Tutorial Tuesday: Custom Stamped Embellishments wihth Lori

Welcome to another installment of Tutorial Tuesday!  This month features stamping, and I thought that this week I would share an unexpected combination of products used to make some cute custom dimensional embellishments.  So, we'll be using stamps (of course) and the new to Cutters Creek iBond cordless glue gun with colored glue sticks!

Have you ever looked at colored glue sticks for glue guns and wondered what on earth you would want to use colored glue for?  Today I have just one splendid little answer for you.  Let's make dimensional embellishments!  But first, I have to say that I LOVE the iBond glue gun - the cordless feature makes it so easy to get things done without wondering how the heck to get that cord out of the way.  In fact, I have several other projects I can already think of that I''ll be using this for this year.

Now, rather than ruin the surprise, I'm going to make you wait until after the tutorial steps to see what I've made.  Just check out these steps:

First, you will need a non-stick surface (the Bazzil splat mat is a good choice) and your iBond loaded with the glue sticks of your choice.  Turn on your iBond and let it rest on the mat.  (Another great feature of the iBond - there's a light at the tip so you ALWAYS know when it's turned on!)

While that's warming up, you will want a few additional items.  Choose a small stamp image, stamping block if acrylic, and ink for your stamp.  You need to ink up your stamp for this process, but most ink will not stay on our stamping surface.  You can just use a clear ink for no color, or Staz On if you want your image colored.  I chose to use a red Staz On for my image, just so it would show up better in the photos.

First step: coil a circle of hot glue slightly larger than your stamp image, making sure your coiled glue lines are touching.  You may want to experiment with the thickness for some different effects.  (I apologize for the odd picture here - it's hard to glue left-handed and take a picture right-handed!)  I tried to keep mine about the thickness of the stream that comes out of the tip.  Colored glue tends to be stiffer than clear, but you should still have plenty of time before it hardens up.

Once your circle is made, quickly ink up your stamp and press it into the hot glue.  Leave the stamp in place for a minute while the glue cools, then you can pull the stamp out of the glue and peel the glue off of the non-stick surface.

You now have two options with your stamped piece: leave it in a circle, as I chose for my card, or trim it down around the image.  A nice thing about using glue is that it trims super easily with a pair of fine-tip scissors.  At left is an example of a trimmed image.  This would look cute at the center of a ribbon bow, or perhaps three in a row on a card front, mounted on circles or squares.  When left whole, these embellishments give the appearance of wax seals, with a lot less fuss.

Now, on to my end product!  I created a card and used my embellishment as an accent piece in my design.

Using a card sketch and some papers from my stash, I got to work!  The cute girl stamp image is Cheeky Howdy from The Greeting Farm and the cherries stamp image is from the Kitchen Classic stamp set from Crafty Secrets.  Cheeky Howdy's outfit is paper pieced (see last week's Tutorial Tuesday!), and the scalloped mat/frame is from the Elegant Edges Cricut cartridge.  I adhered the stamped glue embellishment to my rosette using Glossy Accents to ensure it stays put.  As a finishing touch, I added stickles to the cherries in my girl's hair and the circle cut-outs in the frame.

Items available at Cutters Creek:

• Bazzil Splat Mat non-stick sheet
• iBond cordless glue gun from Imaginisce
• iBond mini glue sticks - solid color
• Tim Holtz clear Distress Ink Pad
• Kitchen Classics stamp set, Crafty Secrets
• Cheeky Howdy cling stamp, The Greeting Farm
• Elegant Edges Cricut cartridge  (not in stock, but Kim can order almost any cartridge you want!)
• Glossy Accents
• Stickles in Xmas Red

Tutorial Twofer Tuesday with Lori

Stamping Your Own Patterned Paper AND Masking

Happy Tuesday everyone, and welcome to our first installment of Tutorial Tuesday for April!  This month we're focusing on stamping, and since I am the self-proclaimed Simple Stamping Guru, I'm jumping right in with two easy techniques today.  Initially, I was just going to focus on making your own custom patterned paper, but I needed to mask an image for my card anyway, and since it's an easy yet oh-so-useful technique, I just added it right in.  Trust me, I don't like doing things that are "hard", require a lot of products, or take a lot of time.  So, make yourself comfortable and see for yourself how easy stamping can be!

Let's start with a technique called "random stamping" to make your own patterned paper.  It's really a misnomer, as it's not random at all, but when you're done it certainly looks that way.  This is such a useful technique, for times when you don't want to search for the "right" paper for a project, or just don't have something in the right colors.  I have been known to be slightly obsessive (OK, maybe not slightly) about my papers matching my pictures in my scrapbook pages; to the extent of making my own patterned papers that match the clothes my kids are wearing in the pictures.  But that's a story for another day...

I'm making a card, because the smaller size makes it easier to learn the technique.  (If any of the pictures are too small for you, just click on them to see them larger.)  To begin, stamp a single image near the center of your paper.  I stamped right on my 5 x 7 card base, choosing to make my entire background patterned.  For this project, I am using a single stamp for my pattern, but as you practice, you can add more stamps, and/or rotate the stamp(s) for more variety.

Next, stamp the image twice more, forming a triangle shape with the three images.  I chose to keep my images all facing the same general direction, but you can rotate for a different effect.

Continue stamping images, creating more and more triangles on your paper.  Make sure that when you approach the edges that you allow the images to go off the edges of the paper where they would naturally fall.  (Ever notice that patterned paper you buy doesn't usually contain only whole images, that shapes run off the edges of the paper?)

Since I used a line drawn stamp, I chose to color my images with Copic markers.  I colored using a very informal style, freely going outside the lines, as it was easy to color each petal and leaf by simply laying the brush tip against the paper for each one.

Don't worry about making your image spacing or your coloring perfect.  Trust me, no one will notice when you're done!  Now, on to masking:

This technique allows you to group images together, making them look like one is in front of another.  There is no limit to the number of images you can combine into a scene, but I most commonly use only two images together.  It looks so much more "advanced" when you mask than if you just stamp the images next to each other.  The only additional supply needed is a Post-It note (or if you don't have any, use a piece of printer paper and adhesive tape.

First, stamp the image you want to appear in the front of your scene on your cardstock.  Then stamp it again on your Post-It note.

Cut out the image you stamped on your Post-It, and stick it directly on the image you stamped on cardstock.

Next, stamp the other image right next to the first, slightly overlapping where you want it to appear behind the first image.

Peel off the Post-It note, and voila! You have a masked scene.  For my purposes, I cut out my masked images, added some extra detail and colored them.

To assemble my card, I also stamped and colored a border and cut it out.  I trimmed 1/4" off the right edge and adhered my border image and some ribbon.  Then I popped up my stamped image on a matted panel, added a custom sentiment, and DONE!

I thought this would make a great card for a  couples shower, casual wedding, or a fun anniversary card.  Just add the additional sentiment to the inside of the card and you're ready to roll.

Products available at Cutters Creek:

• Clear Art Stamps from Crafty Secrets, Kitchen Classics
• Acrylic Block starter set
• Memento Ink, black
• Copic Markers, in R20 Blush and YG07 Acid Green
• Cardstock

Very Vintage Valentine with Lori

I decided to make a Valentine that looked truly vintage, so I started with the awesome Crafty Secrets Homespun Cotton Scraps in the Romance theme.

 I cut out the image I wanted, leaving a border, then peeled it off the backing sheet.  Did you know that if you pick at the threads with your fingernails, you can unravel them?  I like to unravel a few rows to give it a little older feel.  Next, I mounted the Cotton Scraps on a coordinating cardstock mat. 

Next, I used my handy Make The Cut software with a free SVG file to make that super cute doily heart.  I altered the original SVG a little to remove some extra cuts, and it's only one layer of a complete card.  This particular SVG file came from Paulo's blog.  He is an awesomely talented artist who chooses to share his work with the rest of us!  I distressed the cut some by using some distress ink direct from the ink pad - the Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pads work great for this.  (I particularly recommend Old Paper, Antique Linen, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo, and Walnut Stain for maker paper look aged.)  Finally, I pulled a "Valentine" stamp from my stash and stamped the upper center of the heart.

I made a 5x7 card base from cardstock, then a 4.75 x 6.75 panel from a darker color.  I embossed this panel using my Cuttlebug Textile Texture embossing folder.  Now, because this folder is an A2 size, I embossed the left side (horizontal orientation), then the right side.  This folder is really easy to line up the design for this technique!  After embossing, I ran my distress ink pad over the raised areas and along the edges.  I then used an edge distresser tool along the edges of the panel as well, and adhered it to the front of my card base.

On top of the panel, I adhered the heart doily and the matted Cotton Scraps image.  Finally, I pulled out my Fired Brick Distress Stickles to accent my sentiment and fill in all of the little heart cut-outs on the edge of my heart doily.