Oh, I am in the mood for the soft pastels currently. It is that tempting hint at spring, I think. The birds seem to know that the days are getting longer and are chattering away more, beginning the pairing up process for the breeding season ahead. 

I’ve linked all supplies with compensated affiliate links used where possible at no cost to you.

softly layered Valentine’s sentiments

I had such fun with this card creating lots of subtle details from the Mandala in the background with a bit of  crackle and the layered Valentine’s sentiments enforced by the symbolism of the die-cut heart. Today’s blog post is part of a blog hop to celebrate the new And Back Again release which follows last month’s To The Moon release. You can find all the details of the hop below.

I started this card with the Heart Mandala stamp set. I lightly inked the stamp with Pumice Stone Distress Ink around the edges and then worked my way inwards with Antique Linen, Tattered Rose and a hint of Worn Lipstick Distress Inks. I spritzed with water and stamped it onto a piece of watercolour card.

I added a few smears of Crackle Paste and when dry rubbed Antique Linen, Walnut Stain and Winterberry Distress Crayons into the textured crazy paving to emphasise the cracks. I also rubbed a bit of the crackle paste away in one spot for a more distressed look. I added a lot of splatter with White Gouache and a mix of the Tattered Rose and Worn Lipstick Distress Inks and then set aside while I worked on the sentiments and heart.

For the Stitching Floral Heart die-cut accent, I took a piece of scrap watercolour card and used Tattered Rose and a touch of Worn Lipstick Distress Inks. I smeared the ink pads over a craft mat and spritzed them with water before dunking the card in the inky puddle. I dried off the card and kept dipping it into the puddle until I had a nice variation in colour. From this piece of card, I die cut the Stitching Floral Heart die. I love the delicate details. 

Moving onto the sentiment treatment. On a piece of Vellum, I stamped the stacked Love You greeting from the XL Love Greetings set in Versamark ink and white heat embossed. I tore the end of the vellum and trimmed the side to a banner before folding the vellum over the Mandala background piece. I secured on the back with tape and secured on the front with small pieces of foam tape hidden under the white embossed lettering. 

For the second greeting, I used a scrap of card leftover from a previous project which had a light Antique Linen and Tattered Rose treatment to it. On this, I stamped a second greeting from the XL Love Greetings set in Versamark ink and heat embossed with Antique Gold embossing powder. 

Finally, to put this card together I added the Mandala background to a card base cut and scored from Ivory card with foam tape. I used more foam tape to layer the die-cut heart and second sentiment piece. I finished off with a sprinkling of sequins and droplets.

more inspiration

For more And Back Again inspiration, check out my blog post using the cute Love Day set. You can find the original post here.

blog hop

As mentioned above, to celebrate the And Back Again release from Simon Says Stamp, this post is part of a blog hop. Hopefully, you’ve arrived here from Laura’s blog but if not then a good place to start is Simon’s blog. As with all good hops, there are offers and giveaways.

• Use code GNOMIE to get the cute 3×4 Love Gnome stamp set FREE with purchase! This promotion will expire on 23rd January at 11:59 pm EST.
• Simon is giving away a $25 coupon from comments left on each stop of the hop. Winners will be announced on the Simon blog on Wednesday 26th January. 

Now it is time to hop on over to Amanda’s blog. Here’s the full hop list to keep you on track.

Simon Says Stamp Blog   

Laura Bassen

Debby Hughes

Amanda Korotkova

Amy Rysavy

Vicky Papaioannou

Heather Ruwe

Kulbir Kirkland

Miriam Prantner

Yoonsun Hur

Heather Hoffman

Lea Lawson

Sandi MacIver

Tina Smith

Dilay Nacar

Emily Midgett

Jennifer Kotas

supplies

You can find links to the supplies I’ve used below; click on the picture or shop icon to get taken directly to the product. Where available I use compensated affiliate links which means if you make a purchase I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you! Items marked with an asterisk (*) provided by a store or the manufacturer. You can read my affiliate and product disclosure here. I genuinely appreciate your support.