Sixth Street Sundries

Emily Midgett

magnolia apple blossom

Fixing Watercolor Mistakes-Sometimes You Just Have To Walk Away!

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks, Simon!

Hi friends! I have a post to share with you that is a long time coming, mainly because I started this project a few weeks ago and only just finished it yesterday. I am one of those people who can’t move on to another project if I have an unfinished project sitting on my desk. I will work through it until I figure out what to do with the first project, and normally I have a pretty good game plan figured out in my head for what I want the finished card to look like. I wanted to create a watercolored magnolia background using one of my illustrations for Simon Says Stamp: Magnolia Apple Blossom.

I started by creating a patterned background by stamping the large bouquet a few times, rotating the stamp each time to get a different angle, and then added smaller pieces of foliage and sprigs of apple blossom to fill in the blank areas. I used Hero Arts Contour Ink to do some no-line watercoloring on Fabriano Artistico Hot Press watercolor paper.

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen the start of this watercolored panel in my stories; I planned to do some “reverse watercolor psychology” on myself by painting the areas around the blooms a vibrant color, then allowing that contrast to help me “paint” the magnolias white. I was using Ph Martin’s Liquid Watercolors, which are not my typical medium and thus had a bit of a learning curve for me. Though I allowed the background plenty of drying time before starting in on my flowers, I still had some issues with bleeding; that is, the color from the background was bleeding into wherever the new moisture touched it. I figure that it was because the liquid colors are so incredibly concentrated that they were super reactive to fresh water. I contemplated throwing it out, because I just couldn’t stand the look of those imperfections!

Several helpful people responded to my story with suggestions: use a darker color for the flowers instead of the super pale pink, use white gouache to clean up the edges, cover it up with a sentiment, etc. The main point was not to throw it away, haha. So after letting it sit for several days, I decided to paint some vivid pink magnolias and use white gouache like Wite-Out to try to cover up some of the areas that had bled into each other. I was really pleased with how it ended up coming out! The vivid pink helped to minimize the bright blue that had bled into the petals, while the white gouache helped to clean up the edges and hide the bleeding. The white gouache is definitely going to be used again to help clean up edges on no-line watercolored panels; it provided nice, crisp edges even on the areas that didn’t have any bleeding but were just not quite as defined as I would have liked!

After the anguish this panel had put my heart through (haha, I’m so dramatic) I didn’t want to cover it up with a large sentiment, so I die cut a small Simply Thank You die cut from some iridescent white foil cardstock and the background from heavyweight vellum, then popped it up using some foam adhesive. The vellum helps the sentiment stand out from the vibrant, busy background. I also popped up a sentiment strip for a simple, but poignant greeting on this intricately-watercolored project. I added a few shimmering gems for some sparkle and added texture, as well. I think the iridescent shine is just the right touch!

Well, that’s all for my project today, long as it took to get here! I definitely learned not to give up on a project like this, even if it means walking away for a few days (or maybe even more than a few) and giving yourself time to recalibrate and come back to it with fresh eyes and a fresh perspective. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Simon Says Stamp Dream Big Blog Hop-Day 2!

Hi there! Today, we are hopping along to celebrate the Simon Says Stamp Dream Big release! (You can check out the Day 1 blog hop HERE.) You should have arrived here from Barbara Tarayao, and your next stop is Miriam Prantner. I am extra excited about today’s hop, because I have a fun video to share using my newest stamp illustration: Magnolia Apple Blossom! You can check out the video below or click HERE to watch it on YouTube.

For this project, I wanted to create a bright, vibrant bouquet featuring my new favorite medium: gouache! I was able to experiment with pairing white gouache with liquid watercolors earlier this summer, and it was such a blast that I had to try it out with this giant Magnolia Apple Blossom bouquet.

I began by stamping the large bouquet from Magnolia Apple Blossom onto some Simon Says Stamp Midnight Green cardstock using Hero Arts Unicorn ink. The white pigment ink fades beautifully into the opaque paint and shows up perfectly against the dark cardstock background. I die cut the image with the coordinating dies. I mixed the liquid watercolors with the white gouache to create a variety of shades of opaque paint. The brighter the watercolors, the better, because the opaque white gouache will seriously dilute the color from its original vibrancy. The super thick Midnight Green cardstock worked beautifully with this thick paint; it did not warp or pill at all!

I like to mentally replace the water that I would normally use to dilute the watercolor with the white gouache. The white gouache acts to dilute the intensity and vibrancy of the watercolor, so adding more gouache will make your color lighter, more watercolor/pigment will make it brighter and more intense. I laid down the medium shade in the areas that were more shadowed, then added some more white gouache to that medium shade and painted the petals that were on the top, or curled over on themselves. As with all no-line coloring, keeping the contrast and sharp lines between the edges of each image was key in maintaining the shape.

Once my painting was complete, I used the Magnolia Branches Embossing Folder from Simon Says Stamp to emboss a mini-slimline (3.5″x6″) panel of more of the Midnight Green cardstock, which I lightly splattered with more white gouache to add a touch of artsy texture to the background. I popped up the painted die cut with foam tape, then added a sentiment strip from Magnolia Apple Blossom using a double layer of foam tape for extra height. Finally, I added a few Milk Glass jewels for some iridescent sparkle!

My second card features one of the new standalone dies from the Dream Big release: Lemon Zest. I love that these new dies feature just enough detail that you can use colored cardstock for a chunkier, more graphic effect, or you can use your favorite coloring medium to add lots of detail and shading, as I’ve done here. I began by die cutting all of the components from Lemon Zest from plain white cardstock. I used my Copic markers to add a ton of vibrant color to the images. This would be fun to do with ink pads and ink blending, too!

For the background, I wanted to add a subtle pattern, so I pulled out the Interlocking Circles Stencils. These stencils have a definite Tuscan feel to them, which I thought worked perfectly with the bright lemon die cuts! I blended Lemon Chiffon and Duckling inks to create a subtle, sunny pattern for the background.

I die cut a vellum Nested Domed Arches die to create a smooth area to ground my greeting and lemon cluster. I stamped a greeting using the Well Wishes stamps and Pine Paws-itively Saturated ink, then arranged my die cuts and sentiment over the top of my vellum arch. I added the die cuts with lots of foam adhesive, hiding the foam tape behind the solid die cuts to keep it from peeking through my transparent vellum die cut. Finally, I added a few bright yellow iridescent pearls to add a bit of shine!

My final card today might be tied with the magnolia gouache card for my favorite card from this release. As soon as I saw the new Ice Cream Scoop dies, I wanted to create a festive pastel birthday card with them featuring the Layered Confetti stencils. I began my project by die cutting all of the components for the Ice Cream Scoop die cuts three times from white cardstock. I again used my Copic markers to add lots of color to the die cuts, creating vanilla bean, strawberry, and mint chocolate chip ice creams. (Yum, right?) I adhered all of the components together using both liquid and foam adhesive to create as three dimensional a look as possible.

Next, I created a party background with coordinating ice cream shoppe colors! I combined the Layered Confetti stencils with Guava, Spring, and Goldenlocks inks, blending the stencils on a white background, then randomly blending all three colors around the edge of the card front to create a soft, almost bokeh-effect. I also layered a few Streamer Ribbons cut from white cardstock towards the top of my blended background to add an even more festive feel to the card front.

After the card base had been completed, I adhered the ice cream cones to the card front using foam adhesive. I cut the detailed “happy birthday” from the Scripty Happy Birthday die set from some white glitter cardstock and adhered it to the ice cream cones. So many different elements on this card, but I love how festive and sweet this one ended up! The different looks that you can achieve from just some plain white die cuts is absolutely amazing to me.

Well, that’s all for my projects today! Now, to celebrate the release and the blog hop, Simon Says Stamp is generously giving away a $25 shopping spree from one commenter on each stop on the hop!

To enter, simply leave a comment on each blog hop stop. The more comments you leave along the way, the more chances you have to win! The winners will be announced on the Simon Says Stamp blog on Wednesday the 27th of July. The winners can email the folks at Simon Says Stamp to claim your prize!

Simon Says Stamp is also offering a free gift with purchase! Enter code BIGHUGS at checkout to receive the sweet Scripty Big Hugs die FREE with any purchase! This promotion will expire 7/24 at 11:59 pm EDT.

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

Simon Says Stamp Dream Big Release + New Illustration!

Hi there! Simon Says Stamp is releasing their latest collection this evening, called Dream Big, and boy is it a fabulous release! I am loving on so many different things- the new ice cream cone dies, the lemons, the embossing folders…. but I am especially excited to have a new illustration released with it: Magnolia Apple Blossom! I love the grace and beauty of magnolias, and so drawing this new stamp set was such a joy. I have made a couple of projects with it for the release, but tonight I’m sharing a simple Copic-colored project featuring the smaller individual flowers, foliage, and apple blossom buds, so let’s get started with the details!

I began by stamping several of the smaller, individual elements from Magnolia Apple Blossom onto some white cardstock using Intens-ified Black ink. I colored them with Copic markers, using the lightest shades from several different color families to create some highlights and shadows, as well as adding some reflections of color along the edges of the petals. It’s very difficult to color “white” flowers, because if you just leave them with the absence of any color, there is no depth or curvature to the flowers, but if you put too much color, it can look dingy. The BV shades that I used to create shadows made the initial images look a touch dingy, but when I added some (very pale) Y and R Copic markers, it helped to brighten the petals up a bit! I always make sure to keep my colorless blender close at hand so that I can blend out any harsh lines and allow the white of the cardstock to show through to add highlights and keep the overall feeling of the flower white. The intense jewel green of the leaves helps to add to the contrast of the white flowers and add to the illusion of their “lack” of color!

For the card base, I die cut the beautiful Detail Bohemian Plate from some white cardstock to match the white borders on the floral die cuts. I also die cut some rectangular white frames using the A2 Thin Frames dies and layered those on the cover plate die cut. I arranged the colored flowers in a swag, then used the new Low-Tack Tape to adhere the arrangement together before flipping it over and adding foam tape. I removed the release paper, then flipped the arrangement over and added it to the die cut background.

I die cut a few of the new Layered Rose Leaves dies from some vellum to add some ethereal and weightless foliage to help fill in a few of the gaps of the floral spray. I created a sentiment strip using a sentiment from Magnolia Apple Blossom and added it with a double layer of foam adhesive. Finally, I added some Milk Glass gems to add some extra shine and a new textural element.

My next projects are a total 180* switch from the elegant project above, featuring the new XL Student Greetings. I created a duo of little lunchbox notes that are the perfect size to tuck into my kiddos’ backpacks or lunchboxes when school starts next month! I began by stenciling the Dimensional Stars stencils onto an A2 panel of cardstock, one using the Green Ink Trio 15 Paws-itively Saturated Inks and one with Purple Ink Trio 16 Paws-itively Saturated Inks.

Once I had finished ink blending using the layered star stencils, I used the Large Pocket Note die to cut these sweet little notes that are the perfect size to tuck in so many different places! Lunch box, backpack, jacket pocket… I stamped the greetings from XL Student Greetings in coordinating ink shades and die cut them using the coordinating wafer dies.

Next, to add a little bit of extra texture and some sparkle, I die cut a few glittery stars using the Nested Star dies from Pinkfresh Studio and some coordinating glitter paper. I popped up the greeting using foam adhesive, then added the stars with some liquid adhesive.

Well, that’s all for my projects today! I have several more projects to share with you later this week. Some of my favorite projects that I’ve made recently! I hope you’ll check out the new Dream Big release; it’s such a fun release with such a huge variety of styles available. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!