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Being creative .........

Tray with relief work
This week I've been working on a different, very simple technique that I haven't used for many years.  It's adding texture to an article by using cutout cardboard shapes.  

Now these are really impossible to cutout by hand so you'd need to buy the ones that have been laser cut already from a Hanji shop.  I picked up a few on my recent visits and I just felt that I wanted to experiment a little.

Closeup of tray
I made a tray to best display the cutout in a smaller article then covered it in mottled paper to give the effect of wood.  I placed one of the lighter sections of the paper in the middle then, when the paper was quite wet and mold-able with the glue I began pushing it into the shape. This took quite a long time and then I wasn't happy with the overall effect.

Because of the markings of the paper the shapes beneath the relief didn't stand out so I carefully bleached the paper on top.  This then achieved the desired effect I was looking for and above is the final result.

Note:
Varnishes
When an article is finished there are two things you can do to seal the paper and make it stronger.

1) Make up a mixture of 50% white craft glue and 50% water and give it 2 or 3 coats to get the desired finish.

2) Or, you can buy a commercial water based varnish in either a matte or a gloss finish and coat as directed on the label.

I use a varnish from Korea which I label in English in case I grab one quickly and get them mixed up.
Two trays, before and after.

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