How to Make Watercolor Business Cards in 4 steps!
Ok confession time = I'm so, so awful at committing to a business card design. I love places like Moo.com that let you print multiple images within the same card order, but even still I end up redesigning/reordering before I've used up the pack. Maybe not the best use of my finances. Prettiest, sure... most responsible? No.
SO to combat my obsessive re-designing habits (which is oddly limited to just business cards, I'm fine with most things for years...) I decided to come up with a way to print exactly what I wanted, in a way that I could adjust whatever, whenever I wanted.
(The key is small batch runs, of course - but I'm fairly sure no print shop will do a run of 24 cards every 2-3 weeks. Though, if you find one, please, let me know.)
Here is a little tutorial that details the steps I took to make my small run of cards, which will invariably change by next month. But for now, I'm in love.
1.) PAPER
It's SUPER important to get good, thick paper. Flimsy business cards are cheap looking and get folded and lost easily. If I'm handing someone my card, I want it to survive in their wallet/pocket.
I used Cold-Pressed Innova watercolor paper for mine. (For the paper nerds: 315gsm.) It's gorgeous for business cards.
2.) DESIGN
I printed my minimal, basic design onto the paper, careful to make sure the paper is perfectly aligned for the printer and no margin in-between cards. No margin will make cutting the cards easier and will generate less waste. Woo smaller footprint!
3.) PAINT
Once I had the 'business' side printed, I flipped the page on it's back, taped it down and went at it willy-nilly with my favorite pigment at the moment: indigo. Just a heads up, if you use the Innova paper it will buckle significantly during this step, but rest assured the paper relaxes once dried. (I panicked, so you don't have to!)
4.) CUT (after it dries, of course)
I used my trusty cutting board for this job, aligning the grid with the cutting wire.
5.) Celebrate!
And that's it! With the right paper, it's easy to create professional, unique business cards that can be produced for cents and redone in a heartbeat.
This is what I got out of one sheet of paper. They'll go into orders, to friends, to the random people I meet at the bar that ask me why my hands are covered in blue paint...
Have a great rest of the week friends!
New Work : Currents - 8 x 10 Abstract Watercolor
I finished this new edition to the Water Series last week; Currents -- painted on an 8 x 10 primed canvas.
Inspired by the gentle churn of the water, waves lapping at the shore, and the rhythmic inhale and exhale of the tides, this painting was a meditation on the raw strength and serene beauty of ocean.
Prints will be available shortly and the original will be posted for sale on Chairish.
Have a wonderful weekend friends!
Autumn ; My Season of Renewal
I live for the fall. The crisp chill of morning, the snuggle of warm socks on cold ground, and the heat from the day’s first coffee sinking into my hands positively awakens my soul.
Autumn is my season of renewal.
Perhaps I owe it to 17 years of in the school system; treating fall as the start of the “New Year.” Supplies were bought, promises to myself to do better, to do more than last year were made. And I suppose, all this stuck.
As soon as the temperature begins to dip I fly into school-mode. New sketchbooks are purchased, lists, goals and projects are mapped out and explored, and I find myself throughly happy to examine and re-examine last year’s progress.
Forget January 1st, this is my time for resolutions.
And pumpkin spice (whatever, I’m basic, so what.)
And knee-socks (even though I live in Miami.)
And hot spiced wine.
And most especially, LOTS of painting.
Here’s to the seasons that resonate within us -- be it autumn, winter, spring or summer, and spur us to create the work of our souls.
Much Love and Warmth <3
A Moment to Breathe
Every so often, I need a reset.
This time we took off for the serene landscape of Northern Michigan; the crunch of the dunes, the smell of deep cedar forests (yes, just like in California*) and that glorious chilled morning air that always seems to snap my thoughts back into focus.
We may not live in a time of fairy god mothers and magical rejuvenation spells, but the feeling of a warm, full coffee mug in my barely-awakened hands as I step out into the brisk morning air is close enough for me.
The mornings were spent sketching, the days spent hiking and the nights spent eating and intermittently falling asleep on the couch. It was brilliant.
Towards the end of our time in the pinky-finger portion of the state I took up residence by the cafe on the beach. It was off-season, so I had the whole lovely sun-warmed patio to myself. Well, myself and the yellow-jackets... they were rather persistent.
I started this painting before leaving Miami, but was stuck as to how to complete it. Sitting here, swatting the wasps away I saw the palette I'd use to finish it up.
The week spent in Glen Arbor MI was just beautiful, affording me a chance to renew and reenergize my thoughts about my work.
...And to eat enough whitefish pate to drown a man.
And now that I'm fully unpacked, photos are backed up and sketches are preserved I'm ready to start work on all the new ideas I had whilst holding that scalding coffee mug.
Michigan, you are all right in my book.
Fire on the Mountain - Commission
Happy pre-Weekend!
We're battening down the hatches for the arrival of tropical storm Erika (fingers crossed it STAYS a storm!) but in the meantime I was able to finish up two commissions for a wonderful friend out in CA.
Fire on the Mountain I and 2 will be packed up and shipped out on Monday (barring any storm-related delays!)
This was a lovely project to work on and I can't wait to see pictures of the paintings in their new homes <3
Wishing everyone a wonderful (and dry!) weekend!