Hello, and welcome back for Watercolor Weekend!
Hello,
my Ai Watercolor friends and fans! I have two projects to share with you today.
The first is a book-binding fun fold card featuring a friendly scarecrow
surrounded by a field of sunflowers in full bloom. The second project
highlights one of the newest additions to the Storybook Box Series – Thinking
of Home.
Sunny Scarecrow Friend Card:
I just love this time of year. Everything about fall makes me happy—the cooler temperatures, the colorful autumn leaves, the festivals, the comfort food, and of course the golden sunflowers. Today’s book‑binding fun fold card was inspired by all the good things autumn brings. The friendly little scarecrow stands in a bright field of sunflowers, capturing the cheerful, cozy spirit of the season.
Colors and Supplies Used:
Paper: Canson XL Watercolor Paper
Cardstock: Green and white
Patterned Paper: 5973 – Fall Series 2 Paper Pack
Brushes: No. 4 round brush, No. 0 round brush
Stamps & Dies:
- 6255 – FG Sunflower Border
- 5594 – Harvest Scarecrow Set
- 5734 – Friend Sentiment Set (You brighten my day! - sentiment)
- 5507 – Harvest Together Set (Hay Friend! - sentiment)
- 5061 – Square Double Stitched Dies
Ink for stamped images: Versafine Vintage Sepia
Tombow Dual Brush Pens: 026, 055, 177, 228, 555, 565, 772, 837, 912, 925, 933, 942, 946, 969, 993
Other: Post-It tape or Masking Paper, foam squares, Brown and Orange TwinTone Markers, and twine.
Stamping:
To begin, I die‑cut a
3.25" x 3.25" stitched square from Canson XL watercolor paper using
the second‑largest die in 5061 – Square Double Stitched Dies. Since masking
would be needed for this scene, I first stamped the sunflower border (6255) in
Versafine Vintage Sepia onto the die‑cut square, then stamped it again onto
masking paper to create a mask (Step 1). Refer to the step‑by‑step photo above
for Steps 2–5.
Painting:
I brushed in the sky with a watery mix of 555 and
painted the foliage with 177. The sunflowers were painted using 055, 993, 946,
and 933, with centers in 969.
For the scarecrow:
- Face & neck: 912
- Cheeks: 772
- Nose: 933
- Hair & hands: 026
- Hat: 228
- Wine‑colored patches & shirt stripes: 837
- Overalls: 942
- Yellow‑orange patch: 993 + 933
- Shadows under the hat brim and collar: 565
- The robins were painted with 969, 933, and 925.
To finish the details, I added small stitching lines
to the scarecrow and darkened the eyes of both the scarecrow and robins with a
Brown TwinTone marker. The Orange TwinTone marker was used to add plaid lines
to the yellow‑orange patch.
Card Assembly:
I matted the finished painting with green cardstock,
leaving a narrow 1/16" border.
For the book‑binding card base:
- Cut white cardstock to 4.25" x 11.5"
- Score at 4.25" and 5.5"
- Fold at the 5.5" score line
For the green book‑binding panel:
- Cut green cardstock to 4.25" x 5.5"
- Score at 1.25"
- Adhere to the card front, aligning score marks
- Add glue only inside the book‑binding section
Decorate the front with patterned paper:
- Leaf paper: 1 1/8" x 4 1/8"
- Red/brown check paper: 4 1/8" x 4 1/8"
- Leave
a small border around each piece.
Mount the painted panel with foam squares for
dimension. Wrap twine around the book‑binding three times and tie in a bow.
Interior:
Die‑cut a stitched square of white cardstock using
the largest square die from 5061. Add a decorative strip of green cardstock and
leaf patterned paper along the bottom edge. Stamp the sentiments from 5507 –
Harvest Together Set and 5734 – Friend Sentiment Set.
This sweet fall sunflower and scarecrow card is now
ready to brighten the day of a friend who loves autumn as much as you!
Thinking of Home 3D
Storybook Frame:
My bonus project features
the recently released 6116 – Thinking of Home Storybook Set. This set has been
very popular among the Design Team lately—here’s my take!
I stamped the images onto
Canson XL Mix Media paper using Versafine Onyx Black Ink. Colors used: 026,
177, 555, 565, 856, 993, 947, 969, N52, N25. The decorative paper is from 5963
– Winter Woodland Paper Pack.
For the back of the box, I
used the same patterned paper and added the “hello” die cut from 5718 – Mini
Journal Template. These little 3D Storybook Boxes make wonderful gifts for a
friend or anyone who loves miniature scenes!
Thank you so much for joining me for Watercolor
Weekend. I hope you have enjoyed today’s projects! Until next time, Happy
Painting!
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