Arnold Grummer's Design Team Blog

©Michele Emerson-Roberts   2015 Creating cards for the guys in my life can be a challenge!  Never fear - .a few pieces of handmade paper to the rescue! I wanted to play with some new ideas and this was the perfect place and time. If I make at least two of each card I will have one for each of the four guys birthdays…..smile. Better make some extras just in case!   Supplies: Any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits A sunny window Blender, small strainer, cello sponges and soft towels Scraps of ivory or white paper (think junk mail, etc.) Dies:  Impression Obsession #310-XX Forest & 080-N Deer Trio Spellbinders TM  Grand Calibur™ Machine Tan and white card stock for card bases (small card is 4 ¼ x5 ½”, large card is 5 x 7” folded) Envelopes to fit cards Black scraps and tan scraps for die cutting Westcott TM paper trimmer & scissors Scor-pal TM (LOVE the new 1/8 th version!) Beacon TM ZipDr

Hello all, I made an ATC for my post today. It is the size of a playing card. On it I drew a pumpkin and painted it all in with Twinkling H2O's. I then made a couple casts, from paper pulp, of leaves and adhered them to the front of my ATC using Helmars glue. I then painted those in with Twinkling H2O's also. You could also make these using your smaller scraps of handmade paper. Making your own handmade paper and making castings from paper pulp is so much fun. Really, you need to try it. You can check out all the info  Arnold Grummer's Paper making shop.  Get yourself a kit and see how much fun you have creating your own handmade paper.

Hi Tamiko here and Happy Wednesday to you all! Can you believe that October is almost  over and that there is less than 60 days until Christmas? Wow, where has the time gone? (smiles) Today I have a frame I created using my handmade paper products and special trim. Items used from Arnold Grummer: Medium Pour Mold Photo Frame Set Casting Molds Item from the Ribbon Resource Lavender Raffia Bows Other Items: Helmar's 450 Quick Dry Helmar's Craft and Hobby PVA Twinkling H2Os Waterbrush Scissors old Christmas wrapping paper blender strainer I began by creating my handmade papers and paper castings with the instructions found here . After the paper was made, I cut it to size and adhered it with my Helmar 450 Quick Dry. I then embellished the corners with the paper casting.  I added color to the castings with a little bit of Twinkling H2O.  I then took the gorgeous bow paper raffia bow trim and added even more texture to my frame and

Once I had my sheet of paper made, I wanted to try an experiment. Could I use my stamps to make impressions in a damp sheet of paper? Sort of deboss, if you will. The answer is yes! You can! Using my wood block, I pressed the stamp into the damp paper.  Look at  the wonderful result! Next I inked up the stamp and applied it to another sheet of paper. Isn't this pretty? I proceeded to apply Twinkling H2O Paints for a shimmery feel. Here is my finished card! Don't you love the look?? As we finish up Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I want to remind everyone that there is hope! Mammograms and early detection are key! If you, or anyone you know is going through this right now, please let me know and I will mail this card to them!! Thank you for stopping by! Don't forget to head over to the store for these supplies: Medium Pour Hand Mold Arnold Grummer  was later appointed Curator of the Dard Hunter Paper Museum, housed at the In

©Michele Emerson-Roberts   2015 I LOVE Halloween! Creating and sending out over 50 Halloween cards every year is such fun to do. This year’s cards are really different; no pumpkins, skeletons or black cats for me, but the card still conveys the spirit of Halloween. Wonder what the ghosts and goblins who live in the imaginary city are doing to celebrate? Supplies: ·         Any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits ·         A sunny window ·         Blender, small strainer, cello sponges and soft towels ·         Scraps of ivory or white paper (think junk mail, etc.) ·         Dies: Impression Obsession TM #339-Z Cityscape ·         Spellbinders TM Grand Calibur™ Machine ·         Black card stock for card bases (card is 4 ¼ x5 ½” folded) ·         Envelopes to fit cards ·         Black white core cardstock scraps for die cutting ·         Westcott TM paper trimmer & scissors ·         Scor-pal TM (LOVE the new 1/8 th version!) ·         Beaco

There is a child in every one of us who is still a trick-or-treater looking for a brightly-lit front porch.  ~Robert Brault You might be able to tell that I am one of those adults who love Halloween! A couple of weeks ago while I was on vacation I had 2 kids make some paper with me right on the beach. I asked them if they wanted their paper mailed to them or would they like for me to make a Halloween card out of their paper? They chose the Halloween cards, I hope they like them! Gulf paper video  ( plus lots of other paper making videos!) how to make paper  Kim  Schiedermayer ( Arnold Grummer's daughter )  asked me to post a picture of my card that was published in the August edition of the CardMaker Magazine .   It's always fun to see your work published, thank you CardMaker Magazine! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We are celebrating the man behind th

Hello, it's Ann here today with a simple way to make a special Thank You card for someone who deserves it.  Here is the card: Did you see that it is it's own envelope too?  I think that is pretty neat.  If you have already made a stash of handmade papers then all you need is to use this easy to use Template and you are almost done! The handmade paper I chose to use for this project was made with some chopped up dried maple leafs!  That's right when I mixed the pulp which consisted of junk mail return envelopes I added a generous handful of crushed red Maple Leafs into the blender and made the sheet as per the original Arnold Grummer way ( video link ). Did you know that the AG shop has books?  Well, now you do!  I love this book: It explains and shows beautiful examples of casting paper in moulds, just like the maple leaf I made here. I coloured the leaf with some creamy pastels or Gelatos. To add the sentiment inside the card I used a red rub

I have been having so much fun making paper but I wondered what else could I make?? A walk outside gave me the perfect idea! I started with pulp (recycled paper shredded in the blender) that I moved through a strainer to get quite a bit of water out.  I started molding the pulp around the large leaf which I picked up outside. I covered the outside completely and used the screen and sponge to remove excess water. . Set this aside and let it dry thoroughly.  Peel off leaf and gently bend the paper leaf so it has shape. I planned on using my leaf for a candy/nut dish but first it needed color. I added layers of red, orange, yellow and even gold acrylic paint. I used brown for the stems and veins. Once done, I gave it a layer of Gel Medium. And here is my dish These leaves would also be beautiful for fall home decor projects such as a frame and wreath. I would definitely try this again! Did you know you can make paper with somethin

I love using my handmade paper for all sorts of projects—especially this Halloween tag. I had the perfect paper for the background, but finding the right color for the moon proved more challenging. I tend toward the pastel color palette, so I had to come up with a solution for a glowing orange moon for my Halloween tag. [I know you're wondering: why didn't I just whip up some handmade paper in the right color? Well, I'm in Ohio. I make my paper outdoors, and autumn is really taking hold here, so weather didn't permit a papermaking session.] So, here's my solution. I punched out a circle from a scrap of pink pastel paper for my moon. I spritzed it with water, and used a marker with water-based ink to shade it. Because the paper was damp, the ink soaked into the paper, rather than just staying on the surface. I wanted the moon to be on the same layer as the background, so I punched an identical circle in the background paper where I wanted the moon.

©Michele Emerson-Roberts 2015 What fun! Think of all the themes/subjects that are at your finger tips! One more way of re-purposing items that would go into the trash and make beautiful art too!  What a wonderful gift this would make! Supplies: Any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits A sunny window Blender, cello sponges and soft towels Scraps of beige, tan, ivory paper (think junk mail, etc.) Magazine page of your choice with torn edges Beacon ZipDry™ Adhesive Matt board Optional: glass and frame with room for spacers – or perhaps a tabletop easel Instructions: Follow the directions found in any of the Arnold Grummer™ paper making kits to create light tan slurry.  Create a sheet of heavy weight paper. Remove most of the water from the paper. While the sheet of paper is still damp, lay the magazine page onto the damp paper. Remove the rest of the water from the paper. The page is now embedded into the shee

In addition to a month long celebration of Arnold Grummer ---- October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month -  a month that really bits home for me. I have had breast cancer twice, in 1994 and 1997. Both times it was detected early on a mammogram. Here are some facts Facts About Breast Cancer In The United States One in eight women will be  diagnosed  with breast cancer in their lifetime. Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death among women. Each year it is estimated that over 220,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer and more than 40,000 will die. Although  breast cancer in men  is rare, an estimated 2,150 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and approximately 410 will die each year.   There is good news though. Death rates from breast cancer have been declining since about 1990, in part to better due to screening and early detection, increased awareness, and continually

Today's card was created in the memory of Arnold Grummer (AG). This month we are celebrating the love and the passion the man behind the Papermill.  He was an internationally known Paper Educator, recognized for his ability to teach pretty much anyone with even the smallest bit of learnability (is that a word?  It is today if you understood it! ha!!) He honestly believed and proved it time and time again, that people from all over can create a decent sheet of paper with VERY MINIMAL supplies. I began first and foremost by using papers I had previously made with one of the AG Papermill kits .  Directions on how to prepare those pages can be found here . I also grew quite addicted to creating paper castings, utilizing the molds found here.  You can learn how to create the proper cast by checking out the info here . One thing I will tell you is the more detailed your casting mold is.. you may need to use some type of release agent.  I personally used a little extra virgin o