A "Grand"father and a "Grand" technique for Masculine Accents

I hope you have enjoyed our Fathers' Day Week so far and have had a chance to reflect on the dads in your life. My layout this week honors my Grandfather-- he has been gone for almost 20 years but I still think about him often and appreciate the things he taught me. He taught me to work hard (he was an Idaho potato farmer), play hard (he loved to travel, especially abroad) and he taught me to laugh! My grandpa affectionately called my two younger sisters and I the "three squirrels" and spoiled us rotten with treats from his candy drawer and new school clothes every year. I still miss him and especially miss that my kids never got the chance to know him. What a great example and patriarch he was to our family!


My layout starts with some light blue Bazzill cardstock which I spritzed with walnut ink-- you could also use Tattered Angels glimmer mist. I cut strips from different patterned papers, including Basic Grey Kioshi (green), Dream Street Fresh (white grid and blue dot), and My Mind's Eye Just Dreamy (brown dots). I attached my strips with staples, a little stitching and some guy-looking brads that are flat and phillips head screws. My title is pieced from different chipboard alphabets, including one from Bo Bunny-- I love mixing my alphabets, it gives a page title or a card sentiment a really fun look without much effort.

Among my patterend paper is also some strips of "leather" paper-- a cool way to add a masculine touch to any layout or card. To make leather paper you will need the following things:

***Lightweight white or cream (light colored) cardstock
***Walnut Ink Crystals
***1/4 cup measuring cup
***1/2 tsp measuring spoon
***Hot water
***Bowl and stirring utensil (I used a craft stick)
***Wax paper

Sounds kind of like cooking, doesn't it? By the way, an apron is also a good idea! (I realized this half way through, especially because I was wearing a white shirt!) And this is extremely messy for your hands, so if you are opposed to the ink taking two days to wear off, you might wear gloves.

After gathering your supplies, follow these steps to make your leather paper:

1. Measure out 1/2 tsp of the Walnut Ink crystals into your bowl.


2. Then add 1/4 cup hot water and stir until the crystals are completely dissolved.



3. Crumple up a piece of white cardstock (no bigger than 8 1/2 x 11) .

4. Place the crumpled paper into the bowl of ink and press with your hands until it is covered completely. Turn it around, upside down, unfold a bit to get ink into as many of the creases as possible.




5. After moving it around to cover as much as possible, carefully lift it up out of the bowl, continuing to hold the paper over the bowl so it can drip back into it.


6. Gently ring the excess ink from the paper.

7. Carefully, so the paper won't tear, unfold it and lay it out to dry on a sheet of wax paper. As you are unfolding it, if there are any spots that weren't covered, you can dip it again or spread some on with your fingers. Aren't all the lines and creases cool?

8. Repeat with more paper-- I used several different sizes and then also did some shapes, such as ready cut tags and stars that I punched. The 1/2 teaspoon of ink crystals makes quite a bit of ink so you might as well do a lot while you're making a mess! Tags and shapes would be really handy to have ready for quick cards. If you don't use up all the ink in one session, store it in a container with a tight lid and just stir before using again.



9. Let your pieces dry completely-- I left mine overnight. Here they are all laid out wet at 11:30 pm one night--

-- and here they are the next morning at 8:00 am, all dry and ready to go!



After your leather paper is dry, use it as accents on your layouts or cards any way you can imagine! I think "manly" looking accents are hard to find so here's a great way to make your own!

Think about the Fathers in your life this week and plan something to honor them on Fathers' Day. And while you are out there creating, make sure to enter out Sketch Challenge and link up your entry by June 15th for a chance to win a $20.00 to The Beary Scrap Store. I can't wait to see all your fabulous entries!