Copic Marker Tutorial

I just love the Riley moose stamps! They are some of my favorite stamps to color and I'm always ready for the next ones to come out. A few weeks back, there was a challenge on the Hanna Forum to combine two different stamp sets. I didn't get a chance to do the challenge, but had the idea to combine the Fishing Riley and Tent Riley. I finally got a chance to make my card last week. Click on the photo to see a larger image.

I started out by stamping my images and coloring them. Then, I rounded the bottom corners and matted the image. I pierced some holes to put my screw brads in. Then, I created my card base and bottom layers. I sewed the layers together. Then, I wrapped my twill around the card and attached it with some hardware and brads. I added my cardstock layers to the card and added my image using dimensional adhesive.

There are quite a few different ways to color using copic markers. I thought today I would share my process of coloring my images for this card. You will notice that it's a lot of using the same steps over and over when you're coloring each part of your image.

First, I stamped my images and used a copic multiliner pen to add some grass, a water line, and a line for my bank by the water. When I start coloring my moose stamps, I always start with the antlers for some reason. This photo shows what they will look like when they are finished and the markers I usually use.

First, color the antler in with the lightest marker color. You can see how it's much lighter than what it will be when it is finished.

Next, create some shading using the second marker. It doesn't look very good yet because it isn't blended.

Blend the two colors together by going over the entire antler using the lighter marker until the colors are nicely blended. You can go over the area repeatedly because the marker won't pill the paper, which is one of the beauties of using an alcohol based marker. If you want more shading after you've blended the colors, you can add a little more of the darker marker by either touching the tip of the light marker to the dark one and coloring or just lightly add more with the darker marker. You can always go over them again if you don't like the results and you can make them lighter using the colorless blender marker (which takes color away).

Color the antlers on the second moose. Then, color the Fishing Riley's hat with a light blue and add the shading with a darker blue.

Blend the two blues the same way we did the antlers using the light blue marker.

Color Riley's hooves using a black copic marker. Color the fishing bobber using a red marker and color Riley's head using brown markers. This is the look we are going for with Riley's body (just for reference).

(None of the photos show the brown markers I use, but I usually use E33 and E37 when coloring my moose and that is what I am using here.) Start coloring Riley's head and body by coloring first with the light brown. Shade with the darker marker.

Blend using the lighter brown marker. After blending, if you need to, add more shading using the darker marker.

Color the Tent Riley using the same techniques (light color first, shade with darker color, blend with lighter color). Color his hooves black.

Next, I started coloring the tent. I colored the tent using my lighter color (R05). You can see that I'm not using markers close in shades, like say R02 and R04 (I don't know if those are real colors since I just made some up). Instead I'm using an orange red and a dark red. The reason it works is because you can blend so much by just adding another layer until it's how you like it.

Add shading using the darker red (R27). I add shading where I think the shadows would be, like the lower part of the tent and the spots where the tent sags a bit.

Blend by going over the image using the lighter marker. This is after one layer with the lighter marker. You can see that it needs to be blended more where the shading is so just go over it again until it looks nicely blended.

Color the rest of the tent and Fishing Riley's boat using the same process.

I thought I would show you what the back of my cardstock looks like at this point. Even with very thick cardstock, the back of your cardstock should look like this if you are blending enough.

I cut out my image before I started color the water and grass so that I wouldn't be wasting ink. I used my copic multiliner pen to add more grass and lines in the river bank. Next, color your water around the boat using light and dark markers. I added shading where the water ripples, under the boat and at the water line by the river bank. Then, I colored the river bank using two brown markers. For the grass, start the same way by coloring it with the light green.

Shade using the darker green marker. I added some darker green to my grass that I drew in with the copic multiliner pen and under the tent.

Blend the greens by going over them with the lighter green marker until it is well blended. Go back with the darker green marker to add a little more to the grass and right under the tent.

Last step is the sky. Go over the entire sky using small circular movements using a blue marker (usually I use B00 like I did here). Then, go over the sky using the colorless blender to blend the area. It will take away some of the color and make it look more even. If you end up with a spot that needs a little more color, touch the tip of your blender marker to the blue marker. That will give you a little bit of light blue that you can use to fill in the spot. You may need to touch the tips a few times to get it like you want it.

I would love to hear what you think and see your creations. If I need to be clearer about something or something doesn't make sense, please let me know. Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Recipe

Stamps: Fishing Riley, Tent Riley (Hanna Stamps)

Cardstock: white stamper's select (Papertrey Ink), classic red, baby blue dark, tawny medium (Prism)

Accents: screw brads, hardware, brads, red twill (from my stash)

Tools: sewing machine, corner rounder, copic markers and multiliner pen