GOOD MORNING FRIENDS! I’m on a roll right now coloring holiday images. I found that the best way to keep moving along is to keep the layout simple so here’s another where the image takes center stage.

I’ve long been a fan of Mo Manning and it just isn’t holiday card making season until I’ve colored one of her elves. This is one of her latest images – Little Elf Kippa – which is available as a digital stamp from her website. If digital images aren’t your cup of tea, the image is also available as Bauble Balance from Penny Black.

I found that the best way to have highlights on the ornaments was to draw them in first and color around them. I don’t usually make circular highlights, but I saw that’s how the artist had them and it really was much easier so did the same thing.

I used BV02 and BV04 to accentuate the curvature of the ornament. I could have added a fourth marker to any of the colors combinations used for the ornament, but using the BV markers added some depth without adding an even deeper color. I doubt I would have gotten the same effect with a deeper color – afterall, the shadow of a red object is a muddy gray color, not a darker shade of red. When we buy markers, we all tend to pick the pretty ones, but this is where investing in some of the muddy colors (which seems like most of the BV markers) really pays off.

That’s it for today! I have a few more Mo Manning images coming up next so stay tuned!

Disclosure: Below are the supplies I’ve used for today’s project. All items were personally purchased except those marked with an asterisk (*) which were provided by a store or design team. I never share a product I do not like. All opinions are my own. Read more.

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Supplies

Paper: Neenah Solar White 110#; Hammermill Digital Color Copy 100#
Stamps: Little Elf Kippa by Mo’s Digital Pencil; Sweetest Moments by Penny Black
Ink: Versafine in Onyx Black by Tsukineko
Dies: Zig Zag Rectangles by Lawn Fawn
Copics: E000, E00, E11, E21, R21 (skin); BV04 (hair); BG11, BG32, BG72, BG75 (overalls); R24, R37, R59, BV02, BV04 (shirt, patch & hat); Y26 (buttons); BG11, BG32, BG72, BV02, BV04 (teal ornament); Y21, Y26, Y28, BV02, BV04 (gold ornament); R24, R37, R59 (red ornament); BV02, BV04 (ornament hooks); BV0000, BV000, 0 (background)