If you have been thinking about getting a Minc Foil Applicator, now is a great time!  Usually retail price on these machines are $149.00 but as of today, 9/23/15, they are just $95.50 through Amazon. (affiliate)  I’ve already bought three more for Christmas presents!  That really is a great deal.

So the items that you will need for this project is:

• Heidi Swapp Foil
• Heidi Swapp paper or other paper pattern of your choice
• Fishing wire
• Beads and baubles of your choice
• Large washers (found at Home Depot around the nuts and bolts)
• Pour-on High Gloss Finish (found at Michael’s)
• Sharp cutter, box cutter, something that holds a razor blade.
• ModPodge
• Paintbrush
• Cutting mat

Using your foil of choice, apply the foil to your paper.  For my tutorial on how to use the Minc machine, click HERE.   With these washers, you don’t need to use the whole piece of paper but can cut your paper into smaller pieces and then just place smaller pieces of foil over your paper.

I created a stunning black necklace and in order to do that, I took Heidi’s paper to my local printing company and copied it off onto a black paper.  In doing this, you can’t really see the pattern print on black paper, but then when you apply the foil. BAM!  The foil really stands out on a darker background. Wait till you see it.

After your paper has been foiled, trace the washers onto the backside of the paper and then cut your circle out with a razor blade cutter.  Make sure you are doing this on a mat or something that can withstand some deep cuts.

Next, take your washer and with a paintbrush, “paint” the flattest side of the washer with the ModPodge and apply your foiled paper.  Press hard so the paper doesn’t curl and leave a gap between the paper and the washer.

Let dry overnight.

After thoroughly dried, prepare the high gloss finish as per the directions on the box.  After mixing, I like to wait just a few minutes to let the bubbles subside.  When ready, take a spoon and drizzle the glaze right on top of your papered washer.  Take a toothpick or something thin and sharp to spread the mixture over the entire surface and to pop any bubbles that you might see. Try not to put on so much that the mixture spills over the edges of the washer.

I would recommend drying for at least 24 hours or even longer if the gloss finish still feels gummy and it hasn’t hardened all the way.

When hardened thoroughly, take some fishing wire and determine the length of your necklace.  Then fold the fishing wire in half and with the looped end, push that through the hole of the washer, then stick your two ends through the loop and pull tight.  It should look like this:

Now comes some fun!  With whatever beads, pearls and baubles that you have, create the rest of your necklace.  You can either finish them off by tying them to a necklace clasp or just tie around your neck.

Here is the black one that I made that I love:

And a few more!

One thing that I love about this Minc machine is that you can foil more things than you think.  It’s not just for cards or banners.  Be creative!  What do you have in your house that you would love to foil?!  Here are some of my past projects:

Free Printable Pantry Labels, DIY Foil Gift  Box, Patriotic Paper Wreath, Free Cinderella Quote Printable,  and Altoid Gift Tins. 

If you have teenage girls, they will love making these and giving them as gifts to their friends and I hope that you will enjoy them too!

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It is back-to-school time where I live and even though I don’t have any more children at home, back to school still  means back to a schedule, a routine and back to some semblance of order for me!

And order for me means organizing my pantry.  I have been married for 35 years and I have never had a pantry.  Until now.  One day recently I came home and a wall was knocked out and there was framing for a pantry.  Yeah, I have the best hubby ever.  Was I ever excited!

I immediately knew the first thing that I wanted to do.  I’ve seen quite a few of these Pantry Labels floating around on Pinterest and I love them!  I ran to IKEA to get these glass jars and then on to my computer to create my own labels because I wanted the words to be a little larger than what I saw on Pinterest.    If you download these Pantry Labels and want them smaller, just reduce the size when you copy them.

Do you know what else is popular right now?  GOLD.  Did I really apply gold foil to my pantry labels to make them even prettier?  Why yes.  Yes I did.

AND I LOVE THEM!   It is so hard to capture the foil brilliance of these labels with a camera but these turned out gorgeous.  But with all the pretty colors that Heidi Swapp has in her foils, you wouldn’t necessarily have to do gold.  Look at all of the options you have:

Can you imagine these beautiful colors in your pantry?

For my detailed tutorial on how to use the Minc Foil Applicator, click HERE.  In order for these labels to work with the foil, they must be printed on a laser printer and not an inkjet or bubblejet printer.  So I took my labels to FedEx/Kinko’s and copied my labels onto this clear sticker paper by Silhouette which I purchased from Amazon. I then applied the foil (instructions here), cut them out and they were ready to go.  Easy Peasy!  Applying the sticker to the glass jars is super simple and in no time, I had these beautiful jars.  In Gold.

{breathing a happy sigh..}

Here are the four pages that I made that are FREE to download.  Print them off and then RUN to your local craft store to pick up a Minc Applicator so that you can foil your labels too!  I know you want to.

Click to download my  Pantry Labels Pages 1-4

Thanks so much for stopping by today for a little gold and foil inspiration!

This awesome post has been shared with Whipperberry and Tatertots and Jello

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Disclosure:  I have received product in exchange for this post but all opinions are 100% mine. And seriously, how could you not 100% like foil??!!

So it’s spring and I have a couple of friends who need a little spring “pick me up” so I decided to make these DIY Gift Boxes to cheer them up!  I’ve seen a method of making this box using a paper plate but when you have a Minc machine, paper plates just will NOT do! Heidi’s motto is to “Make Pretty Stuff”, so we are going to make these boxes pretty! Even though there are lots of ways to add foil to a project, I can tell you here and now that this is the EASIEST and most consistent way there is.  Here is what you will need:

The Heidi Swapp Minc Foil Applicator which you can find in your local Michael’s or Jo-Ann’s as well as some local craft stores and online.

Heidi Swapp 12″ Paper and Foil color of your choice

Two sided  tape or hot glue

That’s it!

Heidi’s paper comes in a 12″x12″ sheet which lends itself perfectly for the foil which comes in a roll of 12″ x 10′.  One thing that I really love about this Minc foil applicator is that it heats up in literally minutes and it’s ready to go.  After inserting my paper and foil into the machine, I am ready for the next step.  See how quick that was?   (For more details on how to use this machine, refer to my last month’s post HERE.)

On the white/back side of your paper, draw a circle using a bowl or a plate.  I used one of Costco’s 10″ paper plate. I know.  Pretty fancy huh?  After drawing your circle, cut the circle out and then cut four lines per the diagram below.

After making your four cuts, fold along these imaginary lines:

It should now look like this:

Then on each end, bring up the side flaps and attach to the middle flap.  You can either have the flaps on the inside or the outside of the box.  I chose the outside because I think it gives it a little character.  Tack down with either two sided tape or with a glue gun.  I used tape.

Now you are ready to fill with whatever strikes your fancy!  I wanted flowers because it’s spring. Don’t you just love these colors?  The foil is so bright and vibrant and really stands out!

Heidi has lots of embellishments like this butterfly and the little “spectacular” banner.  They are pre-printed and pre-cut and are ready to be put through her machine to apply the foil.  You can’t get any easier than that.

So I brought this gold box to my friend at a luncheon today and the 10 other ladies went crazy!  They were full of questions on how I made this and one gal even took pictures because she is decorating for a wedding shower and thought this gold box would make a great centerpiece. With this Minc Foil Applicator, the possibilities are endless!

Last month, I shared how to make this darling Cinderella quote.  Hop on over here to get the FREE printable!

I have four more projects that I will be making with this great machine. Be sure to come back next month to see the next one!

 This awesome post has been shared with Home Stories A to Z and Living Well Spending Less

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You guys, I have found my newest favorite thing.

This is a Minc Foil Applicator created by Heidi Swapp and wait until you see what it does.  You can find this applicator at Jo-Ann’s, Hobby Lobby and it retails for only $149.00.  You can also find it in your local craft stores and online.

So here’s the cool thing that it can do.

Using some Heidi Swapp pre-printed accessories or something that you create yourself, which is what I did, the Minc Foil Applicator bonds the foil onto anything that is printed by a laser printer.  Sorry, an inkjet printer doesn’t provide the right kind of toner so I just took the graphic that I created, ran to FedEx/Kinko’s and had it printed on cardstock.  All of their machines were laser printers.

Check this out:

Here is the print that I created and printed in black on cardstock:

Next I laid the foil in the colors that I wanted on top of my print and placed it inside the transfer folder:

Lay the top of the transfer folder on top of your foil/print and smooth out the wrinkles:

After your machine is warmed up and ready to go, insert the transfer folder with your print into the foil applicator.  This is where the bonding process takes place.  There are four rollers in this machine (instead of the usual two) which makes for a more even pressure distribution.  My paper was a regular 8.5″ x 11″ but the machine can take up to a 12″x12″ sheet.

This is what it looks like after it has gone through the machine:

And now you are ready for the big reveal!!  Peel back the foil off of your print:

And Voila!  Here is my finished project!

I AM IN LOVE!  Is this just so cool, or what?

The colors that the foil comes in are rich and vibrant.  Gah!  Just look at these!  I promise that you WILL find a color that will suit your decor.

The 12″x10′ foil rolls are only $9.99 and other Heidi Swapp pre-printed accessories are from $2.99 to $12.99 so projects are very affordable.

Hmmm…what am I going to do with the other rolls of foil?

Well, you are just going to have to come back next month to see!  I am going to post 5 more projects in the next five months.  The possibilities are endless because this foil can be applied to something as thin as vellum but also as thick as chipboard.

And to make things even easier for YOU, click here for a copy of the Cinderella Quote Free Printable.

Print it off, then RUN to your local craft store for the Heidi Swapp Minc Foil Applicator and you’re ready to go!

Can’t wait to see you next month!

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