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Using embossing folders with paper larger than 5x7
I am working on some wedding invitations, and the bride wants parts of it embossed. My problem is that I need to be able to emboss a piece of paper that is 5 x 7.5 inches long. The Kassie's Brocade Cuttlebug folder embosses an area a little less than 7 inches (even though it is advertised as a 5 x 7). I was wondering if I could buy another folder and somehow piece them together in order to emboss a bigger sheet. Has anyone ever tried to do something like that or does anyone have another suggestion as to how I could emboss a larger piece of paper?
I have success when I use the CB dots. First, I emboss one side of my paper, then I turn around and emboss. To do this, butt up the dots on the folder to the embossed paper. Run through the CB. Where the dotted line is smooshed own, carefully push out the dots with a stylus.
I am working on some wedding invitations, and the bride wants parts of it embossed. My problem is that I need to be able to emboss a piece of paper that is 5 x 7.5 inches long. The Kassie's Brocade Cuttlebug folder embosses an area a little less than 7 inches (even though it is advertised as a 5 x 7). I was wondering if I could buy another folder and somehow piece them together in order to emboss a bigger sheet. Has anyone ever tried to do something like that or does anyone have another suggestion as to how I could emboss a larger piece of paper?
Is her heart set on this folder?
The majority of my cards are 5.5 x 8.5 so I have this problem all the time. I find that embossing repeatively to cover the whole sheet tends to work best with the simpler patterns such as dots. AND then I have to go back and persuade the original embossed pattern that gets skwooshed by the folder when you move the pattern to another section. It is time consuming and depending on the number of invites I wouldn't recommend this method. (I just made a card today that I embossed with the dots folder and it took 4 passes to cover the entire front + persuasion afterwards).
What I would recommend if you have a die cutting machine or a friend with one to find a similar pattern and make your own embossing folder for the wedding where one pass will work.
ETA and remember the homemade folder still has to go through your embossing machine so you may be limited in width and length by that as well.
There are several videos on youtube about making your own embossing folder.
What I would recommend if you have a die cutting machine or a friend with one to find a similar pattern and make your own embossing folder for the wedding where one pass will work.
ETA and remember the homemade folder still has to go through your embossing machine so you may be limited in width and length by that as well.
I thought about making my own folder, but the bride wants a more complicated pattern like Kassie's Brocade, so I think it might be difficult to create my own folder. I have a Sizzix texture plate that is big enough, but I don't think you get as deep of an embossing effect with the texture plates as you do with the embossing folders. :neutral:
I found several videos on You Tube and other Cuttlebug blogs where people did larger pieces of paper by passing it through the machine more than once, but I'd like to avoid this option since I am creating a large quantity. I have a Grand Calibur, so size is not an issue; I can put two embossing folders next to each other. My idea was to use a craft knife and cut off the edge of the folder that doesn't have a pattern on it and then tape the two folders together side by side. I just wonder if I did that if I would get a crease mark where the two folders meet.
I was hoping someone else had tried something like this so they could warn me of any pitfalls. I hate to cut up my Kassie's Brocade folder if it's not going to work.
I'm thinking with the pressure of the Grand Calibur you are going to get a crease.
Maybe run some card with two folders attached together through (don't worry about design) because the plastic to plastic join is going to be similar either way.
I wonder if there is any Impressibilities type die out there that is a similar pattern (the ones on Spellbinders site are completely different) because you don't get the plastic edge problem with them and you could buy two and "mount" them side by side rather easy.
Or thinking out loud- Impressabilities are rather thin metal if you choose to make your own die that could be the way to go, but I agree, folders always seem deeper to me but I only have a bug.
[QUOTE=Holly440;18533912]Would you consider adding a layer behind the embossed piece to fill in the borders?
I can't add a layer because of the design of the card, plus I want to emboss the envelope flap, which is 7-1/4 inches too. But thanks for the suggestion! :p
Maybe run some card with two folders attached together through (don't worry about design) because the plastic to plastic join is going to be similar either way.
I wonder if there is any Impressibilities type die out there that is a similar pattern (the ones on Spellbinders site are completely different) because you don't get the plastic edge problem with them and you could buy two and "mount" them side by side rather easy.
As soon as I get a chance, I'll try running two folders through the Grand Calibur and see if I get a crease. I'll report back on my results.
Using the Impressibilities might be a good idea because I could cut off the metal frame off the edge where I am putting the two together so I would have a seamless design -- but again, I'm not as happy with the embossing effect you get with the Impressibilities. Spellbinders did just come out with large Impressibilities for the Grand Calibur at CHA, but there are very few designs to pick from at this point, and who knows when they will be available for purchase.
What if you embossed the additional inches by hand with an embossing tool? I would run the folder through once, then hand emboss the rest of the area. Time consuming, but it might eliminate the edge if done carefully.
What if you embossed the additional inches by hand with an embossing tool? I would run the folder through once, then hand emboss the rest of the area. Time consuming, but it might eliminate the edge if done carefully.
Way too time consuming! I have to do 150 invites and I am embossing several different pieces, including the envelope. I'd never be able to get them finished before the wedding if i did each one by hand.
I hope this is a paying job and not a favor for someone. If it's a favor, you really go above and beyond - lol. This sounds like a nightmare. 150 invitations made to certain specifications is alot and when it's problematic, it's an ulcer just waiting to happen - lol. Yikes!! Good luck.
If you do decide to cut two folders and join them together, you may want to consider using a good guillotine-style cutter so the edge is straight.
Some other ideas:
The SU embossing folders are larger than the cuttlebug style and go from edge to edge, which might help them line up better without smushing down the previously embossed design.
or...The Elegant Lines Embossing folder also can be embossed on one side of the paper, flip it then emboss it on the other side and it would look amazing. It doesn't cover the entire space so it would not have any problems in "meshing". Here is one of the cards I made with it.
Sparklegirl (one of my favs) uses what I would call monochromatic layering in which she "floats" an embossed white piece on top of a white piece using dimensionals. It extends the look without extending the paper!
If you have a texture plate you really like, you can spritz it with alcohol and then emboss and you will get a deeper impression. If the alcohol smell bothers you, you can use spray hand sanitizer (available at any dollar general). It evaporates quickly without destroying the paper's fibers like water will.
I think you should work up some samples that are do-able for you and let her choose, especially if this is a favor.
Post what you come up with so we can see how it works out!
You can use the texture plates and get a very nice impression if you mist your cardstock with a solution of 50-50 rubbing alcohol & water before running it through to emboss. I use this technique all the time. Here are some examples of cards I used it on from my gallery to show how nice the impression comes out:
They really turned out great. For Ship 3, can you please tell me what texture plate you used. It really does give the impression of water and that would be a great plate to have. Thanks.
They really turned out great. For Ship 3, can you please tell me what texture plate you used. It really does give the impression of water and that would be a great plate to have. Thanks.
It looks like a Fiskars texture plate to me but I hope we can a definitive answer 'coz it's a very nice texture.
They really turned out great. For Ship 3, can you please tell me what texture plate you used. It really does give the impression of water and that would be a great plate to have. Thanks.
Its a blue Fiskars plate and the name on the plate is Ocean. It was part of a set I bought and I'm not sure which set it was in - I bought two different sets.
or...The Elegant Lines Embossing folder also can be embossed on one side of the paper, flip it then emboss it on the other side and it would look amazing. It doesn't cover the entire space so it would not have any problems in "meshing". Here is one of the cards I made with it.
Sparklegirl (one of my favs) uses what I would call monochromatic layering in which she "floats" an embossed white piece on top of a white piece using dimensionals. It extends the look without extending the paper!
If you have a texture plate you really like, you can spritz it with alcohol and then emboss and you will get a deeper impression. If the alcohol smell bothers you, you can use spray hand sanitizer (available at any dollar general). It evaporates quickly without destroying the paper's fibers like water will.
I think you should work up some samples that are do-able for you and let her choose, especially if this is a favor.
Post what you come up with so we can see how it works out!
I have trouble with my Elegant Lines EF tearing the paper, and the bride really didn't like that pattern (although I think it is beautiful). Actually I think her fiance vetoed that one. I like the idea of "floating" an embossed piece on top, but that won't work for embossing the envelope flap.
That's an interesting idea about spraying the paper with half water/half alcohol. I'll give that a try and report back. The paper I am using is an Aspire Petallics and it is has a shimmery finish, so I'm not sure how it will be affected by the alcohol/water spray -- but I will definitely keep that in mind in the future for my own cards (that's why I love SCS -- so many wonderful people willing to share their ideas)
Have you thought about purchasing cardstock that is already embossed?
Good idea, but I can't use pre-embossed cardstock because the bride has chosen an Aspire Petallics shimmery champagne paper for the invitation and envelope. I think it would be difficult to find an exact match.
Given the size of this project; this is already a 300 pass through the machine project. I have to be honest I keep coming back to how I felt when I did a 300 pass project (and I did it in stages) and if I had to fiddle about with and ensure two folders didn't crease etc I would have gone a little doolally. For me personally I think it would have been worth the effort to create my own folder that I could use for the next project.
I would go with finding a die cutting machine to cut out a metal/plastic impressabilities type die that would be large enough.
I presume the paper is being mounted on cardstock for the invite, so you should be able to mist the back for the deeper impression.
Let us know how you decided to go and get on. Best of luck.
Given the size of this project; this is already a 300 pass through the machine project.... if I had to fiddle about with and ensure two folders didn't crease etc I would have gone a little doolally. For me personally I think it would have been worth the effort to create my own folder that I could use for the next project.
I would go with finding a die cutting machine to cut out a metal/plastic impressabilities type die that would be large enough.
I agree! That's why I asked if anyone had ever tried to create their own larger folder. I think that's the only "easy" way to do it. I am hoping to find some time this weekend to play with it and I'll keep you posted on my results. :p
I see Spellbinders is coming out with larger Impressabilities for the Grand Calibur. Unfortunately, they won't be available for a couple months, so too late for me to use for these invitations, but something I can keep in mind for the future.
Lots of people have expressed concern about me taking on a project of such magnitude, but these are not the first wedding invitations I have done, so I know what I am in for. I have lots of helpers and we turn up the radio or put a good chick flick DVD on the TV and form an assembly line, so we can get a lot done in one afternoon.
I am working on some wedding invitations, and the bride wants parts of it embossed. My problem is that I need to be able to emboss a piece of paper that is 5 x 7.5 inches long. The Kassie's Brocade Cuttlebug folder embosses an area a little less than 7 inches (even though it is advertised as a 5 x 7). I was wondering if I could buy another folder and somehow piece them together in order to emboss a bigger sheet. Has anyone ever tried to do something like that or does anyone have another suggestion as to how I could emboss a larger piece of paper?
Hi Mary Ann - did you ever find a solution to this? I'm trying to do the same and google searches come up with nothing.
I ended up convincing the bride to go a different direction and use a different embossing folder so I didn't need to emboss a larger area. However, Spellbinders makes several 8x11 embossing folders and there are also several made by Ebosser. If you have a Grand Caliber or an Ebosser you could use one of the large embossing folders.
Maybe someone had mentioned it already.... Cuttlebug has two embossing plates that are 12" long: 5.5x12 - Cricut Shop I have seen them at a local Joann store.
Maybe someone had mentioned it already.... Cuttlebug has two embossing plates that are 12" long: 5.5x12 - Cricut Shop I have seen them at a local Joann store.
Wow! I did not know that about the 12" long Cuttlebug folders. Thanks for the info. I am going to have to keep my eye out for them.
Using embossing folders with paper larger than 5x7
