Three years ago, I made a faux watercoloured birthday balloon card that I still like and decided to create a do-over using the new Birthday Greetings set from Simon Says Stamp’s Cozy Hugs release. This post is part of a blog hop to celebrate the Cozy Hugs release, and you will find more details below.
I’ve linked all supplies with compensated affiliate links used where possible at no cost to you.

faux watercoloured birthday balloons
On a piece of Arches Hot Pressed watercolour card, I worked out the rough placement of the three balloons. I started with the balloon top right and inked it with Dried Marigold Distress Ink, then I ‘rocked & rolled’ Wild Honey and a touch of Spiced Marmalade around the edges. Next, I ‘huffed’ my breath onto the stamp to add a hint of moisture to activate the inks and stamped it onto the watercolour card. Immediately, I went in with a wet brush and moved and blended the inks.







Once dry, I repeated the process on the large balloon and the balloon lower right. On the large balloon I added Festive Berries for a pinky hue. Again, once dry, I went to town, splattering ink over the balloons. I also splattered with Perfect Pearls and sometimes with plain, clean water. All the splattering reactivates the inks and gives that lovely watercolour look.







I dried the panel thoroughly and brushed it with antistatic powder before stamping one of the fabulous sentiments from the Birthday Greetings set in Versmark ink and heat embossing with Antique Gold embossing powder.
I also stamped a few stars from the set too and then added the balloon strings with a permanent marker. Finally, I added a few Powder Puff sequins.







more inspiration
The Party Like A Puffin set is also part of the Cozy Hugs release, and I couldn’t resist their quirky style. You can find the original post for this card here.







blog hop
As mentioned above, this post is part of a blog hop to celebrate the Cozy Hugs release from Simon Says Stamp. 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 COZY to get a free Giant Hugs Card Wrap die with any purchase of $75 or more. Offer valid while supplies last or until 09 October at 11.59pm ET.
- Simon is giving away a $25 coupon from comments left on each hop stop. Winners will be announced on the Simon blog on Wednesday 12 October.
Now it is time to hop on over to Amanda’s blog. Here’s the full hop list to keep you on track.







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.
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Love these muted peachy hues! and the splatter make the balloons so much better!
This is absolutely gorgeous! I must have a try myself x