We have recently completed an entire 12 x 12 Lockdown Diary using only a single pack of patterned paper (Lockdown Paper Pack from De Art Studio) and we had leftovers for making cards & embellishments for other pages. Creating your own background paper allows you to stretch your patterned paper packs that much further, making scrapping a lot more economical.  This works especially well if you are doing an entire album with one theme.  To complete the background for our page, we used the following steps: 

*Use cooled, boiled water to thin some Mixed Media Paste down to a “runny crumpet batter” consistency. Paint your background pages with this mixture, then set them aside to dry completely.

*Mix inks to the desired colour. I used White Kaisercraft Mist Spray and added black to one bottle, Turquoise to the second one and brown to the third one.  You could also use all purpose inks to colour the white mist, instead of using other coloured mists. Spray liberally onto the background sheet, and while still wet, scatter coarse salt (I used dishwasher salt) onto the page. You will notice that the salt immediately starts to absorb the ink, creating really nice patterns. Leave to dry completely.

*Dust the salt off of the page, then use a piece of roller towel to rub the page and ensure that all traces of the salt have been removed.

*Apply mixed Media paste (original paste – not the watered down one) to the page through a stencil and allow to dry completely.  Your unique background pages are now ready to use! 

That’s all for today – I hope you learnt something new!  Please post your completed projects, using backgrounds you have created, on our Facebook page for us to admire and to inspire other crafters.

Take care, stay safe and happy crafting!

Much love, Karen xxx