Enamel Dots Using A Glue Gun

Hi there crafty friends, last week when I posted my card for the Koala T Crafts challenge blog, I promised you I would let you in on the secret to how I created the enamel dots on the front of the card (click here to see that card). 

I am back today with my quick tutorial on how to make enamel dots using a glue gun and a Copic Marker or Alcohol Ink.  When I created my card for the Koala T Crafts Challenge #2, I used a Copic marker but for the purpose of this tutorial, I decided to try a couple of other ways using different types of alcohol inks to see what would happen.

To create these dots you will need: a hot glue gun a hot glue stick some form of heat resistant mat (I used an old craft mat that I cut up into smaller pieces) Copic markers or your choice of alcohol ink

Let's get started!

1.  Drop a dab of glue onto your heat resistant mat.

2.  Continue to do this making different sizes of dots.

3.  Let the glue dots dry. It takes approximately 20 to 25 minutes. 
You will know they are dry when they begin to turn cloudy in color.

4.  Use your alcohol marker and color the dots.  Set them aside to dry for about 10 minutes.  Once they are dry you can start using them on your cards or projects.

Now it was time to start experimenting with different kinds of alcohol ink.
I have an ink refill, an ink spray, and an ink dauber here.

I tried with the spray first and the ink slid right off the dot and pooled onto the mat.

.

Next I tried the alcohol refill.  The ink stayed on the dot but also pooled on the surface of the dot as well as the mat.

 

I used a paint brush to move the ink around and make it more evenly
coated on the glue dot.

When I used the ink dauber the ink didn't adhere to the glue dot at all. 
If you look closely, you can see splotches of ink on the dot but that's about it.

The last experiment I tried was to use a Copic marker and color a circle on my paper.

I adhered my glue dot on top of the colored circle using a light coat of
Tombow Aqua glue.  I think I like this result the best.

Here is a side-by-side example of each test that I did.  Leave me a comment
and let me know which one you like the best?

That's it for me today.  I hope you enjoyed this tutorial.  I'd be thrilled to see you enter our challenge on the Koala T Crafts Challenge Blog using one of these homemade enamel dots on your card.

Our challenge runs from August 1-31, 2017 and we would absolutely LOVE to have you join us!