I love holidays!

I got to stamp as much as I wanted today!  And I have a new wishlist for an order....(Maybe that wasn't a good thing!)

Here's what I did today.  Diana Gibbs has a great tutorial on her blog showing how to use watercolor pencils with low odor mineral spirits and "blending stumps."  Check it out if you have a chance.  She's a fabulous artist, and one of this year's Artisan Award winners!  She's also very, very funny - which is another reason I love her blog.

This card uses new In Colors - Crushed Curry and Melon Mambo.  The watercolor pencils match the new In Colors really well. 

For the sky, I punched a scallop circle, then sponged around it to make clouds.  The hardware is dyed Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware with a stamped piece of Razzleberry Lemonade underneath.  The scallop oval is the reverse side of the DSP.

Here's the complete list:
Stamp Sets:  A Kind Word, All Holidays
Ink:  Jet Black StazOn; Soft Suede & Melon Mambo Stampin' Write Markers; Regal Rose Craft ink (to dye the hardware); Bashful Blue classic, Watercolor pencils,
Paper:  Razzleberry Lemonade DSP; Watercolor paper; Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo card stock
Accessories:  Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware, So Saffron ribbon, Scallop oval punch, small oval punch, eyelet border punch, Stampin' Dimensionals, Scallop circle punch, Clear embossing powder, heat tool, Stampin' Sponges
Non-Su! supplies - Sansodor, blending stumps

Here's another card I made today using the same techniques.  The sketch is a Diana Gibbs one.  It's very easy, but elegant.

That's twill tape tied around the card.  I stamped on it using Watercolor Wonder crayons.  The "Official Instructions" from SU! say to color on the stamp, spritz your tape with water, then stamp on the moist twill.  That didn't work really well for me.  After stamping one or two times, the stamp was wet as well as the tape, so the image was kind of a blob.  I always have better results if I spritz the stamp with a little water first, then color it with the crayons, then stamp on dry twill.  The image is much cleaner.  But - that's what works for me.  For others, it might be easier to spray the tape (or card stock, or whatever you're stamping on) first.  So - play around and see what works for you!  I heat set it (actually, I used the heat tool to dry the tape faster, but the added benefit was heat setting!), and I sprayed it with cheap aerosol hair spray. 

Here are the supplies:
Stamp Sets:  A Kind Word, Kind & Caring Thoughts (level 3 hostess)
Ink:  Jet Black StazOn, Bashful Blue classic, Watercolor Wonder crayons, Watercolor pencils
Paper:  Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Rich Razzleberry card stock; watercolor paper
Accessories:  Eyelet border punch, twill tape, Big Shot, Texturz plate (daisies), Silicone Rubber, Impressions Pad, Scallop circle punch, heat tool, Stampin' Sponges
Non SU! - Sansodor, blending stumps, hair spray

I just remembered that Diana said on her video to use Whisper White or Very Vanilla card stock with this watercolor technique.  Oops.  I already had the images stamped on watercolor paper (thanks, Sandy!!), and didn't even think about it.  I just grabbed them and started coloring.  No wonder I was having a little trouble getting everything to blend.  Hmmmm......Now I'll have to try again with the card stock formerly known as "Ultrasmooth."  (That's what Whisper White and Very Vanilla card stock used to be called.  Just a little trivia from the SU! archives.)

Another note.....If you don't have low odor mineral spirits (I used "Sansodor;" another is "Gamsol," and there are a bunch of others out there) or blending stumps, you can use baby oil and a dried up blender pen.  Or even a tightly wound piece of card stock, but that's a pain.

So that's it for today.  Happy stamping!  Don't forget the special of the week.  I'll be placing an order on Sunday or Monday, so if you want the Scallop edge punch and would like to "share" shipping, let me know and I'll add it to my order.  (Call or e-mail me by Sunday noon.)

Comments

[Sandy Moriarty]

I think your images look great -- even on watercolor paper. This morning I tried both on watercolor and on whisper white. I like them both but the watercolor paper does grab the color to make a darker image and it takes longer to dry. Just a different look but both work. I used "Mona Lisa" Odorless Paint Thinner and an old blender pen -- they seemed to do a fine job. As for whisper white paper.....I'll send you a couple more images. I like the cloud technique. ---Sandy

[Cate (Britbook70)]

Beautiful coloring on both of these. Love the way you used the Razzleberry Lemonade DP, it looks great with the image.