Challenge 180 - Watercolor & White Pen Week 2! Plus, Newsletter Secret!

Hello Ai Fans!

Watercolor is perfect for welcoming in spring blooms! We're so excited to share our new NEW Watercolor Mini sets, as well as our delicate new Window Deco Die!

Before we get to our new release, we want to let you in on a little secret!

So we have to ask, do you get our weekly newsletter? If not, you might be missing out on some great Ai info, like new releases, special videos and some great discounts! You can register at bit.ly/AiEmail. Plus, friends don't let friends miss out on a great sale, so make sure to send the link to a friend so they can claim their coupon code too!

Let's take a look at what the design team has created with these beautiful stamps and dies! Use the links to spring over to the designer's blog or artimpressions.com for more details.

 Cheri with Watering Can Set and Window Deco Die



Dana with Wooden Gate Set and Window Deco Die

 Diane with Southwest Set and Window Deco Die

Karen with Watering Can Set

Kerry with Watering Can Set and Window Deco Die

Renee with Wooden Gate Set

Sharon with Southwest Set and Window Deco Die

Beautiful, inspiring cards, designers! Thank you! Are you inspired? Join in our challenge! It's all about watercolor and using some white gel pen to your images! We love seeing all the different ways to watercolor, so bring on those mediums. White gel pens add another touch of dimension to your images. The winner just might receive a watercolor prize pack! Honorable mentions win a set of their choice. Join the fun!

Here are the challenge rules …
✻ Please make a new card or creation. You can make any crafty item you wish; this is not limited to cards!
✻ Limit two submissions per person. You will receive extra votes if you use Art Impressions stamps!
✻ The Ai Challenge is open to everyone, international submissions are welcome!
✻ Include a link back to the Ai Blog or grab our button on the top right of our sidebar!
✻ Share the Ai love by clicking and commenting your fellow crafters.
✻ Make sure to get your link up by Wednesday, March 30 at 5:00 p.m. PST to enter your creations.
✻ Good luck and happy stamping!

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We're also excited to announce the winners from the last challenge "House & Home!"

Top Spot is awarded to...

Jo Ann!

Congrats! Your vivid card using the Cottage TF is a beautiful image of home! Email annelise@artimpressions.com with your address to claim your prize pack!

Honorable mentions go to...

Eulalia!

Melissa!

Congrats, both of you! We love your bold coloring both of these cards, using our Cat Lady TF and Messy House TF. Great job! Email annelise@artimpressions.com with your address and the stamp set of your choice! Thank you, everyone, for playing along and we hope you join our new challenge!

Challenge 180 - Watercolor & White Pen! PLUS Watercolor + Window Die Release!

Hello Ai Fans!

Welcome to a new week and a NEW challenge! Before we get to our Watercolor & White Pen challenge, we have an exciting new release that does not disappoint!

We are so excited to formally launch our NEW Watercolor Mini sets. We have three new projects that will expand your watercolor collection with many new flower and foliage fillers as well as beautiful new main images! Below you can find a quick overview, as well as each corresponding video with the full instructions for each set! We hope you love these new releases and add a couple to your collection today! 

We are also excited to release a beautiful new Window Deco Die, perfect for your Windows to the World or Watercolor cards! This new stamp and die set gives you huge versatility, plus many creative ways to arrange your windows! Check out how this new set assembles in the video below and grab your own set here!

For our new launch, Reneé Matarese has created a beautiful tutorial!

Hello Ai fans!

It's my turn to share a new release with you!  Art Impressions has the most beautiful water color images around and this sweet new set is no exception!  

This pretty new set is called WOODEN GATE (sku#4762)

You can find all the wonderful MINI WATER COLOR sets HERE.

I'm still a little afraid of water coloring but after making this card I gained a lot of confidence.  Trust me...If I can do it, you can do it!  There are so many different mediums that you can water color with, There are the little water color cakes, paints, distress inks, pencils, markers, etc.  I chose to use pencils and Marvy Markers.  You treat the pencils like you would any colored pencil for the most part.  Just color in the areas (lightly) that you want to color.  Then go over them with a water pen.

Here, if you look carefully you can see I shaded in the thin part on the inside of the arch.

Next, I used my water pen to pull a little bit of color from it and add shading to the gate.

Next, I penciled in a little blue, colored the brackets and added some grass.

Now it's time to add some real color!  I used my Marvy markers to color directly onto the stamp. 

Then, just like with the pencils I used my water pen to blur them a bit and give them the water color effect I was looking for.

 I mounted my door on a display easel made with the Ai Easel Die.

The precious little bunnies are part of a set called FURRIES TF (Sku#4208).

 

On the inside I used the clouds from WC Series 1 Set (Sku#4055).

Easter Wishes (Sku#F4012)

I have to apologize...I used a fence and gate which I've now just realized have been discontinued. I did find an alternate you could get instead if this is a look you like.  Take a peek at WC EZ Project A (Sku#4271).

I mounted my card on the Square Easel Die (Sku#4699)

My foliage came from a variety of sets...

Clay Pot 4701

Flower Cart 4703

Flowering Mailbox 4607

I added some highlights to the flowers and rabbits with a white gel pen.

I think the gel pen makes the fur look pretty real on their bellies.

Marvy colors used: No. 43 Brilliant Yellow, 45 Sepia, 88 Terra Cotta, 15 Olive Green, 20 Magenta, 28 English Red

Water Color Pencils:

Staedtler 38, 556

Derwent: 6 Deep Cadmium, 18 Rose Pink, 34 Sky Blue, 36 Indigo, 38 King Fisher Blue, 40 Turquoise Green, 58 Raw Sienna, 66 Chocolate, 68 Blue Gray

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Thank you, Reneé! Absolutely love the images and your added touches!

And now it's time for our challenge! This week, we want to see you use those watercolor mediums and add some white gel pen to your images! Whether creating a snowy scene or adding some highlights, white gel pen is so handy to add some depth and dimension to your images!

Here are the challenge rules …
✻ Please make a new card or creation. You can make any crafty item you wish; this is not limited to cards!
✻ Limit two submissions per person. You will receive extra votes if you use Art Impressions stamps!
✻ The Ai Challenge is open to everyone, international submissions are welcome!
✻ Include a link back to the Ai Blog or grab our button on the top right of our sidebar!
✻ Share the Ai love by clicking and commenting your fellow crafters.
✻ Make sure to get your link up by Wednesday, March 30 at 5:00 p.m. PST to enter your creations.
✻ Good luck and happy stamping!

An InLinkz Link-up