So it's been a while since we've had the pleasure of getting leafing flake all over the place, so I thought I'd give my cleaner a bit of a treat by gilding my classroom with shiny, floaty stuff. (That's hubby; he's the cleaner. 😉)
Instead of the usual adhesive method, we'll use a gel plate to apply the flake, or leafing sheets, before using acrylic paint as normal to do the pull. It's certainly a different look and can only be appreciated in the flesh because of all the shiny goodness of the leafing flakes. As you can see from the samples, you can use a lot of the leafing flake, or hardly any at all. It all works well. Remember to click on the first
picture, then click through them as you'll see a much better image.
Tuesday, August 25, 2026
LEAFING FLAKE GEL PLATE BACKGROUND
Tuesday, August 11, 2026
MELTED CRAYON BACKGROUND
It's been 14 years since we last used crayons for a technique, and it's still just as wonderful to create such an amazing piece with the very basic Crayola crayons and a mini craft iron. I bought myself the 64-pack of crayons, so I have lots of colour options, and the pack even comes with a built-in sharpener on the back. It also includes silver and gold; these are excellent additions that add a little shimmer to the other colours. The most important part is to use an iron that has no holes in the base, so not a steam iron, just a normal craft iron with a flat base, or you can use a Clover mini iron. I've had one of the Clover mini irons for over 20 years, and it still works great. Spotlight also has an excellent Semco mini craft iron for only $16, which is a great buy.
All of these backgrounds have been created with just melted crayons.
"Common folks"
(The horse & rider is a die-cut from a piece
of watercolour paper that was painted
with a granulating paint. A perfect effect.)
"I bury things"
(The black flower above the leaves is a dead
weed flower from my garden that I coated
in clear embossing powder. Turned out
better than I thought it would!)
"Grab life"
(Homage to the Cultured Magazine shoot
with Connor Storrie. IYKYK 😏)
"Eileen"
(I've been wanting to use this quote
for ages! lol)







