A handmade card.

The front of a new handmade card.

Sometimes it's fun to just forget how much you are trying to learn a new skill (drawing portraits) and just play around with color again.

I had some watercolor card sets sitting around in my garage/studio that were so old the paper was getting a yellow tinge.

That happens to me a lot. I buy supplies and then put them up on a shelf because I don't know what to do with them. Yet.

I rediscovered a bunch of liquid watercolor bottles I had gotten from Crayola and decided to put some in spray bottles and play around with them for awhile. What fun it is to spray color all over paper!!!

I had a lot of background papers made just for practice and started to cut them up and use them as stencils to spray over and through. It's really fun to use the negative paper you get from cutting out simple shapes.

After using lime watercolor sprayed and dripped on the card, I added some blue acrylic paint. A quick swath of color was just enough, but I made sure to do the envelope and inside of the card all at the same time. The more drips and splashes, the better. I need to do this kind of stuff to loosen up! I am so new at making paint related art, I tend to over think every decision.


This is the envelope. I used the negative shape for the address box and really looked forward to writing a real address inside it.

I even uncovered the sewing machine that has been sitting on my table in the garage and sewed a metallic gold thread border on the heart papers.

For someone who has sewed on fabric for 50 years or so, this was a happy, happy work.


This is the inside of the card, opened out so you can see the stitches made by the sewing machine. I was amazed at how easily the thread laid on the paper. Not one episode of thread breakage or shredding. Amazing!! This stuff is usually so picky and even using a large eyed needle and all the silicone lubricant I can slid over the spool, there is usually a time or two of threads shredding and such.

This watercolor paper was a dream to work on. I am going to make lots and lot of cards. What a wonderful way to practice collage techniques and come out with something useful, too!

This card is going to Karen. Happy Birthday!!!