Today's #SFDesignADay Challenge features the elegant beauty of watercolor by the always-inspiring Emily Sanford. Here she gives us quick tips on how to get started with watercolor design. Read on for ideas on how to incorporate white space effectively through an easy-to-use material you probably have around the house.
Emily: Watercolor painting brings depth, brilliance, and a soft organic touch to surface pattern design. Watercolor is also a clean, vibrant medium that can be challenging to master.
Emily: When first experimenting with watercolor, it's helpful to get acquainted with how pigment and water interact on paper. One of my favorite ways to play with watercolor is to lay down artist tape or washi tape in graphic patterns on paper. The tape acts as a mask for the paint, and gives the novice the chance to play with washes, colors and textures. After the tape is removed, the resulting design offers a nice balance of bold line to the playful transparency and texture of the watercolor paint.
Watch Emily's creative process with watercolor in the video below:
Watercolor Pattern Design by Emily Sandford
Inspired by Emily's tips and tricks for watercolor? We want to see! Be sure to tag your designs influenced by today's SpoonChallenge technique on your social media platforms with #SFDesignADay!
The only tape I have around my house is the clear kind that rips the paper when you remove it. I skipped that particular watercolor tip, and went for a simple leafy pattern. My finished design went through a few color changes as I tried to turn it into a seamless repeat on the computer. It ended up with two colorways that are incredibly different from the physical painting, and I absolutely love both of them.
sketch with a bit of watercolor
about a third of the way through painting Emma decided to help me
Rice socks are probably the best things ever for me because of my migraines. Just pop it in the microwave for a minute or so. Put it on your hurt, and presto you have wonderful soothing warmth right where you need it. So with the ever present question of what to make with all my Spoonflower swatches, this was the first thing I thought of. Top view A quick and simple swatch project: rice sock! 1. Measure swatch into thirds. Be sure and only measure the patterned portion. 2. Fold one end to the middle along measured line.( The doubled portion of the swatch will be on the outside at the end, and the bit hanging off the top will not be visible.) Sew along the line that you have measured above, or if you can see through the fabric just sew along the end of the design. 3. Fold the small white portion down and iron. Then flip it over and fold the large portion down an iron the same way. 4. Cut off any of the large portion that hangs over the edge. 5. Fold in raw edg...
Significant Otters Design Challenge If you’ve ever watched two otters holding hands (oh yes, it exists!) it’s safe to say this mammal has won the hearts of viewers with their otterly adorable appearance. This week we challenge you to win the hearts of the community with an otter-inspired design. There wasn't much direction on this contest. So I went in my own direction and finally ended up with Otter Lace . The lace was a fairly simple thing to create. The design is mirrored, which means I only had to draw the one half before the computer did the other side. The plan for the scalloped edge was to have it much wider in the middle section, but I decided the single flower between the otter couples looked better in the main motif. The fancy edge was digitally trimmed to match, and the rest of the computer work was spent on the colors. I also played around with a soft teal color with warm gray for a second version of the lace. ...
I really am going to stop making rice socks now that I've got a brand new one for myself. I usually get my swatches on quilting weight, but I got my Jinxed Rust Lion on the organic cotton knit. The organic cotton knit is wonderfully soft, but it shrinks vertically more than it shrinks horizontally after washing. After I filled the sock I made up with rice I realized it stretches even more horizontally, which is perfectly fine for a rice sock to do. I just think it's funny. This Elvis rice sock is one that I made by hand several years ago that is being displaced my my new sock.
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