Old Pickup Card and Coloring Guide

Good morning. I made this card over the weekend and wanted to share it with you. I also snapped pictures as I did the coloring to show you how I colored the pickup.

Most of the cards you see on my blog have been colored with water color pencils and an aqua pen.

I usually just leave my pencils in the box and grab color with the pen. If your aqua pen is too dry it is hard to get the color from the pencil. Just give it a little squeeze to get more water out. Keep a paper towel handy for wiping excess water off.

If your pen is too wet it may be hard to control and to "stay in the lines." It is a good idea to have a piece of scrap paper that you can test on before actually applying the color to your image.

I always start by laying down just a little bit of color and work up very slowly. More water in your pen tip with create a washed out color, less will create a more saturated color.

In this case I want a mottled look so my pickup will appear aged, so I didn't pre-wet my paper or blend my colors as much at I might if coloring a flower.

If you do want a very smooth transition, build your colors up very slowly, starting with the lightest color and going darker. Also, using your aqua pen without any color on it to pre-soak your paper will help prevent lines of color and make blending easier.

More building up of color.

Still, more.

Now I am pretty happy with the colors. At this point you could mask off the pickup and add a background or just use it as is.

I really like embossing my focal point images, so I used a Versa Mark pen and went over the entire image and then dipped in clear embossing powder. Be certain your paper is completely dry before your do this, or your embossing may be spotty.

Next I cut my image out. I really like how the clear embossing makes the colors richer.

For a background I stamped some trees on a piece of Whisper White card stock and watercolored it to create a simple landscape.

I added a bit more water coloring and then sponged the edges with green, blue and brown inks.


Then it was a simple matter of assembling my card.

Stamps used - Loads of Love, Lovely as a Tree (Stampin' Up)
Inks - Certainly Celery, Chocolate Chip, Ballet Blue (Stampin' Up)
Card Stock - Whisper White, River Rock, Basic Black, Blue Bayou
Accessories - Prisma water color pencils, brads, embossing powder, aqua pen, heat gun, gingham ribbon, adhesive.

I hope your day is fantastic!