2024 Topic 10 : Gilded {by Jo Firth Young}

Hi everyone

Jo Firth-Young here today to talk about shiny things!! 

(instagram: @jofyjo, fb:JoFY.JoFirthYoung, www.jofy.co.uk)

When I saw the 'gilded' topic come up I was very happy!! I like things that sparkle and shine!  It got me thinking - how many metallic, shiny, sparkly, 'gilded' types of media do I have in my crafting materials??  I started to make a list - embossing powders, Fresco Finish Gold paint (such a fabulous gold!), imitation Gold Leaf (sheets and flakes - several colours), gilding powders, paper/card, metallic threads, Stickles, glitter, metallic Gelatos... so many options!!

I really like gilding objects - I've gilded several pieces of furniture in my home & its much easier than you might initially think.  Its been fun using imitation gold leaf again - it adds a little bit of 'glamour' to a project.

I've created a group of cards each with a different type of 'gilding' but all starting with the same background paper. This A3 paper was created when I rolled-off paint from my brayer when gel printing - I really like the random, blended stripes & blocks of colour that are created. 

I added stars using stencil PS438 (find a PaperArtsy stockist here) leaving enough open space for additional decoration for each card.

What I really like about all these projects is the contrast between the chalk matte finish of the Fresco Finish paints and the shiny gilded finishes. (Fresco Finish: Gold, Bubble Gum, Sherbet, Butternut, Cheesecake, Aqua Duck Egg, Chalk)

Gilded cards

Imitation gold leaf generally comes in two forms - flakes and sheets (sheets come in books supported with layers of tissue paper).  I've used both types on my cards.

'Love Christmas!'

I used a page of gilding leaf on this card to evenly cover the greyboard heart. The gold leaf is VERY thin and will pick up all the textures of the surface it is applied to - great for picking up detail. You could apply this on top of textured card for a different effect.

I added several layers of stenciling to this card - big white dots (PS309) and an arch of pink dots (PS308).

The snowflakes, embossed in white, are from this stamp set JOFY106.

'JOY'

This card uses gilding flakes, adhered with a glue stick and a soft brush. The flakes create a subtle distressed surface, sometimes little gaps are left and an uneven edge created.

'Snowflake Joy'

I decided to cover the front of this card with a sheet of gold leaf that I'd cut into 2.5-3cm squares to create a subtle tiled effect. PaperArtsy Fresco Finish paints can be used on any surface and so of course I had to use them on the gold leaf!! I love how the matte paints look against the sheen of the gold leaf! Great contrast!

This was a tricky card to photograph because of the reflective quality of the gold leaf! lol

'Hi'

This card features embossing powders. There is something magical about watching embossing powders turn from powder to molten liquid and then solidifying. 

I embossed chipboard letters with several layers of {WOW} embossing powders - the first layer was a Platinum ('dirty' silver) powder followed with 2 layers of 'Gold Rich'. I agitated different areas of the surface of the letters (while still hot) to mix the powders which revealed the first layer - this created a subtle distressed look.  

I stamped circles (JOFY136, available now from PaperArtsy Stockists) on the background using WOW Pale Gold embossing powder.

'Happy Birthday'

 

The Stickles Dry Fine Glitter is made up of tiny smooth particles that, when adhered to the surface (here I used strong double sided tape), creates a sparkly gilded effect.

Flowery Happy Birthday

 

The Gold Fresco Finish is the best gold paint I've worked with! It is so glossy and is a great tone of gold, really rich, and you can use it on your stamps too!

Here I used the Gold paint to stamp the flowers from JOFY132 (available from stockists)

... and teamed it with Ranger's Perfect Pearls - there is a gold mica powder available, but instead I used Mint here to compliment the colours of the background papers. I love how the colour changes when it catches the light as shown in the photos below.

 

It was fun to use gold leaf and and revisit using Perfect Pearls with the Fresco paints - I'd forgotten what a great combination they are!

I hope these ideas have inspired you to delve into your crafting stash, dig out the blingy things and add a bit of sparkle & shine to your next project - even adding a distressed gold leaf edge to a panel (as in the 'joy' card I shared earlier in this post) can make all the difference!  or a touch or two of glitter! (remember: glitter is not just for Christmas! lol)

Have fun!!

Jo

YouTube: Jo Firth-Young

Pinterest: @jofyjo

Facebook: JoFY Jamboree!

Twitter: @jofyjo

Instagram: @jofyjo

2023 Topic 9 : Lynne Perrella - Designer Focus {by Martha Ponsanesi}

Hi everyone, it's Martha (@CraftingMartha) with you today, I was so inspired by the Lynne Perrella Topic, I simply love her style and her stamps, and combine them with the Quarter Theme which is Transparency was a natural consequence.

I love working in small scale, but I also love projects that are complete, so my first idea was a simple mini accordion book in which the focus were the stamps, and then, keeping in mind the Theme: Transparency, I made from scratch a matchbox covered with PaperArtsy Printed Tissue and sturdy acetate colored with drops of Alcohol Ink and Blending Solution.

I will show you how easy was to create this little project, I really enjoyed how it turns out and hope it inspires you too!

A very simple starting point : a white cardstock and three PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic: Cerulean (FF200) , Yellow Submarine (FF73) and Bubble Gum (FF116) to create my patterned paper.

I chose colours that I like how they go together, and that are slightly similar to the Alcohol Ink I want to use later on acetate.

To remain in the Quarter Theme: Transparency I made some marks with washes of these three PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic, I love the new colours that come up on the intersecting layers.

When all was dry I cut the cardstock in two strips and folded them to create my accordion.

I thought of using washi to join the two strips, but not just any one, I created my own washi tape using double sided tape and PaperArtsy Printed Tissue, in this case PT02.

Here are the two joined stripes.

Before stamping I decided to collage some scraps of the PaperArtsy Printed Tissue with a small paintbrush and the PaperArtsy Satin Glaze (FF23) I like so much the finishing touch that it gave to the project, it is really invisible and not shiny. You could also use PaperArtsy Matte glaze (FF52) as an adhesive too.

And now is the moment to stamp all the beautiful subjects that are in the two stamp sets I chose from Lynne Perrella Collection : LPC004 and LPC007 .

It was very simple and satisfying stamping all these subjects, that match perfectly with the design of the PaperArtsy Printed Tissue Paper, collaged previously.

 

With a sturdier white cardstock I made my box to contain the accordion book.

Assembling it with a paper tape. The only option I had to hand was a yellowish tape, and I realized later that it was not a great idea.

To cover the box I used both PaperArtsy Printed Tissue PT01 and PT02.

 

To do that I used again PaperArtsy Satin Glaze (FF23). But I had to collage several layers of Printed Paper because the yellow of the tape kept showing through.

Here is the final result with several layers.

The last step was the cover that I made with a sturdy acetate, simply coloured dripping some drops of three Alcohol Ink and the Blending Solution.

I chose similar colour of the PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic, but the Alcohol Inks are way more vibrant.

I let them dry well on acetate and then fold around the box, making sure that the coloured part is on the inside, since even once dry, it remains a bit sticky.

To give a more finished effect, on the back of the accordion pages I collaged a strip of PaperArtsy Printed Paper PT02.

For the front accordion's cover, I stamped an image from LPC004 on a cardstock and trimmed to show a little bit of colours of the washed cover.

I decided to stamp the front cover on a withe cardstock, instead of directly on the coloured cover, to give more contrast with the alcohol inked acetate.

I'm very happy of this project, how I said before is in a small scale but it is complete, and I like so much the contrast between the parts coloured and vibrant and the black and white.
It surely can be a cute little gift.

Have fun!
Martha xxx

Instagram:craftingmartha

Facebook:Crafting Martha

YouTube:Crafting Martha

Blog:alazyscrapper

Pinterest:alazyscrapper