Hello again - hope you are having a creative week. this week i got to play with a firm 'old-school' favourite. it's one of those tools that you can't live without even if you are a seasoned crafter! The 9pc Eyelet tool kit is functional in so many ways, but this week we are using it to create custom backgrounds - you can repeat this same technique on your cards, layouts, tags and other crafty projects. and as always you can pop along to the website here to see all their crating goodness.

I created this tag using an inky background, and then used my eyelet tool to make different sized holes into the tag itself, before backing it with a bright and cheerful pink cardstock for a 'pop' of colour. i used pink as an accent colour here to compliment my greens and blues.

To start off gather your toolkit and the working pad - this is so that even when you make holes, you don't ruin your pink Chiswick cutting mat with loads of different marks on it. Insert the hole size you are going to use first by screwing it into the handle tip.

Place the handle with the nice soft grip on your tag in the position you want the hole. Use the craft hammer and pound onto the back of the handle. Once should be enough but may require more blows depending on the surface or pressure.

TIP: i recommend you do this step on a nice firm surface or even on the floor to avoid making too big a noise when you are doing this late at night!

Once you are done and happy with the placement of all the holes, add adhesive to the back of your tag and adhere it to a sheet of pink cardstock. The cardstock fills in the holes and adds a nice colourful pattern to the background.

you can create fun elements using this method i.e Print a swirl on paper and then use it as a guide to create a pattern using your eyelet tool to make holes in the swirl. the printed swirl will act as a template only. remove the printed swirl to reveal your swirl consisting of holes. then back it with patterned paper and you have a custom element for your cards or layouts

combine your holes with buttons, diamante and pearls for a gorgeous effect.

to add some detail to your cardstock use a white ink and add white splats of ink to it before using it behind your holes. this will make for a fun effect peeking through

a fun way to use those favourite tools! oh and you could of course add an eyelet or two to the holes to make them even prettier adding texture and colour at the same time!

Chiswick Products used
9Pc eyelet tool set cr1100
Burnishing paste 25ml Verdigris pa2240
Dye ink pad - brown rs3299