Here’s a closer look at the Doodling With Debby video I did for Simon Says Stamp this month, I made this card using a simple gradient wash of watercolours which pairs beautifully with the Tumbling Hearts stencil from Simon Says Stamp and Nuvo Glimmer paste. The result is a lovely backdrop for the You Are Loved dies. I’ve linked all supplies at the end of this post. Compensated affiliate links used where possible at no cost to you.
VIDEO
Watch below or in HD on YouTube
EASY WATERCOLOUR BACKGROUND
So, let’s jump into making this card, and I started with the gradient wash of watercolours for the background. I used a lot of water to create the background, and so I taped the piece of Arches Cold Pressed watercolour card I used to a board to stop it warping. To create a smooth gradient of colour, I added a wash of clean, clear water over the whole panel. You could do this with a broad watercolour brush as I did or spritz the paper with a mini mister or use a household paintbrush. It doesn’t matter how you wet the paper but what you are looking for is an even sheen of water. When you tip the board to the light, you can see a soft sheen of water. You don’t want so much water that you have a lake because if you then add watercolour to that amount of water you will get the colour just puddling. Having a sheen of water prevents the puddling while encouraging the paint to move through the water. With that sheen of water, the paint gently spreads through the background. I started with a light wash of purples, whatever was on my palette mixed with Daniel Smith Rose Of Ultramarine and I blended this out by rinsing my brush often until it was the palest of colours. I took this purple halfway up the card. Then from the top down, I bought a wash of pale rich yellow. Again, what was on my palette and then mixed with Quinacridone Gold. I brought this down to meet the purple layer but again washing my brush out as I went so that the junction between the two colours is very pale. A winter sky inspired this background I saw with deep purple hues near the horizon and the warmth of the sky above.
With the first layer down and with the paper still wet, I added more depth of colour. I mixed Lunar Black in with my original purple mix, and as this dried the pigment settled into the valleys of the textured watercolour card giving a granulated effect. Again, I washed this layer out to the palest of colours by rinsing my brush in water bit by bit. Then I added a further yellow layer to the top with more richness of golden hues to the mix. I used a heat tool to dry the background and then while the panel was still taped to the board, I taped the Tumbling Hearts stencil over the top. I kept the card on the board as the Nuvo glimmer paste I swiped through the stencil is also a relatively wet medium and the board will hold the card from warping. I spread glimmer paste as if I’m spreading butter on bread by using a Ranger palette knife and a shallow angle to draw the glimmer paste over the stencil letting the paste settle into the heart-shaped openings. I worked the paste backwards and forwards over the stencil until I had the whole area covered and a smooth finish. I then lifted the blue tape holding the stencil in place and then everyone’s favourite part is lifting the stencil to reveal the glittery design. I used a heat tool to speed up the drying process.
I kept the rest of this card clean and simple so that I didn’t cover up too much of the background. I chose the You Are Loved dies and cut the lettering three times from Ivory card and the shadow background piece from vellum. I then used Gina K Connect glue to layer the Ivory die-cut lettering pieces together. The nozzle of the tube makes it easy to dot small amounts of glue over the back of the lettering pieces and then stack one on top of the other. If you add too much glue, then dab off the excess on scrap paper before stacking the dies together, and then you won’t get any glue squidged out. On my original card, I glued the stacked dies to the vellum piece and I’m not quite sure why I changed my mind to do this next part as it is fiddly, and I’d already created dimension by stacking the dies. However, I did so here you go, I cut small pieces of foam tape and added them to the back of the stacked dies and then adhered them to the vellum. I then added more foam adhesive on the back of the vellum and added the piece to the front of the card. I added foam adhesive to the back of the panel and added it to a card base cut and scored from Ivory card.
When cutting out the You Are Loved dies, there are some optional hearts to add to the centre of the letter ‘O’s. I wanted to use these but scattered more randomly on the card front. I also wanted these to be in a warm gold embossed colour, so I took each heart die and pressed it into an ink pad of clear embossing ink. I then dunked the die in Antique Gold embossing powder from Simon Says Stamp and used a piece of blue tape to pick up the small die and then heat the powder until it melted. One coat wasn’t enough to cover the die, so I repeated the process a second time. I’m sure there is a more straightforward method for doing this, but I like keeping the die free so that the heated powder smooths over the edges and forms a beautiful shape when heat embossed. I repeated this process with three heart die cuts and then added small pieces of foam adhesive to the back of them and dotted them around the lettering in a triangle formation. I added Fairy Wings Nuvo Dream Drops and Glossy Pearls from Little Things From Lucy’s Cards and finally a few sequins.
That completes this easy watercolour background inspired by a winter sky and then jazzed up with a stencil and glimmer paste plus a simple die cut sentiment and a few sparkly embellishments.
SUPPLIES
You can find links to the supplies I’ve used below; click on the picture or shop icon to get taken directly to the product. Where available I use compensated affiliate links which means if you make a purchase I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you! Items marked with an asterisk (*) provided by a store or the manufacturer. You can read my affiliate and product disclosure here. I genuinely appreciate your support.
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PIN ME
Summary of the project which gives all the views of the card in one photo :D I’d love if you pinned and called by on Pinterest :D
This card is beautiful! I love how the background turned out. This gives me a few ideas for my next card project. Thanks for sharing
Really Beautiful card!!!
Gorgeous card! Thanks for sharing your talent. :)
So lovely, Debby. The delicate colors of the background work so well with the stenciled hearts. tfs
What an elegant card, so soft with the pastel background and the vellum. Very airy and beautiful.
Gorgeous background Debby for those awesome sentiment dies.
Thank you so much for sharing.
Love your video! And your camera is so nice. I love to see all the detail. You do such beautiful work, Debbie. And I love your videos. More please.