July is National Watercolor Month! I love the look of water coloring, don’t you? I’m definitely not an expert with water coloring but I can give it my best shot. If you don’t practice, you don’t improve. Am I right?
Today I’d like to introduce you to the basic tools that you will need to watercolor. To get started you will need paper, brush, paint and of course, water! Stampin’ Up! has these basics covered for us.
Paper: Stampin’ Up! carries Watercolor Paper (#149612 $9) as well as Shimmery White cardstock (#101910 $10). Both of these papers work well to watercolor with. Watercolor Paper is a thick, textured, absorbent paper which is made specifically for water coloring. Shimmery White cardstock is slightly thicker than Stampin’ Up!’s Basic White cardstock with a little shimmer to it.
Brushes: Stampin’ Up! doesn’t carry basic paint brushes but they do carry Water Painters (#151298 $13). Water Painters are a set of 3 brushes, each containing a small reservoir for water. To fill the Water Painter, hold the tip end and gently unscrew the reservoir. (It may twist in the opposite direction that you think it should twist). Fill with water (not completely full) and screw the reservoir back on to the tip. A light squeeze of the reservoir wets the brush tip. The set comes with a large flat brush tip, a small brush tip and a medium brush tip.
Paint: Stampin’ Up! doesn’t carry paint but they do carry 50 colors of ink which work perfectly to watercolor with. You will need an ink pad and/or an ink refill of that color to watercolor with. With these basic tools you can start watercoloring! I hope you have them in your craft room! Have a great day. Take care and Happy Stamping!