Quotes and Coloring with Kirsten!

Hello again! I am excited about the project I'm sharing with you this week as it combines two of my favorite things. Hand-lettered quotes and beautifully designed stencils. The supplies I used are my Art Journal, black water-proof pigment ink pens (like Faber-Castell Pitt Pens), Cathedral Series Four-Stencil Set, Derwent Inktense watercolor pencils (or the Inktense Blocks), small paint brush, pencil and a kneaded eraser.

First step is tracing the stencil into the paper to make the decorative border. Please notice that I am tracing a portion of the stencil first and then rotating the stencil and tracing a different part. This ends up making a symmetrical design that looks elegantly complicated. The magic of the Cathedral stencils!! Try "rearranging" the way you use your stencil images. Happy accidents will abound. 

Next comes the hand lettered quote. I turned to my trusty Pinterest board devoted to inspiring words and chose quotes that weren't too long. Using my pencil and kneaded eraser (because it erases cleanly, without smudges) I penciled in my words until I got to a general composition that I liked. Then I used my pigment pen again to ink in my letters and build them up with angles, thick and thin lines, and little embellishments. 

Final step is the color!! Grab your watercolor pencils or Inkstense blocks, choose complementary colors and begin filling in various parts of the design. The Cathedral series is inspired by stained glass windows so I wanted to use vibrant colors to convey that idea. Be sure to layer different shades of color to add depth. Don't worry about filling in the space completely with color. When you use a damp brush to "activate" the pigment you can smooth it out and fill in all the nooks and crannies. Gorgeous!

This project was kinda like making your very own coloring page. How trendy of us! Haha! As you can see from this picture I had Bob along for maximal creative zen relaxation. 

Happy creating!

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