ESAD 2017 Occasions Catalogue and Sale-a-bration Sneak Peek blog hop

Welcome to another ESAD blog hop. Whether you are starting with me or have hopped over from seeing the fabulous projects my talented friend Kelly Kent has made, you are in for a real treat. We are giving you a sneak peek at some of the new products from the 2017 Stampin’ Up! Occasions and Sale-a-bration catalogues. That’s just one of the perks of being a demonstrator – you get to order before anyone else in the world. You will be able to order any of these products from January 4^th. Spend $90 and you can choose from one of the fabulous free products in the Sale-a-bration catalogue.

There are so many great products but my absolute favourite are the new Watercolour Pencils. They are beautiful to use and make watercolouring easy if you follow a few simple steps. Today I have used them with a great stamp set called Mediterranean Moments.

This is one stamp set that is easy to dismiss but when you start colouring it, it really comes to life. I have coloured each of the 4 images and then made them into a tent card. If you go the trouble of watercolouring, you really want the recipient to be able to stand up your card and admire it! It is simply a concertina (similar to this one) attached to form the stand. I have added a panel to the back for the message.

I have made frames using the Layering Squares Framelits and raised with foam adhesive strips to give a picture frame effect.

These watercolour pencils work well on Shimmery White cardstock as you can see here with the Vespa and cat cards.

And of course they also work well on watercolour paper.

If you find colouring images like this a bit daunting, I have some tips to help you break it down and bring out your inner artist.

I’ll let you into a little secret…….I’m not one bit artistic…….but I can follow rules……well painting rules at least! Some lucky people can just start painting and what they see in their head makes it onto the paper. Mine always ends up looking like a 4 year old has been finger painting! Well the new watercolour pencils take a bit of the stress out of watercolouring and give you a bit more control.

Here are my tips that will allow you to create watercolour masterpieces:

·         Tip the water out of your aqua painter. Dip the tip into a pot of water and blot on a towel. This gives you far more control of the colour, especially when you are colouring little areas.
·         Start on one part of the image, usually the thing that jumps out at you. If it is a flower, choose one petal. In these Mediterranean images I started with the greenery.
·         Colour in parts of the image, leaving parts white. Use soft swirly strokes rather than hard straight strokes. Press harder where you want it to be a bit darker such as shadows and areas further back. When you start to paint with your aqua painter draw a bit of the colour into the white space to create the lighter shade.
·         Continue picking out sections, colouring with watercolour pencils then painting with your aqua painter. Once you complete sections it makes it easier to choose colours and shading for remaining areas.
·         If you don’t have the exact shade mix 2 together by colouring the second over the top. When you wet with the aqua painter they mix together. For most of my foliage I have used the Old Olive and either Daffodil Delight or Pacific Point watercolour pencils.
·         Lastly, don’t stress about it, just relax and let it flow.

Now make sure you hop around to see what everyone else has created. If you get lost each post has the line up so you can get back on track. Next you are off to see the great projects that Rose Desmond has got to show you.

Lou

BLOG HOP PARTICIPANTS:

1. Libby Dyson

2. Samantha White

3. Nicole Wilson

4. Kelly Kent

5. Lou Kitzelman

6. Rose Desmond

7. Andrea Buckland

8. Narelle Fasulo

9. Cathy Pinchbeck

10. Rebecca Jacovou

11. Courtenay Heuston

12. Leonie Schroder

13. Carly Middleton

14. Megan Lenske

15. Monique Fielder

16. Josie Dean

17. Tanya DeRoy

18. Nerida Carter

19. Rachael Lewsley

20. Cheryl O'Bree

21. Cheryl Algie

22. Maree McIntosh

23. Rebekah Crisp