Basic Pattern Decorative Masks: Victorian

Decorative Masks Part II

Card made with Basic Pattern Decorative Masks, Victorian style

Basic Pattern Decorative Masks (item #150697) come in a set of 4 masks, sized 6 x 6″ each. They are thin and pliable, plastic in nature and easily cleaned. The enclosed insert lists 5 different methods you can use when you create with these decorative masks: spritz, sponge, trace, emboss and texture.

The variety in the Basic Pattern Decorative Masks is wonderful, and this set has something for everyone. Part I in my mini series on Decorative Masks focused on the Dot Mask, and creating a textured background. To see that post, which contains great information and card making tips, click here.

Basic Pattern Decorative Masks

In Part II of my mini series on Decorative Masks, I have focused on the Victorian Mask and the spritzing technique. I find this technique useful with any mask, and can use it in any color as well. Let me show you the fun of spritzing!

Spritzing Technique

Are you looking for big impact in card making on a low budget? I have news for you: spritzing is the way to go! The Stampin’ Spritzers (item #126185) cost $3 for a set of 2. Classic Stampin’ Ink Refill (in the color of your choice) costs $3.75. All you need now is rubbing alcohol or water, and you have the mixin’s for some wow.

Stampin' Spritzer and Classic Stampin' Ink Refill

The magic mix of spritzer lasts a long time, since a little goes a long way. In fact, I still had some left-over from another project, as can be seen in my blog post, here.

Tips For Mixing And Using The Stampin’ Spritzers:

*Stampin’ Spritzers can be used to spray color saturation on your paper.

*Add 6-8 drops of Ink Refill to the opened spritzer (protective cap pops off and spritzing mechanism/tube screws off) and dilute with rubbing alcohol or water. Rubbing alcohol is preferred to water, since the alcohol base dries quicker. Percentage on rubbing alcohol bottle is not crucial.

*The more liquid, the lighter the overall color. Add more ink or more liquid until you are happy with the result. Experiment!

*Shake your spritzer well before each use to avoid settling or separation. Store your filled spritzer upright.

*Spritz with care! You can use an empty card-board box to place your paper in and spritz away if you are concerned with making a mess. I find that having a great clearance around my work surface ensures that nothing gets an accidental coating of color from over-spray.

*Before using it on your project, you may need to flatten your finished color-spritzed paper. Drying time will vary depending on the liquid choice used and humidity levels in your home.

*Watercolor Paper or Shimmery White Cardstock work nicely with these wet procedures. And don’t rule out Glimmer Paper for extra sparkle.

*The spritzer bottle is easy to clean, just wash with soapy water and rinse. Don’t forget to clean the inner tube and spritzer mechanism too.

Set Up For Spritzing Success

Spritzing can be done with or without a mask. Just like in my previous Decorative Mask post using Embossing Paste, I highly recommend securing your paper and mask to avoid shifting mid-work while spritzing.

Decorative Mask and spritzer

I took advantage of a Tombow Removable Adhesive Tape Runner, and secured my cardstock to my graph paper. This kind of tape runner allows temporary holds, and is easily removed without tearing or residue. In fact, when I rub my finger across the removable adhesive, it crumbles away like pencil erasing. Only a very small amount is needed here.

Next, I secured the Basic Pattern Decorative Mask Victorian design in the exact position I wanted it to be. This time I used Painters Tape to hold the mask down. I made sure I did not cover my cardstock with the tape.

Time to spritz! I applied an even coverage over the entire Decorative Mask. The alcohol scent can be strong, and liquid that does not hit the paper will remain on top of the mask. I absorbed the extra fluid by blotting with a paper towel.

Spritzed masked cardstock

By taping down one side of the mask only, I was able to lift the mask once it was dried off, to view my handi-work. I decided to spritz some more in certain areas, and placed the mask back in its original position to do so.

My paper dried quite quickly, and it did not need to be flattened before use.

Just Saying Hello

The light purple of my spritzed masked cardstock needed a strong coordinating hue to back it up, so I chose a Blackberry Bliss card base. To go with the soft pastel-color focal background, I added in Soft Sea Foam green, too.

I trimmed a small piece off of my spritzed paper, and set it aside for another project.

Adjusting the size of the spritzed masked cardstcok

I was looking for a generic, large sentiment for this card, along with a basic die cut. So, I pulled out the stamp set, Tasteful Touches (item #152562) and inked “just saying hello” in Blackberry Bliss.

Tasteful Touches Stamp Set and Blackberry Bliss Ink

Next, I die cut the sentiment using one of my new favorites, the Tasteful Labels Dies (item #152886).

Tasteful Labels Dies
The Tasteful Touches Stamp Set and Tasteful Labels Dies can be purchased as a bundle for an instant 10% savings, using item #154098.

Victorian Flowers

The Many Layered Blossoms Dies (item #153582) provide two large open flower die cuts, which can be used individually or combined. I wanted a lot of my spritzed masked background to show, so I chose the thinner outline of the dies to use.

I die cut the flowers in Purple Posy CS, so they would not compete with my light purple background.

Many Layered Blossoms Dies and Take Your Pick Tool
The Take Your Pick Tool (item #144107) and Take Your Pick Die Brush Tip (item #149655) are great for getting all the fine die cuts removed quickly and easily. Here, I chose to keep some of the cut-aways intact.

I love to add some greenery to my flower cards, but the Many Layered Blossoms Dies do not provide any leaves. Instead, I took small scraps of Soft Sea Foam CS and die cut just the leafy outer areas of the bolder die image.

Stampin’ Up! brought in a new version of Adhesive Sheets (item #152334), and I was so happy to use them on the smaller die cut flowers. This double sided sticky paper works wonders where glue or tape are impossible. Simply remove adhesive on one side, attach to cardstock, die cut, and you have an “instant sticker”.

Small die cuts from Many Layered Blossoms Dies and Adhesive Sheets
I mistakenly thought the small flower dies would combine together to make two-toned flowers. The thinner flower dies are meant to go on the outer flowers of the large flower die.

Award Winning Ribbon

Stampin' Up! Ribbon in wall holder

All this ribbon and not one is in the color I am looking for today. But, I have a super simple solution to make white ribbon the right ribbon!

Did you know that you could color white ribbon with any color of Stampin’ Blends and create the shade you want? My favorite ribbon to do this with is the 1/4″ Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon (item #151326).

Coloring the Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon with Stampin' Blends

I chose the light Soft Sea Foam Stampin’ Blend, which was the color of ribbon I was looking for. I placed the ribbon on my Silicone Craft Sheet (item #127853, also great for use with glue and tape) and used the broad tip brush to swipe color along the ribbon. The ribbon soaks up the color and dries quickly.

Layering on the card front
I used Tear & Tape Adhesive (item #138995) to secure my ribbon and the ends of the leaves. My sentiment die cut will cover this area on the finished card.

A Little Hello

Remember that small piece of spritzed masked cardstock I cut away for another project? It was perfect for a mini card.

Mini’s are easy to make: cut a piece of cardstock 3 x 6″ and score at 3″ for a 3 x 3″ card. The mini cards fit the 3 x 3″ Envelopes (item #145829) for big impact.

Mini Card with Itty Bitty Greetings Stamp Set
Itty Bitty Greetings Stamp Set (item #151331) is no longer offered as a wood mount option. Yours will come in cling (red rubber) stamps.

As you can see, spritzing with the Basic Pattern Decorative Masks is easy and versatile, and another great way to incorporate masks into your projects. If you need any of the supplies I used in my cards today, head over to my online store, https://juliemakson.stampinup.net.

Cards made with Basic Pattern Decorative Masks

There are lots of options and uses left to explore with Decorative Masks, and I will continue to cover them in my ongoing mini series. Be sure to check back in, to see what I come up with next!

Color Your World with Stampin’ Blends

Just Add Color

This year, February has an extra day in it (Happy Leap Year 2020!). That means one more day of winter. Days, in my state, that are typically gray and brown and drab. So then, what’s a crafty person to do with this time on their hands? Color your world a pretty place, with Stampin’ Up!’s Stampin’ Blends.

Stampin’ Blends were introduced in 2018. When they first became available, there were 12 different colors, each with a light and dark shade. Ivory, Bronze and the Color Lifter round out the collection. Fast forward to the 2019-2020 Annual Catalog, and you can purchase blends in 36 exclusive Stampin’ Up! colors.

Stampin' Blends Collection
Pink Pirrouhette is a retired color, so the blends in that tone are no longer available.

Using Stampin’ Blends

Everyone can get professional looking results when coloring your world with Stampin’ Blends. These alcohol markers feature dual tips that don’t fray. The brush end is for larger images and the fine tip is for details. With minimal effort, you will glide ink on with ease, creating effortless shading and great coverage. Instant Artist!

Step 1

Stamp your image in Tuxedo Black Memento Ink onto Whisper White Cardstock. To get the darkest image possible, use the Stamparatus to apply multiple layers of black ink without fear of lining up the stamp properly each time. Choose an image that has plenty of coloring opportunity for the most fun.

Band Together Stamp Set and Stamparatus
The Stamparatus is a great tool with tons of features.

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink (water based) must be used when coloring with Stampin’ Blends (alcohol based). Just keep in mind the old adage, “opposites attract”. If you were to use StazOn Ink (alcohol based) in error, the blends color would bleed into the black ink outline and create…mud. Yuck.

Step 2

Next, place your image to be colored on a protective surface or use scrap paper underneath. The blends are designed to saturate the paper with intense color. As a result, the ink will bleed thru the back in some areas.

Start coloring, using both the light and dark shades of a Stampin’ Blend color. It doesn’t matter which tone is chosen first, the outcome is the same. No matter how much color you apply, the alcohol ink will not pill up and ruin your paper. And, you can color right over the inner black ink image lines with no ill effect.

Coloring with Stampin' Blends
This oversized flower image from the stamp set, Band Together, was colored with Stampin’ Blends in So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie and Granny Apple Green.

I prefer to begin with the lighter blend and apply generous coverage, then add some shadowing with the dark blend, followed by another application of light to soften the lines. A circular or scribble motion will help blend your color edges together.

Step 3

Use the Color Lifter as desired to change the look of your Stampin’ Blends coloring. This step is optional but will give your design another color dimension.

The Color Lifter appears to be a white marker, due to the cap color. Actually, it’s more like an invisible ink. It can be used to soften colors, as the ink “lifts” some of the shading off the paper. The Color Lifter will clean up edges as well as create highlights on your image.

Color Lifter STampin' Blend

Additional Tips and Uses of Stampin’ Blends

The artistic results you receive when using the Stampin’ Blends are phenomenal, but they do more than color stamped images. You can also color ribbon, changing white or ivory into your chosen tone. Do the same with embellishments like rhinestones, pearls and buttons.

Whisper White Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon
I colored the Whipser White Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon on the Silicone Craft Sheet. I cleaned the excess ink off the craft sheet with a baby wipe.

Stampin’ Blends have a rectangular barrel, so they won’t roll off the table like traditional markers. You should store the blends horizontally, so ink is readily available at either end of the marker. Stampin’ Up! offers stackable storage units for your blends to make organization easy.

Stampin' Blends Storage Trays
One set of trays will hold 30 Stampin’ Blends.

The Stampin’ Blends end caps let you know at a glance what color ink lies inside. Replace the tight fitting caps immediately after using your blend to prevent the alcohol ink from drying out too quickly. The blends are not refillable, but since they are sold individually, it is easy to replace one if you need to.

Stampin’ Blends make coloring quick, easy and fun with spectacular results. For a quick reference guide to Stampin’ Blends, print or pin a copy of my Do’s and Don’t’s Cheat Sheet.

Take your projects from drab to fab by adding some of these rainbow making tools to your crafty stash today. Visit my online store, https://juliemakson.stampinup.net and start with your favorite colors. Let your collection of Stampin’ Blends grow, and color your world.

My finished card also uses the Detailed Bands Dies and the Brick and Mortar 3D Embossing Folder.