It’s the end of the 2nd week of the Circuit Breaker period* (realised that I didn’t say “halfway through”?) (*That's what we call our restricted movement period in Singapore). Things are so uncertain for now that I’m taking things one step at a time. It’s definitely uncomfortable and inconvenient but maintaining our sanity and abiding by #stayingathome is our small contribution in this global war against Covid-19.
Anyway! Here’s a mini art project which you can involve yourself (and your kids).
Because we can’t meet our friends or family, a card might be a good way to show that you still care and think about them. (Moreover, postal services are still up!) Imagine the surprise they get when receiving something from you.
Before we start, here are the materials which we need.
- Watercolour paper (300 gsm)
- Watercolour paint
- Watercolour brush
- Pencil and Eraser
- Micron pen (0.5mm)
- A cup of water
- Cloth
*However, if you don’t have art supplies, I’ve included a link to an online art supplies store at the bottom of the post😊
Here’s the (amateur) video I made:
Below, I've broken things down for you and explained it further in detail if that’ll help!
Steps to creating your own Care Card
Step 1. Keeping things simple with basic shapes
For a start, don’t worry about the details. Let’s start off with a very simple shape and then touch-up from there. Draw a semi-circle at an angle like so.
Step 2. Shape the bird’s outline
Next, we add the bird’s head, neck, belly, and wings.
Steps 3-5. Cleaning up and Detailing
Rub off excess pencil marks which are no more needed. Draw the legs of the bird and fill in with other details such as the feathers on the wings, the branch, etc.
Step 6. Outlining (with micropen)
A note of caution here: pay attention to the pen which you use for outlining. I love using my Pigma micron pen when I need to outline my illustrations. The thing about the Micron pen is that it is water-resistant! So you don’t have to worry about the water smudging and ruining things.
However, if you don’t have one available, you can do the reverse by adding on the outline after watercolouring instead (and if you do, remember to wait for the paint to dry).
Step 7. Watercolouring
I’ll let you in on a secret. This is my favourite part of the process – watercolouring.
I started out with a wet-on-dry for the top of bird, followed by a different colour for with wet-on-wet for the belly.
TIP: Be sure to let the paint dry if you don’t want them to mix with each other. But you'll realise that I allowed both coours to blend with each other to achieve a loose effect.
Step 8. Fill in the background
This is another fun part.
Tip: to achieve the watercolour effect, let the watercolour do its magic but letting the paint find its path with the help of water. Don't meddle too much with your brush!
Notice that I only added the paint at certain spots instead of spreading them evenly?
Steps 9-10. Writing your message & Touching up
Of course, feel free to go back and touch-up if you feel there are any areas which you feel need further work. One thing about watercolour which you’ll notice is that the colours tend to look less vibrant once it has dried. This is why layers are usually added on in watercolour – seldom do we stop at one! If you find it too wet, use tissue to dab off the excess water.
As promised, here’s the link for art supplies (since all non-essential services are closed):
Overjoyed: https://www.overjoyed.xyz/home
If you do try this out, I’d love to see your cards. Please share photos with me.
Till next time!
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