Vibrant Color Bursts for all Seasons!

Our lives are so full of Color!  
We are so lucky!
Spring, summer and fall...all such colorful times of the year....The colors of the seasons are so different....soft pastel shades of spring, vibrant bright colors of summer...the deep rich tones of autumn... I woke up two days ago to see that my neighbor's tree, that had been green two days earlier, is a gorgeous shade of Deep Gold!  Two evenings earlier, when the temperatures were hot, we sat on their deck enjoying the greenery of summer....Two days later, Gold replaced the green!
Autumn has the rich, deep hues deep true colors.....and I LOVE Color!   Each season's colors are so different.
 I love spring, because of the greens and pastel shades of color it brings after the grey/brown/white colors of winter...such a welcome sight....
After the soft shades of color from Apple Blossoms, Hibiscus and spring flowers, Summer is always a sight to behold!  Vibrant colors in every hue imaginable..The hot, lazy days of summer hold brilliant  flowers, in every color of the rainbow...against a backdrop of green....
This year, August  added bright reds and wine colored cherries to our back yard!  Our Cherry Tree was so  laden with fruit the branches almost touched the ground!  What a beautiful site it was!  These cherries were large and tart, perfect for pies,  muffins and more!  But, 'you' can only eat so many...!  We gave cherries away,..even secretly gifting them... (I was even caught dropping off ice cream pails of cherries on friends' door steps, early in the morning!).  After all that picking ..and washing and pitting and freezing them on trays...I thought my hands were permanently stained red! I didn't think they'd ever come clean!!   Heck, I didn't get a chance to play with any inks...and my fingers were stained red!! that's no fun...
What I needed to do is find some great colors of inks to have fun with!!

September arrived, and after a few cold nights, Mother Nature decided it was time to have the leaves on bushes and trees to start their wonderful show of fall color.  One day my neighbors tree was beautiful and green, and two days later it had turned a beautiful deep gold!  All of the leaves had changed to gold after only 2 nights!...It was such a gorgeous color!  

...I am assuming at this point, you are wondering where I'm 'going' with this blog post today and all the talk of nature's vibrant colors..??  

Color Burst Microfine Water-color powders..Ken Oliver


In my past experience, water-colors aren't usually the brightest most vibrant colors..., and I personally haven't seen any that can compare to Mother Nature's palette of color.  But, I have now!  I had heard about Color Bursts by Ken Oliver, and I'd heard rave reviews....I now have them in stock, and have had the chance to see how beautiful and vibrant these colors are!  WOW!  
Color Bursts are concentrated microfine water color powders that when they are introduced to a liquid or wet surface will blend and spread, creating the most beautiful intense colors....You only need a tiny dot of powder to create 'drop-dead gorgeous' brilliant colors.  'Just add water' to start the show.

 Color Burst Microfine Water-color powders were originally introduced this spring in Six Bright Colors that were available individually.  Now, Ken Oliver has developed six more Earth-tone Colors that 'go' beautifully with the Bright powders
The Color Burst Powders are now in stock, and available to purchase individually (8 grams/powder) and in either Bright Set(6) or Earthtone Sets(6) (the sets have 6 grams of powder each color).  They arrived a few days ago and I've only been able to find a little time to experiment and play with them, but these definitely are fun and the colors are impressive!
I'm looking forward to playing more with them as soon as I can get the chance.   When I ordered the Color Bursts from the supplier, the sets were not available yet, so I brought the individual colors in, and they are available now for purchase.
I didn't put the individual pictures of the Color Bursts here, but, their colors show well in the set pictures.  (Earthtone set shown below)

                                             Color Burst Technique ideas:

You can use several different techniques  with Color Burst powders to create different effects.  
1.  Sprinkle a tiny bit (teeny-weeny bit would be more accurate, you don't need much) of Color Burst Powders on your water color paper.  Spritz with Water and watch the colors come to life! You can also use a stencil or mask on your Cardstock before putting down the color to add some shape and design.
 2.  Put a bit of powder on your craft sheet and spritz with water...Use with your paintbrush to paint images!  If I think I may be using a lot of a specific color as a watercolor paint, I'll mix it in a section on a plastic palette (I personally love Ranger's Palette, with the clear plastic cover, so you can see (even label the colors).  If I'm mixing up more watercolor(s) that I can use in a session, I use distilled water when I mix it up with the powders.  Then, I can leave the lid open on the palette so it dries well.....Next time I need that color I just spritz with distilled water again.  NOTE: If you use regular tap water, and try to hold the paint for later, it may turn moldy...(not pretty...Unless you are looking to do a 'Halloween themed project...then... maybe????
3.  Spritz your watercolor paper and put a little bit of powder on the wet paper and watch the colors travel!  This takes the WOW factor to the next level!  
4.  You can also add Color Bursts to water (distilled) and create beautiful vibrant mists!  
There are so many different ways to use Color Bursts Use them on Ribbon, Flowers, hand made papers, cardstock....!!  So many options!
What 'blows me away', is seeing such a small speck of powder developing into such brilliant rich color! 
  
Color Burst Videos Online

I checked out some YouTube videos to find some tutorials for you to view, since I haven't had the chance to experiment much with them.
 Several designers/artists including Ken Oliver online have videoed tutorials and projects using Color Burst Powders....(Don't you love that these wonderful people take the time to share their knowledge with us?!...Thank You!!)  

One of these videos I thought was very informational is, 6 techniques you can use with Ken Oliver's Color Burst Powders by Ken's Kreations.   I think anyone who is wondering what to do with Color Burst Powders or interested in water-colors will enjoy this video. (this is not Ken Oliver's video)...'Ken's Kreations' is someone else.  

Here is the link to the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYvPvyPJHtM

Color Burst Powders both Basic bright colors and Earthtone colors (available individually) can be found in our online catalog in the 'Inks - Color Burst Watercolor' category. (link below)  Here you will find larger pictures and more details.  (don't forget, to order, you must email me, My catalog doesn't have a  'Shopping Cart'  Email address in side-bar of blog)
http://s13.photobucket.com/user/integritydesigns/library/Ink%20-%20Color%20Burst%20WaterColor-%20Ken%20Oliver?sort=6&page=1 


Ken Oliver's Stick It Adhesive Sheets made for Die Cutting Machines!

With the popularity of die cutting, and dies in the paper crafting world right now, I'd be remiss if I didn't also tell you quickly (I know, I went on far too long) about another wonderful and wildly popular product that has arrived in stock.
Stick It! Adhesive (Ken Oliver) has been designed for use with die cutting machines, including Electronic Cutting Machines!!  Now that's Great!  

"Applying glue to intricate die cut pieces can be a sticky mess...Not with Stick it..."
Stick it are sold in packages of 5 sheets, in two sizes.(Lg-8 x12.1/4 in. and Sm 8 x 6 1/8 in.)
These sheets have an 'easy-peel' area running the length of each sheet so you won't be fighting to get the release paper off the adhesive."
I like that the adhesive is formulated to remain repositionable  for a period, (just in case you need to move it a tad)....then it becomes permanent over time!  

Here is the link to the Stick It Adhesives that are found in my Adhesives and Glues category in the online Catalog where there are more information given.

http://s13.photobucket.com/user/integritydesigns/media/Adhesives%20Glues%20and%20Tapes/SK310.jpg.html?sort=6&o=4

I know this was a long post, but I've had so many paper and multi-media crafters asking me about when we were going to get the Color Burst in, and since it is a new product, I thought I'd share what I knew about these great water-color powders with you.  
And, In my opinion, any adhesive that is designed to be used with a die cutting machine is good to know about...as most won't work very well and can cause big problems.

I hope you have a wonderful week that includes the wonderful shades of color that this beautiful time of year brings.  If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment..
To order any products, email me at the email address shown in the side bar.  integritydes at gmail dot com