WWC292 - Dawn's Challenge: Anything Goes With a Feminine Twist

 Hello, hello and welcome!  I created this card for this week's Watercooler Wednesday Challenge.  I recently took Altenew's Artist's Watercolor 101 course taught by Emily Midgett and the last class was on painting "white" flowers.  Such a pretty look but I had never attempted anything like it.

I started by heat embossing these big beautiful blooms (Picket Fence Studio Lily Coloring Class stamp).  Next I created a diluted grey watercolor halo around the flowers.  I started close to the image and then pulled the water out with a damp brush.  To ensure my brush didn't have too much water I dabbed it on a stamp shammy. This really helps me control the amount of water I use.  I let this layer dry completely.

Next I started on the blooms.  I added very diluted grey shadows but remembered it is important to leave some uncolored white areas so the flower appears to be white.  I then added bits of diluted blue and pink. Lastly, to brighten the bloom, I added hints of yellow to the edges of the petals.

I finished the background by adding diluted blue up close the the bloom and then moving the watercolor around the panel.  I did the same with pink and yellow so the colors of the flower and background were the same. 

This watercolor technique is very delicate and understated but is beautiful in person!

I am also playing along with:

Rainbow Card Challenge #22 Smoky Slate

Thank you for stopping by!

Karen

Quick and Simple Cards

Hello, hello and welcome!  I just completed Laurie Willison's Altenew Academy Class called Quick and Simple Cards and I wanted to share two of my creations.  I love making backgrounds and both of these cards focus on the backgrounds.   This first card was my homework assignment for Faux Watercoloring.  

I recently purchased  Altenew's Block Print stamp set and thought it would be fun to "faux watercolor".  The stamp set has four vingettes and I loved this one with diagonal and vertical lines.  I inked up the stamp with Carved Pumpkin, Candied Apple and Seedless Preserves Distress Inks and then spritzed with water. 

I then pressed the stamp onto Bristol cardstock and let it sit for a few seconds.  I also did a panel on watercolor paper, but the detail was lost so on this card, I used the Bristol panel.  I really love this vibrant color combination for fall.  

I wanted the focus on the background so I kept the other elements black and white.  I stamped the darling leaves cluster from The Retro Plantines stamp and die set and then die cut.  I added a simple sentiment but added a strip of Painted Grid Washi tape to the top for a little added interest.

The second card features a three tone stenciled background.  I masked off a 3/4" border and then taped the Feathered Leaves Stencil to the panel. Using three different analogous ink colors (Wild Honey, Carved Pumpkin, Mustard Seed), I ink blended each leaf a different color.  I thought these colors made such a pretty seasonal background.  I then heat embossed The Best Mom spray using chocolate brown embossing powder. I really like the effect on the card.  

I attached the panel to an A2 card and added a simple birthday sentiment on brown cardstock along with a couple of buttercream jewels. 

Two quick, simple and easy to make cards!  

I am also playing along with:

Card 1:  Try It On Tuesday Autumn Colors

Card 2: Sunday Stamps Earthy Tones Color Challenge

Thank you for stopping by!

Karen

WWC291 - Fifth Week Anything Goes Challenge

Summer technically just ended but I have one more card with the summery colors I love.  I had a scrap of striped background left from a card I made a few weeks ago that was too pretty to throw away so I made it into a card for Watercooler Wednesday's Anything Goes Challenge.  I think bright and happy always works for birthdays.  The background uses the same colors as the striped panel.

Here is a link if you would like to see the original card I made with the watercolor panel.

I am also playing along at:

Make My Monday: Use Your Scraps

Supplies Used:

Altenew Watercolor Stripes Stencil

Altenew Doodle Blooms stamp and die bundle

Jillibean Soup Enjoy sentiment

Distress Inks

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

Finding and Incorporating Inspiration Into Your Project

Hello, hello and welcome!  Today I am blogging about a fascinating class I took at Altenew Academy called Mission Inspiration. Nicole Watt was our instructor and instead of focusing on technique, this class was all about finding inspiration for our creations.  

For this post I wanted to use a combination of color and layout inspiration for my cards.  I envisioned a trio layout with color selection coming from Pinterest.  Nicole had great ideas for searching for "color combos" and I found this quite fun! I also decided to work on staging and styling my photographs and I am pleased with the result.

I loved the graphic below and used the red, orange, citronella green and teal as the color inspiration for my card. 

I hand inked the background because I thought the result was more vibrant than the colored card stock I tried first. The center of the flower is a fun enamel dot.

The second card is very similar but I used three flowers from the same stamp set and a different color inspiration graphic.

Here is the inspiration swatch for my second card.

Again, I ink blended the background and then colored the blooms in melon and pink.  The centers are enamel dots which adds a fun detail to the card.

Here are the cards together and I think they are a bright and happy duo.  Inspiration is everywhere and I will be drawing on these six classes as I create in the future.

Altenew Products Used: Link Here

Altenew Doodle Blooms

Altenew Pinstripe (sentiment)

Altenew New Day Enamel Dots

Altenew Jet Black Crisp Die Ink

Altenew Envelope Variety Pack

I am also playing along with:

As You Like It "Bright or Pastel"  I almost always go with bright on my cards because I love bold colors.  :-)

Thank you for stopping by!

Karen

WWC290 - Michelle's Challenge: All About Occasions

Hello, hello...so glad you stopped by!  This week we are making occasion cards at Watercooler Wednesday and I was in the mood to do some fun coloring.  This card was very relaxing and therapeutic to make.  I've wanted this stamp for a while and finally took the plunge and placed an order at Taylored Expressions. 

Supplies Used:

Taylored Expressions Create in Color Background stamp

Hello Bluebird Rainbow Script stamp sentiment

Altenew New Day Enamel Dots

23 Copic marker colors!

Hope to see you back soon,

Karen

Altenew Academy Watercolor 101

Hello, hello and welcome!  I was so pleased to learn that I passed the Altenew Academy Level 2 Final and can now begin working on Level 3 courses!  For my first level 3 class I chose to take Artist's Watercolor 101 taught by Emily Midgett.  It may be my favorite class to date!  Emily's explanations and demonstrations are excellent and so easy to follow.  I had so much fun during this class that I included two cards in this blog post encompassing three of Emily's lessons.

I watercolored the lotus using techniques in we learned in Lesson 2:  Basic Watercoloring and the background is from Lesson 3:  Ombre Backgrounds. I chose to use the lotus stamp because the "sketched lines" help indicate where the shadow should go.  

My Process:

I wanted to use fall colors so I started by heat embossing the bloom with chocolate brown embossing powder. Emily taught us to slightly elevate the panel and then slowly build layers of color starting at the inked lines and then pulling the color out with a damp brush.  The watercolors were fairly diluted.  I started with yellow, then moved to orange, then scarlet and then a more concentrated scarlet in the deepest shadows.  The first layers should have with widest application of color and each new layer should stay closer to the inked lines.

Keys to Remember:  

1. In the past, I think I've had too much water on my brush. Emily showed us that if you dab your brush on a stamp shammy you will have the correct amount of water.  This really helped me.
2. Use fairly diluted watercolors.
3. Keep the tip of the brush pointing away from you. Rotate the paper and use the slant of the board to move the paint.
4. Remember to let each layer dry before beginning on the next layer.

I wanted a coordinating background so I used the same colors that I used to paint the lotus.  I taped the watercolor panel to a board to reduce warping, elevated the board and then started painting at the top with a #12 brush.  We learned to put darker color at the top and then pull the color down with a damp brush. Keep adding color and then maneuvering the color around with a damp brush.  Flip the board, skip an area and then add the third color then pull the color toward with scarlet.  Pull color down and push the middle color up.  Continue adding layers of color and keep blending.  I die cut the lotus, heat embossed a sentiment on cocoa card stock, assembled with foam tape and added some buttercream jewels.  I like how bright, intense and cohesive the color palette is.  I am very pleased with this card.

I find no-line watercoloring very intimidating so I was eager to start lesson #5.  I feel like it is an advanced technique but Emily broke the steps down in such a way that I was comfortable painting.  I thought it would be fun to compare and contrast the same lotus flower painted with the two different techniques.

            

Emily recommends no line stamping with Ink on 3 Fadeout.  This was my first time using this ink and it worked well.  The key to no line watercoloring is to maintain contrast between the light and dark areas.

I started with fairly diluted paint, put my first color down and then pulled it out with a damp brush.  Skip to an area that does not touch and then repeat the process until the first layer is down.  After the first layer is dry, start with the second color but don't cover all of the first layer. Dry and add color 3 to the nooks and crannies.  Do not add the third color to each petal as this keeps interesting contrast.  Add the 4th color to the darkest shadow areas.  

For the background, I randomly stamped "mini branches" on about half the background with pink. Next, starting at the top, I ink blended a gradient toward the bottom. The bottom third of the card does not have any color.

I assembled the card and added a navy die-cut sentiment and some water drop embellishments.  

Here are both cards side by side. Which do you like best?

Altenew Featured Products: Here

Inked Lotus stamp and die bundle

Mini Branch stamp

Altenew Envelopes

I also wanted to play along with:

The Rainbow Card Challenge #21 Autumnal Amber.  I am submitting my first card that was done in shades of autumnal amber.  

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Karen

WWC289 - Heidi's Challenge: Anything Goes With a Masculine Twist

Hello, hello...so glad you stopped  by!  This week is all about masculine cards at Watercooler Wednesday and Heidi is our hostess.

I created a silhouette card with a darling die-cut puppy and cake toting bear.  My background is a second generation wash using three colors of distress ink:  Twisted citron, cracked pistachio and lucky clover.  I made a background for a different card and still had ink left over, so I sopped it up on a Bristol panel.  I thought the greens did a good job of simulating the forest.

Supplies Used:

Spellbinder's Lets All Party die

Memory Box Grand Forest Archway

SSS Birthday Word Mix 1 sentiment

We would love to see your card in our gallery this week!

Karen

WWC288 - Kath's Challenge: All About Occasions

Hello!  I am excited that you stopped by to see this card...I love how bright and bold it is! 

This week at The Watercooler Wednesday Challenge we are creating Occasion cards.  Talented Kath is our hostess.  There are so many occasions and we would love to see your project in our gallery.

I started by stamping, Copic coloring and die-cutting two floral sprays.  I wanted to ink blend a complimentary background, but in reverse order of the colors of the flowers.  Since the card is bold, I also wanted some contrast, so I masked off 1 1/2" on the left side of the card base.  I started ink blending in the bottom right with yellow and then added six more colors to achieve the gradient I was looking for.  I arranged the two sprays along the border of the white strip and ink blending and used foam adhesive to give added  and dimension to the focal point.

Supplies Used:

Altenew Weekend Doodles stamp and die bundle

Simon Says Stamp Birthday Mix 1 sentiment stamp & die bundle

Distress Inks

Copic markers

Foam Squares

Masking tape

Time Out "Seasons" Challenge #169 with optional twist coloring.

Dar And Diane "Colorful" Challenge

UPDATE:  My card received honors at Time Out!

This card also was selected as a "Top 3" at Double D!

I am so pleased that you stopped by!

Karen

WWC287 - Helen's Challenge: Anything Goes With A Feminine Twist

Hello, hello and welcome!  I can't believe it is September already.  This week at Watercooler Wednesday we are creating feminine cards and Helen is our hostess.  

I did a bit of loosed watercoloring with Nuvo Shimmer Powders.  I very loosely painted the wreath and then made a coordinating background by sopping up the leftover pigment with watercolor paper. The secret to the background is to layer the color, dry and repeat.  It is hard to tell in the photograph, but there is a beautiful shimmer to the card.  I had enough pigment left that I made a second background to use on a future card.

Supplies:

Altenew Weekend Doodles stamp and die bundle

Tonic Nuvo Shimmer Powder (hydrated into a watercolor)

The Greetery Crimped Frame die

We would love to see your creation in our gallery.

Karen

Altenew Academy Level 2 Final Project

Hello, hello....so pleased you stopped by! I finished Altenew Academy's Level 2 Classes and wanted to share my final project.  I was challenged to make four masculine cards for four different occasions. I had loads of ideas and had a lot of fun creating.  To make my cards masculine, I used my husband's favorite colors....aqua, blue and green.   Mark probably wears an aqua or blue Columbia fishing shirt five days out of seven...he calls it his uniform!    I also used lots of die-cuts because Mark loves those on cards.   The unifying elements are handcrafted backgrounds and embossed sentiments on navy cardstock.   I've learned so much over the past three months but I decided to spotlight three favorite classes:

• Beyond Basic Backgrounds - We learned to make beautiful backgrounds to enhance our cards.
• Celebration Stencil Techniques - We learned to expand our stenciling repertoire. 
• Masking Unleashed - We learned various masking techniques that up the "wow" factor of our cards.

Encouragement Card:

This first card is my husband's favorite of the group. Mark's beverages of choice are coffee and hot tea....he makes a pot of each every day and  the color yellow is very encouraging and optimistic (In The Mood For Color). My idea was to make inlaid circle die cuts that coordinated with a hand crafted background.  We worked on inlaid die-cutting in Beyond Basic Backgrounds and stencil overlays in Celebration Stencil Techniques.  

• I started by taping my Altenew Watercolor Stripes stencil to a watercolor paper panel.  I then wet the paper with clean water and then dabbed and pounced three colors of distress ink onto the paper.  I LOVE this technique and think it makes a very fun background.  
• Next, I took a second watercolor panel and used the wet on wet technique to dab the same three colors of distress ink on the panel.  After the paper dried, I die cut three 1 1/2" circles.
• I die-cut a white watercolor paper overlay for the inlaid technique.
• I stamped, Copic colored and die cut three coffee/tea elements from Altenew's Tea Time stamp and die bundle.
• I heat embossed an encouraging sentiment on navy cardstock.
• I assembled the card using liquid glue and foam squares (for the cups and sentiment).

PRO TIP:  Don't over-wet the watercolor paper.  If you do, the ink will flow under the stencil and you will lose the white lines.  You do want it watery enough that you achieve a casual watercolor look.

Birthday Card:

This card was inspired by the class on Color Blocking and the negative masking we learned in Masking Unleashed.  I think the bold colors are both festive and masculine.

• I started by negative masking three 1 1/4" squares.  I then used ink blending brushes to liberally apply ink to the squares.
• I stamped and die cut three images from Altenew's Garden Grow stamp and die bundle.  I wanted the colors to be the star so I left the images uncolored.  I think this makes for a very eye-catching look.
• I heat embossed a birthday sentiment on blue card stock and then assembled my card.

PRO TIP:  For a sharp edge, be sure your mask is evenly and securely adhered to the card panel.

Love/Thinking of You Card:

I love ink blending and negative masking so I again drew upon the lessons learned in Masking Unleashed.

• I masked off a large negative mask around my card panel.  I blended in a medium blue and then applied a vivid blue around the edges.  So pretty and fun to do!
• I stamped, Copic colored and die cut two images from Altenew's Garden Grow stamp and die bundle.  This is one of the first stamp sets I purchased and it is still a favorite!
• I heat embossed my sentiment, assembled my card and attached to a top folding A2 card base.

PRO TIP:  I think using two shades of blue added depth to my one layer card background.  

Anniversary Card:

I knew I wanted to use the wreath from Altenew's Weekend Doodles and I thought it would be beautiful colored in green.  This was the starting point for my card.  After I had stamped, Copic colored and die cut the wreath I thought about backgrounds.  I finally decided to go with another bold color coordinated stenciled background.

• I Copic colored the wreath with 3 different shades of yellow-green and green.  
• I started by taping my Altenew Watercolor Stripes stencil to a watercolor paper panel.  I then wet the paper with clean water and then dabbed and pounced four colors of distress ink onto the paper.  I told you above that I love this technique!  
• I die-cut and assembled the card on a top-folding A2 base.    

Here is a photo of all the cards.  To see what I did with the muslin bag, please keep reading.

Upcycled Item:

Finally, we were asked to upcycle or alter an item. I ordered some muslin favor bags for my daughter's wedding and have quite a few left so I thought this would be the basis for my upcycle project.  I thought they would be cute "envelops" for cards given in person or fun little gift pouches. A lot of the techniques we learned at Altenew Academy can be applied to non-card projects and I would like to share the processes I used to  decorate my muslin bags:

·        Stamping on fabric

·        Coloring on fabric

·        Ink blending on fabric

·        Felt die-cuts adhered to fabric

·        Stamp layering on fabric

I started by personalizing a little bag for each of the cards that I created above. 

For the first two cards, I ironed the bag, secured it in my Misti and stamped just once.  That is all it needed and I was afraid the fabric might shift if I stamped it a second time.  I then did some easy coloring with my Tombow markers.  The fabric colors well but you can’t do much complicated shading.

 

For the Encouragement Card, I masked three squares and then ink blended white pigment ink inside the squares. I let the ink dry and then I stamped (with black Pigment ink) 3 coffee mugs.  I finished by drawing a black border around each square with a permanent marker.  Simple but graphic looking.

For the Color Block Card, I again masked three squares and then ink blended with the same (distress) inks I used on the cards.  It is interesting that the colors change a bit on fabric, but the result is a bright fun pouch.

PRO TIP:  I inserted a piece of paper inside the bag to prevent the ink and glue from bleeding through to the backside. 

While I was at it, I wanted to do some felt die-cutting.  For my first card I die cut five balloons from felt and glued blue thread to the back.  For the second card I die-cut a Mega Alphabet B and added a sprig of die-cut greenery.

PRO TIP:  To keep the felt from stretching and tearing while die cutting, I first glued a piece of regular paper to the back of the felt.  I let it dry overnight and did my die-cutting the next day.  This makes a huge difference in the quality of the die-cut!

My final idea was to do a bit of stamp layering on fabric.  I used pigment ink, dried with my heat tool and then moved on to the next color.  This card is definitely feminine but I wanted to try the technique on muslin and all my layering stamps are flowers. 

Featured Altenew Products:

Altenew Watercolor Stripes stencil

Altenew Tea Time stamp and die bundle

Altenew Garden Grow stamp and die bundle

Altenew Weekend Doodles stamp and die set

Altenew Bride to Be stamp and die bundle

Altenew Mega Alphabet B die

Altenew Card Base Envelop set

I really enjoyed putting this project together!

Karen