liquid watercolors

VIDEO: New Camellias Press Plate with Pinkfresh Studio Liquid Watercolors!

January 12, 2024

Hi friends! I have a new video over on the Pinkfresh Studio YouTube channel showing the new Liquid Watercolors which will be coming soon from Pinkfresh Studio, paired with the Camellias Press Plate (PFS | SSS) that I illustrated for the December 2023 release! In the video, I show how to achieve a semi-no line colored look with Better Press plates by “stamping off” once and using the residual ink to create a subtler lined image.

Watch video above or HERE on YouTube.

In case you can’t watch the video, I started my project by inking up my Camellias Press Plate (PFS | SSS) with Pinkfresh Studio Detail Black Ink (PFS | SSS) and running it through my Better Press machine (PFS | SSS | SB) with a panel of letterpress paper with the ink at full strength. Without cleaning my Press Plate, I placed an A2 sized sheet of Pinkfresh Studio’s new watercolor paper (to be released soon!) on the platen and ran it through a second time, this time impressing only a shadow of the ink onto the paper, similar to the lighter version one can achieve with the “stamping off” technique using photopolymer stamps. This lighter outline worked nicely with the softer palette in the new Pastel Liquid Watercolors (also coming soon!)

One tip that I did want to share: After some experimentation, I found that the new Liquid Watercolors worked most effectively when paired with the Pinkfresh Studio Detail Black Ink (PFS | SSS). While the Better Press inks from Spellbinders are waterproof and can be used for watercolor, I found that the liquid watercolors were drawn to the ink and were a bit unruly, causing feathering and other undesirable reactions. It’s wonderful that the Pinkfresh Studio Detail Black Ink (PFS | SSS) works so nicely with the Press Plates!

After I had created my letterpress image, I used Lilac, Slumber, and Sage liquid watercolors to watercolor the camellias and foliage. I was able to use only three colors due to how easy it is to create consistent custom colors by measuring the drops of your liquid watercolors! I created a lovely lavender-blue shade by mixing three drops of Lilac with one drop of Slumber, as well as a pretty teal by mixing three drops of Sage with one drop of Slumber. I think it would be such fun to experiment and create a whole “recipe book” filled with unique watercolor mixes!

Once I had finished watercoloring the image, I die cut it using the Camellias coordinating die (PFS | SSS) and turned my attention to the background. I used the Ornate Trellis Press Plate (PFS | SSS) as a “debossing folder” by running it through my Better Press machine (PFS | SSS | SB) without any ink on it! I simply placed the plate on the magnetic sheet of my machine, then added the A2 panel of Better Press Porcelain paper (PFS | SSS | SB) to the platen and ran it through my machine. The pattern was debossed on the paper, creating a lovely subtle texture for the background. To emphasize the texture a bit more, I blended Soft Lilac and Slumber inks around the edge, splattering the entire panel with some blue violet metallic watercolor.

After I had created my background, I popped up the finished watercolored camellia die cut with foam adhesive. I added a sentiment from the Favorite Things Sentiments Better Press Plates ( PFS | SSS), which I pressed with black ink and die cut with the Favorite Things Sentiments coordinating dies (PFS | SSS) and popped up with a double layer of foam tape for extra height. Finally, I added a smattering of Lilac Clear Drops (PFS | SSS) for some shine!

Well, that’s all for my project today! I am very excited about these new Liquid Watercolors from Pinkfresh Studio. They coordinate beautifully with the exceptional Pinkfresh Studio Dye Inks, so it will be such a pleasure to be able to match my watercolored images almost exactly to the inks! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Altenew Paint A Flower: Coral Sunset Blog Hop+Giveaway!

March 22, 2021

Good morning! Today, Altenew is releasing their latest in the Paint A Flower series: Paint A Flower: Coral Sunset, and of course, we’re sharing loads of inspiration with you in a blog hop! You should have arrived here from the Altenew Card Blog, and your next stop is Jenny Colacicco. This gorgeous peony swag is so beautifully detailed; I couldn’t wait to do some watercoloring with it! If you like to color flowers, you should definitely consider subscribing to the Paint A Flower series; you can get these beautiful stamp sets automatically sent to you each month, and at a discount, to boot! Let’s get started on the details for my project today.

I began by stamping the main image from Paint A Flower: Coral Sunset using Embossing Ink on some of Altenew’s Watercolor Paper. This paper is extremely smooth and great for embossing beautifully detailed stamps! I heated some platinum embossing powder over the top, then taped my image down to a watercolor board to minimize warping.

Next, I used the Tropical Fiesta watercolor brush markers to add lots of vibrant color to the panel. When using liquid watercolors, I prefer to scribble the color out onto a ceramic palette, then pick up the color using my watercolor brushes and apply it to the paper with the damp paintbrush, rather than putting the brush marker directly to the paper. This way, I am guaranteed a bit more control with the intensity of the color. It’s easy to add layers of color to achieve super vibrant looks, but it’s much more difficult to take color away, so I try to make sure that I add color to the paper in small doses in all of my watercoloring.

Once my panel had dried completely, I splattered some dark purple watercolor to add a bit of artistic texture, then, once that had dried, heat embossed a greeting from the Paint A Flower: Coral Sunset stamp set, again using platinum embossing powder. I trimmed the sides of the panel and mounted it on an A2 panel of shimmery, deep magenta cardstock, finally adding a few gems to add a bit of sparkling texture.

Well, that’s all for my project today! As always, to celebrate the new release, Altenew is hosting lots of giveaways!

$200 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 2 lucky winners and a $20 gift certificate to 5 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 03/27/2021 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 7 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 03/30/2021.

Your next stop is Jenny Colacicco. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Altenew Watercolor Coloring Book Release Blog Hop + Giveaway!

February 11, 2021

Hi there! Altenew is having a really fun blog hop today to help introduce their new watercolor lovers’ products: Watercolor Coloring Book, Artists’ Watercolor Brushes – Round, and Artists’ Watercolor Brushes – Detailed. You should have arrived here from Seeka, and your next stop is Amanda Baldwin. Here are a few details on the new products being released today:

Watercolor Coloring Book

Watercoloring just got a whole lot more fun! Make way for a brand-new, specially-designed Altenew original product – our Watercolor Coloring Book.

Recognize the florals? This gorgeous coloring book features popular Altenew flowers in beautiful compositions. You will enjoy coloring 12 floral designs with both black and gray outlines. Coloring on the light gray outlined images will give you a no-line watercolor look, while coloring on the black print will give you a stamped look.

The high-quality watercolor paper is thick enough to avoid warping and ripping when you color in the designs with your favorite inks and watercolors.

This coloring book will open up a whole world of crafting possibilities for you. Use the pages for framed home decor projects, turn them into cards, or simply have fun coloring the day away!

Details

Quantity: 24 sheets
Content: 12 unique designs
Paper Dimensions: 5″ x 7″
Quality: 100% cotton, cold press watercolor paper
Paper Weight: 300 gsm

Artists’ Watercolor Brushes – Round

Are you an avid or aspiring watercoloring artist? If so, you will love this fresh, high-quality set of round watercolor brushes.

Our Artists’ Watercolor Brushes come in a variety of sizes to suit all of your needs. They will allow you to try out a variety of watercoloring techniques, from background washes to fine detail work. These elegant and beautiful brushes feature synthetic squirrel/sable hair and black birch wood handles accented by a black metal ferrule.

This set includes four round brushes in sizes 1, 2, 3, and 4, and a size 18 flat brush. The brushes come in a specially designed black cloth container to encase the brushes safely and elegantly in your craft room.

Artists’ Watercolor Brushes – Detailed

Do you wish you had finely-tipped brushes for tiny watercoloring details? If so, you will love this fresh, high-quality set of detailed watercolor brushes.

This set includes four detail brushes in sizes 0, 1, 2, and 3. The brushes come in a specially designed black cloth container to encase the brushes safely and elegantly in your craft room.

I have created a sunny yellow project for you today using one of the panels from the Watercolor Coloring Book and some of the Watercolor Brush Marker Refills to do some tie-dye watercoloring. Let’s get started with the details!

I began by taping down my chosen Watercolor Coloring Book panel to my watercolor board, as this tie-dye technique requires quite a lot of water and I wanted to reduce warping. The panels are 5×7, which leave plenty of room to tape them down and still create an A2 card front. I love that they give you the option for a traditional black outline image or a more subtle gray line to do some no-line coloring. I then wet the panel completely with the large brush from the Artists’ Watercolor Brushes – Round and dropped in diluted versions of Sunkissed, Warm Sunshine, and Citrus Burst watercolor all over the paper, moving the color around while the paper was still quite wet, to create a mottled, “tie-dye” background.

Once the background had dried completely, I used more concentrated versions of Sunkissed, Warm Sunshine, and Citrus Burst watercolor, adding in some Espresso, Moss, and Limeade for extra shadows and foliage. The multi-colored, mottled background creates some fun variation on the flower petals, helping them look a bit less flat. I also added a few deep green splatters just for a fun artsy look!

To create an A2 card, I trimmed down the finished panel, then added a deep green Handwritten Hello die cut, which I cut three times from dark green cardstock and adhered together using liquid adhesive to create a dimensional die cut. I also white embossed a sentiment from Sentiment Strips on another panel of deep olive cardstock, which I popped up with dimensional adhesive.

Well, that’s all for my project today! As always, Altenew has some wonderful giveaways to celebrate this latest release:

$300 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 2 lucky winners and a $20 gift certificate to 10 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 02/16/2021 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 12 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 02/19/2021.

They are also running some special promotions to make the new products even more enticing:

Receive a FREE brand new Poppy Arrangement Stamp Set (worth $23.99) with every order of the new Florals Coloring Book and Watercolor Bundle from 2/11/2021 at 12:01 AM EST until 2/14/2021 at 11:59 PM EST. Shop HERE. Free gift will be added to cart automatically.

Your next stop on the hop is Amanda Baldwin. Thanks so much for stopping by, and happy hopping!

Altenew Paint A Flower Camellia blog hop+giveaway

January 22, 2021

Hi there! Today, Altenew is releasing a new Paint A Flower stamp set: Camellia, and we are showing them off with a blog hop! You should have arrived here from Dana Joy and your next stop is Tina Smith, or you can start back at the beginning at the Altenew Card Blog. These beautiful, fluffy blooms are so, so pretty, and come in such a lovely arrangement:

Each month, Altenew releases a new floral stamp set perfect for coloring (you can subscribe here for a discounted rate each month!). The petals on this month’s Paint A Flower: Camellia set are a very nice size, great for coloring in any medium. I chose to do a little wet-on-wet painting today using the Altenew Watercolor Brush Refills. Let’s get started with the details!

To begin, I heat embossed the beautiful floral bouquet from Paint A Flower: Camellia cascading around the edge of a panel of Altenew’s Watercolor Paper using white pearl embossing powder. I like to switch things up occasionally and using white embossing, which I think has such a cheery, lighthearted look to it, especially when paired with bright colors. To achieve the “wet-on-wet” watercoloring, I taped my slightly-larger-than-A2 embossed panel down to my watercolor board, then wet the panel thoroughly with clean water. I then dropped very diluted Sunkissed and Rubellite Brush Marker Refills onto the wet watercolor paper, both inside and outside of the embossed areas, to create a mottled watercolor background. I kept the color light enough to add green over the top without creating a muddy mess by diluting the color quite a lot. Watercolor also dries lighter than when it’s applied, so this background was nice and subtle in the end.

Once my mottled watercolor background had dried completely (completely; you don’t want to make things bleed when you add the next layer!), I added details using stronger concentrations of the Sunkissed, Rubellite, Limeade, and Moss Brush Marker Refills, creating some pretty pink and corals by combining the Sunkissed and Rubellite colors. I also added some artsy flecks of color by dipping my brush into undiluted color and flicking it at the finished watercolored panel.

For the greeting, I heat embossed the encouraging sentiment on some bright coral cardstock from my stash, then trimmed them down to strips and adhered them to the card front using foam adhesive. I added some of my favorite iridescent gems to add some sparkle!

Now, as always, Altenew has some fabulous prizes to give away to celebrate the Paint A Flower: Camellia release!

$200 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 1 lucky winner and a $15 gift certificate to 10 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 01/28/2021 for a chance to win.

Altenew will draw 11 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 01/30/2021.

Your next stop is Tina Smith. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Pinkfresh Studio April Stamp and Die Release!

April 29, 2019

Hi there! Today, Pinkfresh Studio is releasing their newest stamps and dies. We have lots of beautiful sets to introduce to you today, including some absolutely beautiful new flowers and sentiments (my favorites ;))! You should have arrived here from my super talented friend Caly Person, and your next stop is the phenomenal Erum Tasneem! Pinkfresh Studio also has some fun giveaways and shopping promotions to celebrate their new release, so be sure to read all the way to the end to get all of the details! Now, for all of the details on my projects for you today.

My projects today are an homage to pink and purple. I absolutely love pink and purple flowers… there’s something so perfectly springy about the combination of bright pink and deep royal purple. The new Blooming Bouquet and Just A Little Lovely stamp sets feature beautiful clusters of flowers, perfect for creating a spring garden on your card front! Let’s get started with all of the details.

I began by stamping the gorgeous new Just A Little Lovely on some white Copic-friendly card stock using Copic-friendly black ink, then colored it in a lovely cool magenta, royal purple, and green color combination using Copic markers. After I’d finished coloring, I die cut the panel using the Essentials Stitched Rectangles dies to add a bit of interest around the edge, then used blending brushes and some deep pink ink to blend around the edges, creating a nice halo around the colored image.

After I’d completed the blending, I die cut the bouquet from Just A Little Lovely from some scratch paper, covered my Copic-colored bouquet, then used my paintbrush to flick some undiluted black watercolor on the panel for some artistic speckles. I die cut the Best Wishes from the Essentials: Classic Words die set using black card stock, then added it to the colored panel, covering it with Crystal Lacquer to add a different texture to the card front. The final step was to mount the colored, stitched panel on an A2 panel of card stock, providing a stark black frame around the outside of the colored area.

For my second project, I maintained the color scheme used in the first project, but used the Pinkfresh Studio Liquid Watercolors with the new Blooming Bouquet. I began by stamping both bouquets onto some Arches Cold Press watercolor paper using Versafine and then embossing with clear embossing powder. I then used Bubble Gum, Lavender, Sapphire, Sky Blue, Aquamarine, Emerald City, and Licorice watercolors to create deep, vibrant shades of fuchsia and violet. These watercolors are so gorgeously concentrated that they create dramatic results when used full-strength.

I die cut each bouquet using the coordinating dies, then set them aside to work on the card base. Again using my blending brushes, I blended two shades of deep, rich pink down the front of my white A2 card base, concentrating the darker shade towards the top, tapering down to just a light pink towards the bottom of the card base. After arranging the flowers approximately where I wanted them, I used the new You’ve Got This stamp (which was designed by my ridiculously talented friend and fellow teammate Caly Person using her own hand-drawn calligraphy!!! Gasp, right?!) set to create a custom greeting, which I again stamped with Versafine Onyx and embossed with clear embossing powder.

After I’d stamped the greeting, I again splattered some black ink on the bottom of the blended panel to tie into the black embossing and sentiment and add a bitt of interest to the bottom of the card. I arranged the watercolored flowers on the top of the card front, adhering them with foam tape, trimming off the excess portions and layering a few of the pieces of foliage that I’d trimmed off beneath the bouquets to help fill out some bare spots.

Well, that’s all for my projects today! Now, for the shopping promotions and giveaways! Pinkfresh Studio is offering free/discounted shipping from April 29-May5th on orders $50+. You must use the code APRFREESHIPWITH50. Shipping is free in the USA, and $5.50 off for our International friends. We are also offering a free die with every purchase!

No code necessary! This darling little die will be automatically added to your cart in the Pinkfresh Studio Store with every purchase.

Pinkfresh Studio is also giving away the full release to a lucky winner chosen from the blog hop comments, as well as on their Instagram page! Simply leave a comment on each of the blog hop stops (the more comments you leave, the more chances you have to win!) to be entered. The winners will be announced Monday, May 6th on our GIVEAWAY PAGE. You have 2 weeks to claim your prize before another winner is chosen, so be sure to pay close attention to see if you’re the winner!

Well, that’s all for me today. Here’s the rest of the hop list in case you get lost:

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a marvelous Monday!