Signs of Spring for Watercolor Weekend

We're still enjoying wintery weather around here, but I decided to paint up a spring scene for this week's Watercolor Weekend on the Art Impressions blog.

 Using the Wellies from the 5194 - WC Shoe Set, I inked them in Tombow Dual Brush Marker #565 Deep Blue, stamped the image on scrap paper and then reinked it with #N45 Cool Grey 10 before stamping it on my Canson XL Watercolor Paper.  I masked the boots, and then stamped the large watering can from 5012 - WC Wishing Well Mini Set in 565/N45, positioning it about 1/2" higher so that it would appear to be behind the boots, with the help of my Stamp Positioner.  I used a damp #4 Paintbrush to soften the lines, and pull out the colour, keeping it concentrated in the areas that would be shadowed, or darkest.  Using a pencil, I sketched in where I wanted my polkadots to be, and with my #905 Red marker, I coloured them in, and touched them with a damp brush.

 I used 4 of the flowers from 5008 - WC Flower Set 3, and after masking the boots, I stamped them with #245 Sap Green on the stems/leaves, and coloured the blooms in #933 Orange, #755 Rubine Red, and #905 Red.  I added the ferns from 5126 - WC Foliage Set 4 coloured in #249 Hunter Green. To create the cobblestones, I masked the boots and watering can, then inked up the image from the retired Market set (I liked the design of it, but you could use 5018 - WC Cobblestone Set!) in N45, using my Stamp Positioner to get it just right.  I used a damp paintbrush to pull out the colour, and picked up #565 from my palette to add in shadows on and around the boots and can, and in between the cobblestones.  I used my #126 Light Olive marker directly on the paper to add in the grass, tucking little bits of it in between the stones.  I picked up #443 Turquoise from my palette and painted in the boots, going carefully around the dots, and keeping the front of them white to indicate that they're shiny.  I used the same blue to paint in the sky.

My scene was cut out with 5062 Rounded Rectangle A5 Double Stitched Dies, and matted with a dark brown.  I picked some patterned paper to show off the blue of the boots and used some bright orange thread to zigzag stitch the papers together with my sewing machine onto the base.  I used a sentiment from 5136 - WC Sentiment Set 2 and stamped it with Versafine Onyx Black Ink onto some watercolor paper that I die cut with the small tag from 5132 Tag Stitched Dies, and added a Baker's Twine bow.