Friday, October 7, 2022

Simon Says Stamp Cozy Hugs Blog Hop

Hi and welcome to my blog! I am so happy to take part in the Simon Says Stamp Blog Hop to celebrate the new Cozy Hugs release. If you are following along in the hop, you should have come here from the wonderful Cheiron Brandon.

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.

The Cozy Hugs release is full of wonderful new stamps, stencils, dies and other products. Perfect for winter and Christmas crafting, but also for so much more. You can find the whole release here. If you use the code COZY you will get the Giant Hugs Card Wrap FREE with any purchase of $75 or more!! This promotion will expire at 10/9 at 11:59 pm EDT.


I made a fall-themed tag and a Christmas/winter art journal page, with tutorials below.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Fall is at its most beautiful here now and always inspires me with its colors. One of my favorite birds is the blue tit, so when I saw the gorgeous Simon Says Stamp Friendly Birds embossing folder and die combo, I knew I wanted to turn the birds into blue tits.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson. Emboss in Simon Says Stamp Friendly Birds folder.

Start by applying Distress Ink directly to the Friendly Birds embossing folder. I removed some of the ink around the birds. Mist a tag cut from watercolor paper with water and emboss.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

When dry, add more ink to deepen the colors and frame the birds. I painted the berries red using a Distress Watercolor Pencil.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson. Emboss and die cut with Simon Says Stamp Friendly Birds.

The two birds were die cut from watercolor paper and then embossed in the same folder. I love how versatile these emboss and cut folders are. You can find a whole bunch of them in the Cozy Hugs release.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson. Color with Distress Watercolor Pencils.

I colored them with Distress Watercolor Pencils by picking the pigment up from the tip of the pencils with a paint brush.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Die cut the Budding Branches from watercolor paper and color with the pencils.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Dip a pencil into water and flick a paint brush against it to create splatters.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

I added a piece of Design Tape Trims at the top to hide the part that wasn't embossed.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Don't worry about getting a perfect result when painting the birds. You can also get the colors to blend more by using a paint brush and water. The birds were adhered with Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Perfect Foam Tape.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

I die cut the Simon Says Stamp Berry Stems also from the Cozy Hugs release from Simon Says Stamp Crimson glittery paper and glued to the berries on the branches.

Layers of ink - Fall Tag with Blue Tit Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

The sentiment was cut from the Sassy T-Day Sentiment Strip.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Next I made an art journal page with a Christmas theme, since I wanted to use the beautiful Painted Christmas Wreath stamp and to turn the birds into bullfinches. I worked in my Dina Wakley White Journal which is 6 x 6 in and if you rather want to make a card instead, that works just as well.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Start by smearing Antique Linen and Frayed Burlap on a non-stick craft sheet. Mist with water and press the page into the ink. This gives us a nice neutral background as a base.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson. Stamp with Distress Watercolor Pencils.

The Distress Watercolor Pencils are great to stamp with. Wet the tip of the pencil and color right onto the Painted Christmas Wreath rubber stamp. Don't worry about getting it perfect. I used a Sizzix cutting pad as my stamping block.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Mist with water and stamp on the background. The white journal has quite rough watercolor paper and you will get a different result depending on the paper you use and the amount of water.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

I stamped a sentiment from Simon Says Stamp Let It Snow with black ink. The snowflakes come from the same set and were inked with Black Soot Distress Ink and misted with water before stamping. I also die cut the Berry Stems from Simon Says Stamp gold glitter paper and added to the berries. Later, I added some red glittery berries too.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Dip a pencil in water and flick a paint brush against it for splatters.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson. Color with Distress Watercolor pencils.

The bullfinches die cut from watercolor paper and then embossed with Friendly Birds. They were colored in the same way as the blue tits. 

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

When they were dry, I added highlights with a white gel pen. The branches from Berry Stems were die cut from kraft cardstock.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

Finally, I added a little Ranger Nebula stickles glitter gel around the edges. There are star sequins in the gel.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

I also added a few more sentiments from Simon Says Stamp Forest Scenery

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

The splatters and glitter add texture and interest to the background.

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

I splattered extra much yellow in the center of the Poinsettias. 

Layers of ink - Christmas Wreath with Bullfinch Birds Tutorial by Anna-Karin Evaldsson.

The bullfinch is the quintessential Christmas bird in Sweden and it is always such a joy to see one.

Don't miss all the inspiration along the hop. There are of course prizes to be won too, and at each stop on the hop SSS is giving away a $25 coupon, randomly drawn from those who leave a comment. The winners will be posted post on the Simon Says Stamp store blog on Wednesday the 12th of October.

Your next stop on the hop is Lisa Addesa.  Don't miss to see what she has created. If you get lost along the way, here are all the stops:

Anna-Karin Evaldsson (you are here)

For more Cozy Hugs inspiration remember to check out the Cozy Hugs gallery at Simon Says Stamp, and if you make something with products from the range, it is fun if you post it in the gallery too. There are galleries for all releases, and for the card kits, full of inspiration.


This is the first blog hop for the Cozy Hugs release, don't miss blog hop day number 2 tomorrow.




Thank you so much 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.


48 comments:

  1. Beautiful project. Love the distressed look and your birds are beautiful.

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  2. This is beautiful. I love tags.

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  3. These are so pretty. I love the wreath and the birds are fabulous!

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  4. Absolutely stunning. You are so talented and creative!

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  5. Love the birds and vintage look you created!

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  6. Great water coloring. Love the bright colors.

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  7. Wonderful projects, Anna Karin! LOVE those little birds!

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  8. Thanks for the step by step! Gorgeous birds!

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  9. Beautiful projects! I love the hint of gold sparkle.

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  10. Love your creativity!
    Beautiful tag and journal page, thanks for sharing.

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  11. Lovely coloring! Thank you for sharing.

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  12. OMGosh, Karin!! Both projects blew me away. They are truly works of art! WOW!! What talent!
    Lori S in PA

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  13. What amazing projects. You are so artistic, Karin! thanks for sharing your ideas.

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  14. What amazing projects. Thanks for the inspiration.

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  15. Beautiful! Love that you used the distress watercolor pencils. Your colors came out beautiful.

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  16. These are all awesome! Thank you for the inspiration today.

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  17. Such an inspiring post! Your projects are gorgeous!

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  18. Wonderful artsy coloring. I need lots more practice to achieve this look.
    Melissa
    "Sunshine HoneyBee"

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  19. Beautiful! Your water coloring is gorgeous!

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  20. I really love your tag with it's fall-colored background. Beautiful.

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  21. Gorgeous tag and journal page. Love the amazing colors.
    Thanks for sharing.

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  22. I love how you colored those birds and stamp!! Gorgeous projects!!

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  23. Your birds are so amazing. Wow just wow

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  24. Gorgeous colors and details! I love the birds and the wreath stamp!

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  25. Oh my gosh!!! Your colouring of those birds is INCREDIBLE!!!

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  26. Truly works of art! Your birds are wonderful!!!

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  27. Both creations are fabulous, the colors are awesome! I adore Tags and yours is AHmazing! Just wonderful!

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  28. The tag is spectacular. Thanks for the
    tip on coloring the stamp before stamping.
    Great card. txmlhl(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  29. You make it look so easy. Your cards are amazing. Thanks for sharing your process and for the wonderful inspiration. This release is AMAZING.

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  30. This tag is an eye catcher. I love what you have done with the products and totally sold me on getting these myself.

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  31. Wow! I love what you did with these and so glad I ordered these!

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  32. Replies
    1. The tag is so beautiful. Thanks for the instructions.

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  33. These are so beautiful. I love the effect with the pencils, and the designs, oh, how I love the bird and branches, and berries, OH MY!

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  34. your work is gorgeous! You're truly an artist!

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  35. Lovely projects and such helpful information about the distress watercolor pencils!

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  36. Absolutely adore your style! That art journal page is the best!

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  37. Wow, fantastic! The way you coloured those birds is perfection!

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  38. Beautiful! Love how you used the new Tim Holtz pencils.

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  39. Wow!!!! Absolutely Gorgeous cards!!!

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  40. My favorite is actually the art journal page (I am a cardmaker so I find that surprising). There is just such a peaceful feeling to it.

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  41. What lovely projects! The artistry is amazing!

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  42. I really like the blue and yellow birds as well as the bullfinches. Sensational artwork.

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Thank you so much for leaving a comment! Happy Crafting!