Thank you all so much for your response to yesterday's post. I do appreciate knowing that you enjoy my random thoughts and ideas in regards to storage, tools, etc. I just didn't want to bore you with little details that don't relate to cardmaking. So I shall "carry on" as Tim Gunn would say Ü
This card all came out of my desire to use the absolutely ADORABLE little jingle bells that will be added to our store shortly. I apologize for not getting them up on our site today, it was my mission and I failed - LOL! Just too many things to do and not enough time. Being I didn't have a blog post available and set to go live today I decided my mission was to share the creative process of this project and figured that you would be able to find the jingle bells on your own in a day or two.
To begin I stamped my IB Ornaments on Frost paper and colored it in using the Copic colors shown above.
It was easy to select the correct size circle. I simply placed my 1 1/4" glass circle over the dies and selected the one that coordinated. No measuring necessary.
Then I needed to determine which foil would work the best. Being this is such a small glass piece I knew I needed to use one of the foils on the left. Being I had never worked with the wavy foil before I decided to give it a try.
I wrapped the foil around my glass project and discovered that the scallops did not line up. I decided at this point I could do one of two things - start all over again with the simple straight-edged foil or move forwards and figure out a way to make it work. I am really glad that I went with my gut instinct and decided to make it work because in doing so I learned a valuable lesson that I plan on sharing with you today in hopes that it will help you avoid the mistakes I made.
Using my Xacto knife I trimmed off the bottom wave and brought it down to extend it in to a "longer wave."
On the back side I pressed the foil down evenly working my way around the exterior, almost in a similar fashion to what you see on wrapped chocolate coins. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of the final look of the project. I followed this by using my teflon bone folder to burnish the foil down completely. One of the most important aspects of soldering is making certain that you have done a clean job of affixing the foil. I then used my Xacto knife to once again trim the foil to create a smooth circle.
As you can see in the photo (that I did remember to take - LOL) the foil when burnished in place looks quite pristine. Now this is when I made my error. Because I get SO EXCITED to put that first bead of solder on my project I didn't really analyze the position of my "extended wave." It was a duh moment later in the progress of this project that I realized I should have started all over and place that "gap" at the top of the ornament right below where my decorative filigree is affixed. Oh well, now at least you know what NOT to do. I'm such a perfectionist, but unfortunately there just wasn't enough time today to redo this project and get home in time to meet my little one's bus.
This next very unsightly photo is one of great importance. I wanted to share with you that as you work on your project it is far from pristine. It is important to keep a soft cloth or soft paper towel on hand to keep wiping off the "yuck." If I don't keep my project and tip of my soldering iron clean I can make quite the mess Ü
Another new tool you will find in our store is one that I am quite enamoured with. You all know my passion for piercing and perfection (LOL). Well my little Stampin' Up! piercing mat has seen much use over the years, but my biggest pet peeve was having to realign it to continue a row of piercing that extended past the mat. Then I might miss and have it quirk off at one end. Problem solved! Tim to the rescue. My problem has been solved in a way that gratifies, being there is a LOT packed in to this ruler making it a good value! It is clear and divided into a grid pattern making alignment easy. It also has centering information on it, a steel edge for cutting with your Xacto knife and NOW holes - holes evenly spaced the ENTIRE length of this ruler. LOVE IT!
Adding a line of piercing above and below the ribbon was the perfect final touch being I felt it needed just a little more texture. Also one last tip - do you see how amazingly shiny the solder on my project is? Well, the Super Shiny Solder Polish is most definitely SUPER shiny. I love how it removes residue from my project and helps the solder just sparkle when completed.
For those who have never soldered before we have two fantastic tutorials for you to learn from here on our Newsletter Blog - In Touch.
I have a few more goodies I am hoping to reveal over the next few days, so be certain to continue to watch the "New" category on our store for a few little goodies that I'm excited to share with you. Thanks for stopping by today - I'm excited to have a Christmas gift ready to present to someone special Ü
Oh, MY! This is a totally gorgeous little gem--fabulous work!
Posted by: Debbie Olson | October 11, 2008 at 03:01 AM
Oh WOW....this is just BEAUTIFUL!!! What a lovely gift for that someone special!! TFS!!
Posted by: DeeDee | October 11, 2008 at 05:09 AM
I agree with Debbie - what a GEM!! I have nearly all of the tools, now, to begin learning how to solder. I would love to be able to make something like this.
Posted by: SueB | October 11, 2008 at 07:00 AM
How beautiful, gonna have to try soldering!
Posted by: VickiF | October 11, 2008 at 07:51 AM
Ellen, this is gorgeous! I just used this stamp on an Inchie and am going to make a card with it. Thank you for all your inspiration.
Posted by: KathyN | October 11, 2008 at 09:17 AM
Wowww, this is super pretty!!! I love it.
God bless
Giovana
Posted by: Giovana | October 11, 2008 at 09:23 AM
This is surely one of my all-time favorites that you have done! It almost gives me the courage to try soldering!
Posted by: Ruth Gore | October 11, 2008 at 03:44 PM
What a sweet ornament, Ellen, and wonderful presentation! Love that new piercing ruler, too!
Posted by: Sharon Harnist | October 12, 2008 at 09:43 AM
Fabulous! I've not considered soldering until now!
Posted by: Linda C. | October 12, 2008 at 08:50 PM
Ellen, this is just so BEAUTIFUL! My order for the wavy tape is forthcoming!!!
You were the Craft of the Week at Card of the Week.com. You can see the original post here: http://www.cardoftheweek.com/2008/10/card-of-the-w-2.html.
I did use a picture from your post, with links back to the site and the original post. I hope that is OK. Please feel free to email me if you need me to change anything.
I also have an “I was featured” on badge for you if you want it :D
Posted by: Susanna | October 17, 2008 at 02:00 PM