Hello Monday and Stampers!

We are so excited about this week - it is going to be one of our best yet.  Why?  Because we have TONS of projects, LOTS of prizes and are teaming up with one of the best companies in the industry - QUICKUTZ!  And, today, we have our biggest prize ever. Keep reading…

QuicKutz is an industry leader in die cutting.  They make die cutting fast, east and fun with their many products.  (Click HERE for more information.)  We asked if they would team up with us this week because their company values and quality products seemed to be the perfect fit for Hero Arts.  And, we have to say, they have some of the nicest people we have ever worked with in the industry. Honestly.  Amazing people.

This week, we are going to focus on combining stamping and die cutting.  And don’t worry - if you don’t have a die cut machine, we have some templates you can print out to make your own.

Let’s start with a project.  Here is a card from Jennifer McGuire.  She actually used a large QuicKutz die cut to create the card itself!  And because this QuicKutz die comes in a set with other sizes of the same shape, she was able to quickly make a matching piece to go on the center of the card.

Card by Jennifer McGuire.
Supplies:

• Flower Word Pattern
  
• Scroll Frame and Messages
  
• Wallpaper Flowers
  
• Hero Arts Pearls and Gemstones
• QuicKutz Nesting Label Dies and Revolution
  
• Black Memories Ink and Old Paper Distress Ink
• Other: Creative Impressions ribbon

And here is another card, from the amazing Jen Gallacher.  Jen is a master at using die cuts.  And she also is fabulous with stamps.  So we knew she would combine the two to create a masterpiece!  We love how she die cut a circle to the perfect size for our Woodgrain Circle stamp.  And, she brought her die cut flowers to life with stamped centers.

Card by Jen Gallacher.
Supplies:

• Anytime Messages
• Circular Designs
• Borders
• Woodgrain Circle
• VersaMark
• Clear Embossing Powder
• QuicKutz Silhouette and Silhouette Digital Designs (Card 1013, Flower 1022, Flower 1021, Frame 1025)
• Other:  Patterned paper (KI Memories), yellow ribbon, orange button, twine, 3/4″ circle punch, 1/2″ circle punch, pop dots

Feeling inspired?  We hope so!  if you are looking for more ideas, be sure to check out QuicKutz.  There are tons of ideas on their website and blog. (We really like their gallery - they have great artists.)  QuicKutz also makes a great digital die cutting tool called the Silhouette - a favorite product of Jennifer, Lisa and Shari!  You can find information about it on the Silhouette website and the talented Kerri Bradford’s blog.  Lots of great stuff going on!

On to the challenge… and then the BIG giveaway!

This week’s challenge is to create a new project with stamps and die cuts. Please use at least one Hero Arts stamp and die cut on your project and tag with the code word “diecuts” when uploading to the Hero Arts Flickr Group. And if you use a QuicKutz product, you are eligible for an extra prize!  The deadline for submitting is Sunday, June 14th at 11:59 PM PST. Here are the great prizes you have a chance to win:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50 of new Hero Arts stamps + a 2009 catalog
• Scrapbook Page Winner: $50 of new Hero Arts stamps + a 2009 catalog
• 1st Place: $50 of new Hero Arts stamps + a 2009 catalog
• 2nd Place: $25 of new Hero Arts stamps + a 2009 catalog
• 3rd Place: $15 of new Hero Arts stamps + a 2009 catalog
• QUICKUTZ PRIZE: This bonus prize will go to someone who uses a QuicKutz die on their project.  Please be sure to note in the project if you did!  This winner will get: a QuicKutz Flourish Border Die, QuicKutz Thank You Embossing Folders and a Quickutz Nesting Labels Die set… a $65 value!
  

Don’t have a die cutting machine?  No worries!  You can print out these templates and cut them to make your own die cut shapes. The largest shape in each set is the perfect size to make a shaped notecard!  (Just click on the image and it will open a 8.5 x 11 PDF that you can print.)

Of course, there isn’t a better way to start the week than with a giveaway! And, it is our BIGGEST PRIZE EVER! We are going to do this a bit different than normal.  You will have 5 chances to win this big prize.  Just leave a comment on each post this week - Monday through Friday - and we will pick one random winner from a random day.  Just get those comments up (only one per person on each post, please) by 11:59pm PST on Friday. We will pick a lucky winner of all of these QuicKutz and Hero Arts goodies…

The prize, worth over $400, includes:

• A Silhouette SD Digital Die Cutting Machine ($299.99 SRP)
  
• A roll of Black Vinyl (for the Silhouette) ($7.99 SRP)
• A roll of White Vinyl (for the Silhouette) ($7.99 SRP)
• A roll of Transfer Paper (for the Silhouette) ($7.99 SRP)
• TWO $25 Digital Download Cards (for the Silhouette)
• Hero Arts Wallpaper Flowers Stamp ($10 SRP)
  
• Hero Arts Scroll Frame and Messages Stamp Set ($15 SRP)
• Hero Arts Large Artsy Circles Stamp ($10 SRP)

I told you the QuicKutz folks were great. Thank you, QK! And, of course, be sure to visit the QuicKutz blog today, too - lots of giveaways all week!!

Happy stamping and die cutting.  See you tomorrow…

Filed under: diecuts

This entry was posted on Monday, June 8th, 2009 at 4:00 am and is filed under Motivation Mondays. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.