Archive for 'Your Questions Answered' Category
What is a Centre Band?
21 September 2007A centre band is a belt of decorative paper wrapped round the centre of a card. It may be secured shut at the back with adhesive and slipped off, or tied with a ribbon finished in a bow which can be opened by the recipient. Vellum, mulberry paper, handmade papers and angel hair are all stunning when used as bands.
You can keep your band plain or add a simple embellishment.
Cutting Mulberry Paper Shapes with a Punch
22 August 2007I want to punch shapes from Mulberry paper but the paper always tears and makes a mess.
Mulberry paper is a very thin paper with lots of fibre inclusions. Punches tend to chew the paper rather than cut it cleanly. There is nothing wrong with your punch although it may seem like it. The solution is to place the mulberry paper between two sheets of copy paper and punch the sandwich. When punched in this way the mulberry paper will be cut cleanly and crisply and you will have the shapes needed to make your invitations punched out in no time.
Once you see how easy it is to punch shapes like this you might want to decorate the backs of your envelopes with punched mulberry shapes to match your invitations.
“Should I attach inserts to the left or right side of the card?”
6 July 2007Here at the Wedding Crafter we nearly always attach inserts to the left hand side of the card, near the spine. When fixed like this, the insert will fall open when the card is opened, allowing people to read the contents of the invitation or order of service straight away.
The exception would be for an order of service if you wish to print on both sides of the front page. Some couples like to put their names, the date and venue details on the first page leaving the 2 middles pages for the service details. In this case you would attach the insert with the adhesive on the right hand side of the spine.
Attaching small embellishments
31 May 2007What’s the best way to attach fiddly embellishments like flowers and wire hearts?
To attach flowers we recommend either PVA, a water based glue which will dry to create a strong bond, or Mini Glue Dots which are instant and just as strong. Place either of these adhesives on the back of the flower head and behind a bow if you have one on the stem, this will hide the glue out of sight. Then place onto the card. If you are using PVA glue leave the card lying flat to dry without fiddling with the embellishment.
For Wire Hearts Glue dots will not be suitable, instead attach with PVA Craft Glue, using a cocktail stick to dab small amounts along the length of the wire. Leave to dry lying flat without moving the heart, the glue will dry clear and will be almost invisible.
Tearing Mulberry Paper - Getting the edges straight
15 May 2007When I’m tearing mulberry paper with water I don’t get the neat shape I’m looking for, help!?
Mulberry paper is a light tissue type paper with different sized fibres embedded. To tear mulberry paper with water you use a paintbrush and water to draw the line you want to tear. This weakens the paper and will mean it’s more likely to tear there than anywhere else on the sheet. You then ease the two pieces apart gently. If you use too much water it will not tear neatly. Try using a smaller brush and less water, if you are getting a wobbly edge that you don’t want, use a ruler to paint the water line.
Mulberry paper has larger fibres embedded into it, adding to its handmade charm. When you are tearing a line marked in water and come across a bigger fibre that doesn’t want to give, try and hold it each side while you pull the pieces apart. If it will not come apart add a dab of water to the thicker fibre and try again. If it still doesn’t work snip the fibre with scissors and carry on tearing along your water line as normal.