Taking a break from the Christmas madness to bring you some beautiful birds.
They kind of happened by accident. A class to make Christmas gift bags and treat holders was cancelled when life got in the way and several people weren’t able to come. It left just one….my friend Karen. She loves birds. Blue birds. Maybe any birds. But especially blue birds. I saw this post by Stampin with Sandi using the Best Birds stamp set about a few days earlier and said…”You need to try this with the stamp set you bought a couple months ago.” So on the night of the cancelled class she came over, Better with You stamp set in hand and we tried out our water coloring skills.
These are the two stamp sets.
I do not claim to know anything about watercoloring….but I had used Stampin’ Up’s Aqua Painter’s on some very small projects….like tiny flowers. I’d never attempted anything that was big like this bird….and so lifelike too! So I got out my blue Night of Navy ink pad and we went to town. This is Karen’s finished card. Isn’t it beautiful?
Her bird is a little lighter in color than mine….and I accidentally dropped my aquapainter almost on the head of the bird, so I had to “fussy cut” my bird so you couldn’t see my boo-boo. And then we added a few flowers onto the branch Mr. Bluebird was sitting on. We used Mango Melody ink for those. Yes, those beautiful colors on the flowers came from just one ink pad. The flowers got ‘fussy cut” too. And this is my card:
Don’t you think the sentiment is perfect for these cards? You are capable of amazing things. I think we amazed ourselves!
If you want to make this card, you’ll need an Aqua Painter. What is that you ask? It’s this: You fill it with water and you use it like a paintbrush. They come in a set of two – you get one medium brush and one large brush.
So how do you get the ink? That’s easy….before you open the ink pad give it a good squeeze in the middle. Then open it up and hopefully you’ll see a “splotch” on the inside of the cover. That is the ink you are going to use to paint. Just dip the aquapainter in the ink and you’re ready. The more ink you put on….the darker the color.
One other important thing to note is to stamp your image on Watercolor Paper! If you use regular Whisper White cardstock or even Whisper White Thick Cardstock your paper might get too wet and will start to shred and you’ll have a mushy mess. We used black ink for our image, but if you used Sahara Sand ink which is very light, once you watercolor it will be borderless…you won’t see the stamped line…and it will look like you did the whole thing freehand…like a real artist!
Ok….now it’s your turn. Try doing a little watercoloring with one of your stamps. And then share your creation in the comments. I’d love to see what you’ve created!
And if you want to made this card, this is what you’ll need:
- Better With You Stamp Set
- Very Vanilla Thick Cardstock – Cut 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”; Score at 4 1/4”
- Night of Navy Cardstock – Cut 5 1/4” x 4”
- Subtle Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder – Use on Night of Navy cardstock to give it a “linen” look.
- Watercolor Paper – Cut 3 3/4” x 3 3/4”, plus a strip 3/4” x 3 3/4”
- Ink: Black, Night of Navy, Mango Melody and Crumb Cake
- Aqua Painter
Remember – You are capable of amazing things!
Happy Stamping….or Watercoloring!
Patricia
So I took my own advice and tried a little more watercoloring. But with an added color – Gorgeous Grape. What do you think? I got my color inspiration from Wendy Cranford at Lunvinstampin.com.
The Clearance Rack has been updated….and there are lots of goodies there at up to 60% off! These items are only available while supplies last, and they are going fast! There are ribbons and sequins, Butterfly and Heart Framelits that would be perfect for Valentine’s Day and Spring, Designer Series Paper and cardstock and INK too!
Need Supplies? Click on the image below (or the shopping card image in the sidebar) and it will take you directly to my Stampin’ Up! shopping site. If you don’t already have a demonstrator….I would love to be yours! Just choose me as your demonstrator when checking out. If your order is less than $150, please use the HOST CODE (SWEDPGDF) and I will send you a small thank you gift for ordering with me. If your order is more than $150….DO NOT use the Host Code as you will receive your own Stampin’ Rewards with your order.
On January 2nd, the new Occasions Catalog will be out….and Sale-A-Bration begins! Lots of new stamp sets and papers, ribbons….so much goodness packed into this catalog. And Sale-A-Bration means that for every $50 you spend, you can get FREE stuff!!
End of the Year Close-Out Sale is going on now! And it’s only while supplies last! The last day to order items from the 2018 Holiday Catalog is December 31st. Some of the items are retiring….and won’t be available again while others will carry over into the next catalog. Items that are bundled in the Holiday catalog (means you save 10%) will NOT be bundled if they carry over, so if you want to save a little…..get those items now.
These are just wonderful!
Thank you!