Blurry Around the Edges

Hey everyone....sorry its been kinda of quiet but we returned from holidays and I have been cleaning out my studio room.


I have also started pulling together ideas for the new school year as we go back next Thursday.

So this is blurry around the edges....its a simple technique that gives you a really nice effect to your designs...I'm hoping to do this with the kids this year.

Please click on the picture to really appreciate the look.

Materials Required

watercolor paper (I used 90lb) or sketch paper

pencil and eraser

cake tempura or watercolors

fine tip washable marker

spray bottle

Take some watercolor paper or some good sketch paper and outline a simple drawing













With the kids I often use step by step directions that they can follow......you can find examples like these at your local library or bookstore in the kid section.....








Using watercolor or cake tempura add a bit of color to your design.....you want to use a light hand leaving some areas free of color.

This can be a difficult but very important concept to teach young artists...that less is more.







Add some plain water in sections to create wonderful blooms and backruns as well as to lighten your colors a bit...resist the urge to coat the entire image.









Add a bit of color to the background as well but you can leave it quite plain....maybe a few splatters.







Take your marker and sketch the outline of your design. I kept my lines quite broken and more like a sketch than a solid outline.








You now want to take your water spray bottle...I use small ones that I buy at the dollar store....this particular bottle is good for this project as it gives just a short spray/spurt of water.







Spray your design....use only a few shots because you don't want to turn the image into a runny mess.

Everywhere you spray on the marker lines will start to bleed and go blurry.





Let your work dry flat.

Give it a try.

see you soon

gail