Stacy's Pick

Who can resist the unique and inspiring look of watercolor? 
Not me.

I LOVE the ethereal imperfection and the airiness in the colors as they bump into each other—which seems almost impossible, right? air bumping into more air?? Anyway, if you have ever wanted to take a really great and thorough class and trade in your watercolor wannabe for a smug sense of artistic flair, I've got a deal for you! Ok, so there's no deal other than our super awesome subscription program, but this class may justify your investment for months to come. It's that good. 

5 Ways to Use Watercolor

Is taught by the very talented Suzy Plantamura, a long time designer/teacher in the paper crafting industry. The thing I love most about Suzy's class is how comprehensive it is. There are 5 lessons, each with a lengthy video packed with expert tips, how-to demonstrations and projects. Suzy outlined the lessons on her blog, so I've borrowed her descriptions here ...

Lesson One
Products you need to watercolor. This is a review of all of the different paints, brushes, and papers available and charts showing the color selections for each. I review how the paints do in a wet wash as a comparison and give my recommendations in each price range.

Lesson Two
Watercolor washes. Here I show each type of watercolor wash and how to do it. I have a lot of projects using each type in use. Watercolor washes are great for card and layout backgrounds and are so fun to make!

Lesson Three
Using your stamps with watercolors. I'll show you several projects using stamps I have on hand. I teach some different techniques using stamps including emboss resist and masking.

Lesson Four
Watercolor lettering. I show how to do brush lettering with watercolors. I show different ways to use your watercolors for layout titles or decorative quotes. I love this part of the class as I can't get enough of forming letters with a brush and paints - inexpensive and therapeutic too!

Lesson Five
Painting florals into wreaths. I show lots of wreaths I have painted and a video on how to paint florals. If you aren't into drawing your own, I also show ways to use your flower stamps to make wreaths.

And, the thing about each of these lessons is that you can do them in any order you like. I suggest starting with lesson one as either an introduction or review of the various tools, watercolor mediums and papers, and then jump to whatever excites you the most. For me, it's lesson four, where I can watch Suzy do amazing lettering projects and layout titles with watercolors—I was seriously mesmerized—I just can't say enough good about the instructor or the instruction. 

I'll sign off today with a peek at what Anna Isabel Fernández, who lives in Spain created ...

and what Caylee Gray, living in Germany said ...

I used to be afraid of watercolours and think I'd never be able to control them beyond the basics. Past tense. Suzy has given me such confidence in this medium. She has such a wonderful teaching manner, and is kind and soft. There are so many great ideas in this class, and Suzy is so lovely that I often had to pause her video right in the middle of it because I was so excited to creative something. Glorious class.

Glorious class. I agree.