Tuesday, May 19, 2026

Hyacinth Flower in Pencil

Hello crafters! Today I have a hyacinth flower to share, stamped on patterned paper and then colored with pencils.

Please note: this post has affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.

Layers of ink - Lilac Flower in Pencil tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Stamping on patterned paper and then using pencils to color the image is one of my favorite techniques. The pencils will cover most of the pattern, but some of it will show through. I particularly enjoy combining this technique with ledger papers. I made an art journal page, but this could just as well be a card instead. 

The page was added to my Stamperia Happiness Mixed Media journal, 4x8.5 in.

Stamp Simon Says Stamp Big Botanicals.


Color with Prismacolor pencils.

Color with pencils, starting with the lighter shades. I used Prismacolor pencils.

Add highlights with a white gel pen.

Add highlights with a white gel pen.

Add ground with pencils.

Use a black pencil to draw a small hill, some grass and shading. Color with pencils.

Add sentiments from Tim Holtz Palette paper.

I cut the sentiments from Tim Holtz Palette Paper. Ink the edges.

Die cut Simon Says Stamp butterflies.

Die cut butterflies from Pink Palette Paper using Simon Says Stamp Bright Butterflies. The edges were sanded lightly and inked.


I stamped words and numbers from Simon Says Stamp Big Botanicals on the background.


Add Stickles Star Dust to the flower centers. 


I used different shades of blue and a purple for the flowers.

Stamp with Simon Says Stamp Vintage Bunnies.

This sentiment comes from Simon Says Stamp Vintage Bunnies and was stamped on ledger paper. I used the same sentiment yesterday for my Patterned Peony Flower tag.


Adding a grassy hill grounds the flower to the page. Here you can also see how the background paper shines through the pencil coloring.


Little Things was also cut from Palette Paper.


The ticket comes from one of the collage papers from the 8x8 Palette Papers. Stamp a word on the ticket and ink the edges.

Layers of ink - Lilac Flower in Pencil tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.


Thank for stopping by here today!




Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:

* Please note: the links are affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.



Monday, May 18, 2026

Patterned Peony Tag

Hello friends! It is Monday again and I hope your weekend was good. It is time for a new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge!

Please note: this post has affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.


This week our theme is 'Tag It'. I love to make tags, as I am sure you know. There is something about the size and tall shape that makes them extra fun to work with. 

Don't miss the project by our May guest designer Estelle Palumbo. 

Layers of ink - Patterned Peony Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

I made a tag with a mixed media background and dimensional paper flower die cut from patterned paper. The background was made with a stencil, texture paste, gesso and watercolor paint. I also had fun using some very old charms. I also added a small tag, cut from one of the patterned papers.

Apply texture paste and gesso.

Start by applying texture paste through Tim Holtz Deco Floral stencil. When dry, cover with a layer of gesso.

Paint with watercolors.

When the gesso is dry, paint with watercolor paint. Let the paints blend on the background.

Remove some of the paint.

It is difficult to see here, but when the paint was dry, I wiped some of it off with a moist cloth to reveal a bit more of the white background.

Die cut Simon Says Stamp Divine Peony.


Die cut sentiment with Tim Holtz Handwritten Journey.

Shape the petals with Tim Holtz Shaping Kit (I forgot to take a photo of this step) and ink the edges with a little bit of brown ink. Assemble the flowers and glue a Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Dazzling Peachy gem to each center. The sentiment was die cut with Tim Holtz Handwritten Journey from leftover watercolored paper and black cardstock.


I went through an old box yesterday and found a bunch of beads and charms which I decided to use on the tag. I attached them with jump rings to the ribbons.

Stamp the sentiment on a tag from Tim Holtz Palette paper.

The small tag was cut from one of the collage papers from Tim Holtz Orange Palette papers 8x8 in. I stamped a pretty sentiment from Simon Says Stamp Vintage Bunnies.


This strip was also cut from the collage paper.


Here you can better see what it looks like when some of the paint has been rubbed off, so that the texture is more visible.


My favorite part of the background is those spots of bright blue.

Layers of ink - Patterned Peony Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

As always, the techniques would work just as well for cardmaking. 

Layers of ink - Patterned Peony Tag by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

The tag has quite a lot of dimension. I used Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Perfect Foam Tape for two of the three flowers.

Join us this week in our Tag It challenge! You have a chance to win a $25 gift voucher to do some fun shopping at Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in.



Do you use Instagram? If so please add #sssmchallenge so we can see your entries there too.





Thank you so much for visiting today! 

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:

* Please note: the links are affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.


Monday, May 11, 2026

Celebrate Butterfly Card Tutorial

Hello crafters! I hope you had a fun weekend filled with creativity. Here, nature has exploded into shades of green, which inspired today's project.

Please note: this post has affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.


This week we have a Things With Wings theme at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog. Lots of fun options with this one! Don't miss the lovely project by our May guest designer Estelle Palumbo.

Layers of ink - Celebrate Butterfly Card Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

I made a butterfly card for this week, using Simon Says Stamp Butterfly Escapades Embossing Folder and Cutting Dies, combined with ink and glitter. The green background was inspired by all the trees with their bright spring green shades.

Dry emboss with Distress Ink.

Start by inking the Simon Says Stamp Butterfly Escapades with Distress Ink. Mist the paper with water and emboss. Let dry and repeat until you are happy with the look. 

Add Stickles.

I added Stickles Star Dust to the smallest butterflies.

Die cut the butterflies and dry emboss.

Die cut the coordinating butterflies from the Butterfly Escapades set and emboss in the folder. Later, I die cut their bodies from Simon Says Stamp White Glitter Cardstock instead.

Paint with Distress Ink.

Smear Distress Ink on a non-stick craft sheet, mist with water and pick up with a paint brush. When dry, add white details with a gel pen and add Stickles to the large butterfly.

Die cut Tim Holtz Handwritten Celebrate.

Die cut the sentiment with Tim Holtz Handwritten Celebrate from Simon Says Stamp White Glitter Cardstock and Island Blue cardstock. Stamp the second sentiment with Simon Says Stamp Stay True and Blueprint Sketch Archival Ink.


For the large butterfly, I also used a glitter butterfly underneath. Fold up the wings and add Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Perfect Foam Tape under each wing.


I used foam tape under the wings of the smaller butterflies too.

Layers of ink - Celebrate Butterfly Card Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Here you can better see how the butterflies flutter across the card.

Layers of ink - Celebrate Butterfly Card Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

You can add even more butterflies if you want too.

Join us this week in our Things With Wings challenge! You have a chance to win a $25 gift voucher to do some fun shopping at Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in.



Do you use Instagram? If so please add #sssmchallenge so we can see your entries there too.





Thank you so much for visiting today! 

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:

* Please note: the links are affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.