Miss You

Hi there and happy Monday!

Today I’m super excited to share a card using an exclusive and limited edition collaboration stamp set from Simon Says Stamp and Concord and 9th!

I was so surprised a couple of weeks ago when I found this stamp set in my mailbox.  Getting to participate in Simon Says Stamp’s STAMPtember celebration this way is such an exciting opportunity for me.  And that this Monster Hugs stamp set is a collaboration between two of my favorite companies makes it all the better!

I started by stamping the images in Copic-friendly Hero Arts Intense Black ink onto Neenah Solar White 80# Classic Crest cardstock.  The stamp set has separate hand images so I chose the one that looks like it’s holding a balloon string.  It was super easy to line up all of the stamps to create a single image of the monster holding a balloon.

I used E21, E25, and E28 for the monster, laying down a solid layer E21 first and then flicking E25 and E28 in from the edges.  Then I put a few drops of Copic blending solution onto a clipping of a rag (I call this my “Kathy rag” since it’s a clipping from Kathy Racoosin’s rag ;p) and dabbed it over the monster to create additional texture.  When dabbing, I held the rag to the paper for 1-2 seconds at a time.

I continued with the coloring, using E50 and E53 for his horns, and RV91, RV93, RV95, and RV99 for the balloon.  I finished by adding little dots of a black Sakura Glaze pen to his eyes for a bit of shine and dimension. Then I heat embossed the sentiment using VersaMark ink and white Hero Arts embossing powder. Since I didn’t receive the coordinating dies, I used a Brother ScanNCut2 to cut out the image and then I set it aside.

For the background, I started with an A2-sized piece of Canson XL watercolor paper.  I smooshed Old Paper and Bundled Sage Distress Inks onto an acrylic block, slightly overlapping the colors, and then spritzed the block seven times with a Ranger Distress Sprayer (any fine misting sprayer will work) from about a foot away.  Then I turned the block onto the smooth side of the watercolor paper, weighed the block down with a heavy book, and set a timer for five minutes.  When time was up, I slowly removed the block at an angle, lifting from the lighter green area first to avoid dragging any dark inky water into the light area.  I mopped up some small pools of inky water using a paper towel and set it aside to dry.

When the background was dry, I adhered it to an A2-sized card base and then adhered the little monster with his balloon using foam tape and that finished up the card.

Thank you so much for visiting!