faux batik technique.

Hi there. I wanted to share this fab technique with you all. I was inspired to make this card by watching the craft clinic on create and craft. Julia Watts was the guest demontrator and one of the questions the viewers e-mailed in, was how to do the faux batik technique. I had never seen this done before, if you are unfamiliar with this technique like me, it is a very ancient art of decorating cloth using wax and dye and through its popularity it as become well know in different forms of art and craft. This is my take on Julia's card but slightly changed due to different materials...
This is how I made the background...
I chose a coated light weight paper but you can use card if you like. First of all I stamped my image all over my background using versamark. It helps if you use a more solid image but I prepared this one and it worked alright, then use clear (i used white as well) embossing powder all over the entire background and heat until melted. The next step is to fold the paper in different directions (I scrunched mine up to get a different effect, but just be careful you don't tear your paper like I did) once you have done then spritz your paper with water to moisten it, this will allow the ink to get in the folds you have made, using a drayer and a big & juicy pad  (which l still have although the colours are a little muddy now) or adirondack ink pads, ink your drayer up and roll in different directions. Allow to dry before attaching to your project. I hope you give it a go like I did, its a lovely technique to do and looks amazing on your cards.
These are my finished cards with my background but different layouts.

Thanks for stopping by to read this post and happy crafting.
Love Sharon xx:-)