Sunday, April 15, 2012

Paper Players 91 – CAS Watercoloring

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Happy Sunday, everyone!  I appreciate all the well-wishes while I was under the weather.  I kept myself busy looking at all the wonderful creations that everyone made with my color combination from last week’s Paper Players challenge!  So many creative hearts out there!   I’m feeling a bit better, not 100%, but I did have enough energy to make a card for the Paper Players today, where the lovely Jaydee is our hostess with a clean and simple watercoloring challenge:

I recently got this cute little Ronald McDonald set called Turtle & Co.  SU donates $3 to the Ronald McDonald House charity for each one purchased.  I am planning an upcoming stamp camp for get-well and sympathy cards and I thought this was a good set to have!  So here is my little get-well turtle card:

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For some reason, I had the color combo of green & orange in my head when I made this card, so that’s what I went with!  He’s got a glittery heart, and a glimmer brad for a little spunk;  he’s stamped on watercolor paper with Stazon ink and colored with Pumpkin Pie, Certainly Celery and Wild Wasabi inks.  I am not an “exact science” kind of water colorer….I always say that I color “loosely”!  Here’s a closer view:

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I don’t worry if I go out of the lines a little, or my shading isn’t blended perfectly.  That’s just the style that I like. “Less is more”, IMO!   I know a lot of people are intimidated by watercoloring, but I find it one of the most rewarding ways to color my line images!  I always make sure of a couple things: 

  1. Use a good non-bleeding ink; I always use black Stazon if I am going to watercolor with ink and an aquapainter.
  2. Use a good watercolor paper! It really DOES make a difference!  Regular cardstock will soak up the water and pill your paper, and you will not be able to blend or push your colors around.  There are different weights available, but I usually just use the one from SU.  It’s a good weight and easy to use.  SU’s Shimmery White paper can also be used but it has just a little different feel from the watercolor paper.

Other than that, the only other recommendation I have is to use an aquapainter.  I have spilled too many cups of water on my desk from paintbrushes sticking up, and the aquapainter has a reservoir which allows water to flow to the brush but not spill.  I squeeze the handle a few times to get the water flowing and then have a towel handy to blot the excess.  I just use a couple drops of reinker ink in the lid of my stamp pad; you can start with just a tiny amount first to get a light color.  It is much easier to layer on more color and shading than it is to remove color!  It’s also helpful to dry your image with a heat tool before adding shading, or coloring different areas of your image.  That way your colors won’t bleed together.  But if you don’t have an aquapainter, you can still use a paintbrush & water!  Don’t let that stop you! 

I hope that you will be encouraged to give watercoloring a CAS creation this week a try!  Mosey on over to the Paper Players blog to see what the other designers are sharing…..you’ll be amazed! 

Here’s my little ham, eating a strawberry:

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16 comments:

Bonnie said...

This is adorable and I'm sure it will be a hit at the Stamp Camp. I'd be interested to know how you do your Stamp Camps.

Linda said...

I made a card at a stamp camp Thursday with that cute little turtle. I attached him upside down. The would be great on a wobble. I really like the way our colored yours, and the layout with the speech bubble. Sooooo cute.
So is your ham!

Lesley said...

Such a sweet little face she has! Love that turtle...he is darn cute and your watercolouring is awesome LeAnne!

terilee said...

So sweet!! I just saw this set on the "retiring" SU list. I'm glad I have it. So nice of SU to support the Ronald McDonald House, too. Thanks for sharing, LeAnn!

Darlene Gabriel said...

Oh this little turtle is so cute. We both had "get well" on our minds as I did one recently too --- hint -watch your mailbox;) I do hope you are feeling better.
It's great to see sweet Cassidy back and hamming it up for you.

barb mann said...

Very Cute card LeAnne! but most of all thanks for the nice watercoloring tips. I may quote you on my blog one of these days. I know my gals ARE intimidated by watercoloring and your tips are perfect. Thanks!

None None said...

Hi LeAnne! So glad you are starting to feel better and I hope you are 100% before too long! It definitely stinks to be under the weather for a long time. :(

Love this cute little turtle and the watercoloring you did. The color combo also works beautifully!

Hope your week goes well!

Bev Gomez said...

Hi LeAnne, I love your turtle card. This was the best RM set ever it I thought. I subscribe to your blog. Check out my Chevron card that I made today with Pocket Full of Posies DSP and let me know what you think. I am glad you are feeling better.
Hugs,Bev

THINGS YOU'D NEVER GUESS ABOUT ME said...

Oh oh. Now you've got a get well card you can't send because it's covered with YOUR germs. tsk tsk. Glad little munchkin didn't catch it.

jjcreations said...

Wow - I'm hard pressed which adorable cutie to comment on first - your grand daughter is so adorable - tilted head and huge smile!!!!! Love it.
I love your little turtle too. You've done such a perfect job of "painting" him - I can never achieve those "empty" or light spaces that make a true watercolour. Guess I just have to keep practicing! Love the popped out thought heart too.

Nance Leedy said...

This is darling LeAnne! I love the petite size and how the banner hangs off the edge. Great color combo too and I admire your "loose" watercoloring--it's very natural and breezy!

Denise Willerton said...

Thanks for all the tips LeAnne ~ just might give this a shot tonight ~ still don't know what I will be doing ~ it's a 'do what you want' night...and I don't know what I want/feel like doing!!!! yikes!!

Anne Marie Hile said...

LeAnne, my friend...thank you for the awesome tips on watercoloring! For some reason it all just "clicked" when I read your post. This little turtle looks great with all of the fun shading you added. Love the colors combo and the popped up "quote bubble".

Little Miss Cassidy is cheesing it up for the camera, eh? I seriously cannot beieve how much she has grown up. But that kiddo has some fun fashion-sense! Haha! Hope you had a great day! Hugs! :)

Heidi said...

Love this card so much! The cute little turtle as the center of attention is just perfect and I am loving the two-color combo! And thanks for all of the helpful tips on watercoloring. I have yet to really do the "real thing". :)

Ann Schach said...

Absolutely adorable, LeAnne! I love these colors...so cheery! Your watercoloring is perfect. From the thought cloud to the sentiment banner, there are so many fabulous details! Cassidy just keeps getting cuter and cuter!

jaydee said...

LeAnne, not sure which is more adorable the card - or the pictures of your "little ham"! I cannot believe how fast she is growing!
I LOVE this card. I think it is such a gorgeous way to highlight this stamp set.
Hugs
Jaydee