CornishHeritageFarms.com

[Silvergirl]

It's time to get back to the basics. I thought it would be fun to pull out regular, water-based markers again to see what I could create.

This technique is simple and shares a few basic tips on using your water-based markers to create stunning watercolored images.

I hope you'll join us this week in creating your own watercolored masterpieces!

Basic Supplies Stamps Ink (waterproof) Cardstock Water-based Markers Paint brush, Aqua Brush or Blending pen Water Heat gun (optional)

Specific Supplies Used: Stamps: A Walk in the Woods (Sara England Collection) by Cornish Heritage Farms Ink: Coffee Archival waterproof ink by Ranger Cardstock: Kraft and Dark Red cardstock by Prism Hot-pressed watercolor paper by Fabriano Clear Card Sheets by Cornish Heritage Farms Patterned Paper: Early Bird by Cosmo Cricket Other: Tombow markers Niji waterbrush Heat gun by Ranger (optional)
Step One Stamp the image with Coffee Archival ink on watercolor paper. You can heat-set or allow to dry. NOTE: I think it's worth a little discussion on the type of watercolor paper I've used. I purchased from a "brick" of hot-pressed watercolor paper from an art supply store. Hot-pressed watercolor paper has a fine-grained, smooth surface, with almost no tooth. Paint dries very quickly on it. This makes it ideal for large, even washes of color. Cold-pressed paper has more texture to it, similar to an orange-peel effect. This is more commonly available - and if you find a book of watercolored paper not labeled by it's production method, it is assumed to be cold-pressed. I like both options. I decided to use the hot-pressed paper because of the style of card I was designing. The smooth appearance works well with the image.
Step Two Using a piece of the clear cardstock as a palette, I scribbled a bit of marker ink and blended for a custom color. My marker selection didn't have a dark brown, but with a bit of black, I was able to achieve the right tone.
Step Three A quick tip: Use your heat gun to dry your image between color applications. It will allow you to come in with a new color or layers of the same color without creating a muddy mess... And it makes this a really quick process. I LOVE that!
Step Four Add additional ink to your dried image to create shadows and depth. Because your main image was dried, you can also apply a wash (a watered down version of your color) to the base of your image for your ground.
Step Five Continue to color and paint your image. Mix and blend additional colors on your clear card sheet / palette.
Step Six You can also color directly on your watercolor paper with your marker. I used the lightest blue marker to color around the scene to give the hint of sky. This makes it very easy to get around the blades of grass and around their legs.
Step Seven Use your blending pen (I had one included with my set of markers) or aqua-brush to soften the edges and spread the blue marker ink for the sky.
Step Eight The leash and collar were just a tad too skinny for me to effectively paint. So... I colored them directly and left them alone. This is a great area to use the blender pen from your marker set to soften the ink color. The tip of the marker will fit in the space, as opposed to a paint brush. Tip: You certainly don't want to color this vibrant color in the picture too soon (in this very small space) or you could end up spreading it when you brush in other areas. This is a great step to leave until the end.
Detail
Finished Project Complete your project.

So, are you ready to grab your water-based markers to watercolor now? I hope so!

Thanks for joining us! Please let us know if you create using this technique. We love to share in your success!

_________________
Lisa Silver
Silver Stamping

Copic Certified Designer

Live simply... Love generously... Care deeply... Speak kindly.

Last edited by Silvergirl on Fri Oct 02, 2009 6:18 pm; edited 1 time in total

[liz]

Wonderful!

Thanks so much,
_________________
Liz
http://www.cornishheritagefarms.com
http://blog.cornishheritagefarms.com

[Angelnorth]

Great tip to use the clear sheet as a palette! Nice technique Lise, thanks!
_________________
Joanne x

My blog
My CHF Gallery

[EllenC]

that's an easy to follow tuut , thank you

brilliant idea that clear sheet , now you see exactly what your mixed colours look like on white paper
I'm off to check what water based marker pens I've got I'm getting confused now what is what .
_________________
http://www.scrappanic.blogspot.com

[tracyharp]

watercoloring with dye inks is one of my favorite ways to color! The colors are so much more vibrant. Markers make an inexpensive way to do it if you are limited with ink pads.
Great tutorial Lisa!

[Silvergirl]

I was going to mention that the kids were working on their art while I was watercoloring. They used their Crayola markers and had decent results.

It's worth testing how the water breaks down the dye inks... their black turned a bit purplish, so I did use a bit of scrap watercolor paper to test colors.
_________________
Lisa Silver
Silver Stamping

Copic Certified Designer

Live simply... Love generously... Care deeply... Speak kindly.

[Angelnorth]