Izbzee

Faux Wood-Burned Ornaments

Now featured on The Artistry!  These were so much fun to create!  
Process video shared in the article as well.  

Hope you'll drop by and take a look at the article!  

 

Black Friday is just around the corner

I'm a diehard online shopper when it comes to Black Friday deals now.... a few years working in retail can do that to you!  The mad rush of shoppers just isn't my thing.  I prefer shopping from a warm and cozy room, music playing quietly in the background and sipping some mulled cider.  Get an early start on a few of your favorite fonts, graphics, templates and more!  

Creative Fabrica is offering a fabulous deal - the perfect Digital Bonanza for your paper crafting, scrapbooking, sublimation, sewing, embroidery projects!   ... you won't want to miss out on this one!  Click on the pic above or Check out all the details here*.  

 

*Affiliate link --  I may receive some compensation if you use the link above (at no extra cost to you). 

A head start on some new Christmas decor

I really like how this project turned out.  combining 2 files from Creative Fabrica and creating the final version in SCAL5 Pro.  (NO Cutting machine required for this project) 

BONUS:  No Weeding!  Check out all the details over on The Artistry!  

Textured card front

There's a new dusting of snow on the mountains this morning,.  So pretty to see! 

SNOWFLAKES have always held my heart over the years.  Crochet, tatted, embroidered, paper cuts and now revived in a reverse embossing technique.  Gina K reintroduced the wood grain technique  a few weeks ago, but added another layer of dimension using a stencil as a texture template which I didn't have and I'll be darned if I can find my stencil cutting material at the moment... so rather than waste time or do an online search for a suitable stencil... I made my own template using some layered cardstock.  

Let's prep: 
Skycut C24 and SCAL5 Pro (cutting machine and software)
Big Shot (embossing pad, 2 plates and platform with a shim)
Ink (Staz-on Brand)
Colored pencils
Gamsol
Blending stump
cardstock
Snowflake SVG 

Choose a snowflake  Not too fine of details.  You want something a little bolder to stand out for this project  Creative Fabrica has lots of snowflakes on their site.... take a peek at the variety I found - here. 

Make your texture template:
Place a rectangle on the mat in the software.  Size it to 4.00 by 5.25 (or you could go as large as 6 x 6 if you want.  I just wanted the template to be the same size as the piece of paper I would be cutting.  Place the snowflake SVG in the template, size as needed.  Make sure the snowflake is the top image and is set to cut. Select the two images and choose Path > back minus front.  Copy and paste this image two (2) additional times on the mat for a total of three images.  Cut the images using the machine.  Stack the three cuts together gluing the layers together.  Set aside to dry.  (you could use a Xyron machine to do this, but I found that gluing was less likely to slide during the debossing process.  

Overview of the Card making process.  (video)

Card front:
Cut a piece of cardstock to 4.00 x 5.25 inches.  Score it vertically at 1, 2 and 3 inches on the 4 inch side of the paper.  This creates the base for the wood plank look.  If you want smaller planks adjust the scores as desired.  

For this project, I used Brown Timber and Teal Blue Staz-On.  Again with the 4 inch side at the top, Gently press just the edge of the ink pad to the paper and slide it down the length, repeat across the paper.  Do the same with the Teal Blue.  (Repeat as needed for the number of cards you plan on making.)

Texture the card front:
The "sandwich" on the Big Shot was this:  
Platform (1 layer flipped),  acrylic pad, embossing pad, inked sheet FACE DOWN, template, shim and second acrylic pad.  Run it through and back again.  Remove and the image should be debossed in the card.  

Using the Brown Timber inkpad again, repeat the same process as previously done.  Sliding the pad down the vertical length of the cardstock.  This will highlight the snowflake.  Turn 180 degrees and repeat to make sure all the bumps are highlighted with the brown ink.  

Add a little burst of color:
I'm using a Rembrandt* teal colored pencil to fill in the debossed areas of the snowflake.  It doesn't take a lot of time, and you don't need to fill it in completely.  Once you've completed that, using the blending stump and a bit of gamisol, blend the color a bit.  Let this step dry.  If desired, you can add a touch of mica with a fine brush here and there.  (*Other brands of pencils can be used.  Do a test run first to make sure that the color will pop with the Gamisol - I don't recommend using water to blend the pencils.  You may get a little warping and lose some of the depth with too much water)

Assemble  and embellish card as desired.  Photos will be posted soon.  

Thanksgiving Paper quilt

Loving the way blocks for this turned out.  The dovetail quilt blocks provide a perfect setting for signatures or in this case, words of gratitude.  The paper piecing was easy, but this project also features some embossing done on a metallic sheet - the Skycut and SCAL5 Pro software made it so easy to accomplish.  For all the details, head on over to The Artistry!