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Magic Pencils
Prismacolor Colored Pencils & Mineral Spirits

By
Off Road Inkster
Intermediate Scramping Team Designer

This is probably one of my favorite and most used techniques. I generally use it for cards, but decided to put it on a page in my scrapbook. The mineral spirits are a solvent, and they break down the wax that is in the colored pencils. Prismacolor pencils work best as they have the highest amount of wax. This makes the color blendable, almost like paint. And the finished result is a smooth color that is richer. I love it! (Just a note: I have raised my image with pop dots so that it will not touch the papers or photos, as I don’t know if it is archival safe.)

Supplies:
Let’s Party Stamp Set (The Angel Company)
Noir Palette Hybrid Ink Pad (Stewart Superior)
Green Cardstock 12” x 12” (Die Cuts With A View)
Lavender Cardstock 12” x 12” (Die Cuts With A View)
Polka Dot Cardstock 12” x 12” (Cosmo Cricket, Storytime)
Stripe Cardstock 12” x 12” (Cosmo Cricket, Storytime)
Diagonal Stripe Cardstock 12” x 12” (Cosmo Cricket, Storytime)
Green Vine Cardstock 12” x 12” (Cosmo Cricket, Storytime)
Cloud Cardstock 12” x 12” (Cosmo Cricket, Storytime)
Large Pink Flower (Heidi Swapp)
Medium Orange Flower (Heidi Swapp)
Blue Flower (Prima)
Large Brad (Bazzill)
Small Brad (making Memories)
Photo Turn (7 Gypsies)
Prismacolor Colored Pencils (Sanford)
Mineral Spirits (Mona Lisa)
Blending Stumps (5 small) (Leow-Cornell)
Zots Pop Dots (Thermo-Web)
Compass (from dollar store)
Paper Trimmer (Fiskars)
Fonts: Beyond Wonderland, Cantabile (downloaded from internet)

Instructions:
1. Cut your papers as follows:
a. Green Cardstock: Page
b. Polka Dot Cardstock:
2¼” x 12” Accent Strip
c. Stripe Cardstock:
2¼” x 9” Accent Strip
½” x 10” Accent Strip (using back side)
d. Diagonal Stripe Cardstock:
3” x 3¼” Accent Block
e. Green Vine Cardstock:
3” x 6” Journal Block
f. Cloud Cardstock:
Use your compass to draw a curved edge so that you will have a piece about 8½”
wide at the widest spot. Cut out 3½” x 3” Photo Mat (using back side)
g. Lavender Cardstock:
4¼” x 4¼” Photo Mat
1” x 6” Accent Strip

1. Assemble your page as shown. Note: Add journaling to the journal block before adhering!

2. Stamp your image in Noir ink on a piece a scrap white cardstock.

3. When coloring you do not need to color your best! Stay inside the lines, but you do not need to apply the color heavily or solid. Your mineral spirits will make the color spread, and it will be more vibrant after than it is when coloring!

Color your image as follows:

4. Using Blush Pink color in the base of the cake.

5. Use Pink to add shading under the top icing and along the bottom of the cake.

6. Use Chartreuse to color the icing.

7. Use Spring Green to shade the icing.

8. Use Deco Blue to color two of the candles- top half only.

9. Use Light Cerulean Blue to shade the bottom half of the candle.

10. Use Parma Violet to color two of the candles- top half only and the flowers on the cake.

11. Use Violet to shade the candles and the flowers.

12. Use Deco Yellow to color the flames.

13. Use Sunburst Yellow to shade the flames.

14. I use a plastic disposable cup to hold my mineral spirits.

15. You will need one blending stump per color family. This makes it easier to switch to another color. You don’t have to clean the tip between uses!

16. After pouring a couple of tablespoons of the mineral spirits into a container dip your blending stump in and let it soak for a couple of seconds. Allow it another couple of seconds to soak in to the stump before blending.

17. Start with your lightest section, you can always add more color but you can’t take it back off!

18. Starting in the lightest part of the pink cake, blend the pink using a circular motion. Gradually work your way to the edges and finish by blending the shading in so that you eliminate the hard lines between the colors. Re-dip in the mineral spirits as needed when it loses the nice blendability!

19. Repeat this with a new blending stump for each color. Starting in the lightest spot and working your way to the edges to blend the shading.

20. Trim around the image and apply it to your page with pop dots.

This really is an easy technique once you get the hang of it. If you have a spot that looks like the paper is soaked through, it is because you didn’t allow enough time for the mineral spirits to soak in to the stump. Those spots will dry, usually without any stain. If you color really heavily then you will have a lot of “paint” to work with. This can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the size of your image and how bold you want the colors. You may want to practice on scrap paper first until you get a feel for how much color you need to achieve your desired look!
 

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