Ginivir’s Alba Layout

 

Materials

 

• Patterned paper (Kesi’art)

• Watercolour paper 20 x 20 cm, plus some off-cuts

• Flat-tipped paintbrush

• White gesso

• Plastic spatula or paint spreader (you can use an old shopping loyalty card)

• Watercolour paints (Scrapbuttons 100% Artistique)

• Watercolour brush, fine-tipped paintbrush

• Modelling paste

• Double-sided sticky tape, tacky glue, sticky foam pads

• Adhesive dots, resin flowers

• Die cutting dies (Kesi’art, Memory Box, Big Shot)

 

Instructions

 

Start with your patterned paper and your sheet of watercolour paper. Position the watercolour paper on top of the patterned paper and decide where you will want to stick it when you are ready to do so. You should position it to one side slightly out of alignment with the patterned paper so that the edges stick out by a small amount.

 

Set aside the watercolour paper and apply a layer of transparent gesso to the portion of the patterned paper which will not be covered by the watercolour paper. Dry thoroughly.

 

Next put the watercolour paper back in place, sticking it down with double-sided sticky tape. Cut off the sections of watercolour paper which stick out over the edges of the patterned paper.

 

Decide where you will want to place your photo then put it to one side. Use your paint spreader (or old shopping loyalty card) to spread on some white gesso in the area where the photo will go, but make the area of gesso larger than the photo. Hold your card at a fairly flat angle in order to get a good textural effect. Dry thoroughly again.

 

Choose a stencil and position it in the same area of your page, then spread a section of it with modelling paste, using your card again. Dry your work then repeat the process with a second stencil so that you have an appealing contrast between the two patterns. Dry again!

 

Make a selection of a few die cutting dies and use them to cut out shapes from watercolour paper with a Big Shot, or other die cutting machine. Choose the cut-outs that you want to include and consider how you will want to arrange them around your photo.

 

Get out some watercolour paints in the same range of colours as you have in your photo and your patterned paper, then use then to add some colour to the sections of pattern that you applied with modelling paste. Use fine-tipped paintbrushes or watercolour brushes. Play around a bit with the amount of water that you use and the way you mix your colours. Add some little splashes of colour at the edges of the area by soaking the tip in paint then flicking the brush gently against the page. While you leave this to dry, go back to your watercolour paper cut-outs and colour them with the same watercolour paints. Dry them also.

 

Go back to your background page and arrange your photo and your coloured cut-outs how you want them on the page. Use sticky foam pads to stick down the photo and a die cut ampersand symbol (&).

 

Use your watercolour paints to add an outline of colour to your stuck on elements in order to highlight them, as though you are adding shadow but using colour. Add some more touches of colour to any places which seem too light or which need livening up. Make some more little splashes of colour, but make sure you protect the photo as you do so.

 

Take some more watercolour paper and cut out the words which will form the title on your page then colour them with watercolour paints. Position them and then stick them onto the page with one of the words on the photo. If the words don’t stand out enough then add some more highlights to them with your watercolours.

 

Glue on the dots and the resin flowers. Using a pink felt tip pen, draw an outline around two small labels and write your journal entries on it, such as the date etc. Use a lead pencil to add another line around the edges of the labels. Then use the pencil to put an outline around the words stuck onto your photo, blurring this outline slightly with a rubber eraser.

 

 

Tips

 

The layer of transparent gesso allows you to work more easily with watercolours on patterned paper. Without it your paint will not adhere evenly to the page.

 

Don’t hold back when you are making watercolour paper cut-outs; it is always useful to have some spares!

 

When you are working with watercolour paints experiment a bit with the variables – the amount of water, the absorbency of the paper, the size of the paintbrush etc. You could also try adding some bolder touches of colour on top of areas of paint which have not yet dried; the colours will merge and bleed into each other and giving an appealing effect.

 

Use your watercolour paints to emphasise the textures you have added to your page with modelling paste.

 

The composition of my photo lent itself to a layout which opened up towards the top and right side of the page. Depending on your photo, or your aesthetic sense, you may wish to reorient the page to have the appearance of opening out in a different direction.