Hello, my friends! I purchased Zig Clean Color Real Brush Pens many weeks ago but I didn’t get a chance to really sit down and play around with them until a few days ago. After some research, I started my dive into brush pens a year and a half ago with Arteza Real Brush Pens. I chose them over the Zig mostly because of the price. They are less expensive than the Zig, and since I wanted to see if I would like coloring with brush pens, I thought I would start with the Arteza brand first. I really enjoyed using them and wondered how the Zig brand would be so I invested in a set. I am so happy with these pens!
The first thing I noticed when I received my pens was that the brush on the Zig is smaller and the colors are so vibrant. One of the things I really like about them is how easy it is for me to blend and fade out the color. I struggle with blending my Copic markers, so I am finding this a bit easier to do with the Zig brush pens. I think also one of the reasons I struggle with my Copic markers is that I have a limited supply of them so when it comes to coloring images, I find myself struggling to pick colors that look right. I know once I add to my collection of Copics and really practice, I will get better. But for now, the Zig pens seem to be filling that gap for me.
The Zig Real Brush Pens are made by Kuretake and come in many different size sets. They are also sold individually which is great if you want to add to your collection later on or just buy a few to start with. I bought a set of 48 for now. They are odorless and filled with a water-based dye which is Xylene-free. You can fade out the intensity by placing a bit of color onto a section of an image and bringing water to it with a clean watercolor brush. You can also mix colors by laying one color down first and then coming in with another by overlapping it with the first and spreading it out. Another way you can mix colors is by touching the darker tip of one marker to the lighter tip of another. I have used them on watercolor paper and Strathmore Bristol Smooth with good results.
How I made this card
For this card, I used Waffle Flower’s Be Her stamp set, oversized Hello word die, and their latest paper pad in the Unicorn Dots Patter. This stamp set is super adorable. I just love it and I will definitely be making more cards using the other images! Their paper pads come in many different patterns and colors, and they are very unique in that they are 5.5 x 8.5 and extremely versatile!
I stamped my images onto Strathmore Bristol Smooth paper using versafine black onyx ink, covered them with clear embossing powder, and heat set them. Then, I colored them using my Zig brush pens. I placed a bit of the ink from the pen onto the areas that I wanted to be darker and used a watercolor brush to pull the color out. Once I was done coloring, I set the images aside to dry before cutting them out. I cut out two of the word dies and glued them together to form a slightly thicker word. I wanted to have the hello look like it was being held by the critters so I cut out their hands using a pen blade. I place them around the word and glued them in place. Next, I put foam squares behind the critter and word. Then, I cut out the patterned card stock. I attached it to a piece of white card stock which was 1/4″ bigger. I placed the word and images onto the card base and added some gems. Since this card ended up being slightly bigger than a traditional A2 size card, I made my own envelope using an envelope punch board.
This card was so much fun to make. I just love this collection of products from Waffle Flower! I plan on making many cards using this stamp set and will be posting them on Instagram as I do, so make sure to check it out!
Thanks for stopping by!
Materials used for this card
Waffle Flower Be Her stamp set
Waffle Flower Oversized Hello Word die
Waffle Flower Unicorn Dots patterned paper
Zig Clean Color Real Brush Pens (Mustard, Mid Gray, Light Pink, Wine Red, Lilac)
Pretty Pink Posh Gems Valentine Mix
Versafine Black Onyx Ink
Ranger Superfine Detail clear embossing powder
80lb and 110lb Neenah Classic Crest Solar White cardstock
Penblade
Art Glitter Glue
We R Memory Keepers Envelope Punch Board
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