Claudine Hellmuth and Ranger Industries introduced a collection of 15 highly pigmented, ultra creamy, artist quality acrylic paints this past summer at CHA called Studio Paints.
For these projects, I have simply used water to blend the paints, using them as an exciting color embellishment to what were otherwise very plain backgrounds.
Studio Paints can also be combined easily together to create multitudes of new colors without becoming muddy - please use this link for a pdf file showing how to use the 15 colors to create 51 new colors!
The first project is an embossed birthday card - using a piece of Claudine Hellmuth's Sticky Back Canvas.
Sky Blue paint was brushed directly on the canvas, then watered down and 'faded' toward the middle using water - blending directly on the canvas. Claudine also has a line of inexpensive yet quality assorted brushes that will endure quite a bit of abuse.
This was repeated with Landscape Green paint. Water was used to blend the two colors together at the middle. The Sticky Back Canvas remains very sticky, even with a large volume of water applied to the surface.
Once the canvas was dry (I used a heat gun to speed the process) I ran the canvas through a Cuttlebug machine using an embossing folder.
For the finished card, an Antique Linen Distress pad was applied to the embossed canvas using the direct to paper technique (hold pad in hand and swipe the surface). 'Celebrate' sentiment is from Mona Lisa Birthday Centers set (flower: Prima).
The second project is a sympathy card using a recycled dictionary sheet.
To give the dictionary sheet strength, I adhered it to a sheet of solar white cardstock using Matte Accents and worked out the air bubbles.
A branch with florals from Kim Hughes Silhouette Blooms I was stamped twice onto the dictionary sheet using Jet Black Archival Ink.
Next, Yellow Pastel and Traditional Tan were mixed, and water was added to thin out the paint - I needed the dictionary definitions to be visible through the paint, like a wash, so water is very necessary.
Positively Pink and Dab of Yellow were mixed with water, and applied in vertical streaks on the dictionary sheet.
Last mix was Sky Blue and Dab of Yellow - this was mixed with water, and also applied in vertical streaks to the dictionary sheet.
I allowed the streaks to dry minimally...
...then blotted gently with a paper towel.
The branches image stamped onto the dictionary page created an elegant, desirable look; however, the striking black was too visually predominant for a sympathy card, which I needed. To tone down the black I applied small dots of Dab of Yellow paint directly from the container using a dull pencil point (one could use any dull point, even a toothpick with the tip snapped off, to create the dots, would work very well).
'With Sympathy' is from the same set as the branches, and the altered dictionary sheet was trimmed, then matted with Licorice cardstock. A Memory Box Parsley card base was used, and a silk ribbon bow completes the card front.
The card interior: the branches image, stamped in a soft celery ink, with a snippet of the altered dictionary sheet as a mantle for the verse (Verses Stamp Company).
One can also use the paint directly from the containers and blend onto cardstock:
Using these paints (see photo above, left) and swiping solar white cardstock in a horizontal fashion with a brush, I blended using a small amount of water directly on the cardstock, to create the effect of the ocean.
The result: a 5x7 scrapbook page to coordinate with a photo.
Aside from these easy and quick uses of Studio Paints, they are easy to use and control to color in images, either with a deep concentration of color or watered down and applied as a wash. This post merely touches ever so lightly on the multitude of techniques and wonderful effects these paints can create!
