Retro Shop for Watercolor Weekend

It's time for Watercolour Weekend with Art Impressions!  I was aiming for a bit of a 'retro' feel with today's project - using a softer, muted palette for my scene:

I stamped my Cafe image from 5260 - WC Large Shops Set in Tombow Dual Brush marker #969 Chocolate on my Canson XL watercolor paper.  I used my damp #4 paintbrush to soften the lines, and primarily pulled the colour out and away from the image, which gave a soft brownish halo to the shop - like a 'sepia-toned vintage photo' appearance.  I almost left it that way, but this is when I decided to use a very muted, pale colour palette.  I chose #076 Green Ochre (despite the name, it's a golden yellow shade) and painted a soft wash of it as the shop colour, and stamped it with the tiny dotted flower image from 5009 - WC Mini Flower Set to fill my flower boxes.  A stronger shade of it was used to paint in the door.

I chose #772 Blush to paint in the sign, and add the stripes to the awning.  A very watered-down version of #526 True blue was used for the window boxes and painted in as the sky.  The flowers needed to stand out a little more, so using the finer tip of my #312 Holly Green - I added the tiny little bits of foliage directly on my paper.  I painted it in as a suggestion of the grass, and some shrubbery, then used the marker to draw in a few blades of grass.  With #992 Sand, I painted in the walkway, and added a little colour to the roof.  I picked up a very watered down version of #565 Deep Blue from my palette, and used it to paint shadows on the chimney, under the eaves, stairs and planter boxes - and also painted shadows into the windows.  I made sure to leave plenty of white space on the windows to imitate the reflections in the glass.    

Lastly, I stamped the Cafe sign using #969, then used Memento Rich Cocoa ink to stamp in the sentiment from 5136 - WC Sentiment Set 2.  The scene was diecut with the 5063 - Rectangle Double Stitched Dies, mounted on a soft kraft cardstock and added to the background I'd chosen of some muted/retro papers.  I am always drawn to strong, bright colours - so this was very out of my comfort zone!  I recommend trying something new whenever you can (it's a great way to get yourself out of a rut, and off in a new direction!).  

Be sure to check out the Art Impressions blog this Saturday, to see what Dot & Tricia have to share.