creating custom embossing powders...

I had a fun play day yesterday & thought I'd share some of the results of my experiments...

at CHA this past January, Ranger announced a revised & updated embossing powder program...

embossing powder is HOT HOT HOT!

get the pun?

so that means that I was sent a GIANT box of EVERY single embossing powder that is made by Ranger...

yippee!

I SO LOVE MY JOB...

anyway, that's what started the experiment...

if you follow my blog, you know that I LOVE to find new ways to use products...

so you'll know that I had so much fun playing working in the studio yesterday...

one of the embossing powders that I did not own prior to the big box delivery, was the TAN embossing powder...

SERIOUSLY? how did I miss this? it's BROWN!

let the experimenting begin...

here's the supplies I used...

tim's distress embossing ink...but any of the embossing inks will work...

TAN embossing powder...

my checkmate stencil...

and some manila cardstock...

I like to use a piece of cut N dry foam to add the embossing ink thru the stencil...

after the Tan embossing powder was heated & melted, this is the result...

beautiful tan...and very shiny...

because my style is more vintage, I wanted to see if it was possible to tone down the shine...

so, I grabbed a small jar & added equal amounts of the tan embossing powder & the frosted crystal embossing powder...

and shook the jar to mix them very well...

it was that simple to create a custom embossing powder...

oh the possibilities!

what you'll see in the photo below is that it's still tan-ish...

but it is significantly less shiny...

and it has an awesome rough texture from the frosted crystal powder...

here's a side by side comparison...

less shiny & a lighter tan...

I am so loving this!

and here's a closer look at the fabulous texture...

metallic are very popular these days, so I thought I'd experiment with the princess gold embossing powder...

the photo below shows what it looks like, used right from the jar...

a beautiful shiny gold...

again, I was aiming for a more vintage effect, so I mixed equal amounts of the princess gold & frosted crystal in a small jar...

and below is the result...

textured gold, that is less shiny...

I like it!

I got brave & added even more frosted crystal to the jar...

I'd estimate that I used 1 part  princess gold powder & 5 parts of frosted crystal embossing powder...

and this is the result...

still gold color...

but much less shine...

which to me means it looks more vintage...

and PERFECT to use with distress inks & my archival inks...

below is the example showing all 3 gold samples...

the far left is princess gold, used right from the jar...

top right is 1 part princess gold & 1 part frosted crystal...

the bottom right is 1 part princess gold with 5 parts of the frosted crystal embossing powder mixed in, to create an awesome vintage gold...

3 very different effects...

the key ingredient here is the frosted crystal embossing powder...

it adds texture & makes the powders less shiny...

it can be mixed in with any of the powders to create custom colored embossing powders...

I'll be using these powders thru my stencils, for art journal backgrounds and to sprinkle over my wet embossing pastes, to create tons of dimension...

I see lots of fun play work coming...

try it!

have fun and...

make art!

wendy

ps...off to look for more mini jars...

I can mix silver embossing powder with frosted crystal...

and the awesome lime green powder...

and...

and...

I guess I better find LOTS of jars...