Japanese Crane Card

Create a beautiful and powerful Japanese-inspired card with a much beloved crane stamp. The paper border perfectly offsets the soft crane image and the tassle adds an interesting 3-D touch.

Materials:

• POSH-20 Japanese Set
• Parchment paper or a very heavy transparent vellum
• Stylus tool with a large ball on one end and a smaller ball on the opposite end
• Closely woven mat (mouse pad works great)
• Scissors
• Makeup sponge or ColorBox Stylus tool with white sponge.
• Brilliance ink pads in Moonlight White, Galaxy Gold, Pearlescent Purple, Pearlescent Orange, Pearlescent Sky Blue and Peacock
• VersaColor black pigment pad to stamp the mask
• Turquoise Card stock
• Decorative paper (Washi or origami)
• Gold Peel n’Stick foil strips (alternative a Krylon Leafing Pen)
• Adhesive of your choice
• Foam tape
• White tassel

Steps:

1. Stamp the crane image on the parchment paper with Brilliance Moonlight White and heat set. Turn parchment over to the reverse side on top of a mat. Trace the image with the small end of your stylus tool. Using the larger ball of the stylus, dry emboss the solid sections of the crane. Be careful not to push too hard or you will puncture the parchment. Set aside.
    
2. Ink the image with black pigment ink and stamp a scrap of white paper and cut out to use as a mask. Turn the parchment with the dry embossed crane right side up, place the mask on top and using a makeup sponge or a ColorBox stylus tool, apply various Brilliance inks around the crane. I attempted to apply more blue directly around the crane as an offset to the white embossed image.
    
3. Cut small pieces of foam tape and apply to the solid sections on the reverse side of the completed image. This will keep the embossed area raised and serves as the adhesive to attach the parchment to a turquoise card the same size as the parchment. Edge the completed image with Peel ‘n Stick gold strips or edge with a Krylon leafing pen.
    
4. Cut a piece of oriental Washi paper, origami or other decorative paper slightly smaller than the folded card and edge with the gold strips or leafing pen. Attach decorative paper to a folded turquoise card. Add completed image and white tassel. I added a small circle of gold foil for the crane’s eye.