Red- Letter Words in Nature’s Beauty
The little limerick “What is black and white and red all over?”– kept coming to mind as I created these bezels. A few months earlier I had been drawn to the simplicity and depth of black and white nature photos and thus, the gathering and collecting began-- nature books, photos and even stationary. As I began to work with the images, I knew they needed a little something but I did not want to take away from the beauty of the trees. As I thought of what would complement, and not compete with these bezels, words came to my mind- encouraging and simple, yet words with depth- Words that would stand out amongst nature’s beauty. Red letter words- often words written in red have a deeper meaning and draw the attention of the reader into the passage. These words seem to lift off the pages and find their place into our hearts.
Creating the appearance of lifting/floating words is a 2-step process. First, I created a word document with words such as love, life, joy, grace, peace and more. Then I printed these words onto tissue paper (see note in the technique instructions). The second step is using ICE Resin® in the bezels after placing the tissue paper word inside. With this resin®, the white background disappears – so all that remains are the red-letter words!
In keeping with the color and simplicity, one red glass bead was added as a drop to each bezel. This bead emphasized not only the color but also the word while maintaining the simplicity of the black and white images. Finishing these pieces with antique gold and silver chains, kept the cohesiveness of the bezels, images and colors. While the answer to the limerick might be the newspaper – for us the answer is clear. What is black and white and red all over---a nature inspired, red letter word bezel that can be read (and worn) daily!
Let’s Gather
Black and white nature images
Bezels of choice
ICE Resin®, disposable cups/stir sticks
Non- stick craft mat
Scissors, pencil
Tissue paper
A tape runner or repositionable tape
Glossy Accents™
Stamps-sentiment of choice
*a stamp was used on the heart bezel
Stazon™ ink in cherry red
Red glass beads – 1 per bezel
Wire- 18 gage
Round nose pliers
Flat nose pliers
Wire cutters
Chain necklace – 1 per bezel
Jump ring – 1 for each bezel that has a top loop
Let’s make
1. Cut the image to fit inside the bezel. Either trace the outer edge of bezel onto the image or Ink the top edges of bezel and “stamp” onto the image.
2. Place a little bit of Glossy Accents onto the back of the image and place in bezel. This will keep the paper in place so it will not float in the resin.
3. Cut the tissue paper words and set aside.
4. Mix the ICE Resin® according to package directions
5. Place a thin layer of resin over the image.
6. Lay the trimmed word onto the image.
7. Fill the Bezel with resin, making sure it is level to the top edge of bezel. Set aside for 8-10 hours to dry.
To create the tissue paper words
1. Create a word document with various words, sizes and fonts. Be sure to change the color to red.
2. Print a test page onto regular paper. Trim the words to see if they will fit in the bezel. *You are not using this paper. This is only a test page.
3. Adjust the words/size/font if necessary.
4. Cut a piece of white tissue paper to the size of your regular paper (8 ½ by 11)
5. Using the tape runner, run a line around the 4 edges of the regular paper (not the middle); place tissue paper on top of paper and tape. Being sure to smooth it out as you go.
6. Now place the taped tissue paper into your printer and print the words.
**If using a stamp, stamp image with Cherry Red Stazon™ ink onto white tissue paper.
To create bead dangles
1. Cut a desired length of wire. Thread the bead to the middle of the wire and bring both sides up and lay one end of wire over the other and begin to wrap.
2. With longer end of wire, create a loop through the lower loop of bezel. Bring wire around and begin to wrap the excess. Trim and make sure to “tuck the tail” of the wire so all edges will be smooth.
Finishing the piece
1. Add one jump ring to top loop of bezel.
2. Thread the chain through the jump ring and fasten the clasp.
