Good morning! Happy Monday! I’m here with you today to share something that is a little petrifying for me, but has been on my bucket list for quite a while…
I really hope you like it. I’ve had a few people (here’s looking at you, Donna! 🙂 ) request a video of my Zig marker coloring, and so this is my first attempt to explain why I do what I do. I hope it’s clear and maybe useful to someone!
In case you can’t watch the video or would like to have some written instructions on how to make the card showcased in the video, I started by heat embossing one of the peonies, a bud, and some foliage from Ellen Hutson’s Mondo Peony stamp set onto some Canson Montval watercolor paper with gold embossing powder. I then used Zig markers in shades of Light Violet, Purple, and Violet (and I explain exactly what I do with them in the video!) along with my damp paintbrush to add color, depth, and shading to my blooms. The leaves were colored with Turquoise Green and Persian Green Zig markers. After I had finished coloring, I fussy cut the flowers out, but you could easily use the dies and save yourself some time. 😉 I arranged my flowers in a little bouquet on an A2 card front, then picked them all up using the ever-helpful Press ‘n Seal so I wouldn’t have to fiddle with them later.
I have soooo many 6×6 (and 8.5×11 and 12×12…) patterned paper pads in my stash that I hardly ever use… it’s nice to know they’re there when I need a sheet or two, like the one sheet I used for this card! I trimmed down this black and white striped panel from a stack from Hobby Lobby and added a thin strip of fuchsia colored glitter paper at the bottom, then added several strips of dimensional adhesive. I adhered a piece of lavender card stock to my card base, then adhered my striped dimensional panel to it. After adding both liquid adhesive and dimensional adhesive to my peonies, I laid them down on my card base. My greeting is from Concord and 9th’s Kindhearted stamp set. I simply cut a strip of vellum and heat embossed the greeting using the same gold embossing powder that I used on the peony.
And that’s it! A fairly simple final layout for the semi-involved coloring.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my first foray into video making. It was definitely a process, and something I would probably never have even attempted if my friend Jess hadn’t pushed me (and guided me so well). I hope you will subscribe to my channel, because I have a few more projects up my sleeve! Hopefully, I will get more comfortable with the whole process and be able to create videos even more quickly in the future. Practice makes perfect!
Thanks for stopping by. Have a marvelous week!
Edited to add: I have had a few people ask about the Absorber that I use in my video to dab my paintbrush on. This is one of my most useful items in my craft room, and it’s economical, too! It’s basically a car chamois…. automotive types use them to dry their cars after giving them a wash. I use mine to clean my stamps off in addition to using it to dab excess water from my paintbrush. When you buy an Absorber, they are relatively large; I cut mine down into 4 squares and rotate them. I just throw them in the washing machine when they’re looking too grungy!!! I hope that helps answer any questions you might have! 🙂
Awesome job! I am going to try your zig layering technique today!
This is the first video…seems like you’ve conquered the media in one try. Very clear and concise instructions plus one dramatic and gorgeous card. Your painting is masterful.
Love it. More please. I have Subscribed!!
Ditto Coni, and cheers to you for an extremely helpful video – and a gorgeous card design, too!
=]
For a first timer you did a great job! Easy to watch, easy to understand. Looking forward to seeing more!
You did a wonderful job on your first video. Your peony turned out beautifully. I hope you plan on making more videos. I enjoyed watching you explain about the different layers of color. It made a lot of sense. Thank you.
Great card and great tips! Thanks for sharing (in video) your process.
Curious about the product you referred to in your video called an absorber? From the brief glimpse shown of the item it appeared sponge-like and was rectangular. Where can it be purchased?
Hi Jaqui, thanks for watching! The Absorber is basically a car chamois; people use them when cleaning their cars to get a nice shine. Here’s a link to the one that I use:https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BQSL5E/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=emilymi-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B000BQSL5E&linkId=8a510d1d5218c98fe64683b9cc6db9f7. It’s wonderful to use for stamping too; I use it in lieu of baby wipes. Hope that helps! 🙂
awesome video Emily – really enjoyed your wonderful tips:)
I couldn’t get the video to work but it’s probably my computer and I’ll keep trying. I really love your blog and respect your talent so much. Thanks for your expertise!
Very well done!
I’m really glad Jess gave a shout out about your video. It’s so well done it’s hard to believe it’s your first! Your tips and tricks on watercoloring florals are incredibly helpful to me… I think because you added your thought processes and reasons for doing some things somehow the concepts clicked for me in a way I haven’t gotten from others.
I truly appreciate the time and effort you put into creating this and would love to see you do more videos, please!