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Do you really have to make the pearl, let it dry, and then adhere it to the cardstock (or whatever)? Has anyone tried just placing it directly onto paper? How well does it adhere?
The only way I ever do it is directly on to the paper, and so far I've never had any problems. I do let them dry overnight before I mail my cards out, so I'm sure the pearl is fully dry and "cured". They're permanent on there, once they're dry, so you'll rip the paper getting them off! I love this product and they have become one of my favorite embellishments to use; they add that extra touch when you need that little something to a card or layout. Good luck and enjoy using them......
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge the Lord, and He will make your path straightProv 3: 5-6.
Hi everyone,
I found this thread in an attempt to search for reviews on these Viva Decor Pearl Pens...Oh My Crafts had a great deal on them...their price is $4.99, but then they were offering an additional 20% any orders over $25. That brought the price of these down to $3 each!! That is, by far, the best price I've found anywhere one them. (you still have to pay shipping, unless you spend $75, and then shipping is free, but that's with the sub-total BEFORE the 20% discount, so you get free shipping and end up paying only $60! A great deal!) I am looking forward to trying these, and really hoping that they are as good as many of you have said, since I ordered like 6 of them!:lol:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge the Lord, and He will make your path straightProv 3: 5-6.
So my Viva Decor Pearl Pens arrived today, and I tried them out immediately by making little pearls on wax paper (in the hope that I'll be able to pick them off there after they dry and glue them to something else). I will be able to give a final verdict tomorrow after they've plenty of time to dry fully, but here's my initial impressions: (btw, I got Ice White, Cream, Silver, Gold, Silver Chrome, Copper, Bronze...all the colors are very nice, more glittery than shimmery, and very pretty)
I bought these in the hope that they would somehow magically replace all those little self-adhesive half pearls that I buy buy the tons in every color and that are such a pain to handle (and for which I have yet to find a decent pair of tweezers to use for placing them; the tweezers I've tried always slip off of them! But I digress...) I thought that maybe these Viva Decor pens had some fabulous formula and dispenser tip that would make it a snap to make perfectly round little pearls. I thought that they would infinitely surpass the 3-D fabric paints that I bought at Michaels for creating little pearls and other 3-D effects on my cards. Well...I think that I was wrong. The Viva Decor pens STILL require a lot of practice to use properly in order to get that perfectly round, nicely domed pearl; it isn't just squeeze and go, you have to work at it. Not to say these aren't worth having, and that they aren't a touch different than my Scribbles 3-D fabric paints (I also bought those in gold & silver, cream white and an iridescent white and a matte brown...the only color that is almost identical to one from Viva Decor is the white...the rest are different enough that I don't mind having bought the VD pens, though I would be quite bummed had I paid full price + tax) But in all honesty, there is nothing magic about these above & beyond any other puffy fabric paint you can get at your local craft store. They just cost more ($5 each vs. $3 for the Scribbles)
I'm totally open to suggestions on how to improve my use of these, to know the secret to creating perfect pearls! If anyone is interested, I can take a picture of my first attempt at pearl making and post it here so you can see the colors and how they turn out when you are a newbie at pearl making.:lol:
I don't bother transferring mine from wax paper to my cards, that would be a lot of work. I just put them right on my cards and they come out in a nice pearl form. Make sure you're using the pearl pens and not the writing gel pens, there is a difference.....
I would like to see a picture of your first attempt. BTW, I found a tool at Hobby Lobby that picks up the half pearls, as I had the same frustration as you. It's called "Pickmeup" and I like it.
Around the middle of the video is where she makes quite a few pearls. I found it helpful just watching her technique (I watched how much she lifts/doesn't lift the pen away while squeezing, etc.) I copied her moves when I first practised with the pens and I've always had good results. HTH
I wasn't planning on always making them first on wax paper and then transferring them, I just wanted to practice last night, and figured that if any of them turned out, then I could use them later. But yeah, normally, I will NOT be doing it that way!
I will take a picture of my sad little first pearl attempts and post them here later...
Around the middle of the video is where she makes quite a few pearls. I found it helpful just watching her technique (I watched how much she lifts/doesn't lift the pen away while squeezing, etc.) I copied her moves when I first practised with the pens and I've always had good results. HTH
Thanks so much for this! I can definitely use the help!
Something I just tried with mine-I stamped a flourish design on my CS, then laid a piece of waxed paper over it and followed the stamped image. I let it dry completely then removed from the paper and glued it just a tad off the stamped image. It gave it a very pretty shadow effect. I love these and would like to add more to my collection asap but I am really, really in need of a soft pink and so far haven't seen one. I have the lilac, and coral (or peach or something that the guy said looked soft pink) but it didn't go at all with the baby colors I was looking for. Can't wait to try one of the clear ones.
Oh, btw-to make the gluing easier, I used my stamp-a-ma-jig, then spread a little tacky glue on the waxed paper and used my stamp with glue instead of ink. That way, I had a perfect line of glue to follow. I did wash the stamp immediately though because I wasn't sure if glue would hurt my stamp.
I know this thread is oooooooold, but I'm still enabled by it; I just bought about a dozen of these from Consumer Crafts - my first for both the item and the store. Looking forward to trying them out after all the good reviews!
Glad the info here helped and/or enabled you! I bet you're in for a lot of fun experimenting with these pens. Every time I make a pearl and see it actually dry as an actual, 3-D, solid embellishment already in place, it's kinda magical. ;)
Glad the info here helped and/or enabled you! I bet you're in for a lot of fun experimenting with these pens. Every time I make a pearl and see it actually dry as an actual, 3-D, solid embellishment already in place, it's kinda magical. ;)
thx for that - magic is good, and i have it coming in all the colors consumer crafts carries, lol. i'll think of you when i make a pearl
Liquid pearls retain their pearl domed shape. They do not point up like a Hershey's kiss and you can place them right on your card or artwork. I've never needed to make the pearls and then remove them to adhere. I have never heard or seen complaints of them falling off and I KNOW my friends would tell me it it happened.
If you are bored one day and want to make a bunch of pearls for future use I guess you could do it then. But I never have.
I guess it is like making your owns DOTZ with Aileen's Tack it over and over glue.
I save my old "wax" strips from old boxes of Dotz, and drip the tack it over and over in little dribs, however big I want them, let them "dry" and use those in the future.
Just bought these...
