Simon Says Stamp You Are Loved Blog Hop - Day 2

Happy Friday, crafty friends! It's always a happy day when we are celebrating a brand new release from Simon Says stamp, right?! Their latest collection is called You Are Loved went live in December, and it is full of lovely products! Simon is doing a free Distress Oxide ink pad in Festive Berries as a gift with purchase promotion - just use the code LVE584 upon checkout to take advantage while supplies last! The code will expire on Sunday, 01/13 at 11:59 pm ET.

 This is day 2 of the You Are Loved Blog Hop, and we've got quite the lineup for you! I will put all of the blog hop details at the end of my post, but how about we get to my cards first? I did get some of the sweet love themed items that I will be using soon, but the item that caught my attention first was the Moments of Grace stamp set. If you know anything about me, you know that sadly, I've received many sympathy cards after the deaths of my little ones. I know they probably aren't your favorite type of card to make, but I can tell you from experience that they are so important. It really helps when people acknowledge your hurt, and surround you with love during a time that is so hard.

I feel like this stamp set is a must have in your craft studio. The larger sentiments are visibly beautiful, but even more importantly, the smaller sentiments are SO very, very heartfelt. They would be perfect to go on the inside of your card if you didn't feel like they fit on the front. I combined it with the Damask Background cling stamp, and they are a beautifully elegant pair.

To start, I stamped & heat embossed the Damask Background in Detail White embossing powder to white cardstock panels using my MISTI. I use this Clearsnap Top Boss embossing ink because it is tinted, and I can see if I got a good stamp impression, which is super helpful to me.

Next I taped each panel down to my Tonic craft mat, and gave them a good water wash. Then I used a size 4 watercolor brush, and dropped Pinkfresh Studio liquid watercolor here & there in the following colors: Emerald City, Sky Blue & Bubblegum. I wanted to keep the colors light, so I added water when needed and mopped anything that was too saturated up with a paper towel. I also lightly misted them with my Distress Sprayer to help move the colors around, and mix them a bit. Once the backgrounds looked how I wanted them, I set them aside to dry.

While the watercolor panels dried, I stamped & heat embossed the sentiments in Brutus Monroe Gilded embossing powder to vellum. This has been my go to gold embossing powder since receiving it in a collaboration last summer. It is the perfect shade of gold, it has the perfect amount of shine and it melts beautifully. I highly suggest it if you are looking for a fave gold embossing powder!

Next I trimmed the sentiments into strips, and grabbed the watercolor panels. I hit them with a heat gun to finish drying, then added full sheets of foam adhesive to the back of them. I actually create my own full sheets of these foam adhesives just by cutting down sheets of white fun foam to 3.75x5, then covering each side in 2.5 inch Scor Tape. I've found this to be the most cost effective way to be able to apply a full foam sheet to the back of my cards, avoiding any weird warping or dents in my card fronts. Then I wrapped the sentiment strips around each watercolor panel, then mounted each one to the front of a white A2 card base.

To finish, I accented them with my signature iridescent jewels. You could switch these out for sequins or flat backed gems, or leave them off if bling isn't your thing. 

That is what I have for you today! How about we get to all the fun blog hop info now?!

PRIZES:
Simon Says Stamp is giving away a $25 coupon to every stop on the hop from the blog comment section. They will choose the winners and post on the Simon Says Stamp store blog on Wednesday. Winners can email SSS to claim their prize.

BLOG HOP LINK LIST:

Be sure to hop along and leave comments along the way for your best chance to win one of the prizes!

Simon Says Stamp Blog   

Kristina Werner

Laura Bassen

Debby Hughes

Cathy Zielske

Yana Smakula

Yoonsun Hur

Amanda Korotkova

Vicky Papaioannou

Heather Ruwe

Gayatri Murali

Ankita Gupta

Lea Lawson

Kristina Pokazanieva

Elena Salo

Wow....what a lineup that is! I know I am excited to grab a cup of coffee and see what everyone else created!

Finally, if you'd like to see even MORE inspiration from this release, check out the You Are Loved Collection Gallery. And be sure to link up YOUR creations too!

Before you move on to Kristina's blog, I wanted to invite you to follow me on social media. I would love to be crafty friends!

INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | FACEBOOK

Alright friends! Happy hopping, and happy Friday!

SUPPLY LIST
For your shopping convenience, all products are linked below. {Includes affiliate linking where possible - this allows small compensation for me at no cost to you. Never fear - I will only ever link to products that I truly love & use!}