Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Taylored Expressions Blender Brushes - earrings!

So happy to be taking part in a blog hop today with some friends of Taylored ExpressionsEach of the designers has a project featuring Taylor's Blender Brushes.

If you're new to my blog, welcome! I've been in the stamping industry for over 17 years - I have my own line of stamps, and I'm the Artist in Residence at Splitcoaststampers, among other roles behind the scenes. I'm also an artist - most of my work is done in colored pencil, and my favorite subjects are dogs! I love to create, and I love sharing what I learn in the process. 



Blender brushes have definitely been a trending product this year, and I've used mine a lot! I'm definitely color oriented, so I love the colored handles on these - I bought some generic brushes in bulk, and I waste so much creative time searching through them for the right color (they each have a small label on the back of the head - not really eye catching!).


I wanted to do something different today, so instead of a card I made 3 pairs of earrings! Each pair was made using the brushes to aid in coloring. Here we go! 


This first pair is cut from matboard, inked up with hybrid ink. I chose hybrid ink because it blends nicely and I knew it wouldn't react with my water-based glaze.  



I stamped a background image using Versamark ink, just to add a little texture - I think it got lost a little in the layers - maybe next time I'll emboss the design with clear powder.



I cut the Shape Shifter dies across the gradient so each piece would have a unique color blend... then glazed the pieces individually.


Before the glaze dried completely, I pressed into each piece with an inked script stamp, just for a little more texture. 



For the second pair of earrings I did a little stenciling on chipboard, then embossed the design with gold powder. 




A layer of glaze darkened the chipboard slightly, and let the embossing pop.


I love the movement of this set, with a cut of faux leather in between the chipboard pieces!




If you don't have earrings dies, here's a fun way to make paper bead earrings with no dies at all! I cut a strip of cardstock (this is the 110# card from Georgia Pacific) that was 2"x11", and did some blending from end to end. 



I cut the strip in half so I had 2 strips 1"x11", then cut each of those strips at an angle from one corner to the other. That gave me 4 strips that were right triangles.


I make a lot of paper beads so I have a tool for the rolling process, but you can use a dowel or straw or toothpick to hold the center. To make a tear drop shape, you'll roll the bead so that the long base of the triangle aligns just slightly higher each time around. For the cone shape, just keep the long base even as you roll.


Here are 4 beads, glazed and ready to string...


I used a 2" head pin and some silver findings to turn these beads into pretty drop earrings! 



I've had a lot of fun making earrings this year, and Taylor's Designer Dangles dies are specially designed for cutting through heavier materials like chipboard, matboard, fabric, leather and more! If you'd like some for yourself or you're thinking of giving some as a gift, check out this holiday special ------------ in addition to the Blender Brush blog hop, Taylor also has a holiday gift guide launching today along with a special offer - purchase $100 or more from Dec. 10-19  and receive $20 to spend in January! 

Pretty cool! 

Enjoy the hop, and thank you for visiting me today!

Thanks for stopping by!


For more beautiful projects, please visit these beautiful friends of mine! 
Dina Kowal  <<<<<<<< You're here!!



Ideas, Supplies, Machines, Paper & More

5 comments:

  1. Hi Dina! What a fantastic post! I have TE’s blender brushes. I LOVE them and still getting used to them. I’ve always wanted to make paper beads and your beautiful earrings and helpful post just may be the inspiration I need. Thank you SO much for showing how! 😊

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  2. Oh wow! Love those beads! Wonderful idea.

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  3. So cool looking
    and pretty.
    Carla from Utah

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  4. I would never think to use the brushes on earrings. They sure make blending look easy...

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