14 Modern Marbling Techniques to Try
The beauty of marbling is not knowing exactly how a piece is going to turn out! In nature, marbled textures of swirls and veins are built up of collections of impurities and are impacted by external influences such as pressure and heat. The same can be said for marbling with inks, or mixing together differently coloured clays or icings – the heat of your hands or the swirling of a skewer can enormously affect the end result.
We've collated a series of marbling-based projects to get you thinking about the different techniques that can be used to achieve these stunning textures on almost any creation!
You will need
Marbling Ideas
Marbled candles are surprisingly easy to create, and look chic and modern in any home. You can make them from scratch using products from our candle making range, so they would make the perfect, handmade gift. Read and watch the tutorial linked above by Hannah Read-Baldrey to find out how to make your own!
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Marbled eggs make a fantastic Easter decoration, but there's nothing stopping you from applying this technique to other ceramic decorations to display all year round. Each decoration is totally unique, and there's no end to colour combinations that you can try. Follow the simple tutorial above below to find out how to make your own.
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Fluid painting is a mesmerizing and satisfying technique that uses the properties of different paints and mediums to play off of one another in order to create other worldly designs. Have a look at the work of Arika Shaw to get an idea of the scope of work that can be created in this way!
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Hannah of The Home Steady has successfully printed in a marbled texture onto fabric after much trial and error, and has presented her findings in the above blog post so that you don't have to work it out yourselves! Hooray! Take a look, and see how you can use simple products such as shaving foam and fabric paint.
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Master calligrapher Stephanie Fishwick shows us how to create these stunning placecards by using diluted oil paints and water. Once dry, she embellishes with her sure calligrapher's hand in order to create a set of unique designs.
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These marbled doughnuts almost too beautiful to eat…but who are we kidding? They'll be gone in no time! Head over to the post above to see how you can use food colouring within your icing sugar to create this cool effect.
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Use Fimo clay to replicate the technique used in the above post by Marwa Hayat of Enthralling Gumption, and create a stunning and on trend necklace. This will make the perfect gift! Switch up the shape and colours dependent on the taste of whoever the design will be for. It's totally customisable!
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This technique uses nail varnish, which is easy to marble with! Simply paint your surface – in this case, a stone – with white acrylic paint, in order to ensure the colours show up brightly. Follow the above tutorial by Kiwi Co for instructions.
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This clean and sophisticated marbled notebook is sure to be the kingpin of your newly organised life! Check out this fantastic tutorial by The Lovely Drawer to see how you can easily create your own using marbled vinyl, copper wire, metallic washi tape, and a plain notebook.
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Make this entirely functional jewellery stand on a budget, by using Fimo, and dowel. It's the perfect way to display your favourite pieces proudly! Take a look at the tutorial above by Dani of With Relish to find out how she made hers.
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Printing with shaving foam and ink creates a much softer and smoke-like texture than that of ink and water. Here, Elsie Larson of A Beautiful Mess shows us step-by-step how to create these beautiful patterns. Perfect for modern papercraft projects!
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This simple tutorial shows how easy it is to use nail polish in order to create fantastically on-trend decorations. As with the eggs, this can be applied to any decoration in your home all year round – it's not just for Christmas!
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The masterful Jenny Muncaster has here shown us how to create some mystical, galaxy-inspired decorations using Pebeo silver gilding leaves and acrylic paints. There's no end to the nebulae and starscapes that you can create using paintbrushes and sponges!
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Polymer clay, like Fimo, is a fantastic material to craft with as it's easy to mould, comes in a huge range of colours, and the finished product is tough and durable- making it perfect for jewellery! Marbling and tassels are two of our obsessions at the moment, so we thought we'd combine these and make a lovely pair of earrings and a matching necklace. Make sure you pick colours that mix well – think about the hue they will produce when combined.