One Word One Technique #12

Firstly, Happy  Mothers Day to all those mothers out there! We hope you have a lovely day and maybe get some crafting time in. Welcome to week 12 of One Work, One Technique.

For a reminder of how 'One Word, One Technique' works, click here  for Maxine's introduction.

The prompt for week 12 is:

March Technique - Embossing

This Week's Word - Joy

This week I wanted to share with you a tip I use for making the most of my stash: using embossing powders to change the colours of my alphabets. This technique can also used on embellishments like chipboard. This trick is ideal for those times when you have a font you want to use but the alphabet isn't in a colour that will work for your project. 

First you'll need to ink your letters, it's worth doing these just a couple at a time so that the ink doesn't dry too quickly before you get to using your embossing powder. When embossing I always use the Versamark ink pad as I find this is the best for this technique.  I simply press the letter upside down a few times on the ink pad to get even coverage. Be prepared to get sticky fingers!

When embossing I always work on a scrap piece of paper which I've folded in half. Having the crease in the paper means it's easier to put any excess embossing powder back in the pot. When the letters are inked you can shake over the embossing powder. 

Once all the letters are covered, I always give the paper a few taps or flicks to remove any excess embossing powder, before putting back in the pot. I then use my heat gun to set the powder.

You'll be able to tell that it's setting because the powder looks like it's 'melting'.

Here's my finished page:

And a close up of the embossed letters:

I hope this has inspired to look at your embossing powders in a new way. As always, please leave a link in the comments if you join in with this month's prompts.

Alexa

One Word One Technique #8

Welcome to week 8 of One Work, One Technique!

For a reminder of how 'One Word, One Technique' works, click here  for Maxine's introduction.

The prompt for week 8 is:

February Technique - Stamping

This Week's Word - Special

It's a personal goal of mine to include more stamping in my scrapbook pages this year, so I was excited about this month's technique. 

The word 'Special' instantly made me think of my mum because she is one of the most amazing people I know, so I decided to make a layout about her. 

For my page I created the background paper using a 6x4 newsprint stamp. I took a piece of 8 1/2" x 11" white cardstock and repeatedly stamped the design to create the look of patterned paper. This is a great way to get more mileage out of your stamps! And the great thing about stamps is you can pick whatever colour ink you want to use with them meaning you can customise them to match whichever project you are working on. 

To ink my stamp I placed it on a flat surface with the design facing up, and tapped ink over the stamp. Applying the ink this way means you can make sure the stamp has complete coverage . If you're using a larger stamp like I did, when you're stamping onto the paper, you'll need to apply more pressure to the stamp to ensure the ink transfers to the paper evenly. Of course, you don't need to use a background stamp for this technique, you can use a single stamp too to create the same effect. I would recommend starting in the middle and working your way out so your pattern doesn't end up crooked. 

To create the layout I used some of my own stash but also lot's of left over bits from February's Kit 'Love Me', which is still available to buy here. 

If you play along with the prompts be sure to link us up in the comments below so we can come and have a look!

Alexa