This thank you card is perfect for virtually any recipient! Its vibrant, earthy color scheme and pleasing geometry will appeal to anyone. More important than the result, though, is the process. This card is just fun to make, even — and especially — if you’re new to using watercolors!
This thank you card tutorial, based on a Mexican Talavera tile design, is one of my favorites on the TPK blog because of its vibrant color scheme. The card only uses two colors — brown and turquoise — but the different values of those colors add a lot of visual interest. If you feel intimidated by blending watercolors, set that fear aside for this post! I will teach you exactly how to blend the two tones, and I promise that you can do it. Here are the steps for making this card:
You can either buy readymade watercolor cards (which is what I use), or you can DIY this step with a piece of watercolor paper.
Use the calligraphy style of your choice to write your greeting in the center of your card. Since this is a thank you card tutorial, I’m writing “thank you” — but you could write any greeting you want! “Happy Birthday” or “Hello” would work just as well.
Once the ink has dried, use a pencil to draw wavy lines emanating from the word.
Next, lightly draw a series of curved petals along the lines.
To add watercolor, you’ll use a blending technique. I promise it’s not difficult! You can see a photo of what the technique looks like below.
The video below will show you how to seamlessly blend the brown and turquoise. The design of the card in the video is different than the one shown in this tutorial, but the process is exactly the same!
Once you finish adding watercolor to the petals, go over your remaining pencil lines with ink.
Once you’ve blended the watercolors in every petal, you’re finished! To add an interesting sheen to the card, you can apply Microglaze (as shown in the Hand Painted Tiles Illustration Tutorial tutorial). Otherwise, your card is ready to go!
I love this thank you card concept because it’s casual yet sophisticated. Its neutral theme and color scheme makes it perfect for virtually anyone, and it’s fun to make. You’ll see — blending the watercolors really helps you to relax, and you’ll get the hang of it once you fill in a couple of petals!
If this thank you card tutorial isn’t quite up your alley, there are a few others you can try:
If you have any questions about this tutorial, please feel free to ask in the comments! Otherwise, thanks very, very much for reading TPK, and have a fantastic weekend!
Warmly,
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