Copic Marker Tulips are Completed

Hello, Friends!

Today, I have colored the same image of tulips that I shared yesterday.  This time, I only used Copic Markers to color them. 

Here are the tulips I shared with you yesterday which have a Copic Marker base to the tulips and then were colored with colored pencils on top.  The leaves were entirely colored with colored pencils.

Here are the two cards, side by side so you can compare them.  Feel free to go back to the larger images if you want to inspect something more closely.

So, now that they're both done, what do you think?

I wanted to make the two cards as similar as possible to each other.  The actual tulip flowers are very similar in color.  I wanted to use greens that were also close to the same color, but as you can tell that didn't work out!  I wanted to use three colors of green pencils and three colors of green Copics, so these were my choices.  I kept the shading very similar on both cards.  I used the same white cardstock and pink base cardstock for both cards.  Due to the difference in greens, I couldn't use the same shade for the mats.  When you are trying to decide which technique you like the best, try not to let your favorite green shades influence your opinion.  

As you can tell, the colored pencil on the left is not as smooth looking as the Copic Markers on the right.  When I colored it, I didn't use any other method to blend my pencils other than using the pencils themselves.  I could have used Gamsol or baby oil or other products that blend the pencil colors together which I believe would have made it look smoother.  However, after spending all of that time coloring, I didn't want to take a chance of messing it up using a new product for the first time!  I will color a smaller image with colored pencils and then try using Gamsol to blend them and will show you the results this month.

The Copic Marker tulips were definitely much faster to create than the colored pencil ones.  This could be for a few reasons.  One of which is that I have a lot more experience with Copics.  However, the other is that it just takes a lot longer to lay down colors and blend them with the pencils than it does the markers.  The alcohol ink in Copics is made to naturally blend together easily.  As soon as your paper is saturated with ink, the colors begin to blend very easily.  Colored pencils never just begin to blend on their own.  You have to "force" them to blend by layering more and more colors on top of each other and coloring over what you have already colored repeatedly until you have the shading done the way you would like.  

I personally don't have a favorite.  I like them both, even though they do have very noticable differences.  Do you have a favorite?  

Have you ever altered an envelope to go with a card you have created?

That was Papertrey Ink's Challenge on their blog back on March 7th which you can see here.  I had intended to just stamp the outline of my tulips on an envelope to make it match my card.  Unfortunately, I forgot about this and took my tulip stamp set upstairs.  A second trip up and down the stairs is way too painful so I had to get creative!  I cut a piece of PTI patterned paper that matched the pink cardstock that I used for my base into a liner for my envelope.  This pretty floral print with make an extra surprise for the person who receives and opens my card.  

I'm also entering my Copic tulips into Kathy Rascoosin's 30 Day Coloring Challenge.  

I'll see you again tomorrow with more cards for Papertrey Ink's Challenges they've been hosting over the past several days!

Happy Stamping!

I used the following products to make my 

Copic Marker Tulips Card and Altered Envelope: 

Friendship Jar Spring Fillers Stamp Set by Papertrey Ink

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad by Tsukineko

Copic Markers

Solar White 80 lb. Cardstock by Neenah

Sweet Blush Cardstock by Papertrey Ink

Elf Green Cardstock by My Favorite Things

Sweet Blush Pattern Pack of Paper by Papertrey Ink

MISTI by My Sweet Petunia 

A2 Envelopes by Die Cuts with a View