Kim's Hair tutorial ~ Flapper Anya

I hope you enjoyed the video I have to say sorry there's no talking or music I will change it one day (when I know how... ha ha ha)!!!

Here's the finished card, I made flapper Anya spin in her aperture, but also used the same colouring technique for the back of her hair! You can click here for some details on creating the back image!

Thanks for looking, have a great day, HuGs Kim :)

Image: The Greeting Farm (Flapper Anya)

Color Favorites

Here are some colors that didn't make our "starter" list but that we all enjoying using:

Traci:

• Turquoise-BG11,BG32,BG13,BG15

Amy:

• Darker Green - YG17, G07, G29
• Light Denim - B93, B95, B97
• Dk. Denim - B95, B97, B99
• Khaki - E30, E31, E35
• Cotton white - E40, E41, 0

Rachel:

• Darker Green (great for Christmas stuff) – G29/28/24/21
• Khaki Green – YG 99/97/95/93
• “Denim” blue – B39/37/34/32
• “Basic” blue – B28/26/24/21
• White blonde hair or khaki pants – E55/53/50
• Grey – (cool) C9/7/5/3/1

Kim:

• Colourless blender - it's THE best for so so many techniques,
• B60 I like for shadows around my stamped images,
• E40 I use for shadow tones on white,
• Generally I will colour match my markers to the patterned papers, I select the colours that I think match on scrap paper, then just use them for my image.

Elaine:

• Colourless Blender - an absolute must have.  I wouldn't be without it for fixing mistakes and for various techniques.
• All of the light pastels (sketch only): B0000, BG0000, BV0000, C00, G0000, R0000, RV0000, Y0000, YG0000, YR0000, V0000, W00 I find these invaluable for blending and leaving contrast areas.
• Greens - I love this combo for leaves/grass: G20, G21, G24, G28, G29

Hair Colors

Here are our personal suggestions on hair color combos that we love to use:

 

Traci:

• Black – C3,C5,C7,C9,110
• Dark Brown – E44,E47,E49 (ash brown, rather than Dark)
• Med Brown - E21,E25,E27,E29 (warm brown)
• Light Brown – E13,E15,E17,E18 (Light reddish brown)
• Blonde – E50,E53,E55,E57
• Alternate, more yellow blonde – E50,Y21,Y26,Y28
• Red/Auburn – E02,E08, E19,E18
• Alternate, brighter Red Hair-YR00,YR04,YR07,YR09,E09

Rachel:

• Black – 110, C9, C7
• Dark Brown - E49/29/39
• Med Brown - E29/39/35
• Light Brown – E37/35/33
• Blonde – Y28, YR21, Y 21
• Another blonde Y28, YR23, Y23
• Red/Auburn – E18/19/08/09 

Amy:

• 
  
  Black – C3, C5, C7, C9, 100, 0 
• 
  
  Dark Brown - E25, E27, E29, E49 
• 
  
  Med Brown - E35, E37, E57, E59 
• 
  
  Light Brown – E50, E53, E34, E57 
• 
  
  Blonde – Y21, Y23, YR21, YR24 
• 
  
  Light blonde E50, E51, E53, E55, 0 
• 
  
  Red/Auburn – YR04, YR07, E09, E18 
• 
  
  Light Red - Y21, Y23, YR21, Y38, E97, E99

Kim:

• 
  
  Black – 100, W-3, W-1
• 
  
  Dark Brown – E47, E79 (dark blend), E57 (light blend)
• 
  
  Med Brown – E35, E47 (dark blend),  E53 (light blend)
• 
  
  Light Brown – E43, E35 (dark blend), E53 (light blend)
• 
  
  Blonde – E50, E53 (dark blend), 0 (light blend) (sometimes E97 to the ends)
• 
  
  Red/Auburn – E08, E99(dark blend), E97 (light blend) Here's an example of my hair colour's the one that has changed slightly would be the brown hair colour range.

 

 

Elaine:

• Black: C00, C1, C3, C5, C8, C10, 100, sometimes B60 for the highlights
• Blonde: Y21, Y26, Y28 (dark blonde) OR E50, E51, E53 (light blonde)
• Brown: E31, E34, E35, E57, E59 OR E71, E74, E77, E79
• Red: E11, E13, E17, E19

Skin Tones

Our personal skin tone favorites:

Traci:

African American – E57,E59,E49
Caucasian – R00,E00,E11
Latino/Asian – E00,E11,E13,E15

Rachel:
African American – E37/35/33
Caucasian – E11/00/000
Latino/Asian – E13/11/00

Amy:
African American – E31, E34, E37, R22
Caucasian – E000, E00, E11, R20
Latino – E30, E21, E33, R20
Asian - E50, YR000, E51, R20

Kim:

African American – E57, E74 (dark blend), E35 (light blend)
Caucasian – E000, E11, E13(dark blend), R20 (blush)
Latino/Asian – E13, E35 (dark blend), E21 (light blend)

Elaine:

African American – E25, E27, E21, E13, E11, E02, R32 (blush)

Caucasian – E0000, E000, E00, E11, R20, R21, R22 (blush)

Starter Colors

Just starting out with Copics? Here are the colors we recommend that we use the most to get your collection started.

 

Traci:

• Skin R00, E00,E11,R20 (for cheeks)
• Hair E50,E53,E55,E57 (blonde)
• Red R22,R24,R27,R29,R39
• Blue B91,B93,B95,B97,B99
• Green YG03,YG25,YG17 (I tend to use more lime greens)
• Yellow Y02,Y06,Y08 (But I am not in love with my yellow)
• Orange YR15,YR16,YR18
• Pink R81,R83,R85
• Purple/Lavender V01, V15,V06

Rachel:

• Skin – E11, E00, E000, R20 (blush)
• Hair (I picked Brunette) – E29/39/35
• Red – R89/27/24
• Blue – B06/04/02/01
• Green – YG09/07/06 or Traci's green, LOVE Traci's green
• Yellow – Y17/13/08
• Orange – YR68/16/ Y38
• Pink – R85/83/81
• Purple – V17/15/12

This is my Copic "cheat sheet" with all my colors.  Not very exciting but I use it all the time when trying to match colors:

 

Amy:
• Skin - E000, E00, E11, R20
• Hair - E55, E57, E59
• Red - R24, R29, E07
• Blue - B00, B01, B04, B06
• Grreen - YG01, YC03, YG25, YG17
• Yellow - Y13, Y15, Y17
• Orange - YR12, YR 04, YR18
• Pink - ( I just had to break this into blue tone and red tone)
•         Blue tone Pink RV00, RV10, RV11
•         Red tone Pink R00, R21, R22
• Purple/Lavender - V01, V05, V06

 

 Kim

• Skin - E000, E11, E13, R20 (for cheeks) 
• Hair(blonde) - E50, E53, 0
• Red - R24, R46 (darker blend), R14 (lighter blend)
• Blue - B93, B97(darker blend), B91 (lighter blend)
• Green - G21, G94 (darker blend), YG11 (lighter blend)
• Yellow - Y32, Y35 (darker blend), E50 (lighter blend)
• Orange - YR68, E97 (darker blend), YR65 (lighter blend)
• Pink - RV23, RV35(darker blend), RV21 (lighter blend)
• Purple/Lavender - I really don't use these colours much and would simply colour match with the papers I'm using! I have some as part of set within my collection! I have coloured these images to give you an idea how they might look :)

 

Elaine:

• Skin - E000, E00, E11, R20, R21
• Hair - Blonde: Y21, Y26, Y28 Brunette: E30, E34, E35, E57, E59
• Red - R20, R21, R22, R24, R27, R29, R39
• Blue - B0000, B91, B93, B97, B99, BG0000, BG72, BG75, BG78
• Green - G0000, G82, G85
• Yellow - Y32, Y35, Y38
• Orange - YR0000, YR61, YR65, YR68
• Pink - RV0000, RV000, RV21, RV23, RV25, RV29
• Purple/Lavender - BV0000, BV000, BV01, BV02, BV04

Question: Ink smearing?

I'm using digital stamps and my Copics keep smearing the ink, how do I fix this?

Pretty sure we've all had that problem at one time or another, I actually posted on my blog about it awhile ago because I was tired of ruining all my images.  Some people switch papers, switch inks or even switch printers but what worked best for me was....waiting.  I don't know why but if I print off my images, let them sit for 24-48 hours and then heat set them my smearing problems are greatly reduced or eliminated.  I can't guarantee it will work for everyone but it's the best solution I've found so far.

~Rach
http://papercraftingplace.blogspot.com/

Where do we buy our Copics and paper?

Most people have 1 place where they tend to buy most of their Copics and many of us are picky about what paper we like to use. Here are our "go to" places:

Traci : http://www.oozak.com/ because they have good prices, and excellent service and shipping!

PAPER: When I first started playing with Copics I sampled several different papers (Gina K, Neenah, Paper Trey Ink, Georgia Pacific from Wal-mart). They are all usable, but I fell in love with how my markers behave on Paper Trey Ink. It is a little thicker and I know some people think it uses too much ink, but for me, it's my must have!

Rachel : http://www.oozak.com/ They have great prices, free shipping over $50 and offer First Class shipping for orders under $50. They also ship same/next day.

PAPER: I have tried Prism Simply Smooth, Gina K Pure Luxury and Paper Trey Ink (PTI) papers. I'm 99% positive that the Prism and Gina K are the exact same thing and those are what I currently use because I love how I can blend my colors, and the paper doesn't bleed at ALL with my Copics which is great. PTI paper bleeds just a little for me which is problematic when shading tiny areas, BUT the shading ability with PTI is awesome too.

I priced it out and this was the best deal for paper for me: Gina K Pure Luxury Layering Weight

This is my Copic rack which holds 112 Sketch markers. As you can tell, I got it from carpediemstore.com and I LOVE it, it's wonderful:

Amy : http://www.oozak.com/, they have great prices and selection along with super quick shipping . And Free shipping for orders over $50.

PAPER: As paper goes, I use mostly Copic X-Press It, I get nice vibrant colors with it and because it is a bit thinner it is easier to fussy cut the image out. I also like the results I get with Paper Trey Ink white cardstock. I tried the Neenah and didn't like how it bled and even seemed to smear the ink of my stamped images in some places. But again, this is just my experience and preference for how I color =)

Kim: I originally bought a large 72 marker set from ebay, I found that http://www.refuelled.com/ and http://www.artifolk.co.uk/ has the reinkers and a larger range of colours! If you take a look at this chart I have set D and set B, also http://www.copicmarker.co.uk/ is quite near where I live, I just haven't had the chance to visit... yet, LOL!

This is my copic collection, hoping one day to have them all (we can dream hey?)

PAPER:

I get mine from here and it's not branded but what I like to look for is not too high gsm so it doesn't take all the ink from my copic pens but also a good grade so it's not at all flimsy. Ideally acid free, and smooth surface. My choice is Exclusive white card - A4 - 250gsm - CW309. I buy a bulk lot and share it with my mum to keep cost down and it's fantastic card for the card bases too, hope it helps.

Elaine:

I tend to buy most of my markers from http://www.artifolk.co.uk/ - they dispatch quickly and have a wide selection of all the markers and refills.

PAPER:
I like to play around with different papers, but for the most part I use Splendorgel Extra White 270gsm from Century Paper.

****Please note! We do not work for these companies, nor have they provided us with any materials. We have had good personal experiences with them, these are just our opinions****

Question: Sketch or Ciao?

Question from Koty: Which are better, Sketch or Ciao markers?

This is often the number one question people have when getting started with Copics. It's basically a matter of opinion and preference.

• Ciao markers cost less than Sketch
  


• Sketch markers come in 358 colors, Ciao in 180. (as of February 2012)
  


• Both Sketch and Ciao's are refillable and the nibs are replaceable. Sketch markers hold more ink, a bottle of Various Ink will refill a Sketch marker 12 times and a Ciao marker 15 times.


• If you ever get into airbrushing you can use Sketch markers in the airbrush machine, but not Ciaos.


• The Ciao barrel is round, the Sketch is more oval

• Sketch markers have their color numbers and names etched on the cap, Ciaos do not.

Bascially, you would be safe buying all Ciao's and then just buying what Sketch markers you need to fill in a color scheme. Up to you!

Color Me Copic Team - Meet Kim!

Kim

My Blog : www.paperbabe.blogspot.com

I can't remember now what I used before my copics ha ha ha, I think I actually didn't stamp then, I was very into die cutting! But I did have a collection of dried up alcohol markers from way back when I used them at college. Called magic markers I think, I also tried promarker brush pens that you filled with ink, slightly time consuming and you could never get the same colour tone twice.

When the stamping bug finally caught hold of me I went straight for a large set... yes!!! the only thing I wanted was a good range of different colours so bought a 72 sketch marker set D all the way from Japan ha ha ha, I think I waited over a month for them to arrive! THAT was over two years ago... I haven't got my certificate yet but I certainly intend to this year as I have found a contact here in UK now WOO HOO!

For me I think it's about practice really, I couldn't begin to tell you the amount of images I have coloured in, I think also having an arty background has helped me with shadows and highlights. I can see improvement in my own copic colouring all the time, my copic family are growing too and still totally LOVE them.

Thanks for stopping by HuGs Kim :)

Color Me Copic Team - Meet Elaine!

Elaine aka Quixotic

Blog: Quixotic Cards

I was given my first Copic markers as a gift a couple of years ago.  I had been keen to try them, and spent hours studying various blogs and reviews, agonising over whether or not to take the plunge.  I was so excited to receive a small set as a gift, but it wasn't until much later that I really got to grips with them and really fell in love. 


I am not Copic certified and am completely self-taught.  Many talented bloggers have provided the information and inspiration I needed to develop my colouring skills!  I love to experiment and I still spend a lot of time studying other people's colouring and techniques, picking up tips and colour combos.