Confession time: I have always wanted to live in a house fit for halflings. My husband, Josh, and I even went so far as to tour a full berm house... three times. Life had other plans, as it usually does, but the idea of a cozy, Hobbity house is still firmly on my "One Day" list.
When I first saw the new Kindred Stamp set "The Journey Prequel", I knew exactly what I wanted to do. Choosing a few iconic elements, like an evergreen front door, I set out to give this Adventure Guy his dream house.
I am by no means an artist, so I was a little uneasy as I set out to sketch the background. I'm much more comfortable when I can use stamps and die cuts to build a scene. But, the great thing about crafting is that it gives us a safe space to develop our skills and push ourselves. And, as one of my favorite humans said, there are no mistakes- just happy accidents!
I knew right away that I wanted to incorporate the Lawn Fawn Magic Iris for my halfling's front door. I used the Magic Iris Add-On to cut the panel out of Bristol smooth paper. (I find it's my go-to for Copic coloring.) I taped the tab piece in place on the back with low-tack tape so that my coloring would be consistent, and I lightly sketched in a quick design.
I added the brick and wood accents around the doors and windows first, and then worked on the grass, using a combo of G21, YG63, G94, and G46.
Next, I assembled the Iris, using white Lawn Fawn wood grain paper for the "sausage" pieces. I inked them up using my blender brushes and Pine Needles Distress Ink. I cut the tab piece from brown cardstock, and attached my background tab to it, making the arrow more pronounced.
I then set the background aside and started to work on the characters. I wanted my main Adventure Guy to be a flat element behind the Magic Iris, so I stamped him on Bristol paper cut to fit behind the background panel. I traced the opening lightly so I knew how far to color, and used W1 to color the area around him so it would look like he was shadowed by the interior of the house.
I also thought he needed some company, so I stamped and colored the Wizard Guy from the companion Kindred Stamps set, "Size Doesn't Matter".
I attached the background and Iris to a piece of brown wood grain card stock, and then attached the card front to a standard A2 (4.25" x 5.5" ) sized base.
And that's it! Our Adventure Guy is ready to head out into the world! When the recipient pulls the tab, the front door opens and starts him on his journey.
A simple sentiment from the set is the perfect finishing touch.
Overall, I was happy with how this turned out! The Magic Iris is my favorite interactive die so far, and I can't wait to see what else I can do with it!
Tricks and Takeaways:
No maroon Copic? No problem! Use a base layer of red (I used R29), and color over it with your favorite reddish-brown (I used E17). Shadows are made with the brown only.
Hand-drawn scenes don't have to be intimidating! Any imperfections you may see as the artist will blend into the background once you add your focal characters. Background elements are there just to give an overall impression of shape and size.
When coloring grass, throw precision out the window. No two blades of grass grow in the same direction. If you overthink it, you may end up with an effect that doesn't look natural.
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