Hand Made Birthday Card with Hot Foil Background and Borders and Stamped Flowers

Hi Everyone, I wanted to try a couple of different techniques with the hot foiling system today, using embossing folders and ordinary cutting dies. This is a great way to get more out of your existing stash and extend the use of the Go Press and Foil machine. Both techniques worked really well although I did put the foil the wrong way round in the embossing folder first time so I now have a lovely half gold embossing folder!

There are several elements to this card so I have broken the instructions down into sections.

Start with a 12.5cm square, white blank card, cut gold mirror card to 12cm square and matt onto the card blank.

Hot Foiling with Embossing Folders
Cut a piece of black card stock 11.5cm square and a piece of gold foil just a bit bigger. Bring the Go Press and Foil machine up to temperature, open the embossing folder and lay it on the heating plate with the raised design facing upwards, put the foil over it with the coloured side down and the card stock on top of that. Add a couple sheets of card to act as shims, close the lid and let it heat up for about a minute. This doesn't cause any damage to the embossing folder. Remove the heating plate from the base and run it all through your die cutting machine. Remove the embossing folder from the heating plate and peel away the excess foil to reveal your foiled and embossed background. Adhere this to the card using double sided tape.

Hot Foiling with Cutting Dies
Place a metal shim on the heating plate of the Go Press and Foil machine and bring it up to temperature. Cut a piece of white card stock, big enough to cover the decorative rectangle die and a piece of gold foil slightly bigger than the die. Use some low tack tape to stick the die to the foil and using your craft knife cut the centre of the foil away so that you are left with a foil ring that fits the die.  Lay the cutting die on the metal shim with the cutting edge facing down, lay the foil over the die, coloured side down and the card over the foil. Let it all heat up for a minute or so and then remove the heating plate from the machine and run the whole thing slowly through your die cutting machine. Lift off the card and peel away the excess foil. Put the normal cutting plates in your die cutting machine and position the die over the foiled card lining it up exactly with the foil and taping it in place, now run this through the machine in the usual way to die cut the card stock leaving the decorative rectangle shape with a foiled edge. Repeat the process with black card stock and the next size down of cutting die.

Finishing the card
Add a gold peel off greeting to the centre of the black die cut shape and adhere it to the centre of the white shape. Use foam pads to adhere this to the card front.

Stamp the flowers on white card stock and colour with marker pens or colouring pencils, use the matching die to cut the flowers out and adhere to the left of the greeting.

I hope that is easy enough to follow, the main thing is to get the bits in the right order so that you get the foil where you want it!

I am delighted with this card, it's a striking colour scheme that feels very luxurious with so much gold foil on it. It would look great in Christmas colours with a poinsettia....must remember that idea!
If you have a minute please leave a comment to let me know what you think or to ask any questions.
Thank you for reading
Debbie x

Supplies used:

• 12.5cm white blank card and envelope
• A4 Smooth white and black card stock
• A4 gold mirror card
• Dots embossing folder
• Go Press and Foil machine
• Metal Shim 
• Gold heat activated foil
• Decorative Rectangles die cutting set
• Birthday Wishes peel off stickers gold
• Mothers Day clear stamp
• Mothers Day die cutter
• Marker pens or colouring pencils
• 3mm adhesive foam pads
• Double sided tape