WATERCOLOR SNOWFLAKES

I almost hesitate to mention how adorable Endless Wishes, one of Stampin' Up!'s photopolymer stamp sets is (was). Why? Because it proved to be so popular that it is no longer available. Hopefully you jumped on the bandwagon and got yours while they could still be ordered.

Endless Wishes, a phenomenally versatile set, was a perfect choice for the technique I used in this card.

This technique involves randomly inking up one of the clear acrylic blocks with the side of the brush end of Stampin' Write Markers, in this case, a mix of blues and purples. After you have the entire block covered with color, spritz it lightly with water, and stamp onto your choice of paper. Different papers give different results. So, try it on a variety of paper scraps to see which effect you prefer. 

Please note: If you spritz with TOO much water, the colors bleed into each other unpleasingly. Practice with papers and amounts of water before turning to your actual project. I love it when the colors aren't perfect -- a little white showing through, uneven edges, a little blending. As in the photo above.

Once your background is dry, stamp your image over it. You can either leave the image(s) contained within the parameters of the watercolor area, or expand beyond the borders, like I did. 

To be honest, I loved the way my watercolor snowflakes looked once I finished the eight of them. BUT, I did not like the way the overall card looked. They sat around, lonely and unloved, for quite awhile. I finally decided to cut the first cards up, saving just the snowflakes on the blues and purples, and try again.

I discovered that leaving the card pure and very simple was the way to go:

Aren't those snowflakes just adorable? And don't they look happy?

Grab your acrylic blocks and Stampin' Write Markers and give this fun technique a try!

Smiles.