Friday, May 14, 2010

Beaded Window Cards Tutorial

Here is a fun bead technique that I created a few years ago that you might like to try!  A clear piece of acetate is the window layer that gets covered with clear micro beads so that an image inside the card shows through!

Beaded Window Step 14

Instructions © Suzanne Glazier

Supply List:
A piece of clear acetate for the window
O'So Sticky Tape Sheet
One Scrap Red Liner - from a used sheet of O'So Sticky Tape
Clear Mini Micro Beads (You can use the regular clear micro beads if you wish!)
Stamps, inks and coloring tools of choice.  Keep in mind what image you want to have showing through the window of your card
Temporary adhesive - this can be a temporary scotch tape, mono adhesive, or whatever you have on hand that will allow you to reposition something!
Tools to cut out a window.  You can use a ruler with a craft knife, or if you have any hand held punches that will do the trick - you can use those! For my example, I used my square "Whale of a punch"!
One piece of cardstock for the card base - can be any size card you like!
One piece of cardstock for the cover of your card. 

Fibers or ribbon to coordinate with and complete your creation.

Directions:

Step 1:
Choose a piece of cardstock for your card base.
The example is done with a white cardstock base that is 8.5" by 4.5" Folded in half it makes a nice size for this card! (4.25" x 4.5")

Step 2:
Create another layer for the cover of your card.
This can be the same color as your base, or you many want to choose something that coordinates, or even contrasts nicely. I chose to use Stardream paper in the Sapphire Blue color.  You'll want this piece to be at most, the same size as your card front. I chose to trim mine down to 4 1/4" by 4 3/4", so that the white base piece would frame the blue cover piece.

Beaded Window Step 1-2

Step 3:
Fasten the cover piece to the card front with a temporary adhesive.  You NEED to be able to remove and reposition this piece later!

Beaded Window Step 3b

Step 4:
Use a craft knife or large craft punch to make a window through both front layers of your card.

Beaded Window Step 4a 

Step 4A:
This is a good time to stamp the image inside your card so that it shows through the window.

Beaded Window Step 4b

Step 5:
Separate the cover from the card and remove the temporary adhesive and stamp the cover as desired.
Beaded Window Step 5

Step 6:
Cut a piece of acetate for your window. Make it a little bigger than the opening. It should be large enough to fit in your window with about ¼" overlap on each side.
Also cut a piece of O'So Sticky from a tape sheet. The O'So needs to overlap your acetate about ¼" on each side.


(For example, if your window is a 1 1/2" square, then your acetate needs to be 2" square and your O'So Sticky Tape needs to be 2 1/2" square.)

Beaded Window Step 6

Step 7
In this step, I will show you how you can use tape liners to your advantage and save yourself a lot of headaches and wasted tape, I call it the “Tape Trick”.  Take your piece of O'So Sticky tape and peel back ONE of the liners, just a little and fold it down as shown:

Note that this tutorial was made when O’So was manufactured for us with a brown kraft liner.  Nowadays this would be a white release paper liner.

Hold onto the tape with the exposed adhesive facing you and lay the acetate down onto the tape liner. The liner will give the acetate just enough lift to keep it from actually touching the tape. This allows you the opportunity to get the acetate just exactly where you want it! In this case, that is right smack in the middle.
Once you have your acetate in place, press it down onto the exposed tape.

Beaded Window Step 7b Now it is anchored - and you can peel the rest of that liner off, and press it onto the O'So Sticky adhesive. DO NOT remove the 2nd liner yet!

Beaded Window Step 7c

Step 8:
With the second liner still attached, take the acetate piece and place it over the window of your card base acetate side DOWN.  The exposed O'So Sticky edges will hold the acetate into the card.

Step 9:
Next, you will prepare the cover piece.  Place strips of O'So Sticky Tape on the back side of the cover paper.

Beaded Window Step 9

Remove the liners from these strips as well as from the top of your acetate piece.  Take care and try not to touch the adhesive with your fingers at all.

Step 10
Get out a scrap piece of red liner (the red rubber release liner that comes on an O’So Tape sheet).  Place the red liner over the exposed adhesive of your card base,
as shown below.  Remember your base is the piece with the acetate window now attached. Leave just a bit of the base exposed at the top as shown here:

Beaded Window Step 10

Step 11:

Place the cover piece over the front of your card base taking care to line up the window openings of both pieces.  When the cover is right where you want it to be, press down on the top edge so the exposed adhesive will grab the card base and your cover will be in place. It will look something like this:
Beaded Window Step 11

Now, carefully peel the red liner out from behind the cover and press the cover all the way onto the base to secure.
Beaded Window Step 11b

IMPORTANT NOTE:  Don’t forget that there is adhesive being exposed through the window now - so try not to touch it!!

Step 12:
Place the clear beads into a flat dish or craft tray.
Lay the card face down into the tray and press firmly to coat the window with beads. Lift card, and repeat until the exposed tape is completely covered.

Beaded Window Step 12

Step 13:
Use an old hard rubber brayer to press the beads firmly into the O'So Sticky Tape. I have a brayer dedicated as my “bead brayer” and use it for many of my bead techniques.  If you don’t have a brayer just use the base of your hand to press the beads firmly to seat them on the tape. 

If the room is cool, you can gently warm the tape with your embossing tool to make the tape softer, then brayer the beads firmly down into the tape.
Beaded Window Step 13

Step 14:
Finish and embellish your card as desired!

Beaded Window Step 14

Suzanne Glazier


Jean Marchand


Lisa Heusler



Camela Gertner


Diane Raschal aka Inki Di



Kathy McDowell

Stamp Credits:  Stampendous, Hero Arts, Stampin’ Up!

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Beaded Napkin Cards

Georgias Class Sample Back in the early days of our Pennywise Arts Yahoo Group, we hosted weekly online classes where members shared all kinds of wonderfully beadie ideas with the other community members.  Class nights were something I always looked forward to.  They were special.  The energy around the project, the class, the group,…. it was so electrifying and inspiring!  

There was something about knowing that a group of other crafters were with you in spirit, in real time, at that very moment.  Run into a snafu?  Got a question?  Just ask it at the group site and instant feedback and encouragement could be received.  Additionally there were several funny stories related during classes too,… there was the poor gal who tripped over a power cord and spilled all her beads on the floor, and the lady who who accidentally spilled beads over her husband’s chicken dinner and he ate it anyway, and the ever popular woman who laughed so hard she fell off her chair and had to go to the hospital for an appendectomy,….  Ü  It was one of those “you had to be there” moments.

I have over 273 class files on my home computer.  Yes, that is two HUNDRED and seventy three.  Wowza!!   As I go through my files I plan to share those classes here on the blog and hopefully inspire a reawakening of some really great projects.  Our website archives contain 54 of these classes and I’ll be throwing some of those in as well.

Today I want to feature this easy card by Georgia Wood.  I miss Georgia.  That gal has a most wicked sense of humor!  Talk about witty and fun – time spent with Georgia was never dull!  From her “I hate basketball” hotel room shoebox party in Seattle, to a group “day trip” to Alaska, Georgia never ceased to keep me on my toes.  So fun loving and spontaneous, even “Flat Kat” found herself in unexpected places and pictures whenever Georgia was around!

If you ever happen to be in Roswell, New Mexico attending a wedding ceremony officiated by a very, very  tall alien,…. well, please give Georgia a hug from me!  Ü

Beaded Napkin Cards

Georgias Class Sample

by Georgia Wood

Supply List:
Decorative 2 or 3 ply paper napkins, luncheon or dinner size. Floral or a design/style you like.
Roll of clear plastic wrap, any brand.
Several sheets of white tissue paper.
Cardstock, white or a color to compliment your napkins, cut and folded to card size.
Pennywise Arts brand micro beads, clear unless you want to intensify a napkin color.
For this project you will also need your iron and ironing board. The iron will be used NO steam, so you might want to empty the water prior to class.

Directions:

Step 1
Open and press your decorative napkin. Your ironing board can be your 'work station' for this project.

MVC-001S

Step 2
Peel away the extra layers of the napkin, you will only use the decorative layer on the card. You can use the excess layers to protect your ironing board.

MVC-002S

Step 3
Place your blank folded card on the piece of tissue paper. Lay the napkin over the card and move it around until you find a positioning that pleases you.

MVC-003S

Step 4
Trim the napkin but make sure there is enough 'margin' to allow for slippage.  As you can 'rough trim'  the napkin, it is not necessary to pick it up. You can do the trimming with it laying in position on your folded cardstock.

MVC-004S 

Step 5
Place a piece of plastic wrap between the napkin and the card.

MVC-005S 

Step 6
Lay a piece of tissue paper over the napkin. I used the excess layers of the napkin as tissue paper.

 MVC-007S
Step 7
Press firmly on the iron. You want the heat to go through the protective tissue paper, the decorative napkin layer,  and fuse the plastic wrap to both the decorative napkin and the card.

MVC-008S

 Step 8
Pressing over, let it set a minute before handling.

MVC-009S 
Step 9
Now that it's cool and bonded, you can pick the entire unit up for trimming.

MVC-010S 
Step 10
Turn the unit over so you will be looking at the back of the card while trimming.

MVC-011S 
Step 11
Trim all the excess layers at one time, following the edge of the back side of the folded card.   Use scissors that do not have any tape or other residue gummed to them! You will be removing 4 excess layers of material at one time.

MVC-012S 
Step 12
Your basic card is now finished. On to beading it!

 MVC-013S
Step 13
Stamp a sentiment if desired.

MVC-014S

This tutorial was a wonderful walk down memory lane for me.  I even recall that we hosted a huge napkin swap on the PWA Yahoo Group after this class so that we would all have tons of new napkins to create with!

Here are some cards made by several of our members at the time!


Evelyn Spikes 


Diane Martin aka Fly Di



Darlene LeMar

 



Glenna Schuchman

 


Diane Martin aka Fly Di



Kim


Kim



Jean Marchand

 


Pam Fuda



Janeen DeGeorge

 


Diane Raschal aka Inky Di

 

Suzanne's Cherries sm

For the Beaded Cherry card that was created by Suzanne Glazier:   Cover the entire card front with O'So Sticky Tape from and peel off the top liner.  Add the stamped sentiment bordered in red paper and then press the entire card face down into clear micro bead.  Complete with a red ribbon and bow!

Stamp Credit:  Close To My Heart