Water color with Distress Inks - Tutorial

Welcome to the Pixie Cottage Saturday Tutorial! Today I am going to go over the basics of water coloring with Distress inks. I hope you have fun! It is absolutely one of my favorite ways to color a stamped image and with practice, can create stunning images.

Supplies Needed:
Water color paper (I prefer canson or Strathmore 140lb)
Stamped image-heat embossed (I used the wonderful "Hannah at the Pond")
Distress inks (Stampin' UP! waterbased inks work well too)
Aquapainter or small paint brush and water
Towel

Step 1. Stamp and emboss your image. Embossing the image helps to keep the color from bleeding.
Step 2. Squeeze the lid of the ink pad until beads of ink appear on the inside of the lid

Step 3. When using ink to color your image it is best to have at least two shades to create a dimensional effect. For Hannahs dress I used Milled Lavender for my light shade and dusty concord for my darker shade.
Swirl your moistened brush in the lighter color and completely color the area of your image with the shade.

Step 4. Clean your brush and dip it into the darker shade. Pulling the brush in one direction lay down a small amount of the darker shade in areas that should have shadow.

Step 5. Clean your brush but keep it moist. Using small circular strokes, blend the edges of the two colors until you can't see the edge of the darker color.
Let dry a few minutes and repeat in areas that you wish to appear darker.

(In this image I used Vintage photo and Walnut stain to create the hair and I have used broken china as the first shade in my water)

Helpful Tips
Don't be afraid to play with different shades of color. If an area becomes too dark, let it partially dry and use plain water to remove some of the color by using circular motions. Sometimes I find it helpful to blot with a towel and then re-blend.

By letting an image dry for a few minutes between colors it keeps the color from pooling against the embossed edges.

I find it faster to color a different area while another is drying.

Here is my finished image

(The darker shade in the water is Faded Jeans and the grass/leaves is a mixture of Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint and Pine Needles.)

Have fun playing! I can't wait to see what you create!