Easy technique – use markers over ink to create a watercolor look that is irresistible!

Most of us who are paper crafters are either artists or artist-wannabes and love creating projects that show off the artistic talents we do have. Many people adore the look of hand painted elements but weren’t gifted with that skill. The answer? Use markers over ink to create a watercolor look that is absolutely stunning!

Julie created this card and you can see that all that beautiful, fresh, luscious looking greenery truly does look hand painted. Well, it carries a delicious secret! Let’s get her inside scoop so we can use this technique in our own creations.

Start with a piece of watercolor paper. The texture of the paper and the way it works with water will help accentuate that hand painted look. Julie recommends using a stamp positioner for this technique as it allows you to double stamp for added details and just overall keeps things in place.

Using a fine mister, spray your watercolor paper lightly with water. Ink up your stamps from our Colorful Vines set and before stamping, spray a fine mist of water over the stamp and stamp your first layers in your chosen colors. Start with the lightest shades in your selections. Julie used shades of Color Fuse Ink from Sets #9, 10 and 11.

Now you can stamp over your images with additional colors. PRO TIP: add ink to edges and random areas of the stamp to create that beautiful variegated look on the greenery. If at any time you want your colors to blend more, you can very lightly mist your panel with water. Very lightly is the key – you don’t want to WET the paper because you don’t want the colors to MIX.

Here’s the magical part. After stamping your layers, use your water based markers to add even more detail to your images. Choose shades that are complementary to your color story and go in and add shadows and low lights. Use others to add details like outlines and veins in the leaves. For the softer details, you can lightly mist your paper or use a watercolor brush to dampen – but NOT wet – the area. Using your markers over the ink gives you lots of control as to where you want your enhanced colors and when applied over a dry surface, lets you easily add those fine details you see on hand painted projects.

Stamp your greeting from the same set and the butterfly from Butterfly Flowers onto another piece of watercolor paper and the butterfly again onto a watercolor paper scrap.  Using the same colors you used to stamp your foliage, use a water brush to spread the ink colors inside both butterflies. Stamp the darkest of your colors – here Julie used Cedar Ink from Set #9 – over the butterflies. Use our coordinating die to cut out the butterfly from the scrap.

Now assemble your card. Cut a piece of coordinating card stock – Julie used a dark teal – with the largest of our Nested Rectangle Stitch set and then your stamped panel with the next size down die. Adhere these together with your tape runner. Cut a piece of the same card stock you used for your layer with one of the dies from our Outside Scallop Frame Die. Trim your sentiment panel to fit behind it and adhere these together.

Add your sentiment piece to your card front with some dimensional adhesive and then after gently bending up your butterfly’s wings, adhere this with some liquid glue over its stamped twin on the panel.

For that hint of bling and light reflection, apply clear Stickles over the wings of the butterfly and add a few tiny gems to your greenery.

So pretty and so fresh! Here’s what you will want to use if you want to make this same card:

Did you ever think it could be this easy to create something that looked like you spend hours painstakingly painting out this little vignette? Being able to use markers over ink to create a watercolor look gives you tons of options, tons of control and tons of extra time to make even more of these drop-dead gorgeous cards!