In today’s post, I’ll be sharing a simple card with a colorful watercolor wash background.
One of my favorite things to do is play with ink and paper. The colorful background piece on this card was created just while noodling around with watercolor paper and various ink colors. I’d first created some simple two-color sky-like backgrounds. Then I started exploring options with rainbows which resulted in this watercolor wash background. I had no intended purpose for this piece; I just wanted to play. Isn’t this background so pretty?
Next, I needed to decide how to use my background piece and I immediately thought of the new More Love Stamp Set. I can’t imagine a better sentiment to go with this watercolor wash background!
Rainbows simply say “Love” to me, and don’t you agree that “The World Needs More Love Notes”? :-)
As you can see in the close-up photo here the sentiment is heat embossed with black embossing powder. Given the bold background, I wanted to make sure the sentiment would not get lost in the background.
I also dressed up the two flower shapes with my Clear Wink of Stella Brush to help them stand out a bit more. In this close-up, I also love the interesting texture in the purple, one of my favorite effects with water coloring.
The colors used to create this watercolor wash background are Gorgeous Grape, Pacific Point, Shaded Spruce, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, and Real Red.
After completing this card I showed it to my daughter who suggested I recreate this card with white embossing powder. So, in my recent Facebook Live video, I decided I would give it a try. Here’s the version I made:
I had a second white heat embossed focal piece so I mixed it up a bit more by using a dry embossed white layer instead of the daffodil delight layer. The Tasteful Textiles Embossing Folder was used in the background. This is one of my favorite embossing folders!
I couldn’t stop there and had to create one more version!
I’ve used so much watercolor paper lately that this was literally my last piece that would fit this large sentiment. I figured it was yet another opportunity to create a different version and I love it!
For this one, I watercolored bands of color that are parallel to the bottom edge of the cardstock instead of creating curved bands from corner to corner. This method allowed me to get more of the Gorgeous Grape and Real Red in my watercolor background. I really love how it turned out!
Here are my four cards with watercolor wash backgrounds:
I love how they are each a little different!
I just love these watercolor backgrounds with the More Love Stamp Set!
Now I just want to go look in my stash of “card salad” for other backgrounds that would work with this large sentiment stamp! There are so many possibilities!
If you enjoyed these projects you might really enjoy my Watercolor Techniques class PDF Tutorial!
In this class, you’ll learn four unique watercolor techniques plus a number of variations on each one. The 46 page PDF tutorial is available to purchase as an instant download and it includes details on how to create 6 projects plus step-by-step details for how to do all the techniques included. Check out just a few sneak peek photos below!
Scroll to the end of this post for project dimensions and a complete supply list so you can purchase the supplies to recreate these projects.
Happy Crafting!
Melissa :-)
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Learn how to make this in my Facebook Live video tutorial here:
The project demonstration begins at around 3-1/2 minutes in case you’d like to jump ahead.
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Project Dimensions:
- Basic Black Card Body: 5-1/2″ x 8-1/2″
- Daffodil Delight Layer: 4″ x 5-1/4″
- Basic Black Focal Backing: 3-3/8″ x 5-1/4″
- Watercolor Paper Focal: 3-3/16″ x 5″
- Basic White Inside: 4″ x 5-1/4″
