I had a chance to play and experiment with the Adirondack Color washes and Moon Shadow Mists. Since there was more play involved I can only tell you how I played, and not the exact scientific methods I used to make the background papers.
I usually cut my Watercolor Paper a little bigger than the final size, and trim the edges to size when dry. I found I really like mixing colors, and trying for a softer more muted look. I first covered my work area with plastic sheeting. To get a more muted blended look, I first ran the watercolor paper under the faucet and got the entire surface wet, shaking off any excess. I chose two or three colors to work with, and a coordinating Moon Shadow Mist. Holding the paper upright, I sprayed the top third of the sheet, letting it run down the paper. For a paler shade, spray lightly. I turned the paper upside down and sprayed the second color letting it run down the page into the first color. At this point you can spray a third color randomly. Depending on how much contrast or blending, I may turn the paper several time to let the colors mix. I laid the paper flat, and let dry just a few minutes, to insure the colors did not mix any more. At this time I sprayed a light coat of the Shadow Mists. I was mostly wanting to highlight and add a little iridescent color to the backgrounds. In the above collage, I used eggplant and denim colorwashes with Long John’s Silver shadow mists. Here is a little closer sample. It is very hard to photograph the ireidescent quality of the shadow mists.
Click for larger sample
After my first sample, I became a bit braver, and cut several pieces of watercolor paper, and continued with my experiments. Here are some more samples of the end results. Click for a larger view of sample.
Some of the backgrounds I had when I finished “playing”.
While I had all the papers spread out on the table I thought it would be fun to see what Paperwhimsy images, and embellishments I could find for future collages. Here’s a few combinations I came up.
Some of the Paperwhimsy items I found to add to the backgrounds include:
I’d love to hear about how you use the color washes and shadow mists. I hope these samples will give you a few ideas, and most of all, I hope you have fun playing!