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Thursday, February 7, 2013

You're Sew Special


Yesterday I got a new stamp set from my Cardmaking & Papercraft Magazine subscription. I LOVE it, and just HAD to start playing! (All stamping on this card, except zig-zag border, comes from this stamp set.)

I first prepared the focal:
  • Die cut a piece of white glossy cardstock using largest die from Marvelous Squares set (Spellbinders).
  • Added die that was next size down, taping it in place with painter's tape, and ran it through with both dies to emboss.
  • Using Smooch ink, I colored through the little holes in the die.  When I removed the die, I could see that I hadn't fully colored the raised areas, and there were a few more that I wanted colored, so I just used the Smooch applicator directly.
  • Realizing I wanted the inner piercings to look like the outer ones (the inner ones had just been embossed), I used my piercing tool to pierce each inner hole.
  • Next I stamped my images.  Pink areas were inked with the same Smooch ink; black is StazOn (touched up with very fine Sharpie if needed). For stamps that used two colors, I applied the Smooch, then the StazOn, then stamped.  I'm a bit picky and find that the dress form is a bit taller than I would have liked.  If I were to do it again, I'd first ink only PART of the stand with black ink and stamp that first, then stamp the upper part with the pink, making the stand - and thus the whole thing - shorter.
 Next I prepared the background:
  • I chose this small flowered pattern from papers that came with the stamp set, cut it just a tad smaller than the base card (3/8" smaller in each direction), and inked the edges with black ink.
  • Going through my stamps, I found an old one that looked a bit like zig-zag stitching (in a 2006 Paper Studio set that I got 2nd hand) and stamped it all around the edge with black Versafine ink.
After adding my focal, I felt I needed a little something more, so made the two spools of thread and added them:
  • The basic pieces were stamped with Versafine on plain light-weight cardstock (not glossy this time). 
  • The "thread" is a variegated embroidery floss that is wound around and taped down on the back.
I finished the inside with a narrow strip of the same patterned paper as I have on the front of the card, complete with the faux stitching around the outside edges.

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