AECP Level 2 - Creative Watercolor Media

 Hello, crafty friends!

Welcome back to another installment of Paper Play.  This post is all about a class that was a lot of fun - .  Creative Watercolor Media.  It focused on how to take supplies that you likely already have - ink pads, ink sprays, and reinkers - and use them in place of traditional watercolor paints.  The instuctors provided some get tips and really got you to think outside the box.  I made two cards for this course that I’ll walk you through.

Card 1 - Sending Hugs

My inspiration for this card was an old, weathered wooden fence with a wooden sign hanging on it.  Add some bright flowers, and you have a beautiful way to let someone know that you’re thinking of them and sending them hugs.

Items used in making the card:

• Altenew Sending Hugs Outline Stamp and Die Set
  
• Altenew Deck Planks 3D Embossing Folder
  
• Altenew Puffy Heart Metallic Ink Spray
  
• Altenew Crisp Due Inks: Fresh Leaf, Snapdragon, Milk Chocolate, Jet Black
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink - Picket Fence, Lost Shadow, and Ground Espresso
• Ranger Ink Glossy Accents
• Taylored Expressions Drip Drops
• Taylored Expressions Black Saphires
• A2 sized hray card stock panel
• A2 sized cream card base
• Scrap pieces of white card stock

Here’s how I made it:

• Took the gray card panel and used an ink blending tool to blend some milk chocolate ink over it.  I chose gray card stock to have some gray undertones in the card panel.
• Spritzed the card panel with some water, put it into the deck planks embossing folder, and ran it through my die cutting machine.
• Pressed the picket fence ink pad against my glass craft surface several times and then spritzed the ink with water.  I then used a paint brush to add a weathered/whitewash look to the wood.  I applied several coats of ink, dried it with my heat tool, and then applied several more.  I repeated this until I was happy with the appearance of the wood.

• Cut a small scrap piece of gray card stock and applied milk chocolate ink with an ink blending tool.
• Spritzed it with water, placed that piece into the deck planks embossing folder in the opposite direction of the larger piece, and ran it through my die cutting machine.
• Applied picket fence ink to the glass craft surface, spritzed the ink with water, and used a paint brush to apply coats of it to small piece of card stock.  I then pressed the lost shadow ink to the glass craft surface, spritzed it with water, and painted a few coats over the card stock.
• Dried the small piece of card stock with my heat tool.  I then used the sentiment stamp, loaded it with the ground espresso ink, and stamped the small piece of card stock.  Adhered double sided tape to the back of it and placed it on the center of the card base.
• Put small drops of craft glue in the four corners of the sentiment sign and placed a black saphire into each corner.
• Stamped the floral stamp onto the white card stock with jet black ink.  I stamped it twice because I wanted to have flowers both above and below the sentiment.
• Sprayed some puffy heart ink spray onto the glass craft surface, spritzed it with water, applied some water to the stamped images with a paint brush, and then applied the ink to the flower petals.
• Pressed the fresh leaf ink pad onto my glass craft surface, sprtized it with water, and painted the leaves of the flowers.
• Colored the center of the flowers with Snapdragon ink and some water.
• Used the coordinating die to cut out the flowers.
• Adhered the flowers above and below the sentiment sign with double sided foam tape.
• Added glossy accents to the flower centers.
• Added three drops of craft glue onto the flowers and adhered three drip drops.

• Adhered the card panel to the card base with double sided tape.

The card is finished!  I’m so happy with how it turned out.  I think that the wood looks pretty realistic, and that’s thanks to watercoloring added witht the white ink.  I also think that the watercolored flowers turned out very nice.

Card 2 - Happy Anniversary

This card was inspired by the cards that the instructors made in the course - especially Laura Bassen.  I wanted to have a nice water colored pink and green background with an embossed floral image.  I used the following items to create it:

• Altenew Ambridge Rose Stamp and Die Set
• Altenew Crisp Due Inks: Green Fields, Blush, and Pink Diamond
• Slightly smaller than A2 sized piece of watercolor paper
• A2 sized green card base
• Scrap piece of pink card stock
• Scrap piece of green card stock
• Sizzix clear embossing ink
• Ranger Ink Vintage Pearl Embossing Powder
• Taylored Expressions Drip Drops

Here’s how I made it:

• Pressed the green fields ink cube against the glass craft surface and spritzed the ink with water.  I spritzed the piece of watercolor paper with some water, and used a paint brush to add the green color to the bottom half of the paper.
• Pressed the Blush ink pad against the glass craft surface and spritzed the ink with water.  Used a paint brush to brush the color onto the top half of the paper.
• The pink color was too light for my liking.  I pressed the pink diamond ink cube against rhe glass craft surface and spritzed it with water.  Used a paint brush to add the color to the top half of the paper.  I was much happier with the pink color this time!
• Used a heat tool to dry the paper.
• Took the Ambridge Rose stamp with the two flowers, loaded it with clear embossing ink, and stamped it onto the water colored paper.  Repeated this for the leaves in each bottom corner.
• Sprinked the embossing powder over the stamped image and then tapped off the excess.
• Used my heat tool to heat emboss the stamped image.
• Stamped the sentiment onto the scrap strip of pink card stock using clear embossing ink.
• Sprinkled the embossing powder over the stamped sentiment and then tapped off the excess.
• Used my heat tool to heat emboss the stamped sentiment.
• Put double sided tape onto the back of the pink sentiment strip and adhered it to the scrap strip of green card stock.

• Used double sided foam tape to adhere the sentiment strip to the card.
• Put three drops of craft glue onto the card and adhered drip drops.
• Put double sided tape onto the back of the panel and adhered it to the card base.

The pink, green, and vintage pearl embossing powder look so nice together.  I’d be happy to give this card to friends celebrating an anniversary!

That’s about it for this Paper Play post.  Thanks for stopping by and reading it.  Until next time . . . be well! 😊