Leaf Glitter & UTEE Chipboard Tutorial

Hello once again! This tutorial shows how to embellish chipboard with leaf glitter & Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel (UTEE). I used this technique on my 'Year 3' layout. The leaf glitter gives chipboard an amazing sheen but if you top that off with UTEE--wow! It's an amazing effect in person. I tried my hardest to capture it with my camera--but it was so shiny & reflective that it took many tries & a lot of tweaking with my camera settings--but I think I got it!

Let's get started...

Here's the basic supplies that you'll need: Leaf Glitter--I used Martha Stewart Vintage Leaf Glitter in Verdalite & Florentine Gold--Clear UTEE, heat tool, VersaMark or some other kind of embossing ink, glue stick, distress ink--in this example I used Forest Moss--and grunge board or chipboard. For this example I made my own chippie which is why I used grungeboard.

Ink up your chipboard with the distress ink of your choice. Try to keep the ink in the same family as the leaf glitter you have chosen. As you can see, I use makeup sponges to apply these inks. They work like a charm!

Also, ever find yourself needing a title or part of a title & you just don't have it in your 30 ton stash? Well, that happened to me for this page. I wanted a number 3, but it had to be a certain size. So I printed a 3 on my computer, cut out the 3, traced it onto grungeboard, cut it out once again & ta-da...instead chippie!

Once you ink your chippie you'll need to cover it with the leaf glitter. I mixed my two leaf glitters for this project. You can mix your colors too or keep them solid--it's all based on what you need for your page. The Scotch glue stick works perfectly for applying an even coat of glue on your chipboard. Once you apply your glue, start dipping it into your leaf glitter.

Completely cover all areas of your chipboard. Ensure the leaf glitter sticks by gently pressing down on the leaf glitter with your fingers. Yes, you'll get messy--but what would scrapbooking be without sticky or inky fingers!?

Here's my chippie all covered in leaf glitter. Doesn't it look cool? Oh, but it's about to get even cooler!

You'll most likely have to trim your chipboard after applying the leaf glitter. It's chunky glitter & therefore will stick out along the edges. Just take a pair of small scissors & trim along the border of your chipboard to tidy it up. This picture was taken after I trimmed my chippie.

You'll know when the leaf glitter has dried onto your chipboard when you press your fingers down on the chipboard & hardly any pieces of the glitter get stuck on your finger. At this point you're ready for the next step.

Ink up your chipboard with the embossing ink pad. I literally press the chipboard into the ink pad. I do this several times to ensure that the chipboard gets completely covered with the embossing ink.

When done, apply the UTEE & heat it up with your heat tool. You'll see the UTEE melt right onto your chipboard & work itself within the leaf glitter.

Here you go! Can you say bling, bling!! It's an amazing texture in person. The heat tool crinkles the leaf glitter while melting the UTEE into it. The end result is one amazing embellished chipboard.

You can do this with any chipboard--I have a few sitting in my shop that would look fantastic with this technique.

A closeup...at least an attempt of a closeup. Please excuse my inky fingers!

Hope this tutorial was helpful for some of you!

Till my next post...