Coasting Along

Hi, Leo here!

I've made a start this past week digging into the new kit. I always put together a kit with ideas in mind for how it can be used picked out from what techniques are trending in papercrafting. One of the things in the main kit I picked out to play with this time is the chalk ink pad to create some messy/inky backgrounds.
I wanted to share a technique that anyone can have a go at and doesn't need anything fancy to do it, 'ink smooshing'. It's something I've done for literally years so it's not new but it might be new to you or else you can lord it over me if you have superior smooshing capabilities! If you've not got the main kit inkpad you'll need a similar water based chalk ink one, dye inkpads won't work it needs to be the pigment kind.
Here's my finished layout with the smooshing:

Everything I've used is from the main kit apart from the gold letters and the smaller label die cut, they're both from the custom card kit and the Colour Shine is from the extras shop. It's also loosely based on this sketch from the sketch booklet:

I've done a whole layout process video. I filmed it over 3 days so it's not continuous and I've edited it down to make it short. I get really travel sick with the speeded up ones I've tried to watch so I've gone for this kind of 'real speed' but edited down version. I also am aware that the first bit of the video is complete pants but while I'm filming I can't see what's in the frame as the camera is level with my head so I didn't know until I'd spent a good 10 minutes ink smooshing that it was all out of focus! Hence it's had to be chopped down.
I also never realised how much I talk with my hands and I kind of mumble a bit because, you know I'm essentially taking to myself here so it's difficult not to drift into la la talking to myself land.
Hope it inspires to have a play anyway! xx Leo

Ink Smooshing Layout from Crafty Templates on Vimeo.