What is Embossing?

Series Summary

Embossing is a process of using heat and pressure to create a three-dimensional image or design in a two-dimensional surface like paper or other textiles. The technique is also achieved by using a letterpress machine. Embossing is commonly used to improve paper products like tissue paper and paper towels by giving them texture. Using embossed lettering or designs is a simple way to add pizzazz to a homemade greeting or birthday card. Your card will have a professionally crafted look, but still maintain that personalized feel of a homemade card.

In this series of free video clips you’ll learn how to emboss and exciting ways of using embossing in a homemade greeting card. Expert Elizabeth Nell explains the embossing process step-by-step, offering tips on tools you’ll need to get started, such as an embossing stamp, heat tool, and embossing pens. She demonstrates various techniques using stained glass embossing as well as outline embossing, and how to use multi-color embossing powder. You’ll also get tips on clean up and suggestions for using embossing in other craft projects.

Video Transcript

" Hi! My name is Elizabeth and on behalf of Expert Village, we’re going to begin a series now talking about embossing in card making. In this series, we will talk about the different ways to emboss, the different tools that are used, and generally how embossing can enhance the cards that you are making. I’m going to show a few examples of cards that have had embossing done to them to give you an idea of what you can do when using embossing. This card here, you may not even be able to tell, but what they did with this card was a clear embossing on black cardstock. It just adds a little shine to this stamp that they were putting on the card here. This card here, using the metallic papers, they used a silver embossing powder. Embossing, if you don’t know, adds not only shine but it raises. So it adds a little texture to the card that you are making. This card here is a fun use of using white embossing powder. This was a lined stamp that they used. They used white embossing powder, and then on the other side of the vellum, they went in with chalk and colored it in. So, the embossing was actually the lines for the coloring book if you will. This one here is similar; it’s silver embossing. The words have silver embossing and then the flowers were actually aligned stamp, so the outside lining of the flowers is embossed and then they took a marker and colored in the stamp itself. This one again is embossing on vellum. Embossing on vellum takes a little practice, and we’ll talk about that in a later segment, but they used a solid stamp gold embossing powder right on the vellum. Then this one’s fun one, they took a silver metallic cardstock, and then took silver embossing powder and embossed the image of the chapel right there on the silver cardstock, as well as the embossed word stamp on the side. Many fun uses for embossing to add a real layer of class, of shine, of texture to your cards. "