Watercolor effect and embossing

Hi, Diana Fisher here with you today to share my latest card. This is my last month with Viva Las VegaStamps and I am already starting to get sad. I have loved everything I made over these last three months — the stamps at Viva Las VegaStamps are stunning, easy to use and original.

For today's card, I was going for a soft watercolor effect without using watercolors. It's a big trend right now, but not everyone is comfortable trying the actual watercolors on their cards. It can make lighter weight papers bend, the color can bleed through, or the colors can mix in ways you wouldn't have planned for.

With that in mind, here is a way to get that look with your ink pads!

I started with the Leaves Blowing from Tree stamp. I applied it with Ranger Distress Embossing Ink and then a white opaque embossing powder. Then I heated it up with my embossing gun.

After that was done, I used four different inks: Heidi Swapp (Teal), VersaMagic Chalk Ink (Sea Breeze), VersaMagic Chalk Ink (Aloe Vera) and VersaMagic Chalk Ink (Thatched Straw). That is the order I used them in, too, from top left corner to bottom right.

I applied the inks with Tsukineko Sponge Daubers, one for each color. I worked the color right over the white embossed area and before it could dry, I would quickly wipe off any ink on the white areas. 

It's hard to tell unless you zoom into the picture, but the bottom left corner has the Cross Stitch Stamp. I thought it went well with the Close Knit by Crate Paper tag and heart die cut that I ended up using for my sentiment. That was stamped in VersaMagic Chalk Ink (Aloe Vera).

I hope you have some ideas now on how you can get a watercolor effect without the actual watercolors!