March 27, 2012

RS #4 & Twine Spiral Tutorial

Back after another exhausting few days of decisions.  Sadly today my husband and I went to Ben's school to withdraw him from the trip to Europe.  After speaking with our family doctor yesterday she feels he is not in a position to travel abroad.  He is still extremely tired and the mono is affecting his liver.  He would try to keep up, but 12 days of walking tours in England, France and Belgium could land him in the hospital overseas.  So home he stays.

Todays post has lots of photos.  I took some time in my studio today to get crafty.  I had a lot of requests for instructions on how I made the twine spiral that I made for last weeks Papertrey Blog Hop.  I decided to combine instructions along with a card for this weeks RetroSketch #4 using the same technique.  The tutorial is after my RetroSketch card.







Twine Spiral Tutorial

Here are my instructions for creating the twine spiral seen HERE and on the Retro Sketches card above. I by no means take credit for inventing this technique, these are the steps I was taught years ago using wool.  You can click on any picture for a larger image.

You need twine and a starburst or pinked edge die and twine.  Die cut a starburst mine is 1 3/4".


Start by taping the end of your twine on to the back of your spiral.  I just use scotch tape.


Wrap the twine around the front and slip it in a notch between two of the points and then count 10 spaces to your left and wrap the twine through the notch between 10 and 11 towards the back.


Wrap the twine back to the front and put it the notch to the right of where you started, see below.  Again wrap it up and in the notch  to the left of your first pass. 


Wrap back to the front and repeat the pattern of one to the right at the bottom and one to the left at the top.


Continue to do this until you have wrapped the entire die cut.  See below.  If you like you can continue around a second time to create a fuller and thicker twine wrapped die cut.


Leave enough to wrap behind, cut the twine and secure the other end with tape.


I don't have large spools of twine but I have different colours ranging from 5 yards to 25 yards.  I wrap all my twine around a die cut tag.  I cut an angled slit in the top right of my tag and I tuck the end in there.  Makes for easier storage and easier to use.


That's it, embellish as you wish and enjoy.

Cardstock: White
Patterned papers: Twitterpated (Imaginisce)
Stamps: Flower Fusion #6 
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Dies: Tag Sale #5 (PTI), Banner Borders
other: foam dots, button, Twine (The Twinery), ribbon


20 comments :

Suzanne said...

Tracey, I love the patterned paper, especially the red and white polka dot edge! You are so great with those twine tricks. :)

Jackie Rockwell said...

FANTASTIC card Tracey!!! I have to make one of those spirals because it looks like a lot of fun and I LOVE the dimensional look! Thanks for playing in this week's RetroSketch challenge!

carol (krillsister) said...

Your card is great. The spiral is awesome. thanks for sharing the directions. Your tutorial looks great. I am going to try to make one next week when I'm on spring break.

Anonymous said...

Thank you, very much, for the information and the step out pictures! It seems to be much easier than my mind was making it!

Lisa Elton said...

Thanks for the fun tutorial; Tracey, I'll have to try this! Your card is adorable, the polka dots and toadstools are perfect choices to go with your spiral element.

So sorry Ben has to miss his trip, but I agree it's the best thing for him to be at home right now. Take care~HUGS!

Mary Pat Siehl said...

thanks for the awesome tutorial!! love this!

Marybeth said...

I am so sorry Ben cant make the trip, and you had to make the tough decision to not let him go. Sounds like the right decision to me. I hope he gets well soon.
Love this card too Tracey and thank you so much for the tutorial! Cant wait to try it!

Mara Campbell said...

What a fabulous card! Thanks for the tutorial, the spiral element is so very cool. I will have to try this!

Arielle H Gordon said...

Just amazing Tracey! The tutorial is awesome and your card is outta this world! Thank you so very much for playing along with us this week at RetroSketches!

Arlene said...

WOW, this is gorgeous Tracey! Thanks for the tutorial as well. :)

Cyndie said...

Wooops! I somehow missed this card yesterday--I totally LOVE it! Such great colors and the spiraled twine element is SO cool--thanks for the tutorial!

So sorry about Ben by the way. It must have been really tough making that decision. Please give him all the best from me.

Suzanne Russell said...

Oh Tracey! Thanks for the twine flower tutorial! That's what I call a lot of bang for your buck. Love the way you applied it to both cards. Just a wonderful embellishment.

Pauline said...

Wow, what an amazing card, and a fabulous tutorial! I am going to give this a go, what a great embellishment!

Anonymous said...

Oh, so sorry to hear your son will miss his trip to Europe - such a bummer! :-( I do hope he will heal and recover quickly, though. No fun to be feeling so sick like that. Sending good thoughts his way.

Beautiful card, and fantastic tutorial. Thanks for sharing that - I'll need to give it a try. Such a fun medallion. ;-)

Danielle Daws said...

That's the COOLEST embellishment!! Awesome!

Gayatri said...

Wow! Fantastic card, Tracey! Congratulations on your win :) Truly well deserved.

Jenny said...

Congrats on your retro sketch win :0)
I love the twine wrapped rosette, reminds me of the Spirograph patterns we used to draw as kids! Fabulous card :0)
Jenny x

Lisa Elton said...

HUGE hug and congrats on your win Tracey!!! Awesome card ;)

LeAnne said...

A-MAZING! This is fabulous---thanks for the tutorial, and your creation is wonderful!

Unknown said...

Hey Tracey, I am so terribly sorry that I've somehow missed this story about your son until just now. That sounds very stressful; first to have him be so sick (it's always scary when your kids are really sick like that!) and then the huge disappointment of missing this trip. Hugs to you & I will keep you and Ben in my prayers. (btw, This is a gorgeous card, I love the twine!) Happy Easter & BIG hugs for a speedy recovery for Ben.