A Child Is Born: Colouring Clothing, Adding Pencil Depth, and a Clean Christmas Layout

Our September Mini Catalogue is live, Online Exclusives are stocked, and I’m celebrating my birthday month with a special customer promotion. To kick things off, I revisited the Stampin Up A Child Is Born stamp set and turned the session into a practical colouring lesson you can use on any festive image—especially those daunting clothing folds.

Stampin Up A Child Is Born

Supplies I used

  • Stamps: Stampin Up A Child Is Born
  • Ink & Card: Memento Tuxedo Black, Thick Basic White
  • Colouring: Stampin’ Blends in Ivory (skin), Real Red, Old Olive, Secret Sea, Crumb Cake, Pecan Pie; optional coloured pencils (I used Prismacolor) in violet, white, warm greys, and a soft brown
  • Paper: Traditions of Christmas Designer Series Paper (B-sides)
  • Extras: White embossing powder, heat tool, rhinestones, Stampin’ Dimensionals

Technique highlights & tips

1) Crisp stamping for alcohol markers
Use Thick Basic White and Memento for a clean, bleed-resistant impression. With a large image, ink well and let the stamp rest a moment so the ink transfers evenly.

2) Simple, believable skin
Ivory Stampin’ Blends do the heavy lifting. For soft dimension without multiple markers, apply two to three light coats only where you want depth (e.g., under sleeves or hairlines), then fill the remaining areas with a single pass.

3) Clothing folds without fear
Start by mapping shadow lines with the dark marker where the stamp indicates creases (under arms, behind knees, along overlapping layers). Think of fabric ridges: one edge catches light, the opposite edge recedes. After placing those darks, pull colour into the mid-tones with the light marker, keeping a small highlight gap when possible.

4) Pencil over marker = instant depth
When your blends feel a bit flat, a coloured pencil glaze brings them to life:

  • Violet for shadows over reds and greens creates a natural, deeper shade without muddying the colour. Use the lightest pressure and build slowly along crease lines and tucked-away areas.
  • A white pencil restores soft highlights on rounded cloth folds. Clothing rarely has a sharp, shiny highlight—keep it gentle.
  • Warm greys for grounding: add a narrow, darker shadow right under the figures, then feather it out with a lighter grey. A whisper of soft brown warms the ground and ties back to neutral cardstock tones.

5) Hair with quick dimension
Lay in Pecan Pie (Dark) at roots and where hair tucks behind shapes, then blend with Pecan Pie (Light), leaving a few lighter streaks for sheen.

6) Colour balance that just works
I chose Secret Sea as the dominant blue, Real Red as the supporting colour, and Old Olive as a small accent—then echoed those tones in the B-sides of Traditions of Christmas DSP. A simple rule: aim for a 1 : ½ : ¼ ratio across your layout so nothing fights the focal image.

7) Clean layout, quick finish
Trim the focal panel close (without clipping details), add a narrow Old Olive strip for contrast, and mount on a Secret Sea panel with a coordinating Traditions of Christmas background. Heat-emboss “O Holy Night” in white on coloured cardstock for a crisp sentiment. Pop the focal panel up with Dimensionals, stamp the star cluster, tint with Daffodil Delight, and finish with a few rhinestones (keep them away from tiny details so they don’t obscure your colouring).

Why you’ll love A Child Is Born

This large, beautifully drawn image is forgiving for beginners yet rewarding for more advanced colourists. It’s perfect for practising fabric folds, mixed-media colouring (markers plus pencils), and classic Christmas card design that looks elegant without heavy embellishment.

Shop, kits, and what’s on this month

Join my newsletter to receive weekly tutorials and access to my Freebie Library with 100+ card ideas. If you’d like the direct link to my birthday special or to shop the A Child Is Born stamp set and Traditions of Christmas papers, just ask and I’ll send it through.

Cheers for now

Alisa

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