Faux Batik Technique by Laura Fulcher

Greetings friends. I was playing around with Distress Inks and the Curlicue Plate die and thought that the end result looked like a batik background. I would like to show you how you can recreate the look.

First, I started with white cardstock and sponged on a thick layer of Tumbled Glass, Salty Ocean, and Chipped Sapphire Distress ink. I started with the lightest color and added a circle of color to the left of the cardstock and then added the medium and dark blue inks.

Next, I placed the Curlicue Plate die cut-side up on top of my inked paper. You can use a die for more than just cutting! It worked a lot like a stencil, but I think it also had the advantage of weight in that it didn't move around like a plastic stencil does. I didn't even tape the die into place.

Next, I spritzed the die with water and let it sit a bit on top of the paper. I then removed the die and let my design finish drying.

To finish the card, I added the Backyard Wren die that I airbrushed with Copic markers (you could also sponge the ink) and added a branch to place underneath my popped up bird.

I was really leased with the finished look. I especially liked that when I sprayed the die with water, the edges of the die created their own border. The finished background looks like it was layered onto several pieces of blue cardstock, but it is just the effect of the die/stencil and the ink.

Thanks so much for stopping by!