AECP-Level 3-Creative Coloring with Erum-Advanced Techniques

 OH MY! I so enjoyed this class and learned so much.  This is a class that I will take over and over again.  Erum is such a fantastic colorist. I hope to be half as good as she is one day.  She is easy to follow and so intriguing to watch as her blossoms come to life before your eyes. This class is another one you must try from Altenew!

This cards is more vibrant in person and uses the Stippling Technique and Drip Background Technique. I used the Wallpaper Art stamp set and the 12 Pan Watercolor Set.  After heat embossing my flowers and leaves in white onto watercolor paper, I followed Erum's instructions.  I really like the way this card turned out and decided to leave off a sentiment to let the background shine.

My next card combines alcohol markers and layering stamping to achieve my desired shading.  I stamped my outline image and only one of my layers. You can see how the flower petals look before adding the alcohol markers. 

After my coloring was done, I embossed a white piece of cardstock using the 3D Modern Squares embossing folder.  I then lightly ink blended over the top using Grape Agate and Silver Lake and added a few splatters.  The blossoms are from the Build A Flower-Gardenia set and my sentiment is from the Dotted Blooms set.

I also added a few solid silver sequins and adhered it to an A2 card front.  The sentiment is white heat embossed onto black cardstock.

The card below uses watercolor pencils and spritzing with water.  The next time I try this technique, I will used a stamp with larger petals. This stamp is from the set Japanese Mum. As you can see below, my coloring is sketchy and random. After spritzing with water, the strokes smooth out and blend.

I heat embossed my image onto watercolor paper using white embossing powder.

To finish the card, I embossed white cardstock using the 3D Floating Foliage embossing folder and the ink blended a light green ink over the leaves only. I wanted my blossoms to be the star of this card, so I chose a sentiment from the Tiny Sentiments-Hello set and stamped it directly onto my card front in black ink.

To finish the card, I added 2 small die cut leaves in mat gold from my stash.

My last card is a one layer card except for the sentiment. Erum shows you how to achieve dimension on your projects with the use of color.  I have a way to go, but am pleased with this card.  I chose to use pencils for my blooms and leaves, but ink blended the stripes using the Classy Stripes Stencil and Sea Forest ink.  I added a few splatters using Mangrove Root ink. The stamp set used is Perfectly Perfect.  I did mask off my stamped blooms and leaves before stenciling.

After die cutting hugs, I ran the Mangrove Root ink pad over the piece for added color and then attached it to a white shadow die cut.  Of course, I added a few gold jewels as well. 

I hope today's cards motivated you to take this class.  You will be glad you did!

Happy Stamping!

Level 3-Botanical Illustration Inspired Watercolor

 I am continuing my learning journey into the Altenew Educator Certification Program!  My first class in this level is Botanical Illustration Inspired Watercolor with Jaycee Gaspar.  He is extremely talented and I have admired his work for a long time.  I have a very long way to go, but so enjoyed this class. I highly recommend it.

As I only have the Essential Watercolor set from Altenew, I only had 12 colors to choose from.  This is a great starter set but I will soon be ordering the 36 pan set! I have a long way to go to improve my skills and envision many more practice sessions in my future. I will share a couple of my completed cards.

This image from the Darling Rose stamp set was stamped onto watercolor paper.  I mixed purple and black watercolors for my flower. Greens and blues were mixed for the leaves.  The sentiment is from the Tulip stamp set. I added a few splatters and gem stones along with mounting my art piece onto a matching green cardstock to complete the card.  It helps to tape your paper down to prevent warping as shown below. You can also run your cardstock (protected between copy paper) through your embossing machine to flatten it somewhat.

One of the hardest things to do with watercoloring is to let it dry!  I had to walk away or set it aside and work on something else! Below is a close up of the rose.

I also practiced with the Coneflower set. I added details with pencils, especially to the centers. The sentiment is from the Just a Number set and is heat embossed in Rose Gold.  Splatters and sequins finish the card.

Below is a close up of the flowers.  I need a few more stamp sets with larger blooms! Just to practice, of course-ha!

Again, I highly recommend this class. I plan to take it a few more times and keep practicing!

Happy Stamping!