Tag Archives: DIY

How to Make a Gingerbread House Garland

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by Jennifer Vanderbeek

How to Make a Gingerbread House Garland

Die cuts and a few choice supplies combine to create this darling little gingerbread house garland. Not only is it perfect for the holidays, it’s an ideal craft to let kids help decorate (after the embossing is done!) and it would also look super sweet at a fairy tale themed event—think Hansel and Gretel and the witch’s house in the woods. A fun technique used in this project is layering the StazOn Studio Glaze while still wet. Drawing the tip of the Claret StazOn Studio Glaze bottle over the Cotton White made for near-seamless candy cane stripes once dried. Also, I’ve found it helps to be very generous with the Cotton White, especially on darker papers or backgrounds, if you want it to retain some opacity.

Skill: Advanced
Time: 15 minutes per house

Directions

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Cardstock – Craft
  • Die-Versions – Tall Victorian Home die
  • Sizzix – Big Shot Plus
  • 1/8” Hole Punch
  • Darice – Heat Tool
  • Baker’s Twine
  • Clear Tape

Make Gingerbread Ornaments with Clay and Memento Ink

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by Kyriakos Pachadiroglou

 See How to Make Gingerbread Ornaments with Polymer Clay and Memento Ink

This holiday season, the best recipe for gingerbread cookies can be found right here! It takes only a few ingredients/materials and no baking, with a long-lasting fresh cookie look! The first ingredient is clay! I used an air dry one to avoid any “baking” at all. A nice match of Walnut Ink Crystals with Memento Rich Cocoa ink pad gives a beautiful gingerbread color that will make people think these cookies are baked to perfection. Decorate the cookies with easy glazing and fine detail provided by the thin nozzle of irRESISTible Pico Embellisher colors. See if you can trick someone into tasting them! (Ok, maybe don’t go that far…)

Skill: Beginner
Time: 1 hour + clay drying time

Directions


Step 1

Use the rolling pin to flatten the clay in a thick layer. Cut shapes with the cookie cutters. Lay them on the parchment paper and set aside to dry.


Step 2

Dilute a few Walnut Ink Crystals in water and paint the clay shapes.


Step 3

Use a jumbo sponge dauber to darken and add a bit of texture on the clay shapes with Memento Rich Cocoa ink.


Step 4

Use the irRESISTible Pico Embellisher in Wedding Dress as ‘sugar glaze’ to decorate the clay cookies.


Step 5

Add color and details on the clay cookies with the irRESISTible Pico Embellisher in Morocco and Pear Tart colors.

Supplies

Imagine
Walnut Ink Crystals
Walnut Ink Crystals		 Memento Inkpad in Rich Cocoa
Memento Inkpad Rich Cocoa		 irRESISTible Pico Embellisher Wedding Dress
irRESISTible Pico Embellisher Wedding Dress
irRESISTible Pico Embellisher Pear TartirRESISTible Pico Embellisher Pear Tart irRESISTible Pico Embellisher MoroccoirRESISTible Pico Embellisher Morocco Sponge DauberSponge Dauber
Other
  • Air dry clay
  • Cookie cutters
  • Rolling pin
  • Parchment paper
  • Paintbrush

Make a “Sending You Autumn Blessings” Greeting Card

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by Roni Johnson

Make a "Sending You Autumn Blessings" Greeting Card

Autumn is my favorite time of the year so when I saw these fun stamps from Honey Bee I knew I had to have them. The pick-up is perfect for all sorts of fun scene cards. Rinea foiled papers make it that much more special. The foiled paper is so easy to stamp on using StazOn inks and can be torn, die-cut or trimmed with scissors as you see here. It’s just so much fun to add a bit of zing to your projects with Rinea Foiled Paper.

Skill: Beginner
Time: 30 minutes

Directions


Step 1

Stamp the truck onto Ruby/Gold Glossy Foiled Paper using Jet Black StazOn Ink. Fussy cut the truck; die-cut the tires from Mocha/Mocha Starstruck Foiled Paper and window detailing from Silver/Gold Glossy Foiled Paper. Adhere these accents to the pickup truck.


Step 2

Stamp pumpkin pile and individual pumpkins on Marigold/Gold Glossy Foiled Paper; fussy cut. Adhere the pumpkin pile to the truck and set the pumpkins aside. Tear a “dirt road” from Mocha/Gold Glossy Foiled Paper. Die-cut grass and hills from Emerald/Gold Glossy Foiled Paper. Adhere hills, grass and road pieces to a white card panel; affix the truck and pumpkins.


Step 3

Stamp “Sending you” with VersaFine Clair Nocturne and “Autumn Blessings” with VersaFine Clair Acorn inks on the card panel. Affix the card panel to a dark brown card blank.

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Rinea Foiled Paper – Autumn Variety Pack; Emerald/Gold Glossy Foiled Paper; Silver/Gold Glossy Foiled Paper
  • Honey Bee Stamps – Sending You Sentiments; Little Pick Up Stamps; Little Pick Up Dies
  • White Cardstock
  • Dark Brown
  • Card Blank
  • Adhesive

November Color of the Month is Gingerbread

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November Color of the Month is Gingerbread

Color of the Month for November is Gingerbread. We love this toasty burnt orange-brown color that reminds us of the all the yummy treats and eats that are created for the holidays. For papercrafting, we have a collection of ink colors that perfectly compliment the Gingerbread color. Some of these inks include VersaMagic in (ready for it…) Gingerbread, Memento in Peanut Brittle, and VersaMagic in Pumpkin Spice. These dark orange colors are a great addition to your ink collection.

To start us out for the month of November, we have a super cute cardmaking tutorial by Elina Stromberg. Enjoy!

Cute Birthday Card by Elina Stromberg

As a scrapbooker and card maker, I have lots and lots of beautiful patterned papers. However, very often I prefer using just plain white mixed media papers and creating the background patterns myself. That way I can both enjoy the creative process of inking, stamping, and stenciling but also create patterned papers that have exactly my needed colors. This cute birthday card was inspired by our November color ‘Gingerbread’. Even if I used only a limited color palette I think the card doesn’t look boring at all. Several layers of eye-catching patterns and cute stamped and colored images were a perfect combo!

Skill: Beginner
Time: 1 hour

Directions


Step 1

Stamp and fuzzy-cut the main images.


Step 2

Apply Memento in Desert Sand (light brown) on a piece of mixed media cardstock/watercolor paper. Do not cover the entire sheet but leave some areas white.


Step 3

Stencil VersaMagic in Gingerbread on top of.


Step 4

Stamp circle patterns with VersaFine Clair in Acorn.


Step 5

Add the final layer of patterns by stamping small dots with Memento in Potter’s Clay.


Step 6

Apply a thin layer of white gesso on those areas where the main images will be placed. This will highlight the fuzzy cut images, preventing them from blending into the busy background. Let dry.


Step 7

Glue main images on the card front. Mat card on brown cardstock and attach to white card base. I used the very same techniques for creating a matching ATC. I think it looks quite nice, too!

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • White mixed media paper
  • Brown cardstock, white card base
  • White gesso
  • Carabelle Studio: ‘Les Mini OUF 2’ Stamp, Mini Textures
  • VivaLasVegaStamps! – Doodle Dots
  • Ranger Dyulusions – Fresh Dots Small Stencil
  • Promarkers for coloring the images
  • American Crafts – Number stickers

Create Paper Dresses With Stazon And Creative Medium

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by Iris Rodriguez

Create Paper Dresses With Stazon And Creative Medium

I enjoy drinking tea. There is something so zen about it. The enjoyment does not have to end after tea time. Keep the tea bags to make art. You can paint and stamp on them, sew into them, and even create sculptural projects, such as these little dresses. These dresses can be used on cards, art projects, place in a shadowbox, which makes for a great home décor for young girl/lady’s bedroom or simply make for yourself.

Skill: Advanced
Time: 30 minutes per dress 

Directions


Step 1

Begin by allowing your tea bags to fully dry. I placed my tea bags on a ceramic plate with a paper towel and allowed them to dry for several days. The color of your tea bag will be determined by the type of tea you use. On this project, I started with a light color tea bag because it is Ginger tea.


Step 2

The tea bags are very delicate so a soft touch will be required to take them apart. Remove the tag by pulling it off. Remove the tiny staple with your nails. Rip open the seams. Take out the dried leaves by sloughing it off. Tear off the seams, otherwise, you’ll see it in your art. Do so, by tearing off the edges on the long side of the rectangle.


Step 3

The dresses will be made by using two dress patterns and gluing them at the seam, kind of like how real dresses are made. We will create one big sheet made of individual tea bags. This will be our “fabric”. One side of the tea bags will be rough, that’s where the tea leaves reside. The sheet will have one smooth side, this side is ideal for stamping. Lay the tea bags, rough side up, on a nonstick surface; wax paper or Freezer paper. Please note, in order to get one smooth side, Freezer or wax papers work the best. Brush on Creative medium and adhere the bags together by slightly overlapping them.


Step 4

Make a sheet of tea bags to the desired size. Adhere the second layer of tea bags in the exact location as the first layer. Ensure that your sheet is big enough to make two dress patterns per dress. If you want a thicker dress, add more than two layers of tea bags.


Step 5

Allow the tea bags to dry. Now you will have one single sheet of tea bags. Carefully, separate the sheet from the nonstick paper. Do this slowly, so that you don’t risk ripping the sheet. The bottom side of the sheet will be very smooth, yet you’ll still make out the tiny tea leaves granules, which look awesome. The other side will have a rough texture.


Step 6

Draw out a dress shape, or download a pattern from the internet.


Step 7

Fold the sheet in half. Using tracing paper, trace the dress on the tea bag sheet on the smooth side.


Step 8

Cut out the dress. Spray the dress with the Fireworks! Shimmery Craft Spray in Lady Bug on the smooth side.

Step 9

Stamp images on your dresses using a variety of StazOn inks.

Step 10

Glue the seams together with the On Point Glue.


Step 11

In order to give the dress dimension, strengthen the paper with Clear Creative Medium. Add saran wrap to inside to give the dress volume and brush on Creative Medium.


Step 12

Create a hanger for the dress. Measure desired hanger size against the dress. Bend the two ends of the wire at about 45 degrees. On one end, bend the wire to 90 degrees, wrap the other end around it, and bend the wire into a hook shape. Hang your dress on the hanger.

 

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Used teabags
  • Rubber Stamps
  • Freezer or wax paper
  • 16 or 18 gauge aluminum wire
  • Plyers
  • Scissors

Use Walnut Crystals to Create Beautiful Handmade Cards

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by Arjita Sepaha Singh

For today’s card, I used a swirly flourish stencil, Creative Medium, and Walnut Ink Crystals. I created a small rectangle mask using Post-It note and placed it on the watercolor paper. Then I placed the stencil on top and using a spatula I added the Creative Medium. I allowed the medium to dry completely then added diluted walnut ink crystals and few intense pigments. I finished the card with a sentiment stamped with Versafine Clair Ink. I love the vintage grungy look of the card.

Skill: Advanced
Time: 1 hour

Directions

Supplies

Imagine

• Walnut Crystals
• Creative Medium – Clear
• VersaFine Clair – Pinecone
• Palette Knives

Other

• Strathmore – Watercolor Paper
• Flourish Stencil
• Paintbrush
• Sentiment stamp