Pergamano Parchment Craft lends itself to so many uses. The two pictures shown here are both birthday cards. I made Girl in a Hat using a pattern from M22, one of Pergamano’s official pattern books.
I made Morning Glory from a free Pergamano pattern that I found somewhere on the Internet. Unfortunately, I have lost it. Too bad. I like this pattern a lot.
I do not claim expert status when it comes to this craft. At an advanced level, Pergamano Parchment craft is truly an art form.
I have discovered a few tips and techniques that make the work faster, simpler or more attractive.
1. Use varying force when embossing. Strong embossing gives you a lovely white color, as shown in the girl’s hat. Less strong embossing gives a pleasant gray tone, perfect for shading. I have managed a little of this in the frill of the girl’s collar. You can also purchase special tools for shading, such as the Hockey Stick tool.
2. Handle the Tracing Pen and the Tinta Ink correctly. I posted a question about this at the Pergamano Forum, because when I traced, the pen either did not release ink at all or else the ink came out in great blogs. Thanks to a helpful forum member, I now know the secret to good tracing. First, when you purchase the pen, wash it well with hot, soapy water to remove grease. Dip the pen in the Tinta ink at a ninety degree angle (straight up and down). Do not dip it into the ink any further than the hole in the nib. The pen should trace now, but if there are still problems, dip the very tip into a bowl of water to break the surface resistance. Also, wipe the pen each time before you dip it in the ink. Tinta White (and also the Tinta metallic colors) leave a chalky residue that can clog the pen.
3. When embossing, you usually emboss the outside edges first, and then fill in the center.
4. More advanced Pergamano patterns often call for an array of perforating tools in addition to the basic I tool. The I tool has one “needle” and therefore makes one hole when punched. Other Perforating tools come with various numbers of needles, which may be shaped to form a cross, a circle, a semi -circle etc. Although having these tools is certainly a time saver, you can work all of these patterns with the I tool if you aren’t ready to invest in an extensive Pergamano tool collection.
5. Pergamano Parchment Craft is often colored in specified areas or completely, using Pergamano Dorso Crayons or Pastels, Pergamano Perla Ink, or other coloring products. I have found that you can also create lovely colored effects by using artist chalks or Brush Art Markers such as those produced by Marvy Uchida.
6. You can enlarge or shrink any Pergamano pattern to fit the project you want to work on. Use a photocopier to change the size, or edit your pattern digitally using Photoshop Elements or similar software.
7. You can modify a Pergamano Parchment Craft pattern to include or eliminate an element. If your pattern reads “Happy Birthday” but you want it to say “Get Well Soon”, simply open your word processor, write Get Well Soon using a script font, and print it on regular printer paper, at the size you want. Position this where you want it on the pattern and trace in the usual way.
8. Skip the Tracing Pen completely and use a White Gel pen instead. It’s not “authentic”, but if it works for you, then go for it.
9. Use a Pergamano Easy Mesh Grid if you’re planning on doing any of the more complex patterns with intricate designs. You can skip using some of the tools and get acceptible results, but the mesh grid is not one of them.
10. Incorporate your Pergamano projects in your scrapbooks and mini albums. A beautifully done Pergamano project is a great stand-alone embellishment, but you can also make wonderful frames for your photos or journaling, fancy corners for your photos or small embellishments that you mat on colored cardstock or paper.
You can get supplies fromPergamano.com and of course, you can always get Pergamano Parchment Craft Supplies at eBay.
