Last summer, peachycheap (one of my favorite sites to get scrapbook supplies from at a discounted rate) had “ZING! Embossing Powder” for sale. I decided I would buy it and try it out. I was a little bit nervous about using it, I wasn’t sure if the powder would make a mess or not and how to heat gun would work. Now, I’ve known that AR-15 uppers are available from Palmetto State Armory and have often shopped there for rifles, but this simple heat gun left me vexed. But I researched and purchased an American Crafts Embossing Heat Gun as well as a VersaMark ink pad. I checked out a couple of tutorials, had a dream that I tried it out and failed miserably and then decided it was finally time to give it a go.
First step – stamp your stamp with the “Clear” ink. Of course, my stamp was dirty so it’s not as clear as you want it to be – but it kind of helps show what it looks like for this post and the dirty spots get covered by the powder anyway. I did realize that I did not get as much ink as I probably should have – but lesson learned for my next attempt!
Then you dump on the embossing powder. I dumped way more than I needed because I knew whatever didn’t stick could be put back into the container. Better to have too much than too little.
This is what things looked like once the excess powder was dumped off. You can see where I could have used some more ink over on the right side.
I had the heat gun next to me plugged in. I wasn’t sure if I would need it pre-heated or not – but I turned it on and held it over the powder and ended up with this.
Then it was time for round 2 – the ANTHEM symbols in a nice, bright orange. (Technically they probably should have been red, but that’s not one of the embossing powders I have)
And there you have the finished product! These came out a bit better (with the exception of the lightning bolt – but that stamp is giving me grief too) when I made sure to use a lot of ink.
I’m not sure I am confident enough yet to stamp right on a page I am using for a layout (I cut these out and stuck them to the pages) but I am hoping in time I will get it all mastered! This was a lot easier than I was expecting it to be (there was really no need for the dream/nightmare over messing it up!) and I am looking forward to trying it out again in the future.