Hero Arts Awesome Monster Kit for Kids (and Big Kids!)!

Hello Everybody! How are you all doing today? I am super excited because today Hero Arts is launching a new kit and this time... the kit is for kids! And, it's a Monster kit and I love monsters! You're probably wondering why I'm so stoked on a kit that's geared towards children? Well, it's true that the kit is geared towards children but it is also perfect for making cards, games and charts for children too. That means that it's just as much for adults with kids in their lives as it is for kids. My son is 18 and he loved the card I made to share today but I'm thinking of sending it off to one of my many nieces and nephews (obviously I'll have to make more because I can't just send it off to one of them).

This kit makes creating so easy because it has a ton of components. I was in the mood for a little mindless coloring so I cut this piece from one of the coloring sheets and went to my happy place.

The kit has a great variety of items to help you effortlessly create a wide variety of projects. Here's a look at the full Monster kit and what's included in it...

KIT CONTENTS:

-Monster Ink 'n Stamp Tub (18 stamps and 1 ink cube)

-Monster Eyes Woodblock Stamp

-Neon Green Ink Cube

-5 Super Washable Marker Pens

-10 Paper Monster Die Cuts

-12, 6"x9" Monster Scene Stamping Sheets (3 each of 4 different designs)

-Self-adhesive Googly Eyes

That's a lot of stuff, right?! The kit itself costs $34.99 and there are three more monster themed sets you can choose to add-on if you want to. The sentiment I used on this card is from the add-on set called Party Monsters and I absolutely love it-because anytime that it's "Time for a Wild Rumpus" you can count me in!

To make my card I colored my coloring sheet with my copic markers. Then I stamped and colored some extra monsters both from the kit as well as from the add-on stamps and adhered them with foam tape for a little added dimension. It was seriously that easy to create this fun card!

Now, here's a closer look at the add-ons for this kit. This first one is called Party Monsters...

This second one is called Bedroom Monsters...

This third one is a red rubber cling stamp (6"x6") and is called Monster Bedroom Boldprints...

You can pre-order the Kids Monster Kit and add-ons starting today! Once sold out, the kit will be gone. The kit and any items ordered with the kit will ship together starting October 9, at the same time as our upcoming October My Monthly Hero Kit.

Ok! That's it for me for today. I hope this kit has you as excited as I am. I know sending cards out to all my little people will bring huge smiles to their faces especially in this crazy time when I don't get to see them and squeeze them. 

Keep on hopping with us to see more creative ideas for using this kit (games, magnets, daily happiness charts, etc...). Links to my creative friends are below as is info for the GIVEAWAY and links to what I've used today on my card. 

Stay well everybody and have a most amazing day! 

Maria

GIVEAWAY!

Hero Arts will give away one $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, September 27th at 11:59pm pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week. All you need to do to enter is leave me a comment below and Boom! you're entered. 

BLOG HOP LIST: 

Hero Arts
Maria Willis
Daniel West
Dana Joy
Ilina Crouse
Pocono Pam
Mindy Eggen
Lydia Fiedler
Libby Hickson
Channin Pelletier

With special guests:
Heather Ruwe
Tenia Nelson

And extremely special guest:
Theo!!

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST:

Hero Arts STAMPtember release!

Hi everybody! Guess what?! It's time for another Simon Says Stamps STAMPtember release and today Hero Arts is getting their turn! The Park Scene stamp set is sweet and simple with clean lines (full stamp pictured below). Remember that this stamp set will be available for a limited time only and when it's sold out it's gone for good! So, if you have to have it you'd better snatch it up right away!

For today's card I decided to use only one stamp and build a scene around it. I stamped the lamp post in INTENSE-ified black ink and used my Hero Arts liquid watercolors to paint a scene in pinks, purples and blues. I added a little yellow to the light and left a light colored halo around the lamp to give off a glow.

I used the Oval Woodgrain Frames Infinity Dies to cut out both the frame and the focal point of my card. I heat embossed my main sentiment in gold onto vellum, fussy cut it, and adhered it with glue dots. After splattering the background with some Midas Touch shimmer pen I used foam tape to pop the framed image piece up on the gray card base. 

Well, that's all for today you guys! Remember, this stamp set is limited edition and when it is sold out it's gone forever. So, if you just have to add it to your collection, head straight over to Simon Says Stamp to pick it up. Here's a look at the full set before I go...

Have an awesome day! Bye for now!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST:

Shoot for the Stars! Kids United!

Hello everybody! I hope you are having a wonderful day! I'm just popping in to share this card made with a super sweet image from the Hero Arts Kids United stamp set. I love this image of two young girls holding hands and looking at each other like they and their dreams are all that matters in this world. I just want to tell them, "Shoot for the Stars kids! You can be anything you want to be and do anything you want to do!" I found this sentiment in the You're My Universe stamp set and it was just perfect for what I wanted.

I started by stamping the image in Hero Arts INTENSE-ified black ink so that I could use my copics without my ink smearing. I colored the image in gray scale using my cool gray markers. Then, I added a subtle wash of color with some light pinks and blues. After I was done coloring I used the coordinating dies to cut the image out. I'm so glad I had the dies because I'm sure I would've done some wonky cutting on the ropes. 

Next, I ink blended a background using my Hero Arts Reactive inks in Taffy, Creamsicle and Lemon Drop. I heat embossed the sentiment in black at the top. Then, I splattered the background with water to lift some color... and then I sprayed the whole thing with shimmer spray. I wanted it to look sparkly and celestial and that did the trick. 

I used the Star Confetti Fancy die to cut stars out of some glittery white cardstock. I used the larger stars and some foam tape to hang the swing and girls in the sky. Then I adhered stars in many sizes to the background. I adhered this whole front piece to a white card base using foam tape and that was all!

Thank you so much for stopping by today! I know you all are busy and I truly appreciate the visit. If you're interested in checking out any of the supplies I've used today I've got a list for you down below.

Bye for now and I hope you all have the best day!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST:

Hero Arts Bare Branched Tree Done Christmas Style!

Hi Everybody! I hope you are having a great day and that it doesn't seem too early for me to be sharing a Christmas card. I generally don't start making Christmas or Holiday cards until it is far too late to get them mailed out on time... so it's pretty weird that here I am in mid-September with a Christmas card. The truth is that this Bare Branched Tree Bold Prints Background stamp just screams wintery, holiday everything to me.

So, for today's card I've heat embossed the gorgeous Bare Branched Tree stamp in Gold Glitter Embossing Powder onto Cranberry cardstock. It's hard to see in the photo but I've also ink blended the edges with some Raspberry Jam dye ink to make the edges of the card face a little darker.

I decided to use the Stocking Bouquet stamp set to add my sentiment and the flower. Now I'm sure that's supposed to be a poinsettia... and poinsettias are typically red but I needed the flower to contrast so I colored it green with my copic markers. I added a few green enamel dots for some additional pops of color. I love these enamel dots bc the backs of them are already sticky and they come in multiple sizes (so easy and convenient to use). 

To finish my card off I added it to some gold foil paper from Tonic Studios and added all that to a top folding white card base from Hero Arts. 

Have you started making holiday cards yet? Do you start early on purpose or are you a last minute holiday card maker like I am? Let me know in the comments below.

Have an awesome day you guys!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST:

Hero Arts My Monthly Hero Kit and a Giveaway!

Hey everybody! I hope you had a great weekend! Today is launch day for the new My Monthly Hero kit from Hero Arts and it is such a fun kit this month (the add-ons are pretty epic too so check those out!). In case you aren't familiar with the My Monthly Hero Kit... It's a kit that comes on the first Monday of every month (unless there's a switcheroo) and has an incredibly high value but is offered at a discounted rate. This month's kit is is valued at $80 but you can pick it up for just $34.99. There is a catch though... Once the kit is sold out it's gone for good. You can put dibs on a kit of your own by subscribing to receive the kit each month. Each month there are add-on products that match the theme of the kit too and subscribers get the perk of being able to add those extra products for no additional shipping costs.

Ok! For my first card today I decided to do something different with the kit. The main kit has a layering pumpkin set with a bunch of fun stamps for creating a scene. I decided to use the cornfield layering stamp (although I only used the detail piece) to create a backdrop for my scene. I stamped this image in Granny Apple Green and colored the white space in with a copic marker. Then, I colored the the grass in the foreground with my copics too. I used the dies that come in the kit to cut this out and set it aside.

Next, I ink blended a night sky using Splash, Blue Hawaii and Grape Slush reactive inks. I splattered the background with water and then blotted it up with left me a distressed, galaxy looking background. I wanted to add a little more magic so I splattered the background with white metallic paint to add some "stars." I heat embossed my sentiment in white and set that piece aside too.

I created the pieces for my scene by stamping them all in Dandelion yellow ink with the exception of the crows which I stamped in Soft Granite. These stamps are solid which allows you to add any detail that you want. I used dark yellow and brown markers to add detail to the hay bales. I used that same brown on the scarecrow's hat and then gave him an orange shirt and blue jeans. I added some tears to the blue jeans with a white gel pen.The crows had been stamped in a light gray color so I just used a darker gray marker to add some shading to them.

After all of the was the fun part-putting my scene together! I adhered the cornfield/grass piece to the sky background using foam tape. Then I layered the hay bales so that they looked like they were stacked and placed the scarecrow behind them. I finished the scene off with the crows. I put all of that onto an A2 top folding card base and my card was done.

For my second card I've actually made a video to show you step-by-step how I made this card.

In case you like written instructions I'll give you a quick overview ... I used the pumpkin patch stamp layering set but I only used one layer of it. I stamped that layer in Splash ink using my Misti. Next I stamped the detailed layer of the cornfield behind the pumpkin patch. I used my copic markers to color in the corn and the pumpkins. 

I ink blended the sky using Fruit Punch, Taffy, Creamsicle and Lemon Drop reactive inks. Then I splattered it with white metallic ink. Someone asked me if that was snow which I thought was pretty funny. You could easily use it for snow but I add because I think it makes a card that much more magical to have a little bit of metallic paint splatter on it. I stamped my sentiment in Versafine ink and heat embossed it in clear embossing powder.

That's it for today you guys. Today's post is part of an amazing blog hop and some of my teammates have come up with the most amazing projects to share with you all today. They've used not only this kit but the add-ons as well and if you like zombies you are in for a serious treat! So, I hope you'll keep hopping with us. You can do that by heading over to Mariana's Blog, or, by using the list of blog hoppers that I've added below.

Before you go let me tell you that there is a giveaway! Details are below but all you have to do to enter is leave me a comment below for your chance to win a $50 gift card from Hero Arts!

Have an amazing day you guys and thanks so much for stopping by!

Maria

GIVEAWAY:

Hero Arts will give away one $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, September 13th at 11:59pm pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week.

BLOG HOP LIST:
Hero Arts

Amy Kolling

Channin Pelletier

Dana Joy

Daniel West

Debi Adams

Emily Midgett

Ilina Crouse

Jennifer McGuire

Jessica Frost-Ballas

Laurie Willison

Libby Hickson

Lydia Fiedler

Maria Willis: You are HERE.

Mariana Grigsby

Michelle Short

Mindy Eggen

Nichol Spohr

Pocono Pam

Seeka

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST- CARD #1:  

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST- CARD #2

STAMPtember Picket Fence Studios: Happy Water

Hello everybody! Guess what?! It's time for another Simon Says STAMPtember release and today's stamp set is from the fabulous Picket Fence Studios! This is a fun and super sassy set called, Happy Water and there is a coordinating die if you want to pick this up as a bundle! In case you don't know how STAMPtember works... This set is only available from Simon Says Stamp and when it is sold out it's gone forever. So, if you need this stamp hurry and drop it in your shopping cart while it's still available. I've put an image of the full stamp set at the end of my post so be sure to check that out so you can see all of the hilarious sentiments.

For my first card using the Happy Water stamp set I stamped the image in Versafine ink and watercolored it with my Arteza brush pens. I selected colors that were vibrant and would blend well together. I scribbled the Arteza's onto a media mat and painted by picking up the color with a wet paintbrush.

When the paint was dry I splattered the background with some of the colors that I used as well as some black. To be honest, if I could do it over I would have used much less of the black splatter (maybe even none) as my image popped more before I added that. My final touch was to add a layer of Crystal Glaze over all of the beverages. This gave a super cool effect and made the drinks look like they are all 3D shiny glass. I wish that the camera picked that up better.

For my second card I started out by ink blending a background using Hero Arts Reactive Inks. Then I stamped my image in black hybrid ink so that I could work with both water and alcohol inks without having to worry about smearing my image. First, I added water to the inside of my image causing a reaction with the blended background. I gently used a paper towel to pick up the excess water and lifted some ink with it. This left all of the beverages a lighter color than the inked background. At this time I also lightly sprinkled the background with water and dried it to leave some splatter drops. 

The next step was to color in the images with my copic markers. Then, I added highlights and some asterisks in the sky with a white gel pen. The hilarious sentiment was heat embossed in white onto black cardstock and popped up with foam adhesive.

Here's a closer look at the entire stamp set. It has so many sassy sentiments to go with the main image. Remember, if you love this set and need to add it to your stash, it's a good idea to pick it up now. Supplies are limited and once this fun stamp is sold out it won't be coming back. Click HERE to head over to SSS to buy your own set. 

This set is exclusive and is part of the Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember party where a new, limited edition stamp is released every day! Check out this stamp and the other releases over at Simon Says Stamp!

That's all for today you guys! I hope you love this stamp set as much as I do! I'll see you back here in the morning for the Hero Arts My Monthly Hero release!

Bye for now!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST:

Happy Holidays Trapped Emboss Resist Tree

Hi Everybody! Today I've got a fun and easy card to share using the Bare Branched Tree Bold Prints stamp from Hero Arts. This beautiful stamp is so versatile and can be used for so many different types of cards from nature loving to holiday cards. For today's card I decided to use it to make a holiday card. 

I started my card by ink blending a piece of Dove White cardstock with Key Lime Fizz and Green Apple Reactive Inks. I used a lighter hand with the ink as I knew that I'd be ink blending again. Next I heat embossed the tree image on top of my ink blended background using clear sparkle embossing powder. This trapped a layer of ink beneath the embossing powder. After that I was able to ink blend the background again with the same colors but adding a heavier/darker layer of color this time. I used a towel to wipe the excess ink off the embossed tree and that revealed the contrast between the tree color and the ink-blended background.

I wanted to add a bold sentiment that would still let the background shine so I chose to use this "Happy Holidays" die. I cut it out three times from white cardstock and once more from glittery white stock cardstock. I glued all four layers together with the glittery layer on top so that I had a thick die cut sentiment to adhere to my card.

It needed just a little something more so I added a pop of color by stringing an ornament down from the "y." I thought that was a fun finishing touch and decided to leave it just like that. 

That's all for today you guys but I'll be back soon.

Have an amazing day!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST:

Hero Arts My Monthly Hero Sneak Peek

Hey Everybody! This month's My Monthly Hero kit from Hero Arts is almost here and that means the countdown is on! This month the kit is going live on Tuesday, September 8 so mark your calendars (Monday is Labor Day so it's going live a day later than normal)! The kit goes live at 10am Pacific and once it's sold out it's gone for good. If you want to make sure you never miss a kit you can subscribe here-subscribers are guaranteed a kit!

Today I've got a sneak peek of the kit for you. I've used the main image from the kit to create a fun pumpkin patch. I also had fun ink blending the happy sky with what I'm calling a harvest moon (or harvest sun?).

The sentiment is also from the main kit and was the perfect finishing touch for this pumpkin card.

Alright you guys-that's all you get for today! I promise to share more details on how this card was made on Tuesday when the hop goes live! Plus, I have a totally different take on this kit to share with you for the launch as well. I can't wait to share it all with you soon!

Oh! I almost forgot... Hero Arts is doing a giveaway and one lucky winner will be winning the September My Monthly Hero kit. All you have to do to enter is go HERE and leave a comment to win. Good Luck!

Bye guys! Have the best day!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST:

Hero Arts Sending Peace, Happiness and Love

Hey Everybody! I'm just popping in to let you know that I'm up on the Hero Arts blog today sharing this card using the beautiful Bare Branched Tree Background stamp. To get all the details head on over to the Hero Arts blog. For now, here are a couple of pics...

This wonderful sentiment is from the Stocking Bouquet stamp set.

This was such an easy winter card to make and I was inspired to make more cards using this Bare Branched Tree stamp so be on the lookout for those soon.

 

Ok, guys. That's it for today but before I go I'll link to the products I've used below in case you'd like to check any of them out.

Have an awesome day!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST:

Hero Arts New Unity Products Blog Hop and a Giveaway!

Hello Everybody! It's so nice to have you back here and I hope you are having a wonderful day. Today I am back as party of a blog hop featuring the new Unity Products from Hero Arts. This is a wonderful collection of products that focuses on inclusion and unity. It is important for people of color to be represented in our stamping/art community not just within the products that we use but in the positive messages that we put out into the world as well. These new Unity products are perfect for doing just that.

For my card I decided to use a new set called Kids United. It has adorable images of children being kind and loving and it has a die set (Kids United Frame Cuts) to go with it too. I chose the image of the two boys. They just look like they are such good buddies and I really wanted to color them. I used my copic markers to color them in and then I cut them out by hand so that there wouldn't be any white space around them. After that, I heat embossed the "Lead With Love," sentiment from the Power to the People stamp set  in white onto black cardstock. This sentiment is my favorite out of the whole set. I think it's such a good reminder of how we can all choose to live. 

I wanted the boys to be on a fun background so I grabbed a gel print from my stash and cut it down to 4"x 5 1/4". I adhered that with foam tape onto a black A2 sized card base. Then, I popped my boys and the sentiment up with foam tape on the gel print background.

That's it for today you guys. If you have any questions please feel free to ask in the comments below. Also, be sure to check out the giveaway info. All you need to do to enter the giveaway is drop me a comment. I hope you will keep hopping along with us to check out all the inspiration we have to share using the Unity Products. Next up in the hop is my super talented friend, Mindy Eggen. You can head over to her blog or navigate the hop by using the links below. Enjoy!

Have an awesome day!

Maria

GIVEAWAY:

Hero Arts will give away a $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by leaving a comment between now and Sunday, September 6th at 11:59pm Pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week.

BLOG HOP LIST: 

Hero Arts
Pocono Pam
Dana Joy
Daniel West
Ilina Crouse
Libby Hickson
Lydia Fiedler
Maria Willis: You are Here.
Mindy Eggen
Seeka
Channin Pelletier

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST: