What Color did I use?

Before I get into the next background technique I wanted to touch breifly on something that may help many of you. You're digging through old artwork and you come across one that was colored with markers a while ago. Looking back at it now you think, "Wow. I really did a bad job coloring. I wish I could fix it."

You can! I mentioned a while ago that you can come back at any time and re-work old pictures. I briefly mentioned my method but I want to cover it in depth so I can build on it later. The first question to ask is-

What color did I use?
Hopefully you were good and you wrote down what you used. Build good habits now and it will help you in the future.

Plan ahead - Write it down
If you find yourself always looking at something and wondering what colors that you used then you should probably write them down. It's been a while since I plugged keeping an example book or a swatch book, so I'm going to remind you again- Keep a book with color combos you like / don't like. You'll never remember them all. As an artist that scans in all my work I can just write things off to the side so it's always there. I've talked to stampers who get into the habit of always stamping two copies- one for their project and if it comes out good then they color a second copy to keep in their example book.

A simple way to know your colors is to write it lightly on the back of your picture with a pencil. That way it won't detract from the beauty of the front. Especially if you're coloring a large stack of pictures and you have to stop in the middle- you'll know what the last color you used was.

Then, I keep two separate example books for papercrafting (my other example books are broken down by category- Fine Art, Manga, or Blog). I have one book with just techniques and one book filled with color combos. Next to each picture I wrote down what works or not so I don't forget (these Jeans are original art, not a stamp).

Example books for teachers or stores
For those of you who teach workshops, having little example books is invaluable. Class participants can flip through and get ideas or "recipies" on how you made a picture look the way it does. Then, if you find them always asking "oooh, how did you do this one?" you have a good idea of what to cover in your next workshop. I can't tell you how many times people have asked if they could take photos of my example books so they can remember a technique. If you make one yourself then you'll remember better what you did to get that look.

For store owners, having a simple technique or color combo book next to your display is a great way to help people who come into the store get more ideas on how to use the markers. These books don't have to be elaborate- just a few examples held together with a ring is usually enough, though more detailed books are inviting too. Whatever you make, make sure it's attached, since these have a tendency to wander off when you're not looking.

I forgot what color I used
For the pictures that you forgot the colors you used here are a few solutions.

1. Trial and error. On a similar paper scribble a bit and see what color it could be. In many cases I layered colors so I don't know what I used. When you test, test with a single swatch and test with an area you colored twice. This helps you know the range of one marker color, from it's lightest to it's darkest value. Then hold up your swatch and hopefully you'll find a match.

2. Use a hand-color chart. I know I've mentioned before, but if you haven't already started your own color chart, you should do so now. Go to the Copic Library and download our chart. Print this on the paper you use most frequently so your colors are most accurate. Then fill in what colors you have. That way you know.

Karen Lockhart, of Lockhart Stamp Co, took her large color chart and punched a tiny hole through each color so she can easily match up Copic colors with papers, old artwork, or whatever she needs to match. Some people make their own spreadsheets in a format that is easy to line up to get an exact match.

Secondary Color Chart
I say take this another step. Make a secondary color chart with your favorite blends. All on a clean sheet of your favorite paper, in a list, as easy as the main chart. Then you have a quick reference (papercrafters- you should make your own charts using your favorite ink colors and paper combos, or you can just use my chart).

Remember when I show you a color spotlight and I show little blended swatches? Here's your chance to do the same. I made you a blank chart you can use and share. This is half-page size, so you can get two on a page when you copy it or scale it to whatever size works best for you.

To use this chart-
1. Print copies on your favorite paper. For best results make these on a laser printer or from a regular photcopier, unless you know that your printer's ink will not bleed with Copic Markers.
2. Fill in the color family at the top. For instance, Y or E
3. For each row of swatches, start on the left with your base color. In the following boxes make your blends. I included 3 spaces under each box. You can make two or 3 color blends, just write them down!

Don't think that you should only do the Natural Blends for each color. This is your chance to experiment with odd combos (Or check the sidebar for people like Debbie or Sharon who have their favorite combos listed). For the really dedicated user, you may wish to have a different chart for each color you own. With 322 colors, you can see that the colors to blend are limitless. Just be warned, your book of these combos might get pretty big.

Care for a hand-color chart
Be careful where you store your hand-color charts. When you're not using it, tuck it away out of the light. This keeps the dye from fading and your chart will last a long time. Our warehouse keeps a hand-colored chart out in the open since they need it so often. It needs to be replaced each year, since the palest colors fade from the lighting. If you need to have a color chart out in easy sight, put it in something that will protect it from the UV rays.

It's getting late, so I think I'd better stop for the night. This wasn't the exact direction I was planning on going, but I feel that organizing your colors can help you with your creative process. Have a great day!

Helpful Color Chart

Isolating Colors Chart
I hope you are having a great week! I was coloring a tutorial image for Tracing Memories outline, and I realized that a trick I use with attendees should probably be added to my blog.

An old trick artists use when they want to figure out what color something is, they isolate that color by looking through a card with a hole cut out of it. Then they can compare that one spot with the colors they are working with.

I know some people have taken their large Copic color charts and done something similar so they could identify color matches, by punching a small hole in each swatch. But, those charts are kinda small, and I don't have a long-arm small hole-punch. So, I made a special color chart that I wanted to share.

To make this easier for the class I'm working with, I created this helpful chart for 36 colors per half-page (72 colors per printout). This is set up so that you can punch the holes with a standard, single hole-punch.

To use this chart, right-click on the image and download it. Then, simply print it on your favorite marker paper and color in each rectangle with the colors you have. Write the color number next to it. Punch each hole. Then, line up the colored page with the area you are trying to color-match.

As you can see from this close-up of the dog photo, the grass is somewhere between G28 and G99. So, when I go to color, I will use a mix of those two colors. I actually want the grass a little lighter, so I threw some G24 into the picture first, then scribbled in G28 and G99.

For the lighter gray on the dog, my color guide told me that C2 is a good match. This is a really handy quick reference, especially if you have a hard time matching colors to the Copic color spectrum, or if you only have a limited range of colors and have a hard time figuring out which will match the best.

Here is the finished picture. I colored him with G24, G28, G99, YG11, YG13, YG17, G02, E33, E27, E49, 100, C2, C5, R85, and B41. instead of worrying about keeping the daisies white while coloring, I went back after I was done coloring and added them back in using Copic Opaque White. The original photo was taken by Chelsea Lowery, of her big dog, Rupert. He's such a cutie!

Matching Coloring

I was making a stack of thank you cards, and I had a wonderful polka-dot green paper that I really wanted to use. However, I also wanted to use a cute teddy-bear image, and I wanted to keep the bear brown.

Today I wanted to step you through my coloring process to find the matching colors to make my project work.

Finding Colors that match
The first problem I had was that my patterned paper did not have an exact color match with any Copic colors on my hand-drawn chart. I found that it was very close to BG72, but it needed to be a hair brighter, not lighter, simply more vibrant. To accomplish this, I chose another color that was very close to the paper tone, G12. G12 is a brighter, light green. As a base to the BG72 it would help pull down the grayness, but still retain the greenish cast that I needed.

When you are having trouble finding an exact color match, try the closed color, and see what it needs to change it. If it is too dull, layer a more vibrant tone. If your color needs more yellow, don't reach for a bright yellow, try a base of a subtle, but close yellow. Many times it will take two or even three colors blended to make the right mix.

I was going to be printing the sentiment, so I chose that color a little differently. I pulled out a color chart that I had printed from the same printer. I matched the patterned paper to the closest color from my printout, then I chose that color as my text color.

Matching the Bear
I really wanted a brown bear, and have the turquoise as my accent color. I like to work with one dominant color and two accent colors.

My other challenge, was that I had to make a few of these cards, so I wanted to keep the color spectrum simple, and one that I could easily color a bunch of without taking too much time. I like challenging myself by working with a simple color palette, and an image like this bear does not need a whole lot of colors.



I wanted a fairly neutral brown, so I decided to work with the E30/E40's families. I started with a base of E30.

Then, I blended in E44. Those are the only two browns I used on the bear. After I had blended in the E44, I let the bear dry thoroughly, and I went back and darkened the deepest shadows with the E44. I added the cast shadows on his arms, on his legs, and from the flower. These needed to be crisp on the edges, and for crisp edges, let your base colors dry.

However, these colors were flat, and did not match my paper or chosen accent colors at all. So, my next step was to pull out the G12 I liked. I lightly brushed the G12 over the brown bear, starting in the shadows and feathering over the light areas. I did not blend. Here it may look kind of odd, but remember, this bear will be sitting on greenish paper.

In real life, if this teddy bear were actually sitting on the greenish patterned paper, then any light that hit the green paper would reflect back onto his fur, with a bit of a greenish tone to it. Lightly adding the G12 allows me to pull the bear into the background a bit more, and suggests reflected light from the paper.


Last, I colored the patches with a base of G12 and BG72 for the shadows. The flower is colored with E04 and the E44.

Not shown: I used a gold Spica glitter pen to add my darkest shadows on the brown fur areas, and a silver glitter pen along the edges of the turquoise

I added extra reflection on his nose and the flower with a dab of Copic Opaque White.

Here are the final, very simple cards. Look at how the green, while strange on the bear by itself, now pulls the bear into the paper nicely.
















I think the cards are done. I may add a small accent under each sentiment, but at this point I am happy stopping. Now I get the fun of writing some thank yous!

Note that I only used 5 colors: E30, E44, E04, G12, and BG72. Accent with Opaque white, and two glitter pens. Now that is an easy image! Coloring didn't take very long, maybe 5 min. per image... which is what you want when making many cards. Paper is from Recollections Charming Paper Pad. I drew the bear with a 0.1mm Multiliner, then scanned it and printed it as needed. The bear is popped up with our X-press It Foam tape. I used Neenah Classic crest cardstock as a base, since it is slightly warmer than the Blending Card I usually color on for card projects.

Skin Colors - part 1

Since we are going to Anime Expo this week I am going to be covering some topics that are really important not just to stampers, but for the manga artists. The most common question
I get asked all the time- What is the best skin color?

The easy answer: E00, Skin White
The hard answer: It depends on what you consider a skin color. If you haven't noticed, people all over the world have different skin colors. E00 is our most popular skin color in America, since this is a generic pale Caucasian skin. The Natural Blending family for E00 would be E0000 + E00 + E02

These examples I'm showing today are from a special color chart I made last year for Anime Expo. At comic shows like this skin tones are VERY important, so it helps to compare and see what feel you want for your artwork. Just a word of caution, these colors look different on your screen than they do in real life. It is nearly impossible to get accurate skin colors on the computer from marker drawings because the skin colors are so subtle.

The first color groups are in pairs, so you can see that a good skin image has a highlight and a shadow.

Rule of thumb: The trick is to pick a base color, usually ending in 0 or 1, like E00. For a subtle shadow, keep the letter and first digit the same, but go about 2 digits higher, like E02. There are lots of "skin" colors, but here are the most common:

The first image shows the sequence E0000 to E04- basic Caucasian skin. See how each combination is just a hair darker than the one before? The pale colors look a little yellow on my screen, but the darker combo, E02 and E04 looks more correct. IRL, I consider these a hair too pink for adult skin, but otherwise, not a bad, all-purpose match for skin colors.

The next group are the E11 thru E15. I personally love the E11 as a shadow (see the 3 color combos at the end of this post), but as you can see, it makes a great base color too. It's a little darker than most Caucasians, and it has a bit more deep red, but as you get into the darker combos it looks authentic for Native Americans.

This next group includes E21, another good, all-purpose skin color. E25 is the next in the group, which is a large color jump (I really want a E23 someday!) E50 thru E53 are a close match for adult, slightly olive-skinned people. Another sequence I didn't show is the E53 + E55, a good, darker Eastern skin color combo. The E93-E95 group is very pink, so I probably would use these as shadows to other colors, not as skin by itself. They would also make good blush colors that are more earthy than R20 or R30.

The last group includes the YR's. The pale YR000 is a great, very light base skin color, but once you get up to YR02 it starts to get orange real quick. R000 also is a great super pale skin color (with the pink tone it almost looks unhealthy, transparent skin colored). Ro2, Flesh, is way too pink to use as a base skin color, though as a shadow, it's not bad. R02 is really close to flesh- not skin, but the flesh underneath.

These aren't bad as a quick representation of basic skin color groups, however, many of these look a little flat. To really punch up the dynamic colors in skin it helps to add a 3rd level if marker. This last bunch of faces show how 3 colors make skin really "Pop"

Look at the first two faces closely. The first color combo is my current favorite. However, by adding an R20 to the second face instead of the E11 it gives it just a hint of healthy pink, instead of deeper earthy shadows.

Look at the E11 + E13 + E15 face and compare it to the E11 + E13 and the E13 + E15 face above. See how using 3 colors makes it more exciting than just 2?

E25 + E27 + E29 is a great, deep African skin combo. Compared to the E13/E15 it has much less red. The olive-skinned E50's are really a lot more dynamic when you make a 3 color sequence by skipping one of the shades (E53). Do you see how using darker shadows makes the light seem brighter? Working with your own colors see what combos you can create.







So a quick rundown of each color:
Light Skin colors (these tend to end in 0 or 1)
E0000 (almost clear)
E000
E01
E50 (good neutral skin color)
R000 (pinkish)
R00
R01
YR000 (orangish)
YR00

Slightly darker
E02
E11
E21
E51
R02
YR01

Darker skin shadows
E04
E13
E53

Dark African Skin
E25 base, E27 shadows

Dark Native American Skin
E13 + E15 + E17

Eastern Skin
E51 + E53 + E55

Pale Western Skin
E50 + E51

Light, Pinkish Baby skin
E0000 + E00
E000 + E01
E00 + E02 (note how these three combos get a hair darker each time)
R000 + R01

Cheek Blush
overlay R20 or R30

Tomorrow I'll show different ways of coloring faces, from smooth to crisp, faded to sharp. Have a great week!

Shadows Part 7- Adding gray to colors

Today I'm adding more to our ongoing discussion about the nature of shadows. To see all parts so far, just click on the "shadows" label at the end of this post. If you didn't read yesterday's post or follow the link to the Gamblin Oil Paints video I really strongly recommend you do so now. I know color theory seems like kind of a drag, but it will help your artwork look better.

Yesterday when I talked about the tone of shadows, I want you to know, there is no right or wrong answer- either shadow works. Art is a matter of personal taste, so if it looks right to you then it's right. If you want to make things that "look right" all the time then go into math :)

About Shadows...
True shadows are about two shades darker of the base color. They are not black- you can still see the color underneath.

However, true shadows also add a hint of gray. Color is how much light is reflected back to the eye, so if some of that light is blocked by a shadow then the color must not be as vibrant.

This expands upon the Natural blending families rule (more so in some color families than others) but it is not quite as straight forward as following a sequence of numbers to do your shadows. Now you're thinking, why did you go through all that effort to teach us to pick markers in groups when we are now going to break those rules??

Look at the series Y11, Y13, Y15, Y17, Y19. All of these are super vibrant yellows. Yes you could color a shirt that would look shaded with these yellows but the difference in a Natural Blending group is the density of dye. Y11 has fewer yellow particles than Y15, and Y15 has fewer than Y19. For most blending groups it's a matter of dye density when you go from digit to digit (this is why you can usually layer a color twice to get it one shade darker)

In real life though, if I were wearing a yellow shirt and you were adding shadows you would be adding gray and denser dye particles. So, you can add believable shadows in a few ways:

1. Layer on a gray that would go with that color family. In this case Y11 could be shadowed with W's or T's, since all three families are warmish. Keep the last digits the same for light colors or 1-2 shades darker. Test layering the next yellow in the sequence only, layering a gray only, and then layering both for shadows. Which do you think looks better? Remember, it's YOUR artwork, so if you like the look then it works (there are no absolutes with art). By adding gray (W3) and some denser yellow particles from the same family (Y15) it looks more natural.

2. Add gray by moving deeper into the Copic color wheel (the deeper in, the more it gets gray). The next family in is the Y20's, a slightly more muted yellow family. Try layering Y23 or Y28 over your Y11. Now how does it look? For this I added the denser bright yellow (Y15), and then jumped to deep shadows from the next blending group (y28). See how much more vibrant the shadows are? This is because there are so many more yellow particles we add when going with this technique but our gray shift is subtle (from the 10's to the 20's).

My picture is still shadowed more than if I had stayed in the same blending group, but it looks more vibrant than just adding grays. Is is realistic? Not necessarily, since the shadows on a true pale yellow shirt wouldn't add this much orange, but it still looks good in my opinion. If you have enough colors try this on some of your own images. Stick to the same blending group for shadows on one, add shadows with grays to your second picture, then add shadows by jumping to the next blending group on yor third picture. (If you remember my earlier drawings of myself you'll see I look different. This is because I've had a haircut and I've been slowly loosing the baby fat I gained from my last pregnancy. I still haven't grown more fingers though :)

Color Spotlight: Yellows
Yellow is an interesting color in the Copic color world. See on the color wheel how there are no Y90's? The last family is Y30's, and those start moving toward orange. That's because Yellows, as they get more gray quickly turn into brownish colors. Add a hint of red and you're really turning brown or orange. So Y20's are shadows of Y10's, but Y30's are more neutral but they are also the blending group that would pull you into the next color family- YR. When you get into the darker YR's you then get closer to red. (YR07 or 09 and R08 are really close colors). Then you could jump into my post with a color spotlight on YR's.

When I talk about Natural blending families and how they get darker as you go in, 80% of the time this is true (blues, BV's, G's, and BG's are pretty good about following the rules). Some color families don't play by the rules because this is a flat chart for a 3 dimensional concept as I mentioned yesterday and the color wheel pulls you into the next color group as you change blending groups (this is the case on the first families in red, oranges, and yellows- the color wheel pulls Y's into the YR's into the early R's. E's (earth colors) really don't follow the rules because it's easy to take any R, YR, or Y and turn it into browns).

Shadowing with colors beyond the basics
In talking about layering gray over a color to make the shadows more believable, you can add lots of colors to create your shadow that would add denser particles and gray. After watching the color video, what is something you could add to yellow that would cancel it out or make it gray? On a color wheel, that would be the color's opposite or purple.

Many times in fine art you'll see pictures where the shadows have a life of their own, particularly in portraits. This is because the artist is shading their light yellow/peach skin colors with shadows of blue or purple to give the feel of gray without dulling down the vibrancy of their work by just adding neutral grays.

Also, remember that blues and purples are cool colors and shadows tend to be cooler areas on a picture. Here is the final illustration of me, where I used purple as my shadow color and blue to add some extra shadows on my skin. Note that I'm using very pale blues and purples. This allows the yellow to underlay the blue/purple tone and still be visible.

Image: Drawn with a 0.5mm Black Multiliner SP onto color laser copier paper.

Natural Blending Families

Sorry about the awkward formatting of the blog. I'm a designer and I'm used to more flexibility in layouts, so in the future I'll keep my layouts simple.

No, I'm not purposely avoiding answering the question "What stamp ink with what paper?", I am going to answer it next week as a form of survey with blog candy, so stay tuned :) (meanwhile I suggest you go over to Splitcoaststampers and search the forums for ideas). Other people besides cardmakers / stampers are following this site as well, and I have so much stuff to cover! By waiting, I also know that more people will find this new blog by then so we'll get more feedback. Just content yourself to know that I am part of a conspiracy theory that will never directly answer your deepest, most important questions, rather, I will string you along forever...or not *wink*.

Natural Blending Families- I created this fancy term for a simple Copic concept that many people have already discovered, but can never be explained enough. You have a color of marker and you want to find a shadow and highlight for that pen. What color should you use? This is where the code on the cap answers that question.

Here's the scoop: I have paper that perfectly matches my B24 marker. I have a picture I want to color, but I want to make it look dimensional with shadows and lighter areas. My two questions are-

1. What colors will make my B24 look shadowed/highlighted?

2. What other colors will go nicely with those blues and not look strange?
These are both easily answered. First, the color number B24 tells me a few things right away:

B- This is a blue marker
2- This is a bright, but not super bright blue (those would have a 0 ir 1 in this spot), and it's not very gray (or else this would be a 7, 8, or 9)
4- This is a middle blue (pale colors are going to end in 0, 1, or 2; Middle colors are 4-6; and dark colors are 7-9)
To answer the first question, shadows & highlights:

Keep the letter and first digit the same. We know instantly that our shadow and

highlight will be in the B20's. There are two colors lighter than B24, which are B23 or B21, but which one should we get? This takes us to the second rule:

Keep a 2 to 3 digit difference between numbers. So our lightest spot will be B21, our main color will be B24 and our shadows will be B26. Not bad, now we know that any part of our picture that we want Blue will be B21 + B24 + B26. This is what I call a Natural Blending Group. These are 3 shades that naturally go together based on color number alone.

As to the second question, what goes with the blue:
Keep the numbers the same, just change the letter (color family). Ok, so we need a green (G), Red (R), yellow (Y), and pink (RV) to go with our blue. We're in luck- there's an exact match for the first two color families. G24, and R24 will look great with B24. Yellow doesn't have a Y24, but Y23 is close enough. Same with RV, we'll go with RV23.

So we end up with B24, G24, R24, Y23, and RV23 for our color range. Where your colors quickly multiply is when you get into shadows and highlights for each of these-
B: B21, B24, B26
G: G21, G24, G28
R: R22, R24, R27
Y: Y21, Y23, Y26
RV: RV21, RV23, RV25



Aaack! what started as a simple picture with one color now has 15 colors I need!

OK, so this formula is just a starting point, you might really only need 2 shades in each color family. You can also shift colors from here- what if you want the pinks to be lighter? Use just the RV21 and the Rv23. What if you want the reds to be darker? Use R24 as the highlight, R27 as the middle red, and R29 as the shadow. You may totally hate these colors together- it's up to you. Personally, I think I'd ditch the pink in this sequence. If I had a purple to match the pink then maybe it would work better.

This is the final image I colored. Since the picture is so small, I mostly used 2 shades in each family, and I chose not to use the pink, instead I used the R21.

Image Credits: Stamp- Flower Shop by AMuse. Ink- Tsukineko Memento Tuxedo Black, Paper- Neenah Classic Crest Solar White 80# Cardstock Marker colors: B21 + B24, R21 + R24, G21+G24, Y21 + Y23 + Y26

Monday, I will showcase my first color. I'll show it's Natural Blending Group, matching colors from across the color spectrum, aaannnd I have a cool color chart that I programmed into my software that lets me generate other color combos you can try based on other color rules, so I'll show combos that the computer says go well together. Have a great weekend!

Greens for my Swatch book

I've been working hard this weekend on many projects. One ongoing project that each of you should work on is your Color Swatch Book. As I was gathering my supplies for my next round of Certification classes on the East Coast I realized that my swatch book didn't have many green examples, nor did I have examples of some different types of paper. So I added some pages and I figured you would like to see them this week

By the way, Mystic, CT • Buffalo, NY • Toronto, Ont are all open to the public. If you wish to register send me an e-mail for the application. And, you can now follow me on twitter.

Swatch Book Color Ranges
With hundreds of colors available you really have a lot of swatches to try to find combinations that work for you (click here for a downloadable color wheel and blank chart). Swatch books will reflect the personality of the owner. You'll probably make more pages in your favorite colors and the more you work with your favorite colors the more you'll find combinations using your favorite colors. If you find yourself always reaching for the same 15 colors out of your collection of 50 then you should branch out. Throw in a color you don't use very often to mix it up a bit. Sometimes the results will startle you.

Look through your swatch book every now ant then and see where the color combos are lacking. My color book had mostly blues and browns, because people asked a lot of questions about blues and browns. Also, there are LOTS of shades of blues and browns and it's hard to remember what I've tried.

Here is a partially done example page. If you look at the blossoms (I think they're hydrangeas but I can't remember which flower I was drawing at the time) you'll see that I'm also looking at the V000, V01, V04, V05, V06, V09 Natural Blending Family. Each blossom is very different, yet they're all within the same color group. This is why you need swatches.

If I remember from math correctly, for 322 colors, if you are just blending 2 different colors each time then you'll have a possible 103,362 options. (formula: n(n-1). ) If you throw in a 3 color blend, then you have over 33 million combinations! (formula: n(n-1(n-2)). ) That's not factoring in different ink types, paper types, and all the other little things that go into your artwork. So don't feel like you have to write down every color/ink/paper combo out there, just the ones that you find useful.

Greens
I needed to document the basic green family, so I started from the beginning, with G00. I know that Copic makes a G000, but it's too light for my scanner to pick up, so if you love that color don't feel that I'm leaving you out. Since I am trying to see color combos in Natural Blending groups for this page of greens I prepared it with blank spaces for color swatches on the side, then on the main image I mix up the colors on the side to see different combos and to get a feel for contrast.

Greens are actually pretty easy to find great looking combos. I hesitate to say that any two greens will look good together, but it's a safer bet that they will than guessing that any two pinks will work well with each other.

Since green is made of Yellow and Blue, you can add either of these and also find good green color combos. You can warm up your basic greens with Y, or YG. You can cool down your greens with BG or B. If you want to mute out your greens (turn them brown or gray) then throw in the opposite color, red.

You can see from one of the leaves on my example page I shadowed G85 with V99. Although those colors are totally different, I had used the purple in the blossom and I know that v99 is dark and that cool shadows have purple in them, so I knew that I could add a cool, deep shadow to my green leaf and it would work.

Also compare the greens from the G00 and G12 pages to the greens on the other two pages. Look at how much more vibrant colors from the 00's and 10's are. If youa re coloring leaves in the springtime then they will be more vibrant and warmer, like the 00's and 10's. If you are coloring something from the deep forest, an older plant, or something from late summer then you might want to reach for more muted greens like the G40, G80's or G90's.

When you jump from a base color of G02 to shadows of G99 you will start to see where some greens just don't quite work together. Why? Because G02 is a WARM, bright green. It has a lot more yellow in it. G99 is a COOL, dark green. When you add a warm and a cool it turns to gray/brown. the vibrancy of the G02 would get lost in the dull, muted G99. However, I might be able to get away with shadowing the G02 with a YG, or maybe adding a bit of warm gray, or... I think I have to test more colors first!

Contrast
I know I've discussed it before, but to make an image more eye-catching you need to add contrast. Look at each flower on this page. Which blossoms grab your attention first? Which seem more alive? You'll note that the blossoms which stand out and look most real are the ones with the largest color range.

Any element on these pages that has a color jump of more than 5 digits on the last number grabs your attention more than color combos that are only 2 or 3 digits off. Yet my darkest colors are not overwhelming the picture, rather, they are only for accenting the shadows. Do you see how all the little suggestions I've been giving you are starting to fit together?

The flower with V000, V04, V09 has wonderful richness to it. The blossom with BV00, BV04, and BV09 also really pops off the page. If you look back to my post a couple weeks ago on the basic Rules of Good Design you will see that this contrast is part of M,B and V from DUMB-V. Because of the high contrast this is a more dominant image and a good way of coloring if the flower is your most important element in the picture. Your eyes move to the high contrast areas first. By having a larger range of colors you add varienty to an otherwise flat image.

You really need to experiment on your own, and keep updating your swatch book regularly. I'll try to show you more examples as I work through my book, but remember, colors will look different on a computer than they will in real life. Paper: Prism Simply Smooth, Image: Whispy Blooms from Our Craft Lounge. Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black

Keep A Swatch Book

If you haven't already, make a swatch chart for all the Copic Colors you have. Make the chart on the type of paper you will usually work on so you can predict results better. For a good example, check out Michelle Wooderson's site. Keep the chart protected from light, since these will fade over time if exposed to harsh light. When you find a color combo that you like, write it down! Stamp a simple picture that has an area large enough to color with blends. Include your paper type, ink color, and stamp name so you don't forget. Make these all the same size and keep them in a little book. Organize them by color family so you can quickly flip through and see what will match your current project.

This is a page from my color swatch book. I got an inexpensive little portfolio book and I keep plain stamped images on my personal favorite paper, Neenah Classic Crest Solar White. I have a stack of pics ready to be colored as I find combos I like.

I will be showcasing colors every now and then, showing color combos that work, how a color changes when paired/layered with another color, what things they correspond to, etc. so if you haven't already started a swatch book, now is a good time to start. Also, you might think about keeping a technique book. As I show you new effects with the markers try it on a small scrap, write down the steps & colors, then add it to your book. You'll appreciate these ideas when you're stuck in a rut with a card due the next day!

Image Credits: Stamp- Autumn Leaves, Lockhart Stamp Co. Ink- Tsukineko Memento Rich Cocoa, Paper- Neenah Classic Crest Solar White 80# Cardstock

Coloring On Wood

I think my head is finally getting back in the swing of things after the frantic days of CHA. Here is a quick, very simple tutorial. A couple months ago I showed how to color something to make it look like wood, here I am coloring on wood to make it look like wood. Since Copic markers are alcohol based, they work on many surfaces that water-based would not look as clean on.

Wood tag project
Large wood tag by Kaiser crafts: E33 Wide, E55, E44. I started by coloring the background with my wide E33.

I was streaky because I wanted it to look like wood grain. Then I added some streaks of E55 and last, some darker tones with E44. I was careful to keep all my streaks in the same direction, but also uneven (Look at my post on coloring wood for a stepped-out diagram of how to color wooden-looking things).

Note that I used a little less of each darker tone, so that the overall effect is one of wood. You should test your browns since each blending family will feel a little different, but they don't always follow the rule of thumb about adding grays as you jump from one family to the next (like from the 40's to the 50's). In this case, the E44 has more gray than the E55, so it seems darker on the project. By adding E44 last it kept the edges on those thin streaks crisp. If I added the dark first it would soften my crisp lines when I added the lighter colors. I darkened the edge of the whole piece with the E44 so it matched the flower better.

Wood Flower by Kaiser crafts: B34, V06. Since this wasn't made of bits of ground-up wood like the tag it absorbed the color different. The marker dyes flowed more with the grain of the wood, while the other piece stayed fairly crisp and clean.

Chipboard Letter, K & Co: Colored with V06, RV29. This started out a light blue, so all I needed to do was add purple to get it to match the flower, then I had to tone the purple more pink with an RV29. I wiped off dense color with a wadded tissue soaked in blender.

Colors change on different Surfaces
People are always asking me to match Copic colors to specific things, papers, inks etc. I must say that this is very difficult, even under the best of circumstances. Anything you color on will pick up color in a unique way.

On this project, the little chipboard letter picked up color very differently than the Wood flower. I used the same purple on the letter that I did on the flower. Not the same looking though! I had to dab in a bit of RV29 to tone the purple so it was more pink/purple like the wood showed, since the glossy paper of the letter and the absorbent wood flower take in color in different ways.

Real wood versus fibers will also pick up the dyes differently. My purple is stronger on the flower than it would be on the other piece of wood. It really depends on what each item is made from.

When you make a personal color chart, use the paper YOU use most often. If you print it out on a different paper some colors may not look the same, especially on thicker cardstocks. Keep this in mind when matching colors across media as well. You won't get it exact without some trial and error.

My final background paper layer is some tracing vellum that I wrinkled up and colored with the bue and purple markers again to get a spotty, grunged-up look that is more see-through in real-life. The big green glass bead is one that I stole from a vase here in my office. I thought it nicely added to the piece. I haven't glued the whole thing in place yet, since I'm still debating wether to add more bling or not. One part of me says "leave good enough alone" the other half of me says "go for it! add more stuff!" we'll see which wins out. Have a great weekend!