Video: Liquid Watercolors on Yupo, Three Ways

2018 Summer Catalog Die Cutting Video Videos Watercolor

May 21, 2018 Jessica Frost-Ballas

Good morning, Jess here! Last month I shared several ways to use Hero Arts liquid watercolors on Yupo paper. You can find that post here. I had several requests to create a video with this technique so here it is using products from our 2018 Summer Catalog!

I also have a video showing you how to use this technique. You can watch the video below or in HD at our Youtube channel here!

First I gather my supplies: I work on a craft mat and layer a paper towel on top of that to catch any excess watercolor paint. I’m using Yupo paper which is a synthetic plastic paper. The paint will eventually dry on top of the paper…it will not soak in. Then I have my Hero Arts liquid watercolors in a variety of colors, white iridescent shimmer spray, round and rectangular blending tools with felt pads, and paintbrushes.

For my first panel I start by dropping Dandelion, Strawberry, Deep Ocean, Mulled Wine, and Purple liquid watercolors onto my Yupo paper. I use a blending tool to drag the color across the paper. You can layer as much paint as you'd like to keep building up the color. I want that horizontal striped look so I drag my rectangular blending tool across the paper horizontally but you could move your tool in a variety of directions for different patterns. You can also experiment with using different items to create the patterns: paper towels, lace, a comb, etc. The sky's the limit!

For my next panel I start by spritzing white iridescent shimmer spray across the panel. I use a flat paintbrush to spread the spray more evenly across the panel. Next I added drops of Pine and Moss liquid watercolor randomly across the panel. Next I take a round blending tool and blot the paint across the paper in random patterns. The paint moves around to create a very textured background.

For my last panel I start by adding a few drops of Dandelion liquid watercolor to the Yupo paper. Then I used an air puffer (commonly used to clean camera lens) to move the paint around. Once it was mostly spread across the panel I added a few drops of Strawberry liquid watercolor below it. I repeated the process blending the colors sparingly. Then I added a few drops of Mulled Wine liquid watercolor below the red and blended it in to the Strawberry watercolor. I added a few more drops until it was seamlessly blended across the panel. I left blotches of color to create a more textured look.

Then I set all three panels aside to dry overnight. The biggest difference I find between using alcohol inks and liquid watercolors is the drying time. Since there’s no alcohol in the liquid watercolors they take MUCH longer to dry. And the panels containing shimmer sprays take the longest. The first panel was dry within an hour but the others took the full 24 hours to dry.

Once they were all totally dry I die-cut the Paper Layering Desert Cactus from the green panel. I ended up adding a little more Pine and Moss liquid watercolor to the cactus with a blending tool after it was die-cut just to get a little more dark green color across the cactus. I also die cut the Desert Sunset Fancy Die from black cardstock twice and trimmed the other two panels down to layer behind the black cardstock.

On one black panel I stamped the sentiment 'Sorry I Was So Prickly' from Cactus Animals and heat-embossed it with gold embossing powder. I stamped the same sentiment on a scrap piece of black cardstock, heat-embossed it with gold embossing powder, and trimmed it down to an angled flag for the second card.

I adhered the liquid watercolor panels behind the die-cut black cardstock and adhered those to a white card base. I adhered the cactus to the brighter panel and then added the sentiment above it with foam mounting tape. Finally I finished the brighter card with a few Ombre Blush sequins and the paler card with a few Champagne sequins!

I love the different looks you can achieve with the liquid watercolors from soft and smooth to bold and textured. I encourage you to give it a try but remember, let those panels dry!! Thanks so much for stopping by! Have an amazing day!