Index
(Click on images to see them at a larger size)

Antiqueing Cards
Bleach Stamping
Outdoors Backgrounds
Backgrounds to Dye For
Paper Beads
Blender Pen Refill Fluid
Card Holder
Cray-Pas Background
Découpage (Napkins)
Faux Polished Stone
Faux Shrink Plastic
Faux Wax Seals
Foil
Glitter
Heated Pearls
Hot Glue Art
Hot Glue Art II
Hot Glue Art III

Scented Cards

Make cards smell good. Cut "Cool Strips" instant breath freshener strips in 4ths and put between cardstock layers on card fronts. You can't see the strip but you can smell it when you open the envelope. Cool Strips at Dollar Tree have 24 strips and make 96 smelly cards. Flavors come in cinnamon, wintergreen, mint and citrus.

Marian R.

Making Your Own Ink Colors

Well I've discovered how to create my own colors :-) Use a Versamark pad to stamp your image and then choose a color of chalk that suits your need, it will 'adhere' to the versamark ink in a slightly darker shade and will leave that shadowed/halo look around the stamped image. Don't want the halo look? Use a soft white art eraser and that halo disappears. I love this because I can coordinate my stamped images with the colors I'm using to color them a lot better and I don't have to stamp the image in black and then color. This also works with the versamark pen. It will work with the embossing ink also, but you have to let that dry a little before you dust it with chalk or the pom pon will smear the ink. Perfect Medium (Ranger Inks) also works just like versamark...they both have that little bit of 'tack' initially, where as Embossing ink doesn't until it starts to dry.

Hope this works as well for someone else as it does for me :-)

Tracy M.

Stabilizing Mizuhiki Knots

Some talented stamper recently asked me how I made my mizuhiki knots look like I do, with the edges which stay all nicely together. (like this one: http://orientalstampart1.com/OSASpectrum/index.html last picture at the bottom of the page, for Issue #1)

It got me thinking that if that talented person didn't know, it could be a good tip for OSA...
I can't remember where I first read that tip (i.e. I didn't invent that, but I honestly can't remember the source). What you do is when you make your knot, make sure you leave longer strands than you need, and don't trim them. Then you wrap them carefully in sticky tape (scotch tape), below the point where you're going to want to cut... (i.e. outside the knot bits you want to keep) Then you decide which side is the front, you flip the knot over as to work on the backside of the knot. Then you apply some glue on the back of the cords (I used Crystal Lacquer, which is similar to dimensional magic, diamond glaze, etc. In a pinch I think even white glue would work). When the glue is dried, you cut carefully, above the scotch tape, you can cut through the dried glue if you need, that's fine, and that's all there is to it. Your ends stay together, and they don't move! If you want, and I sometimes do that, you can put little spots of glue where the loops meet to make your knot more solid, but I'm sure the "purists" don't do that, but I do :)

hope it comes in handy for someone else :)

France
Western Australia

Paste Paper (Wallpaper Paste)

You need:

• Jar to mix in
• 3 cups warm water
• 1-1/2 tablespoons powdered wallpaper paste (we can buy in a small sachet at hardware store)

Lid on jar and shake really well.

Can leave overnight ---- I found any weeny lumps in mine had dissolved ---- my mix was just a clear gel (heavy-cream consistency)

Place scoops of paste into small containers

Add acrylic paints

I sprayed my cardstock (or use a heavy grade paper) lightly with water first

Paint - maybe add a few dobs on differing colours here and there...

DRAG a wide tooth comb or similar tool through the paste for your pattern.

You're able to keep leftovers in fridge for up to two weeks.

Homemade Vellum

to make your own vellum....I put some baby oil in my broiler pan...laid onto it a piece of printer paper...actually I did about 8, I just kept pressing till they were soaked in baby oil...the last one I did use a cotton ball and finish it off....then iron between pieces of paper towell....to get oil out...you have a nice sort of clear piece of paper to play with....

I put a picture up in my webshots(in the chryss folder, I put the picture showing) showing how you can stamp on it, color it..and make a card with it...I also embossed it...and it did go white like vellum does...is thin, so you have to be careful...some gals on the cst list were playing with the idea and I tried it. they said when you stamped on it...it was blurry etc...but I found that my black ink pad is from the stationary store and not soooo juicy as craft store ones and it worked perfectly, I also colored with a variety of things...chalks, pergamano felts, regular felts, inks etc. and all worked well...you can't see it well on the scan but I also embossed the little cherry blossoms too...and they do stand out....

it was a fun thing to play with and I enjoyed it...I do have lots of vellum at the moment, but I can see it would be great if you didn't and wanted to have a play....enjoy...

Chryss W.

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Fancy Background Papers

I have been using plain white tissue paper you buy in big packages to make fancy papers to add to my cards, I've rolled acrylic paints on it, dabbed on Krylon gold pen, patted printer ink refill inks, reinkers, anything with color on, sometimes I use two layers and sometimes more....you can get some really nice papers to use . I love doing the cork background method on it too, I just take my cork and slide metallic acrylic paint in different colors on it...added the krylon pen dabs first gives you some striking gold lines like you see in rocks thru it. I also have sprinkled embossing powders on and used the heat gun and heated to emboss ontop of my colors.....you can do just about anything with it and you get a nice effect. stamping with your black ink pad on top after its dry gives a nice effect as well.

When I was playing with a background from Inka's book, the one where you put stuff in a pan with watered down glue....I found laying the tissue paper on before you let it dry, gives you terrific background papers....my Koi cards I have been sending out some have these as a layer on. Its the ones with different colors all over the background and the bits of fluffy wool on it. I chop up my fibres small and put them on top, so that when I lay a cardstock or tissue paper on top it picks some up for texture.

Chryss W.

Wax Crayon Resist

Glossy card is best
Permanent ink for the main image in black (something like Memories, Stazon, even brilliance allowed to dry thoroughly would be ok I think).
Then you draw with a white crayon.
Then use inks like Adirondack and sponge them, or use a brayer and kaleidacolor inks, or any other dye ink.... then when the dye ink is dry, wipe the card with a tissue (Kleenex)...
I think I used semi gloss for the cards, and glossy for the ATC.

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Sculptured Paper

I am not sure where I learned how to do this, it is not my original idea and I know it has gone by other names, but it is really fun and I hope it is new to all of you. This makes a great element for a card, book or tag but I like using it for a background. It is also a great way to use up some junk mail, old wrapping paper or anything else you have lying around. Experiment and have fun!

What you need:
* Scrap paper... thin junk mail, newsprint, paper towel, napkins, bath
tissue, wrapping paper...
* kitchen foil
* white gesso
* black acrylic paint
* any art medium... Watercolor, acrylics, inks, pigment powders & glaze...

How to do it:
1) Place you "paper" in the center of piece of kitchen foil and pour a dollop of white gesso in the center of paper towel.
2) Spread the gesso out and cover the "paper" completely, make sure to cover the edges well too. ( I use a foam brush here)
3) Let dry
4) To this base paper you can apply almost any art medium. Apply the first color over the gesso (cover it all or as much as you want to achieve the desired look). Let this dry.
5) Crumple the paper and lay it out flat again. Using a foam brush (or you can experiment here too) Brush the black acrylic paint lightly over the cracks of the paper. Let dry.

Done! You can't make a mistake with this. It always looks great!

Michelle

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Torn Paper Landscapes (Lynda J.)

Cut a frame from your base cardstock. On a separate piece of paper that is 1/4" larger all around than your frame, glue down torn pieces of paper to form a landscape. The papers can be stamped or not. Attache the insert to the frame, and decorate as desired.

Frost Technique (TLinda S.)

Glossy card stock
Plastic Wrap (or any scrunchy material like paper towel but non-absorbent is better)
Lumiere Paint - Pearl or silver or tinted pearl

The most basic version is to dip "balled" plastic wrap in pool of Pearl paint and dab, dab, dab onto the card stock. Do NOT cover all the area. Leave left over white spots. This gives a wonderful, wintery background for stamping.

Next version is to do the above plus brayer on a dye color of your choice.

Third version is to add pearl powder before pearl paint dries for a hint of more shimmer or an added color of your choice.

Fourth version is to do Lumiere Paint on dark glossy card stock.

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Dark on White on Dark (Lori R.)

Clear emboss your image onto dark card stock. Take a white pigment ink pad and swipe it over the whole image and c/s piece. When done color your image with a cotton ball and other ink pads, or use DTP. You can also use Chalks or Pastels. Any dry medium will work really great if you do it while white ink is still wet. You get the most stunning results from this technique.

Baby Oil Technique (Phyllis J.)

Take a cotton ball and put a tiny bit of baby oil on it, scribble any water soluble medium such as cra pas, water color pencils, shiva oil paint sticks, water soluble crayons on your card stock and then take the cotton with the baby oil on it and smear it around. The trick is to not use too much baby oil, if they sit overnight they can be stamped on and will not be oily. This is done on a matt cardstock not glossy. It is tons of fun to play with.

Link to offsite online class

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Glass Marble Background (Elizabeth "Pixie" H.)

You need a box with shallow sides, large enough to hold the cardstack flat. Non porous dishes. Different colours of paint/ink & several glass marbles.Pour a little ink or paint into a dish. Place the glass marble in & roll it till covered.Use tongs/tweezers or spoon to lift it & drop it onto the cardstock in the box. Roll it around till all the medium has transferred to the cardstock.Remove the marble. Do the same with the next colour. Repeat as often as you have colours. (Not too many or it will just look a mess.)

Gold Bead and Ribbon Mesh (Ann P.)

I knew that I wanted some kind of gold ribbon/fabric or mesh across the card but that gold mesh is a tough one to stick down securely. So I laid a strip of double sided tape, stuck the mesh on top of the tape and poured on micro beads, then *patted* everything with my fingers to ensure it was well and truly stuck to the card. (those beads ended up everywhere, I'm still finding them on my worktop).

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Watercolor "Splat" Backgrounds

First you need syringe with no needle (something like this: http://tinyurl.com/nwrve) and paper for watercolors... and watercolors! :D I used tube ones.

In a mixer put a little of watercolor paint and dilute with water (so it's colored water and not solid at all). Then, with a clean brush wet the paper a little with water. With the syringe absorb the "colored" water, put it over your paper and then splash it over the paper! :D (push the syringe fast and in one time to 'shoot' the whole paint in a single move). This is kinda messy, so I would recommend you to protect your work surface and your clothing. Repeat the procces of diluting the watercolor and splatting it as many times as you want. As a plus I added some salt over the paper while the paint was still wet (the salt absorbs the paint and also makes beautiful backgrounds :). Let dry, then remove the salt with a soft sponge.

A little preview of the finished result (after cutting down to little squares):
http://tinyurl.com/ln3jt

And a card using this technique:
http://tinyurl.com/q4xxy

Estivalia

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Candle Decorating
By Lyn S.

First buy some cheapie candles from your local $2 shop - white ones work best (if you want to spend more for perfumed candles you of course can). Next, stamp some Christmassy images onto some white tissue paper. Colour as desired, being careful not to tear the tissue - I painted mine with Twinkling H2O's, but dont get the tissue
too wet. Next, trim image fairly closely - it doesnt need to be exact because the tissue will melt into the background and be invisible. Next, position the tissue onto the candle where you want it to go- this is the tricky part- grab your heatgun and while holding firmly and trying not to burn yourself, gently heat the image, taking care
not to melt the candle in the process. It helps to wrap a piece of greaseproof paper around the image and candle so your hand is out of the way, and just work on a small section at a time - once it starts to adhere to the candle you can take away the greaseproof paper.The tissue will only just melt into the candle to make it look like you stamped on the candle itself. Add some ribbon around the base of the
candle.

Here's a picture of one I made last Christmas - you can use any size candle.
http://tinyurl.com/yly29u
These make nice Christmas decorations, great inexpensive gifts, and they dont have to be Christmas themed, you can choose your own - flowers, oriental..whatever you want.

Hope you like this idea
Cheers, Lyn S

Crackle Accents Alternative

My Thursday tip is for an alternative to the Ranger Inkssentials Crackle Accents. I just add a few drops of sepia or brown ink from a reinker to some plain white glue. I then paint the mixture over any image I wish to antique. While it's drying you can bend to create cracks, OR crumple the image before painting on the glue to create
cracks...
Hope this inspires!
Big Hugs,
Cindy D.

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Egg Shell Technique

Materials Needed:
Bleach, clean egg shells, ultra thick embossing powder (UTEE), Marvey
metallic markers, double sided tacky adhesive tape sheet, black
glossy or mirror card stock, Brilliance ink, Krylon gold leafing pen

Preparing the Eggshells:
Wash out eggshells. Try to peel the membrane from the inside. Place
the eggshells in a bowl or bucket containing diluted bleach. Let soak
about 24 hours. Rinse the eggshells to get the bleach smell out. If
you left membrane on the eggshells, it will have turned a darker
color than the actual eggshell. You can try to peel off as much as
you can.

Adhering the Eggshells to Tacky Tape:
You many crush the eggshells into small pieces on a piece of paper
and place the pieces one by one onto the tacky adhesive tape. OR you
can break the eggshells into larger pieces, place the larger sized
eggshell pieces onto one side of the tacky adhesive tape and gently
crush the shell down. You will have larger and smaller pieces
adhering to the sheet. Cover as much of the tape as you can with the
eggshells.

Adding Color and UTEE to the Eggshells:
You may sponge different colors of Brilliance ink on the eggshells
and cover with various layers of clear UTEE. Heat emboss after each
layer added. If you don’t use Brilliance ink, you may use VersaMark
all over the eggshells; then cover with various layers of clear
UTEE. Heat emboss after each layer added. Sprinkle different
colored embossing powders such as gold along with the clear UTEE, to
add a little sparkle. You may try adding a LITTLE bit of Pearl Ex
and UTEE. Try dabbing a bit of the Marvy metallic markers all over.
Add glitter, confetti, etc. to give it a bit of texture.

Cut to size with a pair of scissors. Outline with
Krylon gold leafing pen. Peel the bottom layer of tape.
Adhere to black glossy or black mirror card stock.
This will make a very great contrast.

by
Sonia E.

Cheesecloth Backgrounds
Ruth Cooper Angelartistok
lifeangel@mail.com

I saw these neat instructions for a cheesecloth background on a blog and thought I'd like to try that. So I put everything together tried it and it was disappointing. So rather than give up on a textured cheesecloth background I got out my Radiant Rain sprays and went to town.

You'll need:

A piece of cheesecloth big enough to cover your cardstock
A protected spraying surface, I cover my counter with freezer paper and made a spraying booth out of a half panel of display board like the kids use for science projects.
Painters or removable tape
Cardstock
Color sprays of your choice
Soft rubber brayer

Take a piece of cheesecloth a little bigger than your paper and pull some threads here and there for more interest.
Tape it down to your work surface on the top edge.
Slide a piece of cardstock under the cheesecloth, wrinkles can add more interest
Spritz with a couple of color sprays (Note: the first piece is usually blotchy but still has texture)
Pull up your cheesecloth carefully, slide first piece of cardstock out and replace with a fresh piece of cardstock.
Carefully lay the wet cheesecloth back down, grab your brayer and brayer firmly over the second piece of cardstock, remember wrinkles add interest.
Repeat process with spraying a first piece then brayering a second until you have as many sheets as you like.
You will also get a terrific colored piece of cheesecloth to use in collage work. I changed cheesecloth when it got really saturated with color or I switched colors.
Experiment and have fun!!!

Big Hugs,
Ruth

Ruth Cooper
AngelArtistok
Norman, OK USA
http://www.picturetrail.com/angelartistok
http://angelartistok.blogspot.com/

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