Finally finished my quilt and just loved seeing all the beautiful batiks. As I had many leftover cuts I made a quilt for my grandson and backed it with "Diggers and Dozzers" design fabric which he really loved.

I can see that I have been remiss in not posting anything lately. I have been busy as a jewelry designer and as such have had to put aside spending a lot of time doing other creative endeavors as I have to keep up with customer sales.

Quilting - A change of pace :)

I can't believe that it has been such a long time since I posted anything here. I am presently working on a quilt for a change of pace and will add a photo as soon as I can. I just love batiks and the colours in this quilt are really brillant. :)

Dry Embossing

DRY EMBOSSING

There are a couple of ways to dry emboss, but I am going to show you some options when using an embossing machine. There are many out there and most work in a very similar manner. I will be using the Sizzix. Both the Sizzix and Cuddlebug templates work in both machines.

For the Sizzix start by placing one of your embossing mats down in front of your machine. Place the thinner plastic piece on next. Then place your template down.

Next place your paper into your template. Close your template and place your next embossing plate on top. It is like forming a sandwich.

Now place this into the slot on the front of your machine and crank the handle. It will come out the back side as you crank.

When you remove your cardstock you will have an embossed image both front and back.

If you want to do a longer piece of paper..you can. Cut a piece to 11 inches.

Place it in your template and sandwich as above. Run it through your machine allowing the excess to follow it through.

It will come out looking like this when you open your sandwich.

At this point take out your paper, turn it around and line it up the best you can with your already embossed piece.

Then sandwich it and run it through your machine again. When you are done it will look like this....

Now if you want to kick this up a notch..run an emory board or sandpaper lightly over the top of the raised image like so...

and your finished product will look like this....

If you would like to ink your embossed design there is more than one way to do this.

You can ink the embossed side of your template like so

....but do not use stazon for this...you will have a hard time getting it off your template. Run it through your machine as showen and your finished product will look like this.

Next you can ink your debossed side..like this..

and again run it through your machine as normal and your end result will look like this.....

Here are two pieces side by side so you can see the difference.

For faux foil embossing..you will need cardstock, foil tape and your embossing machine with template.

Place a strip along the edge of your cardstock....

then run a 2nd row right along the first.

Then place it into your embossing machine and run it through. It will look like this...

.

The next step is a little more advanced, but can be really cool. You will need a Tim Holtz pen and alcohol ink. Place your ink into the pen.

Now it is just like a regular pen and you can color your faux metal

Your final will look something like this.

Now onto using your Dymo label maker to do some embossing.

You need a piece of cardstock..I prefer whitecore stock for this project.

Cut your cardstock to the same width as the tape you use in your dymo.

Now put your paper into your label maker just like you would your normal tape.

Type in the sentiment you would like.

This is a little hard to get a good photo of this.... Next run either fine sandpaper or an embory board lightly over your raised image....

Your finished strip will look like this.

This makes a really cool border when you do a full 12 inch strip with a repetitive word or sentiment.

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Tutorial For Heat Embossing

Heat Embossing 101

Step 1)

Choose your stamp, ink and embossing powder. I always use pigment ink, because it takes a little longer to dry. This gives you time to get your embossing powder onto your image before it dries. I also try to make sure that my ink is very similar to my embossing powder. This helps to ensure a better finished image.

Step 2)

If you are using an acrylic stamp, place it on your acrylic block. Centre it, that way it will line up appropriately.

If using a wooden stamp, obviously skip this step.

Step 3)

Ink your stamp. I like to place my stamp image side up and place the ink onto it from above. I can ensure a more even coverage and see that I am covering the entire stamp that way. ( I do not like to press my image into my ink because I tend to get excess ink on areas of the stamp I do not want transfer.

When your image is covered it should look similar to this.

Step 4)

Place your stamp onto your paper. Make sure not "rock" your image as it may smear. You want to place it straight down and apply even pressure to the entire stamp. Then remove by lifting straight up.

Step 5)

Cover your entire image with embossing powder. Make sure that you are generous with your powder. Cover the entire image.

Step 6)

Remove your excess embossing powder by pouring it onto a scrap sheet of paper. I also gently tap my image on end to remove any additional excess. You can also use a paint brush or Q-tip to remove any little stray pieces of embossing powder that may stick to your paper.

This is what your image will look like when covered with the embossing powder.

Step 7)

Return your excess embossing powder to its container. I do this by gently folding my scrap paper and then pouring it back into its container.

Step 8) Heat your image using a heat gun. Hold your gun approximately six inches from your image and keep it in constant motion. As your powder heats it will change to a raised image. Do not hold your gun still as the powder will burn and then melt and flatten.

Your finished image will look similar to this....

It is hard for me photograph the difference between before and after.

Now....for a little tip on something extra you can do with your embossing powder. If you have any plain brads you can change their colour.

Place it upside down onto your ink pad...still using pigment ink.

Make sure you cover the enitre surface of your brad.

Dip it into your embossing powder and cover thoroughly.

Hold it in front of your heat gun. Make sure to use tweezers to keep your fingers out of the way... you can get burned.

Your finished product will be a custom brad to match your page. Mine appears lumpy because of the fact that I used a distressing powder. Shiny powders will give you more of a smooth look and glitter powder will give you a glittery finish. Hope this gives you some new ideas to experiment.....