Hello and happy Sunday, Joy Clair fans! Cathy here, with today’s card.  This one features the 4×6 stamp set, Hey Pumpkin – which is available in the Joy Clair Designs Store.  The fall season is quickly approaching where I live in MN, so the change in colors outside is reflected in the cards I am making inside! The collection of pumpkins from the Hey Pumpkin set just begs to be colored, so I pulled out my markers to jump into fall and try a little bit of realistic coloring with my Copics!

Coloring with Copics

First off, I stamp an image multiple times to allow me to “play” around with color choices, design, and shading. The September Mood Board influenced my card, so I knew the pumpkins would reflect that palette.  Once I made color choices, I needed to figure out where those colors went.  A variety of questions popped into my head as I colored: Should I put the orange pumpkin in the center or the side? What if I add green to the center of the sunflower?  How can I increase the contrast and shading in my coloring?  Do I want to use YR or R01 to add depth to the sunflower?  Having a “draft” image (or two) gives me the freedom to play around and experiment with these questions like these.  Then, when I am satisfied, I color on my “good” image.

One of my “try-it-out” images

Adding Colored Pencils

Finally, I bring out my Prismacolor Premier colored pencils to add another layer of shading and highlights.  If my coloring seems “off”, it’s often because I don’t have enough contrast from the light to dark of any given color.  Using colored pencils as a final touch can helps me achieve the contrast and variation I am looking for.

Close-up of more realistic coloring with Copics and colored pencils in the finished image

This close up zooms in on my final coloring.  I added white colored pencil for highlights and Dark Purple Prismacolor pencil (#PC931) to deepen the shaded areas of the pumpkin and the berries.  If you scroll up to the whole card, take a look at blue pumpkin, Can you spot dark blue?  If you do, it’s Prismacolor Indigo Blue (#PC901). I rarely have a card that doesn’t use these two colors.  They are workhorses in my collection of colored pencils.  Additionally, Light Umber (#PC941)and White (#PC938) for the off-white pumpkin.

Coloring the image is just the first step in making my card!! The final steps are fussy-cutting the image, choosing a sentiment, and selecting patterned papers from my collection.  You can find more examples of this kind of realistic coloring with Copics and Prismacolored pencils on my blog or IG page.

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Thanks for taking a closer peek at my card.  I hope you are able to make time to be creative in the coming days! ~Cathy