Hi, my name is Owen and my great interest in crafting is decoupage. I have been making three dimensional decoupage pictures for nearly twenty years and have, through trial and error, added to the techniques which were given to me by a wonderful lady who initially instructed me in the art.
The beginnings of decoupage are shrouded in the mists of time and there are numerous theories about the origin of it, these range from the use of solid items such as leaves, twigs, and flower petals in Russia to the assumption that it evolved from the flat style of decoupage which was popular in the seventeenth century in Venice. For sure it first arrived in Britain during Victorian times, probably brought here by those returning from “The Grand Tour” of Europe.

For my pictures I use at least 7 prints and cut each item individually using a craft knife so for instance when developing a picture of flowers every leaf, stem and petal is individually cut and pasted. This obviously can take many hours of painstaking work and would be impractical in card making. The picture is built using one of the prints as a base then using Silicon glue as the adhesive, pasting each cut piece in layers. Although my preference is for Silicon glue many people use 3D double sided pads. When the picture is complete a generous layer of cold glaze is applied which is intended to protect the colours of the picture from fading but which has the added value of giving the final picture a porcelain effect.

As card making has developed it is understandable that there has been an increasing use of the techniques utilised in the production of 3D decoupage pictures, so much so that manufacturers of card making materials are now producing vast quantities of products designed specifically for use in making 3D decoupage cards. One of the major developments has been the production of Die Cut materials and though the purist would never use these, they are a boon for people who have difficulty using craft knives or scissors.

I have spent many happy hours locked away in my workshop, lost in a world of my own, developing 3D pictures. All it takes is a little imagination and a lot of patience and, in my case a very understanding wife who has often threatened to have the words “I’ll only be a minute.” added to my epitaph.