Faux Dip-Dye Hanukkah Card

Hello! I was recently asked by a local store to make some Hanukkah cards for them. I was happy to oblige, although I knew it would be a bit of a challenge. I don’t have very much in my paper crafting stash for Hanukkah, but I have a couple of things…including an old wood mounted stamp from Rubber Soul that says, “Happy Hanukkah” in calligraphy. I immediately thought of the beautiful faux dip-dye cards that Kristina Werner creates. They’re beautiful, and I thought they would be perfect for the cards I needed to make. She has several videos on this technique, but one of her newest ones can be found HERE.

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I’ve done this card with two combinations of blues. Both were done with my Gansai Tambi watercolors from Kuretake. I love this palette. The card above was done with Ultramarine Pale (#61), Prussian Blue (#66), and Black (#20). I used a 1″ Zen brush from Royal & Landnickel on watercolor paper. To create this, I started with a wash of the Ultramarine Pale, slowly getting darker, until I began to mix in some of the Prussian Blue. As that got darker, near the bottom, I added some black until the last layer was just pure black.

For this version, I used less layers and used thicker waves of color. I also changed up the colors a bit and used Cerulean Blue (#63) with the Prussian Blue and Black. This version also has a taped off edge, which I really like. Once the panels were dry, I applied some anti-static powder to help ensure I would get a nice embossed image. I inked up my sentiment with VersaMark ink, and heat embossed it with gold. I mounted the panels on to an ivory card base.

Which version do you prefer?

I love how these both came out. And this faux dip-dye technique is fun and relaxing. I’ll definitely be doing this again, perhaps for a different occasion with other colors. I will have a completely different Hanukkah card to share with you soon. Thanks so much for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!