Fun Creating My Own "Washi" Tape

Washi tape is all the craft rage these days, and well it should be! It is fun stuff, with lots of applications (pun intended), and comes in a huge variety of colors and designs. I have been collecting washi tape, and my good friend Ami gave me a bag load for my birthday (she took me shopping and let me choose--an awesome present!),  And of course I have been collecting decorative tape over the years--Tim Holtz has a lot of different styles, and I think I have managed to acquire them all! And there are other brands, like 7Gypsies and Cavallini, and others I can't remember off-hand. Tons of colors and styles, and lots of fun to use.

But sometimes, three hundred and eleventy-seven rolls of tape Just Aren't Enough--and then you have to make your own. You can use any kind of tape and stamp and color on it, of course. Masking tape works well, and there are cloth tapes you can get for book binding and also for sports uses (like taping a baseball bat handle or a hockey stick). None of these, however, have the soft translucence of tape like Tim's or the traditional washi. So, can you get that effect? Yes, you can!

I discovered that Scotch Magic Tape, the removable kind in the blue plaid box, takes stamping well, and has the same soft translucent look to it that the washi has. The example above was stamped randomly with Ranger Archival Jet Black ink, and then colored with Ranger Distress inks. The Distress ink was put on directly with the pad, spritzed, allowed to dry for a minute or two, and then wiped down with a paper towel.

Another way to get that desired translucent effect uses parchment paper--the kind you cook with--as the base. I use strips about six inches by twelve inches. Again, I stamped random images in Ranger Archival black ink and also stamped some with Distress inks. I applied Distress ink directly from the pad, also, and wiped it down with a paper towel. I heat set the inks on the parchment paper, which I couldn't do on the Scotch Tape because it would shrivel.

Next, I turned the stamped paper image side down and applied Sookwang tape (packaged as Scor-Tape) to the back. I used various widths of the Sookwang tape, and burnished it down well.

When I had my parchment paper completely covered with the tape, I cut the strips apart.

When I finished doing that, I had strips of decorated tape, complete with liner, ready and waiting to go on a project! So easy!


You can also use deli paper to do the stamping on. It is thinner than the parchment, and therefore not as sturdy (before the tape is applied), but it makes great washi.. You can also get a more subtle effect by applying the tape to the stamped side. Tissue paper can also be used--either plain with your own stamping on it, or already decorated.

You can store the finished parchment paper tape in a plastic bag, and the Scotch Tape kind can be stuck to some kind of release paper and sored in a baggie as well. Or you can stick those to a page protector, and put the parchment ones inside.

This closeup has Scotch Removable Tape washi tape on the outside, and parchment paper washi tape in the middle.


Next I am thinking of trying to print on deli or parchment paper (or both) and making washi tape out of that. I'll let you know how that goes!

Until next time, Nan