Camp Fire Lady Creates

Shaving Cream Paper

2009-08-09T12:11:00.000-07:00

There has been a lot of talk and questions on the AQ board about using shaving cream and food coloring or dyes to make background paper so I thought I would give it a try and show you my results.

I am using my husbands cheap Barbasol Shaving Cream (without him knowing), food coloring, alcohol ink, ink pad reinker, glossy scrapbook paper, paper plates and plastic forks.

This is a very easy project with minimal mess that would be great for kids to try. If you use paper plates and plastic forks, everything can be thrown away and the only real mess is some dye on your fingers that will wear off.

I thought I would show you how the paper comes out by using three different dyes. Why you ask? Because I have the supplies and thought it would be cool to compare them and choose the best medium for the job. I am using red food coloring, Cranberry alcohol ink, and Cranberry reinker. Before you scroll all the way down to the end, can you guess which one worked the best?

First, I sprayed the shaving cream on the plate. About a fist size works well for a small card such as an LTC size 2.5" x 3.5". Of course you would use more for a larger size paper that you could cut down later to size.

Next, I spread the shaving cream out a little bit. This way I don't work the dye into the shaving cream too much be trying to spread it out to fit the paper.

I only used 4 drops of dye to get a very nice shade of red but I am sure you can use less drops for a lighter shade.

With the plastic fork I swirled the dye through the shaving cream to give it a nice marbled look.

You could mix the dye in more to get the effect you want but remember, too much mixing will blend all the dye through the shaving cream and give you just the colored effect without the marbling. Remember that the more you use the cream, the more the dye will mix in and give you a solid color look. You may need to redo this process if you have a large amount of cards or paper to make.

Here are the shades of red that each dye gives in the shaving cream. Each dye had the same amount of drops used. From left to right: food coloring, alcohol ink, reinker.

Place your glossy scrapbooking paper glossy side down on the shaving cream and lightly press the paper all over in the shaving cream. Make sure that the entire paper is covered in cream. Do not move the paper around in the shaving cream. You will end up mixing the dye and cream even more than you like.

Lift off the paper and lightly wipe off the shaving cream with a soft tissue or toilet paper. I found that if you use a paper towel or something rough, the card will scratch and scrape off the dye you just applied. Be carful of long finger nails as well. They can also leave scratches.

Here are the results. From left to right: food coloring, alcohol ink, reinker. I like the effect of the food coloring the best and guess what? It is cheaper than the other dyes. Go figure. The cards only take about 10-15 minutes to dry and the shaving cream does leave a sort of film on the surface but you are still able to stamp a dye or pigment ink onto it with no problems.

Working with Pearl Ex Pigment Powders

2009-05-30T20:59:00.000-07:00

If you are looking for a way to add some metallic sheen or pearlescent shimmer to you projects, I would recommend Jacquard Pearl Ex Pigment Powders that can be found in your local craft supply store and at Walmart and will cost anywhere from $25 to $30 a set of 12 jars. Yes this is a bit pricey but they last for a very long time because you use very little at a time. You can even split up the jars with a friend and save yourself some money.

Here are a couple of links where you can also find Pearl Ex Powders or something similar:

http://www.cheapjoes.com/

http://lindystampgang.com/

These links can also be accessed by looking at the side bar of this blog under My Favorite Links for Supplies and Ideas.

Series 1 includes 12 different colors in 3 gram bottles. Micro Pearl, Macro Pearl, Super Russet, Super Copper, Brilliant Gold, Sparkle Gold, Silver, Super Bronze, Sunset Gold, Interference Violet, Interference Gold and Duo Red Blue.

Series 2 includes 12 different colors in 3 gram bottles. Aztec Gold, Antique Copper, Antique Silver, Duo Green Yellow, Bright Yellow, Flamingo Pink, Spring Green, Turquoise, True Blue, Misty Lavender, Blue Russet, and Sparkling Copper.

Series 3 includes 12 different colors in 3 gram bottles. Carbon Black, Pumpkin Orange, Salmon Pink, Pink Gold, Reflex Violet, Grey Lavender, Mink, Sky Blue, Pearl White, Antique Bronze, Sunset Gold and Duo Blue Green.

The colors are striking and very shimmery and can be added to a number of craft mediums such as acrylic paints, clay, ink pads, and you can even add the powder to a spray bottle full of liquid hairspray and apply it to your projects by spritzing.

The powders are very fine so brushing it on adds that extra shimmer, especially to fairy wings!

I am going to show you a very simple technique to stamp an image and make it shine! The items you will need are a paint brush, stamp, cardstock, your choice of pigment powder, and a VersaMark Watermark Stamp Pad.

Ink up your stamp with the VersaMark Watermark Stamp Pad.

Stamp onto your cardstock or paper medium.

Turn the powder jar upside down and tap it on a hard surface so that you leave a layer of pigment powder on the inside of the lid.

The reason for doing this is because that is all the Pearl Ex Powder you are going to need for your stamped image.

Dip your paint brush in the powder. I would recommend using a wide, soft bristle paint brush for applying the powder.

Apply the powder over the watermarked image lightly with the paint brush.

The watermark ink with make the powder stick leaving you with a shimmery image of your stamp. Light colored Pearl Ex Pigment Powder on a dark-colored cardstock is recommended for the image to stand out as well as a dark-colored Pearl Ex Pigment Powder on a light colored cardstock.

You may not be able to see the shimmer that well in this picture but if you are in possession of this fairy LTC or any other fairy LTC's of mine, look closely at the wings. I have used the Pearl Ex Powders on all of my fairy wings! You can also just brush the pigment powders on the paper with a soft paint brush and it will stay without using any substance to make it stick. The powders are light enough to stay put!

Links to Crafting and Supply Sites

2009-05-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

Some friends and I were out in Puyallup, WA last weekend for the Heirloom Show.

http://www.heirloompro.com/

This is a great crafting festival with tons of vendors and demonstrations of the latest rubber stamps, embossing powders, papers, inks, and products that any crafter would need to create their masterpieces. It is amazing and travels all over the United States. If it comes to your town I highly recommend you get your crafting friends together (and your full wallet) and spend the day here. This is the second year I have been to this and I have not been disappointed. Some of the vendors will even let you take pictures so you don't get home and forget what something looked like.

Here are a few of the vendors that participated in this show and their websites so you can peruse their supplies and maybe make some online purchases:

www.makeanimpression.net- Lots of rubber stamps, punches and pictures of how to create beautiful cards with flower punches.

http://embossingcandystore.com/catalog/index.php- Need embossing powders in that perfect color? You will find it here.

http://www.morningstarstamps.com/- I bought some really cut acrylic tags from them and they had some ideas for really cut candy bags. They even have a schedule of shows that they will be at until October. Maybe they will be in your area.

http://amstamps.com/- They have these beautiful, thick embossing powders that you melt onto art glass to make stunning jewelry. They even have step-by step-tutorials for using their products.

www.alotarubberstamps.com- This vendor had these gorgeous 3-D cards and a stamp to make
'tea bag folding' on the cards. Very cute!

www.stamplandchicago.com- Some great techniques on how to layer your inks and stamps.

www.carvedstamps.com- This woman is a metal artist and designer, and a letterboxer! Check out her Transformed Playing Cards. They are beautiful!

And this one is my favorite:
www.lindystampgang.com- These great women have some absolutely beautiful sprays, spritz's, embossing powders, mica powders, stains, and kits that are so gorgeous! They even have some great demo videos to show you how to use them. I spent the most money at this vendor and can't wait to try these products. There are gonna be some awesome LTC's made with this stuff! Stayed tuned!

I will add all of these links to the side bar on this blog so you can find them easily the next time you have an idea and need a little bit of guidance with your techniques.

Enjoy!

Creating a Maze Book

2009-05-14T19:48:00.000-07:00

This is a very simple project that can be used for a number of things from letterbox logbooks to nicely embellished gift books. You can slide a few LTC's into the pockets for a nice little package or connect more pages for a thick letterbox logbook. Here is a step-by-step to show you how easy this maze book can be. I will be showing you how to make a 3" x 3" book but this can also be made in a 2" x 2" smaller size with more pages or a 1" x 1" very small book with lots more pages.
It all depends on what size you measure your squares.

Start with a 12" x 12" piece of paper. You can use a decorative paper with a blank side or a paper with both sides blank to stamp on all pages. Make a pencil mark at 3", 6", and 9" on all sides of the paper.

I have drawn pencil marks to show you what the 3" squares look like but you can score your paper so the pencil marks don't show for a clean book.

Fold accordion style at each one of the 3" marks for a total of 3 folds.

Turn the paper 90 degrees and fold accordion style again in the other direction.

I have placed red arrows and lines to show you where to cut your paper so it is easy to understand. You do not need to mark your paper this way. Start cutting on the left side of the paper till you reach the last row of squares and stop before cutting through (at the red line).

On the right side of the paper, cut at the red arrow on the right side till you reach the red line in that row. Cut on last time on the left side at the top arrow until you reach the red line in that row.

When you are finished cutting your paper should look like this.

Turn your paper over and start folding your squares starting at the top left, folding your squares the way that you folded them in the beginning.

When you reach the end of your first row, fold all the squares you just folded from the top row under the first square for the second row.

Fold the squares in the second row to the end on the left and fold that stack of squares under the first square for the third row.

Continue with the steps above until you have folded all of your rows for a nice 3" square stack of pages.

Your pages will look like this.

Cut a piece of cardstock 6 1/2" x 3". This will be your cover. Make a mark at 3" and at 3 1/2" and score and fold your cover at these marks.

You are now ready to attach your pages to the cover.

Adhere the front and back pages into the cover.

Now you can leave your pages as they are and when the book is opened, the pages will form a maze that may challenge anyone to try and put back together or...

you can adhere the side and bottom of the pockets for a perfect place to place some LTC's or gift cards and surprise your friends with a special gift.

Punch a hole in the cover and pages and run a ribbon or string through to close the book. Decorate and share with your friends!

By the way, the flower arrangement in this photo was a Mother's Day gift to me from my daughter Cat's Meow. Isn't it perdy?

I am Back From Hiatus!

2009-05-06T18:42:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I had to take an unexpected hiatus from blogging for a couple of reasons and I am sorry that it took so long to get back to you all. If you haven't heard all about it yet, check this out:

http://cflcreates.blogspot.com/2009/04/perils-of-urban-letterboxing.html

Between physical therapy three times a week, muscle relaxers and pain meds, I have been out of it for a bit. I have also been working on building up my supply of handcrafted merchandise that I was able to display and sell at Spring Flinger 2009 in Washington State.

My handcrafted Letterboxing journals were a big hit at Spring Flinger!

I also have a large selection of various sizes of letterbox logbooks!

This is a preview of what I will have available at LB CON 2009 in July!

Another big seller were the Washington State Letterboxing patches and the Washington Treasure Hiker patches. The Washington pathtag was also on display and has even been earned already by some of the Washington hikers!

It was nice to get out for awhile and see some old friends, meet some new ones, and warm my buns by the fire. AAAAAWWWWWWW!!!!!!!

Washington State Letterboxing Patch

2009-04-15T20:48:00.000-07:00

It is finally here! A Letterboxing patch for Washington State!

Each patch represents the majestic Bald Eagle soaring through the sky with the image of Mt. Ranier, our national forests, and the abundance of Salmon found in the rivers and streams of the Pacific Northwest reflecting in it's wings.

The patch measures 31/2" X 3 1/2" and is entirely embroidered by Moritz Embroidery Works. www.moritzembroidery.com. (800) 533-4183

Each beautiful patch is $3.00 each.

If you would like to have one for your very own, send a SASE and $3 for each patch up to three (only 3 will fit in a standard letter envelope with one stamp). I will accept cash, check, money order and PayPal. If you would like to pay with PayPal, email me and I will let you know where to send your payment. (PayPal users please add $1 when paying with PayPal to cover the fee, stamp, and envelope to mail the patch to you). Please add a note with your SASE letting me know that your money is for the WALB patch.

Email me at tinarie@msn.com and I will let you know where to send your payment!

Working with Blending Chalks

2009-04-10T20:12:00.000-07:00

I love the effect you can get from using blending chalks like these. They are great for a shadowy or highling effect for your stamped images and can give any image some depth. These chalks are made by Inkadinkado and come in soft tones and sparkly chalks. What is really cool is they are non toxic and acid free.

Here is a really cool effect that you can do with these chalks.

Use your Versa Mark embossing stamp pad to ink up your stamp and stamp your image onto a card.

Take a cotton ball and rub it into the color chalk of your choice. Here I am using a turquoise color.

Now rub the cotton ball with the chalk on it over the image you just stamped with the Versa Mark embossing ink. The image will look a darker turquoise as if you had stamped it in turquoise ink and you will have a lighter turquoise effect to your background.

I will do this same technique on a darker card and use a white chalk to rub over the image that is stamped using the Versa Mark embossing ink.

The image will look dark and the white chalk gives it a highlighted background.

You can also use those little sponge tipped thingies that you use to apply eye shadow with to apply chalk just where you want it. I wouldn't recommend buying the sponge tip thingies at the craft store. They are so much cheaper if you get them at your local retail store in the make up aisle.

Here I have created a highlighted background by working from the area closest to the stamped image and pulling the color away. It looks really cool if you do this technique with a sunset. Use the sponge tip thingy to pull the color away from the sun to give it the effect that it is darker towards the surface of the sun and the color gets lighter farther away. Try this using two colors of chalk on your sponge thingy and applying it to the surface of your card. You can experiment using the chalks with stencils and torn pieces of paper by laying them on a card and pulling the chalk from the edge of the paper or stencil onto the card. It would work well for clouds or outlines of mountains, etc.

These glimmer or sparkly chalks are really cool if you want to add a bit of sparkle or shimmer to your cards.

Here I used a light pink glimmer chalk for the fairy wings and around the image to give the whole card some sparkle.

For this card I tore the paper and used brown chalk on the torn edge to give the paper a distressed old look.

This card was made using the embossing ink pad and three different shades of chalk. I used a dark pink and a dark blue for the heart and black chalk around the edges of the card for a shadowy effect.

With this card I stamped the image on vellum and placed the vellum over a charcoal colored card using the spray adhesive to make the vellum stick without having to use embellishments that would take away from the image. To give the image a shadowy look, I used black chalk and a sponge thingy and rubbed the chalk around the image. I also used yellow chalk on a sponge tip thingy to give the lantern a glow.

There are so many possibilities for using the blending chalks to give your images that extra little effect. Experiment with them and see what you can come up with!

Handcrafted Letterboxing Journals- Woodland Creatures

2009-04-04T14:44:00.000-07:00

Introducing a new line of handcrafted Letterboxing journals. I call these the Woodland Creatures!

These journals feature squirrels, beavers, bears, birds, snails, and silly looking owls all with a nature-style paper.

Some of these journals are also made with the coils at the top of the covers rather than on the sides if this is what you prefer.

Each journal comes with a handy pocket for holding your clues or first finder certificates to keep them safe and the covers are laminated with plastic to keep them clean while out on the trails. You can view all of the standard journals that I have available for purchase here:

http://www.atlasquest.com/gallery/viewalbum.html?gAlbumId=1602

$12.00 each for standard already made journals

$15.00 each for a personalized journal with your trailname and signature stamp

$3.00 USPS first class parcel shipping and handling (additional journals will cost a bit more)

$4.95 Priority mail shipping (additional journals will cost a bit more)

email me at tinarie@msn.com and I will work with you to create the best journal for you!

I can even create an event journal for your next event or gathering. This journal was made for the Letterbox RoundUp in Orange, CA. Just let me know what you want and I can see what I can do for you! Don't delay, order yours today!

Matchbook Logbook

2009-03-28T16:55:00.001-07:00

For those of you that make your own logbooks but don't have a Bind It All yet (gasp!), here are some simple directions to make a sturdy logbook for your letterboxes. The directions are pretty lengthy because there are a lot of steps but all in all the logbooks are easy to make.

These are the supplies that you will need for this project: scissors, ruler, pencil, blank index cards, decorative paper, needle, embroidery floss, 1/8 " hole punch, and I forgot to add to the picture an awl and something to place under your paper to punch holes such as styrofoam.

For this size logbook we are using 3" x 5" blank index cards cut in half for a logbook page that measures 2 1/2" wide and 3" long. Cut 15 sheets in half to give yourself 30 logbook pages per logbook. With this size page you can get 6 logbooks from one package of index cards with 10 cards leftover that you could probably cut in half for a 20 page logbook.

30 pages will fit in a 1/4" length for the top and bottom edges of your logbook. Below I will show you where that measurement will be on your decorative paper for your cover.

Before we get to the cover of your logbook we need to prepare the logbook pages. Take one sheet of your 30 pages to use for the template. Draw a line across the 2 1/2" side, 1/2" from the top. We are using a 1" flap for the front so the holes will be punched half of that measurement. If you are making a smaller logbook with a 1/2" front flap, punch your holes half of that measurement from the top at 1/4".

Make a mark on this line at every 1/4". This is where you will punch the holes to bind your logbook with embroidery floss. Make sure that the width of your logbook has an even amount of 1/4" marks for an even amount of holes.

With your 1/8" hole punch, punch a hole on each one of the marks you just made along the line. This is now your template to punch the rest of the holes in your pages. Lay this template over 5 pages at a time and punch through all of your pages until you have done this to all 30 pages.

Now you need to prepare your decorative paper cover to wrap around your pages. For this size logbook I have cut a piece of decorative paper 2 1/2" wide and 8" long. With your pencil make a mark (do not draw a line) on the inside of your cover on both sides of the length at each one of these measurements:

1" for the top front flap

1/4" for the top edge of the logbook

3" for the length of your pages for the back cover

1/4" for the bottom edge of the logbook

2 1/2" for the bottom front flap

The reason I said not to draw a line is because the inside of your cover will look cleaner without the pencil lines drawn all the way across your paper. Lay your ruler across the cover at the marks and fold the paper over the ruler to give you a nice straight fold.

Do this at each one of the marks on the inside of the cover. The bottom line that was made at 2 1/2" you can draw a line across because you will be cutting this end of the paper off so it can be tucked under the front flap.

Cut off the 1/2" on the end of the cover. This will make the front flap slide under the top flap like a matchbook. You may still need to trim some more off this end to fit snug but you will not know this until you reach the end of the project.

Lay your page template on the inside of the cover, lining up the top of the template page with the second fold on your cover. This is where your pages will fit. When your pages are all inserted into the cover, they will be the width of the 1/4" fold with the front flap laying over the top of the pages. With your awl or something used to punch the fine holes, start punching a hole in the cover at each one of the holes that you punched with your 1/8" hole punch. You need to do this with the awl because the hole punch will not reach all the way across the paper.

(Tip- Use a hole punch for your pages rather than punching the holes with an awl because you need to be able to sew through these holes and they line up much better with a hole punch than a hole punched with a pointy object. It is okay to use the awl for the cover since that will be the entrance and exit of your needle when sewing.)

This is what the inside cover will look like when you get the holes punched with the awl. This is the inside of the back cover.

Now take the page template and turn it upside-down on the top front flap at the first fold on the top of your cover and punch the holes with the awl just like you did for the back cover.

This is what it will look like after you have the two rows of holes punched for the front flap and the back cover.

When you bring the front flap over the top of your pages, all the holes will line up on the front flap, the pages and the back of your cover.

Now you are ready to sew your logbook together to bind it. Use a needle that will take embroidery floss. A number 24 works well. Embroidery floss comes in 6 strands so you will need to split the floss so you are working with three strands of embroidery floss. Give yourself a length of about 18 inches of embroidery floss to bind your logbook.

Start your sewing on the back of the logbook. Put your needle into the middle hole on the back and push the needle all the way through. You may need to wiggle the needle a bit to get the pages all lined up. This is why we used the 1/8" hole punch to punch the holes because your needle will slide through much easier if your holes are all the same size.

Here the needle is pushed all the way through to the front.

Pull the needle and floss through the hole from the back and with a length of about 2", hang onto that length of floss with your thumb while you sew the rest of the logbook. You will need that length to tie off the floss when you finish.

Sew your logbook by putting your needle through the next hole at the front of the logbook and pull all the way through to the back. Your needle will come out the back side of the logbook.

From the back side of the logbook, place your needle into the next hole in the back and pull your needle all the way through to the front of your logbook.

And again, place your needle through the next hole in the front of the logbook and pull it all the way through to the back. You should be at the last hole at the one end of the logbook.

Bring your needle around the edge of the logbook from the back and put it in the first hole in the front. This should be the last hole that you previously put your needle through to the back.

Repeat this process all the way across the other half of the logbook making sure to go up and down, into and out of the holes from the front to the back.

When you reach the last hole on the other end, bring the needle around the side of the logbook, from the back to the front, and pull your needle through the first hole on that end to the back of the logbook.

Continue until your embroidery floss has linked all of the holes in the front of the logbook. Your needle should end going from the front of the logbook to the back.

You should have two threads side by side on the back of your logbook like this.

Tie the two ends together in a tight knot. You may want to add a drop of glue to make sure that the knot holds.

Trim the threads for a nice, clean end to your binding.

Turn your logbook over and slide the front flap under the top front flap. You may need to trim the bottom flap so that it fits snugly under the top flap with no gap at the bottom of the pages. Now you are done!

These matchbook logbooks can be made in many different sizes and can be dressed up by adding beads or charms in the binding as you sew across. If you are making a smaller logbook, make sure that you have at least half a measurement for the front flap to tuck the bottom flap under to close the cover. Your top and bottom edges should always be 1/4" and the back of your cover is the length of your pages. The width of your cover is the same width as your pages.

Adding That Little Extra Touch

2009-03-26T19:55:00.001-07:00

When creating LTC's, or any kind of card for that matter and you want the stamp image to be the main focus of your piece of artwork but you don't want a bunch of embellishments to take away from that image, try this very simple technique that will frame your image and keep your artwork simple and clean.

I like using the Color Box Cat's Eye ink pads for this technique because I get much better control over where and how much color I want to apply to my cards.

Take the ink pad and wipe or drag it along the edge of the card to give it a kind of blended frame around the edge. You can go over it as many times as you want to give the right amount of coverage that you will be happy with.

I have tried doing this technique with the larger, stiffer ink pads and it gives it a more lined effect to the card rather than a nice blended ink effect. I am not saying that it is bad, it is just different. You may prefer that kind of a look.

Here are a few examples of cards with just the image stamped onto the card. I did us a punch on the corners to give it that extra touch.

Here are the same cards with the ink blended around the edges. See how well it frames the stamp image and makes it stand out so much more? Scroll up and down to the pictures to see the difference.

Add a corresponding color card to the backing for that extra burst of color! Perdy!

Alcohol Inks Part 1

2009-03-20T17:57:00.001-07:00

Alcohol inks come in many luscious colors and are really very easy to use if you have the right supplies to use them with. They make some beautiful, vibrant colors for any project!

They even have gold and silver alcohol inks for adding a little bit of bling onto your projects. I will show examples of the bling colors in later tutorials but for now I will just show you the basics of using alcohol inks and how to use them as a background. Check back for more ideas and tips.

Alcohol inks can be found in most craft supply stores and will run you about $5.00 to $6.00 if you buy them in the packs of three which I would highly suggest doing since one bottle of this stuff cost me $3.99 when I could have paid $4.99 for the pack of three.

The Alcohol Blending Solution is a must have when doing anything with alcohol inks because it will help you to blend your colors together and keep your inks from drying to quickly. You have seen how rubbing alcohol will evaporate quickly, well alcohol inks will do the same.

There are couple of ways to apply your alcohol inks but right now I will just cover the technique of applying the inks to a pad to cover a large area. You can buy the pads and stamp block that are sold in the store just for the alcohol inks but why do that when you can make your own from what you already have in your crafting arsenal. I took an old stamp that was attached to a wooden block and stuck a square of velcro (the side with the little grips) on the wood side and cut small squares out of felt to stick to the velcro. You will need to cut many squares because you will go through alot of these when completing your projects.

Whenever you are using alcohol inks, you need to use them on a surface that is slick and shiny. Alcohol inks can be used on plastic, glass, ceramic tiles, acetate paper, and the glossy scrapbooking paper. I have used the alcohol inks on glossy photo paper but the alcohol interacts with the chemicals in the photo paper and makes the paper sticky and doesn't blend the colors very well. I am not saying that you can't use the glossy photo paper, it just doesn't work as well as the glossy scrapbook paper. I have found the glossy scrapbook paper at Craft Warehouse for about .33 cents a sheet and from what I understand, not all crafting stores carry it. If you do find it I would suggest buying alot of it.

The first step is to attach one of the felt squares to your block. Saturate the felt square with the blending solution making sure that you cover the entire surface of the felt square.

Next, take the colors of alcohol inks that you want to use and apply drops of the color randomly over the felt square. Try not to use too many different colors, usually 2-3 will work well.

Pat your glossy paper with the felt square all over in a random design. You can even pull the felt square across the paper to fill in the white areas.

This card was made using the Red Pepper and Butterscotch alcohol inks. Perdy huh?

This card was made using the Lettuce and Stream alcohol inks. Even perdier!

And this card was made using the Lettuce, Stream and Wild Plum Alcohol inks. As you can see, using three colors at once is about all you will need to make a really pretty background. More than that would make the card look too cluttered.

Clean up is a snap too! I filled a tiny spray bottle with the blending solution and sprayed in onto my work surface.

Used a tissue and the alcohol wiped right up!

As I stated at the beginning of this tutorial, there are many different ways to use the alcohol inks and I will go over those in future postings. Experiment and have fun with your alcohol inks. You may even invent your own technique and may need to share your experience with the rest of us!

Handmade Letterboxing Journals

2009-03-17T19:10:00.000-07:00

Are you looking for the perfect holiday, birthday, or surprise gift for the letterboxer in your life? How about a special "thank you" gift for the host or hostess at the next gathering you will be attending? Or even a great raffle prize for a letterboxing event? Consider giving a handmade Letterboxing journal. You can even use these journals to keep your exchanges seperate from your finds or have a seperate journal for each gathering that you attend.

These journals measure 4" x 6" and are filled with 35 pages of heavy, bright white cardstock pages that are thick enough to stamp on boths sides of the page without the ink bleeding through. Even with the juiciest ink pad! The pages lay flat for easy stamping and can be folded all the way back with the spiral binding.

The front and back covers are laminated with plastic to stay clean and dry while out on the trail and the inside of the back cover features a special pocket to hold your clue sheets, first finder certificates, or the answers to personal travelers so they will be handy for your next letterboxing gathering.

I have many standard letterboxing journals to choose from or if you would like to personalize your journal.......

You can have your trailname (up to 12 letters) and signature stamp displayed on the cover of your journal!

I have many designer papers and colors to choose from so creating exactly what you want should not a problem. I will work with you until we get it just right!

The pricing for these handmade journals are as follows:

$12.00 each for a standard letterboxing journal (Exchanges, Letterboxing, Gatherings, Got Clues, name of your event, etc. up to 12 letters)

$15.00 each for a personalized journal with your trailname and signature stamp image

$3.00 for shipping and handling

I accept cash, checks, or money orders and will try to ship within 7 days of placing your order. Larger orders may take a bit longer.

Email me at tinarie@msn.com and we can create a special handmade journal just for you or to give as a gift. When you purchase a handmade journal, I will also include a special LTC for buying from me! Don't delay. These journals are going fast!

If you are attending LB CON 2009 in July and would like a special journal to keep all of your exchanges and finds from the event all in one place, I will be taking orders for this special journal up to two weeks before the event so get your orders in now!

Stamping on Vellum

2009-03-16T20:45:00.000-07:00

I did a little experiment with stamping on vellum. I used a water-based dye ink pad in gray. Here you can see how wet the ink is. After 10 minutes the ink was still wet and the image smeared a bit when I touched it so I waited a bit longer. After 30 minutes the ink was dry. So if you are in a hurry for your ink to dry on your vellum, why not try this approach.....

Use your embossing heat gun or a blow dryer and dry the ink. It will dry instantly so there is no waiting. Ta Da!

A good tip is to turn your image over so the stamped side is against your background paper. That way there is no way the image can get smeared or distorted by touching the inked side.

I DO believe in Leprechauns, I DO, I DO, I DO!

2009-03-10T13:23:00.000-07:00

Some of the best times in my life are spending them crafting with my daughter. We could sit for hours on end talking and gluing and talking and coloring and talking and decorating and with St. Patricks Day next week, I thought I would share with you a really cool project that we did together that you could certainly do with your own kids. It is loads of fun and it will give your kids a sense of ownership in a project that can be dragged out every year and used over and over again.

Another good thing for doing crafts with your kids is that you can figure out who the crafty ones are and when you get old and gray, you know who you can dump all of your crafting supplies on before you die. But that is another story that I will share with you later.

I got this idea from the Family Fun Magazine and I will add the link to my blog so you can look for other really cool things you can do with your kids.

Magic Treasure Box
Leprechaun treasure from FamilyFun

This St. Patrick's Day, let your child in on a well-guarded secret and start a new family tradition in the process. The fun begins with the legend of the leprechauns and leads to a treasure box filled with goodies and gifts. Here's what to do. On the day before the holiday, read aloud the following tale:

LEGEND OF THE LEPRECHAUNS

Full of magic and trickery, the leprechauns remain in their hidden world until the night before St. Patrick's Day. On that one night of the year they appear throughout the world to dance and sing and frolic. Disguising themselves as leaves and grass, and sounding like the wind and the crickets, they come and go unnoticed. However, it is said that if a decorated treasure box is left empty under the moon, the leprechauns must fill the box with gold or jewels or gifts. But then they will hide the filled box in the most unlikely of places. If the box is found on St. Patrick's Day, the treasure remains in our world. If not, the leprechauns may retrieve what is rightfully theirs. And though the leprechauns are very clever, it is not impossible to find the treasure because, unknowingly, leprechauns often leave a trail of greenery behind them.

MAKING THE TREASURE BOX

Now, have your child decorate an empty shoe box or tissue box with paints, glitter glue or stickers. If she tries to bargain for a bigger box, explain that leprechauns are tiny and if they can't reach the top of the box, it will remain empty. Just before bed, she should place the finished box on a windowsill where the moon will shine on it. Once she's sound asleep, the resident leprechauns can fill the box with small treasures, such as foil-covered chocolate coins, costume jewelry or a bag of marbles, and then hide it in a special place. All that's left to do is lay a trail of green leaves or paper shamrocks from the windowsill to the box. An older child may even enjoy the challenge of several trails to follow, some with dead ends (you know, trickery of the leprechauns!).

Okay, so I know they suggest using an empty shoe box and that is what we did because you know how I must follow directions to the tee, but I will let you in on a little secret...... shoe boxes are way to big! After we decorated the box and my daughter was all excited about using it, we found that a shoe box just doesn't quite fit on a narrow windowsill ledge and don't forget that you will need to fill it. I would suggest finding something a bit smaller to work with.

These unfinished wooden boxes are perfect for your treasure chest. This one is even shaped like a treasure chest. These can be found at your local craft supply store and I have also found these at the dollar store. They can be painted or colored with crayons. However your child would like to decorate it.

Make sure that you get ahold of some plastic gems like the ones pictured here or sequins, etc. You will need something to decorate the box with that will reflect the moonlight to attract the Leprechauns. Ribbon and rick rack and stickers are also some things that you can use to decorate with. Take your kids to the craft store or dollar store with you and let them choose what they want to use to decorate their very own treasure chest with.

Pssst, Mom/Dad, er, I mean, Leprechauns, while you are at the dollar store, don't forget to pick up some jewels and trinkets to fill up the treasure chest.

I also picked up some four-leaf clover confetti and used that to make a trail from the window sill to the hiding place somewhere in the house so my daughter would have a trail to follow to find her treasures. Don't forget to lay some added trails that end at a dead end for some extra fun!

Any letterboxer will have a great time with this project. It incorporates all the fun and some of the aspects of letterboxing in a holiday themed project with your kids.

Now that you have completed your Leprechaun Treasure Chest, have your kids sit in front of the computer staring at this website: http://www.irelandseye.com/leprechaun/webcam.htm and make sure that you refresh it regularly. A friend of mine turned me onto this webcam for Leprechaun sightings and I was there for hours waiting to see if I could be the first to spot one! Good luck and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Crafting Must Have- Non Stick Craft Mat

2009-03-07T21:11:00.000-08:00

Some of you have asked, "Camp Fire Lady? What is that funny colored mat that you use when you do your crafting?" "Well", I say, "It is a non stick craft mat that I saw this lady using at a cratfting expo in Puyallup, WA and I just had to have one."

The one that I use I found at JoAnn's Fabrics but I am sure you can find one at any craft supply store. This one is called a Non-Stick Craft Sheet and it is made by stampit Australia: http://www.stampit.com/. The are a bit pricey, I think mine cost about $18.00 but it is something that is very useful if you make a mess while crafting. You can always cut it in half and share it with a friend.

Let me demonstrate:

Good Heavens!

I dropped my ink pad and it landed upside down! That is gonna make a mess!

Not with my handy dandy non-stick craft mat. The ink wipes right off!

Are you kidding me?!

I spilt my reinker! That is gonna make a mess!

Not with my handy dandy non-stick craft mat! The ink wipes right off!

Oh my gosh!

I've spilt my alcohol ink! That is gonna make a mess!

Not on my handy dandy non-stick craft mat! The alcohol ink wipes right off!

Holy crap!

I spilt my super tacky glue! That is gonna make a mess!

Not on my handy dandy non-stick craft mat! The dried on glue peels right off!

I don't believe this!

I have cut my handy dandy non-stick craft mat with my exacto knife!

Okay, so this will not wipe off. That is about the only thing this really cool craft mat can't do is repair itself but it can be good for a lot of other things. This mat will also work great when you use your heat gun to emboss and your hot glue gun to glue. This is a heat resistant mat as well.

Hmmm...... maybe they should market this mat for........ nevermind.

Adhesive for Vellum

2009-03-05T20:46:00.000-08:00

I have tried two techniques for adhering vellum to cardstock; spray adhesive and vellum tape. Both products have their good points and their bad points and we will explore both in this tutorial.

The vellum tape is very easy to use and requires less effort and preparation but it tends to show through the vellum unless you cover the tape with some kind of embellishment, ribbon, etc. over the top of the vellum.

This LTC features a stained glass window that has been stamped on vellum, embossed and colored, and adhered to the card with the vellum tape. The stamp is so busy that the tape does not show through.

This LTC has a ribbon of vellum tape running down the left side of the card. As you can see, the tape shows through the vellum. I was not very happy with this outcome but I was new to the whole LTC thing and was excited about trading them so I sent them off anyway.

I was very happy with the outcome of this LTC. I used the spray adhesive for this one and as you can see, there is no residue showing through the vellum. The vellum will also stick very well and will not easily be pulled off. There is no adhesive to distract you from the carving.

So, the bottom line is that I prefer the spray adhesive over the vellum tape. Spray adhesive can be used on paper, wood, plastic, and vellum. It does need to be applied in a very well ventilated area and should be sprayed inside a box with high sides since it will spread to other surfaces as you apply it. Below is an example of how I applied the spray to my cards.

I placed the cards inside a sweater box lined with newspaper and took them outside on the deck to be sprayed. A good tip would be to wear long sleeves because the spray did leave a sticky residue on my arms but was easily washed off.

You need to let the cards dry for about 5-7 minutes and then they are ready for the vellum to be applied. The cards will look a little opague until they dry.

What is also nice about the spray adhesive is when you apply the vellum and it is not centered on the card, you can lift it and reapply it if you do this right away. Once it sticks, it is on there and might tear the paper underneath if you try to pull it apart. Is suggests in the directions to spray both surfaces of the paper that you are sticking together, but I didn't and it worked just fine.

As you can see, there is no residue or tape showing through the vellum to distract you from the image. This is my contribution to the Classic Alice Swap. I did add some extra embellishments to the card but I guess you would need to be in the swap to see it. ;0)

Embossing 101

2009-03-02T19:32:00.001-08:00

There have been alot of questions about embossing techniques so I thought I would take some time to explain some of them to you in pictures so it will be easier to understand.

There are many embossing products and colors on the market and it was so hard for me to choose so I bought them all! Well, maybe not all of them but I am pretty close! This is my collection of glittery embossing powders. Aren't they puuuuuurdy? The glittery powders add that special touch to fairy wings to make them sparkly arkly.

These are the non-sparkly embossing powders. They also come in some pretty colors including gold and silver. I should tell you I got all of these at JoAnns but you can find them at most craft stores.

These smaller tubes of embossing powders come in a package of 12 pastel or bold colors. Judging by the amounts in some of the tubes you can tell that I use these alot. I have heard from some that they don't really care for these types but I have not had a problem with them.

And then there are the clear or transparent embossing powders. The clear can be use in any number of ways all with a different effect. After I go through the rest of my embossing arsenal, I will show you a couple of examples.

I recommend the VersaMark or Top Boss embossing pads. They seem to be working the best for me but you may have tried something that works better for you and that is fine. I don't think there is much difference in what the embossing pads can do. There are also these really cool things called embossing pens and an Embossing Buddy that I will go into further down the list.

One very important tool for embossing is some kind of handle to hold your card so you don't burn your fingers with the heat gun. I use a pair of tweezers or a jewelry tool with a flat edge. When you are using your heat gun, turn the heat gun on and let it run for a few seconds so it can heat up before applying it to your embossed image. This will prevent alot of the embossing powder from blowing off before it can be melted. After your heat gun is hot, hold it about 8-10 inches away from the image and slowly bring it closer, moving the heat gun side to side so you don't melt your embossing powder too much where it will absorb into the paper. As soon as you see it turn shiny, move the heat gun away from the area that has melted and wait for it too cool off before touching it. The hot embossing powder will stick to your skin and burn if you touch it too soon.

So here is the first demo. This is a dark colored card that I have stamped with the embossing pad. I am dipping the stamp in the clear embossing powder.

As the heat gun melts the clear embossing powder, the image will appear darker but in the same color as the card that it is stamped on.

I have also done this on an orange card so you can see two different outcomes with the clear powder.

This next demo is using a colored ink pad and the clear embossing powder. The best ink to use for this technique is a pigment ink because it takes longer to dry. I would recommend dipping the ink in the embossing powder as quickly as possible so more of the powder will stick to the image.

As the clear embossing powder melts, it becomes the color of the ink pad.

This little item is great for your embossing powders because it makes it easy to pour the powder back into the bottle. I believe this tray is used for jewelry making so you will probably find it in the jewelry section of the craft store. A thick paint brush helps to get all of the grains of the powder into the bottle.

And then we have the embossing pens. These work great when you have missed a spot and you can fill it in with the fine tip or the thicker tip of the pen. They also work great if you want to write and emboss.

This is a total 'must have' when embossing. It is called the Embossing Buddy. I got mine at Stampin Up! but I have seen them around at craft stores. An alternative to use is a used dryer sheet but I still insist that the Embossing Buddy works best.

It looks like a rosin bag for bowling or baseball and the powder inside keeps the embossing powder from being distributed on the card where you don't want it to be. Just swipe it across the paper and apply your image dipped in the embossing pad.

I apologize for the blurry image but I tried to get close to the card so you can see the difference in the cards. The card on the left I used the Embossing Buddy on and the card on the right I did not. You can see some of the red embossing powder residue left on the card on the right.

If you do get some of the embossing powder on your card where you don't want it, I small paint brush will help to brush it off before you heat it.

Someone had asked me once why my embossing lines come out so smooth and the key is to use embossing for thin lines rather than a large area. Again I apologize for the blurry picture but you can see that at large concentrated area that is embossed will look like it has bubbles or pot marks because the embossing powder doesn't melt evenly.

These are a few of the basic techniques for embossing. I hope they were helpful. I will be demonstrating more in the future but these should be good to get you started. I hope you come back soon and check out more crafting techniques.

March is National Craft Month!

2009-03-01T20:02:00.000-08:00

And what better time to get your crafting space organized! Michaels would like to help you do just that!

Look what they have on sale this week! These are the very modules that I have my craft room organized with and they are at a very good price. Normally they run $29.99 each but this week they are on sale at 40% off for about $17.99 each. Here is a link to see what other modules are available: http://www.michaels.com/art/online/displayProductPage?productNum=sb0638&channelid=

While you are there, pick up one of these beauties. They are great for crafting in front of the TV or when your family won't let you hide out in your craft room so you have to come and sit with them for a while. Go figure. They are on sale for $4.99 and the side pockets will hold all of your supplies. I use mine all the time!

Don't forget your 40% off coupon for anything at regular price!

Making a Logbook From Old Gift Cards

2009-02-27T19:32:00.000-08:00

I am one of 'those people' that doesn't throw anything away without looking to see if I can use it some how when crafting. This holds true with used gift cards and with all of the pesky plastic and cardboard fake credit cards that the credit companies keep sending me in the mail. I have been saving them up until I get a match and then I make them into logbooks. The plastic cards are great for the covers. As you can see in the photo above, I have reused my daughter's iTunes gift cards, Borders gift cards and the blue ones on the right I found in an outside ashtray at McMenamin's in Oregon. The covers are room keys that someone discarded and I scored with!

The inner pages of the logbooks are blank index cards. I used a package of 100 3 x 5 cards and cut them to the dimensions above. Like I said, I don't throw anything away so the other two sizes I used for smaller logbooks. When you get to the end of this post, I will show you what I got out of this one package of cards. The inner page size I used for the gift card logbooks are the 2" x 3 1/4" cut. Like I had mentioned before, I punched on the 2" end because the 3 1/4" side will give you an uneven punch row.

I am using the 1/2" coils for this logbook and 30 inner pages. One thing I should mention before you start any project is to do a prototype punch before you start punching a stack of pages. That way if you mess up, you only messed up one sheet and not a whole bunch of them. Really, that is a tip I use religiously when starting any kind of project that requires that I cut or produce multiple items.

After punching one inner page to make sure that my punches will line up the correct way, I put my logbook together the way I want it; front cover on top, 30 inner pages in the middle, and the back cover on the bottom, set it down and start punching from the top of the pile starting with the top cover.

When you are done with the punching your pile should look like this.

Pull the back cover from the bottom and place it on the top of your pile so that the right sides of your covers are facing each other.

Loop your coils through the inner pages first then through the front and back covers and cut your coil at the edge of the top of your logbook and place in the groove of your Bind It All and squeeze the coils by pulling down the handle.

When your coils are squeezed closed, flip the back cover over to conceal the coil in the back.

With some of the left over cuts from the 3 x 5 notecards, I will show you how I made a smaller logbook that will fit perfectly in a medicine bottle.

Again using those pesky plastic fake credit cards that I got in the mail, I cut one in half and trimmed it to fit the 1" x 2 1/2" cuts from the index cards. I put the logbook together the way I want it, top cover, middle pages, and back cover, and set the pile down.

Working from the top to the bottom, I punched the top cover first, then the inner pages, then the back cover. Remember that you can only punch about 5 sheets of the index cards at a time. If you try to punch more than that, it becomes strenuous to pull the handle down and punch through all of them at once.

This logbook is so narrow that it only requires two punch holes.

Pull the back cover from the bottom of the pile and place it on top of your pile so that the right sides of the covers are facing each other.

Loop your coil through the inner pages first, then the top cover, then the back cover and trim the coil with your wire cutters at the top end of your logbook.

Its not easy to show you up close what this looks like but there are lines on the base of your BIA that are labeled in inches. You can see some of the white lines to the far right of the BIA base. You want to set your size by the inside of the gap where I am placing the logbook. Since I am using the 1/2 inch size coils, I turned the knob on the end until the bar moved up to the 1/2 inch line. You can also measure the gap by placing the hard plastic cards that come with the BIA into the gap until it is flush with the size coil you are using that is pictured on the card.

Pull the handle down and squeeze the coils together. I have found that if I use too much pressure by pushing the logbook down into the gap, the coils will be out of shape after they are squeezed closed. The top of the coils will look flat and not rounded.

Flip the back cover over and to the back of the logbook to cover the coil in the back. Trim the ends of the coils so that there is no injury caused by the points on the coils.

And there you are! A perfect narrow logbook to fit in a medicine bottle for a hitchhiker or cootie.

So, I went from one simple package of 100 3 x 5 blank index cards that cost me anywhere from 49 to 99 cents a package and a few free plastic fake credit cards to..........

12 logbooks in three different sizes. And it only took me no more than two hours work to cut and assemble them all. What a deal!

Bind It All- Step by Step

2009-02-26T19:06:00.000-08:00

Whoever invented this little machine is my hero! I love making all kinds of logbooks and journals with this and it is surprisingly very easy to use. It is called the Bind It All and the website I got mine from is this site http://bonniesbest.com/. Be careful when perusing this site, you may find lots more stuff to spend your money on. It also has all sizes of coils to make very small logbooks all the way up to large journals. I buy my coils in bulk and share different sizes with my friends. This machine has become so popular that it is now available in some craft stores. There is also a tutorial video available here if you are having trouble understanding me or would like to see the latest upgrades and accessories for the Bind It All.

http://binditall.com/VideoPage.html

First make sure that you pull out the stablizer bar. It is pushed in for easy storage and you will need to have it pulled out in order for your machine to stabilize itself when you pull the handle down to punch your papers and covers.

In order for your pages to be punched correctly and evenly, your paper must be cut to inch or half inch lengths. For example, your punches will be even on pages that measure 1", 1 1/2", 2", 2 1/2", and so on. The punches will not be even if your paper measure 1 1/4", 1 3/4", and so on. Trust me, I found this out the hard way. I line my pages up using the groove in the end of the punch slot. Lining it up this way will make the first punch reach all the way to the end of the page leaving about 1/8". You can line the page up to the edge of the machine by moving the paper to the left and it will give you a gap on the end of about 1/2". Whatever you prefer is where you can place the end of your paper.

I will be making a logbook that is 3" x 5" using blank notecards as an example. This size fits perfectly in the punching groove with no overhang. Center your page in the punching slot and pull the handle down. The punching will go more smoothly if you only punch about 5 sheets at a time. Any more and it is difficult to pull the handle down and you will have to use more effort to punch your holes. As you punch all of your pages, check and make sure that the groove is free of punch scraps. If you have scraps in the groove, your paper will not sit flush and you will get a crooked punch.

This is what the page looks like when it is punched. See how the punched holes reach all the way to the end of the pages? This makes a sturdy logbook. I would recommend having your punch holes at the ends of your pages for smaller logbooks. The larger the logbook or journal, the better you can get away with not having the holes all the way to the ends because you will have more coils supporting your binding.

When all your pages and covers are punched, you will need to load them onto the coils a certain way so that when you pinch the coils together, you get a nice finished back to your book and to hide a portion of the coil. The easiest way to explain this is to put your pages and covers together the way you want it to look with one cover on the front and one cover on the back with the insides of the covers facing the pages. Pull the back cover out and place it on top of the front cover as shown above. When you lay your pages over your coils, you will have the pages on the bottom and both covers on top with the right sides facing each other.

Line up the bar with the size of the coil that you are using. The size of the coil will depend on how many pages you are using and the thickness of your covers. You can also use the hard plastic cards that come with the machine to measure. If you are wondering how many pages you can fit in the coils, here is a great chart to help you decide:

http://www.atlasquest.com/aboutlb/wiki/search.html?gSearch=Bind+it+al#q292

Loop the coils through the punch holes starting with the pages on the bottom, the front cover face up then the back cover face down. Cut the coil with your wire cutters in the middle of the loop at the end of your pages. I usually trim the ends of the coils so that there is no metal sticking out for someone to get injured.

Place your pages and coil down into the space and pull down the handle to squeeze the coils closed around your pages and covers.

Flip the back cover back and it will conceal the back of the coils for a nice finished look to your logbook.

This is what it will look like when you have completed the process. I will be posting more about using the Bind It All for more projects as I make them. In the meantime, anyone need any logbooks?

Making a Logbook Cover

2009-02-25T20:23:00.000-08:00

Okay, twist my arm. I have gotten some requests to show how I use the Bind It All machine (I won't mention any names but you can send chocolate), but first I thought I would give you a tutorial on how to make very nice covers for your logbooks since that will be part of the Bind It All process. Yes, you can use a heavy paper for the front and back covers for your logbooks but taking the time to make a heavier cover looks so much nicer and will help your logbooks to last longer.
The supplies that you will need are some decorative paper, cardboard ( I am recycling my cereal and cookie boxes), and your inner pages. I chose 3 x 5 blank note cards so I don't have to cut all those pages. Your cardboard will be cut the same size as your inner pages but your decorative paper should be cut at least 2 inches longer in both directions to allow for overlap. These decorative papers are cut to 5 x 7 inches.

The first step is to adhere your cardboard to the wrong side of the decorative paper. I would recommend using a bookbinding glue, tacky glue, or what I like to use, my trusty booger gun.

Using scissors, trim the corners of the paper at an angle just shy of the corner of your cardboard. Do this on all four corners.

If you look closely you can see that I did not cut right up to the corner of the cardboard. This will allow for your corners to overlap slightly to give you a nice finished look without a gap in the paper to show the cardboard underneath.

Using your glue or tape, run it along the flap on the paper. You will be folding it over onto the cardboard for a nice finished edge.

This is what it will look like once you fold over the flaps of the paper onto the cardboard. As you can see the corners overlap slightly and don't show the cardboard on the edges.

Take a sheet of inner paper and cut the top and side 1/4 inch. You only need to cut one end each. You will need to do two of these, one for the front and one for the back cover of your logbook.

Adhere the inner page to the backside of the cover to conceal the cardboard. You are now finished with your covers for your logbook.

Now you are ready to use your Bind It All to complete your logbook. Check out the next blog post for instructions and techniques.

Stippling with Ink

2009-02-22T21:21:00.000-08:00

There was so much interest in different ways to create your own background paper that I thought I would share with you another technique that I have used. It is called Stippling or 'pouncing' the ink on the paper. The supplies I used were dye based ink pads, stiffle brushes that look like a small shaving brush, and glossy paper. The glossy paper helps the ink to spread and gives the paper a blended look rather than a brush marked look. The LTC that I am using as the example is my American Pie Swap LTC. I was looking for a tie dyed look to accompany my Janis Joplin stamp.

I chose my colors and took the stiffle brush, tapped the brush in the ink, and tapped the brush onto the paper to get the coverage that I wanted. I did the different colors in rows to give the paper a tie dyed look.

I took a stencil of a flower and placed it over the glossy paper with the tie dyed effect and stippled the flower in two other colors of dye ink. You can do this technique pretty quickly because the ink will dry fast and you don't have to wait.

This glossy paper has a total of 6 different colors to it and gives it a brightly colored effect. The more you stipple the ink on the paper, the darker the colors will be.

I stamped my Janis Joplin stamp over the colors. I love the way you can see the colors through the area of the stamp that was gouged out. Stencils give your cards a great effect in addition to your carving and with so many stencils on the market, there are many options for different kinds of effects for your cards. You can also use a large paint brush instead of the stipple brushes. I found the stipple brushes at the craft store for around $5.00 for a package of three.

Image Transfer Using Acetone

2009-02-19T18:58:00.000-08:00

There are a number of ways to transfer an image to PZCut but I will show you my favorite way to get a clean, crisp image especially if you are working with an image that has a lot of detail. The image I am using for this demonstration doesn't have alot of detail but it is an image that I need to get carved soon for an upcoming event.

The supplies that you will need are a piece of PZCut to fit your image, your image, a cotton ball, and some 100% pure acetone that can be found in the Health and Beauty section of your favorite department store. I found this acetone at Walmart next to the nail polish remover. You could use nail polish remover with acetone, but it doesn't work as well and you are not guaranteed to get a good image transfer so I just stick with the 100% pure stuff.

For this technique to work properly, your image must be copied on a copier that uses toner for ink and not a lazer printer. The acetone works to loosen the toner from the paper and will give you a clean image without any running ink. I copy as many images from my computer onto a sheet of copy paper and take it down to my local department store that has an older version copy machine that uses toner. My copies are 10 cents each and I usually make two copies of the sheet just in case.

I soak up some acetone onto the cotton ball and lightly clean off the PZCut before placing the image onto the material. Keep in mind that acetone will melt the PZCut so use it sparingly.

Tip- Do not use acetone to clean ink off of your carved stamps especially if you carve thin lines. I have melted a couple of my favorite stamps doing this and it did not make me very happy.

Place your image face down on the PZCut and with the wet cottonball, tap the paper until you have gone over the entire image. You do not need to get the paper soaked with the acetone, just enough so that you can see the image through the paper.

Next, press the image onto the PZCut. This will ensure that you have transfered the image as much as possible. Go over the entire image while pressing with your fingers. Do not rub the image. The paper may tear and smear the image. Let the paper dry a bit (just a few seconds) before lifting the image off the PZCut.

Starting at one end, slowly lift the paper off of the PZCut to see if the image transferred properly. If not, press the image again with your fingers first before applying more acetone as in the previous steps. The less acetone you use, the less chance you have of your PZCut melting away.

If everything worked correctly, you should have a clean, crisp image to carve. Your image will be more clean if you transfer it to the PZCut as quickly as possible after you copy it on the copier. It may be possible for the toner to fade over time.

If your image did not transfer the way you would like it, you can clean the image off by using the acetone cottonball and wiping down the PZCut and starting all over again.

Velveeta Cheese, Pleeze!

2009-02-17T19:03:00.000-08:00

My family and I don't eat huge amounts of Velveeta Cheese but I do use it occasionally for an Italian Mostaccioli recipe that my mother handed down to me and yummy homemade macaroni and cheese. I have found that the boxes are great for organizing my craft supplies.

The bottom half of the box is a heavy cardboard that can withstand alot of use and they along with the lids hold my embossing powders and glitters very nicely and fit perfectly in my four-drawer organizer.

The bottoms are also perfect for holding all of my colorful blank LTC's cards until I am ready to decorate with them...

and they are great for carting around my completed LTC's to gatherings for trading. See how many I have available for trade now? Anyone want to trade some of these off my hands so I can fill it up again?

What you ask is a Quisp?

2009-02-16T21:15:00.001-08:00

They are the neatest little surprise found under the label of a box, package, or envelope sent to you by a letterboxer. They can be found on a postal letterbox, package of LTC's, or swap envelope. The purpose behind them is so that you will recycle your envelopes and packages by tearing off the address label and reusing the packaging. You can log them as a find under 'Other' on Atlas Quest.

I have recieved a couple of them and have always been surprised when I peel off the label and see someone's tiny creation staring up at me.

Always check those address labels! Even if you don't find one, at least you didn't throw one away by accident!

Your inkpad isn't just for stamping......

2009-02-16T17:28:00.000-08:00

When I get an idea in my head, it has to be done EXACTLY the way I see it or I am not satisfied. So I was wanting some background paper for a set of LTC's but I just couldn't find the colors I wanted at the craft store so I decided to try to make the paper myself. Here is a step by step of how I did it...

I took a sheet of white card stock and chose a couple of colors of inkpads, dark green and light green, that I wanted to use for one of my LTC's. These are dye based inks but I am sure you could do this with pigments inks, it would just take a little longer to dry.

I started with the darker color first, the dark green. I patted the ink pad onto the white cardstock to give it the coverage I wanted.

I then took the light green and instead of patting it over the dark green, I laid the inkpad flat on the paper and dragged it or rubbed in over the darker green to cover the white areas of the cardstock and left it to dry.

I did the same for a pink, blue, and a fall colored sheet of cardstock.

After the paper had dried, I cut the sizes I wanted and stamped the images on them. I was able to create the effect that I was looking for without having to spend extra money on colored paper. Try this with other color combinations and see what you come up with. You may be impressed by what you see!

These are my Seasonal Fairies LTC's.

Crafting Must Have: The Booger Gun

2009-02-15T20:48:00.000-08:00

I thought I would start off by introducing you to something that is used all the time in my craft arsenal and something that I will be using alot in my tutorials.

It officially is called an adhesive dispenser but I lovingly call it my BOOGER GUN.

And this is why.........

The tape in this 'gun' works just like double sided tape and is my substitute for icky, messy glue. It is very forgiving in that if you don't like where you put it, you can remove as easily as you applied it.

See, when you roll it off of your paper, it looks just like a booger. Yep, it is the same stuff that credit companies use to stick those fake credit cards to your mail. My daughter loves to stick this stuff under her nose and chase me around the house with it. Here is a link to where you can find one of these beauties: http://www.dickblick.com/products/3m-scotch-adhesive-transfer-tape-atg-700-dispenser/

This tape works great for making your covers for logbooks and journals. No sticky, gluey mess and you don't have to wait till it dries. And better still, if you stick paper together and you don't like the way it lines up, you can peel the paper apart and re-apply it where you want it.

Where it all begins........

2009-02-14T12:50:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Camp Fire Lady Creates! I would love to share some of my tips and techniques for using many of the wonderful crafting tools and products that I have in my arsenal through pictures and tutorials that may help you to better understand what you yourself can do with them so you can easily create your own works of art.

I have been crafting since I was child and have stole.... er, uh, picked up some interesting ideas and techniques from friends and family and even some that I have experimented with on my own. I am a very visual learner and I hope that showing you through pictures and tutorials, it may make it easier for you to understand and try them out for yourself. Keep in mind that I am not an expert, I just like to share my crafting experiences and experiments with others.

First I should show you where all of these ideas and projects are conceived. When we moved into a three bedroom house, the third bedroom was intended for a guest room for family to come and visit. Well, after waiting 5 years and the guest room sat empty, I decided to make it my own. Behind this door lies an amazing sanctuary where I spend most of my days.......

Are you ready? Hold onto your hats ladies. This may be the dream of everyone who has ever wanted their very own crafting space and it is all mine! This did not happen overnight and don't be discouraged if it doesn't come to you quickly, but I will show you some of the things that keep me organized and keep my supplies close at hand. Ready? I will not keep you in suspense any longer. Here is my work station.....

Actually, it is two work stations so that I can work on two different projects at once and not have to clear my space to start a new project and for when my teenage daughter decides she wants to stretch her creative abilities and sit with me. I will pan around the room so you can see it all. This is my storage of crafting supplies......

Everything is labeled for ease in finding what I need. On the top shelves are some of my 'must have' crafting supplies and machines that I will share with you later.

Some things are behind closed doors. These storage cabinets are from Home Depot. I bought three of them and left the doors off of the one in the middle because the shoe box containers hang over the edge a bit so the doors won't close. The shoebox containers are from Big Lots for around $1.29 each.

I found this little beauty at a yard sale. It holds all of my paints, glues, sprays, and it sits on a cake plate round that spins so that I can turn it around for easy access....

The counter tops for my work area are from Home Depot as well. My DH cut the boards to fit along two of the walls and the excess cut from the boards I use as my work surface so that I don't mess up the counter tops themselves. If you look at the picture on the right, in the far right corner of the counter surface, the ends are supported by bathroom cabinets from Home Depot. I left the drawer off that hides the two bottom shelves and placed matching wicker baskets on the shelves for more storage. If you look closely underneath were the two boards meet in the corner, you will see a two shelf bookshelf from Home Depot that supports the center of the counter tops that has smaller matching wicker baskets for storage. The counters are all screwed into the tops of the shelves to secure it.

Also underneath the counters I have stacked two modules that I found at Michaels on sale for 50% off in their sidewalk sale that store my many papers. Needless to say, I bought a bunch of different modules that you will also see in the pictures. These modules normally run around $20 each. A 40% off coupon is good to use on these too to save you some money.

Here are some more of those modules that I told you about. They are great for storing your supplies to have everything you need at arms reach.

I have posted more pictures of what is in my craft arsenal in the slideshow that is off to the left of this blog posting so I don't bore you with a long post but there are a couple other shelving items that I have that I want to share with you then I am done. I got these on Ebay from a place called Organizemore. The link to their items are here on my blog on the left hand column under My Favorite Links. I paid about $30 each for them and they are sooooo worth it. Check these out...

Yes, that is a Cricut Expressions machine that I will post a tutorial about later. One of my favorite crafting supplies.

And last but not least, a few other must have's in my craft room are a collection of my favorite songs to sing along to while I create and my favorite hard candy, my lemon drops......

a bulletin board to display my works of art and others that I can draw inspiration from, and a great view of the trees behind our house so I can watch the birds migrate through and the squirrels jump from one tree to another.

I will be posting a lot more about crafting so I hope you will bookmark my blog and join me as I experiment with new products and techniques and share with me what you think. Stayed tuned for a wild ride!