BY ANDREW OCHAL
January 29, 2021
photos care of Andrew Ochal
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author, and not necessarily to the author's employer, Arlene’s Artist Materials. Please contact us with any questions.
Everyone loves receiving something handmade. That's especially true with Valentines. With all the chaos going on around us, it's nice to take a moment to show the special people in our lives just how much we care about them. Check out below for everything you need to be the hero this Valentines and surprise your loved ones.
MATERIALS
STEPS
1. For watercolors we suggest Strathmore Full Size Watercolor Cards. They are a great surface to paint on plus they come with envelopes, which is super handy. Use making tape or artist’s tape to tape edges of card to a board. You can choose how thick or thick you’d like the border to be. Use your finger to firmly seal the edges.
2. Choose a Sakura Pigma Micron Pen, whatever color you like, and draw a heart. Continue drawing hearts of various sizes and colors until you are happy with how many you have. You can first draw the hearts with a pencil and eraser before using the pens. For the best results, I’d suggest practicing your composition on a separate piece of paper first before you start working on the cards. Practice as many times as you need to get the layout just the way you like it. Don't forget to write fun messages inside each heart, or at least the ones that you can. Write things like; LUV U, YOU’RE NEAT, BEST FRIEND and so on.
*Tip: Odd number of hearts will appear to be compositionally balanced than an even number.
3. Once all the hearts are where you want them, take either a brush, like the ones in the Princeton Snap Short Handle Gold Nylon Taklon Brush Set of 2, or a handy water brush, like any of the Pentel Arts Aquash Water Brushes, to fill them in with color. We suggest the Niji 36 Color Aquarelle Watercolor Set because it has so many great color options at a great price that you can mix to create your own hues.
*Tip: When painting with watercolors it is always good to let colors dry before painting next to them. This helps prevent bleeding and muddy colors. When in doubt let it dry.
4. Once you are completely done adding watercolor let the whole painting dry completely. Now that the card is dry, peel the tape off, open the card and write a customized message to whomever you want to give the card too.
5. Now the only left to do is put your masterpiece in an envelope and send/give it to your deserved recipient.
Comments