Hi, Leslie here - it is my pleasure to be back to host another week on the Hero Arts blog. I’ve been on a bit of a hiatus, with our beautiful new baby girl and it is good to be back and stamping again!

This week we are jumping into COLORS again. I thought it would be fun to offer up 4 very fun and unexpected color combos and show you how our designers work magic with them…bringing you lots and lots of holiday projects you will fall in love with!

Today we have 3 cards for you. All use this non-traditional color combo of pinks, reds and purples. The red in this combo keeps the projects looking holiday-ready while the pinks and purples add a nice surprising touch…I think a little of the unexpected is always nice.

First up is a card I created for this week. I just love working with different color combinations for holiday projects and I had lots of fun here. The pink and purple really add a playful element to my card and the red gives it that “Christmas punch” I was after.

Supplies:

• Antique Flower Background (purple floral pattern)
• Clear Design: Holiday Dolls (snowflake on red)
  
• Handwritten Holiday Message
• Kraft Notecards
• Summer Mixed Notecards
  
• Red Metallic Decor
  
• Memories Ink Pad - Cherry Red
  
• Memories Ink Pad - Violet
  
• Other: ribbon, patterned paper, Diamond Stickles, scallop punch, circle punch

Leslie’s Tips:

• I added glitter glue (Stickles by Ranger) in a light layer onto my kraft paper circle - the combination of the “diamond glitter” and the kraft paper made for a sparkling gold backdrop to the felt purple snowflake.
• I really like using inks in the same color (but a darker shade) as the background paper. I tend to do this on most of my projects.
• When using a mix of bright bold colors, be sure to “ground” the design with some neutrals. Here I used the kraft/beige and whites to do just that.

Next we have a beautiful card made by Lucy Abrams. Lucy is a whiz at using Hero Arts digital kits on her handmade cards! Here she printed digital snowflakes directly onto the pink paper. She distressed the edges and added the sentiment, the pieced snowman and the gems to finish.

Supplies:

• Tiny Snowflakes Digikit
• Clear Design: Holiday Sayings
• Clear Design: Create Your Own
• Gemstones
• Winter Mixed Notecards
• Memories Black Ink
• Other: patterned paper (My Mind’s Eye), ribbon (Creative Impressions), red thread, pop dots

Lucy’s Tips:

• To make the scarf, simply tie a double knot in the ribbon and adhere to the snowman.
• Stitch a red border around your background paper for a little definition and handmade whimsy.

Kandis Smith has this fun and festive candy cane creation for us today! Her free floating candy canes stamped onto pink patterned paper really make this card as sweet as can be. The touch of gingham ribbon and the splash of purple make this a card anyone would be thrilled to receive this holiday season. Kandis says: “How funny that when I was a kid I used to think that pink and red did NOT go together. Now I can’t get enough of the combination!”

Supplies:

• Clear Design: Cozy Moments
• Antique Flower Background
• Colorbox Chalk Queue - Primary Elements
• Memories Ink Pad - Ruby
• Blush Notecards
• Winter Mixed Notecards
• Heart Accent Pearls
• Small Accent Pearls
• Other: patterned paper, ribbon, machine stitching

Kandis’s tips:

• Before tying your ribbon to the card, tie it around a small piece of cardstock, then cut the back and adhere it to the card. This makes for a great looking bow!
• Cut apart your sentiment stamp - this allows you to stamp part of it above the card and part of it in the middle!

Now let’s talk about this week’s challenge. To enter the challenge we’d like you to create a holiday card, layout or project with an unexpected color combination you find that is not “traditional” to Christmas. Hints on where to find some inspiration: look at fashion magazines or a favourite room in your home - what colors don’t scream Christmas yet would make a fantastic, bold statement for a holiday card? Feel free to use one of the combinations we will feature as the week goes by.

Upload your colorful holiday card, layout or project to our Flickr group by 11:59pm PST on Sunday, November 8. All entries should be tagged with the word unexpected. Please include at least one Hero Arts stamp or digital element on your creations. By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• Digital Winner (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

This should be a fun filled week, I cannot wait to spend it with you and see what you come up with for this new color challenge!

This week it’s all about simple and it’s all about the holidays! It’s not too early to starting thinking about your holiday card designs, if you haven’t already. The Hero Arts Web Artists will be here all week long to present some fabulously simple designs and tips to help you get a jump start on your holiday cardmaking. When it comes to the holidays, we often need to produce a large number of cards quickly, and the simplicity of this week’s designs will be perfect for that.

Today we have a trio of PINK cards to share. As you may have noticed, pink has been popping up in holiday color schemes all over the place…such fun! (If you prefer a more traditional holiday color combination, try substituting red or burgundy for the pink in today’s designs.)

First up is a sweet and simple Christmas card Web Artist Sheri Reguly whipped up in a matter of minutes. Here’s Sheri with more: “The Sparkle Clear: Merry Christmas set is perfect for those quick and easy holiday cards. There’s no need for coloring the tress, making mass producing this design a snap. Gemstones, metallic decor and a touch of ribbon complete this classic design.”

Supplies:

• Sparkle Clear: Merry Christmas
• Blossom, White Notecards
• Chalk Ink Queue - Pumpkin Patch
• VersaMark
• Silver Embossing Powder
• Red Gemstones
• Silver Metallic Decor
• Other: patterned paper (Basic Grey), ribbon (SEI), decorative edge scissors (Fiskars)

Sheri’s Tips:

• A pencil line acts as a guide for aligning the trees. It will later be covered by the patterned paper, so there’s no need to worry about making it too dark or erasing it afterwards.
• Silver embossing powder and metallic decor help add just the right amount of holiday sparkle to this design.
• A single edge trimmed using decorative scissors is a quick and easy way to add that extra touch of flair.
• By trimming 1/2″ off the bottom edge of the notecard, it allows the card to fit into the envelope relatively, despite the bulk of the bow.

Next, Kelly Rasmussen came up with a great design that would be easy to create in multiples, opting for a tone on tone look plus a couple pops of pink. Kelly says, “One of the best ways to keep holiday card making simple for me is to limit my supplies. By not having too many steps and eliminating time consuming tasks, like coloring images, I was able to make this card in under 15 minutes. And once you get the first one done, the rest of them always go much faster.”

Supplies:

• Clear Design: Holiday Sayings
• Clear Design: Decorate Your Own
• Clear Design: Winter’s Butterfly
• Green Apple Notecards
• Chalk Ink Queue -Primary Elements (Lime Pastel)
• Other: pink and white cardstock, scallop border punch, corner rounder, white gel pen, pink embroidery floss

Kelly’s Tips:

• Save a little time by using faux stitching instead of machine stitching.
• A tone on tone background is a simple way to create a big impact when creating many cards at one time.

And finally today, here is a simple yet stunning card from Barbara Hache featuring the Big Pine Bough stamp and a super creative ornament fashioned from a spiral paper clip. Brilliant! Barbara shares, “When making a large number of the same design, I like to break each card into steps. That way, I can work in 10-15 minute blocks of time and then all I’m left with is the assembly. To make a simple card special, I like to add just a bit of glitz ! The sparkle on this card is the ornament hangers that are made with gemstones.”

Supplies:

• Big Pine Bough
• Clear Design: Holiday Cheer
• Kraft, Pool, Pink Notecards
• Small Mixed Gemstones
• Memories Black Ink
• Chalk Ink Queues - Primary Elements, Pumpkin Patch
• Prisma Glitter
• Other: spiral paper clip, patterned paper (My Mind’s Eye), double sided tape (Sookwang), lace ribbon, corner rounder (EK Success)

Barbara’s Tips:

• To make the ornament I adhered the spiral paper clip to the patterned paper with double sided tape and then covered it with Prisma Glitter.
• The gemstones are perfect for hanging ornaments because they come in a strip making them easy to apply in a straight line.

So…for this week’s challenge we invite you to create a simple holiday card, using at least one Hero Arts stamp or digital element. Of course “simple” means different things to different stampers. For this challenge you can determine what it means to YOU — there is no right or wrong definition. Here are a few ideas from our team about what might encompass simplicity:

• minimal layers and embellishments
• clean/uncluttered style
• 10-15 minute completion time
• easy to mass produce

Please upload your simple holiday card creations to our Flickr group by 11:59pm PST on Sunday, November 1. All entries should be tagged with the phrase simpleholiday. By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• Digital Winner (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

Looking forward to a fun week with you all…happy holiday stamping!

We all love working with the latest tools. This week we are going to use our hands, the very first tools we ever used. Tearing paper can create many different looks depending on what kind of paper you use, and how you tear the paper. This week we will be showing different papers and techniques for tearing paper. (Watch for our question later on in the week for a chance to win a prize.)

Once I started tearing I was surprised at how many different looks I could achieve. On this first card, a torn piece of white handmade paper repeats the white curved lines of Santa’s beard and coat. Using traditional Christmas red and green, this card is perfect for an invitation or holiday card.

Supplies:

• Santa With Gift
• Clear Design: Holiday Sayings
• Black StazOn Ink
• Other: colored pencils, water and a paint brush, scissors and glue, white handmade paper, red notecards, green and white cardstock

Instructions:

1. Stamp the Santa image with black StazOn ink on white cardstock. After coloring the image with colored pencils, cut out and trim.
2. Draw a line of water along the area you want to tear and gently tear the white handmade paper. After the paper has dried, attach to the front of a red notecard.
3. Trim a piece of green cardstock to fit over the torn paper and secure with glue dots. Adhere the Santa with glue and stamp the message next to the Santa.

Next, these four stockings are spilling over with trinkets and treasures stamped from our Christmas Ink ‘n’ Stamp. Although it took a bit longer to create this card, I had so much fun adding the tiny images to the stockings. The torn paper was folded over the front of the stamped design to provide a straight edge along the outside and a more casual torn edge along the inside.

Supplies:

• Christmas Stockings
• Ink ‘n’ Stamp Merry Messages
• Clear Design: Holiday Sayings
• Black StazOn Ink
• Clear Gemstones
• Yellow Gemstones
• Other: scissors, craft knife, red handmade paper, gold and white paper, green notecards, colored pencils and glue

Instructions:

1. Stamp Christmas Stockings in black ink on white cardstock and color with colored pencils. Stamp the desired tiny images in black ink on white cardstock (the gingerbread boy is stamped on brown cardstock and the trees in green ink). Cut a slit along the top of each stocking and add the desired image, secured with glue.
2. Stamp the message in black ink over the stockings and trim the white paper to fit over a thin piece of gold paper.
3. Place the stamped white cardstock on a piece of red handmade paper. Paint a line of water over the area you wish to tear. You need to leave enough paper to fold over the edges of the stamped stockings. After tearing the paper fold the torn paper over the edges and secure with a glue stick (glue dots don’t work as well with this one). Add gemstones to the top of the trees and glue all the elements together.

Tip: Add a name to each stocking to create a personalized card.

The challenge this week is to create a card or project using torn paper. (Speaking of projects, have you noticed that each week we have been featuring new stamp craft projects on our website?) So, back to the basics for this challenge. Tear plain paper, stamped paper, handmade paper, patterned paper, or even vellum. As long as torn paper is an element on your project or card, and it includes one Hero Arts stamp or digital image, it fits the bill. Just upload your creations to our Flickr group by 11:59pm PST on Sunday, October 25 and be sure to include the tag papertearing. By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• Digital Winner (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

I hope you have a wonderful day, and I’ll see you tomorrow for more torn paper ideas.

So Fall is here again…reminding us it is time to gather those thoughts about Christmas cards. Since my embellishment drawer was overflowing with goodies, I decided to make this week’s challenge a holiday card with some sort of accessory. It can be brads, eyelets, felt cut outs, ribbon, gems, staples, buttons, or whatever you have been collecting in your stash. Just get something out and put it to good use!

Here are a few ideas using some of our new holiday accessories. The first one is a Felt Tree. Look how easy it is to decorate with the new Metallic Decor dots.

Supplies:

• Snowflake Tree
• Dots
• Felt Trees
• Red Metallic Decor
• Holiday Mixed Notecards
• Kraft Notecards
• White Notecards
• Chalk Ink Queue - Chocolates & Blueberries
• Distress Ink - Peeled Paint
• Other: sewing machine, red gingham

Next up is a felt snowflake card with our newest Star Gems.

Supplies:

• Clear Design: Holiday Dolls
• Star Gems
• Felt Snowflakes
• Kraft Notecards
• White Notecards
• Baby Blue Notecards
• StazOn Cotton White Ink
• Memories Black Ink
• Distress Ink - Tea Dye
• Other: paper punch (Martha Stewart EK Success), ribbon

Third is three trees stamped on various plain and printed papers and then decorated with the Metallic Decor and a few gems.

Supplies:

• Clear Design: Holiday Dolls
• Memories Black Ink
• Kraft Notecards
• Lime Notecards
• White Notecards
• Red, Gold, Blue, Green Metallic Decor
• Other: colored paper scraps, patterned papers, hole punch, border punch

And the last one uses the Felt Joy and Holly, and of course, more Metallic Decor.

Supplies:

• Lot Like Christmas
• Clear Design: Holiday Dolls
• Felt Joy and Holly
• Red Metallic Decor
• Holiday Mixed Notecards
• Kraft Notecards
• White Notecards
• Memories Green Ink
• Memories Ruby Ink
• Other: scallop circle punch, circle punch

Now it is YOUR turn! Go peek in your drawer and see what tempts you to create your holiday card. The challenge this week is to create a holiday card with some sort of accessory. Please use at least one Hero Arts stamp or digital element on your creations, then upload them to the Flickr group with the tag holidayaccessory. All entries must be submitted on or before 11:59pm PST on Sunday, October 18. By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the NEW Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• Digital Winner (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

I had so much fun with the Metallic Decor and Star Gems on today’s cards, I’m going to give some away! And for good measure, I’ll throw in a few of our other new gem designs too. Today’s giveaway is for six different colors of Metallic Decor, plus Ornament Gems, Star Gems, Holly Gems, and Snowflake Gems.

That’s a lot of bling looking for a good home! To enter to win, just leave a comment here before midnight tonight (PST) and tell me — which accessory/embellishment do you find yourself reaching for most often when making cards? I’ll announce the winner tomorrow morning. Good luck!

See you tomorrow…for now, check out our BIG announcement HERE!  Crazy for Clings are now shipping!

Hi everyone! Tami here, welcoming you to another fun week on the blog. This week is going to be all about a technique that I love and use often — paper piecing stamped images!

If you have never tried paper piecing, you are in for a treat. Different sections of a stamp are stamped onto various papers, then cut out and reassembled. It’s a simple technique that offers great results and provides an alternative to coloring images.

From flowers and fruit to birds and snowmen, all sorts of  images lend themselves to paper piecing. Bottom line: if it has open lines it’s a great candidate. Among my favorite images to paper piece?…Cupcakes! Today I thought I would take a sweet cupcake from the Birthday Frame & Messages set and create a paper pieced card, as well as a simple step-by-step illustration of the technique.

1. First, stamp the chosen image on the base layer. Then stamp the image repeatedly on paper scraps. No need to stamp the entire image, just the portions you need. (See how small the red scrap is? That’s because the cherry is the only part I need to cut out.)

2. Next, precisely cut out each individual element. These are the pieces of the puzzle that you will fit back together and adhere over the top of the original image.

3. Now it’s time to reassemble. Simply match up the lines and adhere the cut pieces right over the top of  the base image. Then add details if desired. I added some simple colored pencil shading and a dash of Stickles.

And here is the finished card…

Supplies:

• Clear Design: Birthday Frame & Messages
• Wallpaper Background
• White, Sunshine, Blush, Pool Notecards
• Memories ArtPrint Brown Ink
• Soft Blossom Shadow Ink
• Clear Card Buttons
• Diamond Stickles
• Other: Swiss Dots embossing folder (Cuttlebug), scalloped square die (Nestabilities), Pearl Glimmer Mist (Tattered Angels), colored pencils (PrismaColor), Corner Chomper (We R Memory Keepers), string, pop dots

My next card uses the infinitely versatile Thank You Cling stamp, which was practically begging to be paper pieced. All those sections and elements — irresistible! Here are the trimmed pieces prior to assembly…

Then I added some paper, ribbon, gems and stitching. The two pieced flowers are elevated with pop dots.

Supplies:

• Clings: Thank You
• Neutral Mixed Notecards
• Memories Black Ink
• Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint Distress Ink
• Olive Gemstones
• Other: book text, cardstock, patterned paper (Daisy D’s), colored pencils (PrismaColor), Caramel Apple Glimmer Mist (Tattered Angels), ribbon, machine stitching, pop dots

As a final example today, Kelly Rasmussen created a paper pieced holiday card using our cute Christmas Stockings stamp. She white embossed two of the stockings before trimming and piecing back together. This gives such a great finished look — I love it! Imagine all the ways you could custom piece these stockings for the holidays. Small scale patterned papers would look fabulous too.

Supplies:

• Christmas Stockings
• Clear Design: Holiday Sayings
• Clear Design: Holiday Cheer
• Pool, Kraft, Crimson Notecards
• Soft Pool Shadow Ink
• Memories White Ink
• VersaMark
• White Embossing Powder
• Small Accent Pearls
• Other: scallop border punch, label die cut, thread

So, this week we challenge you to include paper piecing on your stamped projects. Easy! Just load them into Hero Arts Flickr group with the tag paperpiecing (no space between “paper” and “piecing”.) Be sure to use at least one Hero Arts stamp or digital element on each of your projects and post them by 11:59pm PST on Sunday, October 11.  By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the NEW Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• Digital Winner (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• Scrapbook Page Winner: $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

Can’t wait to see what you piece together, this should be fun! Come back tomorrow for some frosty inspiration and a giveaway!

Hi everyone!  Shari here, I’m back and I’m sooooo excited to share this week with you!!!   I have decided to dedicate the entire week to ATC’s.  What are they you ask?  ATC stands for Artist Trading Card.  These little beauties measure 2.5″ x 3.5″ or 6cm x 9 cm, similar to baseball and playing cards. The purpose of ATC’s are to trade with other artists.  They are really great to collect and display.

Today I’m working with Fall holidays and what’s better than to kick the week off with some Halloween fun! I chose larger main images that really stand out on the ATC size card. These are so much fun to make.

First I want to start you off with a quick video covering how to use our digital images in common programs such as Microsoft Word.  It’s perfect for beginners and those who like to do Hybrid cards.  Take a peek.

Here’s my first ATC. I used scraps of cardstock cut at odd angles and glued them to a black ATC sized piece of cardstock.  Then I inked up my sheet of ClearDesign Happy Halloween stamps and stamped all at once onto my card. I printed out the cat, colored it with pencils and affixed it to my card.  So Easy!

Supplies:

• ClearDesign: Happy Halloween
• Spooky’s Digital Kit
• Memories Black Ink
• Other: Color pencils, cardstock

This next one is one of my favorites.  I stamped and cut out the owl/ghost and used a blending tool to darken the edges.  I punched the moon from pattern paper, sewed it to my ATC, then added a bit of hemp string.

Supplies:

• ClearDesign: Happy Owl-oween
• Memories Black Ink
• Black Gemstones
• Other: Basic Grey Paper, Tim Holtz blending tool and Black Soot Distress Ink, sewing supplies, hemp, cardstock

Oh a fun one for sure.  Love this bat! I started with purple cardstock, used my new favorite Flourish background with black ink, punched a circle and stuck the panel to a black ATC.  I stamped, colored and cut out my bat, then attached it in place.  I punched a smaller circle and stamped “Spooky” and affixed it on the larger circle.  I added some trimmings with a border punch and gems to finish.

Supplies:

• Sneaky Peek CG119 Flourish Background (Crazy for Clings)
• ClearDesign: Happy Halloween
• Silly Bat
• Memories Black Ink
• Black Gemstones
• Other: Color pencils, circle and border punches, cardstock

And finally, an earthy card with the pirate owl.  I used the sheet of Happy Halloween greetings and stamped them all at once onto Kraft cardstock, then added some pumpkin cardstock.  I stamped, colored and cut out my owl and mounted it in place.  I added a little ribbon tied in a bow to finish it off.

Supplies:

• ClearDesign: Happy Halloween
• ClearDesign: Happy Owl-oween
• Memories Black Ink
• Black Gemstones
• Other: Tim Holtz blending tool, color pencils, ribbon, cardstock

And now for the CHALLENGE. Create an ATC using at least one Hero Arts stamp or digital element and upload it to the Hero Arts Flickr Group by Sunday, October 4th at 11:59 pm PST. Please tag your creation with the code word HeroArtsATC. By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the NEW Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• Digital Winner (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

And now for some exciting news…are you ready?  We are going to try out our first ever Hero Arts ATC Swap!

The first 200 people who sign up will be able to participate in our Hero Arts ATC Swap. Sign-up will begin at 11:00 am EST. on Friday, Oct. 2nd, in the Flickr Discussion area HERE. More information will be available throughout the week.

Thanks everyone!  I’ll be back tomorrow with some more FALL ATC fun!

Are you ready? It’s time to start thinking about the holidays. Now that everybody is back from ScrapFest, bubbling with enthusiasm and ideas, let’s talk about photo cards. Holiday cards come to mind when you think about photo cards, but what about cards for all occasions? What about using all those great photos you have stored on your computer (or camera card if you “never seem to get them moved to your computer” like me).

It seems like everybody is sending photo cards these days. They are very easy to compose on the computer from many websites, they are economical, and they take little time to get ready for mailing. Well, what if you want to jazz up some of the pre-printed photo cards for special friends, grandparents or people that you know will cherish every card you make? Today I am going to show you how to alter pre-printed photo cards by trimming the card, mounting onto a notecard, and adding decorative stamping and embellishments.

First, here is a simple yet elegant holiday photo greeting idea. This is probably one of the easiest cards you will see this week, but it is time to start thinking about the photo you will use for your holiday cards.

Photos purchased from photographers can be expensive, but make a wonderful holiday gift. I used an acetate overlay for the stamped greeting so as not to damage the photograph. Even the bow is attached on top of the acetate and red cardstock so the picture can be removed and framed. The white ink and red décor accent dots are the perfect complement to the colors Bryan and Natalie used for their wedding.

Supplies:

• Clear Design: Holiday Cheer
• Cotton White StazOn
• Red Metallic Décor
• Acetate Cards
• Other: red cardstock, large white notecards, paper trimmer, glue dots, sheer white ribbon

Instructions:

1. Trim a piece of acetate to fit over the photo, leaving a tiny border over the top of the photo. Stamp the message in white StazOn ink.
2. After the ink has completely dried, layer the acetate over the photo and add to a piece of red cardstock. Attach the bow with glue dots so that no glue touches the photo.
3. Add two strips of red metallic décor accents in the bottom corner on the red cardstock. Finally add the layered photo on a large white notecard.

Todd, Hero Arts Vice President of Sales sends a family photo each year. By adding a few details and mounting the pre-made photo card it takes on a whole new meaning. With two stamping daughters in his family I’ll bet Todd will be taking home some supplies for this year’s card.

The beauty of this type of card is that most of the work is done for you, the final embellishments are added by you, and the card is heavier than traditional photo cards and can stand alone on a mantle or table. The addition of a poinsettia gives this card a dimensional effect.

By deciding how you will be creating your holiday cards before Thanksgiving you can use the weekend to add personal accents to your holiday cards, and maybe even get a little help from any stampers in your family.

Supplies:

• Flourish Trio
• Cotton White StazOn
• Red Metallic Décor
• Poinsettia Art Flowers
• Long Notecards White
• Other: paper trimmer, glue, red cardstock

Instructions:

1. Trim the photo card so you have enough space for a red background piece of cardstock, leaving a small border of the white notecard showing.
2. Cut ½” strips of red paper and stamp with the flourish design using the white ink pad. Stamp along the right side of the trimmed red cardstock using the same flourish and white ink.
3. With the stamped side down fold one end of the strip over (forming a long backwards “L” shape). Now fold the long end over meeting the first fold in a point. Cut off the long end and you have created your own photo corners. Repeat three additional times.
4. After assembling the card and corners on the white notecard, layer two poinsettias and add metal décor in the center. Add three metal décor embellishments over the design.

Note: I am going to show these and some additional photo corners in Wednesday’s video, along with a demo of making stamping over two pieces of paper look seamless (the technique I used in the next card.)

Lastly today, the Mattson family card was enhanced with Hero Arts Snowflake Gems and the flourish image used on Todd’s card. Can you tell I am proud of my nephew and his family?

This card is easy to assemble and I accented the blue and snowflake background with colored ink and clear gems.

Using a 12″X12″ piece of cardstock will allow you to get three blue backgrounds from each piece of scrapbook paper.

Supplies:

• Flourish Trio
• Chocolates and Blueberries Chalk Ink Queue
• Baby Blue and Clear Gemstones
• Snowflake Gem
• Long Notecards White
• Other: paper trimmer, glue, blue cardstock, paintbrush,bone folder

Instructions:

1. Trim the pre-purchased photo to fit a piece of blue cardstock. I like to add the photo after I have stamped the border.
2. Attach the blue cardstock to the long white notecard. Using a bone folder or kraft stick, smooth the edge of the blue paper where you will be stamping. Ink the flourish stamp and stamp a border along the right side of the card. There will be some areas along the edge, (where the two papers meet) that have incomplete designs. Dab a fine point paintbrush into the ink pad and paint the part of the design that did not stamp.
3. When the paint has dried attach the photo card. Add snowflake gems and gemstones (if there are some hand painted areas you are not happy with, that’s the perfect place for a gemstone.

For this week’s challenge we invite you to create a photo card. So, dig through your photos and let’s see what you all come up with! I am willing to bet that you’ll be showing me some great cards I never even thought of on Flickr this week. In addition to a photo, use at least one Hero Arts stamp or digital element and upload your photo cards to the Hero Arts Flickr Group by Sunday, September 27 at 11:59 pm PST. Please tag your creations with the code word photocard. By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the NEW Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• Digital Winner (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

Tomorrow I am going to give you some ideas on how you can use the same supplies to create three different versions of a photo card, because we all know how boring it is to make the same card over and over 100 times!  I promise to make you smile, and maybe even go out and buy a box of candy. These cards will add a bit of humor and can even convey a personal message to friends and family.

Until tomorrow,

Hi everyone and welcome to another week on the Hero Arts blog! We’re super excited about this week and can’t wait to tell you who will be joining us for the next few days…

We’re happy to welcome the Hero Hostesses!  These encouraging, helpful, and oh-so-talented gals even came up with the idea for this week’s theme. Each Hostess will be creating a card based on one of the first cards they uploaded to the Hero Arts Flickr group, but that is somehow enhanced and incorporates things they have learned since then. The focus is on learning and growing as a stamper– a fitting theme for this time of year, since so many kids are back to school. One exciting thing about stamping is that there’s always something new to try! So, this week we will be showing you two cards from each Hostess — one of their first creations for a Hero Arts challenge AND a brand new card, inspired by the original.

First up today is Hostess Kathy Racoosin with a fantastic card makeover. Here’s Kathy now with more:  “For this challenge I wanted to use the same stamp that I used in the first challenge I submitted to Hero Arts. Here is the card…”

(Click image for a larger view.)

“What I have learned since last February is that you can color a lot of images at one time by using your distressing inks and I thank Jennifer McGuire for this great tip. I also have learned more about incorporating layers, textures and adding embellishments. I love how Hero Arts buttons, gems, pearls and flowers all coordinate with the note cards so it’s really easy to pull a card together fast. Check out my blog here for a tip sheet to show how I added the dimension to my heart!”

Supplies:

• Clear Design: Hugs and Hearts
• Clear Design: Spring Borders
• Summer Mixed Notecards
• Peeled Paint & Broken China Distress Ink
• Baby Blue & Clear Gemstones (I used the baby blue)
• Medium Accent Pearls & Small Accent Pearls
• Light Blue Accent Pearls
• Summer Felt Flowers (I inked up the backside of the felt flower)
• Art Flowers Summer
• Other: vintage buttons, large pearls (Crystal Stickers), tiny blue gemstones (Memory Box), white accent pen

WOW, get that card a frame — it’s gorgeous!

Our second card makeover today comes from Hostess Lin Brandyberry, and it’s another beauty. Lin shares, “This card is one I made last October. I chose it because I love autumn, and I wanted to create more of a feel for what this season means to me: swirling, colorful leaves and harvest groupings.”

(Click image for a larger view.)

“I think distressing gives more interest by adding some depth to a flat image, so I distressed many of the edges in this new version. I overstamped the pumpkins with secondary patterns (script, woodgrain, and screen shadow), again giving more interest. I also added a little raffia bow to the largest pumpkin. And lastly, I raised a few of the elements above the card for more dimension; the original was completely flat.”

Supplies:

• Clear Design: Happy Thanksgiving
• Clear Design: Season of Giving
• Artistic Windows
• Screen Shadow
• Memories ArtPrint Brown Ink
• Other: rust, orange & olive inks, orange & gold cardstock, various patterned papers for quilt strips, raffia bow

I love how Lin’s card shows how small details can really take a card to the next level — and I always love seeing her beautiful quilt inspired designs!

Thanks, Kathy and Lin, for the wonderful inspiration today!

So…we have a fun challenge for you this week. The challenge is to create a project trying something new or something you have recently learned. (If you would like to base your project on one of your first cards and link to it you may, but it is not required.) All you have to do is use at least one Hero Arts stamp or digital element and upload your projects to the Hero Arts Flickr Group by Sunday, September 20 at 11:59 pm PST. Please tag your creations with the code word learning. By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the NEW Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• Digital Winner (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• Scrapbook Page Winner: $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

This should be fun!! We have lots to share this week so be sure to visit each day for more inspiration from the Hostesses. See you tomorrow!

Autumn is quickly approaching — the days are getting noticeably shorter and it’s been unseasonably cool where I live. It definitely feels like Fall is in the air! Labor Day is considered the unofficial end of summer in the US and Canada, so this week we’ll be turning our attention to the upcoming season and exploring some cozy Fall color schemes. The Web Artists will be here all week long to provide inspiration for the four seasonal color palettes we’ve put together. Let’s get started!

Our first palette is a traditional one, and has been pulled straight from our Fall Mixed Notecards pack. These colors are the essence of Fall — and with names like like Gourd, Vanilla Bean, Mango, Jack O’Lantern, and Paprika, who could resist? Yum!

(Please don’t worry if you don’t have the Fall Mixed Notecards — color approximations are AOK for this week’s challenge!)

First, Sheri Reguly has created a simply elegant Thanksgiving card using today’s colors. Sheri says, “The gorgeous combination of colors in the Fall Mixed Notecard set is the perfect starting point for all of your Autumn and Thanksgiving themed projects. The beautiful hues complement one another perfectly, whether you decide to incorporate all the shades, as I’ve done here, or merely choose just a few of your favorites to work with. The Flourish Trio and seasonal sentiment, combined with felt leaves, orange gemstones, and ribbon, complete this simple yet elegant design.”

Supplies:

• Season of Giving
• Flourish Trio
• Fall Mixed Notecards
• VersaMark
• StazOn Jet Black
• White Embossing Powder
• Orange Gemstones
• Felt Leaves
• Other: ribbon (American Crafts)

Robyn Werlich worked with the same palette and designed a wonderful scrapbook page, using the dark brown as the background and the other colors for pop. Robyn shares, “The Fall Notecards inspired this great color scheme that is so perfect for Fall and Thanksgiving projects. I loved the various hues of the orange and it led to a fun layout all about leaves and autumn.”

Supplies:

• Season of Giving
• Elegant Brocade
• Raindrop Background
• Kraft & Fall Notecards
• White Embossing Powderr
• Chalk Ink Queue - Chocolates & Blueberries
• Chalk Ink Queue - Pumpkin Patch
• Other: brown & cream cardstock, sewing machine, staples, circle punches, marker

So…our challenge to you this week is to create a project — card, layout, or other — using one of the four Fall color schemes provided this week. The projects can be of any theme, so feel free to branch out and stamp something other than an autumn theme. Anything goes as long you use the colors (approximately)! Simply upload your creations to the Flickr group before 11:59 pm PST on Sunday, September 13 and tag them “fallcolors”. Please include at least one Hero Arts stamp (or digital element) on each project. By entering, you could win a shopping spree of your choice of Hero Arts products from the NEW Hero Arts Online Store! (Shipping charges apply.) Winners will also receive a 2009 Hero Arts catalog, sent separately. The prize amounts are as follows:

• NEW! Digital Winner! (create something using a Hero Arts Digital Kit): $50
• Scrapbook Page Winner: $50
• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $50
• 1st Place: $50
• 2nd Place: $25
• 3rd Place: $15

Can’t wait to see what you have to share this week!

So that you can work ahead, here’s a peek at all four of the Fall palettes we’ll be covering. Some are traditional and some have a bit of an unexpected twist. And one is downright Halloween-y!

See you tomorrow for more autumn inspiration! To our friends in the US and Canada, have an awesome and safe holiday!

This week’s layout by Kandis Smith is so summery and fun! I love the stamped circles mixed with all the felt and buttons. And that awesome label stamp? It’s from the new Sparkle Clear: Card Frame set. Provides great resting spot for the cute owl!  Click over HERE for full details on the layout.