Did you know . . .

July 12, 2012

that A Blog Named Hero has a Flickr group?

Not only do the design team girls share our projects there but we’d also love to see your projects too!

We would also love to see any topics you’d like to discuss such questions for the design team or future challenges or tutuorials you’d like to see. Truly, your feedback matters to us!

Fellow DT Michelle and I have been having a little extra fun as well. You see this “extra” fun was hatched by the two of us when we felt our mojo failing. I think it happens to all of us at some time or another. So we decided to fight back lol. We would be so happy to have you join us 🙂

This week we are doing a little sketch challenge. Next week will be a color challenge. Then the last week with be a sketch and color challenge. These flickr challenges are completely separate from the bi-weekly challenges on the blog so don’t feel like you have to combine the two (although you can of course) And of course the prizes are separate too!

This week you’ll be playing for Hero Arts Pattern Hearts and Flowers, which is such a super cute set!

Here is my take on the sketch, details here

Head on over to the flickr group to see the sketch, as well as everyone’s gorgeous creations.I do hope you play along because we would love to see your take 🙂

See you over in the there!

Stretch your washi!

July 11, 2012

Hi there! Stephanie here, and today I want to show you a way to not only get a different look with your stamped images, but also to get more use out of your washi tape!

Typically, when I use an image stamp, I do one of two things with the image — I color it in or I stamp it on patterned paper for a colored look. Well, maybe you don’t have a lot of patterned paper, or you’re sick of coloring… you could also use washi tape!

Here is a quick video showing you how I used the flower from the Pattern Hearts and Flowers set with washi tape. Basically, I heat embossed the flower onto 2 different colors of washi tape, cut them out, and glued the two pieces together.

And here is the card that I created with the flower:

This card happens to be for my fellow DT member, Lucy. Happy Birthday, Lucy!!!

I kept the card simple so the main focus would remain on the flower. I masked a border around the edges and stamped the Houndstooth Background in Wet Cement ink. The frame around the sentiment is also from the Pattern Hearts and Flowers set, but I wanted to change the sentiment out, so I only inked up the border part of the stamp. I then filled it in with a sentiment from the Year Round Sentiments set.

And just for fun, I decided to create 3 more of the same card, but with different techniques on the flower– for one I used patterned paper and the other two I colored with copic markers.

Thanks so much for stopping by, Have a fantastic day!!!

Supplies:

InLinkz.com

Happy Birthday Lucy!!

July 11, 2012

Hello Hello!

Here today with a BIG Happy Birthday to our sweet DT member Lucy

A few of the girls got together to make cards for the birthday girl:

Linda

Kelly

Cris

Mary Dawn

Melissa

outside the card 🙂

Inside!

Stephanie B’s card for Lucy will be showcased in her blog post later today!

From the girls on the DT who weren’t able to make cards, they send their apologies but their Best Wishes for your day Lucy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET GIRL!

Love from all of us 🙂

Stretch Your Stamps with Perfect Pearls!

July 9, 2012

Hello everyone, it’s Michelle here today. Doing a little bit of stretch your stamps and a whole lot of playing with Perfect Pearls.

I made two cards to show you the different look you can get with one stamp set and some Perfect Pearls. The first card is bright and bold:

To start you will need a few supplies (everything will be linked at the bottom of this post):

You can use either Perfect Medium, Versamark ink, or the Distress Embossing ink. I don’t have any Perfect Medium so I used the Distress Embossing ink for these projects.

First you want to ink your cardstock up with whatever colors you choose. I used the Spring/Summer Distress colors Picked Raspberry and Squeezed Lemonade. I love the melon/coral color they make when blended together.
When you are done inking up your background it is VERY IMPORTANT to make sure you dry it completely with your heat tool. If you don’t when you put the Perfect Pearls on it will stick to your background and your image and it will be a big shiny mess.

So after you dry your background completely, stamp your image in either Versamark, Distress Embossing Ink or Perfect Medium. (Again, I used the Distress Embossing Ink.)

Next, dip your brush into the Perfect Pearls. Make sure to tap it well, you will pick up way more than you need on the brush.

Gently pounce the brush on your stamped image:

Brush away any excess and look at your image to make sure it is all covered:

Gently mist the Perfect Pearls with water to set. If you don’t the Perfect Pearls will come off.It won’t come off once you mist it. Just mist lightly. I usually mist it in the air and pull the paper through it. It’s impossible to get a decent picture of it that way though. 😉

Continue these steps to cover the background. You can stamp all the butterflies at once and then do the Perfect Pearls–the inks stays plenty wet 😉

To do the pink butterfly:

Stamp butterfly image on white cardstock

Next spritz some water onto your craft sheet and then scoop some Perfect Pearls onto the mat (if you reverse this you run the risk of spraying Perfect Pearls everywhere…trust me 😉 ) I just use the end of my paint brush to scoop it out. You don’t need much.

Gently combine the water and the Perfect Pearls until it is a semi-thick mixture

Now use the paintbrush to paint in the white spaces on the butterfly, you do not need to mist this one as the Perfect Pearls are already mixed with the water so it will set properly.

For the Black butterfly:

First I inked up my background stamp with Distress Embossing ink and stamped the background, Next I dusted it with Perfect Pearls in Interference Green, the shine in real life is incredible.

To make the black butterfly I did this:

I used the Distress Embossing Ink to ink up my butterfly stamp and then I stamped it onto black cardstock and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder. I used Perfect Pearls in Perfect Pearl to paint in the top half of the butterfly and Interference Green to do the bottom half of the butterfly. The shine in person is amazing!

I hope you try this technique. It’s really fun!

Don’t forget that today kicks off the Stretch Your Stamp Class over at Online Card Classes.

There is still time to sign up…I just know it is going to be FABULOUS!

You still have time to enter our current challenge too! There are still 2 days left in the

The challenge closes on the 10th at 5:00 p.m EDT

Don’t forget you have the chance to win a GC from the FABULOUS Simon Says Stamp

Have a wonderful day!

HUGS!

InLinkz.com

One stamp set, three very different cards and styles!

July 7, 2012

Hi! Lucy here waving to all my crafty friends!!!

We are almost there! Yey! Where do you ask?

The Stretch your Stamps class of course. It will begin in 2 days so go ahead and register here. I know is going to be fun and there are a few discounts to our favorite online craft stores, which will make the class a total deal!

On keeping with the class theme I made 3 very different cards using the same stamp set from Hero Arts:

PATTERN HEARTS AND FLOWERS CL596

I loved this set not only for its beautiful images, but also the quality of the transparent clings, is the best I have seen. But on with the cards right?

On this first one (bling, bling ) I used glue ink and fine glitter in three different colors on black cardstock, then I added rhinestones in the center. I also white embossed the stamp sentiment and to finish it off I added white dots all around it with an opaque white gel pen.

On the second one (monochromatic) I made a patterned paper out of the heart in the set; I just stamped a small piece of white cardstock with shadow ink in pool, in different directions all around it. Then I chose a very similar color of cardstock to form my card base , I used a heart die in the front center, pass it through my diecut machine. I adhered the patterned paper I made inside the card so it would be the heart background. Then I stamped the sentiment, color the flower with copics: B12 and BG72, placed it on pop dots and on the card and added the “grand finale”, a polkadotted ribbon in blue tones.

For the third card I went in a more “romantique” direction. I used distressed papers in lilac, pink and green tones, layered them with a piece of kraft cardstock embossed with a Sizzix embossing folder. All three layers were corner chomped. Then I stamped both the roses and the sentiment with Memento tuxedo black ink, and colored the roses with copics, the lilac in BV02 and BV04, the pink one in R32 and RV11, the yellow one in Y21 and Y23 and the leaves in YG03 and YG63.

I placed both stamped and colored images on popdots an as a final touch I added a trio of colored pearls in pink, yellow and blue.

I hope you had a terrific party all my friends from USA ( Independence Day) and Canada (Canada’s Day)that I know you recently celebrated !!! And to everyone keep enjoying these days of summer and take tons of pictures of all that you love!

And may the craft mojo be with you!

Card no. 1:

InLinkz.com

Card no. 2:

InLinkz.com

Card no. 3:

InLinkz.com