Happy Friday! Today I’m kicking off our new March contest with a fun flowery creation that’s loaded with embellishments.

When I found out one of the monthly themes was Fabulous Flowers I instantly thought of all the gorgeous Hero Hues Art Print Flowers. I laid out all the different flowers on my desk and came up with this happy color combo.

Card by Kelly Rasmussen. Find complete supplies and instructions here.

After die cutting all the circles and placing the flowers on the card I filled in the smaller circles with some other coordinating embellishments. I love how easy it is to pull a card together when you have matching papers and embellishments!

To create the circle pattern on this card I first started by die cutting various sizes of thin white circle frames. Then I laid them out on my card to determine a pattern and then die cut circles from the Pool Layering Paper. Here’s a photo I snapped while I was creating this card that might help you see how it all came together.

This card definitely took some planning to get things lined up just right, but it was totally worth it. I’ve already got plans for another version using all different patterned papers in the open circles.

Thank you so much for joining me this week! Hope you have a creative weekend!

Happy Friday!

To finish off our “his and her” card week, I decided to take a “her” card I did for the 2012 catalog and turn it into a “his” card.

First up, here is the feminine card. I colored and popped up the butterfly in the collage image.

For the masculine version, I wanted to use the same collage stamp. However, the butterfly looked too feminine. So what did I do? I covered it! I just added a bold clock image and instantly changed the look completely. Just another way to get more from one stamp…

Cards by Jennifer McGuire. Complete supplies and instructions here.

And now it’s time to announce our first $50 Wish List Shopping Spree of the month!! Congratulations to Amy Tsuruta, whose January 14 blog comment was randomly selected from all of the January comments! Amy, please email us at the winner’s address located over in the sidebar and we’ll get you all set up to shop.

For a chance to win one of next month’s two $50 Wish List Shopping Sprees, simply join the Hero Club (it’s free!), then comment here on the blog throughout the month. Each comment you leave gives you a chance at the prize!

Have a great weekend and thanks for joining me this week,

Wow, Friday is here already and I am back to show you two final cards with our Stamp of the Week, Thank You For Being My Friend. I just LOVE using as many messages from one set as I can. Look at how these two cards use the same stamps, in the same arrangement, but look totally different!  A few stripes on one to make gingham as well as some felt Frame Cuts flowers, and stamped flowers and stitching on the other. My black ink pad never leaves the top of my desk, so it is on nearly every card I make!

Cards by Sally Traidman.  Complete supplies and instructions here.

On Tuesday I offered some stamps up for grabs, and the lucky random winner is #107, Shirley in Queen Creek, AZ who said:

I love Valentine’s Day. I love everything about it, from the cards to the soft music, flowers, and fine dining and of course the LOVE! I also love the cards you have made today. Such creativity. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Shirley, send an email to winner@heroarts.com with your mailing address and I’ll get that right out to you!

Hope you have enjoyed our week. Happy weekend and come back next week to see what Jennifer has to inspire you with!

Hi there and happy Friday! To wrap the week of our new catalogs I wanted to share a fun card made with stamps from all three!

Card by Lisa Spangler. Check out the materials and instructions.

I based the card on Shari’s awesome sketch for the monthly challenge. Have you entered yet? We would love to see your submission, and you could win a shopping spree!

Here’s the low-down on where all these awesome stamps came from!

• The chevron background and patterned paper are both from the Studio Calico Spring Catalog!
• The sweet birds and the border stamp are from BasicGrey Spring Catalog! and…
• The die cut shape for the window, flower and matching die and friends message are from Hero Arts Spring Catalog! The die cut shape used for the window, Classic Frame, is our Stamp of the Week! Enjoy 25% off this handy die cut through Sunday right here in the Hero Arts store.

Even though the stamps come from different lines they all work together, don’t you think? Kinda like friends at a party! And! The best thing to me is that Hero Arts really *is* friends with Studio Calico and BasicGrey — and many, many other companies as well! We are so lucky to have an industry that helps and supports one another, aren’t we? It’s like one big family. I love working in an industry like this!

Now for the random winner of the $75 shopping spree to the Hero Arts online store!

And the winner is….

…..dum da dum…..!

Debstamps, who left this comment on February 8 at 6:37 am regarding the BasicGrey Spring Catalog:

This is my favorite catalog I think…can’t decide which background stamp I like best–Floral Medley, Zig Zag and More, double Diamond, Floral Tablecloth…and then there are the clear stamp sets: love the tree in the Love From Our House, Special Lace greetings, Love and Lace…Carte Postal…ok–I’ve got to stop as I might short out the keyboard with the drool….Thanks for the fun video Lisa–I’m excited to get my hands on some new Mid Tone inks!

Congratulations, Debstamps! Please email us at the address in the sidebar and we’ll set you up with the shopping spree. Now you’ll have to decide what  stamps you want, ha ha! (I think you can’t go wrong no matter which you chose!) Happy shopping!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Happy Friday everyone, and welcome to my final post for this week. Today I am sharing a flowery ‘Hello’ card that fits in with this month’s contest. I absolutely love the butterfly image from the new Greetings stamp set. And when I saw it was also featured slightly smaller in the new Just Because set too, I knew I had to pair them up.

Card by Lucy Abrams. Full supplies and instructions here.

I used beautiful patterned papers from BasicGrey’s Picadilly line, stamping the butterflies on pale aqua paper, then layering them up with foam adhesive beneath the wings.

I hope this inspires you to get creating, hopefully something for our current contest.

Speaking of contests, we have some blinkie contest winners to let you know about today. We love seeing so many blinking hearts and sweet squirrels out there in blogland! Thank you for displaying the blinkies and badges and sharing a little Hero Arts love with your blog readers! Now, the three randomly selected winners of a $20 Hero Arts shopping spree are…

• Dori (comment #28)
• Melinda Abrahamson (comment #43)
• Jennifer Harrison (comment #159)

Congratulations! Winners, please contact us at the winner’s email address listed over in the sidebar and we’ll arrange for your prizes to be sent out.

Have a fun and inky weekend,

Hello and TGIF! Or as we like to say today on the blog, TGFR… thank goodness for RIBBON! We’ve had so much fun playing with May Arts ribbon this week, and hope we’ve inspired you to try something new on your own projects. But we’re not done yet! Two more of our artists have combined Hero Arts stamps with May Arts ribbon for your viewing pleasure!

First up, Sally Traidman:

“My first card features our new Wet Cement ink pad and the giant True Friends background. I did that fancy fold and glued some BasicGrey Kissing Booth paper on the front fold.  Next I used our new Frame Cuts Heart Frame to cut through felt and tulle. The May Arts metallic ribbon (397-14-05) and a scrap of sparkly tulle make a great embellishment on the heart!”

Card by Sally Traidman.  Find complete supplies and instructions here.

“My second card uses the giant red rick rack (330-14) from May Arts as an edge. Again I added BasicGrey Kissing Booth paper for some contrast. The red on red  heart is from Four Hearts and is die cut with the same Frame Cuts die.  The little flower is made from bunched up rick rack held together with a needle and thread. I added glitter for a center and a touch of bling.  I love the texture of watercolor paper, so I cut a squarish card from that for the base card.”

Card by Sally Traidman. Find complete supplies and instructions here.

And one last Valentine before you head into the weekend, created by our own Tami Hartley. Tami worked with some adorable dotted grosgrain (DD-14) and some wonderful May Arts burlap string (SM-10) to create this happy little card. Take it away, Tami!

“This card started with a couple of hearts that I stamped and die cut using our new Frame Cuts (Heart Frame and Cupcake Frame sets.) After choosing a neutral kraft background, the card seemed like it needed a punch of color and pattern so I added some cute May Arts red grosgrain polka dot ribbon — first a flat piece adhered to the card with double sided tape, then a loop of it layered on top for some extra dimension. I love the playful touch it added! A bit of May Arts twine finishes off the clear button and ties in with the kraft paper.”

Card by Tami Hartley. Find complete supplies and instructions here.

Good news!  We have one more ribbon giveaway for you this week!  Just leave a comment here on this post and let us know how much ribbon you have!!  C’mon, fess up!  You have all weekend to let us know - comment by Sunday night at 9pm EST, and we’ll announce the winner on Monday!

We also promised to announce a winner today - are you ready?

We asked you to leave a comment on Monday’s post for a chance to win three rolls of May Arts ribbon.  Congratulations to commenter #352, Gloria, who said:

“Always love the card ideas! That ribbon looks fabulous.”

Gloria please send your mailing address to the winner email account, which you’ll find over on the sidebar!

There will also be a winner announced on our Facebook page today, so if you commented over there this week, be sure to check if you’re the lucky winner!

Thank you for joining us this week. We’ve had so much fun working with May Arts ribbon, and we hope you’ve enjoyed it too!  Head on over the May Arts blog as they wrap up our week together, too! And a heartfelt thank you to May Arts for sharing their fabulous ribbon with us!

We wish you a wonderful weekend! We’ll see you back here on Monday, when Lucy will be sharing her creativity with us!

Hello! It’s Julie back with another lovey dovey card! But first, I am super excited to announce that we have a new blinkie contest!

Three lucky winners will win a $20 Hero Arts shopping spree! To enter, just grab the code from the sidebar at right for the blinkie or badge — your choice. Add it to your blog, then let us know by leaving a comment on THIS post, making sure to include a link to your blog in the comment. We can’t wait to see those hearts blinking and we’re nuts about the sweet squirrel, too! Randomly selected winners will be announced Friday, February 3rd.

Now on to the card! Punched hearts tucked inside an itty bitty envelope sends such a sweet message, don’t you think?! Check this out…

Card by Julie Ebersole. Find complete supplies and instructions here.

I stamped the Friends Definition background stamp with a soft tan ink onto some cream colored stock and then trimmed it down just ¼” smaller than the A-2 card. I added some twine, and stamped a tiny heart from the  XO stamp set—I inked it with Barn Door Red Distress Ink then stamped it off onto scratch paper before stamping it onto the background to look like little hearts floating up into the air. A little banner with the “sending hugs” sentiment across the top completes the look. How could you not feel loved when you got this in the snail mail?

Thanks for joining me all this week during my time here on the Hero Arts blog. I hope you got some great ideas for letting the people you love know just how special they are!

Happy Friday and welcome to the final day of our 2012 Catalog Blog Hop with the Hero Hostesses! All good things must come to an end — but not before one last hurrah!

Five more Hero Hostesses are here to inspire, and as you can see by the sneak peeks below, it promises to be another fantastic day of creativity!

We know you must be eager to begin, but before you hop along we’d like to take a moment to extend our gratitude.

• First, to our 24 participating Hero Hostesses. Thank you for an incredible five days of inspiration! “Ooh” and “aah” became a permanent part of our vocabulary this week as we hopped along with everyone else and admired your amazing creations. Thank you for sharing so generously of your time and talents and for being a special part of the Hero Arts community. Hugs to each of you!
• A special shout out and heartfelt thanks to Hero Hostess Deborah Nolan for once again lending a helping hand to ensure the smooth operation of the hop. Those of you who know Deborah know what a gift she has for bringing people together towards a common goal.  Always a pleasure working with you, Deborah…thanks so much!
• And finally, thanks to all of YOU for joining us this week and for leaving such kind comments here and on the designers’ blogs. Your comments always make us smile!

Just a few final reminders in case you’re joining us for the first time this week:

• Every comment you leave along the hop (including this post) gives you a chance to win a fabulous assortment of new 2012 Hero Arts stamps!
• Three giveaway winners will be randomly selected and announced here on the blog on Monday, January 16th.
• If you’ve missed any days, you can go back to view and comment today and/or over the weekend. Daily links follow:  Day 1 • Day 2 • Day 3 • Day 4
• Oh, and we should mention that ALL of the new 2012 Catalog stamps you’ve seen showcased this week are now available in the Hero Arts Online Store! The newest designs can be found here in the “Shop by Catalog” category.

And with that…let’s hop to it! Start by clicking over to Anita Recksiedler’s blog and then follow the trail of links to the other Hostesses’ blogs.

Thanks again for joining us and sharing in the excitement of the 2012 Catalog release!

Happy weekend,

P.S. - If you happen to come across any broken links, you can always come back to this post and find links to all of today’s participating bloggers: Anita Recksiedler • Heather Doran • Tracey Kuzniak • Kryssi Ng • Jenny Suchin

Hi everyone! It’s Tami, here today to squeeze in one more card idea — and a giveaway! -- before we all ring in the new year!

I’ve created a thank you card with AC012 Just Because, a gorgeous new stamp set from the 2012 Catalog. This stamp also has a matching Frame Cut die. Stamp first, line up the die, then cut. Super simple! I paper pieced various sections of the image to add some color and dimension without too much bulk.

Card by Tami Hartley. Find complete supplies and instructions here.

And now…a giveaway!! We saved a goodie for the final giveaway of the year — THREE seats in the Clean & Simple Card Making class! Whether you’re a clean & simple kind of cardmaker yourself, or an admirer of the style, check this out…

Join Kristina Werner, Jennifer McGuire and special guest teacher Julie Ebersole for Clean & Simple Card Making!

In this class we aim to take the mystery out of creating a minimalist card that looks “complete,” and wow you with numerous tips and techniques for clean and simple cards! This upbeat and inspirational class will include nine fabulous guest artists, discounts to our favorite retailers, giveaways and a few surprises along the way! Clean & Simple Card Making will feature over 25 new card ideas and over 15 instructional videos. What better way to start the new year than with a wealth of new ideas to add to your card making arsenal and simplify your creations!

Class is January 9-23, 2012, but class materials (videos, pdfs, etc.) will be accessible for a lifetime. Click HERE for an introduction video and more info!

When the clean slate of 2012 is upon us, wouldn’t it be terrific to have lots of fresh cardmaking inspiration? For a chance to win a spot in Clean & Simple Card Making, leave a comment on this blog post by midnight PST on Sunday, January 1. We’ll randomly draw three lucky winners, to be announced on the blog next week. (If you’ve already purchased the class, a refund will be provided.) Good luck!

Thanks so much for stopping in for a visit today. Happy {almost} New Year, everyone!!

Happy Friday, everyone!  I’m so excited the holiday weekend is almost here.  It’s been a crazy couple of weeks and I am looking forward to spending some relaxing time with my family.

But first I want to share this quick and simple card set that I created using one of my favorite new sentiment sets from the 2012 Catalog.  The Say It All clear stamp set has a sentiment for every occasion in a scripty font that I just love.  It’s perfect to make a coordinating set of cards with a variety of sentiments.

Cards by Kelly Rasmussen.  Find complete supplies and instructions here.

I kept the design simple and limited my supplies so they would be easy to mass produce.  I was able to create all three of these cards in less than an hour! (Which is very fast for this slow card maker.) ;)  So if your looking for a last minute gift idea this might be a great option for you.

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!