3 easy steps to embossed alcohol ink tags

(Click here to view a larger version.)

Hi there! Today I’d like to share another pair of quick and easy alcohol ink tags.

How I made my tags

To make these tags, I started by getting out some 12″ x 12″ glossy paper. I cut a 5″ tall strip from it, to use for multiple tags. I also cut an additional 2″ tall strip to use for the butterflies. Then I got out my non-stick craft sheet and placed the glossy paper on top. As I mentioned on Monday, you need a non-stick craft sheet if you will be working with alcohol inks, to protect your work surface.

Technique 1: Polished stone background

To make the polished stone background, I got out an ink applicator and felt. I applied Peach Bellini and Mountain Rose to the applicator and then pounced it straight down and then straight up from the large piece glossy paper repeatedly, until the paper was completely covered. While the applicator was still wet, I continued to pounce over areas that I had already covered, to give it a mottled, polished stone look. Then I set aside the applicator and large piece of glossy paper.

Next, I cleaned the non-stick craft sheet, using blending solution. If you don’t clean the craft sheet between applications of alcohol ink, your next applicator can lift color off the craft sheet and muddy your new colors.

Once the craft sheet was clean, I laid the 2″ strip of glossy paper on it. I got out another applicator and felt and applied three colors this time: Cloudy Blue, Pool, and Cool Peri. I pounced repeatedly, the same as before, to make a polished stone background from these colors on the smaller strip of glossy paper. Then I set aside the paper and applicator and cleaned the craft sheet again.

Technique 2: Over-stamping

Alcohol inks on glossy paper dry fairly quickly. Once the Peach Bellini/Mountain Rose strip was dry, I cut it into pieces that were a bit wider than 2 3/8″. This gave me pieces that were slightly bigger than my 4 3/4″ x 2 3/8″ shipping tags. I removed the twine from the tags, and then adhered the tags to the back of the glossy paper. Then I trimmed the excess glossy paper using scissors.

VersaMark watermark ink is a nice, thick, sticky ink. I used it to ink up Hero Arts K5313 Silhouette Ivy and then stamped this clear ink onto the alcohol inked tag. Glossy paper is very slippery, so use care when stamping onto it. After stamping the ivy, I covered it with Ranger seafoam white embossing powder and set it using a heat tool.

While the tags were cooling, I used a Martha Stewart Classic Butterfly punch by EK Success to punch butterflies from the Cloudy Blue/Pool/Cool Peri polished stone strip.

Technique 3: Dying twine to match

Next, I used a snack baggie to dye the twine. I put the twine from the tags into the snack baggie and added a few drops of both Peach Bellini and Mountain Rose, plus some blending solution, into the baggie. Then I sealed the baggie and smushed the ink and twine around until the twine was completed covered.

Then I propped open the baggie to allow the twine to dry overnight. The next day, I came back and tied the twine into bows at the top of the tags. I gently bent the wings of the butterflies for dimension, and then attached them using Glossy Accents to finish the tags.

Thanks for stopping by!

Tagged as: Classic Butterfly, Cloudy Blue, Cool Peri, K5313, Mountain Rose, Peach Bellini, pool