Well, you all did it again. You created a ton of fabulous cards for the masculine challenge.  There are so many great cards in our Flickr group that are perfect to give to a man, or for a man to give to someone else.  Also, there are great cards for our Cards for Heroes drive!  (Which, by the way, you still have lots of time to send in cards.  Click HERE for info.)

So, on to the winners…

The Fresh Face winner of the week is rosigrl123. This card is so classy, with colors suitable for a man.

First Place goes to crzy4stamps-kathy.  Her card was not only perfect for a guy, but perfect for our card drive!  So many ideas in this card.  And, you can check out several other great variations on this card HERE.

Second Place goes to sarahjane4kids (Sarah M).  Isn’t her plane the coolest?  I can’t wait to try this!

Our Third Place winner is fenway_wrigley_gibby for this great manly card.  We loved the patches of paper.

This week’s Honorable Mention goes to MonikaReeck for this timeless design. What a great way to make a floral stamp work for a masculine card.

Another Honorable Mention goes to Anette Hjerpaasen for this very clever pocket card!

Congratulations to all!  Please email us at the address in the blog sidebar with your information and we’ll get your prizes sent out to you.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hope you are feeling inspired by the many cards created by our Hero Hostesses this week!  Here is a recap of the cards designed for a man or for a man to give to a loved one…

To check out any of these cards in more detail, click on the daily links below:

• On Monday, we announce our new card drive to support Cards for Heroes.
  
• Tuesday, we shared more masculine cards, including ones for Father’s Day.
  
• Wednesday brought a technique video showing how to enhance stamped backgrounds.
  
• And on Friday, we had even more masculine card ideas.  Such fun.
  

And here’s a fun blinkie and image you can add to your blogs to help spread the word about our Cards for Heroes card drive!  (We have some instructions on adding blinkies on this post HERE.)  Remember that you have until June 30th to send in your cards.

A big thanks to Sandy from CFH for creating these for us!

Thanks for joining us this week.  Be sure to share your masculine card ideas by Sunday night for a chance to win big prizes!

Oh, and today is a very special person’s birthday… our very own Shari Carroll!  Hope it is a great one, Shari.  We love you!

Hello!  It’s Friday!!  So happy.

We are back with more great cards from our Hero Hostesses with a masculine theme - cards for a man or for a man to give to someone.  They are great examples of cards that could be sent in for the Cards for Heroes card drive we are having, too!

First up, we have this fantastic card by Deborah Nolan.  This would be a great one for a girl to give her daddy, don’t you think?  So sweet…

Card by Deborah Nolan.
Supplies:

• Birds and Branches
• Holiday Birds
• Small Blossoms Sparkle Gems
  
• Small Accent Pearls
  
• Other: patterned paper (Bo Bunny, Memory Box, Fancy Pants), ink (VersaFine, Ranger Distress), rickrack (Making Memories), pop dots,  Swirls embossing folder (Cuttlebug), circle die (Nestabilities), border punch (EK Success), tag punch (McGill), marker (Zig),  Liquid Pearls (Ranger), mini staple (Tim Holtz), ribbon (Michael’s)

Now we have another wonderful card from Karen Piskor.  This card instantly made me smile, and I bet if a child gave it to their dad, he would do the same.  And the smile?  It was made using a “C” stamp!

Card by Karen Piskor.
Supplies:

• Thinking of You
• Whimsical Alphabet
• Raindrop Background
• Mixed Dots
• Illustrator’s Alphabet (used the letter “C” to make the smile)
• Dots & Lines
• Summer Notecards
• Stickles Diamond Glitter Glue
• Other: cardstock, pop dots, sewing machine
  

Jenn Biederman created another fabulous card for a man - so awesome!

Card by Jenn Biederman.
Supplies:

• Happy Dad’s Day
• StazOn Jet Black Ink
  
• Other:  brown cardstock (Bazzill Basics), red cardstock (American Crafts Earth Tones), Swiss Dots embossing folder (Cuttlebug), colored pencils (PrismaColor), Diamond Glaze (Judikins)

Check out this owl in camouflage attire by Kelly Booth - so wonderful.  And the clouds in the background?  Perfect.

Card by Kelly Booth.
Supplies:

• Boy Owl
  
• Raindrop Background
  
• Be Yourself
  
• Clouds
  
• Box of Dots
  
• Screen Shadow (pattern under the camo clothes)
  
• All Occasion Messages
• Green Notecards
• Black Pearls
• Soft Pool Ink
• Other: cardstock, Swiss Dots embossing folder (Cuttlebug), ink (Memento), markers (Copic), square metal brad, Glossy Accents (Ranger)

Thanks again for visiting with us.  We hope you are feeling inspired to make some masculine cards…

Thanks for visiting us again today for our masculine card week, and card drive for Cards for Heroes.  Today we have lots of card ideas from our Hero Hostesses, and a video!

Let’s start with a wonderful Dad card by Donna Mikasa.  So classy.

Card by Donna Mikasa.
Supplies:

• Dots and Flowers
• Floating Leaf Pattern
• All Occasion Messages
• Sparkle Clear Letter “A”
• Sparkle Clear Letter “D”
• Artistic Impressions: Branches
• VersaMark
• Peeled Paint Distress Ink
• Other: cardstock, gold detail embossing powder, 1″ circle punch, paper crimper, twine, pop dots

I found the design and look of Donna’s card so very inspiring!  So here is a card I made based on it.  There is also a video showing how you can crease and sand paper to add texture to your paper and stamped images.

Card by Jennifer McGuire (inspired by Donna Mikasa).
Supplies:

• Dots and Flowers
• Three Designer Leaves
• Friends
• Memories ArtPrint Brown Ink
  
• Pumpkin Patch Chalk Ink Queue
• Distress Inks
• Hero Arts Notecards
• Hero Arts pearls
  
• Other: Jute, Grandma’s old button, vintage textbook paper, corner rounder, brown permanent pen
  

Kelly Booth created our next cards.  I really like how she layered a background stamp with the ferns - such wonderful dimension.

Cards by Kelly Booth.
Supplies:

• Three Ferns
  
• Modern Lines
  
• All Occasion Messages
  
• Neutral & Summer Felt Buttons
• Other: cardstock, inks (Memento), buttons, string

Last, but definitely not least is a card from Judy Jung.  This card is timeless - a perfect example of a masculine card.

Card by Judy Jung
Supplies:

• Three Designer Leaves
• Great Flourishes Messages
• VersaMark
• White Opal Liquid Pearls
  
• Other: cardstock (Stampin’ Up!), houndstooth embossing folder (Cuttlebug), white embossing powder (Ranger)

We hope you are all able to participate in this week’s challenge of creating masculine cards. And we also hope that you can take a bit of time to make someone else smile by contributing to our Cards for Heroes card drive.  And by doing both, you have a chance to win great prizes.  You can find more information at the bottom of THIS post.

Happy Wednesday!

Hello! Welcome to our second day of masculine cards… and another card drive for the Cards For Heroes organization.

Throughout the week, we will be sharing ideas from our Hero Hostesses.  These cards will be cards suited for men, cards that are good for a man to give to a woman, or Father’s Day cards.  We are also encouraging people to send in cards to Cards For Heroes.  (Please click HERE for the easy information for sending in cards.  You could win some great stamp prizes!)

Today we have some wonderful ideas for you.  First we have a delightful card from Lisa Carroll.  I just love the window she created behind the star!

Card by Lisa Carroll.
Supplies:

• Galaxy of Stars
• Happy Greetings
• Thanks Definition (behind star)
• Chocolates and Blueberries Chalk Ink Queue
  
• White Embossing Powder
• Summer Buttons
• Crimson Notecard and Kraft Notecard (trimmed, punched, and crimped)
• Other: paper crimper, square punch (EK Success), thin jute, and pop dots

Our next card is by Deborah Nolan.  This card would be great to send in to Cards for Heroes - the perfect card for a soldier to send home to a loved one.  So pretty…

Card by Deborah Nolan.
Supplies:

• Hello Circles
• Frames and Messages
• Italian Poetry Background
• Antique Map Background
• Sparkle Gems Small Blossoms
• Small Accent Pearls
  
• Other:  Brilliance, Ranger Distress, VersaMagic & VersaFine inks, Glimmer Mist, Tim Holtz Dabbers, Tim Holtz Grungeboard bird and flourish, silk ribbon, Heidi Swapp chipboard heart, Cuttlebug Script embossing folder

Karen Piskor created this next Father’s Day card idea.  It is so classy - I would love to give a card like this to my dad.  I really like how she added “Dad” before the stamped message.

Card by Karen Piskor.
Supplies:

• Hug For You
  
• Four Leaf Grid
  
• AR143 Cool Dad (Archiver’s Exclusive)
  
• Neutral Art Flowers
  
• Vintage Collage Art Flowers
  
• Kraft Notecards
• Assorted Clear Gemstones
• Other: Fleur De Lis border punch (EK Success), patterned paper (Basic Grey Boxer collection), red trim

And our last card today is by Judy Jung.  This would be another great card for a man to give a loved one.  So elegant and cheerful all at once!

Card by Judy Jung.
Supplies:

• Dots and Flowers
• Asian Frames
• Mix and Match Elements
  
• VersaMark
• Clear Embossing Powder
• Other: cardstock (Stampin’ Up), circle and scalloped circle dies (Nestabilities), VersaFine sepia ink, white marker (Galaxy), white Liquid Pearls on flowers, ribbon

Remember: There are two ways to win this week! You can enter our weekly challenge and/or send cards in for the Cards for Heroes card drive.  All of the information can be found at the bottom of THIS post - both are very easy to enter!

Thanks for stopping by…

Happy Monday!  And Happy Memorial Day to those of you in the States.

We are here for a special weekly challenge and card drive, an amazing gift and a giveaway.  Keep reading, because we have a lot of wonderful things to share today.  Let’s get started…

This week’s theme is going to be one we get lots of requests for: masculine projects. Now, these cards can be cards for a man, or cards for a man to give to someone else.  Up to you!  And, we have a special twist this week: We are asking that everyone consider sending in their entries for the Cards for Heroes organization.

Cards for Heroes is a great organization that supports armed forces serving overseas by sending them blank greeting cards for them to send home to family, as well as cards of gratitude to encourage them.  We did a card drive for them last fall, and collected thousands of cards!  Well, in honor of Memorial Day, we thought we would do it again!  We are asking that you send in any blank cards - especially the ones you make for this week’s masculine challenge.  More information on that in a bit.

Let’s jump in!  This week we are going to be sharing masculine cards made by our Hero Hostesses:

• Jenn Biederman
• Kelly Booth
• Lisa Carroll
• Judy Jung
• Donna Mikasa
• Deborah Nolan
• Karen Piskor

First up we have this super fun masculine card by Jenn Biederman.  When I first saw this, I immediately smiled… knowing that I need to make one for my husband.  SO clever!

Card by Jenn Biederman.
Supplies:

• Happy Dad’s Day
• Clouds
• StazOn Jet Black Ink
• VersaMark (for clouds)
• Other: kraft notecard (DMD, Inc.), white cardstock (American Crafts), patterned paper for grass (Cosmo Cricket), colored pencils (PrismaColor), JudiKins Diamond Glaze, computer font (Arial)

Next, Donna Mikasa designed a gorgeous card that would be perfect for a man to give to a lady.  (Cards like this are great for Cards for Heroes!)

Card by Donna Mikasa
Supplies:

• Swirly Frame
• Heart Winged Butterfly
• Screen Shadow
• Tree, Birds and Messages
• Soft Sand Shadow Ink
• Tim Holtz Walnut Stain Distress Ink
• Other: Distressed Stripes embossing folder (Cuttlebug), paper leaves (Prima), Chestnut opaque embossing powder (Zing!, American Crafts), pop dots

I have another little something I would like to share.  Remember me saying we did a card drive for Cards for Heroes back in September?  Well, I received an amazing gift from one of the heroes who received a bunch of our cards.  Back in September, I told you about Capt William McGray (the husband of the fabulous crafter, Kimber McGray).  He is the Commander of the 38th MP Company out of Danville, IN, and returned in February from a 12-month deployment in Iraq.  (To see some wonderful photos of his homecoming, click HERE.)  We sent William a huge load of cards for his troops, and he brought home this for us as a thank you…

This flag was “flown during a time of hostile fire” in Iraq.  It is an honor to have this treasure presented to Hero Arts.  (In fact, Colin admires this flag so much, that he insisted on being in the photo!)  Thank you, William. And thank YOU, stampers, who sent in your cards.  I hope this inspires you all to share again!

Now… today, I am presenting THREE ways for you to win some prizes!  Here they are:

The first way you can win some prizes is to enter our weekly challenge: Create a new masculine card that features at least one Hero Arts stamp. Submit your cards to the Flickr group with the tag “manly” by Sunday, May 31 at 11:59pm PST.  A panel of judges will pick winners for these great prizes:

• Fresh Face Winner (someone who has not yet won a contest): $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

The second way you can win a prize is to send your blank cards in to Cards for Heroes. They will then send them to the men and women serving overseas… who can then add messages and send them home to family and friends.  The cards can be any theme.  (We just ask that you don’t use glitter on these cards.)  Just print and fill out the form below and send it to the address stated.  On June 3oth, we will pick three random winners from the cards received, and the winners will each get three stamp sets of their choice!

(Click on the image above to enlarge.)

The third way you can win is to leave a comment here by 11:59pm PST on Tuesday night telling us who your hero is and we will pick a random winner of this stamp set:

Whew!  Sorry for the long post… I told you we had lots to share!  What a fun week this will be.  Thanks for stopping by…