Embossing cardstock sounds fancy and complicated. It may seem like something you’d have to hire a professional to do for you, perhaps at a local print shop or stationery store. However, it’s possible to achieve that elevated look right at home. From the comfort of your dining room table or crafts room, you can create sophisticated cards, invitations, and more.
What Is Embossing?
The art of embossing is creating a raised image on any type of material. In this case, embossing on cardstock paper means imprinting a raised image, text, or design onto your paper. You may wonder how this is different from engraving. Engraving means to carve out grooves, while embossing is achieved by pressing an object against the cardstock paper in order to generate a raised image.
How To Emboss Cardstock By Hand
You may think that fancy machinery would be required in order to emboss cardstock. The good news is that you can emboss cardstock by hand, without a machine. There are several different techniques for doing so.
It is important to note that these methods of embossing cardstock by hand are extremely useful for smaller projects. If you are looking to emboss hundreds of invitations, a machine would be better suited for the job.
Dry Emboss
One common technique for embossing cardstock by hand is using the dry emboss method. Dry embossing, also known as hand embossing, is done by using a stylus tool to trace a stencil. The result will be a raised design on the cardstock paper you are embossing.
To begin, you will need the stencil design you wish to emboss, cardstock paper to emboss the image onto, and a stylus tool to trace the stencil with. If you don’t have a stylus tool, any object with a fine pointed metal edge will also do the trick. Lastly, you will need either a lightbox or a well-lit window.
Start by using masking tape or painter’s tape to tape your stencil onto your lightbox or window. The side of the stencil that is facing outwards, towards the window or lightbox, should be the reverse of what you want to emboss. This is particularly important for embossing text, unless you want the lettering to come out backwards.
Once your stencil is secured, attach a piece of white cardstock paper over the stencil using the same painter’s tape or masking tape. Make sure to use enough tape so that your paper is firmly attached and won’t move once you begin tracing the stencil. Now you are ready to take your stylus tool and begin tracing. Trace slowly and precisely in order to get a perfect emboss. If you rush too quickly, you risk potentially tearing the paper and having a messy design. When you are finished, carefully remove the tape, lift the paper, and enjoy your perfectly embossed print.
Heat Emboss
Another common technique used when embossing by hand is the heat emboss method. Heat embossing means adding a raised design to your cardstock paper by using stamps, ink, embossing powder, and a heating element. To start, you will need a stamp, an ink pad with sticky slow-drying ink, a heat gun, embossing powder, cardstock paper, and a used dryer sheet.
Begin by rubbing the used dryer sheet across your cardstock paper. This will eliminate any static and stop the embossing powder from sticking to unwanted places. Then, take the stamp with your desired image or text and press it onto the embossing-friendly inkpad. Firmly stamp your design onto the cardstock paper and sprinkle a generous amount of embossing powder over it. Make sure that the entirety of the inked area is covered.
Turn over the cardstock paper and gently tap off the excess powder onto a scrap piece of paper. Do this a few times until all of the unused powder is gone and only the stamped design is covered with the embossing powder. Now you can use your heating gun to warm up the embossing powder until it is fully melted. Be careful not to overheat your design as you can discolor the paper and cause the powder to evaporate. Once the powder is fully melted, you will be left with a beautifully embossed design.
How To Emboss Cardstock With Cricut
If you have a bigger project that requires a lot of embossing, a cricut maker can be particularly useful. It is important to note the difference between embossing and debossing. While embossing means creating a raised three-dimensional image, debossing means creating an engraved recessed image. While the steps may be a touch confusing, once you get the hang of it, you can produce embossed materials at a much faster rate than with embossing by hand.
- Open a new project in Cricut Design Space.
- Select the upload image icon to import your embossing design stencil. Once you have uploaded your design, it will appear in your design space.
- By default, the image will automatically be set to “Cut”. Make sure to change this setting to “Deboss”. You will know you have changed the default setting when you see the lines change from standard lines to extra thick ones.
- Place your embossing design onto a piece of lightweight to medium weight cardstock paper. Once complete, simply click “Make It”.
- When your cricut maker is ready to begin, it will instruct you to insert the debossing tool into the machine. Since you want to emboss and not deboss, simply ignore the instruction and put the emboss-it pen into the machine instead.
- The cricut maker will now draw your design instead of debossing it. Repeat this step for a second layer of ink on your design.
- Immediately remove your cardstock paper and cover your entire design with embossing powder. Shake off the excess powder and use a heat gun to melt the powder and complete your embossing design.
Debossing With Cricut
If you would like to create a recessed image, you can use the debossing method with your cricut machine. Since a cricut maker can only press down from above, it is actually easier to create a debossed image than it is to create an embossed one. Simply follow steps 1 – 4 from the cricut embossing method. Then, insert the debossing tool into the machine and watch your debossed image come to life.
If you are using a lighter weight paper, it is actually possible to use this debossing method in reverse – simply flip over your design stencil to create an embossed image. This will not work with thicker paper because the debossing tool will not score deeply enough to raise the image on the opposite side of the paper.
Whichever method you choose to use, remember that it may take a few trial runs to get your embossed or debossed image to be perfectly precise. As with any new experience, don’t despair. Once you have the process down pat, you will be able to replicate and use the technique whenever you want. Prepare to elevate your level of sophistication with cards and invitations that will rival any professional printing house.