I LOVE sending cards to my girlfriends.  And I LOVE receiving them!  Here’s a card using one of the sneak peeks from last week, our cute little chicks.  Since I couldn’t find any appropriate “chick” greetings, I once again “made it work” with our small case alphabet.  Its playfulness goes with the cuteness of the chicks.  You just knew I would get something pink and orange in this week!!

Card by Sally Traidman.  Click HERE for complete supplies and instructions.

For our 100 Days card, I wanted to show you the same chick from yesterday used in another way.  She is just so fun and festive, she could be announcing anything!

Card by Sally Traidman.  Click HERE for complete supplies and instructions.

In keeping with our theme this week, let’s “make it work” with some leftover-too-good-to-throw-away-tissue paper!!

OK… now let’s get busy… hopefully something from today has inspired you!  If you’re debating what to stamp next, I’d like to remind you that our month long theme is Spring & Easter and the first round of projects are due into the Flickr group pool tomorrow night, Thursday, March 11th, by 11:59pm PST. Be sure to tag your projects with March2010A.

AND one more exciting bit of news before I go…a big congratulations to our very own Kelly Rasmussen, proud mother of a new little CHICKLET, Lexi, born yesterday. Let’s hear it for PINK!!!

Lexi Elyse Rasmussen
Born 12:15pm
8 lbs. 5 oz.
Full head of dark hair…
Sweet as can be…
Mom and baby doing fantastic!

And of course Aunt Tami is very proud of her sweet little niece, too!

Happy Stamping!

Happy Wednesday! Today’s video will detail the technique shown in yesterday’s card. I hope you enjoy this very old technique that can be used with so many different images.

Whether you chose a realistic image or a whimsical hand-drawn looking stamp, your card will warrant a closer look. There are only a few things to remember to make this technique look real:

1. Color all shadows on the same side of the images
2. Keep the darker colors close to the image
3. Use a mixture of dark colors (blues, browns and purples) instead of black.
4. If needed, feather the edges with a white art eraser.

Have fun with this technique, it adds a touch of fine art to the fun art of stamping.

The bird card I showed in the second half of the video may give you some ideas to add to the card shown on Thursday. I know many of you will be nodding when you read about that card.

Shari created today’s 100 Days of Ideas card.  One of the first signs of spring is the blossoms on cherry trees and bulbs peeking out of the ground. I love this stamp with a tree that has unexpected blossoms. The coloring that Shari added really brings the stamped image to life and the orange ribbon is the perfect finishing touch.

Card by Shari Carroll. Click HERE for complete supplies and instructions.

And guess what? Today I get to show you the first of six previews from the “New for Spring” release, coming soon! How soon? Stamps have already begun shipping to stores, and will be available in the Hero Arts Online Store next Wednesday, March 10! This irresistible bunny is peeking in to say hello today…

Thanks for stopping by today!

Earlier today we were clicking around the Hero Arts Flickr Group, when a number caught our attention. A very LARGE number. Do you see it…?

29,873. That’s the number of projects that YOU all have submitted to the Flickr group since the start of the Hero Club Blog on March 31, 2008.

On average, that means you’re sharing…

• 1299 creations per month
• 299 per week
• and 43 per day

And we find that rather…AMAZING! To say thank you and to celebrate the upcoming 30,000 project milestone, we’re having a 30 Grand Giveaway that includes a wonderful selection of woodblock stamps from our brand new Designs in Wood supplement!

Stamp selection may vary from photo above.

All you need to do for a chance to win is stamp a card/layout/project, upload it to the Hero Arts Flickr Group, and include the tag 30grand. The theme is completely open, so have fun and stamp whatever your wish!  New creations only, limit one tagged project per person, please.

The deadline for entry is 11:59 pm PST on Sunday, February 28. Assuming we reach 30,000 this weekend, we will draw a random winner on Monday. However, if we have not reached 30,000 by 11:59 pm Sunday, we will extend the contest until the Flickr project count stands at 30,000 or above.

Thanks so much for sharing your art with us and with your fellow stampers. Here’s to stamping, sharing, and the next 30 grand!

Hello!  It’s Jennifer here.  I am so excited about this week and all the digital goodness we have!

I will be honest - I know very little about digital creations.  But I do know how to create simple things with them.  It doesn’t have to be complicated!  And, it doesn’t have to LOOK digital.  This card is proof.  In the video, I show how to download Hero Arts digital files, open them and use them in Word.  I also show all the other steps used to create this huge butterfly card.  It is such fun and easy - I promise!

Card by Jennifer McGuire. Click HERE for complete supplies and instructions.

I also wanted to share the card that inspired me.  When I saw this card by Sally, the yellow just jumped out at me.  I knew I needed to try using yellow, too - something I normally am afraid to do.

Card by Sally Traidman.  Click HERE for complete supplies and instructions.

Hope you give digi a try.  See you soon!

Welcome to Watch It Wednesday! Today I’m going to share two examples of what it looks like to emboss on ribbon.  To be honest, when I first tried this technique, I didn’t even know if it was going to work.  But it did, and I love the result!

On the card below, I first started out by adhering an aqua ribbon strip to a piece of cardstock…this made it more sturdy for stamping and embossing.  Next, I stamped the sentiment with Versamark and heat embossed it with white embossing powder.  When I applied the heat, the embossing powder began to sink into the ribbon, rather than raise up like it would on paper.  And it created this cool bleach-like appearance.  I think it looks just as good as the pre-printed ribbons you can buy!  I also added a strip of ruffled ribbon below the sentiment that I created by just folding it back and forth, adhering each section with a dot of hot glue.

Card by Kelly Rasmussen. For supplies and instructions click HERE.

Next up, I have a special treat for you from the sweet Jennifer McGuire…a video showing you exactly how to do this technique!

Thanks for all the great tips Jennifer!  Here’s a closer look at her colorful ribbon card.

Card by Jennifer McGuire. For supplies and instructions click HERE.

Now it’s time for another 100 Days of Ideas card featuring a SNEAK PEEK from the Designs in Wood supplement. Jennifer used the new Dogwood stamp paired with a new sentiment to create this gorgeous and striking card. The flowers are perfectly colored and I love how she made a little ribbon bow looped right in the middle of the card. Simply beautiful!

Card by Jennifer McGuire.  For supplies and instructions click HERE.

Well, we are already on to GIVEAWAY #3 this week!  To be entered to win the new Dogwood stamp shown in the card above, just leave a comment on this post.  We will randomly select a winner from all comments each day this week, and on Saturday I will announce all five winners. Look for the 26 new Designs in Wood stamps in the Hero Arts Online Store on Monday…just 5 days away!

Be sure to come back tomorrow when we will announce the winners from the first round of entries for our February challenge and have another Designs in wood stamp giveaway!

Hope you get time to create something today!

Did you know that when you stamp on Hero Arts’ new notecards with Hero Hues chalk inks it creates a hidden layer?  I didn’t!  I discovered it when I used the Starburst stamp to create these romantic distressed flowers:

Watch the video to see the magic layers reveal themselves!

AND!  I tested this card out on my husband Jason, and he agreed that even though there are flowers, the distressing makes it “manly” enough to give to a guy!  YAY!

Click HERE for the materials and step-by-step instructions.

Now for our 100 Days of Ideas I thought I’d share some cards that Sally did that use the Starburst stamp in a more traditional way.

Cards by Sally Traidman.  Click HERE for all the details.

I love how Sally combined the Starburst with doilies — so romantic and pretty.  And the paper flower bouquet is so sweet.

See you tomorrow for the Hero Arts Social Club — can’t wait!

Hello! Thanks for stopping back by. I am excited to share with you a fun video today with some bold colors and a great technique.

A few weeks ago, our sweet Tami Hartley shared THIS fabulously colored card and we had lots of requests on how it was created.  So, I asked Tami if I could share her technique in a video - using bold colors - and also show some more examples.  Here it is…

Card by Jennifer McGuire. For complete instructions and supplies, click HERE.

And since Tami inspired us all with the great card and gave us the idea for the video, I asked her if she could do another example.  Check out how she used this technique with bold colors and a striking white background. Wow! Thanks, Tami, for the inspiring ideas!  Smooch.

Card by Tami Hartley. For complete instructions and supplies, click HERE.

And, for our 100 Days of Ideas, I thought I would share a card from Shari Carroll. Although she didn’t use bright colors, her color choices still make a bold, eye-catching impression. LOVE it!

Card by Shari Carroll. For complete instructions and supplies, click HERE.

AND! Guess what? We have a big prize announcement. We’ve picked a winner for the February $100 Wish List Shopping Spree! The lucky winner is Charlene Kochensparger. Congratulations! Charlene, please email us at the winner’s address in the blog sidebar and we’ll get you all set up with your shopping spree to the Hero Arts Online Store. ENJOY!

Have a great Wednesday…

Hello, hello! I’m very happy today to introduce our next addition to the Hero Hostess team — Sue McRae (Stampin Sue)!

Generous with comments and always willing to jump in and answer questions, Sue is a natural for the apron!  And her cards…OH, her cards! So very inspiring. Take a look for yourself — Sue designed a seriously gorgeous friendship card for today. Could this be any more elegant?! The big flower is a digital image from the Botanical Tulips digital kit, and it looks so beautiful set against the dual stamped backgrounds.

Click HERE for supplies and instructions on Sue’s lovely creation.

I asked Sue a few questions and this is what she said:

How long have you been stamping and how did you get started? I’ve been stamping on and off for 16 years. I started stamping because I wanted to make my own Christmas gift wrap. I used kraft parcel paper and some cheapie stamps I found in the toy section of a store. I really enjoyed doing that and so it only seemed natural to start making cards.

When did you discover the Hero Arts blog and did you leap into the Flickr group right away too? I discovered the blog during Christmas 2008 and uploaded my first photos to Flickr on January 1, 2009. I only lurked in the background for a few days!

What has been your favorite Hero Arts blog challenge so far? My favorite challenge was the ATC challenge. I had never made one before and was surprised at how much I enjoyed playing around with the smaller size.

What is your favorite kind of card to stamp? I think birthday cards because I can stamp almost anything so it lets me be the most creative.

If you could have one “stamping wish” what would it be? To have a really large room all to myself where in 5 years there will still be space to store all the new supplies I keep buying! I’d want it to be super organized and have all the things I regularly use sit out and be easily accessible and there would be a really long craft table to work at.

Thanks so much Sue! You will make a great Hostess!

Today’s second card was designed by Shari Carroll and much like Sue’s card, features a large bold floral image. Coloring floral images such as these is a breeze, since some shading is already provided right along with the image.

HERE are the complete card details.

Thanks for stopping by…I hope you have a great day!

I love stripes!  Here is an idea I use over and over - simply slit the lines and tuck hearts, tags or whatever you’d like into them!

This is our 100 Days of Ideas card for today:

Card by Sally Traidman

You can find the complete instructions and supply list HERE.

I used stripes here to make a similar Valentine with the Trio of Hearts.  I just LOVE using this set!!

Card by Sally Traidman

You can find the complete instructions and supply list HERE.

Here’s a quick video on how to do it:

Warning...making Valentines is contagious…hope you have lots of recipients!!

Don’t forget that our month long theme is Friendship and Valentine’s and the first round winners will be announced tomorrow!  The second round of projects are due into the Flickr group pool Thursday evening, January 28th, by 11:59pm PST. Remember to tag your projects with January2010B.

Continuing with the “Try to see it my way, only time will tell if I am right or I am wrong” theme, I have another beautiful card created by Shari Carroll that I will be using as inspiration to create another card done my way.  The muted background of floral designs is the perfect backdrop for Shari’s two perfectly colored butterflies. The antennae (made from thread) make them look as if they are ready to fly.

Card by Shari Carroll

You can find the complete instructions and supply list HERE.

I “did it my way” quick and easy with Mementos markers and our beautiful butterfly image. This three-dimensional butterfly seems to literally jump off the paper.

You can find the complete instructions and supply list HERE.

I have also put together a video that details how to create the three-dimensional butterfly.

Remember that our month long theme is Friendship and Valentine’s and the first round of projects are due into the Flickr group pool Thursday evening, January 14th, by 11:59pm PST. Remember to tag your projects with January2010A.

Until tomorrow,