My Three ATCs for November

I created three ATCs for November, one for the Custom Impressions trade and two for the mail trade I joined last month. I used Twinkling H2O paints on all three cards. I haven't used these much and am starting to feel like ATCs are a fun opportunity to play and learn about my less used products.

For the CI group the theme was Gratitude. I decided to make two similar cards, representing two November holidays- Veteran's Day and Thanksgiving. 

For both versions, I used a stamp from The Greeting Farm Cheeky collection, one a soldier and one with a pie. The images were stamped in Stazon and colored with the H2Os. Most of the painting/coloring went well. I used two yellowy shades for the hair (Sunburst & Yellow Roses) on both images. For Cheeky Pie, I painted the dress blue (Bashful Blue) with accents of pink (Playful Peony) on her shoes and scarf. The pie was painted in Bronze, Pearl Gold and Copper for the pan.

 I had trouble at first with the green for the soldier since I didn't have a khaki or olive color. I eventually diluted a darker green (Emerald) with lots of water to create a wash of a lighter more transparent green and I think it looks good. I could even layer the color with the wash and create shadows and tone. (Yay learning.) I then added Bronze for the piping and bow.

 

 

 I also was unhappy with the skin tone for both. I used Baby's Breath and it was very pink until dry and the level of shimmer seemed some how wrong for skin.
 

The background coloring is a Viva Decor paint called Maya Gold in the shade Petrol. Due to accidental spillage, I applied the paint with my fingers. I added the words "thank you" along the edge. I cut these out with my Cricut from G45 Steampunk Spells paper. And added a few glitter paper punch outs to finish  the cards.
 
The ATC trade is the last Sunday of the Month at Custom Impressions. Please call ((562) 430-8100) for details and themes. Hope to see you next month!

 

The theme I choose for the seven mail in  ATCs was things with stripes or dots. I decided to use some stamps of moths and butterflies as my striped and dotted things. I once again used Stazon, because it works well with wet mediums like the H2Os. Instead of using any of the bright colors of paints, I decided to try out the set of pearl colors I had. These all look almost white and have an iridescent quality to them. I painted the stamps in Pearl Green, Pearl Violet and Pearl Gold. What was really cool and unexpected to me was that these paints changed the color of the ink not the paper. (More learning!) And it looks so different and interesting from different angles, with I thought looked just right on my winged buggies. 

For the background of the dot ATCs I painted the whole cards in a copper metallic paint. Once thst dried I added some Viva Decor Ferro in a dark gold shade thru a circle pattern mask. I finished off the cards with a few rhinestones.

The final card for November is my mail in bonus card. I only need to make three- two to trade and one to keep. And it is a free theme.

I used another TGF stamp, this time from the Magical collection. I stamped with Stazon and painted in the H2O.  I think I did WAY better with the painting this go round. (The learning paid off, yay!) I played more with the wash method of diluting the colors to create shading on the hair (Sugar Plum & Heavenly) and clothes (Lemongrass & Kiwi) And also to make the skin tone not only less pink, but slightly less sparkly by creating a light wash with the Baby's Breath pink. I added some pinkish (Playful Peony) and teal (Mystique) to the stats in her hair and the stamp was all colored in.

For the card background I used Primary Pigment powders in a few shades (Twilight, Bronze and Kiwi) and blended/rubbed them onto black chipboard. I then spritzed the cards with two coats of Goosebumps. This not only set the powder, but created a texture and sheen to the background. 

I used a Dyan Reavley phrase stamp-"a life without dreams would just be a life"- on the right corner in Pastel Violet Prima chalk and added dome multicolor bling gems to finish up the card.

Which card is your favorite? I think I like the bonus card best, my technique was getting pretty good by then. Have you tried Sparkling H20 paints? How do you use them? I would love to hear any new tips or techniques for next time.