Colored Pencils on Metal!!?? Why not!! :)

Yeppers.  Another metal experiment.  I am a little disappointed in the outcome of this experiment. But, I do think with a few adjustments, it can turn out much better.  So........ let me tell you what I did (and show the results) and then I'll tell you what I think it will take to turn out better! :)

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First, I have been smitten by the notion of drawing on metal with colored pencils.  I have seen a matte black metal that is designed for drawing.  I have not ordered any of the metal because it is rather expensive.  Then I thought, why not try and make some out of what I have??!! 

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I took some of my Rock Star Black metal from Ten Seconds Studio and sprayed 2 medium coats of PYMII on it.  (PYMII is an acrylic sealer.... super fabulous stuff!  Great for sealing all sorts of projects, including metal!!)  This gives the metal some "tooth" to take the colored pencil.

On the top, the PYMII coated metal.  Below (on the scrap piece of metal) colored pencil over untreated metal.

I ran the coated metal through my Big Shot Machine. (used a Cuttlebug folder.... Holly)  You can see (sorta) that I debossed the metal. (i.e. the pattern is sunk in on the front and puffed out in the back)

Then I colored in the debossed areas with colored pencil.  This is what it looks like unaltered after coloring.

This is the effect you can get if you sand the pattern after coloring. (Obviously you need to be a little more careful with your sanding!! :)

So.  Overall, I think the technique has possibilities!!  Now, how to make it better??

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1) Freehand embossing should give better results.  The 90 degree (almost) angle of the Cuttlebug folder image is too sharp.  It is very difficult to color the entire image w/out getting it on the edge of the image.  You could try to use extremely sharp pencils to try and avoid this problem.  So, next time I will try to do a freehand image and I bet the results will "pop" more off the metal.

2) Two additional coats of PYMII should give a more even coloring surface.  I think the pencils will take better with a couple more coats of sealer.  Also, using lighter colors obviously will make the image contrast more w/ the black surface.

3)  Improve my coloring skills!  LOL!!  I think this technique could look really beautiful if colored by someone with a little more talent! :)

4) Just a note.  This technique could also be done with the Brrrrrrr Blue, Dark Chocolate, Barn Red, and Plum metals.  (The darker colors of metal) 

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Now, I did try a little somethin' somethin' with a couple of leftover scraps.  I think these would make really cool embellishment pieces!!

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I took a piece of the coated metal and used my colored pencil to emboss the image (instead of my paper stump) 

Then I sanded the image.  You can see the cool colored bits of metal under the sanded image.  I think it looks pretty nifty!

Here is another example using a very light blue pencil over the coated black metal.  Again, coooooooooooool! :)

So, overall I think my experiment has possibilities! :)   Another medium that could be used:  Chalk pencils! 

Remember that you will have to seal over the colored pencil or chalk after you finish your piece.  You can use the PYMII over non-permanent mediums.

A Metal Mosaic Experiment

I don't know about you, but I really liked the Mosaic Technique on Taco Tuesday this week. :)  Someone on the TSS Yahoo Group suggested that maybe you could put together the mosaic on top of a piece of Humungo Double Sided Tape FIRST, and then die cut the mosaic. 

 (this was presented by: Lori H aka "llhassle")

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I thought this was a great idea!!  I gave it a shot!! :)  I decided not to worry about the gaps inbetween the metal pieces.  I filled them with "grout"!

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I took a scrap piece of Humungo Tape about 4x4 inches.  I peeled the backing off and carefully put on top of my craft sheet.  I cut up a bunch of scrap pieces of metal and randomly put them together over the exposed sticky-side of the tape.  After I was done, I cut out 4 flower shapes with my Tim Holtz Alterations Die.  One medium flower and 3 small flowers.  After I cut out the shapes, I filled in the exposed gaps with extra fine glitter. (my grout!)  I stuck one small flower over the medium flower and placed a blingy brad in the center.  I just added the blingy brad to the other small flowers as well.

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I think they turned out pretty cool!  A little funk-i-fied, but cool! :) :)  What do you think??!! 

TSS Yahoo Group - Our first SWAP! :) ATCs

Hi!  Well, I have set up our first Swap over at the new Ten Seconds Studio Yahoo Group!!  We are starting "easy" with some ATCs.  I thought I'd share my progress with you as I work through my creations for the swap.

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One of my most favorite "art things" to do is make backgrounds.  I just love the freedom of abstract art. Slopping around with paints and inks...... doesn't get much better! :)   I came up with an idea to use the TSS molds in my background! (I'm sure many others out there have already done this!:) 

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I started with some heavy watercolor paper.  I dabbed some of my Starburst Stains onto several of the TSS molds (can you find them??:)  Then I "stamped" the molds onto the watercolor paper.  There was a lot of puddling and generalized spreading of ink, but you can still make out the basic images of the molds.  After the Starburst Stains dried, I did the same thing again with Distress Inks.  After that layer dried, I then used my Tim Holtz Blending tool to "fill in" the blank spots with more Distress Ink.

You can see the full sheet here:

(You cannot see the shimmer from the Starburst Stains here.... it is really neat because they peek out from behind the Distress ink...pretty!)

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After all of the inks dried, I then cut 4 base pieces for my ATCs.  Here they are!! :)

Who knows what the next step will be?!!  That's the fun of it, isn't it??? :)  Stay tuned.........

(p.s. If you'd like to join in on the fun, the sign up deadline for the swap is not until July 9.  Come join the group and play! :)

Finished the Embossed Dog and made a Mosaic Frame

Yippie!  I actually finished off the "All Dogs Go To Heaven" project that I started with my metal embossing kit for the Cricut from Chomas Creations.  The girl I made this for is a hippie wannabe, so I made it in sort of a grungy, tie-dye style.  I hope it doesn't make her too sad.......

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I also actually executed a project that I envisioned a while ago!  WooHoo!! :)  I wanted to make a mosaic frame from UTEE and metal.  I thought it would look pretty cool!  I used the Ten Seconds Studio molds for the patterns on the UTEE.  I did a freehand pattern on the metal.  I used Rock Star Black metal and black UTEE.  I cut the UTEE pieces while it was still warm.  I embossed and sanded the metal and then I cut it up into pieces.

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I took a cheapo square wooden frame that I got from Michael's and covered it with the Humungo 2 sided tape from TSS.  I cut out the hole in the middle and trimmed the sides.  Then I painted the edges.  Now, I SHOULD have painted the frame first......  oh, well.

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I placed all of the pieces of UTEE and metal on the frame.  After I got it to look the way I wanted, I filled in all of the spaces with microbeads. I highlighted the UTEE pieces with Perfect Pearls.   I touched up around the middle of the frame with some paint.  I put in a photo and VOILA.... my altered item project for our local fair! :) :)

Super fun and pretty darn easy!