X-Press It: Sticky Foil

There is this relatively newish thing in the land of X-Press it called Sticky Foil, it is kind of soooo nice it is a little painful to cut into it, but that is what we buy it for so I got my MASCULINE on with this tutorial… given the first thing that comes to mind when I see the pattern (which is called Tread Plate) on the Sticky Foil is the pressed metal found in blokes workshops and tray backs and such…. it is shiny and a little hard to photograph but here are a couple of starting shots:

I was REALLY please to learn that the Tread Plate pattern does NOT dissipate when sticky foil is die cut, this is GOLD…. I am sure if you plate sandwich was firm it might go towards flattening, but my standard sandwich left the tread in place, making it easy to die cut elements from this fabby product:

Sticky Foil is true to name it has a grid like backing paper that separates easily from the foil, and is then easily pulled back to expose the adhesive and make it ready for adhering to the card I used today:

Another GOLD moment was when I took to the die cut frame with a Copic Marker, I thought I would have to airbrush the Sticky Foil to get the Copic to look as it should, but a few swipes with my trusty 100 Black Copic and the surface of the Sticky Foil was covered, and it left a really funky metallic look to it too… this just opened up a multitude of doors for this product for me!…. :

Sticky Foil brings a nice touch of clean cut masculine to your card projects, it cuts like butter in a die cutting machine, or on a guillotine, or with a scalpel, the backing peels back easily (SOOO important) and it sticks really well, making open window cards an easy task!

If you haven't tried Sticky Foil yet it is time to get it out of your stash and give it a whirl!!!

I look forward to using this with some different colour combos in the very near future...

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X-Press It Double Sided Tape Sheets

Fuss free and mess free.
Not really things you hear about much at this time of year.
But I have something to share with you that is fuss free, mess free
AND
super quick and easy!

Enter X-Press It Double Sided Tape Sheets.
This product takes all the mess out of fiddly craftiness!
I want to share with you a quick card and tag that I made using the trusty tape sheets.
What also makes this project even better is that I used scraps!
You know the strips of paper that you cut off your 12x12?
You know the little bits of pattern paper that you hold on to, just in case?
Yes those!

I pulled out a whole bunch and layered them onto
one side of the Double Sided Tape Sheet.
I even used the manufacturer strip from a piece of pattern paper
(because I love text).

Once I had filled the sheet I pulled off the backing
and adhered the strips to some cardstock.
I then used my electronic cutting machine and made some die cuts.
One I added to a tag, using some X-Press It Foam Tape.

Add a hole and a sentiment and… well it doesn’t get much easier than that!

I also used the negative, left from the die cut.
I back that with some dark pattern paper and added it with a doily to a card.

You could use the same idea and some of your favourite punches.
If you have a die cut machine you could have lots of fun
making allsorts of dies for all manner of occasions.
I hope this inspires you to use your scraps and get creative.
Happy Christmas from all of us here at X-Press It.
May your new year be a creative one.

Sharmaine

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X-Press It: Double Sided Tape

Today's tutorial focusses on the use of a basic supply to add wow to your gift wrapping.  Gift wrapping comes in many forms and today I am wrapping a present for my newest second cousin, born yesterday, a little fat beauty she is too… so a floral inspired gift wrapping theme was in order.  I started by cutting my coral wrapping paper to size, and criss-crossing 3mm and 6mm double sided tape across the front.  I have used High Tack tape for durability, but you can also use standard tape for this project:

Once the tape is in place, expose the tape and add a little pile of glitter to the centre, rubbing out across the different strips of tape.  A good thing to remember with glitter is that the harder you rub the better connection it has with the tape, and the more it will SHINE:

Set the paper aside and work on building some flowers.  Today I have used simple white cheesecloth , two 15cm lengths and one 30cm length, but you can make these in any size you like.  This little set of pictures shows the method:

Step 1: place a strip of 6mm tape along one edge of fabric:

Step 2: Remove the backing and fold the fabric in half:

Step 3: Run another pice of tape along the rough seam:

Step 4: Remove the backing and pleat the fabric to the outer edge of a circle of card:

Step 5: Continue to pleat the fabric, moving into the inner circle once you have covered the outer circle:

Repeat this for the 3 lengths of fabric to make a trio of flowers.

Next it is time to wrap the present…. square off the wrapping paper so that the criss-cross of glitter strips sits nicely on the front of the package.  I used double sided tape on the edges of the wrapping paper to so that there are clean closures, and no visible tape:

Place the flowers across the top of the glitter strips, adding die cut leaves, and loopy bows for extra flair… and don't forget to finish off the flower centres with extra embellishments, I have used buttons this time, that co-ordinate with the wrapping paper… each and every element is adhered with double sided tape:

These little flowers are super quick, allow you to use up strips of basic fabric, and bring it all together with simple double sided tape… paper, fabric and glitter all with one basic, everyone has it, product….got to love that!!

Here are the X-Press It Products I used today:

3mm Double Sided Tape High Tack

6mm Double Sided Tape High Tack

So the next time you have a wrapping project, why not have a go at building 3D embellishments, they come together really easy with your trusty X-Press It Double Sided Tapes!

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Sticky Barc and it’s endless uses

Have you used Sticky Barc before?
I hadn’t and I was curious to know just what it could do.
So I gave it a test drive.
First step was to cut a piece to A4 size and run it through my printer.
It cut just like butter. I was afraid it might “shatter” but it didn’t.
I thought the printer ink might smudge. It didn’t.

Free Printable found HERE

I cut out one of the images and decided to make a journal page with it.
(You can read more about that on my blog).

I used one of the images and painted over it with some water colour paint.
I love the way the printer ink feathered out as it bled through the wood grain.

Now because the Sticky Barc is adhesive I thought it would make great deco tape.
I cut off a scrap and stuck it flat using some double sided tape.

Then I simply stamped a repeated pattern over the Sticky Barc.

Easy as that!
Another gift idea that was a great way to use up the leftovers was to stamp a tag shaped stamp onto the Sticky Barc.

I then cut out the shapes and they were ready to be used.
You could write on them, run them through the typewriter or printer, or add some alpha stickers.

Great for gift tags or labels on bottles (the adhesive backing makes it super simple for that!).

You could emboss some too or even use a die cut machine or electronic cutting machine to make other amazing die cut shapes.
Here is the journal page I made using the bird image that I printed onto the Sticky Barc.

Hope you give Sticky Barc a test run too. It’s fun medium to play with.
Have a creative week
Sharmaine.

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X-Press It: Glitter Paint

Today's tutorial takes us to a place close to many hearts…. glitter!  I am sure we all have a little, or not so little, stash of glitters in our drawers, some perhaps even unopened like the glitter I unearthed to make Glitter Paint!  It is a given in life, that all things are easier with X-Press It TripleTac, and in this case there is no need for expensive glitter glues, just supplies on hand and your trusty TripleTac… here is what I started with today:

You have seen me transform chipboard with Copic Markers before, below is the standard treatment of colouring the chipboard directly with a marker that co-ordinates with your patterned papers:

But when you are getting shabby, you don't necessarily want a matt coloured piece of chipboard, so get your TripleTac out and find a little dash of co-ordinated glitter, I use equal quantities of both, but you can mix the density of the glitter by changing the ratio of TripleTac to Glitter:

Simple mix the two together with a paint brush, the glitter paint will look milky as the TripleTac is white until it dries:

The it is a simple case of using your paint brush to apply the Glitter Paint to your pre-coloured chipboard, with this density of Glitter Paint I needn't have coloured the base first, but I always like to give some assurance just in case any little pieces are peeping through:

Disburse some of the left over Glitter paint on your planned embellishments and card layers, it helps to tie in the elements:

Then it is a simple case of putting your elements together on a card front:

From bland to glam in a matter of minutes:

Here are the X-Press It Products I used in my tutorial today:

X-Press It TripleTac Glue

FabScraps Crafty Girl Die Cut Chipboard

FabScraps Industrial Chic Collection

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Double Sided Bliss

Sometimes it is great to return to basics, to use what you have and to make the most of everyday supplies… and what better supply than double sided tape.  The great thing about X-Press It tapes is that they come in a variety of sizes, of course you can always split you tape to make smaller sizes, but the cost is moderate, so why not have a variety of sizes all pre-cut ready for use.

Today's project uses two sizes of tape 3mm and 6mm across the front of a card.  Of course I used double sided tape to adhere layers all the time, but thought it would be nice to see the tapes in action today for more display purposes…

Another fabby X-Press It range is that of Hazel & Ruby, especially their extra fat Washi Tapes, I have used a strip of washi on basic white card to form a band for the front of today's card project:

And then onto the fun of confetti, made from scraps of card that tie into the colours of the washi tape above, with a simple whole punch:

Once the confetti is prepared, it is time to run the tape across the front of the card base, heading in different directions with the two sizes of tape…. to make lift of easier I actually used my scalpel to remove the tape at each overlapping point:

Then I stuck the washi strip down and commenced dressing with the confetti, removing the 6mm tape first as I wanted to keep the confetti to the 6mm lines:

It really is as simple as giving the confetti a good rub, and the tape adheres and holds all the tiny pieces firmly in place:

This technique is repeated with fine glitter on the 3mm strips of tape:

And a little word die cut coloured with a Copic Marker to match the card/washi colours:

And then it was about finishing off the card with a flower and leaves…

Simple everyday products like double sided adhesive tape have many uses, try using your tapes on the outside of your projects next time you are in your creative space, it's affordable and fun!

Until next time, 

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