HOW TO OMBRE INK DIRECTLY ON YOUR SOLID STAMPS

That beautiful variegated or ombré ink effect is a wonderful look when combined with solid stamps. You can achieve it by blending ink colors directly on the stamp surface! I’m working with water-based dye inks and using a MISTI positioning tool; for this method, a positioner is key to being able to stamp precisely over the original impression multiple times.

VIDEO

HOW TO:

1. Select 2-3 shades of ink in the same hue, ranging from light/pale to dark (for really large stamps, you may want 3-5 variations of ink color, but for stamps the size used in this project, 2 is plenty).

2. Ink stamp with lightest color first and impress to paper; if mass producing and die cutting images out, try my suggestion of trimming quarter sheets of card stock even further down into smaller pieces so you only have to rotate those pieces and not reposition the stamp in order to maximize the paper.

3. Use the darker color to ink only a portion or a side of the stamp where you want shading or deeper color.

4. Use a blending tool, like the Little Smoothie, to rock or pounce the rounded end of the sponge across the edge of the ink to soften. Stamp over original impression.

5. Repeat Step 4 as often as desired.

6. Highly contrasting colors of ink may require you to clean the stamp before switching colors to avoid cross-contamination of ink pads.

All the beautiful shades of ink pads out there make this one of the easiest methods for achieving “multi-colored” images, especially when working with solid stamps!

Thanks for stopping by!

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SUPPLIES:

• Strawberry Fields by Julie Ebersole, Essentials by Ellen Clear Stamps - EH

• Strawberry Fields by Julie Ebersole, Essentials by Ellen Designer Dies - EH

• Berry Basket by Julie Ebersole, Essentials by Ellen Designer Dies - EH

• Shipping Tags by Julie Ebersole, Essentials By Ellen Designer Dies - EH

• Grapefruit, Concord & 9th Premium Dye Ink Cubes - EH

• Grapefruit, Concord & 9th Premium Dye Ink Pads - EH

• Polished, Catherine Pooler Ink Pad - EH / SB

• Lemongrass, Catherine Pooler Ink Pad - EH / SB

• Lime Rickey, Catherine Pooler Ink Pad - EH / SB

• Solar White - 25 pk, Neenah Classic Crest Cardstock - EH / SB

• Desert Storm - 25 pk, Neenah Environment Cardstock - EH

• Smoothies Minis, Creative Expressions - EH / SB

• New & Improved Mini MISTI Laser Etched Stamping Tool (6-1/8 X 7), My Sweet Petunia - EH

• Midnight, Avery Elle Hemp Twine (EH) / Doodlebug Black Twine (SB)

• Crafter's Companion Gemini Junior - EH / SB

• Platinum 6 Die Cutting And Embossing Machine, Spellbinders Tools - EH / SB

Disclosure: Affiliate links to the products used in my projects, that I like and use may be included; I make a small commission when you purchase via those links, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for all your support!

EBE SUMMER OF STAMPING STAY COOL

Here’s three ideas for using all the fun shapes in Stay Cool! As I was developing the concept for this set, it was fun to imagine what I would want to do with all these shapes—I have a tendency to work backwards and think with the end result in mind, and then figure out what is needed to get to that point.

Nothing’s more chill than plenty of scoops of ice cream on a sugar cone, right?! This particular design played out well on a 4-bar size note card; it’s all one layer, except for the sentiment and I’m super stoked to have coordinating dies for cutting them out. Not that I mind fussy-cutting; it’s just super convenient not wield the scissors for things that are more intricate. Besides, I couldn’t do it that perfectly by hand anyway… Ask me how I know… (chortle)

I stamped the waves here starting towards the BOTTOM on my top panel and worked my way up using a MISTI so I could slide the paper easily; I eyeballed, rather than actually measuring. Used Mint-to-be, Lime Rickey and All That Jazz inks. The sun was stamped with Limoncello, and then I blended Orange Twist along the lower portion on the stamp and stamped over it; repeated one more time with Tutti Frutti to get that blended sun effect. LOVE. And, as long as I’m working from lightest to darkest inks, I usually don’t have to clean off the stamp when switching colors.

I’m also stoked that I included some textural stamps in this set—that pin dot background was stamped in a quadrant pattern with Mint-to-be and it makes great visual support for the popsicles without overpowering them! The popsicles were stamped tone on tone, using inks a little darker than the scraps of card stock they were stamped on and the sentiment was “shadow” or “3D” stamped. Sometimes, I like this better than stamping onto white; it doesn’t look so much like a sticker when you camouflage that border edge from the die cutting.

Have you seen all the colors of twine in the shop? I have a drawer full—I love having an assortment of colors available for cards and tags—I even use them in lieu of ribbon when gift wrapping small packages!

Hope you’re keepin’ cool this summer!

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If you’d like more info on products that coordinate well with the Stay Cool , please visit the release page HERE.

Disclosure: Yup, those are affiliate links to the products used in my projects and I make a small commission when you purchase via those links, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for buying all the things!