Watercolour cards - my first post!

I bought a couple of journals several weeks ago, but I've been reluctant to use them in fear of ruining them. I think they are too nice to mess up! How sad is that?  I feel I have to work on my skills before I feel confident enough to put that first brush stroke in an actual journal.

So instead, I bought some good quality watercolour paper, which I cut into smaller pieces to experiment with. This way, I didn't need to feel intimidated by the size of the design and if I messed one up (it did happen!), I just moved onto the next card, no harm done. I find this very liberating.  An A4 sheet makes 8 cards. They are slightly bigger than an ATC at around 3X4 inches. I'm thinking I can probably use these as inserts in my future journals.

Let me share the images of some of these cards with you:

I kinda like them. I think they look better on screen than in real life though - somehow the colours are more vibrant, thanks to Photoshop.  For these cards, I first drew a rough outline with a pencil and then painted them with watercolours, letting the colours blend. I waited for this to dry before painting the background. At this point, it's not much to look at, but as soon as you add the black and white sketchy pen outlines, the designs pop.

I also painted the back of the cards with a strong watercolour wash and just let the colours mingle.  Here's a peek at some of them:

I am quite happy with the results. I'm sure I will be making some more of these. They would also make great bookmarks.

Here's a list of products used in this project:

Daler Rowney Aquafine aquarelle artists watercolour SMOOTH pad A4 hot pressed

Winsor & Newton - Cotman Water Colour 12 Half Pan Sketchers' Pocket Box

Staedtler pigment liner fineliner technical drawing pen set of 6 assorted line widths

Uniball Signo UM153 White Gel Pen