2024 Topic 10 : Gilded {by Jo Firth Young}

Hi everyone

Jo Firth-Young here today to talk about shiny things!! 

(instagram: @jofyjo, fb:JoFY.JoFirthYoung, www.jofy.co.uk)

When I saw the 'gilded' topic come up I was very happy!! I like things that sparkle and shine!  It got me thinking - how many metallic, shiny, sparkly, 'gilded' types of media do I have in my crafting materials??  I started to make a list - embossing powders, Fresco Finish Gold paint (such a fabulous gold!), imitation Gold Leaf (sheets and flakes - several colours), gilding powders, paper/card, metallic threads, Stickles, glitter, metallic Gelatos... so many options!!

I really like gilding objects - I've gilded several pieces of furniture in my home & its much easier than you might initially think.  Its been fun using imitation gold leaf again - it adds a little bit of 'glamour' to a project.

I've created a group of cards each with a different type of 'gilding' but all starting with the same background paper. This A3 paper was created when I rolled-off paint from my brayer when gel printing - I really like the random, blended stripes & blocks of colour that are created. 

I added stars using stencil PS438 (find a PaperArtsy stockist here) leaving enough open space for additional decoration for each card.

What I really like about all these projects is the contrast between the chalk matte finish of the Fresco Finish paints and the shiny gilded finishes. (Fresco Finish: Gold, Bubble Gum, Sherbet, Butternut, Cheesecake, Aqua Duck Egg, Chalk)

Gilded cards

Imitation gold leaf generally comes in two forms - flakes and sheets (sheets come in books supported with layers of tissue paper).  I've used both types on my cards.

'Love Christmas!'

I used a page of gilding leaf on this card to evenly cover the greyboard heart. The gold leaf is VERY thin and will pick up all the textures of the surface it is applied to - great for picking up detail. You could apply this on top of textured card for a different effect.

I added several layers of stenciling to this card - big white dots (PS309) and an arch of pink dots (PS308).

The snowflakes, embossed in white, are from this stamp set JOFY106.

'JOY'

This card uses gilding flakes, adhered with a glue stick and a soft brush. The flakes create a subtle distressed surface, sometimes little gaps are left and an uneven edge created.

'Snowflake Joy'

I decided to cover the front of this card with a sheet of gold leaf that I'd cut into 2.5-3cm squares to create a subtle tiled effect. PaperArtsy Fresco Finish paints can be used on any surface and so of course I had to use them on the gold leaf!! I love how the matte paints look against the sheen of the gold leaf! Great contrast!

This was a tricky card to photograph because of the reflective quality of the gold leaf! lol

'Hi'

This card features embossing powders. There is something magical about watching embossing powders turn from powder to molten liquid and then solidifying. 

I embossed chipboard letters with several layers of {WOW} embossing powders - the first layer was a Platinum ('dirty' silver) powder followed with 2 layers of 'Gold Rich'. I agitated different areas of the surface of the letters (while still hot) to mix the powders which revealed the first layer - this created a subtle distressed look.  

I stamped circles (JOFY136, available now from PaperArtsy Stockists) on the background using WOW Pale Gold embossing powder.

'Happy Birthday'

 

The Stickles Dry Fine Glitter is made up of tiny smooth particles that, when adhered to the surface (here I used strong double sided tape), creates a sparkly gilded effect.

Flowery Happy Birthday

 

The Gold Fresco Finish is the best gold paint I've worked with! It is so glossy and is a great tone of gold, really rich, and you can use it on your stamps too!

Here I used the Gold paint to stamp the flowers from JOFY132 (available from stockists)

... and teamed it with Ranger's Perfect Pearls - there is a gold mica powder available, but instead I used Mint here to compliment the colours of the background papers. I love how the colour changes when it catches the light as shown in the photos below.

 

It was fun to use gold leaf and and revisit using Perfect Pearls with the Fresco paints - I'd forgotten what a great combination they are!

I hope these ideas have inspired you to delve into your crafting stash, dig out the blingy things and add a bit of sparkle & shine to your next project - even adding a distressed gold leaf edge to a panel (as in the 'joy' card I shared earlier in this post) can make all the difference!  or a touch or two of glitter! (remember: glitter is not just for Christmas! lol)

Have fun!!

Jo

YouTube: Jo Firth-Young

Pinterest: @jofyjo

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2024 Topic 10 : Gilded {by Nikki Acton}

Hi, Nikki (a2a.craft) here with you today sharing my latest project. Our topic is Gilded - which ties in perfectly for some Christmas bling. Not forgetting our quarterly theme of Nature, which I have sneaked in!

Having recently done a 'With 3 things' post featuring PaperArtsy Fresco Acrylic in Copper - I just had to use this fabulous paint again, but also added some Gold and embossing for lots of gilded goodness.

I am using one of Kate Crane's Christmas stamp sets; I was intending to make cards but in the end made a festive panel for the wall - it seemed wasted on a card!

I think I would describe this as 'a reindeer framed with a star made out of Christmas trees'?! It actually started as a mandala design with lots of reindeer heads - but it was beginning to look very weird!

I love the star background - using PaperArtsy stencil PS440 by Kate Crane - very simple to do - combining the Copper and Gold paints.

I kept my supplies quite simple - using Kate's stamp set - KC008 and stencil - PS440 plus PaperArtsy Fresco Acrylics in Gold, Copper, Steel Grey and Chalk.

Although I started with a different composition in mind - I did know I wanted to use some leaf stamping to incorporate our Nature theme. 

Initially I just used gold paint but when I added some stamping in white too - there was greater contrast against the black card.

If you haven't used leaves before - looks for ones with prominent veins. You can add the paint to the leaves with a brayer or paint brush (flat is best) - just experiment - you only want the paint on the veins. Start with a little and build up.....

Before I started stamping I created some background papers to use by sponging both the copper and gold paint onto white card.

These have a lovely shine - although the photos may not pick that up. 

I also sponged some Steel Grey onto white card and decided to add some stars using the stencil. So pleased I did, as I love how this turned out.

Now it was time to start stamping.

 

I started by stamping what I thought I would need (this changed!). For stamping on my copper and gold backgrounds as well as the black card; I used Versamark and heat embossed with gold or black embossing powder.

Here are the reindeer heads from my original mandala idea!

In the end, you can see that the large Christmas trees were used to create a large star - with the smaller trees (in copper) in between.

I painted a wooden panel using Copper - one coat was just perfect.

I decided to add some stars in white card.... more gold embossing here!

The wooden panel is 6x6 inches - I'm looking forward to adding this to my Christmas decorations.

Blog: Addicted to Art

Instagram: @a2a.craft

Pinterest: nikacton

YouTube: Nikki Acton