10 Ways to use Distress Crayons

Hello Friends,

Distress Crayons are, without a doubt, my most used Distress product. When it comes to versatility, they truly can’t be beaten, even when compared to Distress Inks! Why? Because these little beauties can be used on so many different surfaces, including non-porous ones, where Distress Ink would just wipe away.

Over the years, I’ve received a ton of questions about Distress Crayons. How do you use them? What’s the best way to apply them? How long do they last? And most importantly, Do you need to seal them?

I decided to create this post to answer all those questions and to show you just how many ways you can use Distress Crayons in your projects. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned crafter, these crayons will become your new go-to tool in no time!

So, let’s jump in! Below, I’ll share 10 creative ways I use Distress Crayons that will help you get the most out of these versatile crafting supplies.

#1 - Coloring a stamped image

Use a Detailer Water brush to add Distress Crayon to a stamped image (French Garden stamp set). I stamped the floral image with my Stamp Platform, colored it with crayons, then stamped it again.

All splatter in the background was also done with crayon. Make a puddle of crayon and water, then pick up with an old paintbrush to flick it over the card.

* the image has been stamped using Versa Fine CLAIR Ink Pad - Nocturne Black. I LOVE how black this ink is - truly amazing!

#2 - Coloring over slick surfaces

Add color to any of the slick surface products in the idea-ology line: Found Relative, Paper Dolls, Photobooth, Photomatic and any of the Layers SKU's. To color, I scribble the crayon over the surface, then rub it with my index finger (sometimes I have to touch a wet wipe to get a slightly damp fingertip). You will know if you have too much water, if the color just wipes away. Dry the spot with a heat tool for 5 seconds, then start again. You can also use a cotton swab (must be good quality) to move the crayon around. This gives you a different look than just using your fingertip. I use the Detailer Water Brush to make dots of color (like on the flower crowns) or when I color in buttons or stripes in clothing. 

#3 - Color over metal

Use a light colored Distress Crayon to color over metal surfaces like a Word Plaque. Just rub the crayon back and forth over the surface, then finish by using both thumbs to rub the crayon. The heat from your thumbs, warms the crayon and helps to disperse it over the surface.

#4 - Color over Collage Paper

After adhering Collage Paper to a surface with Collage Medium, use crayons and a Detailer Water Brush to add the color to the image. The Collage Medium has sealed the paper image, and therefore given us a slick surface to work on. The technique works like a charm.

#5 - Faux Patina: over metal or resin

Each of these objects: Salvaged Heart, Adornments Butterflies and Adornments Flourish, were painted with Distress Paint and left to dry. Once dry, Walnut Stain Distress Crayon was scribbled over the paint and rubbed in with fingers or sometimes a brush to get into the very small spaces. A wet wipe can be useful if you get to much. Just remember, if you wipe away too much, dry the area with a heat tool and start again.

#6 - Watercolor over an embossed image

This is the Pinnacle Hearts Embossing Folder from Simon Says Stamp, all the hearts are raised from the surface of the Distress Watercolor Cardstock. I dipped my brush into water then picked up different colors of pink Distress Crayons to paint the hearts. This was easy to do and so relaxing! I love this embossing folder!

#7 - Aging paper 

This is the technique I use the MOST! Every single time I add paper to a project (especially Vignettes or Etcetera projects like this #8 Etcetera Tag), I add a coat of Collage Medium to the surface. Once dry, the crayon can be added, creating a wonderful aged surface. I love that you can build up the crayon on the seams and where the paper overlaps.

#8 - Monoprinting

I bet you didn't know you could Monoprint with Crayons. Well you can. You just need a wide paint brush to move the crayon around while the stencil is still in place. *More on this technique at a later time.

#9 - Coloring die cuts

This is an easy way to color die cuts. Just scribble out a few colors on your Studio Mat and you are ready to go. Use a Detailer Water Brush to pick up the crayon (or a small damp paintbrush) and color away. Don't forget that a color like Pumice Stone can be used for shading white leaves like I did with the daisy.

#10 - Blending over a surface

The last one is another of my favorite techniques!

Use Collage Medium to adhere the paper and die cut pieces (this is an old Sizzix Thinlit called Organic) to the substrate. Add another layer of Collage Medium to the top and let dry completely. Scribble complementary colors of Distress Crayons over the surface and rub with a slightly damp index finger. I like to add the crayon color one at a time, blending together, then add another color and so on. Sometimes I use a brush to get the color into the small spaces around the die cut. I also use a wet wipe if the color is not diffused enough after rubbing. I know can always go back and add more.

Do I need to seal my Distress Crayon work?

95% of the time I do not seal my work, because once the crayon "cures" or dries on the surface, it will not come off on your hands. The exception being, if you add water. But who does that? 

In the 10 examples I have shown, the only one I would consider sealing is #2 the Found Relative image, but even this has a caveat. I would only take the time to seal the image if it was going to be handled excessively, say if it was going into a journal, or if you were going to stitch over the surface and the presser foot was going to come in contact with the crayon. In these cases, I would simply spray them with a clear Spray Fixative. You can find it at any craft store in the art department. The crayon is not effected by the spray and will not wick. Once the fixative is dry, the crayon will be permanent. Be sure to spray in a well ventilated area or outside. I put images on a paper plate and once they are sprayed it's easy to carry them back to my craft room.

Do Distress Crayons fade?

I have not found that Distress Crayons fade. I have journals that I made 5+ years ago and the color is just the same as when I colored the images. I suppose you may have some fading if you have used it, say on a canvas, and it is subject to sunlight every day. Although, I have two vignette pieces that have been hanging in my craft room for many years and both still look great.

How long to Distress Crayons last?

I am still using the same crayons I got years ago when they were released. The exception is Walnut Stain, Peeled Paint and Picket Fence. These colors have been replaced because I use them so much. I also try my best to make sure the cap clicks when I put the crayons away. I think anytime you can keep air away from the crayon (when they are stored) is a good thing.

I hope this post will be a help to you when you are thinking what Distress product to use next! My answer is always going to be Distress Crayons for their versatility and long lasting color!

Now carry on,

paula

Palette Orange: Card File

Hello friends,

It's nice to be here today talking about Palette Orange fabric! I like the color orange, but I really don't use it much in my work. Maybe we just don't have many products that fall into the orange family? But now that is changed, because the orange Palette fabrics are beautiful! Of course they look good together, but many of them stand on their own too.
Today I'm using Freespirit Palette Orange along to create a idea-ology Card File. The neutral File Cards are the perfect backdrop for the fabric. Giving you a not only a great base, but cards that you can sew right through if you choose to. Of course the entire project can be done with Collage Medium, so there is no excuse if you are not a sewer.

I used both Card File Packs (there are two different packs)to make this project. 

It currently has 21 cards/pockets + six #5 tags used as inserts.

Working in groups of three, I sprayed each card with Antique Linen Distress Spray Stain, then wiped the stain away with a paper towel to get rid of the spray pattern. I repeated the step and then dried with a heat tool. It honestly did not take much time to complete all the cards (front and back). And it made it so easy to just reach over a grab a card to work with, without have to get the spray out again.

I cut strips of fabric for the cards. Many of the fabric are directional, like the flowers in the center of the photo. I ended up cutting another piece of that one so I could have a 3 x 4" piece with the flowers going the right way. Same goes for the toadstools.  Anyway, pay attention to the direction of the fabric before cutting! "Which way do I need this to go?" is a great question to ask before cutting!

The 10 fabric names are:

Botanical

Tiny Print

Collage

Toadstools

Ephemera

Stamps

Sketchbook (orange flower)

Map

Tickets

Vintage (solid)

TABBED CARDS

I had to start with my favorite of all the prints, Botanical. It just speaks to my heart! I used a very thin layers of Collage Medium to adhere the fabric pieces to the tabbed cards. I added the Ephemera print to the one of the cards as a "patch" so I could use the strip of fabric I cut going the wrong direction (fyi: I have a thing about making things work).

I'm a sewer so I did a rough stitch around the fabric.

I cut a piece from the Ephemera fabric (it's turned over in the photo below) to sew on as a patch. I found that if you add some Collage Medium to the back of the fabric and let it dry completely, it keeps it's shape and makes it easy to sew. 

The stamps are for use later in the project, but I wanted to get them drying so they would be ready when I need them.

Quick and easy to sew on, once the glue is completely dry.

I used a Tiny Blending Tool to ink around the edges of the cards. This really helped to rough up the fabric and adding more strings to the card (I love that look).  In fact, most times I just used the tool itself, with no added ink, to go around each card. Don't underestimate the use of this Tiny Tool to fray the edges of the fabric!

#5 TAGS 

These will be used inside the pockets with the hole in the center.
I followed the same method to add the fabric to each tag and inked around the edges.

Using the Mini Blending Tool brought up so many strings, that I decided to stitch them down. So perfect.

Here are the pockets. 

I used Scor-Tape to add Transparent Layers over the front of each pocket, then cut away the excess.

I colored some 1/4" ribbon with Rusty Hinge and Crackling Campfire Distress Spray Stain for the holes at the top of tags.

Then I just inserted the fabric tags into the pockets.

LIBRARY POCKETS

I also created three more #5 tags with stencils and Opaque Texture Paste. These tags will go into the library pockets. I left the tags to dry while I worked on the pockets. 

NOTE: I cut off about a 1/2" of each tag so it would sit better in the pocket.

Once the paste was dry, I sprayed them with a variety of Distress Stains: Tattered Rose, Crackling Campfire, Rusty Hinge, Gathered Twigs + water. 

I sewed around the fabric before I added it to the pocket.

Then I added Worn Wallpaper Scraps to the top of each pocket. I don't know why I haven't used this product more in the past, because I absolutely love all the patterns we put in in the package (including this small ditsy print).

NOTE: I also used paper from Worn Wallpaper Scraps to cover the outside of the Card File box.

Then I just added a few pieces of ephemera from the Field Notes Ephemera pack. I think that looks pretty darn good.

FOLDED CARDS
I used the Collage fabric for the front of each card, then sewed along the lines between the patterns (you can see what the inside of the card looks like on the bottom left). 

I also added the stamps as "patches", that I previously painted with Collage Medium.

ENVELOPES

These envelopes were really fun to make - I love the combo of the old time images (collage paper photographic) and the fabric.

Start by adding Collage Medium to the front. Add the Collage Paper over the top with another layer of Collage Medium.

Add a little watered down ink with your fingertip.

Then flick with the ink. Dry with a heat tool and sand off the excess paper.

How I LOVE this look!

Again, I sewed around pieces of fabric I had previously added Collage Medium to, then just glued them to the envelopes.

A little Cello Sticker Tape makes it perfect!

FLAT CARDS

I needed three cards for the envelopes so I trimmed off a bit of the cards that come in the pack so they would slip into the envelopes. I also rounded the corners.

The backgrounds were stamped with Pumice Stone Oxide and images from the Stampers Anonymous Embroidery Stamp set (more on that later).

Then I just started adding patches of fabric, words from the Metallic Sticker book and Cello Sticker Tape.

The circle on the string is from the Snippets Curator pack. I used 2 pieces that were a similar size and glued them back to back with the string in the center.

The fabric tab on this card is from the Collage Fabric. I just folded it over and stitched it on.

ZIG ZAG FOLDERS

I saved my favorites for the last! The are the most involved of all the cards, but you can decide how much you want to add in.

We're going to start by stamping the zig zag cards with the three stamps from the Embroidery stamps set. Each folder uses one of the stamps + you can add any kind of text stamping - I used the text from French Garden.

Once the stamping was complete, I added the fabric and the embellishments: Photomatic, words from the Metallic Sticker book, and Cello Sticker Tape.

On one, I even added a patch.

I really liked the way they looked, but then I thought why not try coloring the flowers with Crayons? I knew it was a risk, but I thought, why not give it a go!

I started with Wild Honey and Crackling Campfire...

Then added Rustic Wilderness and Evergreen Bough for the stems and leaves.

Then the exciting part, adding the embellishments.

A different stamp from the same set was used on the next folder and of course different crayons (dusty concord, stormy sky, and tumbled glass).

And the third and final folder, I used Rustic Wilderness, Fossilized Amber, and Abandoned Coral.

For the cover, I wanted to add more fabric, so that is just what I did. I did stitch around the fabric and glue it is place, but then I had the bright idea to add a Photo Studio frame to each of the zig zag folders and that covered up the stitching. Oh well!

I used different colored Photo Studio Frames + ephemera from the Field Notes Ephemera pack.

Here is a closer look at each cover.

Honestly, you can use the fabric to make so many different cards - it's almost endless. The orange is so beautiful mixed with the neutral cards. It's the right amount of respite for the bold color. I am happy with the way this turned out and I hope you are too!

Thanks for stopping by to see Palette Orange! Now on to Palette Yellow! The perfect color for Spring!

Now carry on,

paula