Elegant Writer - Group of Seven

Hi everyone.  Today for Group of Seven, we are working with the Elegant Writer pen.  Christine first introduced me to this marker several years ago, but I didn't buy one for myself until last year.  I'm sorry I waited so long! :)

The pen is filled with water soluable ink.  When you add it to your card, the ink looks black, but add some water and you will have inks in gray, green, blue and pink show up.  It's really magical.  A little goes a long way. 

Please check out the details for the technique and link to video on the blog ...

Group of Seven Cardmakers

For both my cards today, I kept things CAS.  I was busy making cards ahead for upcoming commitments and packing up our house at the same time, so I kept things simple.  :)

For the card above, I used a wonderful image called Tree Poem (Stampendous), stamped in black and clear heat embossed.  I added a few lines of elegant writer here and there and then took a wet brush to spread the colours, dabbing with a paper towel which shows off the pink and blue colours.  I love the classic black and white colours with just a touch of added colour in the background.

Close-up ...

Here's what I learned when I experimented with this technique ...

• If you decide you want to buy one of the Elegant Writer pens, make sure it has a silver/gray casing.  This is the pen with the water soluable ink.  I mistakenly bought Elegant Writer pens that were in a black case ... permanent markers in black.  :)
• I found the video by Karlyn invaluable (you will find it on the Group of Seven blog).  She is an artist and also teaches art ... and she has lots of tips on how to use these amazing pens.
• I outlined images or partially outlined images and then added water to spread the ink.  If I wanted to add just a touch of colour, I would use a damp watercolour brush to pick up just a bit of colour directly from the tip of the Elegant Writer pen. 
• Once you add water and move the colour around, you must blot with a paper towel and that's when you will see more of the pink and blue colours.  
• As per Karlyn's video, I misted lightly from above to set the ink once I was finished.  Then I could leave my image as is, or add more watercolouring using inks or paints of different colours easily without any bleeding. 

* * * * *

Here's another CAS card using a black heat embossed image with the Elegant Writer pen.  Simple, but so pretty!

This time I used an image from the Create Chaos (Visible Image) stamp set.  Again, I kept it black and white with just a touch of colour from the elegant writer.

Sending this card to Simply Clean & Simple April Challenge.

Thanks for stopping by!

Card #1:

Stamps:  Tree Poem (Stampendous); Many Everyday Message (Hero Arts)

Paper:   White card stock (Neenah 110 lb.); Mixed Media (Strathmore 140 lb.)
Ink:   Black (Memento); Elegant Writer
Accessories:   Clear embossing powder (Ranger), heat tool, watercolour brushes

Card #2:

Stamps:  Create Chaos (Visible Image); Many Everyday Messages (Hero Arts)

Paper:   White card stock (Neenah 110 lb.); Mixed Media (Strathmore 140 lb.)
Ink:   Black (Memento); Elegant Writer
Accessories:   Clear embossing powder (Ranger), heat tool, watercolour brushes)

Challenges:

Group of Seven - Elegant Writer

Simply Clean & Simple April Challenge