Oh My, Dip Dye! Watercolor Stationery DIY

This Friday is National Handwriting Day and I couldn’t be more pumped to whip my handwriting skills into shape. What about you?

So, I’ve partnered with Pentel of America to bring you a DIY video tutorial that is geared towards this super fun holiday. Make these dip dyed watercolor notecards and stationery sets, as gifts for friends and family and/or snail mail that you can stock up on to send out for special occasions, etc.

As part of the project, I collaborated with local designer, Erica Loesing from Yes Ma’am, to hand letter all of  the dip dyed cards. And Erica is sharing her top 3 tips for better handwriting today, as well. Yay!

But first, the (video) tutorial. Here’s how to make dip dyed watercolor stationery with hand lettered greetings…

One of the things I love most about this project is the accessibility. All you need are a handful of super basic supplies, along with a watercolor set and a simple marker. 

Here’s the full supplies list, in case you missed it in the video…

Supplies List:

• Blank Notecards
• Pentel Arts Watercolors
• Pentel Arts Color Pen
• Water
• Bowl
• Paint Brush
• Paper Towels or a Rag
• Heavy Books (for stacking)

The whole process of mixing the paints, and dipping the cards takes almost no time at all (it took an hour to dip dye 25+ cards in 3 different colors). Then, you let the cards dry flat overnight, underneath a stack of books (and in between paper towels), and you’re ready to letter the front of each card with custom messages and send them out. Piece of cake!

Note: During the dip dying process, when you lay the cards flat for drying (which you’ll see in the video), the designs created in the inside of the card are much different than what is created on the outside. So when the cards are dry, if you like the design that was created in the inside better (which will look more like inkblots than a dip dye pattern), just fold your card over the other way, so that the inside becomes the outside.

If you’re like me, you may need a little assistance in the handwriting department before tackling a dip dyed stationery set on your own. So, I asked Erica to outline her top 3 tips for better handwriting and lettering to give everyone a push in the right direction.

1. Embrace your style. Love the way your hand writes rather than always trying for it to look like someone else’s.

2. Be mindful. Being present while writing allows you to appreciate the subtleties of how each letter connects to the next, the spacing, how the scale of each letter compares to it’s neighbors. And as handwriting becomes a bit of a lost art, enjoying it is pretty special.

3. Each pen, pencil, or nib allows your hand to move a little bit differently. Find the right tools for you.
Time to write some seriously awesome snail mail to friends. Right? Here’s how the finished project turned out…

Creative Direction, Production and Styling // Brittni Mehlhoff
Craft Production Assistant // Linda Jednaszewski
Photography and Video // Kimberly Murray
Hand Lettering // Erica Loesing from Yes Ma’am

Think you’ll give this dip dyed project a try? How are you planning to celebrate National Handwriting Day?

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This post is in partnership with Pentel of America. Thank you for supporting the brands that make this site possible.