Embellishments
Metallic Accents and Sentiments with Go West Studios
By Christine Smith
Feb 1, 2005, 14:10

I love the look of metal on my scrapbook pages and cards.  It adds a level of texture and dimension that plain paper can’t achieve.  It is simple to add a dash of interest to your paper projects with metals.  In this article, I will show you a few ways to coordinate, place and adhere metallics on your next project.

 

	On this layout, I have used two metal tags with engraved words by Go West Studios.  The larger one says “strong” and the smaller one says “pure”.  The journaling discusses the contrast I saw in my newborn daughter the she came home from the hospital – strong enough to hold up her head yet truly delicate.  To further accentuate this contrast I adhered the strong metal piece with delicate organdy ribbon.  I tied the ribbon onto the metal piece and then adhered the ends of the ribbon to the back of the photo.  The wooden frame at the bottom left of this layout is also from Go West and I chose it to expand on the journaling theme and contrast between the soft pattern of the paper with the stronger wood accent.   Patterned Paper: Provo Craft
	In this example, I have used another metal word tag to build on a theme rather than build on a contrast.  The flower image was stamped with versamark ink and then heat embossed in silver.  To add a little dramatic color, I used some of my kids’ glitter glue to the bud part of the flower.  The metal tag is attached with black twill tape and tucked behind the card front.  I really like the coordination of the silver elements on this card for maximum impact.   Paper: Close to My Heart
	In this example, I have chosen to mix and match a few shapes for a whimsical look that goes with the cute little face image and the informal font on the word “Smile”.  A pair of circles – one circle clip and one premade metal-edged circle tag - give interest to the design and the red is repeated on the baby’s bow and the gingham ribbon.   The “smile” word by Go West Studios was adhered with mini glue dots.    To complete the metal theme on this piece, I used one of my favorite ways to add a metal look - edging piece with a silver pen.  I did this for the red rectangle and for the baby face using a silver paint pen from Fiskars. Another option is to drag the edge of the piece across a versamark ink pad and then use metallic embossing powder. This gives the look of a mat without any cutting.