Make a Rainbow Background Card

 Hello everyone! 

Today I have my first GSL DT post for June and this time I have this rainbow-coloured card to share with you.

Introduction

For this card I wanted a bright rainbow background and also to use some of the metallic embellishments I made a few weeks ago in this post. I cut a piece of watercolour paper 6 x 8.5 inches - the width is necessary to accommodate the width of the chevron words.

I used these Mijello Mission Gold watercolour samples to make this rainbow background.

I started with the magenta, then yellow and then used the magenta and yellow together to make orange.  Next I added the green, then the blue samples, and for the violet part of the rainbow, used the same blue and the magenta together. 

Make the card base

To make the card base, a piece of card measuring 12 x 8.5 inches is needed.  I do have 12 x 12 inch white card but since this card was so colourful, I wanted to use yellow card which is in the standard 8.5 x 11 inch size.  So the card base had to be made from two pieces, but if you have 12 x 12 inch card, just make a card base as normal.  If you need to make it in from two pieces, here's how:  cut one piece the same size as the card front - 6 x 8.5 inches - and one piece that is 0.25 inch wider - 6.25 x 8.5 inches.

Score the card at the quarter inch mark and then run some white glue down the score mark and glue the front to the back.

Make sure to glue the overlap on the outside as this will hide it when the card front is in place and you won't see it in the inside.

Gold Splatters Card Front

Add some gold metallic ink splatters to the card front and some gold ink around the card edges.

Once everything is dry on the front, add some PVA to the back of the watercolour paper and adhere to the card base.

Adding the Sentiment

Using a pencil, mark the centre of the card to make it easier to line up the chipboard words.

Mark where you want the chipboard words to go, spaced evenly down the card front.

Mark out some pencil lines to help keep the handwriting straight, then in waterproof pen, write the words to go in between the chipboard words to make the overall sentiment.  When the ink is dry, remove all the pencil lines.

Glue the chipboard words in place using PVA glue and the card is finished!

I hope this project inspires you to make your own rainbow card. Let me know what you think in the comments!

Elle
Empire of the Cat

Project Recipe:

Chevron Words
watercolour paper, watercolour paint in rainbow colours, gold acrylic ink, black waterproof pen, card base, gold embossing powder, embossing ink,

Gold Metallic Embellishments Three Ways

Hi Everyone!

For my next trick I thought I would make some metallic embellishments out of these chipboard pieces:

Introduction

This post is called "Metallic Embellishments Three Ways" for a reason!  To make my metallic embellishments I thought I would show you three options on how to make them:
1.  Gold embossing powder
2.  Gold Leaf
3.  Gold metallic paint
I will go through each method one by one and then at the end compare them side by side for shininess. 

Gold Embossing Method

For this method, you will need a gold metallic embossing powder and embossing ink.

Tap each of the pieces directly onto the embossing ink pad.

Shake the embossing powder onto each of the pieces

Once they are all covered in powder, carefully pick them up using tweezers or similar tool, and use a heat gun to melt the embossing powder.

Gold Metallic Paint Method

For this method you will need a gold acrylic paint and some white gesso.

Give each of the pieces a coat of white gesso and set them aside to dry for a few minutes.  Work on one of the other methods meantime.

Give each piece two coats of gold acrylic paint drying in between layers.

Gold Leaf Method

For this method you will need some gold leaf (real or imitation), gold size fluid or you can also use any kind of glue that dries tacky.  Drying tacky is key as the gold leaf needs something to stick to.

Cover each piece with gold size (or tacky glue) and leave to dry tacky.

Carefully take a sheet of gold leaf and lay it on top of each piece and press down with fingers or with a dry brush.

Brush off the excess gold leaf and collect it for later use.

Work slowly and carefully and it will soon be free of the excess leaf, leaving your piece shiny and ready to use.

Conclusion

So we have three sets of embellishments with a gold metallic finish, but which one is shinier?

Three gold metallic words top to bottom - embossing, gold leaf, gold paint

Three gold metallic birdcages left to right - embossing, gold leaf, gold paint

Three gold metallic stars (x 2 designs) left to right - embossing, gold leaf, gold paint

All metallic embellishments for comparison

So there we are, three sets of gold metallic embellishments using three different methods.  These photos were taken at night but I think it is still clear which one is the most shiny - the gold leaf - but all three options have their benefits and uses, and they all have different costs to consider.  If you want super shiny, try gold leaf; if you want texture try heat embossing; and if you want simple and probably cheapest try gold acrylic paint.  If you don't like gold, try silver, copper or other metallic colours. There are endless options to add some metallic to your embellishments and into your projects!

I managed to take more photos in the daylight, what little there is right now, so here's another look at what was produced - embossed, gold leaf, metallic paint.

Which one is your favourite and why?

Hope you enjoyed this post.  Till next time, 

Elle
Empire of the Cat

Ingredients

Ornamental Birdcages Shape Set D69C
Chevron Words 
Deco Stars D88S

Method 1
Gold Rush embossing powder
Embossing ink

Method 2
Gold Leaf (real is pricey, imitation is cheaper)
Gold size (or glue that dries tacky)

Method 3
Sunset Gold metallic paint
White gesso

New Fall Mini Book to share today

I love Fall and have been super busy this year picking apples and pumpkins and doing all those fun things you get to do at this time of year.  So-- I thought I better get to work on a new mini book to put all my fun pictures that I have into.  I chose some fun papers from Echo park and lots of chippies.

Creating this book was really fun because there are so many pieces that Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts creates to use for it.  There are pumpkins, chicken wire, corners, lots of vintage stuff and so much more.  On the cover I used the Wrought iron shape set corners and inked them just a little bit to go with the country feel of my kraft covered book I got from Michaels.

And on the inside I kept it really easy by just layering all the printed papers and then adding chipboard pieces like this one from the Chevron words set.  It has 4 super cute pieces and they fit perfectly on each of the pages I did.

I just loved all the stickers in this Echo Park paper set called Perfect Autumn.  The colors are so pretty and remind me of all those pretty colors when the leaves change for fall.

And these little beauties are from the  Feathers shape set and come in a nice assortment of sizes and worked really cute with my stickers.  Who doesn't love pretty feathers and inking them or embossing them is easy.

And then I found this cute chicken wire in my stash and thought how fun to use it to frame up a few pictures on.  I love that the chipboard adds a little dimension to an otherwise flat page and you could also use it to stencil on your book it you wanted to. I still have to get the pictures all printed but I think all of them will fit quite nicely in my new fall book.

And lastly here is another one of those cute Chevron words.  Perfect pretty much says it all.

Thanks so much for stopping over and below is my supply list just in case:

Teresa

Supplies:

GSLC Chicken Wire

GSLC Wrought Iron set

GSLC Chevron Words

GSLC Feathers shape set

Paper and Stickers: Echo Park Perfect Autumn Collection

Inks: Versamagic Inks in orange, brown, blue and green

Adhesives: Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L 

Journey with Gypsy Soul and Canvas Corp

Hi everyone,
This is a really fun match up with Gypsy soul and Canvas Corp!

Cut your canvas down to a size that suits you and pull out strands to fray the edges.  Spray canvas with water and crumple.  Flatten canvas and spray on your Glimmer Mists(Crocheted Doily, Gilded Gold, and Stone). Dry the canvas with a heat tool.

Add parchment rub ons just to the top and bottom area where the Architecture sticker won't cover.  Tear the edge of your architextures sticker and glue sticker onto canvas.

Paint the back of your Double Window Ornate  with a metallic red paint.  Cover the top with Charred Gold Embossing powder.

 When your paint is dry glue the two pieces together and then glue your focal image to the back of the window.

Paint the word Journey from the Chevron Words Travel Lg set using Black High Impact Paint. Stipple on High Impact Paint in Gold and then go back in and stipple on another layer of Black.  

Paint one set of the Wings using White Acrylic, Dina Wakley Paint in Elephant, and a touch of Black High Impact.

Attach wings to the back of the   Double Window Ornate and adhere to the background using several layers of foam tape to add dimension. 

Cut Ticking to size and glue down your word.  Attach the ticking to the background using staples.  

Add vintage hat pins and a charm to complete your piece.  

Happy Crafting!

Jess