Metal ATCs

For this swap, I needed to make 3 ATCs which featured metal. 

I decided to use metal tape, but to add image and texture by putting peel offs onto the card bases before applying the metal tape.  I also used Dyna tape labels for the words.

This is the first stage:

This is the next stage:

The first ATC is coloured with alcohol inks - butterscotch and lettuce with a touch of pesto.  I applied them all separately, but they pretty much mingled into one colour.  I added some more to mottle them, but it just blended, so I took the hint and left them alone!

The second ATC - 'oak' - was painted with several colours and coats of Pebeo glass paint, sanded with a fine sanding block, then overstamped with a tiny oak leaf in Brilliance Coffeebean ink. I wasn't thrilled with the outcome so put it to one side for a while.

I added some alcohol inks and felt it had improved.

The distressed damsel was also peel offs under metal tape, but this time I added a second layer of metal tape, and trapped a chipboard frame and image between the layers. I then painted the metal tape with Stewart Gill Byzantium paints, then sanded it down, and added a little Treasure Gold here and there, then sanded again to make the high points more prominent.

Alphabetica T

T is for texture - always!

This postcard was easy, one side is just a selection of Golden pastes and mediums - crackle paste, fibre paste, moulding paste, garnet gel, glass ball gel, a gel with small gold mica flakes in it.  I inscribed the word 'texture' into the moulding paste, waited for it all to dry, then added a coat of azo nickle gold fluid acrylic paint, and rubbed it around with a baby wipe to thin it out, spread it round, and remove brush marks.

The second side involved metal tape.  I love this stuff - made from aluminium in various widths, with a sticky back.  It's made for builders to use on pipes and roofs, I think.

I stuck several pieces of tape onto the card, about 3 layers in all.  I created some 'rivet' marks on the left, just poking it with a pencil, and wrote the title of the page in the bottom left corenr.  I ran the whole thing through the Wizard embossing machine, using a Tim Holtz embossing folder, the dabbed it all over with Stream alcohol ink (Ranger brand). 

Hidden Friendly Plastic

I am making a metallic item for Annie. I knew I wanted to have some letters under the metal, to make the words appear in relief, but didn't have any letters to use. I decided to make them myself using Friendly Plastic! I heated the FP on the craft mat with the heat gun, and stamped into the pieces firmly with a texture stamp. Once cooled, I peeled the stamp off, and re-heated the FP. When it was shiny and soft, but hadn't lost it's texture, I used some small letter cutters that I found in Tesco last year. I pushed the cutters in hard, and left them there until the FP was cold.


So, lots of letters! It doesn't matter that they are different colours, nobody will see that. Sorry my pictures are blurry - the macro button on my new camera doesnt work as well as I expect it to!

I cut a piece of thick cardboard, then covered it with several layers of metal tape (from the DIY store, intended for pipe & roof repairs). I added the letters, and more tape over the top. I used a range of tools (Ten Seconds Studio) to make patterns in the metal, and ensure it was well burnished. I coated it with Paynes Grey fluid acrylic paint, and then rubbed mosyt of it off. This takes the 'shiny new' look away.


I added several colours and coats of Treasure Gold, as I know Annie likes blues and greens. I buffed with a soft cloth between colours and coats.

I added green amber Treasure Gold to the tops of the letters, to highlight them.

Added some cord to hang it, and it is done! Hope Annie likes it.

Metal tape ATCs

I made these metal tape ATCs for a swap. I scanned them and took a photograph and neither came out very clearly! The backgrounds were several layers of metal tape, applied to cardstock, then the whole was run through the Wizard in a cuttlebug folder. I ran round the edges with a herringbone Ten Seconds Studio roller tool.


They looked rather too bright and silvery, and rather than use alcohol inks to colour them as I have in the past, I had a 'grunge' moment and decided to use patina solutions. I painted 2 of the bases with blackened bronze base solution and the other with blonde bronze. While they were still damp, I added the top coat of green patina solution, and... not much happened!

I did get an aged metal look, but nothing remotely like bronze, which is what I'd been hoping for. In the past, I've had lovely distressed metal effects, but in the past I have been applying the solutions to cardstock. I don't know whether my solutions have gotten too old and are not working, or whether they just don't like the metal tape!


Anyway, I sanded over the backgrounds to bring the raised areas out in shiny metal, then added the embellishments. The embellishments are made by heating fun foam until it begins to curl and is slightly shiny, and stamping into it. Hold the stamp down firmly until the foam has cooled, and cut round the image. I coloured these pieces with Treasure Gold waxes in pewter (the outside ATCs) and with a combination of Onyxite and Indigo (the cente ATC), and added keys, hearts and Dymo lettering.

A belated chunky page

Here is a chunky page I made back in April.
I have not been able to post pictures until now because
this was part of a surprise chunky book,
which was presented to the recipient yesterday.

(front of page - closed)


The book was thought up by Debra Cochran,
as a way of saying a special thankyou to
Kathy 'Sweetpea' Beringer, who had done a
fantastic job of hosting a number of chunky books
on CC Swaps group.


(front of page - open)


68 people each made one page for this book -
which had to have a crown shape at the top -
and each and every one of them made an
extra effort to make their page special.

I added an Art quote to the front of my page because
I know Sweetpea likes art quotes,
and a fish because I know she likes fishing!

My page is made from mirror card with
texture added by using a rough embossing powder
(Marcasite by Stewart Gill) then coloured with Steam & Rust
alcohol inks. The front 'flap' is made from fun foam,
heated and stamped into, then painted with
Stewart Gill paints and finished with wax rub ons.

The fish was stamped onto a piece of 'caught in crystal'
and mounted onto a piece of background made by using
Posh Inks on glossy card, layered with some textured paper.

(back of page)

On the backs of our pages, we each wrote a little about
why we appreciate Sweetpea,
and included a photo of ourselves on the page
so that she can put a face to our names.

I understand Sweetpea quite liked the book :-)

Metal ATCs

More ATCs for a swap - I am on a metal kick
at the moment - these are done with sticky backed
metal repair tape (bought in the hardware or DIY store).

As the tape isn't wide enough to cover an ATC,
I cut the tape up into small pieces and stick them
down on the cardstock, then go round the edges
making dents with an embossing tool.

A quick dab with alcohol inks,
and voila! a lovely background

I've done this before for altered book pages,
but today I had one of those 'light bulb' moments!

Why not stamp on the metal tape?
I found that Stazon worked well,
then I stuck my stamped images
onto some cardstock, cut them out
and mounted them onto the ATCs

Because the metal is very thin,
it is easy to make marks on,
so if you need letters or words,
just draw them onto the tape,
cut them out, and stick them down!

Altered board books 2

I may be getting the hang of blogging
but my new scanner is defeating me....

My old Canon used to take great scans of 3D objects, but this HP one
definitely doesn't like things protruding from the page!

I wish the image was better, but perhaps it is fitting,
as Bren's book has been the most challenging yet.

The theme was YOU (as in ME!!!) and I found it really
difficult - perhaps I don't know who I am...
But I do know what I like, so went with that.

The background was something I wanted to try out, and I really love
the effect - it is pieces of shiny metal repair tape from the DIY store,
all cut up into small rectangles and stuck down,
then little dents put in using the end of a dry embossing tool.

I coloured it with stream alcohol ink and some gold mixative.
I took a permanent marker and wrote things about myself,
my likes, loves, and dislikes around the edge of the page.

At this point I came to a complete standstill for a couple of weeks
because I couldn't decide which images to finish the page with,
or how to apply them. I have laid many stamped images
and photographs onto the page
and taken them off as they just weren't 'right'.

Finally, I realised I didn't want to obscure the background,
so as you can see, I have used packing tape transfers
for the images - all of which are of things I love!