alphanumeric stamping & NEW Ranger products...

I've recently had some good GREAT mail days, which inspired me to play...

first up, Ranger introduced some new adhesives...

I am IN LOVE with the adhesive sheets & I'll show 2 REALLY fun ways to use them in this post...

also in that fun box of goodies was the new foil sheets...

they come in 3 different color sets...I'll use the vintage package today...

the next package that excited me contained tim's new alphanumeric from Sizzix...

I knew I'd like these...but NO...

I'm IN LOVE!

they are so flippin CUTE & VERY useful...

they are the bargain of the century...

trust me...just wait 'til you see...

ok...let's get started...I covered a scrap of clearly for art (CFA) with the new adhesive sheet...

just remove one side of the backing paper & lay it over the CFA...

then die cut...I used the tattered florals mini movers & shapers flower...

 next, I removed the remaining backing paper & pressed a sheet of the foil onto the adhesive...
I didn't press everywhere...I wanted a vintage/worn effect...

and now the flower looks like this...

one side is foil & the other is CFA...

I tapped on some potting soil archival & dried it...

the second flower is made exactly the same way, but with this really cool bronze foil added in the bare spots...

here's my 2 flowers...

next I added some stamping over the flowers, with watering can archival...

I used the vintage mesh background on the top one...

and some numbers on the second...

I lightly heated the CFA  to soften the material so I could shape the petals...

***DO NOT overheat the CFA when it's covered with the adhesive sheet***

just warm it enough to soften it...

to create the card base, I started with a 3 ¼ inch x 5 inch manila scrap...

when creating large backgrounds  I'll use the archival reinkers with rubbing alcohol...

but since this is a small piece, I swiped the hydrangea & tree branch archivals into my craft sheet & added one drop of the metallic mixative...

I'm seriously addicted to the gold...

and in the photo below you'll see that I added plenty of rubbing alcohol to make the inky solution...

I used the palette knife to mix the alcohol into the ink...

then laid the manila cardstock in the inky solution...

the manila will quickly soak up the fluid...

but magically...it does not warp the cardstock, like plain old water does...

next, I dried it to get this awesome background...

the alphanumeric dies are awesome for their original purpose...die cutting...

but they can also be used as stamps...

Paula Cheney wrote a post about storing Sizzix & mentioned a cool thin magnetic sheet that she purchased at Home Depot...

here's the link to that blog post...

hello...dear Rick...I LOVE YOU...

please run to Home Depot & get me some...

I have an idea...

here's how to stamp with the little letters...

since they are ¾ inch tall, I cut the magnetic sheet to ¾ inch...

that makes it simple to line them up straight...

next, I added a strip of wonder tape to a gridblock...and that securely holds the magnetic strip in place...

on my test drive I realized that the magnetic strip needed to be raised to prevent any excess ink from the gridblock transferring to the background...

the simple solution was to add a second ¾ inch magnetic strip over the original...

since there is no cushion with this "stamp", it works best to stamp with the alphanumeric dies on a mouse pad...

the results are MUCH better...

remember to line up the letters backwards...

it should look like a rubber stamp...

I added small pieces of tape to remind me where the letters are...

that makes it easier to center...

tada...

stamping with alphanumeric dies!

see...at $19.95 they REALLY ARE the bargain of the century...

imagine all the words you can stamp...in any orientation!

I stenciled basically bricks on the background with tree branch archival...

 it looks like this...

here's a fun way to change up the in full bloom SiSi...

I wanted just 5 of the leaves, so I masked off the unwanteds with painters tape...

the SiSi comes with a coordinating stamp, but I didn't use it this time...

with the leaf green added and the stencil still in place...

I used watering can archival to stamp into each leaf...

I chopped my large collage background stamp into 9 mini stamps...

unmounted stamps are the easiest to use when stamping thru a stencil...

and now the leaves look like this...

and with the stencil removed...

THANKS seemed to be hanging, so I stenciled a checkmate border on the top & bottom of the panel with potting soil...

and now it looks like this...

you'll see in the final photo that that partial stencil on the bottom bugged me, so I chopped it off...

next I stamped the flourish twice with jet black archival...

I used the black fude ball pen to define the stenciled edges and to pen stitch around the edges...

remember I told you about the new adhesive sheets?

this idea is flipping fab...

I cut a small piece, just large enough for 2 buttons...

to alter the buttons, remove one backing paper & press it onto the button...

cut around the button, leaving some extra...

remove the backing paper & press the extra to cover the sides of the buttons...

the bottom button shows how it starts & the top shows what it looks like when the foil is added...

again, my goal was to not press everywhere so that the button would look rusty vintage...

adding adhesive to the button sides allows foil to be easily added for a professional effect...

think about all the buttons & embellishments you have & this is a super simple way to change them up...

I WILL be doing this LOTS more...

if it's not moving...I probably will stamp it...

now I glued it all in place...

and I added it to a black card using the new adhesive foam tape roll... IN BLACK...

perfect, because it's not noticeable/distracting from the side...

and it's BLACK!

ps...it does come in white too...

but it also comes in BLACK!

the finale was to use a star punch with black cardstock & add 3 stars...

2 to the button flower centers & one to accent THANKS...

I also added a bit of shading with the stabilo pencil...

photographing metal is not my best skill...

the glare was driving me crazy...

here's a closer look at the flowers...

and another shot at my final card...

the little black frame makes it pop...

I originally planned to color in "thanks" with a distress marker...

but for now, I think I'll leave it like it is...

these are some new techniques I will be using again...

altering with foil...

CFA faux metal flowers and

stamping with alphanumeric dies...

and a reminder of an old technique...

using just a small portion of a stencil...

one more thing...

Ranger also just introduced the same adhesive sheet...in a strip form...

SUPER convenient...

it has several widths in the package...

LOVE IT LOTS!

think about using the adhesive strips to add a border with the new foils...

Simon Says has a discount code...

if you happen to be shopping this weekend...

use SHP799 to receive $7.99 off a $75 order!

it's always fun to discover a new technique when you...

make art!

wendy

ps...thanks for stopping by. to my USA friends...

have a wonderful LONG holiday weekend!