VIDEO: Watercolor Pour Galaxy Technique + New Collage Workshop

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Happy Monday! I have a new video for you today, showing you this easy galaxy watercolor that I made for the backdrop of the latest Hero Arts kit! LOOK at the kitty on this die! (You know that's right where my eye went!) Obviously, they were not thinking of me when they made it or there would have been a squirrel on that girl's knee!

Here's what's in the kit - it's a doozy! You're going to see lots of fun ideas in a sec with that background stamp!

The next card is a preview of my upcoming collage workshop! I'm so excited about this for two reasons. 1) I LOVE COLLAGE and 2) This workshop will be on a new platform I'm trying out, so it will be available to you as soon as you register, and doesn't require Facebook! 

Here's what you will learn in this workshop, which has 8 individual classes, self-paced:

• Technical tips on cutting / tools & supplies overview
• How to create collage papers that are unique and interesting
• Curating and organizing (important!) your collage papers so you aren't shuffling through piles, or diminishing your creative time.
• How-to for applying fine art techniques to your collage
• How to design a fine art style collage piece
• Collage "painting"
• Quick handcut double collage
• Using templates in collage

We will be using magazines, Gel Press prints, stickers, stamped scraps and more in our collages. These collages can be done on cards, in your art journal or on canvases. Registration will open soon, so sign up to be notified HERE or by clicking the sign up button. As soon as registration is live you will be able to purchase and enjoy the class!

You will see how I made this collage in the class - it's so fun and I have the sneakiest cutting technique that is so fast! I used an old alcohol ink piece with these adorable house dies - see the fancy details on the doors & roofs? The trees are in the same die set. I used Graphit Markers to create the shadows (coupon in the footer).

This card was done in a similar way, and I stamped these little people from this stamp & cut set. The sentiment is from this set.

The whole release today is sort of wistful and has a missing you feel the whole world feels right now. I love all the little city buildings and I wanted to show you the power of the black pen to transform a background that is FULL of color-able detail if you want to with this cling stamp.

I just selectively chose sections in an alternating format to color in with a black fineliner, and it looks TOTALLY different from just the stamp image itself, or the beautiful colored examples - you'll see mine below. It gives the image more boldness and gravity, and I have to say, it was a super relaxing coloring session, which is probably the most important thing about this card. The sentiment is from this set.

You can hardly tell this next card is the same background stamp! I isolated and cut out a section, and used Graphit markers and a paint pen to really work the details, even though it's a small image - it's so detailed and fun! No fancy coloring here, simple lines with a grey marker provide all the shading. The white dots wake up the colors and add a little whimsy. I backed it by cutting a hole in a white card panel with a circle infinity die and put that on a Pitch Black card base. The sentiment is from the main kit.



There are some fun tri-fold dies this month too - these make super quick and graphic cards. I cut it into a white card front and trimmed that down a bit - I added the sentiment from this gorgeous new Heroscape. I cut the tree from watercolor paper with the die from the Heroscape, and painted it - against that crisp backdrop, the tree has a bit of a surreal feel. It actually feels exactly like I feel when I stand at the south end of Millennium Park, where they have bunnies and look north across the park towards the Prudential building and that little swath of city between the park and the river. That's what I was going for and I think I did it. In my head anyway.



Next I used the new window die to show what the style of card above looks like in reverse! 

The sentiment is from this set.

I took one of my collage pieces for the backdrop of this version of the window die, deliberately tilting the pattern for a more surreal feel. I did NOT lose my mind and piece those black bits in - I traced the outline onto copy paper, which I colored with a black Sharpie and cut out. The copy paper is nice because it doesn't add bulk. The sentiment is from the Heroscape.



Now one of my challenges is something Kathy Racoosin and Debby Hughes do VERY well - PALE cards. So I was determined to keep one card today super pale, in contrast to my pretty bold cards I made. 

The matting layer is my inspiration - from this paper pack. I stamped the building image from this set in a pale grey ink and stamped and die cut the trees, stamped with the same ink. Since I'm not good at deliberately keeping my coloring pale, I used these SUPER pale pastel pencils to color the trees. I alternated one layer of pencil with two, to make the second and fourth tree brighter and more like the patterned paper. These pencils are so pale - that is as dark as they go! It has such a peaceful feel. PS - when I bought these pencils years ago they did not come with the eraser and sharpener - they do now! Squee! 



And finally - I feel like I've been neglecting my watercolors! So I took this gorgeous, classic wood-mounted stamp and did some no-line watercolor with my trusty #2 brush and my beloved, beloved Payne's Grey. Then I stamped these sentiments onto the little signs in black and put it on a grey card base. I think this would make fun, traditional Christmas cards. 

Here are all the add-ons this month:

Here's my video for the first card - come back for the giveaway!

MMH 1221 [ HA ] Get them all add-ons [ HA ] Houses Fancy Dies [ HA ] Tri-fold Edge Die [ HA ] Irojiten Color Pencil Set - Tranquil... [ BLIC ] Wherever You Go [ HA ] Wherever You Go Dies [ HA ] City Park Heroscape [ HA ] Heroscape Frame Cuts [ HA ] Sign Post [ HA ] Sign Stamp & Cut [ HA ] Window Fancy Die [ HA ] PD113 Liquid Watercolor Deep Ocean -... [ HA ] PD110 Liquid Watercolor Dandelion -... [ HA ] PD111 Liquid Watercolor Strawberry -... [ HA ] Daler-Rowney FW Acrylic... [ BLIC ] Coupon - UNDERSTANDBLUE15 [ MRK ] Half-Half Lines - Unicorn Paper Pad [ WFF ] POSCA Paint Pen Fine PC-3M - White [ JGG | SSS ] DI199 Nesting Circle Infinity Dies... [ HA ] PS323 Hero Hues Premium Cardstock... [ HA ] The Ink Stand White RECTANGLE... [ SSS ] Understand Blue Card Making Bundle #1... [ CTC ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSP | SSS | ELH ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Scor-Pal MINI SCOR-BUDDY Scoring... [ SSS ] Storage Envelopes, Medium 25pk,... [ ELH ] CheckOutStore Stamp & Die Clear... [ CHC ] Extra Large -50 pk, Avery Elle Stamp... [ ELH ] Airtable: Organize your stamps & dies [ ART ] Hero Arts Blog [ HA ]

As usual, they are giving away a $50 gift card to one lucky commenter, so be sure and leave me a comment telling me what your favorite of these cards is by December 12th! Then head over to the Hero Arts Blog for more inspiration and to find out who won the following week.

It's weird to even be typing December!!

Loveyameanitbye.

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