Brand new stamp set!

I promised you a card using a brand new stamp set… and here it is: a new stamp set and a new technique all on one day!

This set is one of the four released to demonstrators early – it’s called For Father and features four stamps. There are three images; this one, a puppy lying on a pair of boots, and a tool box. The fourth stamp is a saying which reads: “May happiness touch your life today as you have so often touched the lives of others.” So, even though the set is called For Father, you could use it for anyone – it’s particularly useful for masculine cards. To get the “happiness” on this card, I inked just that one word using a marker.

I was daunted by it because it involves colouring – if you look back through my samples you’ll notice there isn’t much colouring going on because I’m too lazy! But I knuckled down and had a go, finding it surprisingly therapeutic. I used my Watercolour Wonder™ crayons… I really am going to have to invest in another pack of these, as they’re so gorgeous.

Now, what’s this crazy technique all about? It’s called the Cracked Glass Technique and it appears to be very popular on craft blogs at the moment, so I thought I’d better jump on the bandwagon before it went without me.

I’ll prepare a tutorial on it when I have more time but as I’m not sure when that will be, this is what you do, in brief: Stamp and colour your image as normal, then apply Versamark® all over it before dipping in clear embossing powder. Repeat this process several times until you have a good thick glassy layer. I have to say, this image looked fabulous when it was at this stage, it was almost a shame to go any further.

But I did – the next stage involves putting your embossed image in the freezer for about 10 minutes. Remove then gently bend it until the embossing cracks. Keep going until you’re happy with the results. You can rub some dark chalk into the cracks if you like, to give it an aged effect.

Hope you like it!

Stamps: For Father
Cardstock: Bravo Burgundy, Rose Red, Always Artichoke
Ink: Basic Black
Accessories: Watercolour Wonder™ crayons – Rich Regals, Embossing powder, ¼” Grosgrain Ribbon - Always Artichoke

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