Terrific Tape: The Card Maker's Best Kept Secret

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Reported By Cindy Keery

If you're anything like me you've been on a quest for the perfect adhesive since you began your card making adventure! When I first started stamping and making cards back in 1994 I used Elmer's white glue (because I didn't know any better!) and regular kid's glue sticks to "try" and hold my cards together. Little did I know how discouraging it would be to see my cards morph into these lumpy, bumpy, buckled piles of yuck. Never mind the sticky goo you have to deal with when using messy glue. I knew there had to be a better adhesive out there so I began my search.

Next I tried rubber cement. Mmmm… the smell! Just kidding! I didn't enjoy working with the rubber cement either. It's just too sticky for me. Over the years I also tried a variety of different and supposedly "better" glue sticks, Stampin' Up!'s snail (I don't like it when my cards fall apart!), carpet tape from the hardware store, double sided tape from the dollar store, and more recently I tried UHU when I got free samples from them.

Having tried a wide variety of adhesives over the years I have to say that my all time favourite is a little known adhesive called Terrific Tape! I've been using this tape for about 5 years and am extremely happy with it for a number of reasons. 1. My cards and scrapbook pages don’t fall apart. 2. It is not messy. 3. It can be used for a variety of techniques. It's really more than just tape!

To research this product more fully I visited the source and spent some time with the woman who imports it and distributes it throughout Canada and the US. Haroldine was kind enough to let me photograph many of her beautiful card and ATC samples for this report.

Here are a few of my favorites from her hundreds of samples.

All samples were created by Haroldine Wingfield
and are being shown with her permission

A few years ago I had one of my techniques published in The Canadian Stamper magazine that featured Terrific Tape. The technique is called "Vellum Glow" and this is what you do:

1. Stamp an outline image on vellum using a dye based ink.
2. Completely cover the stamped image with a piece of wide Terrific Tape.
3. Remove the backing from the tape.
4. Apply Moon Glow (or Pearl Ex) with a cotton swab to the tape in a variety of colors.
5. Apply another layer of Terrific Tape over the Moon Glow.
6. Remove backing.
7. Adhere to card.

You can also use acetate instead of vellum as shown in Haroldine's Giraffe ATC and card (see above).

Some of the features of Terrific Tape are:

* Double sided
* Heat Resistant
* It's clear
* Incredibly sticky
* Can be used with embossing powders, foils, beads, glitter, vellum, pearl ex, etc.
* Acid free - scrapbook safe
* Comparable in quality to Stampin Up!'s "Sticky Strip", but much more affordable.

Terrific Tape comes in a variety of widths including:

* 5 mm
* 7 mm
* 12 mm
* 15 mm
* 20 mm
* 25 mm
* 40 mm
* 2.5"
* 4.5"

The prices range from $3.00 CDN for the narrowest tape to $50 CDN for the widest.

The only place I've found to purchase this tape is a stamp store in Pitt Meadows, British Columbia, Canada. And you're in luck - they do mail order! Here's the contact info for the store, in case you'd like to give this tape a try:

Be Creative: Rubber Stamps, Supplies & Classes
Owner: Haroldine
Email: becreative@pacificcoast.net
604-465-2359

Tell her you heard about Terrific Tape on CraftCritique.com!

Please feel free to list your favorite sources for Terrific Tape below! We would love to hear the best places to find it in the US and Australia too!