Saturday, July 30, 2011

Nautilus

This was such a fun, simple and fast project to do.
I used Dreamweaver's stencil Nautilus LS04 and our Texture Plate #14.
MercArt's products used were:
      Teflon D-01
        Paper stump #4
       Teflon D-03
       Cup and Ball #5
       Suede
       Pewter
        Plate #14
        Filling Paste
        Pewter Patina



Texture Plate #14

 
After embossing the nautilus, I placed the pewter on the Texture Plate and rubbed the metal against the plate with the paper stump. I outlined some parts of the design with  Teflon D-01.
I finished it by adding Patina and polishing it (with silver polish paste).
This project will look great as a book or box cover.


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Sunday, July 24, 2011

Wooden Chest in Pewter






I always try to teach the traditional "Repujado" (Metal Embossing)  techniques in my workshops. I believe that knowing the techniques allow you to create a wider variety of projects; from the simplest and easiest using molds or plates, up to very intricate pieces like this wooden chest.

This wooden chest was covered in Pewter. It's  such a malleable and soft metal that you can fold it, bend it and cover most any surface with it. No wonder why it is the "Rolls Royce" of metals.

The main MercArt's tools used were:
*Cup and Ball #2  #4, and #6
*Double Ball
*Teflon D-01
*Refiner LT-05
*Dry Point (to cut)
*Filling Paste
*Pewter Patina
*Suede
*Paper Stump #4
*Laminated Shell
*Pewter


The book pattern was transfered to the metal with the Teflon D-01.
Working at the back of the metal and  on the suede,  I embossed all the "raised" areas with the appropiate size of the Cup and Ball or the Double Ball. The number of the Cup and Ball tools stands for the diameter (in millimeters).
I outlined or cleaned the embossed shapes with the Teflon D-01 or the Refiner (on the front and without the suede).
The Cup and Ball tools were also used to create different sizes of dots.

After adding the Filling Paste on the embossed areas I added Patina to the whole piece and polished the metal until getting the desired shine (any good silver polish works). That is another great thing about pewter: it is the only metal that looks like real silver.
I used the Dry Point tool to cut the little windows on the metal. I did it over glass. 
I cut big pieces of Laminated Shell to fit under the cut out shapes on the metal and glued them to the wooden chest (the shell is self-adhesive). I then glued the metal over the shell and wooden piece.  You can use the  "deer foot" or flat part of Teflon D-01 or the Paper stump to make sure the metal adheres well to the surface.

So yes, Metal Embossing can be used practically anywhere. The more you know the different techniques, the more infinite the possibilities are!






Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Easy Bookmark

I just came back from the CKScrapbook show in Houston, Tx.
We had 2 different "Make-it Take-it" projects to do in our booth. One of them was a Bookmark. 


This Bookmark was done in Pewter and using the Sizzix embossing Machine with a Cuttlebug Embossing Folder.
I am not a huge fan of "machine" made embossing (I feel like cheating somehow) but I must admit it's a fast and easy way of doing some metal projects.
I always add some "hand made" details  to these projects so they don't look so "machine made".
Using the Refiner, I added some details to the circles: dots, lines, squiggles...and I embossed some of them with the appropiate size of Cup and Ball.
At the end I used the Pewter Patina and glued the pewter to the cardboard using double side tape.

People at the booth were able to choose between several Stencils, Backround plates and Embossing Folders. Some even made their "free hand" designs.

Friday, July 1, 2011

Stencil Pewter Frame

This is another project we did in the Chicago workshop.
It was done in Pewter  using Dreamweaver Stencil  LG608.
I decided to turn the design into a frame so I only embossed the outer side of the stencil.


The main MercArt products used were:
*Teflon D-01
*Teflon D-03
*Paper stump
*Pewter
*Pewter Patina



June's Blog Giveaway Winner:
Sandy Davis
Confratulations Sandy!
She will get one of each of our Color Aluminums plus
One Dreamweaver Stencil.
Please confirm your address so we can send you your prize!