Faux Velvet

Try out the faux velvet technique the next time you want to make a soft element for a hand made card, scrapbook page or other papercraft project. I saw this technique described in the Australian Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft magazine and just had to try it out. Thanks to Jane Clark for the inspiration ☺ Scroll down to see the instructions below.

How to Make Faux Velvet

It is a little hard to tell in the image posted above showing the whole card, but I have given you a detail picture below. It really is a very pretty and subtle stamping method.

For this technique, you will need the following supplies or similar:

• Smooth white cardstock (I used Stampin' Up!'s Whisper White. All supplies used were from Stampin' Up! in fact)
• A detailed background stamp (I used Parlor Prints, now retired)
  
• Solid fill stamps. I used flowers and leaves in my sample, from a retired Vintage stamp set that I love.
• White Stazon ink
• Classic ink pads in contrasting colours. Cherry Cobbler and Old Olive were used here.

Here's what to do:

• Stamp your background with the white Stazon ink and dry it thoroughly with a heat tool
• Now stamp contrasting shapes over the top of the dried background image. NOTE: Be sure to clean your stamp between impressions as your images will not be as good over the Stazon ink if you skip this step

You will have traces of the white Stazon image showing through your solid fill images, just as though the image had been stitched like velvet sometimes is.

Very soft and pretty!

The closeup image shows how the background comes through the solid fill images and how much like fabric the paper now seems. One of my card class ladies even said she thought the background WAS made of fabric when she saw my card for the first time.

To add to the softness, I used a pretty Needlepoint Border embossing folder (retired) for the unstamped edge of my white layer and added a piece of velvet ribbon, along with a faux suede flower. The flower has a flower brad in its middle, topped with a Basic Jewel pearl.

I chose some of the retired Cream Confetti cardstock for both the flower and for the card base. Then I die cut the oval shapes with my Big Shot after stamping and heat embossing my sentiment.

If you liked this technique, you might also like to make faux silk or faux suede.

I hope you try the faux velvet technique sometime and show me the result by adding it using the form below: