Friday, March 19, 2010

Spotlight On...

Q&A

Q: I’ve heard a lot about vintage style being popular. What is it and how can I use it in my projects?

A: You are right! Vintage style is a hot trend in fashion, clothing, décor, and of course, crafting. What makes something vintage is a bit different to everyone. Generally, vintage style will have lots of layers, texture, distressing, and elegant feminine details. Read on for more information about the elements of vintage style, how to create it in your paper crafting projects, and which tools work best.

The Elements of Vintage Style
Vintage style is generally full of layers and texture. Layers of paper, layers of stamped images, and layers of texture can all be used to create a vintage-styled project. Collage stamping on card stock or on Designer Series Paper is common, as is heat embossing images over other stamped images. Vintage style can range from fairly simple layers with distressing to all-out, over-the-top glamour with ribbon, rhinestone brads, fabric flowers, and more.

How You Can Create Vintage Style
Cards, scrapbook pages, and 3-D projects featuring vintage style are tremendously popular. To make these projects, begin with a combination of muted and natural colors. Naturals Ivory card stock and Very Vanilla create more of a vintage feel than Whisper White. Colors from the Rich Regals, Soft Subtles, and Earth Elements color families will look more vintage than those in Bold Brights. Look for stamp images that have lots of detail, a variety of stamp sizes, and images that have natural or more vintage-type themes. Try some of these: Vintage Vogue (#117690), Very Vintage Jumbo Stampin’ Around Wheel (#117693), Baroque Motifs (#113490), Sense of Time (#113804), Wanted (115106), Friends 24-7 (#113218), and Friendly Words Jumbo Stampin’ Around Wheel (#114696).

Must-have Tools for Vintage Style
Distressing, aging, and elegance are combined in vintage style. To achieve the look, it helps to have the right tools. The Cutter Kit (#106958) includes a great distressing tool that makes distressing edges of patterned paper and card stock a breeze. The Color Spritzer Tool (#107066) is used with Stampin’ Write Markers to add speckles of color to paper. This simple touch adds that extra bit of detail that just finishes a project. Sanding Blocks (#103301) are great for distressing patterned paper and card stock and the Paper-Piercing Tool (#116631) adds extra detail and interest. Finally, ribbon like our satin and taffeta ribbons add elegant finishing touches. To really add elegance and feminine beauty, add a dusting of Dazzling Diamonds Stampin’ Glitter (#102023) or pearls, beads, flowers, and hat pins from the Pretties Kit (#109114).

Go Vintage!
Vintage style is beautiful and fun to create. You can go for a simple or over-the-top style using stamps, paper, ink, and fun tools and accessories. Questions? I’m here to help with ideas and suggestions. Contact me today for ideas or schedule a workshop and let me treat you and your guests to a fun evening learning about with vintage style with demonstrations and Make ‘n’ Takes!

1 comments:

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