Pinkfresh Studio - Happy Hugs Two Ways

Happy Wednesday, blog friends! We have hit the midpoint of the week! And I am only 3 sleeps away from welcoming my mom, dad & gramma to Minneapolis for a week. I am SO excited for them to be here! And then next Thursday, my brother & future sister-in-law will fly in - our tiny little house is going to be PACKED FULL. Lol! I can't wait!

Today I wanted to share that we are offering free US shipping and discounted International shipping at Pinkfresh Studio all week long on orders $30+! By using the code upon checkout, it will deduct $5.50 off your order, which equates to free shipping in the US or discounts it for our international friends.

This is a great time to grab some last minute gifts for your favorite crafty family & friends, or pick up a little gift for yourself! ;) I thought this would be a fun time to create a list of my top 20 items that we released at Pinkfresh Studio this year!


My list includes the Happy Hugs stamp set and coordinating die, which is what I am using on these cards today! I did want to mention that the cute hugs word die that I used was a free with purchase promo during the October release, and not available for purchase. So if you didn't get the die, you can easily replace what I have used with some letter stickers, or the scripted word in the stamp set. I wanted to show you two ways to use this stamp set - one more time intensive, and the other that can be whipped up quickly!

Up first is the card that took a bit more time to complete. To start, I put the snowy background stamp into my MISTI, and inked it up with distress oxide inks in the following colors: shaded lilac, salty ocean & blueprint sketch. Then I stamped it to the middle of a heavyweight white cardstock block.

I have heard other stampers mention that it is hard to stamp with these inks, and I do agree with that notion. I have found that if you apply the ink with the pad directly to the stamp, then blend it in with your ink blending tool....you get a better result. I will say that it typically takes 2-3 applications to make it look how I want, so it is pertinent to use a stamping platform of some type...of which I prefer a MISTI.

With the "ink blended" background complete, I used the metal dies to help line up where the stamped section of the sentiment would be. I removed the dies, then stamped it in onyx black versafine. With all the stamping complete on the first panel, I mounted it to the front of an A2 card created from Patriot Blue heavyweight cardstock. {I did want to mention that the edges of the ink blended stamping ran when I added the shimmer to it. I didn't even think about the fact that it would make the ink run. Insert eye roll - mistake on my part.}

Next I stamped the bears to heavyweight white cardstock, then colored them in with my Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers. Once the coloring was finished, I added a couple highlights with my white gel pen. I normally take a photo of the colors I used on my phone, or set them aside until I get the card photographed...but I forgot to do either here. So I am going to take a guess on the colors based on past coloring, and knowledge of my Zigs.

Scarf/Hat: persian blue, cobalt blue, light blue
Girl Bear: oatmeal, pale pink
Boy Bear: mid brown, dark oatmeal

My friend Carol recently asked me on Instagram if I had colored in an image with my Zigs like I would with Copics. I don't actually own Copics, but the answer to that is yes! I do actually use my Zigs in a way that I see other people color with Copics, but I'm assuming that they will blend a bit differently. The only time that I use water with them is if I need to lighten up a color, and I use the smallest amount of water possible. I also use water when I am using my Zigs to create a background, and then I will use as much as needed to get the look I'm intending.

 With the coloring finished, I cut out the bears with their coordinating die, then mounted them with foam tape to the front of the card. Next I cut out the word HUGS three times: once from light blue glitter paper, and twice from heavyweight white cardstock. I adhered the layers together, then glued each letter to the front of the card to finish of the sentiment. Finally, I accented with my signature jewels here & there, then lightly brushed the stamped areas with a Tonic Aqua Shimmer pen.

Up next is the card that literally took me 15 minutes to create....and that is because I am so darn slow at ink blending! Lol! Ten minutes of this card was devoted to creating the ink blended background. I used the same oxide inks mentioned above, and blended them to a heavyweight white cardstock panel. Once the blending was done, I flicked it with some water and picked it up with a paper towel. Then I added some white paint splatters and set it aside to dry.

While the splatters were drying, I stamped the bears in onyx black Versafine ink, and then cut them out with their coordinating die. Then I stamped & heat embossed the sentiment in white to black cardstock. Next I trimmed each line into a separate thin strip.

It doesn't take white splatters very long to dry, so once set I mounted the ink blended panel to the front of an A2 white card base with foam adhesive. Then I mounted the bears to the front with foam tape. I popped all the sentiments strips up with thin foam strips as well, and angled them opposite each other underneath the bear. Finally, I accented the front with some iridescent jewels.

 This is honestly one of the cutest stamp sets EVER, and I love how the bears look both colored and left just as the outline. I hope you liked seeing two ways to use this super adorable set!

That is all I have for you today, friends! Before you move along with your day, I wanted to invite you to follow me on social media. I hang out on Instagram a lot, and share my work in progress in my stories...along with REALLY cute photos of my dogs! :) And of course, I would love for you to subscribe to my YouTube Channel. My channel has been pretty quiet recently - I am right in the middle of reorganizing my entire craft area...so it is a bit disjointed. I have given myself a deadline of the end of December to get it completely finished, with my new studio area ready for video creation!! So, there will be a TON more videos in 2019. So thank you for bearing with me until then!

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I hope that you have a wonderful Wednesday!

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