Technique – Tissue Paper Background Card

One of my favorite things to do is to check out other crafters’ blogs and You Tube videos for inspiration and to learn new techniques I haven’t seen or tried before.  Over at Perfectly Rustics, the challenge this fortnight is to try a new technique! (http://perfectlyrustics.com/2015/04/20/prdc-no-46-new-technique/)

One of the techniques I recently discovered online was making a tissue paper background. (Thanks for the idea, Barb!)  Interestingly, there are quite a few variations on this technique, but the common step in all of them was to adhere a crumpled piece or pieces of tissue paper to your project to add texture and interest.  Some methods started with a stamped image while others did not.  Some methods used stains, paints, and sprays while others used alcohol inks.  And some added no color at all!  Making the background shiny and glittery was another variation.  With so many possibilities, this technique could be used over and over again with very different results!

For my background, I started by stamping a large background stamp by Hero Arts called Musical Collage with jet black Stazon ink onto a piece of tissue paper.  (The tissue paper needs to be slightly larger than the card stock panel to which you plan to adhere it.)  I then applied alcohol inks and blending solution to the tissue paper.  The colors I used were latte, butterscotch, and a touch of lettuce. After the alcohol inks, I added gold Inka Gold Metallic Rub.  Then I topped it off with a thin layer of Viva 3D Stamp Paint in walnut brown metallic.  Once I was happy with how it looked, I carefully rolled the tissue paper up into a ball.  While that sat for a minute or two to allow it to get well wrinkled, I covered a piece of card stock with Ranger Multi Medium (Matte) using a foam paint brush.  (You could also use something like Mod Podge or a glue stick.  Just make sure the entire piece of card stock is covered with the adhesive.) Then, I very carefully opened up the tissue paper (trying not to tear it), but not flattening it out completely since the wrinkles give the background the texture.  The wrinkled tissue paper was then placed on the glue-covered card stock and patted down.  (You could dry the panel if desired with a heat tool, but it dries pretty quickly on its own.)  I cut my edges that extended over the card stock with my paper trimmer.  If I were to do it again, I would probably apply a top coat of the multi medium to seal it. (HERE is one of the video tutorials I watched before making this card project.)

I will admit that once I finished making the background, I was stumped as to what else to do with it because I didn’t want to cover it up!   I opted to keep it fairly simple.  I mounted it on some Gina K dark chocolate heavy base weight card stock.  I stamped my sentiment on a scrap of Gina k honey mustard card stock which was also used for the card base.  The stamp is from the Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous “Phrases 2” set and was stamped with Gina K dark chocolate ink.  The three metallic circles on the bottom left corner were a different color from the metallic butterfly, so I applied currant alcohol ink to make them match a little better.

I love the rich, monochromatic look of this card.  It has great shine, too!

I had fun making this card and will definitely use this technique again!

Now it’s your turn!  Create a project using a technique you haven’t tried before and share it over at Perfectly Rustics!  I can’t wait to see what technique you use and what you create!

Thanks for checking out my card project!

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