Monday, March 22, 2010

UTEE and Fantasy Art Stamps - Let's Play




Let's play with some UTEE and ching chou kuiks Fantasy Art stamps! 
Disclaimer: No rubber stamps were harmed in the process - just in case you were wondering :-)!

This project is a fun to do because you can let your inner artist come out to explore all kinds of different creative ideas. Basically I mean go wild and have fun! Gather your supplies and let's get started!
 
Supplies you will need:


  • UTEE (Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel)
  • Melting Pot
  • To Dye For Ink
  • Pigment or Permanent Ink
  • Rubber Stamps

 
  • Craft Stick or Spatula
  • Non-stick Embossing Craft Sheet
  • optional: Dry Pigment Powders
  • optional: Glitter, Beads, Charms, etc.
  • Wonder Tape or Glue




Working on a sturdy, protected area plug in your Melting Pot. Pour clear UTEE in the pot to melt, cover with lid .

Keep your melting pot covered while the UTEE is melting. This helps to melt your embossing enamel more quickly and efficiently. 
(Having said that, once I started pouring the melted UTEE, I completely got lost in what I was doing that I did not put the lid back on in between pourings)

While we're waiting for the UTEE to melt, grab your Sweet Pea Stamp of choice. I grabbed the angel stamps from Plate 17, ching-chou kuik's Caribbean Treasure from Plate 36 and ching-chou kuik's Dark Sirene from Plate 24.
(Ok, I admit I dragged them all out - after all, I don't play too often with the Melting Pot and UTEE so when I do, I take full advantage of it :-) )


 
I used StazOn Azure ink to ink up my stamp. You can use any pigment ink, but I like the results I got with StazOn. Be sure to ink up your stamp really well.



Once the UTEE was completed melted, I added 3-4 drops of To Dye For Ink.

Using a craft stick or spatula, stir it really well.






Pour the melted UTEE onto the craft sheet.

Now hold your breath, lol and press your inked stamp into the melted UTEE.



As you press, it's normal that some of the melted UTEE will push out on the side - creating like a wedge shape. No worries, that's perfectly ok.

Leave the stamp in the UTEE until it cools completely.



I didn't have time to trim or apply repositionable glue on the back of the images from Plate 36 yet. I didn't let that stop me. As seen here, I used ching-chou kuik's Caribbean Treasure without an acrylic block.

Once the UTEE cools, the stamp will lift out easily.



Peel image from craft sheet, if desired trim while still warm or use a hot knife. I like the look of the excess UTEE and didn't trim any of it.



Save all excess pieces of UTEE or any pieces that you are not happy with because you can re-melt these. I safe mine in a sandwich bag for later use.
 
Oh you can also make your own dew drops :-).



Here is a close up (blurry - sorry) of the stamp after I peeled it off the melted UTEE.

See, no harm done. After a good scrub with StazOn cleaner, my stamps looked good as new!

Now you can embellish your piece with glitter glue or charms or you can use pigment ink powders to add more definition. You can attach your piece to a card or leave as is to use as a suncatcher. The piece will be see through, just remember that the stamped image will appear in reverse if you use the non-stamped side. If you plan on using it as a sun catcher, use a toothpick to poke a hole while the finished piece is still warm.

I wanted to create a piece of wall art, so let's continue:



Using card stock from DCWV's Old World Stack and my Lattice Shapeabilities pendant, I die cut 2 pieces which I glued back to back.



I applied my finished piece on top of the lattice die cut with Zippy Paper Glue and yes, my piece cracked. I left it like this because it adds character.... I like it :-). At this point, I could have called this piece finished.

But since I love hardware stores and wanted something a little sturdier, I dug out my Formica sample chips.



You can find these at any home improvement center in the cabinet/counter section.

Using a regular glue stick, I adhered a piece of DP cut slightly larger than the Formica swatch.

Next I used my sanding pad to sand along the edges which gives gets rid of the excess paper and finishes the edges.

I added my melt art on top of the covered Formica with glue. Finishing the whole piece off with different embellishments.



Here are a couple of close-ups!



I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. I'm by no means an expert but the whole idea is to experiment and have fun.

As you can see from my piece, there are no mistakes just opportunities to embellish!

I'll leave you with another look at the finished piece!

10 comments:

  1. very cool Micki, I love it! Thank you for posting this.

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  2. This is so cool! What an awesome idea! And I LOVE that you used formica chips! I have a ton of those!!! I'm pretty nutty about hardware stores too! Great tutorial!

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  3. Micki, this looks just awesome!! You did a wondeful job on the tutorial!! I my just have to try this one day!! I love the colors!! Thanks for sharing this!!
    Hugs:)
    Angela

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  4. Wow Micki! Wonderful tutorial and even better outcome! I love it.
    Connie

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  5. Wow, thanks for all the awesome instructions as well. The final project looks great.

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  6. Wow, thanks so much for the fabulous tutorial! I have never tried this! :-)Traci

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  7. Cool project Micki!! I love UTEE!

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  8. Micki- this is so wonderful! All the pictures and clear instructions. You make me think I NEED one of these toys now!!!

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  9. Wow, this is so artsy. Fabulous.

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