Embossing Technique

This has become one of my favorite techniques to use. It can be very dramatic looking & I have just begun to experiment with different colors of Utee... See the jeweled looking swirl, that is what this tutorial is about. I got this idea from a gal named Rachael in the UK & it is a lot of fun to do!

It starts with a piece of chipboard. I painted the chipboard black to help hide any potential blemishes. Once dry I covered the piece in embossing ink & covered it with black Utee (ultra thick embossing enamel), heat set until it is smooth. Once cool , repeat this step 2 more times for a total of 3 embossing sessions. I find 3 works best- 4 gives you a deeper impression but you lose the integrity of the shape. Next ready the perfect pearls (Ranger) you want by simply taking the lid off-careful the words will be on the bottom! Yes I have opened them upside down & surprise powder spills out. On this piece I chose forever blue, forever green, and forever violet. Using a small paint brush dab the powders on randomly. Once you are happy with their placement get your stamps ready. Using Archival Brilliance ink (gold) ink your stamps up. Next heat emboss the piece again until the surface is smooth & starts to move looking almost fluid. Push stamp down onto piece using good pressure to emboss image into it. You can use different stamps just move quickly so piece doesn't cool. You can reheat but be careful not to heat the parts that are already stamped so you don't lose the previous image.

Here is another example, using Tim Holtz's Alterations die I first painted the branch brown & the bird white using acrylic paint. I used clear utee which is more difficult to use but has a very pretty & more subtle effect. The perfect pearls are blue patina & turquoise. The stamps are Tholtz & the Archival Brilliance is platinum. As you can see changing the colors makes it a completely different piece. Experiment on your own to see what you can come up with & have fun! Send me what you come up with!