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TUTORIALSTENCILSTRETCH YOUR PENNIES

5/30/20234 min read

Would you like to experiment with a design like this? You'll find a supply list below, including a link to the stencil I used from A Colorful Life Designs . Follow the link and use discount code ChrisFan10 to save 10% on your entire order! (Master Creator Bundles are excluded as they already have a 20% discount built in.)

Let's Get Started:

Card Base: 4.25 x 11, scored and folded at 5.5

Stencilled cardstock: 2.25 x 5.5

strip of silver cardstock 1/8 x 5.5

scrap of cardstock for sentiment

Card Face: (the card base and the card face are one and the same in this instance)

I put the card base into my stamp positioner and stamped the child. (Although I repeated this several times the result remained a bit spotty, as you can see.)

Other:

I used the Star Stretch stencil and three colours of DIY embossing paste to create the night sky. I selected a dark blue, a purple and a grey, and allowed them to flow together in the design. I removed the stencil carefully, so as not to smudge the paste, and immediately put the stencil and my palette knife into water. (This is necessary with any paste, glaze, etc as it will dry quickly and be very difficult to get off of your stencil.) I allowed this to dry for approximately an hour.
I stamped the sentiment in black pigment ink on a piece of scrap cardstock and used a clear embossing powder on it to make it pop. After melting the embossing powder I gave it a few seconds to cool (10 - 20 is usually ample) and then used a stitched rectangle die to cut it out.

Stretch Your Pennies:

DIY embossing paste is a recent experiment for me. It can be made several different ways: in this instance I purchased a Heavy Body Medium, and an Irridescent Medium as well as Mica Powder in a kit that contained a few different colours. All of these were purchased from Michaels. I also bought spice jars from Dollarama.

To make them up, I simply put some of the Medium onto a silicone mat, added a bit of the mica powder (a little goes a long way!) and mixed well. I store each different colour in a spice jar, sealed with a piece of plastic wrap between the lid and the jar to ensure an airtight environment.

My thoughts on this, so far -

I don't actually notice a huge difference in the final appearance of the two different mediums because the mica powder adds such a pretty shine that the lustre of the irridescent medium isn't noticable. I find I prefer the heavy body to work with and will buy that in the future.

I'm not thrilled with the spice jars although they store the mixtures well, and with the addition of the plastic wrap I haven't had any of the paste dry out or spoil. (I am about 6 weeks into this experiment at the time of writing.) However, the opening is too narrow and it's a bit fiddly getting the mixture out. I would suggest a small, wide mouth jar, and I might invest in those moving ahead.

I find that the DIY pastes take a bit longer to dry than a commercial paste. This isn't a problem for me: my work flow usually finds me creating backgrounds in advance and then deciding how to use them in a few days (or weeks!).

The colours are not as vibrant as commercial pastes, but they are still pretty.

#1 advantage - cost! Commercial pastes are expensive, and some types dry out quite quickly no matter how carefully they are sealed. DIY paste is much cheaper , and I haven't had any dry out yet.

Assembly:

I cut the stencilled cardstock down to the size specified above, and glued it in place on the right hand side of the card base.
I glued the narrow strip of silver cardstock along the edge of the stencilled piece , which gave a more finished look.
I put dimensional foam on the back of the sentiment, and put that in place as shown.
I glued several very tiny stars onto the stencilled piece as shown.

Final Thoughts: I was happy with this card for the most part. I love the sheen provided by the embossing paste and the way the three colours play together on the card front. (Not as noticable in the image as it is with card in hand.) I liked the addition of the tiny stars: they are small enough to require tweezers, but that small, unexpected detail makes a big difference to the end result.

My dissatisfaction in this card comes from the stamped image of the child - I would like a stronger image there. I'm not sure why that stamp behaves that way: if I was repeating this card I would heat emboss that image to overcome the spottiness of the ink application.

Supplies: (and links where possible)

Stencil: Star Stretch, A Colorful Life Designs

Stamps: Silhouette Scenes, Stampin' Up!, (retired)

Embossing paste: DIY

palette knife: Ecstasy Crafts, Pink & Main - Scrapbook.com, Studio Light - Simon Says Stamp

ink:

dye based: Stampin' Up!

Memento: Stampin' Up!

Clear Embossing powder: Wow - Simon Says Stamp

Stamp Positioner: Misti, Spellbinders

I use a product that has recently retired, however the Misti is very similar.

Adhesive: Tombo Aqua - Michaels