Tutorials And Techniques Archives - PageThe Maine Stamper

Creating A Plaid Background With Ink

May 26, 2022

Plaid Background Technique with the Happy Hedgehogs Stamp Set

A Happy Hedgehogs Plaid Background

When I discovered a sample card in the Stampin’ Up! January-June 2022 Mini Catalog, I just had to recreate it. There it was, nestled on the page displaying the Happy Hedgehogs Stamp Set and Hedgehog Builder Punch. Such a sweet card, even though it was hedgehog free.

The plaid paper in the background was just beautiful. My first instinct was to search every pack of designer series paper to find that perfect plaid design. But I quickly discovered it wasn’t designer paper at all. In fact, it was a plaid design made from a technique!

Plaid Watercolor Background

Now that I knew what technique I was trying to learn how to do, I needed someone to show me how to do it. Of course, I turned to YouTube. And searched. And searched.

It turns out, not everything is on YouTube. I finally found the general idea and decided to just go for it. Paper and ink and inspiration…what more does a crafter really need?

Preparing A WaterColor Ink Wash

Perparing to water color with ink refills and water painters.

Every time I watercolor, I am reaching for a few basic things:

Water Painters. Stampin’ Up! sells them in a 3 pack, with different size brush heads.
An Acrylic Block. Useful for more than holding stamps for stamping.
Ink refills. You can use an ink pad too, but the refill drops go farther for use.

Of course, you may have heard that to watercolor with such a wet technique, you need special paper. Like the Fluid Watercolor Paper or Shimmery White Cardstock. While these papers are great at absorbing all the extra liquid this technique brings, you can use regular white cardstock, like I did!

Simple Stamping, Simple Watercoloring

I was able to put these cards together very quickly. The flower tree stamp and sentiment are both from the Happy Hedgehogs Stamp Set. I used Memento Black Ink for each, with more watercoloring along the branch, leaves and flowers.

The beautiful part about the front focal piece is that it covers just enough of the plaid background’s potential imperfections. So don’t let your fears of wobbly crooked lines stop you from trying this! I share lots of pointers and tips you may find useful in my how to video.

Create Some Plaid Backgrounds For Your Cards!

As you can see, the possibilities are endless when making plaid backgrounds with a watercolor wash. Because this technique is so unique, it is impossible for 2 cards to look the same. And as crafters of homemade cards, isn’t that what we are looking for…our personal spin on something everyone can do?

If you are missing out on the Happy Hedgehogs, don’t despair. Those adorable critters do have a scene in my video. And I am sure I will be playing with them again soon.

The Happy Hedgehogs Bundle

The Happy Hedgehogs Bundle includes both the stamp set and punch. By purchasing the bundle, you save 10% automatically until June 30, 2022. After that, the stamp set and punch will be sold separately, without the discount.

Looking for this or any of the other products I used for my project? Shop my online store anytime! I appreciate your business very much. Happy crafting!

Crafting Paper Shamrocks

March 15, 2022 2 Comments

Green Shamrocks Wanted

Each year, as March 17th approaches, I am looking for ways to create paper shamrocks. Maybe you are like me, and don’t have much in the way of St. Patrick’s Day stamps or dies. But, that has never stopped ingenuity before! Let’s see how we can work around our lack of supplies to make amazing paper shamrocks.

Have A Heart

Any search for paper shamrocks on Pinterest will surely show you how to use heart punches to create your 3 (or 4) leaf clover. Consider yourself “lucky” if you have a heart punch that is just the right shape and size.

I find that a smaller heart punch or die will work better than one that is very large. After all, clovers are small in stature. When you punch out 3 or 4 hearts, depending on your preference, consider sponging some ink along the edges. This will give your heart “shamrock” some instant depth.

When you assemble your hearts, you have the option to overlap them slightly. Another option is to just have the heart edges touching. I find it is easier to adhere my hearts together on the back of a punched circle shape that is roughly the size of my paper shamrock to be. You can always trim away any excess circle paper when you are done.

Shamrocks To “Die” For

Consider yourself very lucky if you have an actual shamrock die. Crafting up gorgeous paper shamrocks will only be a matter of choosing a pretty shade of green!

But what about for the rest of us? Are we only left with heart punches to make our paper shamrocks with? I challenge you to take a look at some of your flower dies…you may be surprised by what you see.

In fact, there are quite a few flower dies (and even punches) that can be used to create shamrocks. Now, they may not look exactly like a real 3 or 4 leaf clover. But with a little imagination, they will come pretty close!

Four Leaf Paper Shamrock

Take this great sample shamrock, using Garden Green Cardstock and the Pansy Dies. I think we have a great 4 leaf clover and stem! And all from a die set that is used to make flowers.

Three Leaf Paper Shamrock

Paper shamrock using the Pierced Blooms Dies

Another die example is one that is used on my finished card above. This paper shamrock comes from the Pierced Blooms Dies. I wanted to create a very unique look, so I chose a selection of Pear Pizzazz from the You’re A Peach Designer Series Paper Pack. Next, I die cut the stem in Mossy Meadow Cardstock for contrast.

I wanted my paper shamrock to have 3 leaves instead of 4, so I used my Paper Snips to cut away a section of the flower. Because there are pierced lines in this die cut, I was able to easily follow along the edge when cutting.

Using a marker to add lines to my die cut paper shamrock

And lastly, I used my Mossy Meadow Stampin’ Write Marker to add some line definition to my paper shamrock. Every little bit helps this flower turn into a sweet clover!

St. Patrick’s Day Sentiments

Now that you are looking at your flower dies in a new light, it is time to do the same with your sentiments. Once again, you may not have a “Happy St. Patrick’s Day” saying handy. The Word Wishes Dies have you covered though. Among the words of the major holidays, you will find “Happy” and “St. Patrick’s Day” as well.

Word Wishes Dies spelling St. Patrick's Day

More Than March 17th!

Maybe you are looking to use paper shamrocks for occasions beyond the typical March 17th date. After all, wishing someone good luck or well wishes in general occurs all year long! I have compiled a list of the current Stampin’ Up! stamp sets that may have just what you need to express fortune to your card recipient.

Lucky To Know You!

How lucky is the person who is on the receiving end of your card making? Whether you are wishing someone a Happy St. Patrick’s Day, or sharing good luck wishes, the care and love you put into your card will surely show.

As you look for ways to craft up some paper shamrocks, be sure to view your supplies in a new light. And if you are still coming up empty, check out my online store for some of the items I have used here. I consider myself lucky to have you as a wonderful customer and fellow papercrafter.

Finished card with a paper shamrock using Pierced Blooms Dies

January Winter White Event

January 30, 2022

All Things White & Crafty!

In case you missed it, I just held a January Winter White Virtual Bootcamp! This 4 day bootcamp took place in my Maine craft room and wherever viewers were able to watch from. For example, on your couch in comfy pj’s, or in the break room at work. Isn’t the internet marvelous? And the best part…it was FREE.

All of those training videos from my January Winter White Virtual Bootcamp are out there for review. I made them bite-size, most are under 10 minutes each. Some of them may push 15 minutes, but the content is amazing. And we covered a large variety of subjects.

If you saw me in one of my blue Maine Stamper t-shirts, you knew it was time for another subject and another lesson. I placed all the information in Guide 3 of the Positive PaperCrafters FaceBook Page. After you watch a video, you have the the option to click “done” on it, so that you know which ones you still need to view. If you aren’t a member of the Positive PaperCrafters yet, what are you waiting for? Ask to join our private group today!

Julie Makson, The Maine Stamper

Day 1: White Paper

On the first day of the January Winter White Virtual Bootcamp, we covered different types of white paper. Did you know that there are lots of colors (or tones) of white. They are not all the same, and by lining some of them up, I proved that to be true.

There are also a lot of papers out there to do different jobs in our crafting world. Some of these are specialty papers. I talked about what they are and gave demos on how to use them. We also discussed how to store your scraps, and non-traditional white paper items.

Mother of Pearl Specialty Paper used in the January Winter White Bootcamp. — For this Mother of Pearl Specialty Paper, you need Staz-On Ink for stamping.

Day 2: White Embossing Powder

Moving on to day 2 of the January Winter White Virtual Bootcamp, we took on White Embossing Powder and its important role in papercrafting. Of course, everyone knows that White Embossing Powder looks amazing on color cardstock. If you are putting that glossy white on black, it is simply stunning.

But, we also covered using it on Water Color Paper and 2 ways to add color inside the embossed image. I showed an emboss resist technique with White Embossing Powder. And, have you ever thought about embossing designer series paper or specialty paper? We did that too!

Using the emboss resist technique with ink and sponge daubers from the January Winter White Bootcamp. — These gorgeous trees were made by embossing the stamped image in White Embossing Powder and sponging on ink with Sponge Daubers.

Day 3: White Embellishments

What is an embellishment? We covered that first on the third day of the January Winter White Virtual Bootcamp. And my list may have surprised some of you to think outside the box a little. It may be hard to throw something away that you once thought of as “trash” after you watch my video. Very crafty indeed!

We also learned about different ways to store embellishments (a very popular subject…organization ideas!). Choosing the right adhesive may be difficult, but I talked about that too. And if your embellishments are too white, lets add some color to them to match our projects. Lastly, where do you place embellishments? This video was eye-opening for anyone who struggles with this.

Placing embellishments on card fronts in the January Winter White Bootcamp. — We learned about the Law of 3, using triangles for embellishment placement, and the Implied Path.

Day 4: Coloring With White

When you think of coloring, white is probably the last color to come to mind. Typically, the paper we are coloring on is already white. And there are not a lot of tools out there that can do the job, but we covered them in this January Winter White Virtual Bootcamp.

The White Chalk Marker saw a lot of screen time. There is so much we can do with this mighty marker! I also shared some information on the Whisper White Craft Ink Pad and Refill. And, the White Stampin’ Blend in not a white marker…we talked about what it is, and what it is not.

Coloring with white ink in the January Winter White Bootcamp. — This technique provides a great wow factor! Stamp your image using a darker shade of ink than your cardstock. Then, fill in the “white” using a Blender Pen and Whisper White Craft Ink. My video shows you how!

My Personal Winter White Sale

To end my January Winter White Virtual Bootcamp, I am offering some amazing freebies with a qualifying order with me. Each of the freebie selections builds on the last, so if you have a $100 order (before shipping and tax) you will receive extra gifts from me in all 4 categories.

Sale-A-Bration is happening too, so this is the perfect time to beat the winter doldrums and get some free stamping products. Hurry, this offer ends on January 31, 2022. In order to take advantage of this special offer, do not order directly from my online store (you can view it to help you make your selections).

You must contact me directly so that I may place your order for you and pay for your FREE gifts. If you have any questions, just reach out! Hoping to see you in the Positive PaperCrafters Group Page soon for more fun, sharing and learning!