Good colors for bleach technique

[spedabstbit]

I've just started experimenting with the bleach/watercolor technique. I'd love to make a set of cards on various colors, that all kind of coordinate. The first card I tried was on Brocade Blue, and I was very pleased with the way it turned out. (See attachment below.) Because it bleached out to WHITE, I was able to watercolor over the bleached part easily and get colors I liked. With other colors, it bleaches out to yellow (or some other color, like majenta!) that's hard to compensate for when I'm trying to use Summer Sketches and Summer by the Sea and I need to achieve a good skin-tone.

For those of you who have tried this technique, which cardstock colors bleach out to something close to white, making watercoloring easier?

[Laryssa]

I can't help you but I'm interested in the reply as well. I have a swap this month and the technique is bleaching.

I love your card by the way!! The watercolouring in fantastic!!!

[Tampersay]

Here are my experiences (although I haven't bleached all the colors yet LOL!) I say "almost" as the colors are really close to other SU colors. I love bleaching things!

Close to Cocoa bleaches out to almost Barely Banana
Black bleaches out to almost Really Rust
Not Quite Navy bleaches out to almost Blush Blossom (with hints of Pale Plum)
Brilliant Blue bleaches out to almost Gable Green
Garden Green bleaches out to almost Old Olive (more dingy though)
Rose Romance bleaches out to a soft pink, but nothing close to an SU color
Night of Navy bleaches out to a dark eggplant (but not Eggplant Envy)
Real Red bleaches out kind of an orangy red. I was surprised it didn't go pink or peach
Old Olive bleaches out to a mustardy sun
Sage Shadow bleaches out to almost Barely Banana
Mellow Moss bleaches out to a khaki color (maybe Sahara Sand?)
Passion Pink bleaches out to a natural white although diluted you can get a Pretty in Pink
Marvelous Magenta, well, don't bleach it. It isn't pretty LOL!! Actually it turns a kind of yellowy brownish purply color.

Hope that helps. It's all I can remember off hand. One thing you can do is take snippets of your c/s (those left over little pieces) and play with bleach and see what you get. It's kind of fun and sometimes surprising!

[SammyStamper]

Thanks for the list Michelle. That card is so beautiful! I haven't tried this because I'm allergic to bleach, just the smell makes me run for the hills. I'll have to see what I can do.

[Tampersay]

I'm not fond of bleach either. Usually what I do is pour just a little bit (a tablespoon or so) into a folded up paper towel in one of those disposable sandwich boxes. I keep it across the room and go to it to stamp. Then I close the lid as soon as I have "inked" my stamp. That way I don't have to smell the bleach the whole time I am working.

[Lisa S]

make sure when you are bleaching to use a FRESH bottle of bleach, once bleach is opened it looses it's bleaching abilities, therefore some colors of CS will bleach as others will not completely bleach out