Hello friends! In this blog post, I'm going to share how to monoprint with stencils and then walk you through the rest of the details on how I created this card. The technique and design was this card was greatly inspired by a card created by Stacy Hutchison. I had never monoprinted before and her card motivated me to finally give it a try. I absolutely love the effect and now I'm looking at my stencils in a whole new light!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARD
You can continue reading to learn how I created this card using the monoprinting technique or if you would prefer a video you can check that out below. If you are unable to view it below you can also head over to YouTube.
The supplies you'll need to do a monoprint include a stencil of course, spray inks, a spray bottle filled with water, watercolor paper and paper towels. When working with spray inks, I prefer to work in a Tim Holtz Splat Box. I've found to be really helpful in keeping the mess of working with spray inks under control. If you don't have one, you could also work inside a cardboard box.
To get started I began by placing the Scrapbook.com Floral Sprigs stencil in the Splat box on top of some paper towels to help absorb the excess ink. Next, I spray the stencil with Distress Mica Stain in Balsam Fir. You can use any type or color of spray ink you have. I then spritz the stencil with some water using a Distress Sprayer.
Off to the side of the Splat Box, I have a paper towel with a piece of Distress Watercolor paper on it. I placed the stencil, ink side down onto the watercolor paper and then use another paper towel to dab off any excess ink the seeps under the stencil. I also like to gently push around on the solid parts of the stencil to help move the ink around and get better coverage. If you decide to work with a stencil that has text or numbers, remember that you will need to flip it over before you add the ink so the letters and numbers aren't backwards.
To reveal the monoprint, gently remove the stencil and allow the ink to dry. You can also use a heat gun to speed up the drying process. And with that, the monoprint is technically complete and is gorgeous with it's shimmery finish.
To add a little more color to my monoprint, I placed the clean stencil back over my monoprint. To help hold my paper in place, I used the Scrapbook.com double sided silicone craft mat. This mat is sticky on both sides, so it grips to my work surface and to the paper. To help hold the stencil in place I used some Mint Tap.
For the coloring, I used some small blending brushes and Distress Inks in the following colors: Kitsch Flamingo, Picked Raspberry, Peeled Paint, Forest Moss and Iced Spruce. These brushes are about 1/4 inch in size and are really helpful for applying the different colors of ink to the small sections of this stencil. I only used 3 brushes, one for the pinks, one for the greens and one for the blue and just cleaned them off in between colors onto a paper towel. The coloring does take a bit of time, but the end result is worth it in my opinion. I recommend using the coloring time as a way to relax and destress!
Once the coloring was completed it was time to start adding the rest of the details. I took the Scrapbook.com Nested Tag Dies and die cut a larger one from the textured side of Distress Watercolor Paper, a smaller one from the smooth side of the watercolor paper and another one from a piece of vellum.
Next I added some Vintage Photo Distress Ink to the edge of my background papers and the tags using an ink blending tool. I also ink blended Peeled Paint Distress Ink onto the smaller watercolor paper tag to give some contrast and color to the layers.
To add some more interest to the tags, I added some heat embossing. To do this, I took the watercolor paper tag (the one I ink blended with Peeled Paint Distress Ink) and dried it with my heat tool. I then applied Scrapbook.com Dotted Adhesive to the back side of the tag and placed it into my stamping platform. This adhesive is repositionable which makes if perfect for temporarily holding the tag in place while you stamp. This is also especially helpful when your stamp is larger than the piece of paper you are stamping on and you can't get one of your magnets on the paper.
I then stamped the script image from the Tim Holtz Entomology stamp set onto the tag using Versamark embossing ink to the stamp. This inks dries slowly which is great for heat embossing. After I stamped the image, I placed a folded piece of typing paper under the tag and poured Liquid Platinum embossing powder over the design. I tapped off the excess and poured it back into the jar. I then heat embossed the stamped image using a heat gun. I always love to watch the transformation as the powder melts and becomes shiny!
Next, I added the vellum tag and I tore a bit of it away to reveal the embossed design.
To continue with the layers, I stamped the floral image from the Scrapbook.com Wildflower Branches using Black Soot Archival Ink onto a piece of watercolor paper and then die cut it using the coordinating dies. For the coloring I used Distress Watercolor pencils and a waterbrush. I prefer to lift the ink from the pencil with the waterbrush and then color in the image. I find this to be a really easy way to color in small detailed images such as this one.
To finish off the card, I added machine stitching around the edges of the monoprint background and the tags. I added eyelets to the tags and then a bit of jute. The final touch was a heat embossed sentiment which is from the Scrapbook.com Celebrate Expressions Stamp Set.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARD
Here is the original card I made using the monoprint with stencils technique. After I had finished it, I decided to create a video so I made another card...which is the one you see in the video. The only differences between them are that I embossed the vellum on this one and I used a different image from the Wildflower Branches Stamp Set.
Here is an angle shot so you can better see the shimmer you get from the Distress Mica Stain!
Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed learning how to monoprint with stencils and the rest of the details on how this card came together.
SUPPLIES
Below you can find the products I used to create these projects along with compensated affiliate links to Scrapbook.com. These links are at absolutely no cost to you. When you shop through the links below, I receive a small commission from Scrapbook.com. These links are at absolutely no cost to you and the commission I receive helps me cover the costs of my blog and other expenses, which allows me to continue to provide you with FREE inspiration and tutorials. If you want to learn more about what an affiliate link is, you can see my full affiliate and product disclosure statement here. Thank you so much for your love and support!
