Creating Digital Backgrounds from Ackermann's Repository Patterns

Recently I've been playing around with some of the interesting decorative and needlework patterns I found in Ackermann's Repository ( a 200 year old Regency England era magazine that was published from 1809 - 1828).  Naturally I wanted to find a fun way to use these great patterns in with my digital art projects and I've been thrilled with the results so far.

Digital Background I created using an 1816 Ackermann's Repository needlework pattern

I'm not much of a needle worker myself; however I found these antique patterns intriguing and wanted to see what creative purpose I could put them too... so I decided to turn them into digital patterns that I can turn into lovely background for use as digital scrapbook pages, textures or embellishments in my digital art creations.   I enjoy creating fun backgrounds and textures in Photoshop and now have

a lot of great new patterns to play with thanks to Ackermann's Repository.

Here is how I created the above finished background

Needlework pattern from Ackermann's Repository Sept 1816 issue

I started with the original pattern from Ackermann's and cropped out 

the swirled section on the bottom using Photoshop.

I digitally removed the background in Photo shop till I was left with the basic pattern.

Next I erased of all the background areas so I was left with a transparent png image.

This transparency is what allows the pattern appear as real embroidery would  

with just the "stitches" visible above the fabric.

I digitally cleaned up the pattern a bit and added a gold "style" in Photoshop.

I cleaned up the right side of the pattern so I would have a good "repeat" when I started 

plotting my pattern out and used a gold "style" in Photoshop to act as my "thread" color.

I added and reversed swirls in Photoshop till I had this final pattern

This is my completed transparent png pattern.  

I can now easily change the "stitching" color for the whole piece at will and can add 

any number of background choices to create a new look whenever I choose.

I added a great multi-colored background, played with styles and blending modes then added the swirl layer on top.

For my first example I used a fun multi-colored background I created, set with a blending mode of "Multiply" so the base under layer would be seen through it. The base layer is not actually a solid color, it has a "style" applied to it and it is a combination of this style and the middle layer with the multi-colored background set to blending mode "multiply" that is creating this great fabric effect.

I think the finished piece has the look of a baroque or damask gold embroidered material.

Here are two more examples of backgrounds using this same swirl pattern.

Glitter Green Background with bright gold swirls

 I thought this would make a great Christmas pattern.

An antique blue with a soft gold swirl

 Here the background pattern has a bit of a wrinkled fabric look to it.

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Another example using a wood craft pattern.

Ackermann's Repository July 1819 Decorative Pattern

I used the upper portion of the this decorative pattern that was intended for 

wood-working projects such as carving or inlay work. 

The pattern was incomplete on the right side so I had to make some alterations in

Photoshop to create the full image.

Half - Pattern

I cropped the pattern in half in Photoshop so I could then create a mirror image 

of this half and then have a full pattern once the process was complete.

Full - Pattern

In Photoshop I created a duplicate of the above "half-pattern", flipped it to get a 

mirror image and lined it up so I had a perfectly symmetrical full-pattern.

Digitally Decorative version of the full-pattern

By removing the beige & black backgrounds I had my "stitch" lines and could treat this like the first needlework pattern.  I have a thing about creating digital backgrounds that can be used as scrapbooking papers so I played with this basic design a bit so I could have a 8x8 version of it too.

Ackermann's Altered 1819 Pattern - Red

Ackermann's Altered 1819 - Gold

Ackermann's Altered 1819 - Green

These are just three examples of digital scrapbook pages I was able to create using that one pattern.  Each was quickly arrived at by changing backgrounds and playing with blending modes and styles in Photoshop.

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One Last Pattern Example

Ackermann's Repository February 1817 Painting Pattern

This pattern was intended to use as a decorative painting pattern and could have been used 

as a whole or as the separate patterns.  I chose to use it as a whole in my example.

In two of my examples I kept the black background and in the other two I removed the black background.  

I think I actually like this pattern better with the black background in place. 

See what you think. 

(The beige background was made transparent for all the backgrounds shown below 

and the black background was made transparent for the very last two examples.)

 Ackermann's Repository Altered 1817 pattern - version 1

This is the first example showing the pattern with the black background still as part of the design.

I used similar styles in Photoshop for the under layer that shows through the transparent portions as what I placed over the whole design area.  This is my favorite of the 4 - I think it has the look of carved stone or embossed antique metal.

Ackermann's Repository Altered 1817 pattern - version 2

Version 2 is very similar to the one above but in a much lighter color

and has more of an embossed leather look to it.

Ackermann's

Here in version 3 the original black background was made transparent 

so that only the outline portion of the pattern was used.

This causes the chosen "style" used in Photoshop to be placed only on the outline areas rather than also on the surrounding areas that were originally black.  This creates more of the "stitching" feel or a look that is similar to heat embossing when you rubber stamp and use an embossing powder.

Ackermann's Repository Altered 1817 pattern - version 4

In the final version I've was going for that verdigris look of the greenish copper with antique copper embossing.  Once again in this version the original black background was made transparent so that only the outline portions take on the embossed look.

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There is no doubt that I enjoy working with Photoshop and manipulating patterns to create new from the old.  I'm sure the artists that created the original patterns for Ackermann's never imagined that nearly 200 years later they would still be used by a more modern version of the ladies it was originally created for. Larger Downloadable versions of these and other backgrounds using vintage Ackermann images can be found on my deivantART account at
http://eveyd.deviantart.com/gallery/33488210

 I will be sharing a good portion of original Regency designs and needlework patterns in my next few posts so you can see the vast collection that were produced by Ackermann's Repository and their artists. And I hope you find a use for some of them in your own creations and art projects.

Till next we meet...

Fantasy Foil Technique with Scolls Work Rubber Stamps

I wanted to share one of my favorite stamping techniques using transparencies and Sharpie pens.

I have these two great Fish rubber stamps from Scrolls Work Stamps and thought they would make an amazing pair of ATC's (Artist Trading Card) using a technique I like to call "Fantasy Foil".  It's a fun technique that gives a funky end result with the right kind of image.  These goldfish stamps were just perfect!

Scrolls Work Stamps is in the process of wrapping up their "going out of business sale" so the time to get their stamps, if you want them in your collection, is now.

Currently they have the pair of Goldfish I used for this tutorial but things are selling out quickly so go take a look before it's too late.  They are under the Earth, Sand, Sea category if you are trying to find them. 

Fantasy Fish ATC Set by EKD

All pet goldfish should have a name so I've named mine 

Herman and Fred just for the giggles of it

Fantasy Fish ATC 1 - Herman

Herman has a bit of pink on his body that fades into blue and his tipped in green

Fantasy Fish 2 - Fred

Fred has a pink face with a blue body and a mix of blue and green everywhere else.

Tag along and see how I created these fine fellows.

Fantasy Foil - Tutorial by EKD

All the rubber stamp images used in this tutorial are by 

Scrolls Work Rubber Stamps

Some of the supplies used for this project

I start by pulling all my items together for the project.

Stamps

Ink (Staz-On Black was my choice) 

Transparency film sheet 

Sharpie markers 

Rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle - 91 percent kind

Felt pads and a dauber tool

Brayer

Adhesives

Scissors

Cardstock and Mat Board ATC's

Step 00

I stamped my image onto transparency film using the Staz-On ink 

and then flipped it over to color from the side that does not have any ink stamped on it.

(this is important since you don't want the pens or alcohol to remove your stamped image)

Step 1

I use Sharpie markers to color in parts of the fish.

Remember - I'm coloring on the backside of the transparency and not the side I stamped on.

 Step 2

I spray a bit of alcohol onto the felt pad and lightly daub at the sharpie colors.

This starts to blend the colors, lifts a bit of the color and also give an interesting texture.

Usually this process will lift a bit more ink than I like so 

I apply more color and repeat till I get a look I like.

Step 3

This is the second layer of color I'm adding to the fish.

I changed his body from purple to bright pink 

and added back in more of the blue and green.

Step 4

I sprayed and lightly daubed with alcohol again.

I liked the way this looked - I had areas that were a bit heavier in color than others.  

 (you can do this as may times as you need to get the right look for you)

It is important to have some transparency to your colors

so the foil with latter show through it well.

Step 5

I then added adhesive to the back side of the colored image.

The adhesive goes on the side that I colored with the sharpie pens.

A good, transparent, full coverage adhesive is needed for this process so 

I either use spray adhesive or run my item through an adhesive machine like my 

sticker maker or Xyron machine.

Step 6

The "Foil" in Fantasy Foil is heavy duty aluminum foil.

You can use the thinner foil but it can tear on you as you are

processing it, so I just just the heavy stuff to avoid this issue.

 Yes - you can use the foil just as you see it above,

but the effect is so much better if crumple it up.

 Step 7

Wad up the foil and get it crinkled.

You can crinkle it a little or a lot to get a different finished look so experiment and 

see what you like and what works best with your particular project.

Step 8

 Smooth out the foil gently by hand.

 Step 9

I use a brayer to get my foil nice and smooth.

This locks in great texture and makes sure I will have 

superior contact between my transparency and the foil.

Step 10

I mount the adhesive backed side of the transparency film to the smoothed out foil 

and then run the brayer over it several times and in several directions to make sure 

I have the best bond possible.  The foil is shiny side up.

I then flip it over and run the brayer over the back side 

of the foil to help flatten the piece back out.

Here is the fish with all the extra cut away - He's so pretty

Step 11

I then use scissors to cut the fish out using the stamped outline as my cutting guide.

Step 12

I added the fish to my ATC's for a great final effect.

I used spray adhesive to mount them to the background paper since the machine 

adhesive does not want to stick to well to the dull side of the aluminum foil.

The ATC backgrounds were created using this great Asian gold cardstock I 

had that has a great sheen and texture almost like fabric. 

I stamped Asian script (also by Scrolls Work Stamps) 

onto the gold paper, attached my fish and then mounted each to a black 

Mat board ATC I edged with a gold leafing pen.

Now I have 2 amazing goldfish in my ATC collection.

Herman the goldfish

This is a fun technique to play with and it was just perfect with this pair of
gold fish stamps from Scrolls Work Stamps that I used in this project; 

so I hope you will consider adding them to your collection 

before they are gone for good; especially at the newly reduced 

rock bottom prices they have going on.

I hope you enjoyed the tutorial 

and give the Fantasy Foil Technique a try.

EKD "Old World Charm" - Floral Scroll Paper Set

Part 6 - Floral Scroll Paper Set from my EKD "Old World Charm" digital collection.

This set includes the 4 coordinating papers and the Gray Tone paper template that can be used as is or to create other color pages with a digital computer program like Photoshop. 

EKD Floral Scroll Paper Set - part of my "Old World Charm" digital collection

I like to have a ready to use stash of coordinating supplies when I'm working digitally.
Creating one base template paper and saving them with different colors that blend with my other papers; gives me an additional supply of quick complementary design choices.  Then by also having the base gray tone template I can create additional colored pages as needed.

I created the Floral Scroll pattern to have a fanciful Baroque pattern that reminded me of Europe and the colors for the four papers are based on the focal colors from the pallet I used when designing  my "Old World Charm" digital collection.

The Gray Tone paper is the paper template and can be used "as is" or a digital color layer may be applied so it can be tinted at a later time as needed to match any project I'm working on.

This is the color palette I decided on when I designed my
"Old World Charm" digital collection

I used the darkest value in each color family to create the 4 pages 

in the Floral Scroll Paper Set

Floral Scroll Paper Set
part of my "Old World Charm" collection

EKD Floral Scroll Paper - Antique Blue

EKD Floral Scroll Paper -  Moss Green

EKD Floral Scroll Paper -Golden Brown

EKD Floral Scroll Paper -Desert Rose

EKD Floral Scroll Paper - Gray Tone  Paper Template

How I use the template in Photoshop.
I know there are lots of ways to use Photoshop or other digital editing programs
but for simplicity I'm just showing how I opted to colorize this gray tone template.


I wanted a Plum colored version of this paper so
I began by opening a new page via File - New at the top of my Photoshop toolbar.
I named my new document Fancy Border Mosaic - Plum
and selected all my sizing parameters for a 12 x 12 page

Photoshop screen shot showing the png template and the new blank layer
waiting to have its color and blending mode selected

I then used the File - Place option from the top tool
and selected my gray tone template which pop up right on my work area.

I then created a "New Layer" using the last icon at the lower right
of the layers pallet area -  it looks like a square with a flipped up corner.


Once the New Layer was active I searched for a shade of purple
that I wanted to use from the color selector on the far left tool bar
I chose color code 5d4774 for my "Plum" paper.

This is the Photoshop screen shot showing the color already selected,
the blending mode of "Overlay" chosen and the final paper ready to save

I used the paint bucket tool on the far left tool bar and clicked on my work area.
This made the whole area a sold purple, so I changed my blending mode to the Overlay setting, which allowed my pattern to show through and give me a new colored page to add to my collection.

Bonus Paper in Dark Plum

This is the new EKD Floral Scroll Paper in Plum I just created
using the above template

I created my Paper Template as png files since they are slightly transparent.
This allows you to add a color layer below rather than on top
to get a slightly different look.

Plum Paper #2

EKD Floral Scroll Paper - Plum created by adding the color layer
under the template in Photoshop rather than over the template

This 2nd color option was achieved by placing the new layer below
the template on the layers pallet in Photoshop.

I still used the same color code of 5d4774 and
the blending mode was set to Normal this time

The Highlighted Color Layer is under the Paper Template and
allows a bit more of the details of the template to show through. 
This also mutes the color just a bit and gives it a more aged look

It's just a lot of fun to experiment with png templates and see the
different looks you can get based on where you put the color layer
and what blending mode you choose.

This is all personal preference so do your thing and have fun is what it's all about.

The images in this collection are sized for digital scrapbooking.  

If you like these items or use them please leave a comment or link back 

to my blog so others can join in the fun.  Many Thanks!

As Always...