PaperArtsy: 2022 Topic 05: Stamp Mash-up {by Ellie Knol} with Zinski, Kay Carley and Hot Picks stamps

Hi everyone, it's Ellie Knol with you today, and I'm here to share with you the fun I had in creating this box with envelopes for seeds. I don't have these seeds in one place at the moment.

After thinking it over I changed my plans. I was going to do some quirky tags, but thought to combine the mice with flowers (seeds!) to relocate all these little bags with seeds.
As always I made notes of what I wanted to incorporate, which technique and also exactly which product I was going to use.

I intended to use Kay Carley's stamp set 08 (EKC08), but used EKC49 instead.

I found this box in my stash .. the perfect size for the envelopes! And ready to go; no need to make a box myself. I painted it with PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic - Cloudy. One layer did the job, it's so very opaque!

I created two grungy backgrounds with PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics - Mermaid and Brown Shed.
I pulled the print from the gelatin plate onto thin paper as it will be easier to adhere it to the box with a decoupage technique.

As you might have noticed on the print: there was some leftover dried paint on the plate.
When the papers were dry I prepped both with a layer of gel medium. Leave to dry thoroughly.

I nearly always *(see the Reflection part of this blog post) heat emboss a stamped image with clear embossing powder to avoid the ink smearing when applying wetness in a later stage. These papers are ready to be adhered to the box, but only after adding rust!

There are 2 sets of Zinski mice, I used ZA44, but as you can see, lots of fun options with them all!

Rust... I just love it. In a later stage I will stamp with script, so the rust will tie in perfectly with the vintage feel of the script of Hot Picks stamp set (HP1501).

Just add a tiny bit of PaperArtsy Grunge Paste to the metal pieces with a finger, drop some vinegar on it and the magic happens all on its own.

When dry, add touches of PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics - Mermaid to it...and onto the adhering of the papers to the box! (I did not want to bore you with that). I mainly use bookbinding glue for its flexibility, sometimes thinned with a tiny bit of water.

All the PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics - paints I used in a row ... Cloudy, Mermaid and Brown Shed.

Stamp the beautiful Agapanthus from Kay Carley's stamp set 49 (EKC49), heat emboss it in clear and add touches of watered down PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics - Mermaid.

Fussy cut the flowers and add it to the little characters: flowers in his pockets, flowers in her hair and in a row at the top of the box itself.

This is why I chose this stamp set, rather than EKC08. They are easy to fussy cut and add to the collage of stamped images.

I also stamped the Agapanthus onto a seed envelope (although it gets propagated by bulbs, it's just for the heck of the project).

Now some notes on applying extra color to the ZA stamped images. It is easy to use acrylic paints like watercolors; just dilute with water and apply a thin wash. The gel medium on the papers gives some resist and that makes the color easy to move around, or even to wipe it off if needed. Be careful with opaque paints with this technique as it will (partly) cover the lines of the stamped image. It's easy to wipe off though because of the heat embossing. I used the same colors as with the gelliplate printing.

Last but not least, using the stamped scripts Hot Picks stamp set (HP1501). It is stamped all over the box, just partially here and there.

For reference, I stamped all the images with Memento Elderberry ink. Why did I not show the backside of the box?

YES, I did not heat emboss it, and it was not totally dry and yes, it faded away when touching it with my fingers.

These techniques are not just for on a box of course: a card or tag, ATC, an art journal page or any other project will look beautiful with these stamps!. Try combining different genres of stamps.

For me the mission of the mash-up is accomplished..I had fun !

Ellie Knol