Colouring with Alcohol Markers – Casually Crafting March Blog Hop…

Clean and simple can be a challenge for me but I think I might have ‘Snailed It’ with this gorgeous card showcasing colouring with alcohol markers. This amazing stamp set is perfect for the casual crafter because all you need are the stamps, some Memento black ink, some card and some alcohol markers.

The Casually Crafting Design Team has expanded this month, and gone global too, so there are loads of project ideas for you to hop through – how exciting! However, we remain a group of Independent Stampin’ Up Demonstrators who want to share our take on Casual Crafting with you, keeping things fun and achievable for all.

I have used 4 colours of Stampin Blends for this project, Rich Razzleberry, Flirty Flamingo, Granny Apple Green and Gray Granite. The Stampin’ Blends quickly became my marker of choice because there are two markers per pack, so the light and dark tones are perfectly matched for you, making colouring an absolute dream. They also have a really useable bullet nib and a gorgeous brush tip which can be used for large areas or really small fine areas too, using the point.

When you colour with alcohol markers, you need to use a water/dye/pigment based ink, so that the alcohol doesn’t react with it. So yes to Memento and no to Staz On. You can do so much with alcohol markers but today we will focus on basic colouring. I am actually running a course at the moment teaching so many wonderful techniques, and will be running this again later in the year in case you are interested in learning more. There is a form at the bottom of the page if you would like more details.

I stamped the mushroom in Memento Black ink onto a piece of Basic White card measuring 9.5cm x 13.5cm and then coloured it in with my Blends. Can you see on the mushroom how I have faded it away into white, using the colour lifter, where the sun would be shining on to it? I did this by first colouring the base with the dark marker, then blending it into the light marker but leaving some white space at the top. I used the colour lifter to blend the light marker into the white, giving me a real depth of tone.

The snail is stamped in Memento Black ink onto a scrap of white card, coloured in and then fussy cut out. With the shell, I used the darker of the two markers to colour in the outer edge of the spiral, starting from the middle and working out, a section at a time. I used the light marker to blend this into the middle, giving a lovely finish to the shell I think. One of my biggest tips to colouring with alcohol markers it to work in small sections and to work fast, before the ink dries completely.

I didn’t use dimensionals on this card (I know – shock horror!!) because I just wanted it to lie flat for postage really, but you could easily raise him up to add some height to your card. Some simple stamped and coloured in hearts, some basic rhinestones and a strip of Designer Series Paper finish off my simple yet effective card showcasing colouring with alcohol markers.

Don’t forget to come back after you have finished the hop to purchase any of the products that you may want to create these projects, or to request more information about my next Stampin’ Blends course, but for now, enjoy hopping and seeing what the rest of the Casually Crafting Design Team have been creating this month. I can’t wait to see what projects they have for you!!

Until next time – Happy Stamping xx

Interested in learning more about using Alcohol Markers?

I will be running another Stampin’ Blends Course later this year, probably starting in August and running for four lessons, one every six weeks. We will cover things such as basic blending and shading, no-line colouring, using pencils and markers together, creating skin tones and many other techniques too. If you would like more information about this course, please fill in the form below and I will gladly be in touch in the not too distant future with more details.