It's so Fluffy!

First of all, mom got her Digital SLR the other day, so pictures will be a much, much, much better quality! No more pixels ... yay!

This is our next card that we are doing for our Copic Intermediate. No technique this time, just come in, colour and learn a thing or two more about these awesome markers.

We loved this stamp, and are following the Christmas theme. It's busy, busy, busy this time of year, but hopefully you'll find the time to join us in our class on December 12th!

Colours used:

Hay: E31
Sleeper: BV02, B60
Skin: R11, E11, E51, E000
Hooves and Face (Sheep): V99, BV25, BV02
Fuzz (Sheep): B60, E000
Star: Y38, Y08, Y02

Paper:
Bazill Chili
Bazill Ivy
Creative Imaginations DSP

Flowers:
Prima Flowers Holiday Celebration Snowflake

Versamark Dew Drop Chalk Ink (distressing DSP, flowers, and around stamp) Colours:
Red Brick
Jumbo Java
Niagara Mist

Stamp is High Hopes: Sweet Saviour. Remember... it has a super cute lamb!


As always, all supplies can be found online or in store at SGD.

Colouring White

A bit late on this one since I wasn't able to get a picture before it was put in the store. This was the card we did in the intermediate class after the Black and White technique and before the Christmas Card (two posts down).

This card was teaching how to colour white. This technique can be used with colours other than the ones I used, such as blue, purple, green... anything!

Colours used:

Skin: E50, E000, R11
Hair: E35, E39, E51
Dress: E53
Shawl: E57, E74, E53
Baby Blanket: B000, R11, E53

And the tips for this one:
When colouring white, don't use greys. It makes the image seem flat, and having a colour (such as blue or purple for snow) gives the image more life. Also, when making soft images, or images with pastel colours, try using Memento Rich Cocoa rather then Tuxedo Black to give the overall image a softer look.

I would also like to point out that if you would like to see larger images of the ones you see, click on them to view their full size. This applies to my entire blog, so if you need to get a closer look at something, click the image! :)

Copic Fun

Just a few little stamps that I coloured out of boredom. The bird is Chloe, who is my brother's African Grey, the Fox is dedicated to my best buddy, and the Flower Girl is dedicated to Fall.... because I really, really miss it when winter comes along. :(

No colours this time since I didn't write them down, but as usual, I'll give you a bit of a tip.

Plan your colours before you start. Don't just pull the first crayon from the box so to speak. Look at your stamps and picture what colours will go well together! If need be, scribble in the corner of one of your pages to see how the colours will look together. Planning ahead never hurt.

Christmas Swing.

This lovely card is what mom and I will be doing in tomorrow's (November 22nd) Intermediate class. The card is simple to focus on the colouring! Anyone who joins us tomorrow at 6:30pm for the class will be able to make this wonderful card!

Copic Markers used:

Pine needles and Socks: YG97, G94, BG93
Branch, Ropes, Swing Base and Tree stump (of tree hair clip): E29, E57, E71, W-1
Ribbon, Bow, Swing Cushion and Underdress: R89, R59, RV29
Birds: R59, RV29. R17, RV42
Stars: Y38, Y08, Y02
Shoes and Puffy Sleeves: B12, BG10
Dress: BG72, B12, BG10
Dress Hem: Y38, Y08, Y02
Hair: E35, YR20, E51
Skin: RV11, E11, E51, E000
Outline: BG10

Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa (Tuxedo Black could also be used in place of this, however, we used the brown to get it a softer look)

Paper:
Fancy Pants Traditions - Brrr
Bazzill Cardstock - Chili, Chiffon, Nixon
X=Press it Blending Paper

Green Ribbon (code 31548)

All items used can be bought from SGD's Store, either online or walk-in!

My tip for busy stamps like this:
Don't be afraid to reuse colours! Reusing colours not only helps the stamp match the paper better, but it also helps to unify the finished product. It makes the stamp seem less busy to have common colours, rather then a bunch of different colours for each object and part.

Hallowe'en Cards

These two cards were done in SGD's copic Intermediate class taught by myself and my mom. The main focus was on teaching the technique of Black and White, but we did another card just for fun!



Black and White card. Everything used to make this card was purchased at SGD.

Colours used:
Tones: W-7, W-3, W-5, W-1
Flower: R85, R59, R46, R35

We decided to use warm tones because they gave Hattie a sepia like finish, and seemed less flat then the cool tones. However, this method will work with the Cool Greys.



This was the card we did on top of the Black and White card just for fun, and to play a bit more with the copic markers!

Colours Used:
Robes: YR04, BV08, V17, BV02, RV13, R46
Socks, Ribbon and Shoes: BV29, BG76, BG72, RV34, RV13, RV42
Hair: E19, E15, E35, YR21, E53, Y15
Skin: RV34, RV42, E53, E00
Owl: E29, E19, E35, E33, E53, YR16, Y08, Y11

And the tip of the day!
Don't be afraid to reuse colours in your colouring! Reusing colours is a great way to make sure that your image will be unified, and will help all your colours to work well together! Use your designer paper as a colour start, and go from there. And don't forget: Work dark to light.

Poison Girl

This is when I finally started to really play with copic markers. Forgot the rules and made my own! And now, I get to teach the rules! (haha!) This is one of my favourite colouring jobs to date, and sadly, the scanner kills it. :(

Stamp is a Kraftin' Kimmie stamp, coloured on Neenah with Copic markers.

Once more, there are no colours for this, because I coloured this long before my teaching days began. But, I can leave you with this tip!

Colour from dark to light! I know many of you began from light to dark, but dark to light gives you much more depth. Your darks are crisper and your lights are light. Working light to dark means you're constantly working your highlights, and eventually your highlights aren't so light.

So work dark to light, and always play! You never learn if you don't try! :)

Little Mom

This stamp always, always, always, reminds me of my mom! Sad thing is, she used to dress like this when she was my age, only rather then the red, she had hair the colour of black licorice insides (you know that odd green? Yeah, that colour!).

Stamp is made by Greeting farm, coloured on Neenah paper with Copic markers. As always, all materials can be bought from SGD! SGD's Store Online!

Sadly, no colours for her. I didn't get into the habit of writing down my colours used until I started teaching classes. :(

Violet Batty

One of my earlier copic works. The colours sadly bled pretty badly, but I still like it.

Stamp is a Kraftin' Kimmie stamp, coloured on Neenah with Copic markers. All products can be found at the SGD store, either online or off! SGD's Store Online!

Colours used:
Skin- R59, R35, BV13, E50, E11, BVO4
Hair- BV29, BG09, BG10
Wings - C7, BV29, BV04, BV00, R59
Stocking and Necklace- C7, BV04, BV00
Dress (I didn't actually write these down so I'm guessing...)- BV29, BV04, BV00, BV29, BG09

*Colours may not be accurate since I was /just/ getting into the habit of writing down the colours I used*

First Copics!

We all start off somewhere, and some times it's nice to look back. Teaching classes has taught me one major thing: You're always improving.

You may not start off as the best stamper, cardmaker, or colourer of all time, but you only improve as you keep going on. I cannot stress this enough! You may not be great now, but with a bit of time and practice, you can get so much better!

Here's an example of one of my very first copic works! I hate it now, and it looks boring to me, but it's still nice to keep it around, so I can look back and see just how far I've come!

SGD's Official Store Logo

I was given a basic idea of what the store owner (Shelia Mankulich) wanted, and I went ahead and began making the logo. I started it as a simple sketch that I later took to the computer and completed the image digitally. This is my first professional art piece, and I am very happy with the final project, and the fact Shelia loves it so much!