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I just came back from a 3 day trip to Mexico, where I had some meetings with my mom, founder of MercArt Mexico. I'm always impressed by the amazing technique quality of our staff of teachers there and by the huge size of some of their projects!!  I'll try to post some of them soon.

In the meantime, this is one of my favorite Icons (actually it has been part of my website's  "Home" page since the beginning).
Icons and Metal Embossing have been linked for ages. You can find Icons from past centuries done like the sample shown here.  Most of the time,  faces and hands were painted on canvas or wood while the rest was covered with Embosed Metal.
This particular piece was done in Pewter.  The Madonna and Child were painted on wood with the traditional Tempera technique. The background was covered with Gold Leaf (Gilding).

Remember:

20% off in all PEWTER sheets and rolls ONLY until March 31st.

Order online at: http://www.mercartusa.com/

Spring is Here!

We had a milder winter in Dallas this year. However, some weeks ago we had record low freezing temperatures that  lasted several days, which is not what you would expect in Texas ( it's true then when they say that "If you don't like Texas weather, wait a minute").

One of the things I enjoy the most during this month is the clear change of seasons. My home street, shown here, has these beautiful trees that grow thousands of white flowers before becoming green. I love this annual spectacle.

MARCH SPECIAL!

Don't forget that this month's special offer is

20% off in all sizes of PEWTER!!!!

valid until March 31 at http://www.mercartusa.com/

Japan

We are sad and concerned  about our friends, teachers, customers and Distributor in Japan for last week's earthquake and tsunami.

I had the opportunity to teach in Japan 2 years ago as well as being part of the jury of the "First National Metal Embossing Competition" organized by our Distributor and JMEA (Japan Metal Embossing Association) .  

 I got to know not only beautiful places, but incredible people. My mom and I were treated like royalty and they certainly made us feel at home.  I'll never forget those 12 amazing days.

I was amazed by the quality of work and dedication of my students and by their gratitude and willingness to learn all the traditional "Repujado" (Metal Embossing) techniques. 

This is just one example of the huge variety of things in which Japanese ladies use Metal Embossing (she came wearing this before taking my class!)

Now in Pewter

The same Flowers Frame we did in Colored Aluminum was actually  first done in Pewter.

The outline of each petal was done with the Teflon D-01.

Remember you can use a  punch to do each flower...yes we are a bit crazy for doing and cutting each one by hand! 

Aluminum Flowers Frame: Thinking outside the box

What about covering a frame with dozens of flowers ?  We did so using 3 of MercArt's colored aluminum: Mustard, Navy Blue and Red.
We traced, embossed the outline and cut each one of the flowers using the Dry Point cutter. However, this can also be done using a flower shape punch (or any other shape for that matter!).
For each flower's center we  used the Betun Judea  (golden patina) .  You can also use "Metal Paint" by DecoArt or  "Pinata" alcohol Inks by Jacquard.

Who said you can only do "traditional" projects? Metal Embossing has endless possibilities.

NEW Dreamweaver Stencils

We are glad to inform you that we now carry Dreamweaver Stencils.  Stencils are the easiest and fastest way of doing Metal Embossing.  They are ideal for cards, embellishments and any small and easy to do project!

Stencils can be used with any metal, but Colored Aluminum seems to be the perfect match. In this case I used  Standing Angel LL578 stencil  and  MercArt's Navy Blue Aluminum plus the following:
*Teflon D-01 or D-04
*Dash Wheel (texture in the skirt)
*Crown Stamping Tool (3 flower petals)
*Cup and Ball #2 (flower's centers and wing's dots)
*Small Star with Center Stamping Tool  (5 small skirt's stars)
*Refiner (wing's textures)
*Diagonal Decorative Wheel (upper robe texture)
*Regular and Medium Star Stamping Tool  (stars in the sky)
*Big Wheel (border dots)
*Paper Stump #4
*The cloud texture was given with the LJ863 Swirls Stencil.  Just rub with a paper stump the front of the aluminum against the stencil to get the texture.
When you finish,  remove the color with a (manicure)sanding block. Use the Fiber Glass Tool or the Brass Brush to remove it in small or detailed areas, just as I did in the Angel's face, hair and part of her robe.

FIRST MONTHLY GIVEAWAY WINNER!!

Patrice Sigmon was February's Giveaway winner!

We will send her a Combo Set of Metals 6" x 6" with 2 sheets of each: Pewter, Copper and Aluminum and

One Basic Kit with 4 Double Tools

Patrice please send us your address so we can mail you this price asap!