Handmade Cards by Toni

Have you ever bought a beautiful BetterPress plate and wondered how to use it without the official BetterPress system? I’m here to show you five creative ways to use your press plates with a standard die-cutting machine. Let’s get crafting!

You can watch the detailed YouTube tutorial here. I’ve included a complete visual list of supplies at the end of the blog post for your convenience:

Supplies You’ll Need

• BetterPress plates
• Die-cutting machine (I’m using Vevor with a 9 in. opening)
• Heavyweight cardstock or watercolour paper
• Versafine Onyx Black ink or Distress Oxide inks
• Magnetic mat (optional, but recommended)
• Rubber embossing mat
• Gel plate (optional)
• Brayer (optional)
• Glimmer Hot Foil (optional)
• Painter’s tape or washi tape
• Water spritzer (optional)

If you’re in the market for a new die-cutting machine, this one is really affordable and does the job! They also have another version with a 6 inch opening.

• ✂️ Vevor Die-Cutting Machine (Opening Size – 9 inch): Use Code: VEVT5 for 5% OFF!
• US: https://s.vevor.com/QTXSSN
• CA: https://s.vevor.com/QTXSSY
• EU: https://s.vevor.com/QTXSS4
• AU: https://s.vevor.com/QTXSTC
• UK: https://s.vevor.com/QTXSTM

Hack 1: Dry Embossing

Dry embossing with your press plates is a great way to get a letterpress effect. A crucial tip for this is to use heavyweight paper, like heavyweight card stock or watercolour paper, as a standard-weight card stock won’t give you a strong letterpress effect.

1. Create your sandwich. The exact sandwich may vary depending on your machine, so check your user manual. For my machine, the sandwich consists of the white platform, a cutting plate (C plate), a rubber embossing mat, and the paper.
2. Place the press plate on top of the paper, followed by another cutting plate.
3. Run this through your machine. If the sandwich feels too tight, stop and check your sandwich right away to avoid breaking your machine.
4. After the first pass, you’ll have a beautiful embossed impression with great detail.

Pro-Tip: To get even more detail, spritz your cardstock with a little water before running it through the machine. This makes the paper more pliable and allows the press plate to create a deeper, more pillowy impression. If your press plate comes with coordinating dies, you can also use them to cut out your embossed design and use it as a focal point on a card.

Hack 2: Letterpress Effect

This technique creates a beautiful letterpress effect by using a press plate as a stamp and a magnetic mat to help with placement and pressure.

1. Use the grid on the magnetic mat to help you align the press plate and the card stock. You can use washi tape to mark the placement for perfect alignment every time.
2. Create a hinge for your card stock using painter’s tape or washi tape. This will ensure the paper stays in the exact same position for a clean impression.
3. For the sandwich, experiment with your base platform, one cutting plate, and maybe a piece of cardboard or card stock as a shim.
4. Carefully ink up your press plate with ink, such as Versafine Onyx Black or BetterPress ink.
5. Flip the hinged card stock over the inked plate.
6. Run the whole sandwich through your die-cutting machine. The magnetic mat will prevent shifting and keep everything aligned.

The impressions are perfect, and with the right amount of pressure, it will also create a beautiful letterpress effect. The magnetic mat helps prevent shifting, ensuring your press plate is centred every time.

Hack 3: Stamping with a Gel Plate

For this hack, use a gel plate to create a stunning, distressed look. A gel plate is ideal for this because it’s more cushiony than a silicone mat or a rubber embossing mat, which gives a more distinct impression.

1. Ink up your gel plate by rolling on Distress Oxide inks with a brayer.
2. Take a piece of watercolour paper, place it face down on the gel plate and use a brayer to get the ink from the gel plate onto the paper, creating a blended background.
3. Next, ink up your press plate with a darker Distress Oxide ink. You can use a magnet to hold the Press Plate to make it easier to ink it up.
4. Carefully stamp the design onto your gel plate.
5. Apply the blended background to the gel plate to transfer the design on to the card panel.
6. Lift the panel to reveal a beautifully distressed border.

This technique is a great way to stretch your supplies and create a different effect without the BetterPress system. You can also experiment with spritzing a mist of water on the gel plate or the Press Plate to create different looks.

Hack 4: Hot Foiling

BetterPress Plates are phenomenal for hot foiling as they produce intricate details really well

1. Trim your hot foil to the size of the press plate to prevent over-foiling on your card stock.
2. Prepare the sandwich by placing the foil over your card stock, with the pretty side of the foil facing the pretty side of the paper.
3. Tape the foil and card stock together with painter’s tape to prevent shifting.
4. Place your press plate face down on a heated foiling machine, set the timer for your machine and let it heat up.
5. Once the time is done, place your sandwich through your die-cutting machine with shims to ensure enough pressure.
6. You should be left with a beautiful foiled image with incredible detail.