Challenge: Use Watercolors

This week's challenge from the Wednesday Simon Says Stamp blog is to use watercolors. There are so many options available, including inks, pencils, crayons or traditional watercolors, just to name a few. I thought I'd submit a card I did while practicing making a background using watercolor pencils. I got this idea from Watercolor for Cardmakers from Online Card Classes. It's a really fun class, and I can take my time working through the lessons without any deadlines.

Here's my card:

The technique involves lightly coloring a piece of watercolor paper with water soluble pencils. Then water is applied with a brush, blending as you go. It's possible to go back after drying to add additional layering and depth. The splotches add some interest and fun. I cut the watercolor panel slightly smaller than the card base and attached it to a turquoise cardstock panel.

The "hello" is one of the few word die cuts I have - I'd like to add to my collection as there are so many available in lots of fun fonts. I cut several from white cardstock and glued them together to make it thicker so it would stand out more from the card. You can see the slight shadow created by the depth of the letters.

There really isn't much to this card, but I like the way it turned out. I also like that every card would be a little different, since watercolor never turns out the same way twice.

Happy creating,

Immi

Challenge: Rock the Techniques

Today's challenge on Simon Says Stamp is to feature a project using the technique of your choice. I've decided to post a card I made using watercolors and liquid frisket. If you aren't familiar with it, frisket is used to mask off areas in order to retain the white paper before doing any watercolor painting. I got this idea from an online class called Watercolor for Cardmakers. I haven't done too many of the lessons yet, but I'm enjoying what I'm learning and having fun playing with paper and watercolor.

Here's my card:

I stamped the "thanks" greeting (Stampin' Up!) with black ink and made sure it was completely dry. I painted over it with frisket. After the frisket was dry, I then blobbed on (highly technical term) some watercolors. I added a few splatters and let everything dry. When I peeled off the frisket, the stamped image was still nice and clean underneath. Simple and fun. I mounted the watercolor paper on a pink card base and that was that!

Happy crafting!
Immi