• Home
    • Home
    • About Me
    • Privacy Policy and Disclosures
    • Contact
  • Blog
    • Blog
    • Blog Archives
    • Search & Blog Categories
  • Get Inspired
    • Get Inspired
    • Inspiring Words & Quotes
    • My Muses – Favorites & Inspiration
    • Challenges
    • Product & Book Reviews
  • Get Creative
    • Get Creative
    • Start Handlettering
    • Handlettering Fun Styles
    • Tutorials & How-To
    • Creating Art – Watercolor, Painting & Drawing
  • Start Planning
    • Start Planning Here
    • Planner Spreads & Themes
    • Plan With Me Archives
    • Organization
    • Habits & Trackers
  • Find Your Happy
    • Find Your Happy
    • Random Holiday Archive
    • Journal Prompts & Ideas
    • Health Journey
  • Shop
    • Shop
      • Lost password
      • My account
    • Cart
    • Checkout
    • Orders
  • Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
    To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • Pinterest
    • Etsy
    • Facebook

Chocolate Musings

Set your goals - make the plans - artfully create your life - live it beautifully. Grab the good chocolate and find your muse.

  • Home
    • Home
    • About Me
    • Privacy Policy and Disclosures
    • Contact
  • Blog
    • Blog
    • Blog Archives
    • Search & Blog Categories
  • Get Inspired
    • Get Inspired
    • Inspiring Words & Quotes
    • My Muses – Favorites & Inspiration
    • Challenges
    • Product & Book Reviews
  • Get Creative
    • Get Creative
    • Start Handlettering
    • Handlettering Fun Styles
    • Tutorials & How-To
    • Creating Art – Watercolor, Painting & Drawing
  • Start Planning
    • Start Planning Here
    • Planner Spreads & Themes
    • Plan With Me Archives
    • Organization
    • Habits & Trackers
  • Find Your Happy
    • Find Your Happy
    • Random Holiday Archive
    • Journal Prompts & Ideas
    • Health Journey
  • Shop
    • Shop
      • Lost password
      • My account
    • Cart
    • Checkout
    • Orders
Home » watercolor painting

Watercolor Tape Tips (for Easy Removal Later!)

December 7, 2021 Leave a Comment

Tape Tricks for Watercolor Painting and Bullet Journals - for when you want to remove it later! | ChocolateMusings.com

Whether you paint exclusively on watercolor paper or dabble with painting in your bullet journal, these tips will help you get those clean lines and avoid tearing the paper. Here are some of my favorite watercolor tape tips.

Table of contents

  • Watercolor Tape Tips
  • How to Make Washi Tape Less Sticky (So You Can Remove it Later)
  • Other Suggestions to Easily Remove Sticky Tape
    • More Tape Tips:
  • My Favorite Tapes (for Journals & Painting)

Watercolor Tape Tips

Here’s a watercolor tip I discovered early on – how to make the tape less sticky (so you can remove it later). Sounds weird, right? Why would you want to make the tape less sticky? If you’ve ever used tape for the border of your painting and tried to remove it later only to tear your painting, you know the frustration.

Tips to Avoid Tape Tears on your Watercolor Paintings | ChocolateMusings.com

I love washi tape for decorating select pages in my bullet journal. I especially love using painter’s tape to block off borders when I watercolor paint. Using tape as a permanent decoration is great, but removing it cleanly can be an issue. It’s especially frustrating when the tape rips the paper off of your hard work. There’s a trick to make washi tape (or painter’s tape) less sticky so you can remove it later. The best part? This watercolor tape trick is easy to do.

And who doesn’t love a good tape-peel reveal video? Sooooo satisfying.

How to Make Washi Tape Less Sticky (So You Can Remove it Later)

Washi tape or painter’s tape can ruin a painting or creation if it peels or shreds the paper as you peel it away. The trick is to make the tape less sticky before you apply it to your paper. It will still have enough tack to stick to the paper while painting your masterpiece but remove it cleanly when finished. Be sure to read the other painting tips below to help save your paintings!

  1. Remove the tape you plan on using from the roll.
  2. Press it against a pair of jeans or cotton shorts or shirt, and remove and reapply it to the clothing if the tape is very tacky.
  3. Do this until the washi tape is not as sticky. You’ll gather a bit of fuzz, but remove a lot of the tack from the washi tape or artist’s tape so you can remove it from the sheet of paper without tearing apart the document.
Tape too sticky? Tearing your watercolor paintings? Apply the tape to your jeans to remove 'tack' for just the right amount of sticky. You're welcome | ChocolateMusings.com

Some people recommend doing this on carpet or other cloth surfaces. Sticking tape to a rug or carpet brings up an unwanted conversation about how much I need to replace my vacuum. (Try it; you might question your vacuum as well. If not, I’d love to know what brand you use and how often you vacuum.)

Sticking the tape to jeans work best, but if I’m arting around in leggings, those cotton/spandex material blend pants work almost as well as those hearty, hip-hugging jeans.

Now the washi tape or painter’s tape is less sticky, and you’re ready to use it in your bullet journal or on your artwork!

Important! Before removing the tape from your paper, ensure your painting is completely dry before trying to peel away any tape. If your painting is cool to the touch, even if it feels dry, it’s not *really* dry.

Note: If you forget to do this before sticking your beloved washi tape down or use artist’s tape to block off the edges of your painting, never fear! I have a couple of other suggestions below.

Make Perfect Borders on Your Watercolor Paintings - Love Tape Reveals | ChocolateMusings.com

Other Suggestions to Easily Remove Sticky Tape

Here are a couple of other excellent tips to note about removing artists’ tape or washi tape on paper:

First of all, I know I’ve said this before, but It’s worth repeating: Make sure your painting is completely dry. It won’t feel at all cool to the touch if it’s ready.

  • Peel your tape slowly. This is not a band-aid!
  • Slowly peel the tape at an angle away from your painting (see pictures below) – do not peel straight back or pull straight up. Peeling at an angle away from the painting will help avoid those annoying little tears along the edges.
  • Is your tape still too sticky? (Or let’s face it, you forgot the washi tape + jeans trick?) Blast it with a bit of hot air from a blow dryer (not too hot, of course). It will heat the glue on the tape and let you slowly peel it away (at an angle) without shredding your paper.
  • Don’t have a blow dryer handy? Use a slightly damp sponge and dab it on the tape directly (be careful not to get it on your painting!) **This is not my favorite method. If you apply too much water, you’re weakening the paper so that it might tear more. So I would test it out beforehand to see if it works for you.
Tape Tips for Perfect Tape Reveals | ChocolateMusings.com #watercolor #bulletjournal #washitape

More Tape Tips:

Here are some other tape tips to keep in mind while painting or to block off areas in your journal, on a canvas, or on watercolor paper.

  • Make sure the paper is 100% DRY. The painting may be dry, but the paper might not, especially if you’re using cotton-based paper. If the paper is cool AT ALL to the touch, it’s not dry.
  • Do not use Scotch Tape/Cello Tape (the kind you use for wrapping paper)
  • Test out your tape on scrap watercolor paper to see how tacky it is (and see how much tack from the tape you might need to remove)
  • Some of my bright washi tapes tend to bleed – especially the cheap but cute washi tape. You might want to do a colorfast test when using colored tape.
    • Place your washi tape on some scrap watercolor paper to do a colorfast test.
    • Paint over the washi tape with pure water to see if the color from the tape bleeds away.
    • Wait for the paper to dry, and peel the tape away.
    • Ensure the water didn’t push any color away from the top of the washi tape or bleed down into the paper.
  • I also love to cut out designs with my Cricut and paint around them in my journal and watercolor paintings. I always use removable vinyl and do the jeans trick to make the tape less sticky. Otherwise, I can’t get the vinyl to peel away without ripping the pages.
Use cut vinyl in place of tape in your journal or on watercolor paper for even more templates | ChocolateMusings.com
Use tape to block of areas of your artwork | ChocolateMusings.com
Perfect edge reveal on a watercolor painting - tape makes all the difference. Find Watercolor Tape Tips in this blog post. | ChocolateMusings.com
Taped Edges Preparing for Watercolor Painting | ChocolateMusings.com
Taped Edges on a Painting | ChocolateMusings.com
Blank bullet journal with washi tape | ChocolateMusings.com

My Favorite Tapes (for Journals & Painting)

In case you were wondering what I love to use, here are a few of my favorite washi tapes and painting tapes.

  • My all-time favorite washi tape: The Black and White Striped Scotch Expressions tape. I found one at Staples and wanted more when I ran out. They’re sold in 6-packs on Amazon – but they have more styles than just black and white. If you find a style you love, get a 6-pack!
  • Scott Expressions Multi-Pack – these are perfect compliments to the black and white tape & include the colors I like.
  • Find other Scott Expressions Options – I’ve also seen them at Target and Staples.
  • Ruler Tape – I think this is so fun in journals. It comes on a big roll, so I don’t feel guilty about using it for a watercolor project. If you need to mark the length (up to 12 inches) on something, this tape is super handy!
  • Recollections Crafting Tape at Michaels (or you can find sets on Amazon)
  • Delicate Surface Painter’s Masking Tape – tends to have less ‘tack’ than other painter’s tape intended for walls – but I still use the jeans trick.
  • Masking tape – the general masking tape you might think of – I always use the jeans trick 2-3 times because it is tackier than I like but makes great lines on paintings.

For the Recollections tape, I picked up the rolls in the picture with the journal at Michaels. I like their tape in the tubes (like this one at Amazon). The collections are color-coordinated and don’t bleed like other cheap tapes I’ve bought. Plus, if I limit my supply to a few, I don’t get so overwhelmed.

My favorite watercolor tape tips - for those perfect lines you see on tape reveals | ChocolateMusings.com

I know what it’s like to ruin art projects/bullet journal spreads with too-sticky tape. I hope these tidbits help you create art with less frustration and more happiness.

Wishing you joy and creativity every day - Tricia
  • Beginner Supplies for Bullet Journaling
  • Tutorial: How Watercolor Paint with Markers in Your Bullet Journal
  • September Set Up
  • January Week #4: My Bullet Journal Fails (so far) & What You Should Do if You Fail
Make Time To Create! Motivation to Get You Creating | ChocolateMusings.com #create #motivation #creativity

Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Artsy Planner Spreads, Blog, Creating Art - Watercolor, Painting & Drawing, Get Creative, Tutorials & How To, Watercolor Quick Tips Tagged: how to, quick tip, tips, tutorials, washi tape, watercolor, watercolor painting

Creating Habits: Dishes aren’t a Dirty Word Anymore! + Video

January 20, 2018 5 Comments

Last Month’s Review

For last month I am happy to announce I fulfilled one of my ‘habits’ every day of the month. I posted on Instagram every day! (Lol) I’m so proud of myself. Creating habits is not an easy feat as you can see from my other habits on the tracker.

Dishes – Not a Dirty Word Anymore

One habit surprised me: Dishes. In September, I posted that ‘dishes’ was the d-word and apologized for saying it so many times. Admittedly, as long as I can remember I have hated doing the dishes.

When it was my turn for Sunday dishes growing up, I would spend as much time dawdling as I could. Then I would stand forever and wash the dishes until my legs itched (we went a long time without a dishwasher – so I had to do the dishes by hand for what seemed like most of my life – though it probably wasn’t that long). I HATED doing the dishes.

Patience and Diligence

Months of tracking and trying to improve have paid off. In December, I consistently did the dishes 26 days of 31, and I am happy to say that it has become a habit I do it almost without thinking. My kids are even getting into the habit of checking if the dishes are clean and if not, they load their dirty dishes into the dishwasher.

We Were Both Losers

Defeating this habit of NOT doing the dishes was actually quite the undertaking. Now it is one of the most consistent habits in my tracker. My husband and I used to play a game of who could stand the dishes in the sink the longest. Sometimes I would win and sometimes he would win. But in all honesty, we were both losers in this game. This is a huge reason why I decided to track it in the first place.

A Shift in My View Point – Creating Habits

Another thing that has completely changed the way I do things: 10 Minutes. If you haven’t seen this post, please read it, bookmark it, pin it and put it in your bullet journal. LIFE CHANGING.  Unless you have your life completely together and you never have a sock left on the floor by one of your kids or a speck of dust lingering on your furniture – read it. I can tell you that it has completely changed the way I think and the way I do things around my house.

You know that bin full of broken crayons that the kids never use or the shoe bin that never gets cleaned out but is always in the back of your mind as an unfinished task? Oh, wait, those things are now regularly done. I do think I need to create a secondary 10 minutes task list, so I give priority to other tasks.

This idea is not a revolutionary way of thinking as far as the world goes, but for me, the impact was substantial. I included things on my 10-minute mind map that I often neglect. Such as syncing my finances. Self-care has not been so much a burden. I put make-up on more consistently because I feel like I can take a couple of moments just for me.

I signed up for SkillShare and listen to classes as I cook dinner.

This one little switch in my mindset has been utterly fundamental for me to feel more accomplished and to get more done in the day-to-day. I will even use it to calm down if I have dealt with an obstinate 8-year-old or an emotional 6-year-old and my temper is flaring. As you might imagine, I could go on and on.

Habit Check Progress for the Month – Sometimes it’s the Journey Not the Speed

Now then – here’s my habit check for the month. Probably my most favorite design of the month. I LOVE how the moped turned out. And then I am not sure if I read the quote somewhere, and it was in my subconscious – but I thought of it one day when I was creating my habit page. Sometimes it’s the journey, not the speed. I think it pairs perfectly with the moped and with creating habits. Like I said above, I started in September making dishes a habit instead of a fight with my husband.

It didn’t change overnight. Creating habits takes time. Since I have been patient with myself and my progress, the speed has increased. But the journey was enjoyable – and that may be the best part.

Circle Mood Tracker

The circle mood tracker is one of my most favorite creations ever. I’ve tried out several compasses and tools for creating circles, and the helix tool is my favorite – because it has the degrees around the outside.  I realized that a lot of people out there who may not know how to create a circle. Guess what? I am working on some supplies for you. I’ve decided to scale back my weekly posts so I can create some additional resources for you.

I like the circle tracker because it takes up less space. I added a weigh-in result (TWI) and a weekly tracker for cleaning those spaces that need a little more care. Then I added a blog & video post tracker to the side. Next month, I plan on keeping the blog post tracker but moving the weekly tracked off the tracker page and to the weeklies.

creating habits, mid-month habit check, sometimes it's the journey not the speed

What I’m Going to Change

After I tabulated last month’s results, I decided that for March I may switch back to a color instead of a number; only because it was not easy to count and average all the numbers. But I do like the look of using gray/black to complete the trackers.

Creating habits takes a lot of work! I’ve decided that I need a plan to carry out the habit. A when, why, where – questionnaire of habits. For instance: what do I mean by ‘water intake’? I have worked on drinking more water, but I didn’t define whether it’s one cup or 8 to mark it off. It’s easy to ‘cheat’ and just mark something off if I do it half-way, but I try to acknowledge my true intentions.

I have learned that I have to be patient with myself and developing a specific routine around forming the habit is essential. For February, I think I may remove dishes from my tracker – just to see if it is a real habit now or if I still need the thrill of marking it off in my habit tracker.

So…Have 10 Minutes? A Challenge.

Using my 10-minute method, before I start next month’s habit tracker, I will: write down expectations of the habit defining the when, where, and what so I can honestly improve and make it into a habit.

Here is my challenge for you:

Do something for you or do something that has nagged at you. You don’t have to get it done, just spend 10 minutes and do part of it. Then when you have dinner in the oven, and there are 10 minutes on the timer, do a little more.  Do you have a habit that you are trying to form? As you can see, I have lots to work on, but with a plan and around 10 planned minutes, I bet it would make a difference in how full my tracker is. We will see what happens next mid-month habit check – creating habits is a long-term investment.

By the way, I have had people tag me on Instagram after seeing my post on Pinterest and tell me that it changed their lives too. If you try it out, use #InMy10Minutes and tag me @ChocolateMusingsCreates either on Instagram and completely change the way you task. I’d love to see it and feature you.

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully and don’t be afraid to find your inner muse.

~Tricia

5 Comments
Filed Under: #InMy10Minutes, Blog, Bullet Journal, Get Organized & Start Planning, Habits, Plan With Me, Planner Spreads Tagged: #BuJo, 10 minute habits, 10 minute tasks, Bullet Journal, Bullet Journal Advice, bullet journal layout, bullet journal spread, bullet journaling, Circle, circle design, circles, crayola markers, crayola supertips, creating circles, habit, habit tracker, have 10 minutes, in my 10 minutes, leuchtturm1917, mood tracker, moped, motivational quote, painting, plan with me, quote, trackers, watercolor, watercolor painting

2018 in a word: Grow

January 1, 2018 6 Comments

In November I started thinking about where I wanted to go in 2018. I’ve never had a theme for a year let alone a ‘word’ for the year. 2017 has been so momentous for me. It’s a wonderful feeling to rediscover yourself and finally feel like you are on the path of goodness in your life. That’s where 2017 led me. I found it by bullet journaling and once I started that, the creativity bubbled out once again. So why is my word for 2018 Grow?

2018 Theme: Let's Grow - Welcome January, Hello 2018 Spread

Why ‘Grow’?

I tucked my creativity away years ago – I just let life take over and honestly, those were a few miserable years. I call those the dark ages of my life. Once I found creativity, doodling, lettering, journaling, all enabled through Bullet Journaling, it was like a light opened and shined down like rays of sunshine on my soul.

Once this miraculous thing happened to me, I felt the need to spread this joy to others. Astounding changes started happening in my life. I truly felt the need to spread this experience to others who are stumbling through the dark ages of their own lives and I wanted to help them rediscover the creativity that was once lost.

What’s Next?

I would like to grow further. There are so many ways I want to grow. Grow a business, grow in my talents, grow spiritually, Essentially as a person, I want to enhance myself and become a better person. That is what “Grow” means to me.

I am not saying my journey is complete, but I would like to gather others along the way, grow with them and inspire them to grow on their own. I’m excited to start a year of growth and see where I end up at the end of 2018.

Read the pre-planning post for 2018 & watch the video to get a sneak peek of my weekly & monthly set up for January 2018.

Question:

Do you have a word or a phrase for the coming year? What’s your take on a ‘word’ for the year?

Watch the Video below to see my Hello 2018, Hello January Spread in my Bullet Journal.

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully.

~Tricia

6 Comments
Filed Under: Artsy Planner Spreads, Blog, Bullet Journal, Get Inspired, Get Organized & Start Planning, My Muses (My Favorites & Inspiration), Plan With Me 2018, Planner Spreads, Quotes & Words to Inspire, Words of the Year Tagged: airplane window, bullet journal plan with me, Grow, handlettered, handlettering, hello 2018, hello January, lettering, plan with me, video, view from an airplane, watercolor, watercolor painting, welcome 2018, welcome January, word of the year

September Set Up

August 29, 2017 3 Comments

Hello, September.

How I’ve missed you.

Fall is a time that gives me the…well warm fuzzies. Even though September is not yet full-on fall, there is a certain deliciousness that comes with the crisp nights and cooling weather, the warm hues all over the tree tops as the autumn colors dot the horizon. The reds, oranges, yellows, soft browns, and PURPLE! Purple is a fall color I swear.

Apple strudel is definitely on the menu. I don’t care if I have to eat the entire pan by myself because no one else in my family likes it. I wouldn’t say that is necessarily negative, I consider it a perk.

September feels like a great time to cuddle up with a fuzzy blanket and read a book.  I thought maybe I could have this Monthly Intro Page do double duty as a book tracking page (I’ve also heard the page called monthly cover page/splash page/monthly greeting or welcome page) whatever you call this “Hello September” page, I love the way it turned out. I added touches of iridescent watercolor paint after coloring with Papermate Flair Pens and using a water brush for blending.

As with most pages that I paint, I get caught up in the artwork and want to keep it for the beauty of the art. I don’t want to write on it! We shall see if I decide to deface the cover page and turn it into a reading tracker.

See how pretty that paint is? It shimmers. 

Sigh.

Monthly Page Layout:

This month, I shrunk the size of the day’s boxes and am adding a smaller habit tracker fto the side of the page. Another reason I love fall is the return of a regular schedule. Don’t get me wrong. I love summer for the freedom it allows, but fall provides needed structure in my life (and my children’s lives!).

Blending Tombow Dual Brush markers has fascinated me. I’ve seen it all over instagram – so I tried it. Surprisingly, I really like the color combination of the orange #933 and the purple #636. I plan to write in black so scaling the numbers up in the day boxes and using them as a ‘background’ was perfect.

I wanted more fall colors and leaves. Lots of leaves. I never realized how hard leaves were to draw! Using a variety of the Papermate flair pens, I drew out basic leaf shapes (you can see my pencil marks) and filled in with colors and used a water brush to blend the colors. The flair pens don’t blend completely, but I really like the look it gives in this case. On some of the leaves, I went back and outlined them again.

The return of the habit tracker

Since fall is the return of schedules, it is the return of the neglected Habit Tracker to my bullet journal. Using the space on the right-side of the page, I added a baby-step tracker filled with only the essential items. Habits that I truly need to form {or break!}. As you can see, there are a lot of personal-development items on my habit tracker. It’s time to get my personal life back into shape!

For creating an effective habit tracking:

  • Here is a post on how to set up a habit tracker
  • 4 things to do to supercharge your habit tracking

I am rather pleased by the colors and the layout for September. I added the washi tape for goals and the ‘to do’ section quite by accident. They are actually covering a hand-lettering mistake. The tape is sparkly orange and I wrote on it with a white “Recollections” opaque marker that I found at Michael’s in the loose pen aisle. I mark the monthly spread pages with washi tape for easy navigation. I added the white dots to the lettered titles too. I like the texture it gives and gives the text even more whimsy.

I wasn’t intending to add leaves to the boxes on the calendar, but it became necessary as I smeared the ink on number 13. I can’t tell, nor do I care because I like the added leaves! The number 25 may need some of the same help. Or maybe I should fill that day with plenty of fall activities that I will never know otherwise.

How do you fix errors on your page? Washi tape? Art? Stickers? Just leave it? Bullet journaling has taught me that it’s ok to make mistakes and to love them for what they are. Let me know what you do in the comments below.

Here’s to September, the beginning of a new season. A time to embrace what comes and to reignite the flame for schedules and planning.

Follow me on Pinterest for even more ideas. Come say hello! On Instagram find me @ChocolateMusingsCreates

3 Comments
Filed Under: Artsy Planner Spreads, Blog, Bullet Journal, Plan With Me, Plan With Me 2017, Planner Spreads Tagged: #BuJo, A5, autumn, books, brush lettering, Bullet Journal, dot grid, fall, hand painted, hello September, Inspire, leuchtturm1917, monthly calendar, monthly landing page, monthly layout, monthly log, page layout, painted, plan with me, reading tracker, shiny, tracker, watercolor painting, welcome page

About Me


Hi! I'm Tricia, the creative behind ChocolateMusings.com, I know how it feels to lose your inner muse. After years of darkness (which I call the dark ages of my life), I found my inner muse hiding in the forgotten corners of my soul, I vowed never to lose sight of her again.

Bullet journaling helped reignite the passion for art and living life again while organizing my days. I also discovered modern calligraphy and watercolor. Since then, my use of the bullet journal system has evlolved and I call it 'creative planning'. Here on the blog, I show you how to use your planner to ignite your inner muse and explore creativity and art while staying beautifully organized and living a joyful life.

I invite you to grab some good chocolate and dive into my musings. Let’s ignite your inner muse.

Read more on the about me page. You can also find my policies and disclosures here.

  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest
  • Etsy
  • Facebook

Cart

Browse Products

  • State Outline - Virginia State Outline - Virginia $10.00
  • Large Marker Calligraphy Guide With & Without Slants Large Marker Calligraphy Guide With & Without Slants $2.50 Original price was: $2.50.$2.00Current price is: $2.00.
  • State Outline - New Mexico State Outline - New Mexico $10.00
  • State Outline - Wisconsin State Outline - Wisconsin $10.00

Search ChocolateMusings.com

Categories

What Do You Want to Do Today?


 

Theme Design By Studio Mommy · Copyright © 2025

Copyright © 2025 · Exquisite Damask Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

 

Loading Comments...