Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Hi friends! Happy Sunday! I’m so pleased to welcome back special guest Anna-Karin Evaldsson as a special guest on our blog! Be sure to stop by her blog weekly for new inspiration in our Monday Challenge! Be sure to read on to learn exactly how she made this gorgeous tag and enjoy!

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Hi everyone! I am so happy to be here today with a fun and easy tutorial. It is also great to be stamping again, after having had to do a sudden move. My supplies are now unpacked, although still in a somewhat chaotic state. There has been a lot of butterflies around our new place, which inspired me to stamp and color butterflies for this tag. You can use the techniques for any type of project.

Butterflies are always fun to color and you can make them into any colors you can think of. Or use a butterfly reference book and turn them into real butterflies. The butterflies were colored with colored pencils, adding shadows to make them look dimensional. I also did some masking, inking and background stamping.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Start by stamping butterflies from the Simon Says Stamp Comfort & Prayers set on a tag, using Jet Black Archival Ink.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

I used Prismacolor pencils to color the butterflies, and my pencil sharpener only showed up when I was almost done with the tag, which is why some of the pencils look a little blunt on the photos. Start by pressing lightly with the pencil, and then add more pressure to build up darker shades.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Continue adding color until you are happy with the look.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Here you can see the first lighter application to the left, and how darker shades were built up using the same pencils to the right.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Continue in the same way as the third butterfly.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

If you want to smooth out the colors, you can go over them with the white pencil.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Stamp the butterflies on SSS Masking Paper and cut out. Place them on the tag.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Ink the tag with Distress Inks, starting with the lighter shade. The masks stay perfectly in place.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Stamp with Tim Holtz Cracks background stamp and Frayed Burlap ink.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Use a darker brown together with the Specks stamp, and finally add some black stamping with Tim’s alphabet background from the School Desk set. This is one of my all-time favorite stamps.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Use a black pencil and add a shadow to the butterflies. Start with a light application and then make it darker closer to the butterflies. This gives a dimensional look.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Add details and highlights with a white gel pen.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

To make the butterflies even more interesting, I decided to use Glossy Accents and white Enamel Accents on some areas. Set aside to dry.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Add some details with a black pen, and doodle a border around the tag.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Finally, I glued sequins to the tag, for a fun playful look.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

Here you can see the shiny effect of the Glossy Accents and Enamel Accents better.

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

The coloring technique also works great for other images, such as flowers. The sentiment was stamped with the SSS Uplifting Thoughts set.

I hope this tutorial inspired you to color some butterflies (or something else) with colored pencils.

Thank you so much for looking! Happy crafting! – Anna-Karin

Butterfly Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson

SUPPLIES:

Simon Says Clear Stamps COMFORT AND…
[ SSS ]
Simon Says Clear Stamps UPLIFTING…
[ SSS ]
Ranger Tim Holtz Distress MIXED MEDIA…
[ SSS ]
Simon Says Stamp MASKING PAPER Sheets…
[ SSS ]
Tim Holtz Cling Rubber Stamps SCHOOL…
[ SSS ]
Tim Holtz Cling Rubber Stamps CRACKS…
[ SSS ]
Ranger Archival Ink Pad JET BLACK…
[ SSS ]
Tim Holtz Distress Archival Ink Pad…
[ SSS ]
Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad ANTIQUE…
[ SSS ]
Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad FRAYED…
[ SSS ]
Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad GROUND…
[ SSS ]
Prismacolor PREMIER COLORED PENCILS…
[ SSS ]
Sakura WHITE MEDIUM POINT Gelly Roll…
[ SSS ]
Sakura FINE LINES SET Pigma Micron…
[ SSS ]
Simon Says Stamp Sequins FROSTED…
[ SSS ]
Simon Says Stamp Sequins FALL…
[ SSS ]
Ranger ENAMEL ACCENTS Dimensional…
[ SSS ]
Ranger GLOSSY ACCENTS Glue…
[ SSS ]
Ranger Non Stick CRAFT SHEET 15 x 18…
[ SSS ]
Ranger INK BLENDING TOOL Applicator…
[ SSS ]

Thanks so much for stopping by, and thanks to Anna-Karin for being our guest!

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  1. Your tag is lovely, your technique is simple and very effective! I smiled when I saw the old cover of your archival ink–a testimony to the years you’ve devoted to the craft and why you are so good at it. Good luck settling in after your move (I bet things are a bit topsy-turvy right now.)

  2. Awesome Anna-Karin, as always, such gorgeous idea.
    Easy to do and stunning result. Thank you so much for your great inspiration and tutorial. Have a great week.

  3. I love this tag and never thought to use this butterfly set on a tag! Thank you for the inspiration to make some tags again!

  4. This tag is beautiful with lots of wonderful detail. Thanks for the tips on how you achieved them. I, too, love the well used Archival Jet Black Ink Pad shown here and though I have a newer black pad now, I still have an old design Archival Sepia ink pad that is still going strong!

  5. I love this, I love that I didn’t have to watch a video or find out how things were done. I appreciate the photo progress. I love this tag.

  6. I loved watching all her steps combine into this gorgeous tag! Just when I thought it was done, she adds more and more beauty. Just a knock-out!

  7. You absolutely do the best tutorials, Anna-Karin! Your tag is a work of art–so inspiring! Hope you enjoy your new place after the stress of moving.

  8. Fabulous tag design. Everything about it–from the background to the final embellishments–is so well designed…and the coloring is so well done. tfs

  9. How pretty! I love how the tooth of the papered the butterflies look a bit worn/distressed to match the backgrounds!

  10. Wow, this is so stunning! I never create gift tags but you’ve got me wanting to break out my crafting supplies right now and make some!

  11. A beautiful tag. Love the creative background with the Tim Holtz stamps and the Prisma pencil colored butterflies. A simple technique with pretty results.

  12. So beautiful! I’ve been working on my coloring, so you’re are so timely. Especially, the white pencil to smooth our the color. Thank you so much for the inspiration!

  13. Oh Anna-Karin, you had my attention as soon as I read the word ‘tag’… THAT is absolutely gorgeous! You have done an amazing job colouring the butterflies and they look so pretty against the tag colour. WOW, I really love all that you do but I have a real soft spot for an awesome tag and this is definitely AWESOME!

  14. Thank you for explaining each thing you did! The tag is beautiful and you used some techniques I’ve never tried before! I will definitely hold on to this post!

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