Monday, October 28, 2013

Thank You Card for Helmar with Glitter Glue Tutorial

The days are getting shorter as the temperatures cool down, but the fall color is still gorgeous here in Ohio. I've created a thank you card up on the Helmar blog today featuring Helmar Gemstone GlueI've included a tutorial on how to create your own glitter glue.

One of my favorite mediums to include on projects to give beautiful sparkle and shine is super fine glitter. There's only one problem, this sparkle has a way of invading my workspace, even spreading into the rest of our home, not to mention making me sparkle. If you've used glitter, you know exactly what I'm talking about. I've come up with a wonderful solution, so be sure to scroll down to check out my tutorial for making your own glitter glue.

Thank You Card

I used the Cardabilites #85 sketch for inspiration:
I've also used the Color Board for Challenge #10
over at A Mixed Media Color Challenge:

Tips and Techniques
Here's a close-up of my glittered flower. I die cut the layers from printed paper and printed cardstock, then misted. When dry, I brushed with my handmade glitter glue. Even though I secured the flower with a brad in the center, I like to glue each of my petal layers together to make sure the petals will stay offset. To adhere paper to paper, my go to adhesive is Helmar Premium Craft Glue. Below the flower you can see some of my die cut layers.

Here you can see the pearls and sequins I scattered across the top corner of my tag. I used Helmar Gemstone Glue to secure them in place. I squeeze some of the glue onto a craft sheet or scrap of wax paper that I can toss when finished. Then I pick up a pearl or sequin with craft tweezers, dip the base into the glue, and place on my card.

Another view of the flower, pearls as well as the heat embossed sentiment. I found my homemade glitter glue to be slightly tacky when dry, so after I put my flower together and before adding the brad center, I sprayed it with Crystal Kote Gloss Varnish Spray to give this gorgeous glowing finish that still allowes the glitter to sparkle.

A side view of my card. You can see my mixed media background. Any time I need to afix something to mixed media, my go to adhesive is Helmar 450 Quick Dry Adhesive, which adheres well to mixed media surfaces and texture.

Now I'll share my Glitter Glue Tutorial. As you can guess by my previous comments, I love the look of glitter on my projects, however, not how it invades my space and home. I got to thinking . . . Helmar Gemstone Glue dries perfectly clear so what would happen if I mixed my glitter into the glue? Yes, there are several glitter glues on the market, but none of them have the sparkle that I get with Fairy Dust Glitter which is super fine and has several sizes of glitter flakes mixed together. My little experiment gave me some happy results that I will be using over and over on my future projects!!

Glitter Glue Tutorial

Supplies
Superfine Glitter ~ I used Clearsnap Fairy Dust Glitter by Donna Salazar Designs
Something to mix the glitter on ~ I used wax paper
Something to mix the glitter glue ~ I used a toothpick
  • Step 1. Squeeze out some Helmar Gemstone Glue onto the wax paper. The amount you use will be determined by how much area you have to cover.
  • Step 2. Place a small scoop of glitter next to the Helmar Gemstone Glue. You can vary the amount of glitter depending on how much sparkle you want to achieve. I like sparkle, so used a lot of glitter.

A close-up of the Helmar Gemstone Glue and glitter:
  • Step 4. Use a paintbrush to apply the glitter glue to your project. A stiffer brush works better. You can apply this glitter glue to flowers, decorative elements, or even to your page background ~ anywhere you want glitter.

Here's what it looks like right after applying:

And another photo after drying. You can see that the Helmar Gemstone Glue dries perfectly clear, allowing that glitter to sparkle and shine in all its glory!!

Hint ~ I did notice as mentioned previously that there was just a slight tackiness that remained even when completely dry. That was easily taken care of with another fabulous Helmar product. I simply spritzed with Helmar Crystal Kote Gloss Varnish Spray. The glitter still sparkled just as brightly and the flower took on a lovely glow from the glossy varnish.

Here's a photo of the finished flower on my card:

I can't wait to see the projects you create with your own homemade glitter glue!!

Helmar products used to create my card:
(I highly recommend getting the larger Gemstone Glue if you want
to try this technique, because you won't want to stop!!)

Other products used: Donna Salazar Designs Products: Clearsnap Fairydust Glitter ~ Pralines and Cream, GCD Studios Antiquities Collecton and Crafy Chronicles, Clearsnap Mix'd Media Inx and Embossing Powder, Zutter Distrezz-it-All by Donna Spellbinders Grand Peony Dies. Additional products: Spellbinders and Sizzix dies, Tattered Angels Chalkboard Mist, Heidi Swap Color Shine Mist, Stencils by TCW and Pink Paislee, CTMH stamp.


If you have a moment, I'd love for you to stop by the Helmar blog to leave a comment.

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~

37 comments:

  1. Gorgeous card, love that stunning flower and texture in the back ground!!

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  2. Soooo glam....LOOOVE that fine glitter in with the glue:):):)

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  3. Beautiful! And so sparkly! :o)

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  4. This is sooooooooooo gorgeous!! LOVING the colors and love love love that flower!!!!

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  5. Absolutely gorgeous!! The texture and colors are fabulous!! The flower looks amazing - thanks for the tutorial!! Happy Monday :)

    Lisa
    A Mermaid's Crafts

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  6. Tracey Love love yo gorgeous card, such pretty colors and texture really look wonderful with the stunning flower!! Thanks for sharing about making your own glitter glue,,,,great idea. Have a blessed week :)

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  7. Gorgeous card Tracey! Love the shimmery blossom and stenciled background! Thanks so much for joining along with A Mixed Media Color Challenge! Have a great day :)

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  8. Such a gorgeous card and flower! Thanks for the glitter glue tip! I'll have to give that a try! Hope you have a great week!

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    1. Thanks Sandi!! Be sure to drop by and let me know when you try out the glitter glue technique!! ~ Blessings

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  9. soooo beautiful!!!!! LOVE your card and your tutorials are always amazing!!!

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  10. Wow...what a beautiful card, great texture!!

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  11. Hi Tracey, what a beautiful project again! I also want to say thanks for becoming a follower of my blog, and I hope you enjoy it!

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  12. LOVE your tutorial for glitter glue! Your flower is AMAZING! FAB BG, too! THX for playing with us at A Mixed Media Color Challenge!

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  13. gorgeous love the tutorial, thanks for joining us at Cardabilities!!!

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  14. Wow...this is a beauty Tracey. I love the mixed media doily background and those awesome blooms.

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  15. The glue and glitter combo is a cool effect.

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  16. This is so beautiful, Tracey. Thank you for the tip on the glitter. I don't allow it in my house (LOL) because it's always such a mess. The stuff needs to be tamed. :)

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  17. Beautiful! I love the fairy dust glitter! Just the name of it makes me giddy!

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  18. Ooooh...really pretty! I love glitter too....I make mine with gel medium.:)

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  19. gorgeous card, love the tutorial on the flower, thanks for playing along at Cardabilities :)

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  20. Another truly gorgeous creation, Tracey! Love the sparkly bloom and textured background! And loved the helpful tutorial tfs =)

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  21. superbe carte et tout ce que je peux voir sur votre blog ou je me suis inscripte . merci aussi pour tout ces beaux tutos partagés. Bonne journée de rance

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Thanks for taking the time to stop by and leave a message! I treasure your comments.