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Monday, November 4, 2019

Hurricane Watercolor Technique Video + Giveaway

So I just had a quick trip to Santa Fe, where I got a little taste of what we call winter in the southwest/

It's not really winter, and I can say that as a native New Yorker, and someone who did hard time in upstate NY in college. 

Cool, bone dry, high desert temperatures are a huge blessing. Bone chilling, wet, grey weather not so much. Even in Austin it's too wet to enjoy cooler temps. 

But no matter where you are, that first nip of winter/fall/whatever you have is fun. Change is good.

I just got done with my retreat, where we did eight fun techniques over two days and ate gourmet food and generally off-gridded ourselves for three days and it was wonderful.

I usually sneak peek one or two of the techniques we do so you know how much fun we have, and that's what I'm doing today with the new release from Hero Arts!

My retreat dates tend to coincide with our biggest natural disasters in Texas - not by design! But I like Memorial Day and Halloween dates, and those two dates happen to be very dramatic in the weather department here. 

Since we have had a few rough hurricane seasons leading up to the fall retreats for two years, I decided to do a technique I call hurricane wrap, that I actually took from a 4H cake decorating technique I learned in middle school. I actually won a blue ribbon for a Neopolitan cake I made in 4H - unrelated, but fun trivia. It had this yummy dark chocolate glaze and was the colors of Neopolitan ice cream in layers in the cake. Which is funny because I can't stand Neopolitan ice cream. BUT ANYWAY - that is the inspiration for this first card - and I have a video for this below. The medium I used is infusions (colors listed below) - which I love to the moon and back.

It was the perfect backdrop for this adorable gingerbread man stamp. I stamped him in Fadeout ink and colored him with Copics on Spectrum Noir marker paper (I love this paper).

Here's my quick video on this fun technique! (PS - the stencils I used in the other samples for the other technique in this video - you can get 10% off with code LYDIAFAN10 here - all stencils are linked below.)



Also, in a fun coincidence - today is the kickoff of the Splitcoast Falliday Fest - which is our ten day challenge and tutorial blitz for the fall holidays, and my next card is for my challenge today, which is - HUGE SURPRISE - to make a holiday card where blue is the dominant color.

I first stamped this food themed background cling stamp in Blue Belle in my MISTI. Leaving the stamp, I over stamped it a few times in Blueprint ink and then activated that with my water brush. The Versafine makes for a super clear image, and then the Distress ink makes for the perfect watercolor.

I used a 1" strip of the marker paper to stamp the turkey from this bundle on, and then colored it and stamped the sentiment from this set.
 Now the next card - I have to tell you - IS A LIE. You'll see why. But before we get to the lie, let's enjoy the die that I used to make it from the main kit - it's glorious! Here's what the kit looks like with this die included.



It's a paper layering door die and it's glorious. I die cut it with Fabriano Cold Press watercolor paper, and painted it with Daniel Smith Watercolor. This door - minus the lamps and the wreath, looks exactly like my front door, so I painted it accordingly. I used Piemontite watercolor for the brick, and on the card front, I Copic colored the areas behind the lamps and the eyebrow window - which is exactly what we have. Our front door is black, so that is how I colored it. Plus our peephole is way too high, just like the one on this door - HA!
 Here's the lie part. I love this sentiment in this companion add-on set, but seriously - if you come over without telling me and ring or knock, I'm going to feel super murdery. I know that was okay in the 70s, but it is so not okay now. DO NOT DO THIS. My door is always open to you if you give me like three months' notice and if I'm still feeling peoply. Just saying. But here's what the card looks like open - the door on the die opens and is amazing. I colored the inside of the door black too. The doorknob and mail slot are colored with these awesome metallic markers.
 So in a companion to the first card, I took the girl gingerbread cookie from the set in the first card, and used the die for the boy gingerbread man and made a fun missing you card! The sentiment is from this awesome, distressed floral set.
 Sometimes, I like to go back to basics when I feel like I need a classic holiday card. So when I saw this image, I knew what I needed to do.

I had just stumbled across this awesome new podcast featuring Rainn Wilson, and I thought I'd take this gorgeous image of a pile of presents and use my Elegant Writer pen to color it while I listened to the first few episodes. I LOVE this pen because you just draw lines with it and then use a water brush to paint it out and it separates it into beautiful pinks and blues.So nice to use one pen to get a multi colored image from a single pen in a quick minute. I had stamped the image onto cold press watercolor paper in Acorn before adding the marker. Then I cut it out with the matching dies, and glued it on the card front. The sentiment is from this set.
The kit this month is AMAZING - the perfect holiday kit scene builder. I went totally crazy with masking the images in the set to create the scene. I colored it with Copics (colors below), and then used post-it tape to mask off the floor and the "wallpaper" that I created with this stencil and my LCBB.
 Finally ,I made a fun gift card holder. The die is here, and it just happens to hold a tag or card that is slightly bigger than a gift card. I used this stamp and die set to embellish it, after die cutting the Merry Christmas into the front of the holder.
For the insert, I used the sweet partial cut die from this same bundle to cut the deer that's peeking out, and used this hilarious sentiment set to finish it off from this snarky holiday sentiment set. There's no reason to lose your sense of humor just because it's Christmas, after all. I rounded the corners of my insert with the 1/4" side of my Crop-a-dile.

Turns out, those geniuses made the insert size just bigger than a gift card, so I attached that to the back of it with the same glue dots I use to hold my watercolor pans into my palettes!
Here's everything I used today!

November 2019 My Monthly Hero kit
[ HA ]
ALL the Add-Ons - get them all
[ HA ]
Feast Cling Background
[ HA ]
Christmas Gingerbread Cookies
[ HA ]
Christmas Gingerbread Cookies Frame Cuts
[ HA ]
Snarky Christmas Messages
[ HA ]
Mountain of Joy
[ HA ]
May Your Home Be Filled With Joy
[ HA ]
Holiday Meal Stamp & Cut
[ HA ]
Decorative Poinsettia Frame Stamp & Cut
[ HA ]
Gift Card Holder Fancy Die
[ HA ]
CM260 Hero Florals Rose Stem | Hero Arts
[ HA ]
Ornate Floral Stencil 6x6
[ HA ]
Big Damask - A Colorful Life Designs
[ CLD ]
Reindeer Names - A Colorful Life Designs
[ CLD ]
HeartFlakes - A Colorful Life Designs
[ CLD ]
Life Changing Blender Brushes. 4 Pack...
[ PFS ]
PaperArtsy Infusions - A Bit Jaded...
[ JGG ]
Paper Artsy SUNSET BEACH Infusions...
[ SSS ]
Paper Artsy GOLDEN SANDS Infusions...
[ SSS ]
Tsukineko VersaFine Clair BLUE BELLE...
[ SSS ]
Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad BLUEPRINT...
[ SSS ]
Fadeout No Line coloring Detail Ink
[ INK ]
Speedball Elegant Writer Calligraphy...
[ BLIC ]
Spectrum Noir Metallic Markers (6pk)...
[ CRF ]
Spectrum Noir 9x12 Premium Marker...
[ CRF ]
Water Brush Pens - Set of 6 | ARTEZA
[ ARTZ ]
We R Memory Keepers Crop-A-Dile -...
[ BLIC ]
Art Anthology BIG CRAFT MAT 24x36 311473
[ SSS ]
Heavy Base Weight Card Stock- White
[ GNK ]
Fabriano Extra White Cold Press...
[ BLIC ]
Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors
[ BLIC ]
MISTI Stamping Tool
[ MSP | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | UNT ]
Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -...
[ BLIC ]
LightView 2in1 LED Magnifier for...
[ BRG ]
Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC
[ ELH | SSS ]
Crafter's Companion GEMINI...
[ SSS ]
Scor-Pal MINI SCOR-BUDDY Scoring...
[ SSS ]
Essentials by Ellen Storage...
[ ELH ]
Die Storage - Clear Storage Pockets...
[ CHC ]
XL Stamp Storage Pockets
[ ELH ]
Mermaid tidy towel case and glue...
[ ETS ]
Lawn Fawn STAMP SHAMMY Cleaner LF1045
[ SSS | CST ]
Zots™ Singles • Medium | Therm O Web...
[ THR ]
Airtable: Organize your stamps & dies
[ ART ]


As usual, they are having a giveaway today with this kit release, so leave me a comment to be entered to win a $50 gift card to spend however you want!

And don't forget, you can get the add-ons bundle at a discount, and the kit is also at a huge discount - it's $81.50 worth of stamps, dies and accessories for $34.99.

I always feel nostalgic about the November kit, because that's the month their first kit came out three years ago. It was their test kit, and I got to participate in the launch - it was a gorgeous poinsettia kit, so I was happy to see a poinsettia this month. I remember being in awe of the quality of the kit and how generous it was, and it's just been getting better and better ever since.

Do you stamp each holiday - like Thanksgiving? I always see Thanksgiving as the week I start making Christmas cards and fruitcakes, so I like taking full advantage of stamping Thanksgiving images when I can so I don't feel rushed into Christmas.

That's all for today, little turkeys! Thanks for stopping by! More inspiration awaits!


68 comments:

  1. There is just no end to your talents!!!! I need to get my infusions out and play!!! Love the monthly kits and you are right, they are so generous and get better all the time!!

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  2. What a fun technique! And I LOVE all of your cards today!

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  3. Ooh what a variety of creations!! I love the mountain of gifts card and the last card with the beautiful scene! The wallpaper using stencil is just awesome!!

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  4. I love your mind and the way you think up new techniques! Thanks for the wonderful ideas for using this month's Hero Arts release.

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  5. I am amazed at the variety of cards you have made. So many different methods. Sue.

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  6. Watercolor on your bricks is amazing! Yes, a high peep hole is a bit inconvenient if you’re short! The blue, food themed card had me all nostalgic thinking about the few wedge wood pieces of my grandmother’s. Thanks for the inspiration!

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  7. I especially like your cookies. So cute!

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  8. The mountain of gifts card is great! All the add ons are so tempting, now I need to narrow my choices down; Thanks for helping me decide 😊

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  9. The Thanksgiving card is my favorite.Why did I nverthink to use a stencil for "wall paper"???!

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  10. So many great creations. My favorites are the gingerbread card and the gift card holders.

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  11. Oh my gosh! I love all of these projects, but the "Missing You" is precious! Thanks for sharing these with us.

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  12. I love how you show so many projects - enough to make me want one of everything! (but the 'get it all' bundle is already sold out! :O) This kit is a winner, for sure!

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  13. I love all your fun techniques!!! Your cards are adorable and so is this new kit from Hero arts. Thank you for sharing.

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  14. Why DO they make the peep holes so high??? Ha! I'm 5'2" and ours is way over my head. What a fun technique, and I love it with the stencils! You are so clever! Another great kit from Hero Arts and your cards are fantastic!

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  15. Such gorgeous creations! Unique coloring! I LOVE the cookie one!

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  16. Thank you for showing the hurricane technique! I love it!

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  17. Great Kit! Awesome cards, I especially love your hurricane wrap technique and the gingerbread man on that background!

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  18. I love the mountain of gifts stamp and your card is beautiful You are so talented!

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  19. Can’t decide which card I like best. They’re all fabulous.

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  20. I really love the colors on your stack of presents card. It is hard to believe the colors come from a pen. And your gift card pocket is sweet and elegant!

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  21. I think your Thanksgiving card is nice. The blue is interesting and it helps the turkey stand out.

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  22. Thanksgiving sort of gets the short stick for me ... I'm always ready to get those Christmas cards ready to mail.

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  23. Really love all your cards, especially the gingerbread man and the hurricane background. Thank you!

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  24. Gorgeous cards! How fun and unexpected to add a gingerbread man to your hurricane bg! The elegant writer packages speak to me! All of your cards are stunning. Hero arts kits are amazing!

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  25. Cool video and your cards and techniques are amazing! The new products are so fun. Thanks for sharing with us on this great Hero Arts blog hop!!

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  26. Your ideas behind your cards are always interesting and these are right there. Fun cards and cute creations from you using this kit and add-ons!

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  27. What awesome cards!! LOVE the little gingerbread cards and the fun hurricane technique!!

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  28. loved your cards, especially the food one - great use!

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  29. Lovelovelove your story about the door always being open. As an introvert, one of my favorite sayings is "I regret that thing I agreed to do when I was in a five-minute extroverted mood." I would be murdery, too. Let's hear it for making cards.

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  30. The blue stamped background with the colored turkey really popped! Love it!

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  31. I love your infusion technique, the backgrounds you can make are limitless! I like the vintage vibe the walnut gives off. Hero’s kits are still my favorite kits on the market. Thanks for sharing and always inspiring.

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  32. Wonderful cards and I love the look of your hurricane wrap technique! Awesome effect, Cathy x

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  33. What fantastic projects with this great new release! I love your beautiful backgrounds for the gingerbread man and Christmas food cards. Your gift card die cut is super and I love the tag you put inside! Thanks so much for the inspiration!

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  34. These are all so amazing but that blue background feast card is for sure my favorite!! Thanks for sharing!

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  35. i really like the hurricane watercolor technique you showed that was neat

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  36. I've used Colorburst and plastic wrap before but I was so enthralled with your "hurricane twist" that I called my husband over to watch it. Loved how all your Artsy Infusion cards turned out. I think it may be time to purchase my first Hero Arts kit - it's filled with fun!

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  37. These are all great but that staircase scene is my favorite. That one always catches my eye.

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  38. Love these techniques, especially the way that twisting the cling wrap makes such a beautiful design on the watercolor paper. I love to do holiday stamping, especially Halloween & Christmas.

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  39. I love the "Missing you" card! It's so simple... but so cute! Thanks for the inspiration. I'm going to try that hurricane technique, too.

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  40. The Hero Arts set is so homey and
    with-the-season. Love your
    backgrounds. Getting messy is
    fun and I have to try these.
    thanks for sharing
    txmlhl(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  41. You have a different way of looking at things - that's a good thing! love your cards!

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  42. Fantastic cards and like always a marvelous video! I love making Thanksgiving cards probably the most of all. I don't feel as pressured making them as I do with Christmas cards. Isn't Thanksgiving the best!!!

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  43. These are all so fabulous!! I think my favorite is the one with the stack of presents! The color is so beautiful!

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  44. Great Cards. Love the Missing you card. Love the impression it gives.

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  45. Such a great variety of cards and techniques. Lots of inspiration!!

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  46. I am with you on the Neopolitan ice cream but your cake sounds fantastic. I love how you used inspiration from your baking on your cards. Thanks for sharing your ideas about how to use this months awesome kit.

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  47. Wonderful cards! Love the watercoloring on the door...
    Thanks so much for sharing.

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  48. Wonderful inspiration and fabulous cards. Thank you for your process video sharing one of your cards.

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  49. I love that technique in the video! So fun!

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  50. amazing cards, such gorgeous coloring and techniques! ♥

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  51. What a wonderful variety of beautiful cards, such fun!

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  52. I haven't used my infusions for so long - you have inspired me to get them out!

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  53. Lydia I just love your backgrounds they are so pretty!

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  54. Love all your cards! Really love the hurricane twist technique...just awesome. I'd love to try this but don't have any color powders. I may still try it by plopping down some water colors haphazardly with a brush & then add the wrap!

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  55. The shading on the stack of gifts is stunning!!

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  56. So many awesome cards and techniques.

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  57. Good stuff here. I really liked the gift card holder. Clean and simple!

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  58. Love the coloring technique! And the missing you card, what a good idea!

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  59. Wow, so many beautiful cards! Thanks for sharing your 'hurricane wrap' technique - the 2 backgrounds look great. The Missing You card is very clever!

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  60. Stunning cards! I really love the colors and different techniques. Thanks for sharing.

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  61. All kinds of fun and interesting cards from you! That mountain of presents catches my eye, I really like the colors.

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  62. Hi Lydia, I had to come over & see your technique that was shown to me, over on SCS by Janine. The Hurricane Wrap.... Very Nice! Thanks for showing us. Something I'll have to try, along with the Stencil Still Technique! ;)<3

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