Time Workshop/Tutorial Part 3 - Shrink Plastic Clock with Glossy Accents

If you missed them, the instructions for the basic clock are on the previous post.  Before adding the clock hands for this one I covered the top with Glossy Accents.

Extra Materials
Glossy Accents
There are other variation you could use instead of Glossy Accents, ie. Crackle Accents, Matte Accents and Sepia Accents.  They can all be found on the same link.  There is a new one that will be available soon, Enamel Accents. 

Do not shake the bottle before using as it will create air bubbles!

The Glossy Accents is milky when first applied but will dry clear with a high raised gloss finish.  Avoid applying near the centre hole.

Apply the glossy accents using the nozzle to guide it where you want it to go.

Make sure you go around the edges for a nice finish.  At this stage ensure there are no air bubbles, any you find can usually be dispersed with the nozzle or a pin.

See, I did warn you that I would be saying don't do it this way at some point!  If you look to the left on the middle of the clock below you will see lots of tiny bubbles.  I applied this at night just before I went to bed so that it would be dry by the morning but I didn't check for bubbles.  You can get air bubbles even if you dont shake the bottle.  As I mentioned in the previous paragraph, if you have any just prod them with the nozzle of the bottle or a pin while it is still liquid and it should remove most of them.

Another tip is to leave the bottle upside down for a while before using it.  This way any air at the top of the bottle will travel up to the bottom! 

Place a cocktail stick in the hole if you have one, this will help stop the glossy accents from filling it.  Glossy accents is quite thick and it will usually stay where you put it, so it shouldn't fill the hole. 

It will self level during the drying time if you have any lumps or bumps.

Finish the edges off with a permanent black ink pad such as Stazon.  This next photo is a bit dark but I think you can see the different between the two I made from the shrink plastic.

Part 4 coming tomorrow! 

Jill

Time Workshop/Tutorial Part 2 - Shrink Plastic Clocks

The next elements for the card are the shrink plastic clocks.  I love these as they are so cute and the hands go round and they just feel and look nice:)

Now this is a long post, it gets more interesting today, so I think you will want to put the kettle on before you start reading!

Materials
Hero Arts cling stamp CG186 Big Clock
Frosted Shrink Plastic
Sanding Block
Distress Ink Stormy Sky (this is a fantastic shade!) and Pumice Stone (we've got these on special offer on the website)
Tim Holtz Foam Applicator or Cut 'n Dry Foam
Tim Holtz Game Spinners
Black permanent ink pad suitable for shrink plastic or Black Stazon

Sand the frosted shrink plastic to give it a key for the ink.  If you sand it you can then use an ink that isn't permanent to tint the plastic.

To do this start with the block at the centre of the piece and rub towards the top of the shrink plastic so that the block goes right of the sheet.  Sand until you have a matt finish.  Turn the piece 180 degrees and repeat until your sanding completely covers the piece in downward stripes. 

Now turn it 90 degrees and again starting from the middle sand off the side.  Turn 180 degrees then sand again to complete the cross hatched sanding.  You will achieve a nice even sanding all over.

Brush away the dust.  Then take the Stormy Sky Distress Ink Pads and add colour direct to plastic from the ink pad.

When it is completely covered, wipe away most of the ink with kitchen towel.  You will see a faint tint of the ink remaining.  As the colour will intensify when shrunk you want it quite pale.

Add a small amount of the Distress Ink Pumice Stone randomly wiping off any excess so that it remains pale.

Stamp the Hero Arts Big Clock stamp with a permanent ink.  Stazon ink will dry quickly, but others may remain wet and you will have to be careful cutting out the image.

I found that the clock is about the same size as the largest circle of the nesties, so if you hate cutting out circles you and use this through your die cutting machine. 

If the edges are rough or uneven you can sand them with the block to smooth them out but shrink plastic is very forgiving when shrunk.

Incidentally, I didn't mention yesterday but I used Tim's Gadget Gears Sizzix die through my Cuttlebug, you only need to use the 2 B plates.

You need to make a hole on the centre before you shrink.  The punch, or eyelet setter tool needs to be 1/4" (about the same size as an office hole punch) as the hole will obviously shrink too.

Now the fun bit, heat with your heat gun.  Try not to panic about it sticking to itself, generally if you leave it alone it will sort itself out. 

Just a tip here, shrink plastic doesn't stick to wood so if you don't have a non-stick craft sheet you could use a wooden chopping board.  Also, being metal, tweezers can get hot, I prefer to use a lolly stick or wooden dowling to hold the plastic in place while heating (it does have a tendancy to fly away!).

When the piece has completely shrunk, splat it with an acrylic block or something simliar.

This photo shows the difference in size after shrinking.  The clock is just over 3 1/4" or 9cm full size and 1 1/2" or 4 cms when shrunk.

I added the game spinners but felt the piece needed a little more tidying.  I pressed the edges around the Stazon ink pad.

Now as I was playing I wasn't just going to make that second one the same was I?  Of course not! So the next post is an another idea to try.

Jill

Time Workshop/Tutorial Part 1 - Shrink Plastic Cogs/Gears

I'm going to work through all the individual elements for the card first.  As I said in my intro post, there are lots of different elements/techniques to get through.  There will be wrong bits, flaws, confessions and some don't do this' along the way, I'm just warning you now not to expect total perfection! 

The card is actually for Ian, The Stamp Man's birthday, of course he's already seen it but there you go.  It's an apt theme for me as I'm alway late, especially with cards for the family (yes Mum!!).  For once this one is early, I may just give it to him late so he won't have any surprises!

Anyway, the photo above shows a selection of just some cogs/gears I made for the card (there's more on cogs/gears another time though).  I have used Tim's new Gears Alteration Sissix die to make  them.  Some that are shown here are made from card and some with shrink plastic.  I'll talk about the card ones another time.

The cogs/gears are quite large, so as well as using them as they are, they are perfect for using  with shrink plastic.

Materials
White, frosted and black Shrink Plastic
Sanding block
Brilliance ink - Starlight Silver
Tim Holtz Gadget Gears

I thought I'd make a start on a fun bit first, I LOVE shrink plastic!  Firstly, I'll mention sizes, (which are approximate), the frosted piece is the smallest cog unshrunk 4cms or 1 1/2", the black has been shrunk and is 1.5cms or 1/2".  I haven't coloured or messed with these at all, I wanted them raw so they are just cut out and shrunk.

The next 2 are the large size, the frosted one is unshrunk and is approx.  3" or 8cms, the shrunk piece is 1 1/4" or 3cms

The medium size is 2 1/4" or 6cms unshrunk or 1 1/4" or 3mm. When shrunk 3/4" or  2cms

I gave the black shrink plastic a light sanding then covered it completely with ink from a Brilliance Starlight Silver ink pad (picture above). 

Brilliance ink becomes permanent when heated so is an ideal ink to use on shrink plastic.  It is a pearlescent ink and gives a lovely galvanised metal effect, especially on the frosted shrink plastic (picture below).

I left some pieces just as they are

These are the completed pieces. I'll be explaining more about shrink plastic in the next post.

Thanks for reading.

I hope you have a Happy Easter weekend!

Jill

New blog look and more Nestie Shrink Plastic

Another card with a shrink plastic button along with a large piece that I used as a platform/mount for paper flowers.

I decided to have a play yesterday evening and decorate my blog page.  I may have another play and change it.  What do you think so far?  or, do you like it as it is? 

When I started my blog I didn't really know what to do for decoration so just left it. 

Tracey having started her new blog has spured me on to have a play with it.  I did try to help Tracey with her new blog and managed to loose her lovely background so I thought I needed to learn a little more about it myself!!

Talking of Tracey, she is working on new stamp designs to add to the ones we already have in hand but she has asked if there are any stamp designs you would like to her to draw.  Do pop over to her new blog with any suggestions you have.

Jill

Shrink Plastic platform card with Nestabilities

Same idea as yesterday for this card. I stamped the flourish design onto pale blue vellum with white Brilliance ink and left it to dry.

I stamped the same flourish onto a large scalloped edge square of translucent shrink plastic that I cut with a Nestability and shrunk it straightaway, no need to wait for it to dry.

The largest dragonfly on Kay's Funky Frames stamp sheet was stamped with black archival ink onto another piece of shrink plastic that had been cut from a large label Nestability.

I edged the piece with the black ink so that there would be a contrast between the dragonfly piece and the scalloped platform.

I left it to dry for 30 minutes before colouring with Sakura stardust pens as I explained on yesterday's card.

I shrank it down and glued it onto the platform.

Remember not to panic when shrinking!!

Jill Boulton held a workshop with us here today, but I didn't get to play:(   In amongst serving customers, I must have made quite a lot of cups of tea and coffee, dozens I think, plus Ian and I made a start getting product samples decided and together for a new live show we are doing on Create and Craft TV on 28th November (12pm).

We have been asked to go back to film another show with Tracey's stamps that featured at the beginning of last month. We will have different accessories this time so I made up the envelopes today for the new design team members to have a play. Quite a challenge for them as there isn't much time and again, there are restrictions on what we can use.

So no chance to take a breather at the moment, it's straight onto the next show. Somewhere in between I really must start my Christmas cards!  I have ideas in my head that keep changing so by the time I get to actually make them I'm hoping I'll have decided what I'm finally doing!

The ladies at today's workshop used a variety of Ranger products, distress inks, cut 'n dry foam, grunge paper, alcohol inks, acrylic dabbers and this afternoon metal embossing with Walnut Hollow products.

The Cuttlebug came in handy on and off all day and last thing this afternoon I poked my nose in with something to try, embossing the Moonglow filigrees onto metal and then working on them with tools. I'd tried it in the week but hadn't made a note of the order for the sandwich, and it proved illogical to figure out again! But we got there in the end and they looked good. Another thing I will show you once I get a chance to make something with them!

Jill

Kay Carley's Fancy Flowers Stamp Sheet - new cards from the telly show and other ramblings....

This is the first card I demonstrated on Wednesday's show.

I stamped onto the translucent shrink plastic with a black archival ink pad, it does take about 30 minutes to dry before you can colour in. I didn't sand the shrink plastic as with this ink pad and Stazon ink, it can bleed into the sanded lines. I do sand it when using Brilliance ink pads and will explain more as I show the other cards with the shrink plastic.

I used Sakura Stardust pens to add colour, I traced around the outlines of the petals and put a little colour around the centres. I used a nearly dry waterbrush to pull the colour into the centres of the petals slightly so that it was a very pale pink. You need to have a very pale shade as the colour will intensify when it is shrunk and look far too heavy. If you have too much water on your waterbrush/paintbrush it will bead, it only needs to be slightly damp.

The Stardust pens have a shimmer to them that also intensifies when shrunk. They really are the very best pens to use on shrink plastic, the finish is superb.

I used the swirl Cuttlebug folder to create the background and although you cannot see very well, I used gold mirri card as mounts along with a torn strip of pink vellum.

OK, a little more about Wednesday... When I had my meeting about the show, the buyers did say that they would try to have Nigel presenting on the show for us but couldn't promise it, but this slot was free for him if he could do it. Nigel was there in the studio on Wednesday but was busy filming other things with Stephanie. He has had a hernia operation today so they must have had a lot to do before he has time off. Ian (Mr Stamp Man) has had this op, so I know that Nigel will have to have time to get over it.

Nigel is a really lovely chap, and I think he is so great at his job, he always seems to ask the right questions about the products before our shows so he can learn as much as possible about them, and it shows in his presentation of them. I think he will be missed while he is off screen. I must find some time this weekend to make him a card.

Dave did a good job for us on the show though, to say he was brought in at the last minute. He is another presenter who looks so different in real life than on screen, he's so tall, handsome and tanned! I met him before years ago, so felt comfortable working with him, although it was our first show with him. It made me laugh when the producer told us that someone had emailed in earlier and told him to tuck his shirt into his trousers... and he took note... and it was:)

My blog posting has been delayed as I was at the shop yesterday, and today I have been at home catching up on more paperwork (the growing tumbling heaps of it) plus a huge pile of washing and ironing before setting off again tomorrow for the Stamp Magic Show at The Dome Doncaster. I really like this show as there is plenty of room for people to move and I gather from customers that there is a good mix of retailers there. It also has a lovely atmosphere. Nice food too, so I hear, I am happy with my bacon sarnie at 8am that usually lasts me through the day, we may be lucky and have a sandwich later in the day to see us through, but they also do proper sit down meals... oh for the chance of one of those at a show!

We are finishing the packing and loading of the van at the shop before setting off to set up our stall in the evening. The show is on Sunday, you can just turn up on the day and pay at the door if you fancy coming along.

We will have the stamp sheets and other products we have featured in the 2 live shows, and will have special multi-buy prices for the stamp sheets we had on the shows. Plus, we have some other nice bargains for you!!

We will also have plenty of Moonglow products with us as usual if you missed out on the sampler kit on the telly when they sold out, no doubt we will be demonstrating them as well, so expect some messy techniques! If you want me to put together a sampler set for you then just ask! We'll have all the colour charts there too so that you can cherry pick your own colours/set if you wish.

Tracey Coates, designer of the 3 sheets in last Tuesday's show will be with Ian, Caroline and I, so do come and say hello!!

The cards from Kay's show on Wednesday will be on show along with the cards from Tracey's show, so you can see them in real life and ask any questions you have about them. I will also have the background papers/vellums that Kay showed with her Fancy Flourishes sheet. I took some photos of them today but they look much better in real life as do all the cards so I hope people that can come to the show will pop by and see them all. Please pop over to Kay and Debbie's blogs to see the cards they made for the show, (the links are over to the right), hopefully they will be showing them soon.

Isn't it flipping typical, that Lisa promises a visit to the shop and she came today when I wasn't there!! The shop is in a bit of a muddle at the moment too as Debbie and Helen have been packing for the show this weekend, there's also packing for the telly going on and we've not had a chance to get straight from last weekend's demo day either. I hope that now you've found us Lisa you'll come back when we are a little more organised and when I am there:) I hope you found what you came for and it wasn't already packed!

Thank you everyone for visiting and for the great comments you have left here recently, they are much appreciated!

I will schedule a couple of posts for the weekend with some more cards before I set off again, so do call back!!!

Time for bed now me thinks! Thanks for reading all that, if you made it this far

Jill

Shrink Plastic Funky Flowers card

I'm still enjoying using Kay's new stamp sheets, here is another I made recently.

I sanded and coloured translucent shrink plastic using a Brilliance lavender ink pad. I put the ink pad directly onto the shrink plastic (direct to paper style) making random blobs all over. I then worked the ink over the whole sheet lifting some away to leave it fairly pale. As the shade will intensify when shrunk, it needs to be very pale.

I stamped the design using Stazon black ink and then painted the flower with the Brilliance ink that I had pressed onto my non stick sheet, and a detail paint brush. I also used coloured pencils for the leaves, then heated the piece with my heat gun to shrink. Use wooden dowling, or lolly sticks to hold it down as shrink plastic doesn't stick to wood and it is also less likely to spoil the plastic than using tweezers (that can also get very hot). When it looks like it won't shrink anymore, splat it with the back something solid that won't spoil such as an acrylic block. This will give a nice flat finish. If you call into the shop you may see this card, the photo shows the piece quite dark but it is a lot lighter in real life.

I punched out a flower and made 2 holes in it to make it into a button. I shrank the piece completely and while still really hot, I stamped one of Kay's flourish stamps into it with black Stazon ink and attached the ribbon when it was cool. Oh, nearly forgot to mention that I reheated the flower a little after stamping, just enough to make it curl upward to give it dimension.

I stamped over the pre-printed dragonfly background paper with the Brilliance ink pad, then stamped over again randomly with the black Stazon.

I added mauve brads to the corners and added some Magenta mesh style ribbon that I attached to the back before mounting onto a square base card.

I used silicone glue to attach the shrink plastic to the card.

I'll add appropriate words to the card before sending.