You're The Best!

 Hi friends!  You are the best so this card is for you!  I know the colour isn't the best, though so I will let you know that you are looking at soft gold, taupe and black for the colours of this card.  I dearly love that soft gold card but it doesn't photograph very well, I am so sorry.  I decided to have a little fun with a double embossing technique using two of my A4 embossing folder designs.  I started with a piece of soft gold card and embossed it with my Sea Garden embossing folder.  I used gilding wax in the colour of Golden Light and rubbed it across the raised embossed areas with my finger.  Next I used the Black Soot distress ink pad across the top of the embossing also (not too much pressure on it though).  I covered it with clear embossing powder and tapped off the excess.  You will have to touch up a few spots on the floor of the embossing with a dry paintbrush and remove the unwanted powder, though it isn't usually too much.  Heat emboss it and this will help define the pattern from the embossing folder.  Next (once it has cooled) emboss the entire piece using the A4 Basketweave embossing folder.  You will still be able to see the first design, but with the added texture from the second design for additional interest.  It is a really fun technique that you can do with loads of folders, just try picking one that has a bit more open space as the first one and use a busier pattern for the second folder!  To help create a bit more interest, I cut the piece into three strips and matted them individually with a thin black card mat and mounted them with foam onto a piece of taupe card.  I cut some black silky crush ribbon down the centre to give me a thinner piece to wrap around the bottom of my card.  I tied a double bow and added it with a glue dot to the side.  I used a clear perfect medium pen to coat both my cameo and my pearl stick pins, then used gold embossing powder on them.  Just heat it to melt and you have changed the colours of your embellishments to suit your project.  If you get some on the black part of the cameo that you don't want, just colour over it with a fine tipped black marker and it won't show!  Next I started work on my focal element and out came my Radiant Rectangle die set.  I used the three largest dies to cut a taupe coloured frame.  I used the same dies without the centre die to cut a black mat piece to show through from the cut out design.  I added mounting foam on the back of this piece and attached it above my bow on my card.  I stamped my sentiment in black Archival ink.  I cut it out with one of the dies in the Adorning Square die set.  I inked lightly through the die with Black Soot Distress Ink to highlight my sentiment.  I mounted it with foam on the diagonal in the centre of my rectangle frame.  I like that you can still see the background behind the sentiment and yet there is still a bit of detail showing in the frame too.  I finished the card with a double mat of taupe card and pierced the inner mat with my piercing ruler.  I think this card would work with a piece of knotted hessian in place of the bow for the gentlemen we need to make cards for out there!  Finished dimensions are 8" x 8 1/4" in size.  All for now, Sue x