Monthly Coloring Series - January

Well, my darlings! I am getting the January project up before January is finished! The surgery recovery is going very slowly, but I am able to do a few things in the studio now. Very few, but still. It's better than nothing! I am doing well, according to the doctor. I see him again in mid-February for my 8 week check up. I hope I am fully healed by then! 

For those of you just joining me, I will be coloring one image each month, using the Power Poppy digital flower images, found HERE. If you missed any of the previous projects, see the links at the end of the post. 

Let's see the long-awaited January project! 

Winter and winter flowers mean something totally different here in Southern California to what it probably means to most of you reading this. Many of you may be in the winter freeze and your plants may be buried under mountains of snow! 

This time of year, at my house, the bird of paradise are blooming, and with all the winter rain, everything is green! 

So...I decided to choose this bouquet of snowdrops, crocuses, and pussy willow branches for my January project. It reminds me of my mom's garden in Pennsylvania where snowdrops and crocuses were the first flowers to bloom in the spring. 

The Winter Pick-Me-Up digital stamp set I used for my January image is currently a $6 download. I actually purchased this a few years ago, and colored it once before, but somehow a huge blob of ink was right in the middle of the project! But I did use my original for color ideas for this month's project.

Using Adobe Illustrator, I created my panel at about 5 1/4" x 5 1/4". I rotated the image slightly and sized it at approximately 4 1/4" wide.  

The finished panel is 6 1/8" x 6 1/8". I have used a stitched square die to cut out the main image panel (which measures 5 1/4" x 5 1/4"). My plan is to display each monthly image at my desk, as shown below.

I am using "Great Vibes" as my font, which I sized at about 45pt. I printed the panel onto Hammermill 100# cardstock with my Epson ET-3700 using black ink. (So far, I have had excellent results using Copics with this printer ink and paper combination.)

My images are colored with a combination of Copic Markers and Prismacolor Pencils. I first lay down the Copic markers, and then go back and add depth and highlight with the pencils. I finish with more highlights using a white pencil or a gel pen.

I wanted the crocuses to be purple, but not a deep purple. I think this pale version of blue-violet is more "wintery" and fits the winter mood better. I think snowdrops are usually white or maybe pink, but they do come in yellow! I colored mine yellow because I wanted that bit of sunshine on the image! The pussy willows are a pale, warm gray rather than white. 

Here are the color combinations I have used for the finished project (listed in this order: Copics, Prismacolor Pencils, Gel Pens.):

Snowdrops and Stamens: Y15, Y13, Y11, Y00; Canary Yellow
Crocuses: V25, BV0000, BV000, BV00, BV11; Parma Violet
Pussy Willows: W00, W01, W03, W05
Branches: W07, E47
Leaves: YG06, YG09, G07

Background: B0000, B000, Colorless blender

My cardstock panels are black, purple, and pale yellow. I added a twine bow and a button for decoration. 

I started this project series back in September 2018. If you missed any projects: 

SEPTEMBER. 

OCTOBER.

NOVEMBER.

DECEMBER

Thanks for stopping by! I will have a new image Friday, February 1st! (It is already finished! No waiting!)

Digital image: Power Poppy Winter Pick-Me-Up 
Cardstock: Hammermill 100# Digital Color Copy; purple, yellow (unknown); WorldWin Papers Midnight
Markers: Copic (see list above)
Pencils: Prismacolor (see list above)
Gel pen: Sakura Gelly Roll White
Twine: unknown
Button: stash
Die: Elizabeth Craft Designs Stitched Squares
Tools: We R Memory Keepers Guide Layers
Adhesive: ATG tape, Scor-tape, hot glue