Scared of trying PPs?? :)

Hello dear friends,

How have you all been? I see lot of activity happening in blog world and on FB too... You all are busy making beautiful projects, aren't you? Talking about beautiful projects, have you all submitted for the on-going challenge? No? You need to hurry then, only a day left to play along. Click HERE for all the details.You don't want to miss the chance of winning some yummy goodies! :)

I'm here with some basic ideas to use PPs. This post is intended for beginners.

Sorry for the BAD, HORRIBLE pictures. I usually get to craft only in the evenings, so I don't get natural light to photograph things when I'm in the process of making things...

Now that I'm done with excuses, let me tell you what I'm here for today! :)

When I started card making, I couldn't imagine using these beautiful papers. I came to a conclusion that those were not for me. But I couldn't resist hoarding them. After all this time, I mustered some courage to put them to use and I must say, they are so fun to play with! :)

I'm here to inspire all you newbies who are reluctant to buy patterned paper. These simple tips and techniques will let you decide whether you like to use them in future or not! To all of those professional card makers, this post might look useless, please excuse me! :-p

I'll be showing either my finished cards or the techniques here for better understanding...

Let's start, shall we? :)

1. Using PP as it is- The most basic thing that you can use a PP is, use as it is! :-p cut it, used it on a card...very simple.

Here is my card I made for inspiration. This is one of the ways to highlight the PP you want to use.

Keep your embellishments to a minimum...

2. Using stencils on the PP- It's so easy to create a quick card with this technique. All you need is a PP, stencil and a coordinating ink.

3.Stamping on PP- 

 I used a script stamp to stamp on already beautiful PP. I wanted the design to be subtle, so I stamped with white ink.

See how pretty it looks to have your PP frame the sentiment? :)

For this, I stamped in such a way that the pattern is NOT subtle. Just few embellishments, die cuts and stamping, a pretty card can be done in just a few minutes.

.4. Die cutting PP- I loved the results... See it for yourself.

Don't they look pretty? :)

5. Distressing PPs- I absolutely LOVE distressing the edges of PPs.. I feel that distressing the edges of gives a 'soft' look to the project. You can also distress the edges of the die cuts of PPs. Trust me, they look beautiful!

6. Highlighting a portion of PP with glossy accents- This is such a fun thing to do and you wont regret trying.

I highlighted few polka dots... similarly you can highlight a part of design on the PP you want to use...see the gloss???

7. Fussy cutting elements from a PP- I like fussy cutting, especially when I find pretty things to add on my cards! Look at this...

I have cut all these elements from a PP from Mambi 12X12 Mixed media paper pad. Isn't it cute? :)

Here is the PP..

The papers from this paper pad are AWESOME! I am thoroughly in love with each and every sheet of this book. They are perfect for scrap-booking. How I wish I were capable of making a scrapbook! :p

8. Rosettes- Rosettes in my view are one of the prettiest embellishments. It's been ages since I made rosettes. It was the first hand made embellishment I used on my cards when I was pretty new to card making! :)

If you haven't tried them, here's the link of a youtube video...make pretty rosettes from your PPs or even PP scraps.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0zfThXCkMs

9. Stitching on PP- Stitching on any paper is a nice addition to your project. I found stitching on PP even better. Stitching adds more beauty to your shabby chic projects.

I used my mother's sewing machine to do the stitching. Excuse my super bad stitching! :) I tried it after many, many years! :) The finished card looks much better....

You can use sew easy tool to add stitching on your cards...

10. Make boxes and pouches- You can make pouches and boxes directly with your PPs, especially when you have no time. Here is one I made long ago...

I had made this in less than fifteen minutes!

And here is the bow I made for the shabby chic card above...

Don't you think such a box enhances the beauty of the card inside??

11. You could also try heat embossing on PP. I haven't tried it yet but I'm planning to... :)

Well....that is all I have got to show you for today.

Supplies used from the store-

Mambi Mixed media 12x12 paper pad
Prima Fairy rhymes paper pad
Distress paints- picked raspberry, mowed lawn, fired brick
distress inks- vintage photo, tumbled glass
colour vibe paper pad
Kaisercraft's texture clear stamp set- 'Confidence'
Zephyr paper pad
Colorbox frost white ink
Ranger jet black jumbo archival ink pad
Red mulberry flowers are from crafters corner too. Contact Shalini if you want some...

So...that's all from me, any queries about the products, drop a mail to Shalini at info@crafterscorner.in