Saturday 2 July 2011

Additions

I thought you may find this post interesting - its a selection of additional things you may think about using when making your cards - as with everything else, its a matter of personal choice....just because I like it, use it, suggest it doesnt mean iis also for you....

I'm going to start with something someone asked me about - PAPER! There are loads on the market - glossy, glossy plus, semi gloss ad they all come in a huge range of gsm etc but my preferred paper is a MATT 128gsm

The GSM stands for GRAMS SQUARE METRE - its the density of paper, GSM covers the weight and thickness of the paper.

As I said, I use a matt 128g, it has a smooth side for printing - the reverse is slightly rougher texture, I find this is perfect for my general printing and as its light its easy to cut out from.

A lot of people prefer to use a heavy weight glossy paper, personally I find when cutting out 3d decoupage I get a white edge which spoils the design - my glossy is reserved for my photographs.

The picture above is the brand I use all the time, its affordable and I get perfect results.

So thats what I use for my decoupage - what about inserts? Well if its a patterned insert to match the front I may well use this paper too whereas if its a text only insert I just use what copier paper I have in, or if a card order I use a luxury plain paper around 80gsm which is super white and has that better look and feel to it.

Moving on, I thought I would show you my buckles - I love to add a buckle whenever possible - it just adds so style and class to what may have been a basic card.
As you can see in the photo I have all shapes and sizes, plastic, metal, gold, silver, bronze, pearl, gem set, stone set etc

And in many different sizes too simply chose which buckle suits the ribbon you are using, thread it from top through to bottom at one side along the underside of the buckle and up through the other side....if you attach your ribbon to your card at the edges only you can move your buckle along the ribbon until you are happy with its position!

BUTTONS are something we all have - everytime - well almost everytime you buy new clothes there is a spare button attached - dont throw them - just pop into a storage jar or box to use on your cards...
Buttons come in huge rainbow of colours, sizes, shapes etc - if the botton has a shank you can buy a set of shank removers or "borrow" hubbys pliers which normally work great! With shank removed rub the nobbles with sandpaper or even an emery board to smooth off then attach using silicone or even a sticky dot.

If you have lots you might have a button box - this can be a purpose made/bought item, or just something you saw and decided to be suitable - if you are really organised you may have lots of boxes with buttons in sizes or colour collections....for me, I have a large resealable bag for the things shown above and then this box which generally goes in my craft bag


Something else we may have in the home and not think to use is pretty lace, again this is something that comes in many colours, widths, styles etc - and some shops even sell remnants of it for just a few pence per metre....

I have a huge lace collection, some you can thread ribbon through, some gathered on one edge so great for doing circular designs - the widths I have start at around 0.5cms to 5cm - have to say dont get much chance to use the broader lace on cards but its great for scrapbooking

My favorite has to be the beautiful cotton GUIPURE lace - this is available in endless designs, widths and colours.....and is generally available by the metre

I tend to only buy the narrow designs as its quite expensive so better to buy what I know I can use rather than just look at!

It looks beautiful when a length is added to a card with a few pretty flowers and maybe some pins....

To attach to your card if there is a straight egde you may be lucky and find a narrow double sided tape will do - if not decide where embellishments will be positioned and attach with silicone or DST as it will then be hidden behind the embellishments...

If you fancy trying guipure lace, check out these listings on ebay - be sure to check not just the price of the lace, but also the postage costs...

Just click on the link below to go straight to what is on offer!!!

2 comments:

  1. Thank-you for the hints, tips and links Angie. Liz x

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lots of extremely useful hints and tips, thank you.

    ReplyDelete