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Location: Saturday nights: Tiger Stadium; the rest of the time, the Outer Banks!
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Stoopid Q #2 - Blender pens
O.K. ...I warned y'all the other day when I signed on that I would be showing my ignorance...
I absolutely love working with the water color pencils and blender pens. I'm not an artist, but I can stay in the lines! My problem is it seems like the cardstock gets "soggy" and rough. Is it the CS? Too much penwork? The user?
First off what paper are you using? Try a heavier/rougher type of paper, Confetti, or the Naturals...
Second, use the blender pens as little as you can, try perhaps picking up the color directly from the pencils....also have you tried the Aqua Painters?
And what about trying Odorless Mineral Spirits with blening stumps...
and remember as with everything else in life, it all takes practice!!!
YOu have to have a light hand with the blender pens if you are working with the Whisper White or Very Vanilla cardstock. I really prefer the Confetti White, Naturals White or even the Shimmery White because they hold up under the friction and moisture better.
And the nice thing to know about watercolor is, that it looks more "artistic" if you go outside the lines a little bit! So you don't actually have to stay in the lines! My other tip is, leave a few white spots and don't get too "tight" with the coloring...looser is actually better.
Location: Saturday nights: Tiger Stadium; the rest of the time, the Outer Banks!
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Thanks for all the tips. I must confess that it is not SU CS... We had a DMD factory here in NW Ark, and I do LOVE a factory outlet!!! Suffice it to say I've got Rubbermaid tubs FULL of DMD CS...and in my heart (and pocketbook) I cannot justify buying more paper till I use up some of what I've got.
Stoopid Q # 3...is there really a difference in CS???
I don't know what DMD is, but SU ultrasmooths (now Whisper White and Very Vanilla) are heads above other cs I've tried. The really are much smoother and take color, especially stamped images better. With cheaper cs I've had the image "feather" after stamping and it's just not crisp anymore. Yuk. I'll be sticking with SU since I've discovered it and for me, it's worth the extra money.
__________________ Jennifer, SU Demonstrator
"Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment" -Ben Franklin
While there is a vast difference in CS you will just have to test some of the stuff you have...try different styles to see what works best for you. And like the post above, the WW adn VV is just soooo smooooth!!! Like Buttah!
Sereikastamper said: "And what about trying Odorless Mineral Spirits with blening stumps..."
That works with regular colored pencils, but I'm not sure that would work with watercolor pencils. I'll have to try it and see!
You definitely don't want to over work your paper when doing watercolor. Try drying the paper with your heat gun between color applications, too.
__________________ "Life is much too important to be taken seriously." Oscar Wilde Proud to be a member of Mo's Digital Pencil Challenge DT! My BlogMy Gallery
I feel like a broken record because I post this tip so much when there are problems with paper buckling, pilling, etc. when watercoloring. But it really works! And if I can help just one stamper, well, it's worth it!
At your local W*lmart, or hardware store or any place that sells spray paint (I prefer not to buy it at craft stores because they charge too much!) find a can of Krylon Matte Spray. This spray is a type of sealer. It is clear. It will cost between $3 and $5 a can - and will last you a very long time.
I stamp my image I want to color on cardstock (this tip is great for cheap cardstock as well as SU cardstock and even watercolor paper). You can use any color of ink because the spray will seal it. People have complained about basic black and basic brown - this will stop it from running.
Shake the can for about 30 seconds. Make sure you're in a well ventilated area because it stinks. Spray very lightly, about 8-12" from your cs. It will dry in seconds. Proceed to use blender pen, watercolor brush, aqua painter, etc., etc.,
The spray seals the ink (said this before) and lightly coats the paper so it won't "grab" the water so fast. Colors blend beautifully. I never watercolor without it.
I feel like a broken record because I post this tip so much when there are problems with paper buckling, pilling, etc. when watercoloring. But it really works! And if I can help just one stamper, well, it's worth it!
Well how is is I've never noticed this tip before!! Sometimes I like to use an ink color other than the brown or black for my outline, and I always struggle with ink smearing in the other colors. I've got loads of that Krylon spray, but I never thought to use it like that before!
__________________ Heidi My gallery There's no 'I' in 'team'. But then there's no 'I' in 'useless smug colleague', either. And there's four in 'platitude-quoting idiot'. Go figure.
Thanks for all the tips. I must confess that it is not SU CS... We had a DMD factory here in NW Ark, and I do LOVE a factory outlet!!! Suffice it to say I've got Rubbermaid tubs FULL of DMD CS...and in my heart (and pocketbook) I cannot justify buying more paper till I use up some of what I've got.
Stoopid Q # 3...is there really a difference in CS???
BTW The DMD plant moved to CAL...sigh...
I'm just a customer, not a demo.
Personally I never thought there was a difference - until I got the blender pens. The first set I used the blender pen with was Bubble Queen. I looked in the gallery and used the same color as other people for the bubbles and it looked terrible. The paper was getting soggy and starting to rip. I thought I was doing it wrong. I was using the pen with the chalks cos I didn't have the ink in that color, so I thought maybe I wasn't supposed to do it with chalks but the pen package says you can. I asked my demo, and *I* mentioned it wasn't SU cardstock. She said that was the problem. And I do think it's true.
Well now I'm thinking about it, I'm using non SU c/s for my Christmas cards, I'm using the blender pen (with ink, not chalk) and it's working fine. Who knows?
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WOW! So many good tips! Thanks! I'm off to Wally World for the spray!
DMD is a manufacturer of paper and scrapbooking materials...much along the lines of Paperbilities, Jolee's, etc. Their products are sold at Hobby Lobby, WM, etc. Their logo looks like a little quilt.
Y'all are awesome. I'll keep the stoopid questions coming as long as you'll allow...
There is definitely a difference in various c/s (even some of the SU) when working with the blender pens, aquapainter, paint brushes, etc. It Some are more absorbent & some (from ACM) even bleed when I stamp an outline. also depends on the user & how much they 'work' an area, how wet they make it. A ton of variables - learn by doing. I like the idea of using the clear Krylon & will have to add it to my inventory of 'tools'.
Kitty
If you are enjoying your watercolor pencils, try them with "gamosol" and a blender tube (forgot what its called). You get them both at a craft store, they resemble a pencil but are tight rolled white paper. It blends so nice and you only have to put the tip of the blender tube in a tiny amount of the gamosol and then it blends the pencil work beautifully!
I concur, please keep sharing your tip. I have seen it once before and the other day, I was at A.C. Moore and bought the spray because I remember you saying that. Then as it so often goes, I saw it in my stamping room and couldn't remember what you said to do with it. When I saw your post I had an "oh yeah" moment so I can't wait to try it tonight. Thanks so much! And to the OP, I too had a big stack of other paper and I had to break down and buy SU! 80# paper because I found out at a SU! workshop that it indeed made all the difference in the world using their paper. Until you get your stack down though (I totally understand budget issues!) then try to use more colored pencil - coloring darker for shading and then blend just a little with the blender pen to get the lines out. Have fun blending!
Jen
I agree with all about the SU CS quality (so superior) and the spray works too, now for another suggestion, buy some SU cs for your images that you color and layer, then use your other CS for the actual card part. I get so much mileage from this, especially at christmas time. I just make card fronts and adhere it to the non SU stuff.
Stoopid Q #2 - Blender pens
