Paper Crafts

More on Punches

Julie Fei-Fan Balzer

Yesterday's post on punches had a few folks asking some questions.  So I thought I'd answer the questions in a post rather than replying to each person individually!

My border punches are piled into a narrow and deep drawer:

Punchesindrawer-2
My non-border punches sit in a wide and shallow drawer: 

Punchesindrawer-1
I find that I use them more often this way because I can see what I have to work with.  And the really tiny ones don't disappear from sight. 

I used to keep all my punches in a plastic bag that was stuffed in the back of a drawer and I just never used them.  It was too hard to remember what I had and go digging for it.  So, while the punches take up more room stored this way, it's worth it because I actually use them!

Now, if I had wall space of any kind, I would definitely try out the "punch rail" idea.  I've seen this rail storage idea several places and I think it's brilliant!

-1 (Image is from Kathy's Stampin' World.  I found it through a google search.)

I believe the rails are from Ikea. 

As for the punches that I layer most, it's definitely these three:

3ScallopPunches
I'm finishing up my "Week in the Life" album and these three punches are on overdrive from that!  They're from Marvy Urchida.  They're not marked as to their sizes and I did a bit of googling to see if I could find a place that showed all the sizes of scallop punches that Marvy offers, but I could not.  I bought them locally at The Ink Pad, and it was just a guess as to the sizes, especially since you'll note that the scallop image on all three of those punches is the same size! 

As for sharpening your punches, I have had good luck with aluminum foil folded over several times until it's a little bit thick.  Another thing that has worked for me is a soda can or craft metal.  With the soda can, carefully cut off the top and bottom (with scissors) and then you can punch through the aluminum on the sides to sharpen things up.  As a bonus, you'll have colorful little metal embellishments!

I will leave you with a quick peek at a process photo from an assignment I did for Swedish magazine Scrapbooking m.m.:

Mask-removed
Those large purple circles on the left were created using a mask.  A mask I made using a circle punch!  And I hope you'll check out my Live With Prima class on Monday, June 14 at 8pm EST (note the time change).  We'll be using a circle punch mask for that project too!  Here it is:

Bag-front-sm
Thanks for stopping by!

Julie Fei-Fan Balzer

Based outside of Boston, Julie Fei-Fan Balzer is a painter, printmaker, and collage artist who constructs vibrant compositions. Her artwork investigates the interplay of identity and perception, inviting viewers to take a longer look. Julie works in layers, both physically and metaphorically, exploring what is visible and what is concealed. Passionate about connecting with and inspiring other artists, she shares her expertise through in-person workshops and her online classroom at MyArtPractice.com. Julie's achievements include high-profile clients, multiple publications - including her book, “Carve Stamp Play” - and exhibits in New York City and throughout Massachusetts. She is a graduate of Brown University.

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