Saturday, April 23, 2016

Neon Bookmarks and Fun Accesories!

Hello friends and happy weekend to you! Today I've been playing and having fun making bright and funky bookmarks with a twist--they all glorify Jesus! I decided a while ago that realizing, receiving and learning about God's love is pretty much the coolest thing ever! And it is never boring, that's for sure! I also believe that everything beautiful in this world is a gift from God. So why not celebrate our Lord and Savior's love with some of His colors of the rainbow--in the form of Design Memory Craft Gelatos, that is! :)
I made these bookmarks to give out to friends from a group I'm in called Faith Art Happy Mail. I sure hope these brighten someone's day as much as making them brightened mine!
I'm also sharing these over at PaperCrafter's Corner for the Take A Chance Day Challenge!
I had fun coloring with my Gelatos and blending them in different ways to get a variety of looks. I've also been comparing how the colors look when air dried verses how they look when dried using a heat tool. I like both ways for different reasons. Air drying makes for a more naturally blended watercolor look while using a heat tool allows for more control of where your color is going to go and how it will blend. I like to use a heat tool when I've water-blended the color because I can move the color around with the heat to create really cool swirls and beautifully distinct color that isn't muddled.  On the other hand, if I'm blending the color with my finger only and no water, it's movable but more dry, so there's no need for a heat tool. Keep in mind that I always put a layer of white Gesso over my bare cardstock and let it dry completely before coloring with Gelatos or any coloring medium.  This is a must unless you are working with watercolor or Gesso-prepped specialty paper. ;)
The above stamp is from Unity Stamp Co. and it's several years old. I found it and thought it went perfectly with the rainbow of color. Here are just a few of my favorite colors. The metallic ones have a shimmer that I love and I use them often because of that shimmer. They all create such a creamy, rich and beautiful color.  I never tire of coloring with my Gelatos!
Here's a sample of the dry-blend technique before blended...more control, less mess...
And sample of the water-blend technique...more messy and yes, more fun...
Art is such a wonderful and exciting journey. I love finding out where it's going to take me!
Here's a couple more bookmarks I made with different looks.  One was dry embossed, then colored with Gelatos, then water-blended with my finger, then dried half with a heat tool and half air dry. I also made a few fun accessories with scraps! :)  
Thanks so much for stopping by today! Wishing you a creative and blessed weekend!

5 comments:

Diane Noble said...

So beautiful, Linsey! How do you apply the gelatos to your papers? Direct to paper then water? No water? something else. I'm still learning to use mine and experimenting. Hope to work with them later today in fact. Love your sweet projects. Love your heart! Blessings on this beautiful Lord's day.

Jeanie Ellis - Scrapbookingmamaw said...

I love these! I'm still trying to learn Gelatos! Blessings!
www.scrapbookingmamaw.blogspot.com

Stampsnob. said...

Loving these Lis

Jean said...

Gorgeous!!

jordanbev5@yahoo.com said...

Rainbow of beauty!