Summer Vibes by Gennette Houghton

 

Hello, and Welcome to Watercolor Weekend!  Ah….August….the hurrah before fall.  Don’t mind me while I sit in the air conditioning until fall arrives.  LOL!  However, I do love all of the green and flowers, and I’m in no hurry for the cold I know is coming.  I am a mid-temp kind of gal.

 For my 1^st card I decided to go with several sets using the 6158 Story Tile Template.  The possibilities with this die is never ending.  I started off cutting down my watercolor paper to 4 ¼ by 5 ½, I keep a cutout of the template with my die that I use to trace the outline of the boxes on my paper.  I then stamped in all of my images with Distress Ink Pumice Stone, and then stamped them off once before placing them on my project, masking off the guides where needed.  I used 6106 Spring Keepsake Set for the birdhouse, and used a pencil to create a guide for the hanging line.  A mix of 565 and 969 for the wood, mixing these creates a more weathered look to the wood.  I then added 403 to the main part of the birdhouse, decorating with Bleed Proof White with a touch of 025 for the centers of the flowers.  526 was used on the sky before adding in the leafy branch from 5126 WC Foliage Set 4 in 126 and 177.  I also used a mix of 565 and 969 to the hanging line.  5981 My Joy Set was used for the Black-eyed Susans, I started with 126 on the leaves and contoured with 177.  For the petals I started with a base layer of 055, adding contours with 025.  I use a small amount of 026 for the deeper shading.  The centers I use 947 and shade with 969, also adding a couple of dots with 969 on each center.  For the background I used 403, and then added some gold dots with Winsor & Newton Gold Ink with 5418 Bible Foliage Set 2.  For the next section I used 6195 Love Blooms Set with a stamp positioner to make sure I had it centered where I wanted it.  A pencil and ruler was used to map out the guidelines for the windows before I started coloring.  For the windows I used a mix of 526 and 565, shading with more 565 along the edges.  For the wood I did a mix of 565 and 969 for this one as well.  Darkening around the bases of everything sitting on the bench.  For the curtains I used 025, and the tie backs I used 403.  For the pillow on the right I used 676 and 947 for the button, the left pillow I used 403 and 969 for the button.  I colored the left pot with 905, adding stripes and dots, and then shadowed with 947.  The right pot I used 126 and also shaded this with 947.  I started with adding in the shadows on the cat with 565 and then colored him in with N15.  I used a black micron on his facial features and a pencil for his whiskers.  I added in the foliage with 5126 WC Foliage Set 4, vines, in the right pot with a mix of 126 and 177.  For the left pot, I used 4868 WC Flower Set 2 in 676 and 177.  I also added in some Bleed Proof White for flowers on the vine.  For the birds, I used the 6196 Fresh Flowers Set.  A black micron was used on the eyes, beaks, and feet before coloring.  I extended the line across the opening with a pencil as well, to create a ledge that I colored with a mix of 565 and 969, adding some extra 565 for the shadows.  For the birds I started with 526 and 905, but then decided to add additional color with 565 and 856 because I felt they were too light.  403 was used for the sky, and then I added the little leafy branch from 5007 WC Foliage Set 3 with 249.  Adding in some flowers with Bleed Proof White.  

The FG Flower Borders are so useful in so many ways, so I used the 6186 FG Tulip Border for my next section.  For the leaves and stems I started with a base layer of 126 and then shaded and contoured with 177.  For the tulips I used: Purple – 676 and 947, Blue – 403 and 407, Yellow – 055 and 025, and Peachy Red – 905 and 947, making sure I deepened the colors in the more shaded spots.  I hate to admit this, but this is the very first time I have used the little girl from 5717 Little Girl FB Set.  For her hair I used 947.  For the skin I used 850 as the base, contouring with 910, and shadow with 912, with just a touch of 772 on the cheeks.  I used a black micron for her eyes, and 912 to define her nose and mouth with a touch of 947 on her eyebrows.  I decided to go all fancy with her dress and used a pencil to map in the guides for the checkered pattern, and used 905 on her hat, buttons, and dress.  I don’t know what it is about this color, but I love it.  It can be a strong orange/red, or when it’s watered down can be a peachy pink.  I used some 565 for a shadow under the brim of her hat.  969 was used on the basket, and then created a mask before adding in the daisy bunch from 5074 Bible Flower Set in 403.  I also added in the vines from 5126 WC Foliage Set 4 in a mix of 126, and 177, adding in some Bleed Proof White.  I shaded the arms and basket on the apron with 565.  I decided to add boards behind her with a pencil and ruler, using a mix of 565 and 969 to add definition, plus added a shadow behind the girl with 565.  Using the 6158 Story Tile Template I cut out the frame from 6082 Bible Journaling S1 Paper Pack, mounting this over my images and assembling my card. 

 For my 2^nd card I used 6184 Euro Cottage Set with Distress Ink Pumice Stone after stamping off once and then stamped onto my watercolor paper. I also created a mask for later.  I started with 947 on the roof, adding a bit of 969 for the darker areas and added shading with 565.  I used a mix of 565 and 969, with a touch of 249 on the chimney, door frame, and steps, shading these with 565.  For the walls I watered down some 969 just to give them a bit of tint, and then darker for the suggestion of bricks.  For the trim around the windows I used 947 and a bit of 969.  526 and 565 was used on the windows, and then I used some 969 for the panes.  I used 969 on the door, shading with 565, and then used 947 for the door knob.  For the lantern, I started with 526 for the glass, and finished it off with 026.  

I then used the mask I created and masked off the cottage to add in the foliage for the trees.  4051 Foliage Set 1, the large foliage, I covered the stamp with 126 and then added 177 in random areas, stamping and re-inking multiple times for both sides.  I softened this with a damp brush before adding in the branches.  I used one of the larger branches from 4964 WC Branches Set in 977, using the stamp positioner to figure out where I wanted the branches of the trees to be.  I then added in some 526 for the sky.  Removing the mask, I then used one of the smaller branches from the same set for the vines going up around the house.  From 4051, I used the small grass in 177 along both sides of the house, and then used 5126 WC Foliage Set 4 and the vines in 126 and 177.  I also softened the vines and grass with a damp brush, before adding in some Bleed Proof White.  Just a touch of 969 for the path for the door.  I cut out my image with the 3^rd from largest die from the 5063 Rectangle A2 Double Stitched Dies.  After matting my card base with paper from 6033 Inspirational Easter Paper Pack, I matted my image with a darker green and then silver, before assembling my card.  Thank you so much for joining me today, and I hope you enjoyed my cards!  Until next time, Create….Share….Inspire!

Flower Power by Gennette Houghton

 

Hello and Welcome to Watercolor Weekend!  Bonnie has been outdoing herself with the newest releases, because these are so beautiful!  You can go simple and create little notecards to have on hand or you can add them to full scenes.  They also come with sentiments that you can use, or mix and match.

I used 6188 FG Daisy Border for this card and added the frog from 6106 Spring Keepsake Set.  The frog is absolutely a favorite!!  I started off with stamping the daisies onto my watercolor paper with Distress Ink Pumice Stone, after stamping off once.  My original plan was to do white daisies, but I really love black eyed susans, so that is what I went with.  I started with the stems and leaves with 126 as the base, and then 177 to add shading and dimension. I really like this combo and use it often.  For the petals, 055 for the base and then adding in some 025 for the contours, with some 026 for shading.  026 can be a strong color so I use it sparingly. The centers I started with 947 and shaded those with 969.  I decided at this point to choose what die I was going to use, and I went with 5724 Nested Rectangle Die Set and used the 6^th from the largest.  Using a pencil to trace a guide, I then added 403, heavily watered down for the sky, adding a few extra layers in areas and allowing it to dry in between.  I then cut my scene out with the same die I used as my guide.  I had room on the left over watercolor paper to stamp the frog with Pumice Stone, also stamping this off once.  126 was used as the base layer, and darkening the sides and shadowed areas with 177.  I then went over the center of the face, belly and the very top over the eyes with 055 to brighten these areas just a bit more.  I then took some 346 in small amounts into the darkest areas.  For the eyes I used N15 on the pupils and a light touch of 565 on the outer sections of the eyes to give them a bit more dimension.  I also went over the nose and mouth with pencil.  I picked a piece of paper from 6082 Bible Journaling S1 Paper Pack and matted my card base.  I matted my main scene with the daisies using the 5063 Rectangle A2 Double Stitched Dies, 3^rd from the largest.  After adhering these together, I then matted this with 6048 Scalloped Rectangle Dies, 2^nd from the largest.  Once these were glued together I then centered them onto my card base, and used the included die to cut out the frog and attached him in the bottom corner with foam tape.  I chose the banner die from the 5543 Journal Template Die for the sentiment and attached that up in the corner, with glue on the ends and foam tape under the raised center, completing my card.  I really love how this turned out, that little frog is just so cute!!

 

For my 2^nd card I used 6186 FG Tulip Border and 5785 Gnomes Set.  Both were stamped in Distress Ink Pumice Stone and stamped off once, on watercolor paper.  I created a mask for the tulips with post-it tape before using a positioner to place the gnome.  I started with the stems and leaves using 126 as the base color and then 177 to contour and shade, darkening areas that overlap and below the flower heads.  Before working on the flowers I decided to work on the gnome first. You can just see a hint of his boot and pants so I colored the boot in 969 and the pants in 565.  I added a bit of cross hatching in the pants for a little extra texture using the same color.  For his shirt I used 026, adding extra layers to any area that would be shadowed.  For the skin tone, I start with a base layer of 850, and then I contour with 910.  912 was used for the more shadowed areas.  Instead of 565, I decided to use N52 to contour and shadow his beard and to darken under his cap and around his nose.  I used a combo of 403, and 407 on his hat.  For the petals I started with 725, adding extra layers in the darker zones, and then added a bit of 676 to deepen the darker areas.  I then added a wash of 526 for the sky.  I cut out my image with 5724 Nested Rectangle Dies, 6^th from the largest and matted it with dark purple cardstock using the 5063 Rectangle A2 Double Stitched Dies, 3^rd from the largest.  I then matted this with some silver cardstock.  5892 Easter S2 Paper Pack was used to mat the card base.  Before placing my image, I put the card base in my stamp platform and stamped in the sentiment with Versafine Clair Nocturne.  I then assemble the card together.  I am really loving these sets, I need to try one with a circle die!  Thank you for joining me today, and I hope you enjoyed my cards!  Until next time!  Create….Share….Inspire!

Seek Wisdom by Sharon Caudle

 Hello AI Fans!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and are getting a nice fresh start to a brand new week and month. Today I have created a small decoration that you can tuck anywhere to hopefully help inspire someone. This was so quick and easy to create! I started off by grabbing #5902 Mini Scalloped Frame. This is such a cute little frame and I love the added touch of the scallops. I learned that if you cut out the oval frame and turn it on it's side, the new Flower Border Sets (#6186 FG Tulip Border and #6187 FG Poppy Border), they fit perfectly. I wanted to add a small inspirational quote to it, so I reached for #6204 Wisdom Set 2. The beautiful paper is from #6205 Floral Shop PP. This also fits right in with the current "Yellow" Challenge that is still going on! I hope you've entered your creations for a chance to win a free prize! 

So that's it for me today! Thank you so much for stopping by for a visit and until next time - stay crafty!!

Cottage Cards by Jami Steiger

 

Good morning! I hope everyone is enjoying a lovely weekend. I have two cottage cards to submit this weekend.  

For the first card on the Art Impressions blog, I used the 5748-SF Cottage Creek stamp set. This is such a beautiful stamp. All of the additional floral and foliage stamps used are listed below in the Linkdeli list. 

Tombow markers used: 177, 969, 565, 606, 515, 526, 977, N55, N75, and 837

____________________

For the following card, I used the recently released 6185-Swiss Villa Set and the new 6186-FG Tulip Border.

Tombow markers used: 969, 565, 177, 192, 098, 606, 837, 025, 993, 933, 312, N65, N55, and 992

Mother's Day Tulips and Hi Honey! Bear Frame by Diane Mason

Hello, and welcome back for Watercolor Weekend! 

Hello, my Ai watercolor friends and fans — I’m so happy to be back! My lovely daughter was married last weekend, and it was such a beautiful celebration for our whole family. With the help of guest designers Kristen Brown and Julie Worthing, I was able to take some time off in April to finish up all the wedding preparations. I’m so grateful to these very talented ladies for stepping in and sharing their creativity while I was away.

Now that the festivities have wrapped up and life is settling back into its rhythm, I’m excited to jump back into the studio and share two new projects with you today. First is a Mother’s Day card featuring the newly released 6186 – FG Tulip Border. The second is an adorable honey bear frame using the 6170 – Exclusive Honey Bear 2026 Freebie.

Mother's Day Tulips Card:

Happy Mother’s Day weekend to all the amazing moms celebrating this Mother’s Day!

The new Countryside Series includes two structure sets and three floral foreground border sets. These fabulous new sets make it easy to create endless mix‑and‑match watercolor scenes. You can use the Euro Cottage Set or Swiss Villa Set as your background focal points (or any other small structure that fits), then layer tulips, poppies, or daisies in the front to create depth.

 

For my card, I used 6186 – FG Tulip Border. Each floral border set includes a sentiment, but since this was a Mother’s Day card, I chose the sentiment from 6039 – Just For Her Set.

Using a stamp platform, I inked the tulip border stamp in 177 for the stems and leaves, and 603 and 743 for the tulips and stamped onto Canson XL watercolor paper.

Colors and supplies used:

Tombow Dual Brush Pens: 

• 177, 177+565 – leaves and stems
• 603, 606 – purple tulips
• 743 – pink tulips
• 555 – sky

Tombow TwinTone Pens used for details:

• Fuchsia (80)

Dies: 

• 5065 – Oval Double Stitched Dies

Patterned Paper: 

• 5939 – Fairy Garden Paper Pack (purple gingham)

Other:

•  foam squares
•  purple cardstock
•  white organza ribbon

Hi Honey! Bear Frame:

How darling is this sweet little Honey Bear? To create this honey-themed framed scene, I used the frame die from 5901 – Mini Rectangle Frame Dies and the oval dies from 5902 – Mini Scalloped Frame Dies. I love how elements from each set work beautifully together.

The honey bear is one of six brand-new 2026 exclusive Art Impressions Freebies:

Using my stamp platform, I inked the 6170 – Exclusive Honey Bear in Versafine Onyx Black Ink and stamped onto Canson XL watercolor paper. On another piece of watercolor paper, I stamped the honeycomb from 5925 – Honey Bee Set in Versafine Vintage Sepia twice — once in the top left and once in the bottom right.

Colors and supplies used:

Honey Bear: 

• 947 – bear
• 856+947 – cheeks
• 025, 985 – honey pot
• 526 – honey pot lid
• 025 – bee body
• 526 – bee wings
• 177 – grass (4051 – WC Foliage Set 1, Teeny Tiny Grass)
• 555 – sky 
• Dr. Ph. Martin’s Bleed Proof White - highlights on nose and eyes

Honeycomb: 

•  985, 026 – honeycomb framework 
• 025, 985 – honeycomb cells

Dies:

• 5901 – Mini Rectangle Frame Dies
• 5902 – Mini Scalloped Frame Dies

Paper for frame:

• Coordinating Yellow cardstock

  

The die set includes a stand piece to keep the frame upright. The sentiments are from 5925, stamped in Versafine Onyx Black. This sweet little frame is perfect for gifting or slipping into a card to brighten someone’s day!

Thank you for joining me today for Watercolor Weekend. I can’t wait to see what you create with the new Countryside Series! When sharing your work, be sure to tag Art Impressions on social media. Until next time, Happy Painting!

Many Thanks Friend! Card by Tasha

 Happy Friday Art Impressions Friends!

Tasha here sharing a bright Spring card created with the new 6188-FG Daisy Border Stamp Set. Now that we are in the month of May, this stamp set is making me excited for the pretty flowers to start popping up. I have a variety of flowers, one flowering tree, and a lilac bush at my house and just love when everything is in full bloom. 

To make this card, I stamped the floral image and colored the flowers with Copic Markers. I was going to have white petals, but wanted more color and love the pop of blue.  To embellish, I used a white gel pen to add little accents and ink blended around the border with orange Distress Oxide ink. I also used foam tape to raise the center card up; I think the foam makes the inked edges really stand out nicely.

For the greeting, I stamped "Many Thanks" from the 6186-FG Tulip Border Set and matted it with gold glitter paper. To add more detail, I used the 6048-Scalloped Rectangle Dies; the two smallest dies created this layered look.

Lastly, I attached pretty yellow floral pattern paper, and orange, white, and pink cardstock. I wanted to coordinate with the colors used on the flowers and keep the colors light and bright to complete the design.

Thank you so much for checking out my card and I hope you are having a wonderful day!

3D Tunnel card by Dori Mendiola

 Happy Thursday AI Friends!

Today I’m sharing a 3D tunnel card featuring two of the newest Countryside series stamp sets: #6186 – FG Tulip Border and #6185 – Swiss Villa.  This beautiful release includes four cottages and three floral borders, all designed to mix and match for creating layered scenic cards.  Each of these images also works wonderfully on its own, making it easy to craft a simple yet striking card with just a single image.  Be sure to check out the sample projects posted on the website under each set.

To create this tunnel card, cut two 2 1/4" x 5" pieces of heavy cardstock.  Score and burnish along short side at 1/2", 1", 1 1/2", and 2".  Fold to create a tube and adhere the 1/4" tab to the inside of the tube. See pic below.  

Cut two 1 1/2" x 8 1/4" pieces of heavy cardstock and score along the long side at 1", 4", 5" and 8".  Fold (all valley) and burnish.  Adhere the 1/4" tab to the inside of the 1" tab.  Glue the two tubes inside one of these tower panels, centering within the 1" sides.  See pic below.  Flatten the card back and forth to adhere the glue in place.  Take the other tower panel and glue the bottom of the two tubes to the inside of this panel.  Make sure to line up so that the card will lay flat, by folding the card back and forth.

Cut pattern paper pieces to fit each of the outer edges and the inside tubes.  Cut arches or ovals using nesting dies to create the tunnel effect.  I also cut a fence using the #5807 - Journal Fence set and layered that between the cottage and the floral border layer.  

I stamped the images onto copic friendly paper with Memento black ink and colored with my copic markers listed below.  I fussy cut both the cottage and the flower border.  I adhered the floral border to the front oval die and the cottage to the back panel made up of the inside oval piece and cloud pattern paper.  I added the sentiment onto a banner die from the #5543 - Journal Template die set.  Lastly, I added some grass die cut pieces, a frog from the #5283 - Frog set, and the sun die from my stash.

This card will fit nicely into an A2 envelope when flat.

I hope you enjoyed my card today and I thank you for joining me.

Have a great day and keep creating!

Copics used:  E51, E53, E55

Y13, Y15, Y17

B21, B24

G20, G21, G24

Plant Memories Card by Tasha

 Happy Friday Art Impressions friends!

Tasha here sharing a new card created with the pretty 6186-FG Tulip Border Stamp Set. I love tulips and this clear stamp makes it so easy to add a boarder of tulips to any card or project.

I started by stamping the tulips before using a scalloped rectangle die to cut the center card. After, I colored the images with Copic Markers and blended yellow ink around the border to bring in more color. The purple and yellow colors look fantastic together!

The stamp set includes a sentiment, but I used a greeting from the 5734-Friend Sentiment Set. I like the playful font style and it fit perfectly in the center. To add a little extra detail, I added two little bee embellishments to two ends. 

Lastly, I attached a purple scalloped layer to frame the center card before adding a piece of plaid pattern paper. I also attached silver glitter paper, purple card stock and tan card stock to complete the project.

I hope you enjoyed today's card and will be inspired to create a fun floral design.