Hello, friends!
This is Bobbie Sue! I am so excited to be coming to you each Thursday, through June, as we discover new techniques, revisit tried and true favorites and be challenged to create!
Today starts a new challenge over on Unity Show & Tell that will last the month of April! I’m here to share with you how I make decoupaged cards using decorative napkins! It’s a little messy, but a whole lotta fun! And the result is just stunning! Here are 3 cards I made with this technique.
The 2 cards below are an A2 size (4 1/4 x 5 1/2) and a 3 3/4in X 9in to fit a #10 size envelope . The sentiments are heat embossed on a strip of vellum and tightly wrapped to the back of the panel secured with scotch tape. On the A2 card I heat embossed gold powder dots to give the appearance of gold splatter. I simply used my quickie glue roller pen to various areas of the card I wanted the embossing powder to adhere to and then heat set it as if I used embossing ink. Worked perfectly!
The A2 sentiment is from the June 2016 sentiment Kit Succulent Salutations. The other is from a beautiful set by Tierra Jackson called Simply Lovely Birdie.
I love the colors and designs on this napkin below. I followed the same steps on each napkin card. This sentiment is applied to vellum the same way as instructed above. This sentiment is from the January 2018 sentiment kit called …so very grateful. I love the look of the added matching enamel dots. How lovely is that butterfly peeking through the vellum?!
This old vintage looking napkin I used below is just gorgeous! Attach the ribbon to the back of the panel with scotch tape before adding the pop up foam tape. I tied 2 different ribbons to the one I wrapped around and glued a bauble made from DSP using a mini circle punch and a 1/2 in glass cabochon. I’ve included a close up photo of the bauble. I make so many of these in different sizes! (I buy all my glass cabochons on Amazon.) The sentiment is from a Graciellie Designs set called Sweetness.
I purchased each set of napkins at Tuesday Morning, but Amazon has some really beautiful napkins to choose from!
HOW TO
Here are the steps in preparing your napkin for the card.
Step 1 ~ To better serve you, make sure the napkins you buy are printed on one entire side. Here, I am able to make 6 card panels from one napkin!
Step 2 ~ I ended up cutting the folds apart rather than tearing each section away from the folded out napkin. As you can see in this photo, once you cut away your panel, you will wet all four sides of the napkin to make tearing it down easier. You’re able to have better control of your tear with the napkin wet as apposed to tearing it dry.
Step 3 ~ Take notice that your napkin is 2 or 3 ply and you must pull it down to one ply. I’ve kept them fully plied in the past, but it isn’t as easy to adhere through all the layers onto your card panel. You can separate the layers before or after you tear. It doesn’t matter. I keep the blank layers to use in future projects!
Step 4 ~ When you have chosen the size panel you want ( I like to cut my panel a 1/4 in smaller vertically to the card base and pop up with foam tape) you will then add mod podge to the area that your torn napkin will cover. Dip the tip of your fingers in the water and then in the glue until your surface is covered. It is just fine if your glue area ends up slightly bigger then your torn napkin. It dries completely and transparent.
Step 5 ~ Place your torn piece over where you had spread the mod pudge. Again, dip your fingers in both water and mod podge to gently dab on top of the napkin adhering it onto the panel. Being careful to not rub for fear of ripping your napkin. If you do rip the napkin you should be able to piece it back together just fine. Smooth out the edges with wet/glued fingers to assure adhesion. If you’ll notice, your napkin will appear wrinkled. It may even create a few air bubbles, but I promise that’s ok! I absolutely love the look it gives!
Step 6 ~ I put my finished panel in front of a fan to speed up the drying process. Your finished panel will be warped once dried. Simply place it under a heavy object. Also, when I attached it to the base with foam tape it helped straighten it out.
Step 7 ~ Attach this panel to your card base as you would any other card you make.
Challenge Details
I hope you are excited to try this technique and that you get a chance to make a project and share with us in Unity Show & Tell! This challenge runs through April 28th. Giving you plenty of time to find the most perfect paper napkins! If you have any questions regarding my steps in creating these cards, feel free to contact me here or here. I am always happy to help!
Along with the month long challenge I will have weekly challenges that aren’t as, well…. challenging! Unity is making your participation even more rewarding by offering a prize for each challenge! Each week you have a chance to win some fantastic Unity stamps!
Have fun creating!
I invite you to join me again next Thursday as we use an incredible technique that will transform your cards and tags!
Until then, friends~
Be blessed!
Bobbie Sue
