Friday Focus: Distress Markers

Please note:  The Funkie Junkie Boutique is temporarily closed for moving, and will not reopen until around January 20th, so the Friday Focus products will not be offered at 15% off until then. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Yay...it's Friday! Anita Houston here, and it's my turn to host the Friday Focus. I want to show you one of my favorite techniques using Distress Markers, which happens to be stamping with them onto Specialty Stamping Paper. They are a match made for the creative good I tell ya!

Have pieces of Ranger's Specialty Stamping Paper cut and ready, as well as stamps ready to go. I'm using images from Tim's Mini Holiday series. Using Distress Markers, color directly onto the leaping deer rubber stamp.

Give your colored in stamp a good huff of breath.

Here comes the cool part. Stamp your image onto the Specialty Stamping Paper. Give your stamp another huff of breath, and stamp the image again onto another piece of the paper. You can even repeat again...that is how color rich these markers are. Even a light mist of water will make even the faintest hint of color on the stamp come alive and make for a wonderful watercolor effect. Cool huh?

Always use a light blast from a heat tool after stamping onto Specialty Stamping Paper to set the color.

Repeat the coloring, huffing, and stamping again using the sprig and acorn image. Keep stamping it around the main sprig until all color is gone.

Repeat again using the mini tree image.

More coloring, huffing, and stamping using the large tree image.

Using Jet Black Archival, stamp the leaping deer onto a piece of Idea-ology Masking Sheet. Dry and cut it out.

Using a scrap sheet of paper, freehand cut a wave pattern to mimic a hill.

Apply the mask onto the stamped leaping deer and then apply the hilly scrap paper on top of the deer.

Color in the mini tree cluster image using the Distress Markers, huff on it, and stamp it onto the scene right where the scrap paper meets the Specialty Stamping Paper. Stamp it several times after huffing along the scene. Remove the paper and mask and dry.

Here is the coolest part. Apply the scrap back onto the scene where it matches up, and begin coloring in the sky portion with Distress Ink right over the Distress Marker images. The Distress Markers resist the Distress Ink.WOW!  I used Salty Ocean and Tumbled Glass for a graduated look to the sky.

Using the Black Soot Marker, trace around the leaping deer image to make it really pop. Stamp a sentiment onto the top portion of the scene using Jet Black Archival. Ink the edges of the paper using Vintage Photo Distress Ink except the edge with the white portion.

Adhere the paper scene onto a Kraft card. Ink the edges of the card as well with the vintage photo.

Use Stickles to highlight parts of the scene for that special Christmas sparkle.

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Saturday StepxStep:Dylusions Christmas Card

Happy Saturday everyone! A big thanks goes out to all of our followers and participants! We appreciate all of you.

Anita Houston here of The Artful Maven Haven. It's my turn to host the Saturday StepxStep, and I've decided to show you how I've made this fun Christmas tag card using Dylusions, as well as show you snowflakes made with some of Ranger's new products.

 

Using Tissue or Washi Tape, tape two Manila Jumbo Sized (#10) Tags together, on both sides. Trim the excess off.

Using Picket Fence and Metallic Brushed Pewter Distress Stains, apply both randomly on one side of the tag card. Begin drying with a heat tool while misting with water to blend the Stains.

Flip the card over and do the same thing on the back. If there are really wet areas use a paper towel to help dry.

Spray the tag card with London Blue Dylusions Ink Spray. Dry thoroughly, and then do the same to the back.

Using the Pine Needle Cluster image from the Dylusions stamps, begin stamping the image in a pine tree shape, alternating green colors (I used Olive and Emerald.) from the Archival line of ink pads. Dry.

Using the same stamp image, color only the center stem of the pine needle using a brown color (I used Vintage Photo.) of Distress Marker. Randomly stamp this on top of the green areas, and apply color as needed. Color in the rest of the Tissue Tape using the same color for the trunk. Dry.

Using the Snowflake Stencil from Dylusions, place it down on the tag card so that the Candy Cane Border is right in line with the border of the bottom on the card, and tape it down. Use Barn Door and Picket Fence Distress Markers to color in the border. Use Glaze Pens to color around the Dotted Lines in the trim around the Candy Cane. Dry.

Flip the card over and work in the inside area. Using the two Holly Borders and the Merry Christmas Border, stamp the images in Jet Black Archival around the edges of the tag. Color these in with Water Pens that have been filled with Dylusions Ink Sprays (I used Postbox Red, Fresh Squeezed Lime, and Cut Green Grass.) Use Glaze Pens to color in the words, and Distress Markers for the border of the words. Randomly stamp Tim's Snowflakes in White Picket Fence Distress Stain in the blue areas of the tag card. If you want some glitz,  use Christmas Red Stickles to apply to the berries once the remainder of the card is finished. Stamp and cut out a sentiment, and adhere it.

Back to the front of the card (This was done last to keep snowflakes looking their best.). Lay the Snowflake Stencil over the tag card and tape it down where you want it.

Use the Emboss It Dabber to apply the fixative to the stencil through the snowflakes. Remove the stencil, and place the tag card on a scrap piece of paper. Sprinkle Sticky Embossing Powder over the fixative. Turn the card on its side and remove the excess powder. Heat the snowflakes with a heat tool until powder is melted.

When cool, the snowflake will be sticky...how cool is that?!? Sprinkle Rock Candy Distress Stickles Dry Glitter on the snowflakes. Turn card on its side and remove the excess. Repeat process if you want more snowflakes on the card.

Stamp a quirky person image from Dylusions Stamps, and color it in using the Ink Spray in Water Pens as well as Distress Markers. Attach this to the front of the card using foam tape. Color Seam Binding with Barn Door Distress Stain, wad up, and dry. Tie the ribbon to both holes of the tags. Using Clear Rock Candy Distress Stickles and any other color, highlight certain parts of the outfit. Let Dry.

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Friday Focus: Seasonal Idea-ology

It's Friday, Friday, Friday, and that means it's Focus time! Anita Houston here, to show you a child's Halloween tag (I also used this for 12 Tags of 2012.) using this week's Friday Focus products! We are highlighting Tim Holtz's Seasonal Idea-ology as well as some Ranger seasonal products at The Funkie Junkie Boutique. If you purchase this week, you will receive 15% off the already low prices. It's a great time and opportunity to start stocking up on supplies for your holiday crafts, as well as some great gifts for your crafting friends!

To create the pumpkins, I stamped Tim's Seasonal Reflections Halloween Words Stamp in Ranger's Jet Black Archival onto the "back" of the Idea-ology Tissue Wrap. When you turn it over onto the correct side, you can read the words.

I then wrinkle mounted this onto manila paper that was stamped with a few of Tim's Halloween images.

After some Acrylic Paint Dabbers and Distress Ink, I die cut the pumpkins.

To create my background for a jumbo (#10) sized tag, I cut a portion of one of the Halloween pages from Tim's Seasonal Paper Stash. I misted it with Ink Refresher and then added some Black Gesso. This diluted the Gesso some and made for a wonderful night sky, while still seeing the whimsical images. You can do this with water as well, but I like the very smooth texture, and it adds durability to the tag which it great if it for a child.

You can still see the images well. 

The Gravestones On the Edge die cut, as well as the glittery spider, some Seasonal Chit Chat Words, and some ultra gorgeous and sturdy Tinsel  finished the tag off.

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Saturday StepxStep: Distress Ink Enameled Rust

Hello Frilly & Funkie lovers! Happy Saturday to you all! Anita Houston here, to show you a tutorial for the Distress Ink Enameled Rust Technique, that I learned from Tim Holtz.
I had several projects I wanted to do using this technique, so I decided to use a half piece of regular sized Manila folder for this, to create a Masterboard. 

I learned this technique using only one base color of Distress Ink, but I wanted to play around and see which color I'd like best. I took Orange Marmalade, Mustard Seed, Rusty Hinge, and Wild Honey Distress Inks, and swiped each directly onto the Manila using only the pads to color it. You want to choose a color that resembles rust or a color that mimics a patina.

It's okay to leave areas blank...that's a good thing. I probably have a little too much color here.

While the ink is still wet (Distress Ink stays moist a few minutes.) apply Ranger's Clear Embossing Powder either here and there or everywhere...it's your choice. I like the here and there application. You can use fine or regular embossing powder. Once on and the excess removed, hold the paper over a trash can, and flick the back of the Manila several times to remove some of the powder for a sporadic look. DO NOT use your fingers to directly remove the powder! It causes those lines to show where your finger touched and it's not a good look. I learned that the hard way, and I hate starting over.

Heat emboss the powder until melted. It's difficult to see, but it does become shiny after melting.

When cool, apply a brown toned Distress Ink using an Ink Blending Tool. I used Vintage Photo here. Really press into the cracks with the tool, so that each embossed bit really pops. You are going to notice that this looks like orange peel...as in the fruit, and not on the backs of your legs...YIKES!

These next few steps were not part of the technique I learned, but I wanted more experimentation. I added a second color of Distress Ink darker than the first to only a few parts of the Masterboard, to have some variegated shading. I used Walnut Stain. I blasted this with the heat tool really good so that maybe some of the Distress Ink would stay on the embossed portions. I didn't check to see if that worked and I moved on, but it feels as if it helped.

I wanted more interest and a more weathered look, so I misted water into my hand, and then flicked it (more Tim goodness) onto the Masterboard. I let that soak in about 5 seconds, and then applied heat from the heat tool. The combination of the two brown inks, made nice water mark rings with variegated color.

All the experimentation of color revealed to me, that I liked the Wild Honey Distress Ink portions best. It looked more realistic, but the other 2 tones of orange where great as well. The Mustard Seed was okay, and gave the look of discolored metal before the deeper hued rust forms, so I kept this Masterboard for my projects, but I decided to try one more thing. I swiped more Wild Honey directly from the pad onto the Masterboard. I hit it with the heat tool really good, in hopes it would stay on permanently, because I totally loved the look.

I should have used a clean napkin to do this to show you, but I used this to whip the excess ink off, and to my surprise, only a little came off, so I think the heat tool really helped to seal the Distress Ink, probably because I got some portions to remelt and the ink adhered to these spots.

Here is the finished Masterboard, however, the pictures just don't do it justice on the color and texture.

I was able to create 6 ATCs and 2 #8 sized tags with this Masterboard, along with a few extra scrap pieces.

For a quick rusted look on Grunge Paper, apply Pitch Black Acrylic Paint Dabber sporadically, and then fill in the bare spots of Grunge with Rust or an orange toned Alcohol Ink. It looks very realistic and the Grunge provides a textural look.

These all screamed out, "Halloween SceamPunk please!", so here are the finished projects. For more photos, please view my blog.

The Funkie Junkie Boutique is running a 15% off Friday Focus sale on all the seasonal Sizzix Alterations dies and texture fades so now is the time to stock up!

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