Little Tangles: Tutorial: Make Your Own Pattern Paper

Hello there. SmilynStef if you remember won our Day 6 Unbirthday Birthday Challenge. So we are so happy to have her here on the blog to show us her take on making pattern paper.

I am thrilled for the opportunity to be a Guest Designer at the Little Tangles Challenge Blog. The current challenge is to *Make Your Own Patterned Paper*. I used glossy cardstock and my Spectrum Noir Alcohol Ink Refills and had some fun.
I started by stamping the curlicue border stamp from Neat and Tangled with Versamark ink and clear embossing powder on a 5 1/2 x 8 1/2" piece of glossy cardstock. I rotated the image each time I stamped for variation ... the design is very forgiving, so you don't have to be precise in lining-up your images.

Next, I inked-up a foam inking tool with five colors of Spectrum Noir Alcohol Ink Refills - CG1, CG2, CG3 & CG4 (Citrus Green) together with BT7 (Blue Turquoise). I always add several drops of blending solution before I start inking my paper.

Here's what my designer paper looked like after my first pass.

... and after my second pass.

I added more of my lightest color (CG1) and blending solution to my felt, and went back over my paper one more time to fill in the white spots.

The next step will really make your stamping pop. I positioned my paper between plain newsprint (I save all of the pieces I get inside packages, but a few sheets of printer paper will work as well) with the stamped side-up and ironed on high heat to remove the embossing powder. I have an iron I bought at a yard sale that I use specifically for crafting. Make sure you lift the paper while it is still warm, and it will not stick ... if it does, just iron again to release it.

I cut my designer paper in half, so I could make two cards. The first card uses my stamped & inked designer paper together with stamps from Kindness Matters.

I re-inked my felt with the same colors and inked more glossy cardstock. After it dried, I used India Ink to stamp my sentiment and the two hearts and clear embossed. One of the great things about using your Alcohol Inks for your background is that you can use the coordinating markers on your project. For a bit more contrast, I used my BT7 Spectrum Noir Marker to outline my die cut and to color in my hearts.
Since the embossing powder was ironed away, you can stamp directly on the inky background too. I stamped the same curlicue stamp on my designer paper with India Ink. Next I added some gold Spray & Sparkle Glitter Varnish for overall sparkle.

I paired this background with black cardstock for a more dramatic look. Since the curlicues reminded me of vintage phone cords, I finished with stamps from Just Hello.