Got Chipboard?

Wow, I didn't realize the level of interest that there would be for this idea of making your own embossed borders! So, okay. I've read through the comments (Thanks, all!), done a little more thinking about this, and I've made another card using a chipboard border for embossing.

Here it is....


The stamped image and sentiment are from the Penny Black Garden Friends clear stamp set. And I thought that the hedgies were cute! But even though I might be a little premature with the sentiment, it does feel like spring here today in the midwest. Ahhhh!

I used Memento inks for the stamping and to color the Brides flowers which were originally white. I used Memento markers to color the chicks and flowers. The bling are hot fix crystals. And of course, the embossed border was made using another partly home-made chipboard shape.

Here's where it came from.


I liked Heidi's idea of using Grungeboard cutouts, but I didn't relish the thought of trying to cut them with my craft knife. That did make me think of that pack of chipboard shapes that I'd picked up some time back when I saw them on clearance at Joann's. Pictured above is one of the sheets from that pack.


This is the one I decided to work with, even though curves can be a little trickier to cut. Notice that you actually could use the frame that you're left with when you've removed the shape. Either keep those straight edges, or use that fancy two colored pencils and a rubberband tool ;-) to trace the outline--just run the one pencil on the inside this time instead to trace.


I followed the steps that I described yesterday, so up above you see the tracings on my chipboard shape.


Here I've cut out the traced area. I thought about using the inside and the outside together, sandwiching the cardstock or paper in between as I've done previously. That's why I sandwiched them here. I didn't do that yet though. I did smooth all of the edges by sanding them down a bit. That way the fit won't be too tight if I do decide to do that later. That also makes the edges nice and smooth for embossing.


This is how I arranged my stack. I flipped it so that you can see the layers, but I turned it back over when I put it through the Big Shot. So from the bottom up going through the machine I had: the multipurpose platform open to Tab 1, clear cutting plate, chipboard border, card front that I'd misted with water (Thanks for the reminder, Jennifer!), silicone embossing mat, clear cutting plate, shim.


After running it through, this is the design that was embossed on my card front. I thought it looked pretty good even without using the other pieces of chipboard, so I didn't take this further today. You could certainly make your own embossing folder (like the plastic ones by ProvoCraft, Sizzix, and QuicKutz) by reassembling the pieces and sandwiching them inside a transparency folder, gluing the border to one side and the outer and inner pieces to the other. Much like what I did here and here. And similarly, yes, Sandi, I think you certainly could use precut chipboard shapes like hearts or stars to emboss a card front. The only thing I might do is anchor the pieces on another piece of chipboard or cardstock. The silicone pad is really compressed and sort of oozes between the rollers of the machine as it's rolled through so it would shift the shapes unless they're held down.

Hope everyone's enjoying as lovely as day as we're having here! Time for me to get out and enjoy it. :-)

embossed shape outlines on the cheap

Last week on the Gingerwood stamping forum we were talking about do-it-yourself embossing folders. Folks with Cricuts were improvising and embossing shapes similar to the Spellbinders Nestabilities shapes. The only drawback was that they said that they couldn't emboss the border of a die cut the way that you can with a Nesties die cut. I got to thinking about this, and I thought, well, why not? They can cut out frames--a 1/4" wide frame could give the same effect as a die cut with an embossed border. Now, someone may have done this already with their Cricut. I don't have one, so I don't follow those blogs or forums, but I thought that those of us who don't have an electronic die cutter for whatever reason shouldn't be left out. LOL!

I've made DIY embossing folders before. This time I wanted to see if I could emboss the outline of a shape--something similar to an embossed Nestabilities die cut look. I was gonna do it on the cheap, too. No Cricut. Hm, but how....

I knew that I'd make it out of chipboard. I needed a way to make an open frame in some kind of shape. I don't have one of those nifty tracing tools that will trace a design in a smaller or larger size. Wouldn't that have been cool! But hey, I thought of something that might work! So simple, too.


This is an octagon that I printed out on computer paper. Spellbinders will be offering an octagonal set of Nestabilities dies soon, but they aren't available yet for most of us.


I cut out my octagon.


This is my cut out shape laid on top of chipboard which I'd received courtesy of the USPS with a stamp order. Love to recycle!


I cut out shape from the chipboard.


Here is my makeshift tracer! Yep, two colored pencils held together by a rubber band. Woo! High tech stuff! You don't see this just anywhere! ;-)


Time to trace the inside border of my frame. One pencil rests on the chipboard, and the other one rides along the outside edge of the shape. I have that piece of scrap paper underneath so that I don't trace an octagon on my table.


Pull the pencils along one edge, like so. Then do the same for the other edges.


Here is my shape with all of the edges traced.


Now it's time to cut along the marks with my ruler and craft knife.


When I was finished it looked like this. Gee, aren't you glad that I'm not into making videos? No need to watch some of the more tedious parts of the procedure. LOL! But more seriously, that's why I use photos. It's like those cooking shows where they put a cake in the oven, then turn around and pull out the one that's all baked and ready for the next step. Some videos drive me nuts when they take almost 10 minutes to describe what they're doing and there's no good way to skip ahead. ARGH! But I digress.... :-)


This is my cut out shape (frame) which is on top of my multipurpose platform open to Tab 1, black silicone embossing pad, and card front. I placed my clear cutting plate and the backing from a Cuttlebug folder package as a shim on top of all of that, then ran the stack through. If you have an impressions pad, you probably could use that instead of the clear plate and shim.


This is the embossed border on the card front. It's not as crisp as what you'd get with Nesties, but it's not bad for a different, softer look. It's definitely not bad when you consider my materials, i.e. recycled chipboard, two pencils, a rubberband, a craft knife, a cutting mat, and a ruler. I think it took me longer to write up this blog post than to make it, too. :-)


And here is that border used as an accent on a card. The stamp is from My Favorite Things and stamped and colored using Memento dye inks and markers. I embellished the flowers with a bit of Flower Soft to add dimension.

selective Sizzix-ing how-to

Selectively embossing with the Sizzix textured impressions folders is really very similar to creative Cuttling. Here are the details though, due to popular demand. :-)


In this first photo are the supplies needed: the Big Shot, multipurpose platform open to Tab 1, one clear cutting plate, two A2 size cards, one shim (Cuttlebug backing), two wood die cut frames, and two textured impressions folders.


Here is a better look at those wood die cut frames. I bought these at Michaels. You might be able to make out that I labeled the oval one with Tab 1 to make it easy on myself.


For my first card, I'm using the A2 folder from the Dots & Flowers set and the frame with the oval opening.


I place the card front inside the folder. When I wrote up creative Cuttling, I tucked the back of the folded card behind the folder. With these Sizzix folders, because of their size and the fact that the design covers the entire card front, the fold is inside the folder and so the back of the card needs to be left hanging out and the folder put through sideways.


From bottom to top: multipurpose platform open to Tab 1, shim (because I know I'll need one), folder with card front inside, wood die cut frame, clear cutting plate.


Here's the stack all lined up and ready to be run through the machine.


And here's how it turned out.


I did the same thing with the other wood frame and the Argyle A2 size Sizzix folder. The stack, or sandwich, was exactly the same.


And this is how it looked after rolling it through.

So again, this is very much like creative Cuttling. The only real differences, and they're minor ones, are putting the folder and card through sideways and leaving the back flap of the card as the trailing edge.

A caveat if you're trying this for the first time--machines are different and what works for one might not work quite the same way for another. You may not need to shim, or you may need more shims than I used. You'll have to play with it a bit the first time or two, but after that you should be able to keep using your same combo. Just don't force anything through your machine. There should be a little bit of resistance getting started, but my sandwich rolls through easily once it starts going through.

One last thought, I'd seen somewhere that people were using craft sticks or other items inside their folders to selectively emboss. From the cards that I've seen, that seems to work. I personally prefer placing anything that makes the sandwich uneven on the outside of the folder. I think that gives me the best shot at getting a fairly distinct border between the embossed and unembossed areas. I'm also hesitant to put any uneven pressure on any of the actual design elements inside the folder because I'd hate to mess up parts of the positive or negative face and risk getting a less than crisp and clean emboss when I use the folder normally. I'm all for using things in new and creative ways, but I'd rather not put a good thing at risk. Just my two cents. :-)

embossing with plastic templates

Since I've addressed some of the old business, here's some new business. Alicia wrote requesting a Big Shot tutorial that has to do with embossing using plastic templates. Apparently someone came up with the idea of embossing mini-envelope templates using a Cuttlebug. I guess this makes it easier to cut them out, or at least eliminates that tracing step.

Okay, I don't have a mini-envelope template and most of my envelope templates are for bigger envelopes and are too big to be embossed via a die cutter machine. What I do have that fits is a post-it note cover template. Amazing what a person can find when looking through her stash. Who knew? ;-) But I'd guess that this is roughly the same thickness as an envelope template, even one of the mini variety.

Here's what I did....

These are the supplies I used: my Big Shot, multipurpose platform, black impressions pad, one clear cutting plate, silicone rubber, post-it cover plastic template, scrap paper.


This is the stack, or sandwich, that I used from bottom to top: multipurpose platform open to no tabs, clear cutting plate, template, paper, silicone, impressions pad. Now usually this type of combo, with the silicone and the impressions pad, is used with Tab 1. Since this was a trial run and I do try to start thinner first, and since I was using lightweight paper like I would probably use for an envelope, I started with no tabs.

Here's how it turned out. I know. It's a little tough to see.

Here's how it looks from behind so that you can see that it embossed nicely. The fold lines weren't cut through either, so I was satisfied that using no tabs was a good thing to do and I'd use that same combo again.

FYI, if you decide to try this with mini-envelope templates, you'll need to cut the excess plastic away from the envelope shape then put it through to emboss it. LOL! That's why I picked a really easy shape to experiment with--no cutting, simple shape. :-) Hm, now I may just need to make some post-it note covers with this thing....

embossing only, with Nestabilities

The other day I received an email from Alicia who asked if I could post a tutorial about doing embossing only with the Big Shot. This question had to do with this card, in which I'd used a rectangular Nestabilities die to emboss a shape, but not cut it out.

Embossing only is pretty simple. Here's what I do....


Pictured above are my Big Shot, a piece of Die Cuts with a View cardstock, a pinking circle Nestabilities die by Spellbinders, the Sizzix Impressions pad, the black silicone rubber sheet from Sizzix (virtually the same as the tan pad by Spellbinders), and the multipurpose platform open to Tab 1.

My stack from the bottom up is as follows: multipurpose platform open to Tab 1, clear cutting plate, die with cutting side up, cardstock face down, silicone rubber, Impressions pad.


This is the front side of the embossing. Because of the silicone sheet, the die does not cut through the cardstock. It just leaves the embossed impression of the die and its details.


This is that same piece of cardstock from the back. Originally I wanted to show that the die really didn't cut through, but I like the look of this side, too. This shows the raised embossing rather than the debossing that I used in the card and in the first example in this post.

So, since I have the Big Impressions kit by Sizzix, those are the materials that I use--the kit came with the Impressions pad, silicone rubber, and some texture plates. I don't think that you absolutely have to have this kit to make this technique work. In fact, I know that you don't. You can use a thin sheet of fun foam in place of the silicone rubber. All you need is a softer surface that isn't a good cutting surface for the die. In place of the Impressions pad, which is a little bit thicker than the clear cutting pad, you can use the clear cutting pad and two or three Cuttlebug backing shims--you know, the backing from the Cuttlebug embossing folders and dies that I seem to have so many of. :-) I tried this combo and it works. The embossing with the silicone rubber was more crisp and defined though, and that's what I'd recommend using if you've got it. It's just softer and more pliable than fun foam and really brings out the finer details, just like when using it to emboss brass stencils etc.

Hope that answers your question, Alicia. :-)

two tips for using Cuttlebug combo sets

Just a couple of quick tips for using the cut and emboss combo sets. I have a few of these. With most of them you can easily tell which way the die cuts need to be placed inside the embossing folder in order to emboss them. Two of them are a little trickier: the new Ice Crystal and the Rosebud Wreath. There's only one way that these two die cuts will fit in their respective embossing folders, and it can be tricky to place them once they've been cut out.


Here is the ice crystal set. If you have them side by side like this, this is the orientation that you need for the die cut to properly match up with the embossing folder design.


See? I hope that you can tell that they line up exactly. The trick is getting the die cut lined up once it's been cut out, or maybe been flipped, or dropped on the floor, or something like that. Hey, it happens!


For the ice crystal shape, there's a telltale difference in one of the arms that can help you orient the die cut properly. It's that lower left arm or spoke. See where my pen is supposed to be pointing out the connected pieces? Yeah, it moved a little just before I snapped the pic. I think you get the idea though. It looks that way when cut out, too, and it's the only arm that's like that. That's the one that you want to put in the corresponding position in the embossing folder. Makes it a little easier to place it, eh?


This rosebud wreath is similar, but there isn't a telltale piece that you can find as easily. It will fit only one way though, so you should be able to emboss the full design if you've placed it in the folder correctly. I tend to orient it via that three-pointed leaf at the top left of the design, but you need to pick what works best for you.


Here's what I really wanted to point out with this set though. Once you find the correct orientation and have placed the die cut inside the folder, the last thing that you need is for it to move before you can run it through and emboss it. I placed a couple of small dabs of tack it over and over glue at each of the top two corners of the folder. After I've placed the die cut where I want it, I just give a quick press at each corner to hold it shut with the die cut in place. You could use double-sided tape as well. There are also folks who put the tape or temporary adhesive on the back of the die cut itself. I just wanted to point out another alternative that might be a little quicker and easier.

Those are my tips for today for using these Cuttlebug combo cut and emboss sets. Hope they help some of you eliminate some of the frustration that using these sets can cause at times because they can be a lot of fun and look very pretty when all goes according to plan. :-)

decorative strip dies in Cuttlebug

A couple of days ago, Marie in BC, Canada, wrote to ask me the following:

I was wondering if you've ever used the sizzlit decorative strips in your c'bug? Do you need to run it through with the sizzlit strip plates or can you use double the c'bug plates like for the bigz xl dies?

My first thought was that these strips could be treated like regular Sizzlits, but then the problem of the potential crease from the edge of the plate occurred to me and I thought I'd better actually test one. Here's what I found.


I used the usual sandwich for Sizzlit dies: A plate, B plate, die with cutting side up, cardstock, B plate.


Running the stack through as you normally would, you'd get a crease from the edge of the plate. That's what I figured. Now for me, this crease hit at a spot where it probably wouldn't have mattered much. It caught the very tip of that blade of grass and wouldn't have been too noticeable. You might be able to find a spot on the strip where you could place that edge and it wouldn't matter if it made a crease. But what if you had a long, continuous design where it could make a difference?


Here's what I tried in order to minimize the possibility of creasing the cardstock. I left that trailing edge of the B plates, die and cardstock hanging off the edge of the A plate.


By doing that, I avoided making that crease. No pressure applied to the edge means no creasing. Sorry that the pic isn't focused as well as it could have been. Trust me though. There's no crease.


The next step was to cut out the rest of the design. This means sliding the uncut portion of the die and cardstock between the B plates and running it through again. You still want to avoid putting a crease in your cardstock. Essentially, you repeat what you did before. Here I show putting the front end of the plates through, hanging off the edge of the A plate. All I'd done was slide the die and cardstock forward in between the B plates. This worked. You could also flip this combo around and have this be the trailing edge going through the machine rather than the first part through. It's whatever is easier for you.

So, to use these decorative dies in the Cuttlebug, you'll just have to run your sandwich through the machine twice. You can't double up the B plates like you do with the XL dies because you have the short A plate to contend with, too, but you also don't need to have the long strip plates to use them--you can use the regular B plates. The long plates would make it easier in that you wouldn't have to worry about the potential crease--you'd just run the die through between the plates twice to cut the full length--but you can use what you've got already with your machine to make these work.

Hope that answers your questions, Marie. :-)

Cuttlebug workaround for those XL Sizzix dies

Okay, it seems like I've spent quite a bit of time talking about Cuttlebug folders and Sizzix dies lately. I thought I'd make some cards this afternoon. It's wicked hot today and a good day to stay inside in air-conditioned comfort. Well, I was cleaning up some of the mess I'd made and had a new idea occur to me. *AHA! moment*

Now, the problem with using those XL Sizzix dies in the Cuttlebug is that the Cuttlebug cutting plates are only about half the length that you need, and the Sizzix cutting plates are long enough but too wide to fit through the machine. You can use the short plates, but because of the way they hit the rollers as the trailing edge passes through, you get a crease in your cardstock. That's the dilemma.

Here's the workaround....


Up above you can see the Cuttlebug, a mostly hidden B plate at the bottom, the Sizzix XL scalloped card die, a piece of cardstock, and.... two of the Sizzix long narrow plates side by side. Together they cover the cutting blades of the die--not the entire die surface, but enough to cut out the entire shape. Because of the way that these roll through, perpendicular to the rollers, the edges don't get pushed down and into the cardstock die cut, leaving an unsightly crease.


See? I wanted to show you that this stack did cut out the full shape of the die and left no creases other than the faint line left by the scoring bar (that's supposed to be there).

Now I'll just let you know about the one other thing that I learned the hard way. You can cut in one pass, but you'll need to use the two B plates end to end at the bottom of the stack. Once you get the stack rolling through and start feeding that second B plate into the machine, keep steady forward pressure on it as you crank! It will tend to want to slip back out. Guess how I know. ;-) Or if you happen to have two pairs of those long Sizzix plates you could use one pair on the bottom and save yourself having to worry about that.

So, I think that's a pretty decent workaround for the Sizzix XL die issue. It's probably the best of the alternatives. Cuttlebug users may have to invest in a pair of these longer narrow cutting plates if they don't have them already, but until there are long cutting plates available for the Cuttlebug, this sandwich combo will at least give decent results.

Big Catch-All Post including Cuttlebug/Sizzix Info

I want to address a few things that have come up in comments and make some observations.

One question had to do with the Double Cuttle and how I get the different colors between the designs of the two folders. I run my cardstock through inside the first folder, usually the busier pattern. I accent that embossing either direct to paper using Cats-eye inkpads or a dauber. I then put that through my second embossing folder. The new image is embossed and the "background" embossing is flattened somewhat, but not lost entirely. I then accent that second, more prominent embossing by inking it in a different color or colors. That's it!

Another comment had to do with Bigz dies and the Cuttlebug. I know there's an renewed interest in Sizzix dies, particularly the bigger dies, because of the recently announced association between Stampin' Up and Sizzix. There's a misconception out there about which Sizzix dies can be used in the Cuttlebug. They ALL can. They all fit through the machine. It's the Sizzix plates that won't fit through the slot of the Cuttlebug. They're too wide. You can put the dies through between the C'bug plates though. Need proof? I took pics, 'cuz why should you believe me over someone else who says that they won't fit, eh? But hey, if you trusted me already, then cool. :-)


Here's my Cuttlebug. The opening is 6" wide.


This is a Bigz die, which measures 5 1/2" by 6". It'll definitely fit through...


even sideways, though it's a tight fit. Hey, you never know when someone might need to put the die through sideways, eh? But it'd work.


This is one of the XL dies. Though according to the Sizzix site info it's 6" wide, it isn't quite, and as you may have seen in some of my other posts, these dies will easily fit through the Cuttlebug. The issue is not having plates long enough to cut these dies in one pass. I showed how the B plates can be used with the scalloped card die without getting a crease where the plate ends. You can cut the XL card dies that use the Movers & Shapers, too.


Here's the horizontal card die with the opening for the Movers & Shapers dies. I'm pointing out the scoring bar in the blurry photo above. Sorry 'bout that.


Put the folded edge of a piece of 4 1/2"by 12" piece of cardstock that's been scored and folded in half next to that scoring bar. You're just going to use this half of the die to cut out your card. Half of the die fits nicely between the B plates.


That's how it looks after you've made the first pass. And now as I look at this, it looks like you could maybe get away with using an 11" length of cardstock.... Nifty!


This is the other end of the die, the side where the metal "floor" holds the magnetic Mover & Shaper in place to cut out windows in your card. This is the end you'll use this time.


Place the open card so that it's aligned inside the cutting blades and over the Mover & Shaper die and run this half of the die through between your B plates. In the photo above I wanted to point out that you'll want to align the card's fold with the edge of the top plate so that it won't leave a noticeable crease in your card as it passes through the machine.

But wait! Even if you don't have one of these card dies, you can still use the Sizzix Movers & Shapers dies. I've posted about this before, but I'd like to repeat myself here since Amy made a comment that reminded me about magnetic paper as a useful tool.


Pictured above are 2 B plates, a sheet of magnetic paper and a Movers & Shapers die. The die tends to slip without metal to grab onto, so to make using this die more foolproof and less frustrating, use a sheet of magnetic paper to help hold it in place. You can see how I've marked mine so that I can place my dies fairly accurately. That's just the outline of an A2 card. The dotted lines help me with placement and making sure the die is straight or centered etc.


This is my sheet of magnetic paper. It doesn't add much thickness to the sandwich at all.


This is that same stack with the card and another cutting plate on top. If you have an extra B plate you can use that. This is one from my Sizzix supplies because I don't have a spare B plate.


This stack worked fine for me, but you may need to shim.


And this is the card with the window cut out--all done with the Cuttlebug.

While we're on the subject of magnetic paper (Thanks so much for the reminder, Amy!), I thought I'd show how I sometimes use this with my Nestabilities dies.


Here you see plate A, plate C, sheet of magnetic paper, card open and face down on top of die with cutting side up, plate B. Again, I have some lines drawn to help me make sure that I can place the die right where I want it. There's just enough pull to the magnet to hold the die in place. I prefer this to using tape to keep things from moving.


Here I've run that stack through the machine.

This is the way the card looks from the front once it's been folded. It's a nice easy way to add a window to a card front.

Sorry about the length of this post and the number of photos. I try to keep things short and not have too many pics to load at once, but so much of this was inter-related that I hated to break things up. Hopefully there was enough useful info up there to make the loading time worthwhile. :-)