Welcome to our 12 Days of Christmas! There is no partridge in the pear tree here, but we will be putting flowers in a tea cup. Remember to read through to the end of this post and leave a comment to be eligible for today's blog candy! You may also want to visit previous year's 12 Days of Christmas posts for some wonderful inspiration.
During our 12 Tags series I asked what you would like to learn about. Many of you answered that you wanted to learn more about Ranger's Color Washing sprays. Well... they finally arrived and so today I am hoping to share with you some of the beautiful things you can create using these ink sprays.
Most of the color in today's picture is achieved by using the Color Wash sprays. To begin I want to share with you the special feature that these sprays are rather permanent when heat set! They are PERFECT for use on fabric and so today I am sharing some of the little treasures I tried them on.
Before beginning I made a trip to the fabric store. I hope to have future posts to share the use of some of the other fabrics I purchased, but today I'm going to focus on the products I picked up from behind the cutting counter. The Joanne's, which is a 15-20 minute drive from my office, was my stop for these goodies. Be certain to pull your number early in your quest on any trips during this busy time of year and soon you will have your turn.
Purchase all sorts of "odd" things! Crinoline (used to make those poofy skirts - yes, it is behind the cutting counter so insist they look!), Pellon, Fusible Lining, Tulle, Linen, Cotton. Any 100% natural fiber fabric will take the dyes of these sprays well and you will be able to create some beautifully colored projects. Experiment with the man-made fibers as well because you will achieve some interesting results!
I have to admit that I am so grateful for the textile training I received during college. It has come in handy on so many occasions as I experiment with the wonderful stamping products we have - but experimentation is the key to discovery, so don't be afraid to try new things!
Today I used both Crinoline and Pellon. Use the Tattered Florals Die to cut out three sets of fabrics for each flower.
As you can see I used two products today - Cranberry Color Wash for the dark tones and Viva Pink Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist for the lighter color. I needed a lighter color and wanted to see how these two products would mix. Incredibly is my answer!
First I sprayed one set with Cranberry Color Wash.
Next I sprayed a set with Viva Pink and then placed these petals into the Cranberry spray droplets that remained on the non-stick craft sheet. Gorgeous combinations of color were the end result.
I just had to share this next series of pictures. I am in LOVE with the Craft Scrubbie. No longer do I worry about getting inky fingers - head to the sink, scrub your fingers using the "Scrubbie" and voila --- clean fingers!!!
Now it's time to cut the petals to create your flower. For each flower:
- Cut down between two petals, to the center - then cut a small circle in the center.
- Cut out one petal and then cut a small circle in the center of the petals.
- Cut out two petals and create a small half circle where the center once was.
You should now have five pieces as shown above.
I prefer to cut down the petal before gluing each section together as shown in the photo above. Be certain to leave enough room to attach the opposite petal to form a circle (or cone.)
For the two petal and one petal sections roll the crinoline, pellon, or fabric of choice before applying the adhesive.
I prefer using Beacon Adhesives FabriTac for these types of projects. It holds extremely well and dries quickly!
Prepare petals and allow to dry.
You should have five pieces completed as shown above for each flower.
Start with the largest piece as your base. Place adhesive around the open circle as shown.
Insert the next smaller section as shown above. Be certain to offset the petals from the first piece for a natural look. Add adhesive and repeat until all pieces are used.
Upon completion I allow my flower to sit base up so that the adhesive can dry without sticking to things. Flower should look similar to the one in the background upon completion.
As you can see the smaller, pellon flower takes the spray in a completely different manner. The pellon almost looks like felted wool once dry, BUT let me tell you... this is so much easier than felting! The petals shown above is pellon sprayed with Cranberry Color Wash. It is interesting to see how the man-made fibers take the spray. Experimentation is key!
Next I want to share how you can use the gorgeous stick pins as flower center. I began by using three petals. Apply adhesive around base of petals and wrap.
Off-setting the petals, add three more petals.
For this dainty style flower I mixed pellon and crinoline - alternating the layers. Creating these flowers is the same as for the first flower above, the only difference is that there will be more layers and therefore more cuts. Cut the petals as stated below:
- Pellon - Cut down between two petals, to the center - then cut a small circle in the center.
- Crinoline - Cut out one petal and then cut a small circle in the center of the petals.
- Pellon - Cut out two petals and create a small circle where the center once was.
- Crinoline - Cut out three petals and create a small circle where the center once was.
- Pellon - Cut out four petals and create a small half circle where the center once was.
- Crinoline - Cut into three sections of three petals.
Glue as in first example and then insert pin with petals as shown in the photo above.
To create the tea cup Sizzix recommends folding the second tea cup back against the score line as shown in the photo above. I have found that this comprimises the design and so rather than cutting my second teacup using the crease pad I simply cut it out and then on the correct side I score through one layer of the Craft-a-Board. Compare the two looks and you will see why I am particular - LOL!
I have found that acrylic paint makes a WONDERFUL resist to inks. For this teacup I used the Pearl Dabber to ink these fabulous crochet stamps. I masked the handle and stamped my teacup with the trim pattern.
Allow the paint to dry and get prepared for some magic!
Spritz with Lettuc Color Wash. The Craft-a-Board absorbs these colors in an absolutely delicious way. With a little finessing I think that you could achieve a wonderful gradient effect, but for this project I simply spritzed the exterior and interior.
I use a paper towel to dab the excess Color Wash from the paint stamp design to allow it to pop even further.
TIP: Bend pieces so that interior of score lines are exposed. Spritz and allow to dry.
Paint the handle, cup lip and saucer edge using Aged Gold Metallic Paint. Allow to dry.
Apply adhesive as shown on instructions. I applied to one side of the teacup only and then prepared my styrofoam fill.
Trace shape and cut out styrofoam. Spritz the top of the styrofoam and allow to dry.
I also prepared some mulberry leaves using Butterscotch Color Wash and Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls Mist.
I pulled apart one of the brand new Webster's Pages Floral sprigs and attach some of my flowers to the wire stems. I added wire stems to all of my leaves as well. Insert the wire stems and pins into the foam. Your flowers will be firmly in place. Add a little FabriTac adhesive to some petal edges as shown above and then sprinkle with Twinklets Diamond Dust. Shake off excess.
Insert styrofoam into teacup.
The Butterscotch color wash was also used to dye the tag to emulate a tea bag. The sentiment was stamped using Palette Noir ink. Palette ink is one of my all-time favorites for utilizing on "odd" surfaces.
This little "pretty" can be used at a tea or luncheon to decorate each place setting or give as a gift to "warm" someone's day if they are not feeling well. So many possibilities!!!
stamps: Studio 490 In Love with Art, Inkadinkado Inchie Greetings
ink: Adirondack Color Wash - Cranberry, Butterscotch and Lettuce; Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls Mist, Viva Pink Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist, Palette Noir
paper: Essentials by Ellen Craft-a-Board
accessories: 3-D Teacup Die, Inkssentials Craft Scrubbie, Webster's Pages Waiting For Santa Floral Pick,
***Please note - please check in the alterable items category at www.ellenhutson.com, shortly for precut teacups, and other Sizzix die shapes. We realize that many of you simply don't have the resources for all of these dies and may only want to create one or two projects using some shapes. We (my daughter Maddi is cranking away :-D) are currently working on preparing some kits especially for you. So check back soon!
We can't have the 12 days of Christmas without some gifts ;-D So start humming the tune...
On the First Day of Christmas my goodie box could be...
- Just So Artsy stamps to play with!
To participate in this random drawing please leave your answer to the following question as a comment to this post. Please limit yourself to one comment only for each goodie package. The last day to submit a comment to this post will be January 6th at Midnight. We will post the winners (which will be drawn using a Random Number Generator) for all twelve days on January 7th.
What new discoveries have you made or techniques have you learned by visiting us here in the CLASSroom? Knowing that we do make a difference helps give me the energy to just keep at it ;-D
<Ellen
