Elegant Eggs Inspired by Faberge & Making Jeweled Buttons – New Collage Sheets & Video Tutorial

About 5 years ago I was looking for different ways to add moving parts to ATCs.  One of the ideas I came up with was to create an ATC that mimicked a Faberge Egg.  The idea was to have an elegant front presentation that would open and reveal a treasure inside.

In this tutorial, I’ll cover how to make Faberge like eggs that open in various ways.  I’ll also demonstrate how to transform a paper mache egg into a lovely container for a removable perfume or altered bottle.

Most of the samples in the tutorial are made using my new Elegant Eggs collage sheet or digital image set.  I’ve also created a new sheet titled “Bejeweled #2” which is a companion to the original “Bejeweled” collage sheet.  Both sheets are packed with vintage jewelry that adds a touch of elegance to the eggs or other projects.

One type of embellishment I created for the eggs and for the bottles in the previous French Themed Altered Bottles tutorial, are jeweled elements that resemble buttons.  In the tutorial, I’ll cover how I used filigree, pearls, rhinestones, jewels, crystals and bead caps to create jeweled buttons for both the eggs and the altered bottles.

Elegant Eggs Collage Sheet

The collage sheet contains 7 different eggs to choose from.  Click on the image below to purchase the sheet.

Elegant Eggs Collage Sheet Digital Image Set

The digital image set contains all of the images in the collage sheet plus a set of eggs without the hardware for a total of 14 images.  Along with more images, the digital image set gives you much more flexibility in printing just the images you want, and in resizing the images to your particular needs.  Click on the image below to purchase the digital set.

Bejeweled #2 Collage Sheet

This sheet is packed with vintage jewelry and is a companion to the original “Bejeweled” collage sheet.  Click on the image below to purchase the sheet.

TUTORIAL

EGG TEMPLATE

To download the egg template, click on the image to expand it, right-click and select Save As.

Clear ATC Stand

This clear plastic ATC stand is a great way to display the eggs as well as ATCs

DETAIL PHOTOS &SUPPLY LISTS

BLACK & GOLD ART NOUVEAU STYLED EGG

MARIE ANTOINETTE EGG

REGENCY EGG

ANOTHER REGENCY EGG

BRITISH QUEEN EGG

 PAPER MACHE EGG

Making Jeweled Buttons

Art Nouveau Inspired Glass Piece

I purchased some frames to frame some of my art.  Since my art is three dimensional I didn’t need the glass so I decided use it as a base (its 3 ½ “ x 5”).  I wanted to use an embossing technique on the glass but I didn’t have a rubber stamp to fit the art nouveau theme.  But I did have a digital image.  So I decided to print the image on transparency film, emboss the image and glue it to the glass.  Click here if you want to see the tutorial on how to emboss transparency film.  I used Glossy Accents to glue the transparency to the glass as it dries clear.  I painted the glass with a thin coat of the glue then applied the transparency.  I used foil tape to cover the edges.  The tape was gold, but I wanted more of a copper color so I painted the tape with alcohol ink before applying it to the glass.  When I finished it looked exactly like a piece of stain glass.  You cannot tell that there is a piece of transparency film glued to the glass.

The peacock tail and head feathers are made of straight pins.  I painted the metal shafts with alcohol inks.  The headdress is made from spiral paperclips.

Tutorial - Creating a Stained Glass Look by Embossing Transparency Film

In November I posted a tutorial on “Creating a Stained Glass Look Using a Glass Slide”.  Embossing transparency film is another option to creating the look of stained glass although I don’t think is sparkles quite as nicely as real glass.  But with transparency film, you can print and emboss any digital image, whereas with glass, you are limited to rubber stamps.

The base of the ATC below is an image of an art nouveau stained glass window that I printed on transparency film and embossed.  So that you could better see the colors on the transparency, the first image of the piece is photographed on white paper.  The second image is photographed with the light behind the piece.  Be sure to click on the image to see all the details.

The image below shows the piece with the light behind it.  You can see the rippling effect of the embossing that looks like old stained glass.

What you will need:

• Transparency Film for Inkjet Printers
• Clear Embossing Powder
• Heat Gun

Optional:

• Versamark Stamp Pad
• Versamarker Pen

There are two options when working with transparency film.  You can use a rubberstamp and Staz-On ink to stamp and emboss the image on the film or you can print the image on the film using an inkjet printer.  This tutorial covers printing an image.  With either method make sure the transparency film is made for use in an inkjet printer so that it will standup to the heat of the printer and the heat gun.  You can purchase transparency film at office supply stores like Office Max and Staples as well as online stores like Amazon.  The film comes in letter sized sheets (8 1/2“ x 11 ½”).

Transparency Film

You can purchase transparency film at office supply stores like Office Max and Staples as well as online stores like Amazon.  The film comes in letter sized sheets (8 1/2“ x 11 ½”).

Versamark

You can purchase Versamark stamp pads and Versamaker pins at most craft stores and online craft and scrapbooking stores.

PRINTING AND EMBOSSING YOUR IMAGE

• Transparencies usually have a smooth side and a rough side.  Stamp or print your image on the rough side.
• If you are printing multiple images only print on about a quarter of the transparency film at a time.  The ink needs to be wet for the embossing powder to stick.  If you print too many images, by the time everything has printed, the first images printed will be dry so the embossing powder won’t stick.  Once you have embossed your images you can cutoff the part that is used and run the unused portion through the printer again.
• If your printer feeder doesn’t pull the transparency film, use removable double stick tape to adhere the film to a sheet of paper and try again.  Some transparency film comes with a white strip on one end to make it easy for the printer feed to grab the film.
• Before you start to print have your embossing powder ready to sprinkle on the image the moment it comes out of the printer.  You don’t have much time before the ink dries.
• Use a heat gun to melt the embossing powder.  Keep the gun moving and don’t over heat the transparency film or it will begin to warp.

BEFORE EMBOSSING

AFTER EMBOSSING

When you finish embossing you can go back and add paint and or ink to your piece.  I added purple alcohol ink to the grapes in the art nouveau piece as I thought they would look better darker.

OTHER OPTIONS

If your printer ink dries too quickly to get a good result:

Let the image dry completely.  Use a Versamark pen to coat the desired areas.  Next, apply embossing power and heat to melt.  Versamark provides a clear tacky surface that embossing powder sticks to.

If you want to add additional embossing:

Use a Versamark pen to coat the desired areas.  Next, apply embossing power and heat to melt.

If you want to emboss the entire image:

Print the image on the transparency film and wait for it to dry.  Use a Versamark stamp pad to coat the entire image.  Next apply embossing power and heat to melt.

CREATE A FRAME FOR YOUR EMBOSSED TRANSPARENCY IMAGE

To frame the image you need to sandwich the transparency film between two pieces cardstock or chipboard.  For the art nouveau piece I cut two 2 ½” x 3 1/2“ pieces out of thin chipboard (one for the front and one for the back).  I then cut a hole in the center of each piece leaving a thin border and painted the chipboard.  The size piece you cut and the hole you cut in each piece will depend on the size of your project and how much of the image you want to expose.  Make sure that you cut the embossed transparency image slightly larger than the opening so you have room to apply glue to the edges.

Chipboard Frame (make 2 pieces one for front & one for back)

Transparency Glued Between Two Pieces of Chipboard

You are finished and ready to add images and embellishments.  The images and embellishmentsl add stability to the piece.

PRINTING THE IMAGE WITHOUT EMBOSSING

If you are looking for more of a matte finish, don’t emboss the transparency.  Below is an ATC titled “The Lady of Shalott”.  In the poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson, the lady of Shalott sits by a window and weaves.  She is cursed and cannot look out of the window at the view of Camelot or she will die.  I wanted to create the effect of a window so I printed the picture of the castle on transparency film but did not emboss the image.

Click here to download PDF file of this tutorial.

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B3KkKmhVX3Z4YTk3ZjEwMDAtNDYwZC00NzczLTk1ZjYtYTIxYTMyZDBiMjQ0&hl=en

TUTORIAL - Creating a Stained Glass Look Using a Glass Slide

This example ATC contains a glass slide that has been stamped, embossed and painted with alcohol inks to create a stained glass look. 

What you will need:

·        Cardstock

·        Decorative Paper

·        Glass Slide

·        Ranger Alcohol Ink

·        Paintbrush

·        Rubber Stamp

·        StazOn Stamp Pad

·        Clear Embossing Powder

      ·        Heat Gun

Step 1 – Choose a glass slide and a rubber stamp

·    In the example I used a 3” long by 1” wide glass slide.  You can use a different size as long as it is smaller than the card.

·    Make sure the stamp you choose is one that gives you crisp edges when the design is stamped.  Embossing the design creates ridges that look like the dark soldering in a piece of stained glass.  The ridges also help to keep the ink in place when you paint.

Step 2 – Stamping and embossing the glass slide

Use a StazOn ink pad for stamping as it sticks to glass or plastic and just about everything else.  In the example I used black.  When stamping the glass, ink-up the stamp and place it on its back, then press the glass onto the stamp.  For me this seems to work better than the traditional way of stamping by pressing the stamp onto the object.

·        Ink up your rubber stamp

·        Gently drop a glass slide onto the inked stamp

·        Press the glass slide into the stamp with your fingers.

·    To remove the glass slide use the tip of an X-acto knife to gently lift the slide as  suction is created between the glass slide and the rubber stamp.

·    Once apart immediately sprinkle the glass slide with clear embossing powder, tap off the excess and emboss with a heat gun.

TIP:  If you don’t like the way you stamped or embossed the side use a razor blade and Windex to clean the slide and start over.

Step 3 – Painting the glass slide

·    Use Ranger Alcohol Inks to paint the slide as they are translucent and give the slide the look of stained glass.  Once you use a paintbrush with alcohol inks you can’t use it for other purposes, so just plan on dedicating a brush or two to just using inks. Decide on how intense you want the color to be. You can use Ranger Alcohol Blending Solution to dilute the color.  In the example I did not dilute my inks.  To clean your brush between colors you can use the Alcohol Blending Solution but I also use rubbing alcohol.  It doesn’t do quite as good a job as the Blending Solution but it is much cheaper.

Other options:  I also use Lumiere Paints by Jacquard in conjunction with the inks.  Lumiere paints are metallic but are not translucent.  I add a touch here and there as an accent.  You can also add rhinestones and metal findings to the glass slide as I have done in the example.

Step 4 - Cutting cardstock and decorative paper

Once the glass slide is painted, you need to embed the glass slide in cardstock.  The cardstock needs to be the same thickness as the glass slide. 

·    Cut multiple pieces of cardstock to the standard ATC size of 2 ½ x 3 ½.  In the example I needed 4 pieces of cardstock to match the thickness of the glass slide. The amount you need depends on the thickness of the cardstock.

·    Next, cut holes in the cardstock the same size as the glass slide.  In the example the holes are 1” x 3”.  Decide where you want to embed the slide (right side, left side, middle, etc.)  Make sure there is at least ¼ inch between the edge of the hole and edge of the ATC.

·    Cut two pieces of decorative paper ATC size (one for the front of the card and one for the back).  Cut the holes slightly smaller than the glass slide.  Cutting the decorative paper slightly smaller keeps the slide from falling out. Make sure you cut the holes in the same place as the ones you cut in the cardstock.  If you are collaging the paper, stamping, embossing etc., do this before cutting the holes. Bulky embellishments can be added later. In the example, I decided to cut the hole in an oval shape rather than a rectangle.

Step 5 – Assembling the card

·        Glue the pieces of cardstock together. 

·        Insert the slide in the cardstock.

·        Glue the decorative paper to the front and back of the cardstock.

I purchase my Glass Slides, StazOn Ink, Alcohol inks and Lumiere paints from

http://www.franticstamper.com/default.htm

The metal scroll on the woman’s head came from CollageStuff

http://www.collagestuff.com/index.html

Click here to download a PDF version of this tutorial.