Stamping in 2 Colors & Omitting

Lots of new stampers don't know the small tricks so I figured I'd post some every once in a while just to bring everyone up to speed on the easy stuff. I'm going to show you how to stamp one image in two colors and also, how to omitt part of the image. I'll do it all in one project.

You'll need:
2 Markers
A Stamp with some detail
Paper


1. Lay the stamp on it's back (rubber up). Color, starting with the lightest color and ending with the darkest. Huff on it once or twice to remoisten the ink before stamping your image. Stamp.


2. Clean your stamp well so that no ink residue remains. This time ink only the part of the stamp that you'd like to show up on the paper. (I left out the flower here.)


3. Stamp image. You should have a void where there was no ink.


4. Fill in the void with markers. Or, you can stamp another image there (a word would look nice).


Omitting makes it look like I've used 2 different stamps where I've used only one! Your possibilites are endless!

An Easy and Elegant Lampshade for a Wineglass

Here's a really simply way to make a great table centerpiece!

You'll need:
A 12x12 Sheet of Vellum
A Dinner Plate
A Coffee Mug or Drinking Glass
A Pencil
Scissors
Sticky Strip

If you'd like to emboss an image on the lampshade, you'll also need:
Stamps
Versamark
Embossing Powder
Heat Tool


1. Trace half of the plate onto the vellum.


2. Place the mug halfway onto the sheet, centering it to make a half-donut shape with the plate being the outer ring. Trace it also.


3. Cut the half-donut shape out of the vellum.


4. If you'd like to emboss, do it now. If not, skip to the next step.


5. Run a piece of Sticky Strip along one edge of the lampshade. Hold shade together to check the fit to your wineglass. You don't want any vellum sticking up above the lip of the glass. If it does, trim it now so that you don't have a fire hazard. Peel the remaining paper off the strip and adhere it to the opposite side of the shade.


6. Put a tea light in the wineglass and set the shade on top. The glow at night is lovely! (Please don't leave this unattended!)

You Can Make A Dry Erase Tile

There are a few different methods to chose from when making a dry erase tile. I'll share 2 of them here.

You'll need:
A Glossy Tile (any size)
StazOn Ink
Stamps (I used SU's Like It A Latte)
Heat Tool (or an oven set on low heat)
Glossy Acrylic Sealer or Clear Embossing Powder



1. Wash and dry your tile. Make sure it's really dry. Stamp your image in StazOn ink and immediately wash your stamp off, as this ink is very permenant.


2. If you choose to have a smooth tile, you'll want to use the acrylic spray. So you'll want to either heat set with a heat tool or in a low temp oven. If you'd like a raised image you need to pour embossing powder on your image while it's still wet and then heat set. If you choose to use a heat tool it will take FOREVER to set the embossing powder. This is however, the method I do because I can monitor it more closely.


3. If you embossed, you're done now. If you chose to spray, you'll now need to mask off the tile leaving only the image exposed. Spray about 12 inches away to avoid running ink. Let dry, and you're done. A note: do not get ink on the image regardless of the method you used. It will become permenant if it touches the image.


You can stand it in a wood block w/ a notch cut in, place it on a photo easel or apply a strong magnet to the back and hang it on the fridge.

Note: Since the original posting I've received a tip from a fellow stamper. She stamped the image, embossed, and then pressed packing tape over the image. She then cut around the tape, leaving the image covered so as to protect it from ink that may stain the image. Thanks Julie H. for the tip! (She suggested it would be more child friendly that way.)

Lighted Glass Block

These are a great project for anytime of year! I made mine with a Christmas theme but it can easily be adapted for any occasion. The block gives off a really lovely glow at night. Click on the thumbnails to enlarge the photos.



Here's what you'll need:
Glass Block of any size (pre-drill a hole large enough to fit your lights near the bottom of one large side)
50 Christmas lights
Tissue paper (cut 2 pieces 1/2" smaller than the raised edge that runs around the large side of the block)
Stamps
Ink
Snail Adhesive
2 Double-sided sticky sheets trimmed to be the same size as the front of the block, between the raised edges (regular adhesive won't work here)
Micro beads
2 1/2" or 3" wide ribbon, enough to go around the block and tie a bow
*I also used SU markers and a SU Color Spritzer (optional)


1. Cram the lights one at a time into the glass block via the hole. You can sort of rearrange them with a chopstick to spread them out once they're in. (Our hole was only 3/4" because my husband spliced the wire so that the plug on the end wasn't in the way. If you don't splice, your drilled hole will need to be big enough to accomodate the plug too.)


2. Stamp one piece of tissue paper to be the front of your block. (I used the color spritzer here to fill in the empty spaces a bit.) The other piece of tissue paper will be the back of the block; you can stamp it with a message, an image, or leave it blank.


3. Put a small amount of SNAIL adhesive in two places on the face of your block, then secure the main image. Smooth it out good.


4. Peel a corner of the double-sided adhesive sheet back and position it on the front of the block over the tissue paper. Continue peeling as you move, covering the entire area. THIS IS VERY PERMENANT. THERE IS NO REPOSITIONING!

5. Repeat steps 4 & 5 on the reverse side of the block. You may need to cut a wedge out of both the tissue paper and the adhesive sheet to accomodate the cord.


6. Slowly peel the remaining paper of the adhesive sheet off to reveal the adhesive. Pour the glass beads liberally over the face of the block. You can reuse any that don't stick, so you're not wasting. You may want to set the block in a pan or a tray to catch the runaway beads, these little suckers bounce! Rub the beads in circles with your hand until no sticky areas remain. Tip block and brush off excess beads.


7. Repeat step 6 on opposite side.

8. Tie the ribbon around the outside of the block and tie a bow on top to finish.