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Today’s tutorial will teach you how to create a personalized watercolor card featuring the recipient’s initial and decorative elements. Pair it with a customized envelope for a thoughtful, long-lasting birthday surprise!
If you were anything like me when you were a kid, then you probably wished for the coolest new toy for your birthday. Cards just came with the gift; they were largely ignored. In adult life, however, we tend to value time more than things. That’s why it’s so gratifying to receive a DIY birthday card: you know that whoever sent it spent a considerable chunk of care and energy crafting the card, thinking of you all the while! In today’s tutorial, I’ll show you how to make a pretty watercolor birthday card concept that centers around the recipient’s initial.
To make this tutorial, you’ll need to gather a few supplies:
To get started on this project, use Microsoft Word, Google Docs, or a similar program to make a print-out of a large sans serif letter (font size ~500).
Next, use a light box — a sunny window would work, too — to trace the letter in pencil on a 5″ x 7″ blank watercolor card. To do that, place the front half of the card on top of the print-out, then put both pieces of paper over the light source. You should then be able to see the letter through the card to trace over it.
Once you’ve traced the letter, use your pencil to draw a banner over it. To start the banner, choose the area of the letter where you think a banner will best fit. Then, draw a long and slightly wavy line like the one shown below over that area.
Now, draw a second line about 3/4″ (19 mm) under the first line you drew. This new line should be parallel to the first line.
Close the shape by adding two slightly curved vertical lines to connect the ends of the wavy horizontal lines.
Now, find a place near the bottom of your letter where one end of your banner can “peek” out.
Draw the other end of your banner near the top/middle of the letter.
Use an eraser to get rid of any parts of the letter that intersect the banner …
… Then, use your pencil to plan out the calligraphy you wish to include in your banner.
At this point, your card is ready for painting!
First, use a blunt art syringe to moisten the following colors in your watercolor palette: dark green, light green, and blue. Then, use the dark green to paint a few slightly curved lines like the ones shown below sprouting out of the side of the letter.
Use that same green tone to paint leaves coming off of the lines. Try to vary the sizes of the leaves; it will give the piece a more natural and spontaneous look.
Once the dark green paint has dried, use a lighter tone of green to paint stems and leaves directly beside it. Make sure at least one of the light green stems intersects a dark green stem.
Next, use the blue tone to make more stems and leaves.
Continue to work your way around the letter, alternating the colors as you go.
When you’re finished painting the stems and leaves, the piece will look something like this:
Wait a couple of minutes for the watercolor to dry, then move on to the next step.
Once the paint has dried, you’ll use a straight pen and waterproof black ink to draw over the pencil calligraphy you created earlier. Begin by tracing over your greeting.
Once the greeting ink has dried, trace over the remaining pencil lines in the piece.
Now, moisten the following tones in your watercolor palette: golden yellow, gray, and dark purple. Start by using the golden yellow to fill in the banner.
Then, before the yellow dries completely, use a deep purple to add shadows to the banner.
Finish up by using light gray paint to make the letter “pop”!
The result? An artistic, pretty, and demure watercolor DIY birthday card.
I paired this card with a light green envelope that features George Style lettering to echo the straight, clean lines in the letter on the front of the birthday card. You can learn how to make an envelope like the one pictured below in this tutorial.
I hope that you enjoyed learning about how to make this DIY birthday card! I am very much looking forward to sending this piece to a friend who I know will appreciate the demure feel of the artwork. A card like this is a nice little birthday surprise that has longterm display appeal!
If you have any questions or comments about this card or the techniques used to create it, please feel free to contribute to the conversation in the comments. Thanks very, very much for reading the TPK Blog, and have a lovely weekend!
Warmly,
*This post contains affiliate links to Amazon
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