Butterfly in Flight

Yesterday I showed you the matching butterfly stamp from this set. I thought you would like to see the main butterfly today. Isn't this such a pretty design.

To start this card I made an A2 card using Arches cold press watercolour paper. If you would like to make a card base from watercolour paper a little tip is before you score the centre spritz the paper front and back rendering it damp. This helps with the fold, but also stops any cracking that could result from the hard press fold.

In my Misti I stamped the butterfly using VersaFine Clair ink in Nocturne. I opted for more pastel colours fading into translucent.  I did a solid background which makes the butterfly pop, and I added translucent sequins which sparkle around the butterfly.

For the butterfly I am using Daniel Smith watercolours in Rose Madder Permanent, Hansa Yellow, Phthalo Turquoise and Payne's Grey for the body. Again I did some blending of colours using the Hansa Yellow mixed with the Phthalo Turquoise giving that beautiful shade of green. For the background I used a Schmincke watercolour in Phthalo Blue, which is a different colour from the Daniel Smith Phthalo Blue, which is darker. 

The reasoning is that each manufacturer often produces multiple Phthalo blue colours and these are commonly divided by whether they have a green or a red undertone. To help this make sense, you will often see the pigments labeled Phthalo Blue Red Shade (RS) or Phthalo Blue Green Shade (GS). The pigment numbers help to distinguish between the two. PB15:1 and PB15:6 are a middle blue or reddish shades, while PB15:3 is the greenish shade. The Schmincke Phthalo Blue I have is PB15:1 and the Daniel Smith is PB15:6.

There is so much more that I have not discussed here, but I hope this small watercolour lesson for those interested will help explain the differences in shades between brands. I am fascinated with pigments so have been interested to learn about them. 

I liked the look of this colour better.

You can probably see now why I picked the blue I did.

To finish up I sprayed the card with a mixture of perfect pearls in gold and water. While the butterfly was damp I styled it using my stylist and a rubber mat then glued to the front of my card base. 

I added a scattering of translucent sequins around the card. I decided against a sentiment on the front, I did not want anything to distract from the butterfly, so I stamped inside the card.

Thank you for joining me today. I hope you have enjoyed this card and the little lesson too!

Following are Affiliate links for the products I used for this card at no extra cost to you.