Mad About Metal: More Than 50 Embossed Craft Projects for Your Home

100 Pages·2018·5.71 MB·English

by  Monica Fischer

Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Craft metal
Supporting mediums
Tools and materials
Textures and techniques
Color techniques
Projects
Beginners
Boxes and tins
Notebooks and journals
Frames and mirrors
Candle wraps
Wall art
Trays and coasters
Upcycle
Decorative and useful
Masterpieces
Quick ideas
Tips, tricks and extra ideas
Templates and designs
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
“You can’t use up creativity; the more you use, the
more you have.” –Maya Angelou Our deepest
thanks go to our publisher and all at Metz Press,
especially Wilsia Metz, for believing in our metal-
crafting abilities. Our thanks, also, to photographer
Ivan Naudé for capturing our work in such
outstanding visual images.
Much gratitude goes to our families for their patience, understanding and
support during our creative journey.
And, most important, a special thanks to all those creative—and soon to be
creative—people who bought this book, and who will, we hope, recommend it to
anyone who wants to explore their creativity.
Thank you for allowing us to be part of your creative experiences.
The Mad About Metal team Lee, Suzan and Monica

INTRODUCTION
Writing this book was a first for all of us, and what a great adventure it has been!
Although we decided to take on the challenge as a team, it has been a solitary
experience at times; each of us designing and developing new ideas and projects,
working alone in our separate studios, in different parts of the city. Often,
cellphone messages and photographs were the way we kept in touch and updated
each other on progress. Strangely, these messages always seemed to be sent and
received at exactly the moment when inspiration and motivation were most
needed.
A shared passion for working with metal and textures—helped along by
dedication, understanding and enthusiasm—made it possible for us to work
together, and for this we are grateful to one another. Although there were some
stressful days, for the most part, this was a fun experience.
Color makes life beautiful! We’ve always been enthralled by craft metal, and
the endless possibilities it provides to create texture and color capable of
brightening up the dullest day. As crafters and teachers we’ve experimented with
a wide variety of craft mediums, but we were always drawn back to metal craft.
The ability to transform a flat piece of metal into a multi-dimensional end
product is truly the finest creative experience anyone can have.
The art of metal embossing (or repoussé) has been around for centuries and
has traditionally been associated with metals such as pewter and copper. We aim
to break the boundaries of traditional embossing work with a colorful and
modern new approach that will inspire young and old to be creative and try new
ideas.
In this book we will show you how to create lovely embossed pieces by
combining craft metal with texture and color. The projects have been designed
and created specifically to demonstrate a variety of techniques. They vary from
easy projects that can be made in very little time, using inexpensive hand-held
tools, to more advanced items that require a bit more skill and the use of a
variety of tools and accessories that are readily available and complement craft
metal perfectly. Throughout Mad About Metal you will find expert tips and
additional ideas to help you along your way.
We hope our book will inspire you to become creative using craft metal, even
if you haven’t tried any craft mediums before. As you learn to master the skills
you could well become passionate about metal craft and the creative experience
of taking a blank piece of colored metal and turning it into your own uniquely
beautiful creation.
beautiful creation.
Please Note: The instructions and materials, i.e. “Creaticca texture plates,” “Supawood,” etc., are
merely recommendations. However, you may be able to find other items to substitute.
Please use caution and care when handling craft metal and working on these projects, as the materials or
tools may contain sharp edges. Read all safety instructions for tools and/or machinery before operating.
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
It would be worth your while to spend some time reading through and
familiarizing yourself with the content of the chapters on craft metal, tools and
materials, textures and embossing techniques as well as coloring techniques.
Doing so will give you a solid base for becoming creative with craft metal.
Start off by tackling some of the easier projects. The first few projects were
designed to familiarize you with basic techniques such as cutting, embossing,
sanding and glueing.
You only learn through experience and from making mistakes. Don’t be
discouraged if something doesn’t work out as planned on the first attempt. There
have been times when we’ve had to repeat a project two or three times before
getting it right; in fact, some projects didn’t even make it to the book—but trial
and error is, after all, how you become a master of your craft.
The projects in this book are merely suggestions and examples of what can be
achieved. It is important to have fun and at the same time to give your own
creative ideas the scope to change them to suit your own style and taste.
As you embark on your metal-crafting journey, remember our motto: If you
can move it, you can metal it. Go metalistic—go mad about metal.