A Touch of Grace

Hi Ladies, today is the last day of my JustRite Autumn Blessings Thanksgiving Ensemble series.  I’ve designed a menu that opens up to present the holiday fare.   If you like the idea of a menu, be sure to check out the tutorial below.  As with the other items featured in the series, I’ve used an open passe-partout stencil that I sell in my store,  A Touch of Grace - Paper Boutique.  The menu is easy to make and very elegant on the dining room table.   If you’ve been following the series, you know I’ve embossed all of the designs with the Wizard by Spellbinders.  The embossing was quick, easy, and done in a snap!  The stencils in my store can also be embossed in the Cuttlebug.  

Blog candy is being given away today as well.  I’m giving away a stencil and a Bow Easy, as well as five yards of the olive green 1.25″ May Arts ribbon that you’ve seen in this project.  I know you’re going to fall in love with the silk ribbon, as I have.  It can be purchased at the Stamp Simply Ribbon Store.  To be eligible all you have to do is leave a comment and tell me why you would like today’s blog candy and how it will help you in your holiday preparations.  You have until Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to leave a comment.  The winner will be announced at 2:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon.  The winner will be chosen by Random.org.  Good luck ladies!  Shopping links are provided at the bottom of this post.

If you missed Monday’s post featuring the wall hanging and tutorial, click here to view it.  Tuesday I posted a beautiful place card that can be viewed here, and yesterday I posted a napkin holder that can be viewed here.  Blog candy is still available on those posts.  If you haven’t left a comment, be sure to take a peak and leave one, you have until this Sunday.

If you have any problems understanding the tutorial, please write to me with your questions.  If I don’t get back to you within a day or so, please be patient, as I’m writing these tutorials on a daily basis.  They are quite lengthy and take a lot of time.  Thank you for understanding.

I just had to show you how pretty the menu is against my lace tablecloth.  I love lace for the dining room table!

The inside of the menu features the food that will be served at our Thanksgiving dinner. 

In this close up you’ll see that I’ve layered the center diamond shaped panel on foam pads, as well as the paper toled cornstalk, and the tiny cornstalks on the tag.

I’ve used 1/8″ and 1/4″ May Arts SK16 olive ribbon for the bows and tags. 

Menu Tutorial:

Cut a piece of embossing paper 5 1/2″ x 7 5/8″.  Score down the center of the paper, center the stencil on the right side of the paper as shown in the picture.  Tape your stencil down with Scotch Removable Tape.  Run the stencil through your die cutting/embossing machine.

As you can see in the above picture, the score line remains intact, it doesn’t flatten out.  My stencil didn’t slide and I have a perfect embossed image.  Gently erase any sticky residue from the tape using an adhesive remover.

Trace around all the edges with an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen and let dry.  If you find that your gold smears, spray with Krylon Fixative (can be purchased at Michael’s).  I’ll show you how to get the gold center line below.

Fold the menu in half, turn it over and on the back side gently press the score line flat using a bone folder.  Turn the menu back over and using the Krylon pen, draw a line down the scored line. 

Using a hand held punch, punch a 1/8″ hole one-half inch down from the top of the menu.  Set your menu aside.

Place your stencil on a piece of embossing paper slightly larger than the stencil, tape the stencil with removable tape and emboss.  With the stencil still on the embossing paper, use a .5 mechanical pencil to lightly trace lines in the inner diamond shaped portion of the stencil, cut it out using a craft knife.  Trace around the outer edges of the diamond shape as shown in the above picture with a Krylon pen.  No need to erase the pencil lines if you use the Krylon pen.

Cut a piece of olive cardstock slightly larger than the stencil, tape the stencil down with removable tape and emboss. 

Keep the stencil on the cardstock and lightly trace the above shown lines with a .5 mechanical pencil.  Remove the stencil and erase any sticky residue left from the removable tape with an adhesive remover.

Using a craft knife cut along the traced lines.  I have illustrated two different ways you can cut your cardstock.  Gently erase any pencil lines.

Type your menu on your computer and print it out. I recommend printing on xerox paper first, place your stencil on the copy to see if your print is too small or too large.  You may need to test a few times to get it the exact fit.  Once you have the right size, print the menu on your embossing paper.  Cut your embossing paper slightly larger than the stencil and place the stencil down, centering it on your printed menu.  Tape it down with removable tape, you do not want it to slide or your menu won’t fit, emboss your menu.  Leaving the stencil on the embossing paper, gently trace with a mechanical pencil.  No need to erase your pencil lines if you use a Krylon pen to trace around the edges.  Add pearls, bow and any decoration you’d like.  My punched shapes came from a border punch.

Center and adhere the typed menu inside your menu.  I used Zip Dry Adhesive. 

Take the cornstalk that you colored for your focal image and, using a color printer, reduce the image by 60%.  I printed two images and sprayed them with Krylon Fixative. 

Using Spellbinders Large Scalloped Ovals, choose a die that best fits the size of your miniature cornstalk; cut four and emboss two.  Using an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen, trace around the edges of the two embossed ovals.  After your miniature cornstalks have completely dried, adhere them to the embossed ovals.

Cut a 1/8″ piece of green silk ribbon about 8-to-9″ in length.  Run the ribbon through the hole that you made in your card and create a knot about 1/2″ down from the top of the ribbon.  This will leave two dangling tails.  Adhere the tails between the two ovals as shown above.  You’ll use the ovals that you didn’t emboss for the backs as shown below.

This is what the back of your tag should look like.

Using 1/4″ olive silk ribbon, make a double looped bow on your Bow Easy and adhere on top of the knot that you made when you attached the 1/8″ ribbon.  I did NOT paper tole the miniature cornstalks .   .   . LOL .   .   . NO WAY!!! They don’t need to be, they’re so pretty with the Triple Thick glaze I purchased at Michael’s. 

Attach your paper toled cornstalk to the diamond shape you cut out and adhere to the front of the menu on foam tabs and you’re done. 

I hope you’ve enjoyed this Thanksgiving Autumn Blessings series. 

I’ll be back with some Christmas ideas soon!  I’ve got to get my creative wheels spinning! 

Shopping:

A Touch of Grace:  EH1819 Open Passe-Partout stencil; Pergakit Silicon Adhesive, Joy Craft Pearls, Joy Foam Pads, 18 Kt. Gold Krylon Pen, Zip Dry Adhesive, Carnation White embossing paper, Cream embossing paper, Scotch Removable Tape

JustRite:   Autumn Blessings Centers and Borders

Stamp Simply Ribbon Store:  May Arts Ribbon, Bow Easy

Recipe:

Stamps:  Autumn Blessings Centers and Borders (JustRite)

Paper:  Carnation White embossing paper, Cream embossing paper, Old Olive cardstock

Ink:  Old Olive, Chocolate Chip

Accessories:  Genesis Paper Trimmer, Wizard, Scotch Removable Tape, Zip Dry Adhesive, Joy Foam Pads, Joy Craft Pearls, craft knife, PergaKit Silicon Adhesive, Triple Thick glaze, cutting mat, large ball stylus, graph paper, May Arts silk ribbons, wooden skewer, adhesive remover, Spellbinders’ Large Scalloped Ovals nesties, computer, color printer, Bow Easy, May Arts ribbon, EH1819 open passe-partout stencil, 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen, EK Success border punch

Thank you so much for stopping by, I truly appreciate your visits. 

Hi, welcome back to day three of my JustRite Autumn Blessings Thanksgiving Ensemble.  Today I’m featuring a napkin holder.  If you’d like to make this napkin holder using the open passe-partout stencil that I sell in my store,  A Touch of Grace - Paper Boutique, see the tutorial below.   The napkin holder is easy to make and packs a big “wow” factor!   I usually set my formal dining room table a week in advance to get in the holiday spirit and Thanksgiving is no exception.  When using the Wizard by Spellbinders, embossing is a snap, my table will be ready in plenty of time!  The stencils in my store can also be embossed in the Cuttlebug.  

Blog candy is being given away today as well.  I’m giving away another stencil and a JustRite monogram set.  To be eligible all you have to do is leave a comment and tell me what you like most about Thanksgiving.  You have until Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to leave a comment.  The winner will be announced at 2:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon.  The winner will be chosen by Random.org.  Good luck ladies!  Shopping links are provided at the bottom of this post.

If you missed Monday’s post featuring the wall hanging and tutorial, click here to view it.  Yesterday I posted a beautiful place card that can be viewed here.  Blog candy is still available on that post.  If you haven’t left a comment, be sure to take a peak and leave one, you have until this Sunday.

If you have any problems understanding the tutorial, please write to me with your questions.  If I don’t get back to you within a day or so, please be patient, as I’m writing these tutorials on a daily basis.  They are quite lengthy and take a lot of time.  Thank you for understanding.

This picture illustrates the beauty of May Arts silk ribbon available at the Stamp Simply Ribbon Store.  I ironed the ribbon before making the bow and then did a little touch up on the tails.  It takes less than a yard of ribbon for the bow and tails, much less if you prefer shorter tails. To make a beautiful bow I advise using the Bow Easy, it’s a no-fail way to make bows that look like they were professionally made.

I provided this picture so that you can see the back side of the napkin holder.  The leaves and berries were purchased at Michael’s, they’re inexpensive and the rich colors accentuate the paper toled cornstalk. 

A close up of the cornstalk mounted on the napkin holder with foam pads.  Using the Triple Glaze gives the cornstalk the appearance of fine china.

Napkin Holder Tutorial:

Cut two pieces of embossing paper larger than the stencil.  The stencil measures 3 1/4″w x 5″h.

Using the EH1819 Open passe-partout stencil, emboss both pieces of embossing paper by running through a Wizard, Cuttlebug, or by hand.  To keep your stencil from slipping, tape it down using Scotch Removable Tape.  If any sticky residue is left on the embossing paper, use an adhesive remover to gently remove the residue. 

Place your stencil overal the embossed panels and lightly trace lines as shown above using a .5 mechanical pencil.  Note that the tracing lines are different on each panel.

Using a craft knife and a cutting mat, cut your traced lines.  Gently erase any left over pencil markings.  Using an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen, trace around the edges of the cut piece that looks a bit like a diamond.

Another variation or way to cut the panel is to leave the side embossed flower petals on the sides.  It’s so pretty with them left on, I think I’ll leave them for the rest of my napkin holders.

Cut a strip of embossing paper 2″ x 6,” cut a strip of olive paper 1 1/2″ x 6,” and cut another strip of embossing paper 1 1/4″ x 6.”  Trace along the outer edges with an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen.

Using adhesive, adhere the three panels as shown above. 

Once the adhesive is dry, form a circle overlapping the ends and adhere.  If you’re using liquid adhesive, you’ll have to hold the ends together for a few minutes.  I do not recommend using a tape adhesive if you live in a humid environment like Florida.  The paper is thick after adhering the three layers, tape adhesive will not hold up well in the humidity.  I find Zip Dry to hold wonderfully.  Tip:  To form the circle I wrapped the paper around a brayer to gently bend it, then I adhered the ends.

Using foam tabs I adhered the diamond shaped panel onto the embossed panel and then adhered that to the circle holder.

Another variation and the one I used here was to adhere leaves and berry stems to the embossed panel.  Once that was dry, I then adhered the napkin holder on top of the stems, sandwiching them in between the paper.  I used Zip Dry for the adhesive.  As you can see, it dried hard and clear.  It almost looks like the glue from a hot glue gun, except it’s clear, not opaque.

Adhere the bow, pearls, and the cornstalk to the napkin holder.  I used foam pads to adhere the cornstalk.  For instructions on making the paper toled cornstalk click here and scroll down to the tutorial.

A beautiful napkin holder for your Thanksgiving table.  Insert a rolled/folded napkin and it’s ready for your gorgeous Thanksgiving table.  A beautiful keepsake that your guests will treasure. 

Shopping:

JustRite:   Autumn Blessings Centers and Borders

A Touch of Grace:  EH1819 Open Passe-Partout stencil; Pergakit Silicon Adhesive, Joy Craft Pearls, Joy Foam Pads, 18 Kt. Gold Krylon Pen, Zip Dry Adhesive, Carnation White embossing paper, Cream embossing paper, Scotch Removable Tape

Stamp Simply Ribbon Store:  May Arts Ribbon, Bow Easy

Recipe:

Stamps:  Autumn Blessings Centers and Borders (JustRite)

Paper:  Carnation White embossing paper, Cream embossing paper, Old Olive cardstock

Ink:  Old Olive, Chocolate Chip

Accessories:  Genesis Paper Trimmer, Wizard, Scotch Removable Tape, Zip Dry Adhesive, Joy Foam Pads, Joy Craft Pearls, craft knife, PergaKit Silicon Adhesive, Triple Thick glaze, cutting mat, large ball stylus, graph paper, May Arts silk ribbons, wooden skewer, adhesive remover, white linen table napkin, leaves and berries (Michael’s)

Thank you for stopping by.  Please come back tomorrow for day four of the Thanksgiving Table Decor designs.  The final design, a menu, will be featured.

Hi ladies, today’s post features the place card I designed for my JustRite Autumn Blessings Thanksgiving Ensemble.  I love place cards on my holiday table.   This place card is no exception, it’s so pretty on my table.  It was simple to make and packs a big “wow” factor!   The colors I chose for the cornstalk work so well with my harvest floral arrangements.   I’ll show you how to make this place card with an open passe-partout stencil that I sell in my store,  A Touch of Grace - Paper Boutique in the tutorial below.  Using the Wizard by Spellbinders, embossing is a snap!  Blog candy is being given away as well.  I love games; you’ll  have to read through my post to find the candy and how to win.

This place card has a lot of dimension; however, you could easily use just one layer of the cornstalk and still have a beautiful place card.  As I advised in yesterday’s post, the stencils can be embossed in the Cuttlebug as well.  I don’t have the sandwich recipe, but I have been advised by some of you that you’ve had no problems using the stencils with your “bugs.”  If you missed yesterday’s post featuring the wall hanging and tutorial, click here to view it.

If you have any problems understanding the tutorial, please write to me with your questions.  If I don’t get back to you within a day or so, please be patient, as I’m writing these tutorials on a daily basis.  They are quite lengthy and take a lot of time.  Thank you for understanding.

This picture is a beautiful illustration of the dimension of the paper toling done with the cornstalk image.  See this post for directions on how to paper tole the cornstalk, scroll down until you come to the pictures and directions in the tutorial for the paper toling. 

A close up of the cornstalk shows just how glassy the glaze is that I used.  It’s called Triple Thick.  It’s a bear to work with, but very pretty once dry. 

Anyone who has ever seen my handwriting will know why I used a computer to create the name tag for the place card.  This card has my Mom’s name on it.  Gee, who would have guessed my Mom’s name is “Kay” .   .   . LOL!  I’ll give you three guesses as to what my Dad’s name is.   Leave a comment below with your guess.  All those who guess correctly will be entered in a drawing for a free stencil and a JustRite monogram kit.   I’ll announce the winner this Sunday at 2:00 p.m.  The winner will be chosen by Random.org.  Shopping links are provided at the end of the post.  No purchase is required to be eligible to win the blog candy .   .   .   .  okay, I just had to add that language .   .   .  LOL .   .   . reminds me of radio commercial.

Place Card Tutorial:

Cut a piece of embossing paper 5 1/2″ x 7″ and tape your stencil as shown in the photo above using Scotch Removable Tape.  As you can see, I have placed my stencil on a Wizard embossing plate.  If you’re using a Wizard, turn the stencil face down on the embossing plate and lay your tan embossing pad on top.  Place your other embossing plate on top of the tan pad and run through the Wizard.  It’s as simple as that, you’re finished with your embossing.  

If you get any sticky residue from the tape on your embossing paper, simply use an adhesive remover (as shown in the above photo) to gently remove the residue.  As you can see, the Wizard embosses these stencils beautifully.

For visual purposes of this tutorial only, I drew a line where the scoring line is.  Because I want my score line to be exactly where my drawn line is, I used a ruler and bone folder to create the score line.  I was worried that if I used a Scor Pal or Scor It, I might be a smidgeon off.   I did not draw the line on my original place card.  Visually it was difficult to see exactly where to score.  I used a clear Tim Holtz ruler and was able to see exactly where to place the score line, then using a bone folder, I ran the tool along the edge of the ruler, scoring the paper.

Fold the place card in half (the bottom will be about 1/4″ longer if you cut using the dimensions I used) and place the stencil over the embossing.

Using a .5 mechanical pencil, lightly trace lines as shown in this picture.  You’ll see some of the lines are not completely connected.  We’ll take care of that in the next step.

Remember those dot-to-dot books you played with as a kid?  Well, that’s what you’ll do here, connect the dots/lines as shown in this picture.

As you can see in the picture above this one .   .   .  oops!  .   .   . I neglected to draw all of the lines.  I realized it as I was taking the picture.  No problem, I placed the stencil back over the embossing and traced the remaining lines. 

Using a sharp craft knife, cut along the drawn lines through both layers of embossing paper.  Before you start cutting, look at the picture below where the cutting has been completed as a guide.  Do Not cut the upper portion of your place card or you’ll sever the seam and have two pieces.  Only cut out the notches as shown below.  Okay, now look back up at the picture above and you can see where I drew the two notches.  You have the option of not cutting those two small notches or cutting them.  I cut mine.  This picture illustrates what your cutting should look like halfway through.

Once you’ve finished cutting, open your card as shown above and cut the traced lines. 

Once you’ve completed the cutting, gently erase any pencils marks left on the paper.

Turn your place card over so that the debossed lines are facing up.  Using a ruler, draw straight lines along the bottom of the place card.  I love the Tim Holtz clear ruler, I’m a very visual person, I like to see every thing. 

Trim the lines using your craft knife as shown above.

Turn your card back over and place on a flat surface.  Your card will sit perfectly flat without rocking.  You don’t have to do this step, but because of the weight of the paper toled cornstalk, I chose to do this to ensure my place card wouldn’t rock. 

And that’s it!  That’s all there is to it.  Very simple, easy, and fast to make.

Adhere your cornstalk using foam pads, as well as your name tag and a sweet simple bow.  I used May Arts 1/4″ SK16 olive green silk ribbon for the bow.  For perfect bows every time, I use the Bow Easy.  There are some tools I can live without, but I would never give up my Bow Easy.  The name tag was computer generated, printed, and punched with an SU small oval punch.  I used an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen to trace around the edges of the tag.

A side view to show you how the place cards sits on a flat surface. 

And my finished place card.  I can’t wait to see Mom’s face when she sees this!

Shopping:

JustRite:   Autumn Blessings Centers and Borders

A Touch of Grace:  EH1819 Open Passe-Partout stencil; Pergakit Silicon Adhesive, Joy Craft Pearls, Joy Foam Pads, 18 Kt. Gold Krylon Pen, Zip Dry Adhesive, Carnation White embossing paper, Cream embossing paper, Scotch Removable Tape

Stamp Simply Ribbon Store:  May Arts Ribbon, Bow Easy

Recipe:

Stamps:  Autumn Blessings Centers and Borders (JustRite)

Paper:  Carnation White embossing paper, Cream embossing paper, Old Olive cardstock

Ink:  Old Olive, Chocolate Chip

Accessories:  Genesis Paper Trimmer, Wizard, SU small oval punch, Scotch Removable Tape, Zip Dry Adhesive, Joy Foam Pads, Joy Craft Pearls, craft knife, PergaKit Silicon Adhesive, Triple Thick glaze, cutting mat, large ball stylus, graph paper, May Arts silk ribbons, wooden skewer, adhesive remover, computer, printer

Thank you for stopping by.  Be sure to stop by tomorrow for day three of the Thanksgiving Table Decor designs.

I’ve been working on my Thanksgiving table decorations and am tickled pink with the designs I’ve come up with using the Autumn Blessings JustRite stamp set.  Typically I use JustRite stamps for monograms or for fun whimsical designs, but as you can see, JustRite stamps can be elegant as well.  Each day this week I’ll show you table decor designs with tutorials using an open passe-partout stencil that I sell in my store, A Touch of Grace - Paper Boutique and the Autumn Blessings kit.   

Most of you who follow my blog know that I love using a lot of dimension in my designs.  Typically I hand emboss most of my designs since I like to custom design with my stencils.  However, every embossed piece you see in this entire ensemble was embossed using the Wizard by Spellbinders.  The stencils can be embossed in the Cuttlebug as well.  I don’t have the sandwich recipe, but I have been advised by some of you that you’ve had no problems using the stencils with your “bugs.”  I have provided a tutorial below of the wall hanging and will be back each day with a tutorial for a placecard, menu, and napkin holder.

If you have any problems understanding the tutorial, please write me with your questions.  If I don’t get back to you within a day or so, please be patient, as I’m writing these tutorials on a daily basis.  They are quite lengthy and take a lot of time.  Thank you for understanding.

Due to the size of the wall hanging, I was not able to get a large photograph of the entire piece so I’ve taken photographs of each panel to give you a closer view.  The dimensions of the completed design are 4 5/8″ x 22.”

The top and bottom panels are 3 1/2″ x 5 1/8.”  I embossed all three panels with an open passe-partout stencil that I sell in my store, A Touch of Grace - Paper Boutique.   All ribbon used on the design is May Arts silk ribbon in 1/4″, 1.25″ and 1/8″ SK16 Olive.  I purchased it from the Stamp Simply Ribbon Store.  Shopping links are provided at the end of the tutorial.

The center panel was designed larger than the top and bottom panels.  The top and bottom panels have a cream inner layer, whereas the center panel has a carnation white inner layer.  Pale yellow Joy Craft pearls were used throughout the design. 

Three 1/4″ silk ribbons hold the panels together.  Large bows have been placed between the panels and on the hanger, they add just the splash of color that is needed for the design.

Looking closely, you’ll see that all panels have been elevated using Joy Craft foam pads.  The small leaves were cut with a craft knife and elevated with PergaKit silicone adhesive.  Because the leaves are so small, I would not have been able to use the foam pads without them showing.  Can you see the PergaKit adhesive?  It dries clear.  I just love it for paper toling.  I’ll show you how to use the PergaKit in the tutorial below.

This photo illustrates the dimension of the paper toling. 

Tutorial for wall hanging:

EH1819 Open Passe-Partout stencil was used to emboss Carnation White embossing paper (shopping links are provided at the end of the tutorial).  Using Scotch removable tape, I taped the stencil to the embossing paper and ran it through the Wizard.   Taping the stencil prevents it from sliding around.  If you get sticky residue on your paper, remove it using an adhesive remover.  I use the 2″ square adhesive remover that SU sells.  Emboss  two carnation white panels.

Place the stencil over the embossed panels and lightly trace cutting lines using a .5 mechanical pencil.  For visual purposes of this tutorial I made the lines dark.  You’ll want to trace lightly so that you can gently erase any lines that are left after you are finished cutting.

Use a sharp craft knife to cut along the traced lines.   Gently erase any left over pencil marks.  Your two panels should look like the above photo.  (Look at the finished design at the top of this post, you can see in the upper and lower panels that I have cut more out of the center sections to show more of the cream paper.  You may choose to cut more as I did, or leave the cutting as is shown in this picture).

Please note that the tracing and cutting are different on the center panel.  The center panel is larger than the top and bottom panels, it has a larger border.   You will not trace around the outside of the stencil and cut the outer lines as was done on the first two panels.  The panel measurements are 4 1/8″ x 5  7/8.”   Center the stencil on the panel, tape it to the embossing paper and emboss.  Lightly trace your cutting lines as shown in the picture above. 

Cut the traced lines, your panel should look like the picture above.  You now will have three embossed and cut panels.  Draw around all edges of the three panels with an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen.

Each of the three panels have four layers.  The top layer is the embossed and cut layer, the second layer is the cream layer (on the top and bottom panels, carnation white for the center panel), the third layer is and old olive layer, and the fourth layer is an old oliver layer.  Your ribbon will be sandwiched in between the two old olive layers.  You will place foam pads on the back of the embossed layer to place on top of the cream layer.  That panel will then be adhered to the old olive layers.  It’s easier to sandwich in the ribbons between the old olive layers first before adhering the embossed panel and cream layer to the old olive layers.   

For the smaller panels:  (1) cut two panels of a pale yellow or cream colored cardstock slightly smaller than the two embossed and cut panels; (2) using foam pads (you’ll need to cut them in half to fit in some areas) attach the embossed panels to the cream panels; set aside (3) cut four olive green panels 3 1/2″ x 5 1/8.”  Trace around the edges of the panels with an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen, set aside to dry.

For the larger center panel: (1) cut a carnation white panel slightly smaller than the center embossed panel; (2) using foam pads (you’ll need to cut them in half to fit in some areas) attach the embossed center panel to the panel you’ve just cut (see the finished design if you’re having difficulty following me, we’re just layering panels here); (3) cut two olive green panels 4 5/8″ x 6 1/4″ and trace the edges with an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen, set aside to dry.

Take 3 olive green panels (top, center, and bottom) and mark three sets of lines 1/4″ apart on the lower edge of the top panel; do the same on the upper and lower edges of the center panel, and on the upper edge of the lower panel.  The sets of lines will be in the center of the paper as shown in the picture.  I know this is terribly confusing, please look at the picture for a visual.

For the hanger, cut two strips of 1/4″ olive ribbon 8″ in length.  Come in 3/4″ from the outer edges of the top panel and mark your paper; adhere the two ribbons, one on top of the other to both marked sides of the olive green panel form a loop or hanger.  See this picture of the finished design for a visual of where to place the ribbons. 

(1) Cut six 4″ strips of 1/4″ ribbon; (2) adhere the ribbon within the sets of lines that you drew as shown in the picture above, trim off excess ribbon (the gold edges that you drew earlier are on the outside of the panels); (3) connect all three panels, i.e., top panel to center panel and center panel to lower panel; (4) now take the second set of old olive panels and adhere them to the panels you’ve just glued the ribbons to making sure that you sandwich the ribbons between the panels.  Remember that the gold edges are on the outside edges of the panels.  This gives the back of your design a beautiful appearance. 

This is what your panels should look like from the back once you’ve adhered the two old olive pieces together (please note in this photo I did not trace around the edges of the panels with the Krylon pen, I’m merely showing you how the ribbon should look from the front and back side of the design once it’s sandwiched between the panels).  You are now ready to adhere the embossed panels to the three old olive panels.  Please refer to pictures here of the completed project for placement of the embossed panels onto the old olive panels.  I used Zip Dry adhesive for gluing the ribbons and the panels.  I find that Zip Dry does not warp, wrinkle, or buckle the paper. 

Your panels are complete and attached to the wall hanging.  Set it aside while we move on to the focal images which are attached last. You do not want to attach them while you’re working on assembling the paneled sections so that you don’t damage the paper toling.

The image with the black “X” on it is my original stamped and colored image.  I used Prismacolor Colored Pencils to color the image.  Using an inkjet printer I made several copies and sprayed them with a fixative. 

I’m providing a close up of the colored image for your coloring purposes.

Take one of the images and cut and emboss it using the largest oval from Spellbinders’ Small Ovals nesties.  Using olive green paper cut and emboss a scalloped oval using the second largest scalloped oval from the Large Scallop Ovals nesties. 

To make the layers fit, use a craft knife and cut just outside the embossed line on the image. Use an 18 Kt. Gold Krylon pen and trace around the edges of the oval.

The piece you cut using the nestie die will be the base for your paper toled image,.  Cut your pieces from the remaining six images as shown in the above picture with a sharp craft knife. I cut all of the leaves for my original designs, I did not do so for the purpose of this tutorial.

Take piece #2 and tole the edges using a large stylus with a medium to large ball, print side down, white side up.  To tole the paper, place it on a piece of foam and empress the edges until they slightly curl up.  Place balls of PergaKit silicone adhesive toward the center of the image using a wooden skewer or tooth pick.  If you don’t have PergaKit, you can use foam pads (dimensionals). 

Using tweezers, gently place the piece on top of the base oval, being careful to line up the images.   Do not press too hard or you’ll flatten out the PergaKit.  If you choose to use PergaKit, you’ll need to wait about 20 minutes between the paper toled layers.  The weight of the silicone will flatten the layers if it’s not dry or you might accidentally move the pieces. 

Carefully tole each layer as you go.  Using the PergaKit, continue building the layers.  In this picture you’ll see a ball of PergaKit on the wooden skewer (I purchased the 4″ skewers at my local supermarket, they very inexpensive, 100 for $1 I believe.).  Squeeze a bit out of the tube onto the skewer in the form of a small ball and then gently place it on the paper.

You can begin to see the layers of the paper tole in this image.

Continue on using the same technique, you can see the layers of the bow building here.

I’ve completed all the layers and added on two of the leaves as a visual for you.  The leaves are quite tedious to cut and mount on the silicone.  As you can see, I did not bother with the acorns, they were too small, even for me  . . . LOL. 

Let your layers completely dry for a few hours.  At this point you can apply the glaze if you desire it on your design.  As you can see, it’s quite pretty without the glaze.   If you do use glaze, follow the instructions on your bottle.  Let it dry thoroughly between coats and before handling the design.  Once it’s dry (I let mine dry overnight), adhere the paper toled panel to the olive green scalloped panel using foam pads.     

A close up of a completed panel using a glaze.  I used a product called Triple Thick that I purchased at Michael’s.  It’s somewhat tricky to work with, but I like it better than crystal lacquer.  It dries with a crystal clear wet look, like nail polish, leaving no bubbles.  I let the glaze dry several hours.  Once completely dry, I adhered the paper toled panels to the embossed panels. For the wall hanging you’ll need to make two of the cornstalk paper toled panels.  The center panel has a sentiment on it with a paper toled bow.  The small leaves were individually cut and toled on all three focal images. 

A close up of the sentiment on the center panel.

Using the Bow Easy, I made three large bows using the 1.25″ May Arts olive ribbon and attached them to the wall hanging.  The tails of the bow on the hanger are longer than the two other bows.

Shopping:

JustRite:   Autumn Blessings Centers and Borders

A Touch of Grace:  EH1819 Open Passe-Partout stencil; Pergakit Silicon Adhesive, Joy Craft Pearls, Joy Foam Pads, 18 Kt. Gold Krylon Pen, Zip Dry Adhesive, Carnation White embossing paper, Cream embossing paper, Scotch Removable Tape

Stamp Simply Ribbon Store:  May Arts Ribbon, Bow Easy

Recipe:

Stamps:  Autumn Blessings Centers and Borders (JustRite)

Paper:  Carnation White embossing paper, Cream embossing paper, Old Olive cardstock

Ink:  Old Olive, Chocolate Chip

Accessories:  Genesis Paper Trimmer, Wizard, Small Ovals and Large Scallop Ovals Nesties, Scotch Removable Tape, Zip Dry Adhesive, Joy Foam Pads, Joy Craft Pearls, craft knife, PergaKit Silicon Adhesive, Triple Thick glaze, cutting mat, large ball stylus, graph paper, May Arts silk ribbons, Swarovski Crystals, wooden skewer

Thank you for stopping by.  Be sure to stop by tomorrow for day two of the Thanksgiving Table Decor designs.

Hi everyone,

Sorry to have been gone for so long.  We were on vacation for nine days in July, I returned home for a day and then headed over to Orlando and spent a week at CHA; and last week I traveled to my parents’ home and spent a week with them.  I’m back at home and will try to get in another post before I leave for Nashville next Friday to help my son get settled back in at school. Where did the summer go?

I’m excited to be a part of the Stamp Simply 100th Challenge Birthday Celebration.  I have prepared for you a stencil embossing tutorial utilizing a light box below, as well as a paper tole birthday card.  At the bottom of this post you’ll find shopping links to A Touch of Grace - Paper Boutique for the stencils and products I used for the birthday card and the tutorial card.  You’ll also find links to all the other designers that are participating in the celebration.  Be sure to check out all the wonderful projects the ladies are sharing, you won’t be disappointed! 

Inspiration for my birthday card came from a Kubla Crafts photo frame shown below:

A close up of the toled flowers.

The focal image was hand drawn, painted and paper toled. 

In celebration of the 100th Stamp Simply challenge I’ve put together a stencil embossing tutorial for you.

For successful embossing it’s important that you use a paper that is not too thin or too thick.  I have found a paper that I feel is perfect for embossing that is for sale in my store, A Touch of Grace - Paper Boutique.  The stencil I have chosen for this design can be hand embossed or run through a die cutter.  When I run my stencils through a die cutting machine, the Wizard by Spellbinders is my die cutter of choice.  For purposes of this tutorial, the design is hand embossed using a light box, a stylus, and Perga Soft wax (an oil free wax manufactured by Pergamano, especially formulated for hand embossing). 

I recommend before you begin embossing this design that you practice on inexpensive cardstock until you have the hang of it.  Begin by using light pressure to stretch your paper, if you use too much pressure, you may tear or pearce through your paper.  Go back over the area you’ve embossed a second time using more pressure for best results. 

In this design embossing is done on the back side of the paper; pay careful attention to how the stencil is placed on the light box.  If placed in the wrong direction, your embossing will be the reverse of what you want it to be when you turn your paper over.  Use your stylus to trace the outline of the portion of the stencil you are embossing and not the center, this results in a nice raised section.  If you rub the entire area with your stylus, the result will not be as smooth and elegant.

I recommend that you change the blade on your craft knife every time you start a new card if you’re doing a lot of cut work.  Blades are inexpensive; it’s better to toss a questionable blade than to ruin a beautifully embossed piece that you’ve worked several minutes on.  Work in a well lighted room; natural light is the most desirable.  I use an OTT lamp when working at night. 

Embossing tools needed for embossing.

Perga Soft (oil free embossing wax)

Place stencil down on light box as shown in picture. Tape down with removable tape so that stencil doesn’t move while embossing.  Grid paper assures that your stencil is perfectly straight.

Lay your cardstock (embossing paper) down on the stencil as shown and emboss.  I embossed only a portion of the stencil in the center panel of the design.

Remove tape, turn embossed panel over, right side up, the embossing should be on the lower right corner as shown.

Turn stencil over and tape it back down to light box facing the opposite direction that you just embossed.

Place your cardstock (embossing paper) down on the stencil as shown, embossing only a portion of the stencil as you did above in the center panel.

Turn paper over, right side up, the embossed designs should be on the upper left and lower right corners of the center panel.

Tape stencil to light box as shown.  Remember, you’re working on the reverse side. Place paper down over the stencil, right side down, as shown in the picture and emboss the entire stencil. 

Turn the paper over, your design should look as shown in the illustration above.

Turn the stencil over in the opposite direction and tape down to the light box.  Place your paper down over the stencil, right side down, and emboss the entire stencil, as shown in the illustration.

Turn your paper over, right side facing up.  The embossing is complete and should look like the illustration above.

Place the stencil down on the paper, right side facing up.  On the left panel lightly trace (using a mechanical pencil) inside the lines that you will be cutting as shown on the left side of the paper. These lines are guidelines for cutting.

After tracing all areas to be cut, place your embossed design on a cutting mat; using a craft knife with a new cutting blade, cut just outside the traced lines. When finished, your design should look like the picture above.  The cutting will take you approximately 5 to 10 minutes, according to skill level.

Place your stencil over the left and right arches (you’ll need to flip the stencil over to fit the embossed pattern on the right side) and trace around the outside edges with a mechanical pencil.  Using a craft knife cut inside the pencil lines.  If you have any pencil marks left on the paper, gently erase them being careful not to damage the tooth of the paper.  The embossing and cutting is complete.

I traced drawings onto parchment paper using a mechanical pencil. 

The traced drawings were transferred to the embossing paper by using the stylus.  Do not use too much pressure as you don’t want any debossed lines on your paper.

Using Gold Tinta Ink and a mapping pen I drew over the transferred image.

The gold mapping is complete and dry.  Any visible graphite lines can be removed with a soft, putty like, erasure.

Using colored pencils, I colored the images.  Tools needed for this technique are blending stumps, a sanding paddle, and Gamsol or odorless turpentine.

Trace around the outside edges of the stencil on two pieces of pink cardstock and cut out.

Illustration of cut pieces.

Two small pieces of pink paper were cut to cover the cut out portions of the center panel.

A gold Krylon pen was used to outline the black panel.  Hold the tip so that it touches the edge of the cardstock, the tip retracts giving you control of the ink flow.

Draw lines around all four corners of the black and pink cardstock.

Adhere panels together and attach a card holder.

You’ll want to add your embellishments (ribbon, pearls, punched butterflies) and a sentiment before adhering the panels together. 

Supplies for the Birthday card:

Stencil:  Anja Style Stencil Frame (FE6122), embossing paper (Carnation White, Heather), Swarovski crystals, Gold Tinta Ink, mapping pen, Perga Soft wax, sanding paddle, stylus, Zip Dry adhesive, removable tape, grid paper, Fancy Crafts flower punch, glitter, Happy Birthday Gold Sticker, ribbon, craft knife, light box, cutting mat, colored pencils, mechanical pencil, Bow Easy, Spellbinders die, deckle scissors, Scor It, craft knife, MS punch, crystal lacquer, Yes adhesive, Quickie Glue Pen

Supplies for Tutorial card:

Stencil:  Luxe Labels stencil (AS0703) , parchment paper, embossing paper (light pink, black, carnation white), card holder, Gold Tinta Ink, mapping pen, Perga Soft wax, pearls, Krylon 18K Gold Leaf pen, blending stumps, sanding paddle, stylus, Zip Dry adhesive, removable tape, grid paper, Marvy butterfly punch, glitter, Verve sentiment stamp, ribbon, craft knife, light box, cutting mat, colored pencils, mechanical pencil, Scor It, MS punch, Quickie Glue Pen, Bow Easy

I hope you find this tutorial helpful. 

You’ll want to visit these blogs to see what all the girls have come up with for the birthday celebration:

1.      Pat Adam - Christmas Gift Tags with BLOG CANDY

2.      AJ - 1 Card Done 3 Ways

3.      Janine - A Stress Free Summer Menu with BLOG CANDY 

4.      Tammy - Birthday Reminder Book with BLOG CANDY

5.      Jennifer - Birthday Card with BLOG CANDY

6.      Julie - Card Set in Tote with Directions 

7.      Barbara-  Birthday Card with BLOG CANDY

8.      Deb- Tutorial on Dying Silk Ribbon Using Copics and Refills

9.      Jenny- Birthday Card with BLOG CANDY

10.  Joan- Birthday Card and Etched Glass with BLOG CANDY

11.  LeAnne - Birthday Card with Glitter

12.  Barb- Birthday Cake 3-D Gift Item with BLOG CANDY

13.  Darlene - Birthday Card with Special Recipe

14.  Rose Ann- Birthday Card with BLOG CANDY

15.  Leslie - Gift Tin of Soaps with Coordinating Card

16.  Heather - Birthday Card

17.  Sabrina- Birthday Card with BLOG CANDY

18.  Sharon- Monogrammed Birthday Gift Set with BLOG CANDY 

Many Blessings,

I had the privilege of teaching a water color class at CHA last week in Anaheim.  To assist the women taking the class, I prepared a three page tutorial that they could follow along with as I spoke.  Since I was speaking, the narrative on the class tutorial was rather simple.  I sized down the photographs to fit within the three pages without placing my watermark on them for better viewing purposes.  For this tutorial I have included more narrative to give you the benefit of what was said in class, together with all of the photographs, so that you can follow along step-by-step.  There are 23 pictures that were sized down for the class tutorial and then were sized back up for this tutorial.  It took me a little longer than I anticipated to make the changes in Photoshop.  In the spirit of sharing, please feel free to print this tutorial for your personal use only. 

To those of you who took my class, I would like to say thank you very much.  I was thrilled that you came and hope that you enjoyed the experience.

In the class we used Canson 140 lbs. coldpressed watercolor paper.  The image was embossed with Ranger Gold/Gold Tinsel embossing powder.  The powders were mixed using a 50/50 ratio.  A 2 Royal Soft-Grip SG250 paintbrush was used to paint the image.  The brush can be purchased at Michael’s for $2.99.   

Ladies, this tutorial is long, pour yourself a cup of coffee, sit back, relax, and enjoy the reading.

This first photograph is the completed painting:

To the lower right side of the image is a glistening sheen.  The photo was taken to show the students the proper amount of water needed on the water color paper for the background wash.

Using Tombow markers 555 and 665 dab a small amount of color into the upper corner of the petal, I usually place two/three dots of blue and then place two/three dots of purple on top of the blue.  Using a wet paintbrush, not too loaded with water, start in the lower white portion of the petal and work your way up to the color, gently pulling the color down and blending into the white area.

Using this technique continue on around the flower, painting one petal at a time.

Once your flower is complete, continue on with the rest of the flowers.

It is ideal to vary the color in the petals so that they are not identical.

I’ve continued with the flowers and have added more purple to some.

When the flowers are complete, move on to the leaves. 

Using Tombow marker 249, color a small amount of color onto the outer curve of a leaf.

Using Tombow marker 62, leaving a small portion of white in the lower portion of the leaf, apply color in the lower portion of the leaf blending up and into the darker green.  It’s okay to mix the lighter markers with the darker colors.  You can wipe them on a paper towel until you’ve wiped the darker color off. 

Now take your brush, loaded with water, but not too much, and start at the bottom of the leaf and work your way up blending the color.  You can see in this picture the proper amount of water you should have on your paper.

Continue on around the flowers painting the leaves one at a time.

As you can see, I’ve painted the leaves around the upper portion of the flowers.

Continue on around the flowers and work down to the bottom of the image.  I like to color the flowers before the leaves because the color in the leaves is very intense.  It’s very easy to pick up some of that dark green and contaminate the blue flowers.

The leaves are complete, we are now going to come back in with Tombow markers 177 and 133 and glaze over the first green colors.  By now the leaves you started with should be dry.  You don’t want to start the glazing until the leaves are completely dry, this is very important, or you’ll move the color you’ve carefully blended.

With Tombow marker 177 color over the dark green and with Tombow marker 133 leaving the white and a small portion of the lighter yellow visible, start about mid-leaf and work your way into the dark green, blending the colors.  Using a wet paint brush start at the bottom of the leaf, as you did the first time and work your way up blending the colors. 

Coloring each leaf continue around the flowers.  Do you see how much more colorful the two leaves are that I have completed in this photo with 177 and 133?  You may wonder why I didn’t paint all four colors on the leaves to begin with.  The reason is they would not have the same effect.  One of the reasons I choose to use Tombow markers is because they are artist quality transparent colors.  I laid the first set of greens down that I usually use when I’m painting Christmas holly.  I want brighter, more intense color with these flowers.  By going back in and glazing over the first set of greens I can build up the color.  The effect would not be the same if I used all four colors at once.  Look at the large leaf at the top of the flowers, you can see the pale yellow glowing through the darkers greens.  If I had painted all the colors at once, I wouldn’t see that.  If I had only used 177 and 133, I wouldn’t have these colors, they would be pretty, but I would be missing the beautiful pale yellow glowing through.  The first wash of 249 really makes the 177 intensely dark.

Now that the upper leaves are completed, scroll up and look at the pictures above and then come back and look at the leaves.  Can you see their vibrancy and why I like to layer the washes of green?

I’ve completely finished the leaves and will move on to the centers of the flowers.  If you go back up four pictures, you’ll see this same picture before we added 177 and 133.  I believe you’ll see the difference in color and will note just how vibrant the leaves have become.  Isn’t water color amazing! 

Using Tombow marker 62 color the centers of the flowers.   Go back to the first center you colored and add just a touch of 985 in the corner.  Using an almost dry paintbrush, pull the darker color down just a bit for a smooth gradation of color.  When the centers are finished, using Tombow marker 933, color a small area around the leaves and flowers.  Using a wet paintbrush, pull the color out for your background wash, being careful not to pull the color from your flowers and leaves. 

In this picture, you can see the proper amount of water you should have on your water color paper for pulling and blending your background wash.

Look carefully at this picture, you’ll see that I’ve added the wash in the middle of the image where there are openings between the leaves and flowers.  Again, you’ll see the wet paper, this should give you an idea of how much water you need on your paper.

Continue up and around your image, laying down color and pulling it out, making sure not to let your paper dry to avoid hard water lines.

I have now completed my painting.  As you can see the wash is still wet.  It will be dry to the touch in 15 minutes or so. 

Once a painting is dry, I spray a water mist very lightly on the back and place the image between two pieces of unused water color paper.  I then place that on a flat surface with a stack of heavy books and leave it overnight (or several hours) to dry.  When I take it out, I’ve got a completely flat image and am ready to use it in a design.  In the CHA class, the image was stamped on a card.  You can do the same with the card, spray the inside with the water mist, follow the same procedures, let it dry, and then finish with the design.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the tutorial.  As you can imagine, it takes quite a while to paint the image, stopping to take photographs, running the photos through photoshop to size them within the allowable parameters for blogging, place watermarks on them, and then prepare the post itself.  As much as I enjoy that, it does take a lot of time.  I will do my best to prepare future tutorials, as time allows.