Technique Tuesday - Faux Patina

Starting today I'm going to do my best to bring you new techniques every Tuesday. I'm always on the look out for new techniques when it comes to paper crafting. This week I'm show casing Faux Patina technique. I absolutely love this technique because it gives your paper project, in this case a card, the look of an antique frame!

This is the project I created this week.

 I used the digital stamp The Bride from The Paper Shelter. I colored the image using my Spectrum Noir markers.

You can see the tutorial on the Faux Patina technique that I originally learned it from HERE.

Now I didn't have the colors she used in her tutorial but instead I used Stampin' Up Baked Brown Sugar, Tempting Turquoise, and Old Olive. I also used Ranger Distressed ink, Frayed Burlap.

To start with I rubbed Baked Brown Sugar onto my embossing folder and then ran it through my Big Shot.

Then I sponged Tempting Turquoise and Old Olive over the surface being a little sporadic with where I sponged. I continued to go over it until I felt I had the coloring I wanted.

Then I sponged Frayed Burlap over the cardstock to darken it and give it a more antiqued look.

Now this is where I lack in patience. You can either wait for it to dry or do as I did and give it a good blast with your heat gun. I then rubbed my Embossing Buddy over the entire surface to attempt to make sure it was dry. With my Versamark stamp pad, I rubbed it light over the surface in random areas and then embossed it with Gold Metallic embossing powder to give it a little more of a metal look.

The pictures aren't the best due to my LED lamp I use on my crafting station, but I hope you enjoyed today's technique and would love to see your creations if you choose to try this technique. Simply leave a comment with a link to your creation.

Challenges I'd wish to enter:
ABC Challenge - I is for Inspire us
Sister Act #104
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - Anything goes
Pile It On #67 - For a Lady

Manly Monday

Welcome to Manly Monday! Every Monday I strive to create a new card/project for the men or boys in our lives.

Here is this weeks creation:

The stamp set I used was Moon Lake from Stampin' Up. I used my Spectrum Noir markers to color the stamped image and to create the water along with some distress inks. I also used a combination of Stampin' up inks to create the sky.

For the sentiment I first stamped Hardwood background from Stampin' Up on craft card stock and then heat embossed the sentiment over top. I used a few brown and orange brown distress inks and sponged them over the cardstock and just wiped any excess on the embossing. I then took my scissors and Tim Holtz distressing tool to give the edges a rough look.

Also the cardstock I used is a retiring color from Stampin' Up and the paper behind the stamped image panel is a scrapbook patterned paper I got out of my stash.

I hope you enjoyed Manly Monday! Don't forget to create those masculine cards for Father's Day which is just right around the corner. #handmadeoverstorebought

Challenges I'd like to enter:
Simon Says Stamp Wed- Anything goes
Cute Card Thursday #371 Use a sentiment
Inspiration Destination #31 Anything goes
Sister Act #104 Anything goes
Crafts 4 Eternity #224 Inspired by Nature

Time to get organized and motivated!

One of the reason I don't have a post ever day or a new card to share is because sometimes I'm not motivated to create. Or sometimes I'm just running around all day trying to cram everything in at once.

Well no more. I bought a planner from Plum Paper Designs at the beginning of the year to get myself organized and I had yet to do just that. So starting Monday I have my week all planned out so that I can share new cards with you everyday (Mon-Fri), perhaps some new techniques, and share some of my favorite stamp companies with you. Also I will hopefully be able to do all this and get my regular house work done also. That is if I have planned it all out to where I'm not over whelmed.

To keep myself motivated and excited to create, I've decided to go with my Manly Monday idea and assign a theme for everyday. This way when I go to create for that day, I'm not just perusing my favorite challenges for ideas, I already have a general idea of what theme of card I want to create for that day.

This is my current themes (subject to change as I or you give me new theme ideas):

Manly Monday -- These cards/projects will be themed for men in our lives. Creating a feminine card is always easy for us, it's creating something more masculine that I find to be a challenge sometimes.

Technique Tuesday -- I strive to make myself try out new techniques whether it is a new card fold, coloring medium, or a new texture technique. On Tuesdays I'm going to make it a point to either try a new technique or share some of my favorite techniques with you.

Wonderful Wednesday -- For those that work Wednesday is that dreaded day that reminds you that you are only halfway through the work week and still have a few more days to go. So to brighten your day I will be trying to create cards that are bright, colorful, and uplifting. This can range from just a bright feminine card, get well cards, or even inspirational projects.

Twisted Thursday -- My brother came to me one day and told me that he found it odd that I create so many "cutesy" cards. He found this baffling because I'm more of a rocker/grungy type of person. So he came up with the idea of doing cards that were a little darker or twisted. I'll explain more and give you a visual explanation on my first Twisted Thursday next week.

Showcase Friday - I always list where I purchased my stamps or other products used on each card in my posts along with links to the site and even the listing for the particular stamp. On Fridays I'll make that project all about one of my favorite brands or companies. I will like to say that none of these companies have paid me, asked me, or given me incentive to do this. I just want to share my favorites with you and maybe you'll be excited by their images/products as much as I was.

So let me know what you think of these themes and if there are any themes you think should be added, or any requests for certain days.

Thank you for following. I love reading all of your comments on my projects, it keeps me motivated to continue to create and share with you.