Now that you have created 18 identical stamped Twinchie Squares (see previous posting) for one side of the Valentine Memory Game, the fun truly starts in trying to decide among all the potential options for the 9 pairs for the "matching" side.
If you have ever worked with our Inchie Arts squares you know that they have the most incredible paper surface for watercoloring and any 'wet' media. The 'top' or 'pebbly' side acts as a very high end artist quality paper; many have even compared it's properties to hot press watercolor paper. That means it will hold an enormous amount of moisture without deteriorating.
We LOVE Twinkling H20 shimmering watercolors and were very excited to learn about a new color assortment called Think Pink. Pictured here, the six new colors are in pairs of color families. Hopeful Honeysuckle and Dreams Bloom are peachy/pink. Courageous Rose and Luv U Pink are both true pinks. and Lucky Apple and Good News Green round out the six pack. Perfect for Valentines Day we used them to paint a Valentine Candy stamp.
Before any painting be sure and stamp the image with pigment ink, apply embossing powder (we use clear) and heat set. This creates a physical barrier between colors and also prevents the stamped ink from feathering.
If you have ever been in one of our watercolor classes you will understand the importance of the phrase, "more water". In order for watercolor paints to blend and create that blurring effect it is essential to first paint the desired area with water. This is what we are doing in this picture...and if you look really carefully you can spot this neat trick....we tinted this first coat of water with just a tad bit of pink so you can more easily see where you are applying it. You really don't have to have a puddle of water at the ready since the brushpen we are using contains all the water you will really need.
Also at this time you want to make sure your paints are prepped and softened by adding a few drops of water (squeezed from the brushpen) directly into each pot of paint.
Moving fairly quickly (before your water layer dries) pick up the desired color from the paint pot with the tip of the brushpen and begin 'dabbing' it into the desired area. Keep dabbing, and keep picking up paint until you like the results. Don't over paint as you want to see the effect of the 'watercolor' light and dark areas.
(another tip is to create a palette of paint colors on another white square so you can see how the colors look when dry)
Cleaning your brushpen between colors is really easy. All you need to do is swivel the tip of the brushpen repeatedly across a paper towel until it runs clear. If you have a lot of paint on your brush tip you may have to gently squeeze the brushpen to release a bit more water as you clean.
Continue this process with each area you wish to paint, first painting with water and then dabbing the selected color. We didn't blend colors since the painting spaces were small, but the principles are the same...you simply switch colors when 'dabbing' and watch the magic of the different colors as they merge.
We decided to create another pair for our Valentine Memory Game using the same Twinkling H20 colors, only this time we did blend the peach and pink colors inside this open heart stamp from Rubber Soul.
Two more pairs were stamped with Momento Tuxedo Black ink and colored with Copic Markers.
The Peacock Feather was colored with RV 17 Deep Magenta, R27 Cadmium Red, R20 Blush, G40 Dim Green and YG91 Putty.
The Flowery Heart with Swirls was colored with R27 Cadmium Red, V05 Marigold, RV02 Sugared Almond Pink, YG01 Green Bice, YG63 Pea Green and YG95 Pale Olive.
These were our favorites! Especially since we got to eat them after we took the pictures!! 1-7/8" leaves a perfect 1/16" border all the way around when you paste them down. Just remember to trim two photos at a time so you will have an identical pair.
The square on the left was created using individual alpha letter stamps with red pigment ink. The dots were made with Copic Marker RV21 Light Pink.
On the center square, two pattern papers were used; one trimmed to a 1-7/8" square and the other with a heart shaped paper punch.
Create your own plaid background for the square on the right...draw edge to edge lines in one direction with Copic Markers R20 Blush and then V12 Pale Lilac in a perpendicular direction. Stamp over this background with a variety of valentine sentiments.
Remember how to play the Memory Game? Turn over two at a time. If they don't match turn them back over. Keep doing this until you find a match. When they match, leave them face up....
until you have matched them all!!
Happy Valentines Day
