Two ways with watercolour powders

Ken Oliver Color Burst, Lindy's Magicals, Color Crush Powders, Brusho Crystals. They're all so much fun!

Hello everybody, it's Donna here and today I have two cards that use these powders as an integral part of the design. 

Firstly, I used the crystals to colour some watercolour paper. I used Colour crush powders in Misty Lilac, Glacier Blue and Spearmint, and just a tiny bit of Color Burst Indigo and Brusho Sea Green.

I sprinkled the tiniest amount of each of these (except the Spearmint which was lighter, so I used more of this one) onto a dry piece of watercolour paper, and then lightly misted it with water. I used enough water to get the colours to move around, but not so much that it all blended and looked like regular watercolour paint. Once it was dry, I used a butterfly die to cut out the butterflies and their bodies. These would make such a lovely accent on a scrapbooking page.

The butterflies have been attached with some strong glue in the middle, so that the wings can fly free. This will be a card that I hand directly to a friend, and not put through the post, as it will get flattened in the mail. You can see the dimension in the close up shot.

The sentiment was stamped in Versamark ink and heat embossed in white. I love how the powders separate into their component colours, and you get so many different variations from the one powder, as shown in the photo below.

 Next, I used Color Burst Powders in Merlot, Tangerine and Violet to create another background piece. This time I left it intact. I used some of the papers from the April 2017 Crop Kit, and fussy cut them out. The card was a little busy as it was, so I lay the fussy cut pieces on white paper and cut them out again, leaving a second white border. That was what was needed to let the images pop off the page. The sentiment is from my stash.

Here's a closer look at the way the powders react with water. You can see the tiny dots of colour where there wasn't much water at all, and he larger blobs and more pastel background where more water hit the powder. You can't control these powders 100% which is what gives them such a lovely organic look. Watercolour paper gives the best results, as it allows the pigment to sit on top of the paper and run and blend.

I hope you've been inspired to grab out some powders and enjoy playing with them. I've had a (colour) Blast!!!

If you are interested in seeing more of my cards, feel free to have a look at my Instagram, where I've used these powders for other cards too, including a very vibrant orange!

Until next time, may your days be full of colour!

Blessings, 

Donna

Magical See Through Card and June Challenge

Hello everybody! It's Donna here, and I'm very happy to be sharing two projects with you today. 

This month, I had the excitement of playing with some of the mixed media products that are for sale in the Shop and Crop store. I have made a card project that features two of these products: Lindy's Stamp Gang Magical Powders ( I had 'hag's wart orange' to play with) and Stāzon Studio Glaze (The colour I had was 'St Valentine') 

I have made a card to showcase these products. I loved how they both behaved, but was particularly enamoured with the Magical Powder. The colour was so vibrant that I used the tip of a pin to apply as little as was needed. I think it will last forever! Just look at the beautiful variation of colour that I got from just the one colour (Yes, that is one colour only on the watercolour panels!)

Here's what I discovered:

• Studio Glaze - This product goes on opaque, but dries transparent. It worked well on both paper and acetate. It made beautiful circles, which could be made on plastic and then peeled off and applied to projects with a little glue. It would also be perfect for stained glass projects or elements.
• Magical Powders - This powder was a treat to play with. There are so many colours in the one pot, that they give a wonderful variation, as seen in the card I made. By adding more water and mixing more, I could have also made a much more uniform colour. The powder has a subtle but gorgeous shimmer to it that was almost impossible to catch on camera. You can see it a little in the top left of the picture above. 

Don't forget that you can get $5 off your order at Shop and Crop with the code DL5, so this might be a good opportunity to pick up some of these products to play with. 

This card was made in sections which I stuck together once they were all dry. 

If you're interested to see how I made the card, there is a video up on the Shop and Crop Youtube channel that takes you through the steps. 

See the video here. 

Now, onto the next adventure....

Isn't this month's Shop and Crop challenge gorgeous? I've really enjoyed working with this sketch to produce a card. 

As you can see, I have reversed the sketch, and changed the dimensions to fit a card, but I loved the whimsical and flowing nature of the sketch, and have tried to represent this in my take on the challenge. I've used stamping, die cuts, hand coloured paper, gold and white embossing, and some paint spatters for good measure. Are you planning to enter this month? I encourage you to have a go. Just upload a photo of your finished project in Shop and Crop's "Inside Inspiration" Facebook page. 

 Here's a close up of some of the detail.

If you have enjoyed these cards, and would like to see more of my work, feel free to visit my Instagram page.

Until next time, happy crafting. 

It's a boy!

Hi. It's Donna here. Happy weekend everybody!

I've had a blast playing with the Carta Bella "it's a boy!" range this week. I've made three cards for you, all using different techniques.

The first card shows a really simple way to celebrate any gorgeous paper. I've cut a panel of watercolour paper, wet it thoroughly with clean water, and then dropped on patches of watercolour paint to match the colours of the cute animal paper. (This paper is on sale in the Shop and Crop store at the moment!) In this case, I used Distress Inks in Twisted Citron, Ripe Persimmon, Evergreen Bough and Fossilized Amber. Once the base layer was dry, some spatters of Evergreen Bough completed the colouring. I stamped and clear embossed the sentiment to help it to stand out. Finally, I popped the panel up for a bit of dimension and added some sequins.

 Here's a closeup look at the top panel.

Next, I've used the stickers in the It's a Boy range (also on sale) to make a quirky card with the monkey hanging out of the tree. The background was made with embossing paste which has been coloured with Distress ink and wiped over a stencil.The hills are made from this paper from the It's a boy! range, which I've blended the edge of to give it some extra depth. Somehow that monkey looks much cheekier upside down!

Finally, a card with a peek a boo window. There is just a hint of action peeking out from the window, but inside You'll find the whole scene. 

If you want to see the inside, take a look at this VERY short video showing you this card. See the video here. 

The scene inside is made almost entirely from the stickers on this sheet!

I hope you've enjoyed these playful cards. I look forward to giving them away to some of my little friends!

Don't forget that if you want to buy any of the products from Shop and Crop, you can get a $5 discount with the code DL5.

Have a super weekend!

Donna

@donnadoll74