Holiday Cards Step One: Embossing

The countdown to Christmas is on in my house, and today I started working on my holiday cards. The finished product will be a flat white card layered on top of a flat red card with scalloped edges. The first step is to apply the embossed stamp image onto the flat white card. I used an ink pad with metallic ink (but it can be any color you want), a variety of holiday stamps, an embossing powder heat tool, and clear embossing powder. I applied the ink to the stamp, imprinted the image onto the paper, and sprinkled embossing powder on top of the image area. I tapped the cards to shake off any excess powder. Then I fired up the ol' embossing tool and, with quick circular movements, covered the image area with hot air. This only takes a couple of seconds, and you will know it is done when the powder melts together. The shorter the heat time, the better. If you leave it on too long, the paper will start to warp with the heat. I found that the best stamp was the "holiday cocktails" stamp because it has thinner lines, and the embossing powder melts together faster and has a nice, clean finished look.