit of tree branch...

just use a blending tool to apply the archivals...

and heat to dry...

and now the heart looks like this...

I added the artist definition stamp over the heart & used the polka dot border stamp too...using jet black archival for both...

oops...forgot photo...

time to make an embellishment with the vintage floral stencil...

use dandelion to stencil just the flower on a piece of clearly for art, that's covered with a vintage dictionary page...

cut out the flower, heat the CFA to soften it, then shape the flower...

here's a fun tip for making perfectly coordinated embellishments...

I LOVE the reverse dots background stamp because it shows lots of the ink color and it's a very small pattern...

that's important...you'll see that later in the post...

so, stamp a scrap of manila cardstock, with the reverse dots background & dandelion archival...

2 things to note in the photo below...

to create the butterfly, I stenciled ON THE BACK of the reverse dots manila cardstock with the butterfly from the new little bits stencil...

then cut out the butterfly...

the stenciling on the back gave me the outline for cutting...

next I used a hole punch to create these custom brads, using tim's custom fasteners...

they come with little epoxy dots, but I didn't use them this time...

think about this...

use any color of ink, a small pattern stamp & you can create flower centers in any color to coordinate with your art!

I made 2 of the smaller size fasteners...but only used 1 for this piece...

see why a smaller pattern like the reverse dots works well?

it was easy to position the punch so each would have 4 dots...

you'll see in the last photo that I also added a mini butterfly remnant rub over the butterfly...

next, ink some linen ribbon with gathered twigs distress ink...& fray the edges...

I chopped off the leaves from a piece of fake greenery I have in a bucket here...

I've done that before & that side is getting naked, so it's turned against the wall! psssst...don't tell anyone! 

next, alter a stencil mark with tarnished brass distress paint...

again, I like to apply the paint with my finger...

when the paint is dry...add a random bit of text from a remnant rub...

now we can alter these gem clips...

the original clear is on the right & the altered version on the left...

just tap them on the tree branch archival pad & dry to change them easily...

use jet black archival to stamp WISH on a scrap of CFA, that is covered with dictionary paper...

and cut it out...

you'll see in the final photo that the word hangs off the edge of the heart...but the CFA keeps it nice, strong & it won't bend...

this license plate set is cool because we can make lots of other words by stamping them then cutting them apart...

I made "MAKE A WISH" for a card, but for the life of me I can't find the photo...

ok...all the pieces are made...

now everything gets glued in place...

and it looks like this...

I could add a hanger to the back or display it on an easel...

this is a good design for gift giving...

you could customize it with a special significant year using the license plate numbers stamp...

it would be great for a wedding or anniversary gift...

or use the letters to customize with initials...

change up the flower & butterfly colors to fit any decor...

and with 2 panels in the package, you can make 2 at once!

here's a little look at the custom embellishments...

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial...

if it's cold & snowy as predicted this weekend,

we can stay in, stay warm and...

make art!

wendy

art journal page...

I have a quickie post with a large art journal page to share today...

I like to combine new stuff with older, that we already have...

I grabbed 4 of my archival colors...

plus jet black archival...

 this stencil...

the new add a stencil...

this new little bits stencil...

this one is from my first release...it's my "go to" favorite basic...

and stamped the jar (with jet black) on CFA...

and used a few stamps...

to make this art journal page...

I'll be back on Friday...
and I'll be switching it up to show you a super fun home decor piece...

we'll be using one of tim's burlap panels...
and 4 embossing pastes... black, translucent, metallic gold & crackled texture paste...

to...

make art!
wendy
pssst...here's a peek...

custom background stamps & ruler stamping...

but first...

I wanted to follow up the "paste over glass" story...

you can read about it on this post...

here's the summary...

it you want to apply crackled texture paste over GLASS...use either the gold or silver metallic paste as a base...

either will work perfectly...

I'll show you that below...

the black embossing paste sticks to glass perfectly, UNTIL you add the crackled on top...

they are not compatible on glass,plastic or NON-porous surfaces...

my thought is since the black & white embossing pastes are more "fluffy", they are more porous & allow the moisture from the crackled texture paste to penetrate the paste & loosen it from the glass...

so...if you want a black textured (pasted) bottle, you could add Perfect Pearls powder or Perfect Pearls mist to give it shimmer...

or...randomly paint over the dry black paste with distress paints for a cool effect...

you CAN use black embossing paste as your base before adding the crackled texture paste on other surfaces...

the photo below shows an art parts art journal cover...

with a black embossing paste base, then crackled texture paste added over the top...

perfect combo for paper based surfaces...

the metallic pastes work great as a base too...

here's another glass bottle...

gold metallic paste base...

then crackled texture paste applied over the dry base...

I mixed in a drop of the potting soil archival reinker before applying the paste...

that's why it's a tan color...

then inked over the dry paste with several archival ink colors...

I used leaf green, forget-me-not, cornflower blue & tree branch...

not sure what I want to add to this bottle...

I'm thinking a gold metallic FLOWER?...

one more thing before moving on...

if you're wondering if the glass is painted with Glue N Seal, before adding the black paste...

would that hold the paste on the glass?

the answer is no...it doesn't make a difference...

the black paste sticks just fine, UNTIL the crackled is added over it...

****************

now to share a fun art journal page, with a few twists...

once again...

I played yesterday, using my Ranger specialty stamping paper, large art journal page...

if you've been a recent visitor, you'll know I recently became obsessed crazy about circles...specifically, spotlight circle frames...

you'll see them in lots of previous posts...

I had this idea, to use my new vintage doily background stamp in another way...

I've used the whole stamp as the background of this art journal page...

and just a portion of it here...

as a tag topper & bottomer?? here...

and here's how we can use it as a spotlight frame...

I cut a circle from tim's mask material & laid it over the center of the stamp...

then inked the stamp with watering can archival ink...

removed the mask, stamped it in the center of my page, then embossed it with super fine detail embossing powder...

I LOVE it...it doesn't even look like the same stamp!

it makes a fancy spotlight frame...and it's another way to change up the stamp...

which reminds my why I LOVE background STAMPS...

versatile...

 next I added my inky background using rubbing alcohol, tree branch & hydrangea archival inks...

then,  I stenciled the vintage floral with fern green, leaf green, forget-me-not & a bit of hydrangea over the blue, to create a custom color...

you'll see I didn't use the whole stencil...I only wanted it outside the circle on the right...

I used the new handy dandy mini blending tool ...

it's great for stenciling...

next, some dandelion archival stripes using the "yikes, stripes" stencil...

I wanted lines in the background, but not perfectly drawn lines...

I didn't want to use a lined stamp either...

thinking...thinking...

I've stamped with the edge of gridblocks before & they work GREAT, but this time I wanted thinner lines, to coordinate better with my main image...

solution!

if you don't have tim's magic ruler, grab it before it's gone...

they are discontinued...

but I found them in stock (for now) here...

I pressed the metal edge side of the ruler onto my watering can archival pad & stamped away...

                                           

it's PERFECT! you can make the lines as long or as short as you want & fill in any areas than need interest very easily...

and you can quickly create a REALLY fun linen-ish look!

below is my finished page, with lots more ruler stamping!

I didn't take photos for every step, but you'll see some polka dotty tree branch archival stenciled dots, some stenciled numbers & word...

the postage (LCS051 art gone postal) is stamped with tree branch...it helped to fill in the circle...

the tiny text is this train schedule stamp...

the sentiment is from LCS049 tools for art...

some stenciled stars...and some green striped stenciled borders...

I hope you enjoyed seeing a way to alter your background stamps...

and how to stamp with a ruler!

Sunday was a FUNday to...

make art!

wendy

art journal self portrait...

this is one of those "things" that takes on a life of it's own...

I had a general idea of what I wanted to do for this art journal page...

I cut out a bunch of flowers & leaves, but didn't use any of them...

it's another Ranger specialty stamping paper art journal page...

8 ½ x 6 inches...

***here's a tip...***

if you're making large art journal pages to fit the art parts art journal ...

get the 8 1/2 x 11 paper...

if you cut the pages to 8 ½ x 6, the left over piece makes 2 card fronts when cut in half & you have ZERO waste! not even a sliver...

it started like this...

I first spread translucent embossing paste randomly thru the add a stencil & let that dry...

to make my background I used watering can and tree branch archival...and used the same alcohol ink technique that I've been playing with...

you'll find the tutorial here...  video link

this is my new fav color combo for vintage...

 I had one of tim's people that I had cut out & I thought the background color combo would fit with her...
that's why I chose those colors...

these are the pieces I used...

an art parts bow (pssst...on sale!)...stamped with the coordinating stamp, using jet black...(LCS097 shopping is an art)
it's inked with orange blossom archival...

HER, a found relative...who eventually came to be ...ME...
I cut her out, sanded the edges & added some brushed corduroy to them...

the leaves were die cut with tim's new Sizzix greenery die...
I had a scrap of tan chipboard, so I used that...then inked it with tree branch & stamped the polka dots with jet black archival...

I stamped the fringe flower on a scrap of CFA that was covered with vintage dictionary text, cut it out & inked it with orange blossom archival...

see the button bottom right? that's a vintage button & I think it's even better with a remnant rub added...

and the large Blossom Bucket glasses?
yep...as soon as I pulled them from the drawer, the page went from vintage to FUNKY vintage...

here are the next background layers...

I stamped the large flourishes & the heart with watering can archival...

and used watering can to stencil the checkmate at the top & bottom...

You'll also see in the bottom photo that I added some random stamped text from the artist definition stamp, with watering can archival for that too...pssst...the stamp set is on sale!

and I LOVE jet black archival for my sayings...

and here's my selfie for today...

LOVE the new mini bird stamp...LOTS!

the glasses totally changed where this was headed...

you've heard the saying "art speaks"...

this was so very true today...

and it was very loud & clear...

not at all what I thought it would be...

but I like her...

or is it ME?

I had fun...

try it...create a self portrait art journal page, have fun and...

make art!

wendy

trash talk...

but first some public service announcements...

I have updated my teaching convention demo schedule for 2014...

you'll find it on the right sidebar...

this will be a fun year...I get to visit some new stores & hook meet some new art friends...

teaching is what I LOVE to do...

there will be more visits added, but at least I have listed the first few months...

I hope you'll check it out & come spend a day or weekend with me...

making art!

next...

paste...I'll have another embossing/crackled texture paste later this week...

and answer questions...

I wanted you to know that I didn't forget...

next...

NEWS FLASH!!!

the new art parts stencil storage binder, large stamp binder & art journal cover (also fits the small stamp sets)  have ARRIVED!

you can also add blank white pages to the large & small binders...

you can store stamps on both sides of the blank sheets...

the small size pages are so convenient for storing your SiSi stamps & the large pages will store 4 background stamps on each page, so a package of 3 sheets will hold all 12 of my large backgrounds...

if you collect clear stamps, these storage pages work well for storing them too...

the binders make it so convenient to find the stamp you need...just flip thru the pages...

next...

archival reinker backgrounds...

I've had several requests for a "chart" with reinker combos that work together...

YIKES...there must be 1000 possible combos...

I think it's best to just play & see what you like...

I've tried some that I thought might not be good, but they are really cool...

I'll always tell you what I used, when I post something...

next...

the title of this post...

if you've been following me, you know that I HATE to waste & I'm always digging something out of the trash...

it makes Rick laugh & he'll comment..."what? we can't afford another piece of 10 cent paper?"...

which leads to this...

what happens if you create an archival reinker background & hate it?

here's video link to the archival reinker background technique

here's what I did...

I made a background & it didn't speak to me...

not even a little whisper...

nothing...

so I added some translucent embossing paste thru the checkmate stencil, hoping that would work...

still...nothing...

so I decided to chop it up & see what developed...

the background you see below was created on a 8 ½ x 6 inch piece of specialty stamping paper, with rubbing alcohol, cornflower blue & potting soil archival reinkers mixed with the gold metallic mixative...

I turned the paper over & on the back, I traced the heart stencil & a flower from the create a flower stencil...

I inked over the heart with forget-me-not archival...

next I used tim's new sizzix garden greens die to cut these a section of leaves from clearly for art (CFA), that was covered with a vintage dictionary page...

I used fern green & leaf green archival with a blending tool to add color...

see that single leaf...

you got it...left over from another project...

I dug it right out of the trash too...

next, I heated the leaves to soften the CFA so I could shape them...

for tiny things, a hemostat works well, so  fingers don't get burned...it has a very secure hold...

in the photo below, you'll see a small piece of manila cardstock...

it's 3 ½ x 3 ¾ inches...

this was also in the trash...I tried the archival reinker/alcohol technique on manila cardstock...but it soaked thru immediately & I didn't like it...

BUT...I noticed that it might look good with the heart, so I dug that out too, to see if it could be resurrected...

I used MY FAV...tree branch archival with the herringbone background stamp...

and stamped it randomly over the background...

then used watering can archival, with the new mini blending tool, to stencil the words...

then darkened the edges with gathered twigs...

that little bit of ink on the edge makes a big impact...

look at the photo above...then the photo below...

next...after shaking the tarnished brass distress paint, I used my finger to randomly paint the industrious border sticker...

now remember I worked in surgery in my other life, so I did a little surgery on my poinsettia stamp & cut off the little scroll/flourish thing & stamped it 3 times...

I knew where the heart would fit, so the junction of the stamps would be covered...

I used tree branch archival to stamp the index border on the left...

the border is from LCS038, live & make art set...

and glued it onto a kraft cardstock card...

the flower center is a mini Blossom Bucket star...

I took the photo from an angle, so you could see the translucent embossing paste...

great texture...

the whole card measures 3 ¾ x 4 ¼...

when I make a card, it's rarely a standard size...

when you dig stuff out of the trash...

you work with what's there...

it's small, but I like it...

so I still have lots of that left over background...

I traced another small heart, 3 mini hearts & 2 more flowers...

and cut them out...

and now, instead of being in the trash...

I have these fun pieces to play with...

it's amazing how different they look...

so the moral of the story...

if it doesn't speak to you...chop it up into smaller pieces so you can use them to...

make art!

wendy

ps...here's a peek at how I customized my art parts storage binders...

hope they inspire YOU...