I had some trouble! I used Memento Tuxedo Black ink and no matter how long I let it dry on my watercolor paper when I began to apply either ink or water this is the disappointing results I got. I talked to my sister, Susan about it later and she said that I needed to use Staz-On ink. I have not had an opportunity to try it again but I will soon. Does anyone else have another product that works other than Staz-On?
Because of the troubles I was having I carefully colored any images that had black ink on them - with my colored pencils instead of the way we were supposed to color them. But I did create watercolor backgrounds for two of my cards and GIRLS!! I was so excited how they turned out!!
To all of you watercoloring geniuses out there these backgrounds may not seem like art but these are the first ever water color pieces I didn't wanna burn! : )
My next card used the watercolor technique Melissa described as well as I could.
What this little card lacks in watercolor interest I hope it makes up for in design : ) I took the negative pieces from the apple I cut for my first card and glued those pieces only to my card base : ) I lay the die cut opening on my paper and drew a light pencil line and then I tried to water color my apple. I erased the lines so any lines you see, like on the leaf, is from my attempt at color shading. Ok so it is "ok" a little funky doodle but funky doodle can be a good thing right!?. : )
Here is the advice part!! It doesn't look like I am getting this whole watercolor thing but I want to!! so! I am considering asking my hubbers to buy me:
Kuretake Fude Real Brush Pen, Clean Color, 80 Set (RB-6000AT/80V)
for my birthday. My question is - is this really the product I want?? When those of you say you use your "ziggy" on your cards - is this what you use? I see other Zig pens but they are the two sided markers and I am fairly sure I don't want those : )
Anyone have any experience with the "Real Brush Pens? Do you love them? Is there a better brand??
Thank you so much for taking time to help me out : ) I sure appreciate it!!
Have a wonderful rest of your day!
Patti
Supplies:
What the Doodle: Apple stamp and die set from PTI
Enclosed Mini stamp set by PTI
Heart-2-Heart #4 Mini stamp set by PTI
Quilted Winter Stamp set by PTI
3 x 3" square Vintage Cream Envelopes by PTI
27 comments:
Patty, for watercolor, you can use Versafine,Onyx Black Ink for stamping. Works great. I have the Zig Clean (36) Color Real Brush Pens and like them. Laura Bassen renamed them Ziggy. I can't always blend the way the Designers do. And then I have the Koi Water Colors Pocket Field Sketch Box. Both of those I got on Amazon. Distress Inks and PTI inks you can use too. They are great for watercoloring. You know you have to have more than one of the medium. lol Hope this helps.
Your cards are lovely. Great job.
You need a permanent ink if you're going to watercolor an image. 2 new ones out are by Simon Says Stamp & Hero Arts. Just be sure it says you can use it for watercoloring images as Hero Arts has more than 1 black ink & SSS may also. I'm planning to get the HA since people rave about it, but I really should try my Versafine first. I do love it for sentiments. I'm terrible at coloring, but I do love watercolor. Distress inks work great & even on regular cardstock if you don't use too much water. I finally broke down & got the 24 set of the Zigs (long name you wrote) & maybe should have gotten the 36. I read a review saying no need for more than that & I'd agree, but of course, that's all personal preference. I got mine for under $50 on Amazon, but haven't seen them that low since. I love the control of the Zigs rather than paints (I have a cheap set, but then you need a palette, etc). I have found that Dawn McVey is right--I'm only happy with using them on watercolor paper, but I've been told Bristol also works. For backgrounds I like my Distress Inks the best. Too much info, I'm sure--haha! Cute apple cards!
Hi Patti,
I'm sorry you've had such a trying time with your cards, but good saves for sure! You could also try heat embossing your images in black and then moving on to your water coloring. I have the same set of Zigs that Linda has and while I do enjoy them, I'm not very good at blending them either. I do love the vivid colors they give though. Best of luck in your search and a very Happy Mother's Day to you!!
Hi Patti, well, I think the above all gave you the right scoop. I do love my zigs, and I have the 24 set...vibrant colors and it just takes playing around with them, Jennifer McGuire has quite a few videos using the zigs, definitely want to use water color paper! And I use versafine for all water color (and often clear emboss after stamping, then color, helps keep the color in place rather than moving outside the lines especially if you have a lot of water. Memento works great for copics, whereas the versafine would not. That is the only problem you had, wrong medium for water color...your last card is stunning!! Way to persevere and come up with a winner!!
ps...we talked about you at lunch!! Were your ears ringing?? Had a great time with Nancy, is just so sweet!!
I got so long winded I forgot to say I usually heat emboss the images I'm going to watercolor, but then I love heat embossing. When I say Zigs I mean the Clean Color Real Brush.
hi I just came over from Connies blog as I saw your question and thought I would add my two cents worth.
Watercolouring, the best black ink is Ranger Archival ink which doesnt move at all when touched with water or heat embossing any black ink. I like heat embossing as it gives me more control over where the water and ink goes as I am more neat than freeflow when painting.
As for paints, if you have Tim Holts Distress inkpads they work absolutely beautifully, i just squish the ink onto a wax paint pallet, it never ever drys out.
If you prefer paints then the Zigs are okay but they are finicky as to what paper they work on properly. There are lots of comments out there about this. If just justing to colour then they work on anything but adding water to get them to flow or lighten doesnt work on all papers.
I love the Peerless sheets and there are over 60 colours, you just have to set up a system to hold them and if you go with that there are lots of posts on pinterest showing gow people set theirs up.
The Kuretake Gansi are beautiful to use and you need to get them wet first. They are rich and creamy.
Twinkling H2O's are another great source of watercolouring, with a bit of sparkle and again the pots need to be prepared by wetting before use.
Hope this helps you just a bit.
I am still new working with watercolor but I often use an archival black ink Ranger makes one and it works for me. I made the same mistake using Memento, too! I realized I needed to use those with copics so I wrote on the case what I can use with what!! Haha. I can never remember.
I have a small set of the zigs clean color and while I love the vibrancy I haven't had a lot of luck with blending. I am sure I am doing something wrong, I just haven't had time to work harder with them. But again, they have great vibrancy.
I have the larger set of the Kuretake Gansi Tambi and those are really, really growing on me! The intensity of color but also the blendability is very good. I like the size of the pans, too. They will last a lifetime. They also usually include a metallic gold which is amazing.
Lastly, I have learned that all watercolor paper is not the same. I have been trying many different brands to see what I like best. Some start to pill if they get too wet.
So my recommendation would be get the zig Gansi Tambi if you can swing it, I think that set would do all you need. I probably wouldn't choose the zig marker again. The just seem to stain the paper and I can get them to move and blend.
Hello Patti! I think in the end your cards turned out swell! Watercolor or no:) And Every time I see that Apple stamp from you I think I must get that! and then the Die too!
Now, so sorry to see the trouble about the MTB ink. I think it has something to do with the watercolor paper you were using. Yet as I'm typing I'm remembering the same trouble, hence the switch to No-Line coloring. HA! So I guess the ink must say Archival Quality to be truly water resistant.
Onto the Zig Real Color Brush markers, Go for all 80!! I started with 36 then HAD to get all of them:))I use the "shadow" colors just as often as the vibrant colors. What a fabulous B-day gift:))
I don't mix them on paper with water very often, because once again, the type of PAPER seams to be an issue. I mostly mix the color on a craft mat with water them take it to paper.... and then add the fine detail lines once the paper is completely dry.
Oh it's getting late and We have graduations tomorrow..or I could talk ZIGGs all day:) Have a blessed weekend!
Your cards are great.. I love all of them.. and not just because your my sister :) Forget about zig and zag and just come to my house for your birthday and I'll teach you how to play with paper and water.. xxoo
I think all of your cards turned out beautifully! I especially like the last one, what a happy surprise. I'm afraid I can't offer a lot of advice on watercolouring as I have just dipped my toe into that pond. The Versafine Onyx Black seems to work with the watercolouring. Haven't tried any of the brush pens. Do love the vibrancy of the Peerless, but have only just started to use them. Good luck with your quest to find the best product for you.
It sounds like you have gotten a lot of great advice Patti, and I agree with almost all of it! I have just the set of 24 of the Zig Brush Pens, and have not had a whole lot of luck with them. If I want a true water colored look, I have best results with using my ink pads smooshed onto a craft mat or stamping block and then my Aqua Painter. When I do use my Zigs, I usually heat emboss with black like the others have mentioned so I don't get the bleed like you experienced with the Momento ink. White and clear embossing powders work well also. Personally, I would caution against the huge set of Zigs until you've had a chance to try them...it's a BIG investment to make and then find you don't like them! You might absolutely love them like a lot of people do, but I do think they take a lot of practice, and more time than I apparently am willing to give them! Hope you don't mind my being too honest about them, but I'd much rather invest my money into Copics.
Now onto your card set...they are absolutely lovely, and I love how great your first attempt at a water colored background came out! And your last card is simply amazing...what a great idea to use all the pieces from the first card! And what a lot of patience too! Beautiful, beautiful set of cards Patti! Hope you have a great weekend!! :0)
Looks like you got some great advice on watercoloring, Patti. I don't own any of the watercolor pens, nor the Gansai stuff. I do have Peerless watercolors and a cheapo set from Michaels that works pretty well ($5 Artist Loft brand). The ink is key and I mostly use either Ranger watercolor paper or even sometimes Master's Touch from Hobby Lobby. If you do the heat emboss technique, and you want black lines, I'd recommend using a black pigment ink and heat embossing with clear embossing powder. I learned the hard way that it is pretty impossible to get all the black embossing powder off even when you use an anti-static tool. I had black dots all over my paper, no matter how careful I was. I hope you keep trying the watercoloring because it sounds like you like the effect. And that card you made looks a.maz.ing. You can do this! I'm not a wiz at it myself, but I do dabble and enjoy the results(mostly). My caution is not to jump on a bandwagon without trying it out first. Do you know someone who owns those markers so you can try them out? Or do you have a store nearby that will let you test them and maybe demo them for you? Now I want that apple stamp and the die. Just sayin'. Good luck!!
What a lovely set of cards. And I will also vote for Versafine ink. A friend just told me about this ink and I can't believe how nice it stamps, compared to Memento (which I also use) it's like night and day. I tried using Memento for this challenge and also got the smudginess when it was wet. Versafine - no problem! Plus my sentiments stamped so crisp and black...I'll probably never use Memento black again!
Onyx Black by Versafine is what I love to use. It is a deep rich black and does not bleed into your colors after it is dry.
I forgot to add that your cards still look beautiful to me.
Ahhh now you know I'm gonna love your apple cards, and GREAT JOB on your watercoloured BG!!
I haven't tried those markers - I love my Derwent Inktense watercolour pencils, they're cheap to replace and don't just suddenly run out the way Copics do! (Oh, and I use Stazon ink pads)
Looks like you have the watercolor 'thing' down just fine!! These cards are beautiful!!!
Like you, I tried for years to get by with just using dye inks, but when I finally broke down and bought some Staz-On for these purposes, I was certainly glad I did. I used Staz-On for this challenge and other watercolor challenges...it stamps beautifully on watercolor paper, especially if the stamp is broken-in.
I have just read through all the comments and learnt lots too!! Isn't great the blogging community is so helpful and so willing to help? I use Versa fine and do have Zigs and Gansai but as I am such a novice at water-colouring I really can't add anything to the wonderful comments...Your cards are fabulous, so eye catching, so stunning and that apple stamp is glorious or should I say how you've used the stamp is glorious..Thanks for sharing x
Hi Patti. Your cards are wonderful. Really pretty water coloring. Now, I see that you have received a lot of advice, and I don't have time to review it all (!), but I will just say that my all time favorite and go to black ink is Versafine Onyx Black, and it is perfect for water coloring as well as general stamping. I use it for every instance I need black on a card, with the exception of when I am going to use Copics--in that instance, I use Memento Tuxedo black.
I love the set you made, Patti, especially your last card. It looks so creative and artistic! I'm no expert with watercolouring, but I do know you need a waterproof ink. Versafine works great, but I prefer Ranger's Archival Black because it seems to dry quicker. I like my Zigs, not love. Like someone else said, I seem to get the best results if I mix them on an acrylic block and then take them to paper with a wet paint brush, not a waterbrush. But if you have lots of ink colours, you can do that with them also, and get just as good results.
Patti, you were too hard on yourself! Your gift enclosures are beautiful. Remember, there's no right or wrong...just have fun. Enjoyed reading everyone's advice to you. Always thought Memento Black was the cat's meow until I saw a comparison online. The VersaFine Onyx Black is far superior for crisp, bold sentiments. Have also used with watercoloring successfully. Own some Zigs and love using them but never took the Copics plunge. Don't think I'd invest in the set of 80 though, just in case you don't like them. I bought the set of 12 to start with and then added some individual colors based on a post on the PTI Forum. Good luck with your decision! By the way, when is your birthday???
Patti, your cards are simply darling.
I love the pretty colors & fun designs.
Looks like you've had lots of replies about the zig clean colour pens. If you decide to get them, I found that Marker supply (http://www.markersupply.com/) gave a really good price for buying individual markers as all of the boxed sets came with too many shades of grey and brown for me. That way I could just build up some flower colour sets first to see if I was really going to get the use from them. I too have found blending on the paper difficult, but they are fabulous for tip to tip colour transfer. Juries still out whether I'm sold.
I love MFT steel grey ink when I'm doing the watercolour techniques - doesn't run and slightly more subtle than black.
I've also decided I prefer a plain paintbrush to a waterbrush if I'm at home as controlling the wetness is easier. Waterbrushes are fine if you're travelling but they are more temperamental.
And if you have all the ink pads then stamping these on acrylic blocks is as good as a lot of the watercolour options out there, although the gansai tambi are great for intense colour.
So many crafty people giving some really good advice! :) I think your cards are fabulous and that apple image is so unique and pretty!!
I have some experience using the Real Brush markers and they do take a bit to get used to using. (I have a video coloring a witch that shows me using them if you want to see it: https://youtu.be/t9pN6RRrk7I?list=PLlq17ckbS-ALNAoQrjcANEcX1h0qc11gE - I show another method of ink type when coloring with them.) It's hard to advise someone on such things because everyone is different in how they color something...especially with watercolor! My fave to use to color is none other hands down Copic markers, but they're not for everyone and again takes time and practice to learn to use them how you like. For the ink for BOTH watercolor and Copic friendly, my choice would be MFT Hybrid ink licorice black or the SSS Intense Black. For JUST watercolor Ranger Archival Jet Black. Staz On Jet black ink also works with watercolor, but I don't think it stamps as good as the Ranger Archival Jet Black ink. Hope all the advise you've gotten helps! :) HUGS
Well your final results are gorgeous, Patti! Love that last one! I too use Versafine Black Onyx heat embossed with clear powder to set it when I watercolor. I learned that from Catherine Pooler at Stamp Nation. I normally use the Ranger distress inks but I also have some Spectrum Noir Aqua pens and many times I go between the distress inks and some old watercolor tubes that work really well for me. The great thing about watercoloring I think is it is very forgiving and there is no right or wrong way about it really. Love these!
So impressed by the way you create - everything you make is a work of heart!! Love it and these are no exception - all different but all so well done!!
Love all your cards and from where I sit they all look as amazing as can be!
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