All About Modeling Pastes for Cardmakers – A Video Tutorial – Crafting While Caffeinated with Lindsay Adreon

The Crafter’s Workshop not only creates amazing stencils, but they also have some really great mediums to work with their stencils. When you first look at all the mediums available it can be overwhelming! Today, I want to take a little of the guesswork out of all the mediums and focus on one group of those mediums, modeling paste. The Crafter’s Workshop has MANY options when it comes to modeling pastes. Keep reading below, or watch the video, to get all the details on this fabulous medium!

A closer look at the modeling pastes from The Crafters Workshop and ways to use them in your cardmaking projects.

Product Focus – Modeling Pastes Video

The video above contains products that were sent to me free of charge for design purposes. I only design for companies I can stand behind 100%! If you would like to see the who I currently or have previously worked with head HERE.

Breaking Down Modeling Pastes

A look at the different modeling pastes and the different sizes of jars from The Crafters Workshop.

What are modeling pastes?

Modeling pastes are a VERY thick medium. They are not runny, they are thick and they are opaque. Modeling pastes are perfect for adding dimension and texture to your projects. As you can see in the photo below, these pastes hold their shape and don’t run. If I had to compare their consistency to another product it would be dry wall mud, without any of the grit.

The modeling pastes have a light and creamy texture. They hold their shape, as you can see!

The modeling pastes also come in a variety of different colors and two different sized jars. For more frequently used pastes (white, black, and clear) I like the larger 8 ounce jars. But for the different colors, I like the smaller 2 ounce jars. Here’s a look at all the colors that TCW offers!

Tools

When using pastes I like to use palette knives. I buy mine from Amazon in a pack of 5, and I prefer the plastic knives.

palette knives are my favorite tool to use when spreading modeling pastes.

Another good tool to have on hand for covering larger area is a scaping tool. I have this Imagine Squeegee, but there are many larger spreaders on the market!

A larger tool like this Squeegee from Imagine Crafts is great for applying modeling pastes to large areas.

Creating with Modeling Pastes
(For Cardmakers)

Let me start my projects with a disclaimer. I am primarily a cardmaker and that is where I use my modeling pastes. If you are a mixed media artist or painter, you will probably use these modeling pastes different. I am just sharing how I use them!

Hi, You Handmade Greeting Card

A simple hello card with an ombre watercolor background. I used the new wheat stalk stencil from TCW and antique gold modeling paste over the top.

My favorite way to use modeling pastes on my cardmaking projects is by stenciling over backgrounds that I’ve made with them. On my first project, I started by creating a very quick ombre watercolor background with my Arteza Brush Markers.

The antique gold modeling paste offers texture, dimension and shine to this simple hello card!

After the watercolor had dried, I used the new Wheat Stalks stencil and smoothed through the Antique Gold Modeling Paste. I love the texture and shine you can achieve with just this one product!

To keep the focus on the shine and stenciling, I used a very simple and small sentiment from the Concord & 9th Feathered stamp set

I finished this very simple car with a Hi, You sentiment from the Concord & 9th Feathered Stamp Set and attaching the panel to an A2 top folding card base.

I do want to inform you all that I have added a new FREE download to my Freebies Page. It’s a PDF download that shares the measurement of my most use card base sizes, as well as how to create your own card bases! I had all of this info in a video tutorial, but I condensed it all into one PDF download so you can keep it in your craft room for easy reference!

Making Card Bases PDF Download

Bright Hugs Handmade Card

A handmade greeting card with a bright ink blended background and black modeling paste stenciling with the new explosion stencil from tcw.

As I said above, I love using modeling paste through stencils over my backgrounds. Because the pastes are so obaque they are perfect to use over my brightest backgrounds for the silhouette stenciling technique. Before I used black acrylic paint, which works great but can seep a bit under the stencil if you’re not careful and it doesn’t have any dimension.

The black modeling paste is matte and soo opaque. it is perfect for the silhouette stenciling technique!

The black modeling paste is so opaque, it will cover even super bright backgrounds. The paste’s thick consistency also means that it holds up really well in the stencil. It provides a bit of dimension and texture and doesn’t seep beneath the stencil lines! I used the black modeling paste to put through the new Explosion stencil from TCW. This is such a fun background, you don’t need much else to finish this handmade card!

I added a bit of shine to this card by foiling the hugs die cut sentiment with pewter foil

To finish this card I used a MFT Hugs die and die cut it from Peel and Stick Toner Sheets. Then, I ran it through my laminator with Pewter foil from Thermoweb. After adding the shiny foiled sentiment, I attached the entire panel onto an A2 top folding card base!

Orange and Green Hello Handmade Card

This bright and cheery hello card is so much fun! I normally don't use this much color on my handmade cards, but for this card it just works!

For my final project, I wanted to share a little more on the Clear Modeling Paste. This paste is more translucent than the other pastes, but it doesn’t dry completely clear. If that’s what you’re looking for, I suggest using a Gel Medium (matte or gloss depending on the finish you want). This paste is more a base. You can create any color of paste you want just by adding acrylic paint, water based ink, etc. And because the base is “clear” it doesn’t change the color at all like a white paste would.

The clear modeling paste from TCW is perfect for creating your own custom colors of modeling paste. I love it for creating tone on tone stenciling!

To the clear modeling paste I added Distress inks. I used two colors, Ripe Persimmon and Dried Marigold, and that’s the beauty of having the clear modeling paste. You can create your own custom colors of pastes. I love creating a bit of a lighter shade than my background for a tone on tone look. I put my custom colored paste through the new Circle Jumble stencil from The Crafter’s Workshop.

To add some shine I added foil to the hello die cut sentiment. I also added a few polymer clay hearts for more interest!

Normally, when the background on my card is so bright, I like to keep the rest of the card pretty simple. But I added a bit more color this time! After foiling my hello die cut sentiment with black, I mounted the sentiment onto a piece of patterned paper that I made into a banner. I also added a few polymer clay hearts from Kat Scappiness to add a even more interest to this fun and bright handmade hello greeting card!

Tips and Tricks for Using Modeling Pastes in Your Cardmaking Projects

Remember first and foremost, these pastes are great for adding dimension and texture. You can layer them to create as much texture and dimension as you want, too!
Swatch your products!! As you can see in the photos above, I swatch each of my colors onto white cardstock through a stencil. This gives you a much better idea on how each color looks stenciling!
When you’re done using your pastes, seal them up. If you are having trouble with any of your jarred products drying out, add a layer of plastic wrap on top of the jar and then seal the lid. Watch the video above for more details!!
Finally, clean your tools and stencils AS SOON as you’re done using them. The modeling pastes dry quickly, more quickly than you think! And once they’re dry, they aren’t going to budge without a fight. I clean mine with a bit of dish soap and the scratchy side of a sponge that I keep specifically for cleaning my stencils.

I hope you all enjoyed more of a focused look at the Modeling Pastes from The Crafter’s Workshop. These are such a great product to have on hand and I love using them in making my handmade greeting cards when I want to pretend I’m a mixed media artist, LOL! (I WISH!!)

If you are interested in any of the supplies I used on my projects today, you can find them all listed and linked down below. Until next time, happy crafting!!

Supply List

Affiliate links are used

The Crafter’s Workshop – 6 x 6 Stencil – Wheat Stalks Shop at: SB.COM	The Crafter’s Workshop – 6 x 6 Stencil – Explosion Shop at: SB.COM	The Crafter’s Workshop – 6 x 6 Stencil – Circle Jumble Shop at: SB.COM	Sizzix – Big Shot Machine – White and Gray Shop at: SB.COM \| AMZ	MISTI Stamping Tool – The Most Incredible Stamp Tool Invented Shop at: SB.COM \| AMZ
Scotch Delicate Surface Painter’s Tape Shop at: AMZ	Sweet Celebration Paper Pack Shop at: N2S	Catherine Pooler Designs – Party Collection – Premium Dye Ink Pads – Party Dress Shop at: SB.COM	Tsukineko – VersaFine Clair – Ink Pad – Pinecone Shop at: SB.COM \| AMZ
Concord and 9th – Clear Photopolymer Stamps – Feathered Shop at: SB.COM	2 Rolls Double Sided Foam Tape Shop at: AMZ	Nuvo – Deluxe Adhesive Shop at: SB.COM	Fiskars – 12 Inch Personal Paper Trimmer with Cut-Line Shop at: SB.COM
Teflon Bone Folder Shop at: AMZ	ARTEZA Watercolor Paper Shop at: AMZ	Wagner Spraytech Dual Temperature Hot Air Tool Shop at: AMZ	ARTEZA Real Brush Pens, 24 Shop at: AMZ
Arteza Water Brush Pens Shop at: AMZ	Makeup Brush Set of 10 Shop at: AMZ	The Crafter’s Workshop – Modeling Paste – Antique Gold – 2 Ounces Shop at: SB.COM	The Crafters Workshop – Modeling Paste – Black – 8 Ounces Shop at: SB.COM
The Crafters Workshop – Modeling Paste – Clear – 8 Ounces Shop at: SB.COM	3 Pack Blue Painters Tape Shop at: AMZ	MDF Board – 30-Pack Shop at: AMZ	Catherine Pooler Designs – Party Collection – Premium Dye Ink Pads – Flirty Fuchsia Shop at: SB.COM
Catherine Pooler Designs – Party Collection – Premium Dye Ink Pads – Something Borrowed Shop at: SB.COM	Therm O Web – iCraft – Deco Foil – 8 x 10.5 Peel N Stick Toner Sheets – 2 Pac Shop at: SB.COM	Therm O Web – iCraft – Deco Foil – 6 x 12 Transfer Sheet – Pewter – 5 Pack Shop at: SB.COM	Royal Sovereign 9″ Desktop Laminating Machine Shop at: AMZ
5 Piece Plastic Palette Knife Set Shop at: AMZ	Lawn Fawn – Lawn Cuts – Dies – Scripty Hello Shop at: SB.COM	Therm O Web – iCraft – Deco Foil – 6 x 12 Transfer Sheet – Black – 5 Pack Shop at: SB.COM	Ranger Ink – Tim Holtz – Distress Ink Pads – Mini – Dried Marigold Shop at: SB.COM
Ranger Ink – Tim Holtz – Distress Ink Pads – Mini – Ripe Persimmon Shop at: SB.COM	We R Memory Keepers – QuickStik Scrapbook Tool Shop at: SB.COM	Kat Scrappiness Shop at: KS