stencil and embossing paste

after a recent (and much needed) cleaning/reorganizing of my studio I unearthed some supplies I had not used in a long time...brass stencils and embossing paste.  One of my fav stencils is one with a Celtic knot design.  Since St Patty's day is around the corner I thought these supplies would make a great St Patty's day card.  I am using Dreamweaver Pearlescent Embossing Paste.  The brass stencil is also from Dreamweaver and is called Celtic Hexagon.

The first thing to do is create a hinge with a piece of removable (or low tack) tape on one side of the stencil one your paper.  The hinge just makes it easier to lift up and remove the stencil when you are finished.  Removable or low tack tape is important so it won't leave marks on your paper.  I am using Scotch Low Tack Tape here.  The paper should be a thicker paper or light cardstock weight to handle the paste. 
After one side is taped then cover the rest of the paper and sides of the stencil with more tape or scrap paper.  The goal is to just have the stencil open for the paste and not to get any paste on other areas of the paper.

I had to stir the paste since the jar hasn't been opened in awhile.  The paste has the consistency of frosting.  The paste gets spread over the top of the stencil to fill the areas then the excess gets scraped off.

The scrap paper or tape gets removed and then (using the taped hinge side) the brass stencil is lifted up and taken off. Set the image aside to dry.  I usually like to wait a few hours or overnight. The brass stencil should be cleaned immediately with soap and water.  If you can't get to it right away then drop it in a container with soapy water until you can gently scrub it clean.

Then I put the brass stencil over the dried image and colored the pear surface with inks.  I used daubers and a variety of ink pads.

It may be hard to see in this photo but the raised image shimmers with different shades of green.

And here it is applied to a card with some rubber stamping and extra shimmer from gel pens. 


Happy St. Patty's Day!