Painting Techniques DVD Review

Painting techniques DVD
By Christine Coleman

This is volume 2 in Christine's series of parchmentcraft dvd's and a great starter for beginners. Christine explains and demonstrates seven painting techniques within seven different projects. As a real beginner to painting I was pleased with the small details like how much water to put on the brush and how to load the brush with paint, also how to position the brush.
Tinta inks are used, also pintura acrylics and perla paint.
There is a lot of work to practise on this DVD almost 2 hours of tuition!

Embossing

Embossing parchment is definitely a skill that needs a lot of practise, I have found a tutorial on Robyn Cockburns site that gives a helpful step by step guide to start with. Click on the heading to link to it.
The flower pattern she uses is at Mettemusen,

http://www.mettemusen.dk/Pergamano%202009/Homemade%20patterns/Homemade_patterns_blomster.htm

Amazing Brushstrokes

Review of Amazing Brushstrokes by Kannikar Sukseree

This is a beautifully presented book with many pages of explanations of techniques and step by step photography taking you through each project. I think there is plenty of work suitable for beginners and more experienced crafters. The designs are exquisite. The grids and tools used are Pergamano as you would expect from a Pergamano book! However if you try to use a PCA grid you will not get the same look as the illustrations.

Guide to Alternative Tools

As a beginner I have found that I have bought equipment required for a particular project only to find when I received the tools I already have a similar item by a different manufacturer. This is a guide to the tools that I have found to be similar but named differently.

PCA Pergamano
Sun tool = Star tool
Stamp edge = Split tool
Micro ball = Fine stylus
Micro shader = Shader 0.8mm
Mini shader = Shader 1.0mm
Fine scallop edge = Semi circle

A Parchment Envelope

Designed by Christine Coleman
I made this to give as a present with a token or money inside.

Perforating grids

There are quite a few grids available and I do not claim to be an expert. This is a beginners guide to grids, feel free to comment or correct me if I have got any information wrong.

There are three main manufacturers of grids : PCA, Pergamano and Siesta.

Traditional grids are mesh in a plastic frame, they come in regular and fine grade with a special perforating mat which fits in the frame. The grid enables you to produce accurate perforations. These are made by Pergamano and Siesta.

PCA
Steel flexi-duo grids seem to have advantages over the older mesh grids. You can emboss dots for example and the the holes are easy to see and line up. I prefer the A4 size and I love the way the perforations fix the parchment in place whilst you are working.

Pergamano
Pergamano also make steel grids, straight and diagonal, however they are not interchangeable with PCA grids. For example if a design specifies using a Pergamano diagonal grid a PCA diagonal grid will not work in the same way.

Siesta have a wide range of grids for specific borders and patterns and motifs.

Carla Larter Design

I made this card from the Carla Larter book, the oval borders are from a Siesta parchment pattern grid.