The Art Of Metal Embossing: Some Functional Suggestions To Start For Beginners

Metal embossing is the art of creating designs on a metal sheet

, by raising or sinking and smothering the surfaces, to give it a 3 dimensional look. The hollows or raised parts may be filled with paint or may remain as it is. This is done to make simple wall hangings or as a collection for scrapbooks. It is largely done as a hobby and one could make money by selling the items to people who wish to use them as home decor.

Metal embossing as a craft, was used by the antique Celts and later found its way into Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The sheet metals that are usually used for decoration are copper, pewter and aluminum. They available in many different thicknesses, with a shiny finish and are available in all of the hobby shops and craft stores. Usually, a craft scissors could be used to cut the sheets, and are extremely flexible and will dent at the slightest touch.

The equipment needed for metal embossing are very simple. A beginner's kit available in a set of a few sheets of metal, a stylus tool, some patterns and directions. The stylus is a wooden bulb-shaped to be held like a pen and used to trace the design. This rounded tip of the "pen" pushes out the parts on the metallic sheet that is out of the pattern. The other tip of the stylus is pointed and is used to create lines.

The stylus can be used to write text and emboss alphabets in the sheets. Swirls, dots and other patterns could be done to give a background for the main picture. Strips of embossed metal that are decorated with accessories or paints could be used as frames for scrapbook photos.

One need to select the design first and a newbie could do well to pick a simple one. The metal sheet is to be placed on a soft surface such as a stack of newspapers or a mousepad. The design has to be put on the metallic sheet and traced using the stylus, pressing where needed. When the paper is done with, the stylus needs to be moved over the embossed lines to deepen them by pressing down steadily and evenly. Once this is done, turn the metal sheet over so that the raised lines face up. The smothering of the excess scribbles and creating of finer lines and details can be done at this stage.

Use paint to give colors. Various textures can be added to make it more attractive. Cross-hatching could be done by making small crosses with the tip of the screwdriver to give it a coarse finish. As one gets better control of the stylus, increasingly more complex designs can be made.

by: Christopher Eyres

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