The base card is an 8x8" square one.
I made the skeleton panel first, and the skeletons looking at each other and holding hands was achieved by stamping the same stamp on opposite sides of a piece of acetate. They are a Visible Image stamp, part of the Mr Bone Jangles set. They were stamped in Staz-on Black, and I discovered that you can clean Staz-on off acetate with Antibacterial hand gel. I knew from past trying it works to clean acrylic blocks, so tried it on here when one of the images didn't come out perfectly. Thats one thing I hate about Staz-on, the pads seem to need re-inking between every use!
After they were stamped, I stuck them onto double sided adhesive film, ready to add some gilding flakes.
I trimmed it down to size first, then peeled off the front layer.
Now it's time to practice your Ninja skills! No sudden movements, and if you can hold your breath whilst you're doing this, so much the better.
Smothered in gilding flakes, then given a good burnishing with my fingers before gathering up all the excess flake and returning it to the tub.
And breathe again.
Flip the panel over, and it's worth the effort. Looks great.
I decided now I would add a border of barbed wire, which comes from the 'Love is Forever' set.
This was also stamped in Staz-on black, and care needs to be taken stamping on acetate, as the stamps will slide if you are not careful.
I used the Heart INKognito stamp to stamp out 4 hearts, 2 black and 2 red. The Black in Versafine Onyx Black, the red is Versafine Crimson Red. Again, I inked up the stamp with Versamark first, so I could hear emboss with Clear Detail powder.
Only three hearts here, I had to stamp a fourth when I changed the layout idea.
They were all trimmed down, then matted onto either black or red card. When I trimmed them, I made sure that all four would fit on the card front, and trimmed again slightly to make it happen.
The four hearts were mounted onto the card front with DST, then the Skeleton Panel was added using some blobs of silicone glue on the back, partly for dimension, and partly because the flake is a difficult surface to attach any other way.
Final step was to add the words from the Love is Forever set, and they are stamped in Onyx Black, and the edges dragged across the Versafine Crimson pad. I dipped the edges in clear detail EP and heat set them.
It was these words, that gave me the idea for stamping the skeleton couple. It's also the title of one of my favourite pieces of music- by a band called Apoptygma Berzerk. They have included in it part of a classical piece called 'Ride of the Valkyries', by Wagner. You've probably never heard of it, or them, but anyone who remembers the Old Spice ads, and that music that played in it, or the film 'Apocalypse Now' in the helicopter scene, would recognise it instantly.
Stamp Credits:
All Visible Image:
Love Never Dies set- words and barbed wire
Mr Bone Jangles Skeleton
Heart INKognito
ALSO:
Acetate
Double sided Adhesive Film
Gilding Flakes
Versafine Crimson & Onyx Black
Black Staz-on
8x8" card blank
red, black & white cardstock
Clear detail EP.
