Top Flight Stamps 6th Birthday Celebration!

Hey everybody! We've got a birthday to celebrate today! Topflight Stamps is turning 6 and to celebrate I'm teaming up with some talented designers to showcase some of our favorite products from Topflight Stamps.  You can find a list to the other designers by clicking here to head to the Topflight Stamps blog. We are also celebrating with an Instagram Hop (Click here to head to the IG hop). There is also a generous GIVEAWAY so be sure to enter both here and on Instagram (details are at the bottom of this blog post).

Today we are all working on a "Celebration" theme so you're in for a treat! For my card I've combined the All & Create Coffee First stamp set (dog) with the All & Create Steampunk Stamp (background). I started out by stamping the Steampunk stamp onto white cardstock twice. I stamped it in black on the left and upside down and in gray on the right (not that there's a "right" way to stamp it but I did flip it). Then I inkblended my background with Distress Oxide inks in Candied Apple, Carved Pumpkin and Mustard Seed. When that was done I glued the background to a black cardbase.

Next, I colored the dog with copic markers and colored pencils. I added some extra detail with white gel pen. I cut the dog out by hand and added foam tape to the back.

I wanted the sentiment to say "Celebrate" so I used a gel pen to hand-write it on a strip of black cardstock. Next, I used foam adhesive to attach both the sentiment and dog to the card. To finish it up I added some black enamel dots and some scribbles with a fine-tip Sharpie.

That is all I've got for today you guys today but please make sure to head on over to Topflight Stamps blog so you can check out the other designers who are celebrating with us today.

Have an awesome day!

Maria

GIVEAWAY:

Of course, it wouldn’t be a birthday celebration without prizes! Topflight Stamps is giving four lucky winners $50 Gift Certificates to the store. Two winners will be chosen from commenters on the blog hop and two will be chosen from commenters on the IG hop. For a chance to win, make sure to visit the stops on the hop and leave a comment by April 1st. Winners will be announced on the Topflight Stamps blog on Monday, April 3rd. U.S.A winners only due to shipping issues. Good Luck!

Hero Arts Countdown to Creativity: March 2023 My Monthly Hero Release

Hey everybody! It's almost time for the March 2023  Hero Arts My Monthly Hero release and this month's kit is a fabulous kit for creating some colorful fruit and veggie themed cards and projects!

If you aren't familiar with the My Monthly Hero kit, it's a kit that is released by Hero Arts on the first Monday of every month. It always has a fun, themed, collection of stamps, dies and other goodies. The cost is just $34.99/month and the value is always much greater! 

BIG NEWS!! Starting with the February 2023 release Hero Arts will now be offering both a Classic Kit and a Premium kit every month! The Classic kit will be what you're familiar with and will stay priced at $34.99. The Premium Kit will include everything from the Classic Kit plus some fabulous extras! If you are already a kit subscriber you will receive the Classic Kit unless you upgrade your subscription to Premium.

You have the option to subscribe (subscribing now means your first kit will be the April 2023 release), or, to buy your favorite kits as one-off purchases. Be aware that once these kits sell out they are gone for good. If you see a kit you like make sure to snatch it up quickly! 

Today is Day Three of the Countdown to Creativity and I've got a card featuring a large background stamp that is included in the March 2023 kit (it's in both the Classic and Premium kits). I used the new Neon Brights Liquid Watercolors to color the image and I love the colors so much! I started by stamping my image in Onyx Pigment Ink on Luxe Watercolor cardstock. I covered the pigment ink in clear embossing powder and heat set it. This gave the image a glossy, raised look.

 

Next, I used my Neon Brights Liquid Watercolors (and a couple of the regular colors) to watercolor the background. For the grapefruit I added some of the white liquid watercolor with the neons to get a more muted color. 

To finish the card off I added the background to a black cardbase and a sentiment from the kit (heat embossed in white on Pitch Black cardstock).

Ok you guys, that is it for today! Tomorrow is the full release so make sure to come back here at 10am Pacific time to see the whole release! And, if you'd like a chance to win a kit before you can buy it then leave a comment below and head to the Hero Arts blog to see posts from the other team members.

Have an awesome day!

Maria

Hero Arts Spring Catalog Release 2023- Blog Hop and Giveaway!

Hello everybody and welcome to the Hero Arts 2023 Spring Catalog Release! Today is a day that many of us have been waiting for and I am so excited to get to share a few of the new products with you today. Before I get to my cards though I want to mention some of the fun new stuff that is launching today. Just click below if you're interested in going straight to check them out!

-Hero Arts 2023 Spring Catalog

-Hero Arts 2023 Creative Essentials Catalog

-NEW Neon Liquid Watercolors

-Hero Arts Spring 2023 Stamp-A-Long!

-Hero Arts Spring 2023 Product Bundle

Ok, let's get on to my cards! I decided it would be fun to use some of the same products for both of my cards but to showcase them in two very different ways. So, my first card is clean and simple (for me) and my second card is more of a grunge, mixed-media style. Both cards use the Overlapping Hexagons Bold Prints and the Yay! Birthday Bundle sets. My second card also uses the Friendly Messages Bundle.

I started my first card by stamping the Overlapping Hexagons Bold Prints in Granite ink on white cardstock. I colored the centers of the hexagons pink, cut it down to 4" x 5.25" and mounted it to a Paradise card base. While I had the Paradise Cardstock out I also cut a large hexagon using the Hexagon Infinity Dies. I sprayed it with White Iridescent Shimmer Spray and set that aside to dry.

Next, it was time to create my focal point. I stamped the cake image from the Yay! Birthday stamp set in black ink and colored it with alcohol markers. I also stamped the "Hooray!" sentiment in Onyx Pigment Ink and heat embossed it using clear embossing powder. I used the coordinating dies to cut both of these out (I LOVE that there are dies for the large sentiments in this set!.

Once my large hexagon was dry I added foam tape to the back and adhered it to my card front. I added foam tape to both the cake image and the die cut sentiment and centered those on the large hexagon. I thought about adding embellishments but like the clean, soft, shimmery look of this card so I left as is.

For my second card I put drops of Core Inkers (Ultra Pink, Summer Sky and Paradise) on my glass worktop. Then I sprayed the drops with rubbing alcohol and smashed some copy paper (from my printer) into the ink. This process yielded a vibrant, colorful background that I loved. I "taco stamped" the Overlapping Hexagons Bold Prints randomly onto the background using Onyx Pigment Ink and heat embossed it using Clear Embossing Powder. Next, I splattered my colorful background and an A2 sized piece of Pitch Black Cardstock with White and Gold Glimmer Metallic Ink and set those aside to dry.

I wanted to create a focal point that would not cover up too much of the background so I decided to use vellum and small tag with a bold sentiment. I cut the vellum with my Nesting Circle Infinity Dies and used the Tag Infinity Dies to cut a tag out of Mist Cardstock (I used a black pen to hand decorate the tage). I heat embossed my sentiments using Onyx Pigment ink and Clear Embossing Powder and then i cut them out using their coordinating dies. I used foam tape to adhere the sentiment to the tag and then then the tag to the vellum. I trapped a length of black metallic thread between the layers for a little extra texture.

I used liquid glue to add my colorful background to the black mat. I glued it offset and then cut off the excess. I added my focal point making sure that the adhesive was was hidden behind the tag (so it wouldn't show through the vellum). The final touch was to add some black enamel dots as embellishment.

Ok, you guys, that is it for today but we've got an amazing blog hop today and a ton of insanely talented crafters are sharing their creativity to bring this catalog to life for all of us. I hope you will keep hopping along (blog hop list is below) and make sure to enter the giveaway as well!

Have an awesome day!

Maria

GIVEAWAY:

We'll be giving away two $50 gift cards, drawn from the comments left along the hop. Comment on all the blogs for more chances to win! You have until Sunday, February 26 at 11:59pm to enter. The winners will be announced on the Hero Arts blog.

BLOG HOP LIST:

Hero Arts

Hero Arts Creative Team: 

Channin Pelletier
Dana Joy
Emily Midgett
Ilina Crouse
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Kelly Taylor
Libby Hickson
Lydia Fiedler
Maria Willis: You are HERE.
Michelle Short
Mindy Eggen
Pocono Pam
Seeka

Special Guests: 

Carissa Wiley
Cathy Zielske
Daniel West
Jenn Shurkus
Jennifer Ingle
Jennifer Kotas
Jennifer McGuire
Laura Bassen
Meg Brooks
Nichol Spohr
Rebecca Keppel

Sharing on Instagram: 

Ralph Tyndall
Alberto Gava

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST (affiliate links may be used at no extra cost to you):

Hero Arts February 2023 Premium My Monthly Hero Kit: Mixed Media!

Hey everybody! I hope you're having an awesome day! Today I'm excited to be back with another creation using goodies from yesterday's Hero Arts release. Yesterday the new Premium My Monthly Hero kit came out and I absolutely died when I saw the rub-ons (image transfer sheets) that are included in the kit. These are so cool because you can rub them onto a background if you want, or, you can rub the butterflies onto paper, vellum, etc and use the coordinating butterfly dies (also in the Premium kit) to cut them out. On this project I've done both.

I started out by using my Rounded Rectangle Infinity Dies to cut out a piece of watercolor paper. I sprayed that with DIY Reactive Sprays in Root Beer and Blue Raspberry and ink blended around the edges with Indigo Core ink. Next, I added some of the floral and star rub-ons to the background then stamped the Background Texture Strips in Sand ink. I added White and Gold Glimmer Metallic ink splatters too.

To add more texture to the background I stamped the Background Texture Strips again using Onyx Pigment in and then heat embossed that in clear. I rubbed the edges into some Versamark embossing ink and added Sand Embossing Powder. This added some amazing, gritty texture to the edges. Next, I grabbed my Star Cluster Stencil and added some Gold Hero Wax. I wanted a little more of that gold so I rubbed some Hero Wax around the edges with my finger.

Once my background was done I used the gorgeous butterfly rub-on and transferred it a piece of white cardstock. I die cut it with the coordinating dies from the Premium kit. Then I added a coiled up piece of black metallic thread to the back with some foam tape and added that to my project to finish it off.

That's it for today you guys but please come back tomorrow as I'll be sharing three cards that I made with the gorgeous new Papillons Digital Card kit!

Have an awesome day and I'll see you back here soon!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST (Affiliate links may be used at no extra cost to you):

Hero Arts My Monthly Hero Release August 2022: Blog Hop and a Giveaway!

Hey everybody! The wait is over! It's time for the Hero Arts August 2022 My Monthly Hero release and this month's kit is a stencil lovers dream! It's got a set of four layering stencils to create a beautiful desert scene. There are also a sentiment stamp set, some coordinating dies, four ink cubes, five sheets of Luxe watercolor paper and bronze PearlEx (affiliate links may be used at no extra cost to you)!

Before I get to my cards, if you aren't familiar with the My Monthly Hero kit, it's a kit that is released by Hero Arts on the first Monday of every month. It always has a fun, themed, collection of stamps, dies and other goodies. The cost is just $34.99/month and the value is always much greater! This month's kit is valued at $70!

You have the option to subscribe (subscribing now means your first kit will be the September release), or, to buy your favorite kits as one-off purchases. Be aware that once these kits sell out they are gone for good. If you see a kit you like make sure to snatch it up quickly! There are also a ton of amazing add-on products! You can buy the add-ons as a bundle at a discounted rate or just pick up your favorite products. 

HOT TIP: Ok, so here's something I quickly figured out with this kit... I am someone who struggles with leaving white space on a card (especially in a landscape scene like this where white space within the design would really break it up). If you are like me then I suggest the easy solution of starting either with colored card stock and ink blending on that, inkblending a background in the colors of your choice before using the stencils, or, grab a background from your stash and have fun with that!

For my first project I decided to grab a watercolored background from my stash and be inspired by the vibrant colors. This panel was created with DIY Liquid Watercolor sprays and I believe I used Pink and Dandelion but it looks like I could've sprayed a little Creamsicle Reactive spray in there too. I decided to put the pink up top for a magically hazy sky and the yellow/orange tones worked well for a desert floor. I used the stencils from the kit and inkblended in Taffy reactive ink to add the gorgeous skyline and some sandy pits. For the next layer I used a sponge dauber to gently add in highlights with Gold Glimmer Metallic Ink. If you decide to do this make sure to go easy so that the gold doesn't run under your stencil and you can get some crisp highlights. I wanted more gold so after the first layer dried I went back with a paintbrush and thickened it up.

I wanted to give the mountains a little bit more definition since doing pink mountains against a pink sky didn't provide a lot of contrast. I grabbed a pink colored pencil and traced around the edges of the mountains and added a little shading where I thought it would look good. That was an easy way to make the mountains pop. I wanted to add to the sky as well so I masked off the bottom part of the card (coordinating dies make this easy) and splattered it with White Glimmer Metallic Ink. Before moving on, I heat embossed my sentiment onto the panel using Onyx Pigment ink and clear embossing powder.

Next, I used a separate piece of white paper to stencil my cacti in Key Lime Fizz and Green Apple Reactive Inks. I used the coordinating dies to cut them out and adhered them with foam tape. I finished my card off by adding it to a black mat and a card base. 

I made this next card using a new stencil called Desert Road Stencil. I used some Pixie Spray to lightly adhere it to my cardstock before working with it so that I could get clean lines. I inkblended everything above the dark brown section using Dandelion, Pale Tomato, Sand, Caramel, Cup O' Joe, and Espresso inks. It was too hard to keep the colors separated by section as I had originally planned so I blended over the tops of the stencil lines and ended being happy with the look

By the time I was halfway down the card I was tired of inkblending and started wondering if it would work well to use my copic markers with the stencil. I decided to try it out and this technique allowed me to get some nice shading in my gray road and to move quickly down the rest of the card. I do think the ink blending at the top looks smoother though. 

I added a sentiment from the Seaside Highway HeroScape set and a black mat to finish off this card.

Here's another card I made using the kit. This one has a watercolor look that was easy to achieve. If you'd like the details for this card you can find them by clicking here. 

Ok, that's it for today you guys! I hope you have an amazing week and that you'll keep hopping along with us for more inspiration. Remember to comment below to enter yourself in the giveaway!

Maria

GIVEAWAY:

We will give away a $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, August 7th at 11:59pm Pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week.

BLOG HOP LIST:

Hero Arts
Channin Pelletier
Dana Joy
Daniel West
Emily Midgett
Ilina Crouse
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Kelly Taylor
Libby Hickson
Lydia Fiedler
Maria Willis: YOU ARE HERE.
Michelle Short
Mindy Eggen
Pocono Pam
Seeka
Jennifer Kotas
Meg Brooks
Nichol Spohr
Rebecca Keppel

Andrew Granick: Visit him on Instagram

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST (affiliate links may be used at no extra cost to you):

Hero Arts Countdown to Creativity: August 2022 Release!

Hey everybody! It's almost time for the August 2022 Hero Arts My Monthly Hero release and this month's kit is a fun one especially for all of you stencil lovers out there!

If you aren't familiar with the My Monthly Hero kit, it's a kit that is released by Hero Arts on the first Monday of every month. It always has a fun, themed, collection of stamps, dies and other goodies. The cost is just $34.99/month and the value is always much greater! 

You have the option to subscribe (subscribing now means your first kit will be the September 2022 release), or, to buy your favorite kits as one-off purchases. Be aware that once these kits sell out they are gone for good. If you see a kit you like make sure to snatch it up quickly! 

Today is Day One of the Countdown to Creativity and I've got a card with an faux-ish watercolor technique to share with you. This month's kit comes with a set of four stencils that allow you to create a gorgeous desert scene. The kit also comes with Luxe Watercolor cardstock so I took that as my que to create a watercolor scene using my stencils as the guide. 

I used my DIY liquid watercolor sprays with the stencil to create layers of color. All I did was place my stencil down and then spray my color over the top. Once that layer had dried I added the next layer of color. The colors that I used were Cocoa, Mulled Wine, Leaf, Jungle Mist and Teal. Once I had the full desert scene I added color to the sky by masking off the scene (there's a die that makes this easy) and spraying it with White Iridescent Shimmer Spray followed by a splatter of White Glimmer Metallic Ink.

The final steps were to stamp my sentiment in Onyx Pigment ink and heat emboss it in clear, then add my scene to a Nautical mat.

Well, that is it for today folks! I hope you've enjoyed this little sneak peek. If you'd like a chance to win this kit before you can buy then head on over to the Hero Arts blog and enter for your chance to win!

Have an awesome day and I will see you back here on Monday for the full (super amazing) release!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST (affiliate links may be used at no extra cost to you):

Gina K. Designs: July 2022 Release!

Hello everybody! I am popping in with a quick post to show off a gorgeous new set from today's Gina K. Designs release. The set I'm using is called Birds of a Feather and it's got some beautiful florals and two gorgeous hummingbirds in the set. For today's card I decided to focus on on of the floral stamps and make it the star of the show.

To start my card I stamped the floral image multiple times onto a piece of white cardstock in alcohol friendly ink. Then, I used my copic markers to color the flowers and the background. I had fun adding drop shadows in cool grays and adding extra details with a fine tipped sharpie and a white Posca paint pen.

When I was done coloring I stamped a sentiment from the Spread Your Wings stamp set in black ink onto the bottom of the card front. I have a friend who could use a card right now and this sentiment is just perfect for her.

To finish my card off I added my floral piece to a black mat and glued that all to a top-folding card base. 

This Birds of a Feather stamp set is so beautiful and I love that it is so versatile because it includes so many pretty stamps. You can head on over to Gina K. Designs if you'd like to check out the whole release.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you have an awesome day!

Maria

Hero Arts My Monthly Hero July 2022 Release: Blog Hop and Giveaway!

Hey everybody! The wait is over! It's time for the Hero Arts July 2022 My Monthly Hero release and this month's kit is a flamingo loving dream! It's got a gorgeous layering flamingo stamp set with clouds, water and grass. There are coordinating dies and five ink cubes! There are also self-adhesive pink and teals gems as well as teal pearls (affiliate links may be used at no extra cost to you)!

Before I get to my cards, if you aren't familiar with the My Monthly Hero kit, it's a kit that is released by Hero Arts on the first Monday of every month. It always has a fun, themed, collection of stamps, dies and other goodies. The cost is just $34.99/month and the value is always much greater! This month's kit is valued at $75!

You have the option to subscribe (subscribing now means your first kit will be the August release), or, to buy your favorite kits as one-off purchases. Be aware that once these kits sell out they are gone for good. If you see a kit you like make sure to snatch it up quickly! There are also a ton of amazing add-on products! You can buy the add-ons as a bundle at a discounted rate or just pick up your favorite products. 

For my first project I decided to make a birdday shaker card (get it?). I started out by spraying a piece of white cardstock with my DIY liquid watercolor sprays in Pink and Indigo and se that off to the side to let it dry. Later, I came back and ink-blended around the edges with Blue Hawaii ink. 

Next, I stamped my flamingos using the color-layering set from the kit. My bottom (solid) layer is Cotton Candy ink. My next layer (detailed layer) was stamped with Rose Quartz Pigment Ink and heat embossed in clear embossing powder. I love that the heat embossing gave a raised, shiny texture to the bird's feathers. Next, I stamped the legs and beaks in Onyx Pigment Ink and again, I heat embossed in clear. This caused some of the Onyx ink to melt into the Rose Quartz layer at the bottom of the birds which I think adds a fun, shadowed look to the feathers. I did lose a little detail on the beaks and I added that back in with a fine-tipped sharpie. After the flamingos were done I cut them out using the coordinating dies.

To create the shaker portion of my card I used a shaker pouch from Tonic Studios and added some glitter and sequins from my stash before sealing it up. I adhered the flamingos using foam tape and then followed it up by adding the sentiment stamped in black on Paradise cardstock.

For my next card I used the Large Toucan Bold Prints stamp and heat embossed it in gold onto watercolor cardstock.

I watercolored the image using Nuvo Shimmer Powders from Tonic Studios.

To finish the card off I added a sentiment from Zen Messages heat embossed in white on black cardstock. I matted the image piece on black cardstock and called it good!

I'm  not sure if you saw my post from Sunday, but just in case you didn't, here's one more card that I made using this month's kit. You can catch all of the details for this card by clicking here.

Ok, that is it for today but make sure to leave a comment below to enter the giveaway and continue on our blog hop for more incredible inspiration!

GIVEAWAY:

We will give away a $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, June 10th at 11:59pm Pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week.

BLOG HOP LIST: 

Hero Arts
Channin Pelletier
Dana Joy
Daniel West
Debi Adams
Emily Midgett
Ilina Crouse
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Lydia Fiedler
Maria Willis: You are here.
Michelle Short
Mindy Eggen
Pocono Pam
Seeka
Jennifer Kotas
Kelly Taylor
Meg Brooks
Nichol Spohr
Rebecca Keppel

Instagram: Andrew Granick

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST (Affiliate Links may used at no extra cost to you):

Hero Arts Countdown to Creativity: July 2022 Release!

Hey everybody! It's almost time for the June 2022 Hero Arts My Monthly Hero release and this month's kit is a super fun kit packed with flamingo goodness!

If you aren't familiar with the My Monthly Hero kit, it's a kit that is released by Hero Arts on the first Monday of every month. It always has a fun, themed, collection of stamps, dies and other goodies. The cost is just $34.99/month and the value is always much greater! 

You have the option to subscribe (subscribing now means your first kit will be the August 2022 release), or, to buy your favorite kits as one-off purchases. Be aware that once these kits sell out they are gone for good. If you see a kit you like make sure to snatch it up quickly! The monthly releases always include a fun assortment of products that are a similar theme to the kit. You can buy your favorites or buy them all at a discounted rate.

Today is Day Three of the Countdown to Creativity and I've got a sneak peek of this month's kit to share with you... This kit comes with a really fun layering flamingo stamp set (and coordinating dies which I didn't use). I stamped my flamingos in Cotton Candy, Neon Ombre : Neon Red to Purple, and, Intens-fied black ink. 

Once my flamingos were stamped I added some water at their feet using Mist ink. I added the sentiment on top of that using Onyx Pigment ink and clear embossing powder. The final step was to cut my image piece down to size and mat it on both Pitch Black and Bermuda cardstocks.

That is it for today you guys but if you want a chance to win this kit before you can buy it please head over to the Hero Arts blog and enter to win! We usually launch the MMH kits on the first Monday of the month but tomorrow is a holiday so this kit will be launching on Tuesday, July 5th. I will see you on Tuesday for the full reveal!

Have an awesome weekend!

Maria

PRODUCT SUPPLY LIST (Affiliate links may be used at no extra cost to you):

HERO ARTS: Color Week Kickoff! New Color System, Blog Hop, and Giveaway!

Hey everybody! Today is a most amazing day because today Hero Arts is launching a brand new color system! The CORE INKS are getting a makeover (lids will have a new look as well as a built-in palette), there are new colors and some of our old favorites (some which have a new name), new CARDSTOCK colors that match inks, and drumroll please..... INKERS for every single color so that we can ink up our ink pads and use them for techniques! So. Cool! There will also be BUNDLES available!

BASIC COLOR INFO:

There are 57 Core Ink pads and Inkers in this line.

6 brand new to Hero ink colors.

12 brand new to Hero cardstock colors.

Bundles are available for all 57 Core Inks - an ink pad + inker

Bundle is available for purchasing all 6 new Core Ink pads & Free Color Labels

Since we are talking Color we need to touch on color organization for a second... Hero will be selling color labels that you can use to label your products and keep everything organized! I cannot wait to get my hands on them! These color labels will also be included with the bundles mentioned above as well as with the following...

COLOR ME ORGANIZED PROMOTION:

Between June 20-26 you will receive Free Index Labels with your purchase of any 6 ink pads or ink+inker bundles!

Here is a link for you to check out the new collection. Here you'll be able to see old and new colors as well which colors have been renamed. You can also see which inks have a matching color of cardstock.

Last but not least here is a link to the FREE COLOR CHART! 

And, if you already have a favorite new color you can SHOP BY COLOR HERE!

Ok, let's get on to my card! So, my goal was to find a technique that worked well for all of the new inkers and would yield some consistently cool results. I came up with this Paper Towel Printing technique (I am sure someone has done this before but I did figure it out for myself while I was playing). 

I started by adding drops of both Ultra Pink and Summer Sky Inkers to my glass mat. Then I sprayed them with rubbing alcohol until they started to spread and blend together. I laid a piece of paper towel that had a cool, textured pattern to it on top of my colorful, alcohol mess. The paper towel absorbed the color and I removed it and placed it on a dry part of my glass mat. Next, I placed a piece of white cardstock (regular, not watercolor cardstock) on top of the paper towel and rubbed my fingers across the back to transfer the ink from the paper towel onto my cardstock. I lifted the cardstock up and it was left with this gorgeous, textured background that held the design of the paper towel. I set this aside to dry and it dried quickly since the alcohol evaporated much faster than water would have.

Once my background was dry I heat embossed part of my sentiment on it using Onyx Pigment Ink and Clear Embossing Powder. Next, I added the "Big Hugs" die cut sentiment using liquid adhesive. I wanted these die cuts to have some dimension so I glued together three layers of black die cuts and one layer of white to create a "shadow."

To finish my card off I added a Pitch Black mat and glued it all to a card base.

Well, that is it for today you guys! I hope you will join in our giveaway and keep on hopping for tons of inspiration! For more information you can head over to the Hero Arts Color Page, or, if you want to hit the shop right away you can SHOP BY COLOR HERE.

Have an awesome day!

Maria

GIVEAWAY!! 

We will be giving away one set of the six NEW colors of ink - Core Ink Pads and Inkers - to one lucky commenter. We encourage you to comment on every blog in the hop - the more blogs you comment on, the more chances to win! Comments for contest entry close Sunday, June 26 at 11:59pm PT, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week.

BLOG HOP LIST:

Hero Arts
Mindy Eggen
Seeka
Michelle Short
Lydia Fiedler
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Ilina Crouse
Channin Pelletier
Pocono Pam
Daniel West
Emily Midgett
Maria Willis