January 2023 My Monthly Hero Kit Blog Hop!

Hi and welcome to my blog, and my first post for 2023! Today’s post is part of a blog hop celebrating the first Hero Arts My Monthly Hero kit of the year, and there is a giveaway!

The next stop on the hop is my talented friend Jen Kray!

This kit is super cute and perfect for those Valentine’s Day projects! Beautiful card stock, sweet stamps and coordinating diecuts, as well as a stencil and a bit of sparkle.

This is what Hero Arts are saying about the kit: With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, the January My Monthly Hero kit celebrates the “perfect match”. The centerpiece of this kit is dies to create a faux matchbox, which lies flat on your card or project and can be decorated and filled with the numerous stamps and dies included in the kit. But don’t stop there, let your imagination go wild with all of the possibilities this kit contains! Use the images on their own, build repeating patterns, or add them to planner pages, journals, and more! There is a beautiful stencil included, perfect for backgrounds or mixed media projects. The kit is rounded out with a pack of fun heart-themed sequins and five sheets of gorgeous cardstock.

If you haven’t subscribed to the My Monthly Hero kit, you can sign up HERE. This is a pre-order, and Hero Arts will start shipping the kits on Friday the 13th of January. If you are not subscribed, and miss out on a kit, that’s it, you can not get it again. They are only available in a limited quantity and once they are gone, they are gone. It’s also a great deal as the kit is valued at $77, but it only costs $34.99!

There are also a bunch of fun add-ons you can get, as usual! There are a bunch of fun diecuts, including one that makes an actual match box. There is also a gorgeous heart cover plate, a hot foil plate, a striped stencil and really lovely sentiment stamps, on their own or with coordinating diecuts!! If you are a subscriber, you can add any, or all of these, to your kit order, before it ships, without having to pay extra shipping.

If you can’t pick and chose which ones to get, you can snag them all RIGHT HERE.

As a self-confessed hot foil addict, I love the option of adding foiling to my projects. It’s such a touch of luxury, and glam, and I will never, ever tire of it. The fun thing with hot foil plates is that you can actually use them as embossing plates AND you can dab ink on them and “stamp” as well. Yep, it’s not just for foiling.

However, for my project today I have used just the main kit, so let’s get into it!

First off I used my trimmer to cut out strips of the card stock included, they are about 1cm wide. I did cut two of each, because I wasn’t sure how many I needed, but I did just use one of each in the end.

To add some interest to the white card base, I have ink blended just a touch of left over pink ink (the colour is Taffy) over the stencil. By not adding more ink, the results are super soft and delicate, but you do have to blend for quite a while. I will say it’s worth it for this sort of result.

My second card is also done with just stamps and dies from the main kit, I did use some Distress Spray in Black Soot and some gold water colours to add some interest to the white background.

I cut out the flat matchbox out of white card stock and heat embossed ‘Valentine’ on it in white embossing powder for a subtle look. The hearts are cut out of satin gold card stock and I also used a few of the little red hearts from the embellishments, that come in the kit.

The little specks of red, matched with the gold, works really well I think!

Next up, I had to use that lovely Hearts Hot Foil plate. But not in red, that felt too on the nose, so I went with Matte Gold instead. It looks gorgeous!

This card is finished off by making a card base of out the Peony card stock that comes in the kit, stamping up a sentiment from the You’re Mine stamp and diecut set, and add some 3D heart balloons made with some of the diecuts from the main kit.

My last, and final card, is way outside of my comfort zone. It has so much white space I’m spacing out…!

I started out by cutting out a panel using the Heart Flourish Cover Plate, out of white card stock, and layering this up onto a white card base.

On this I simply added ‘Sending hugs kisses’ from the You’re Mine stamp and diecut set. Because there is no ‘and’ in the stamp set I used the double heart diecut instead of it, this and the lips are cut out of red card stock. To make these stand out a little I added a lot of Crystal Clear Lacquer Pen and set aside to dry.

That’s it from me for today, but don’t forget to check out the rest of the hop! To enter the giveaway, you only have to leave comments on the stops, and you have until January 15th to do so. The winner of the $50 Hero Arts gift card will be announced on the blog the following week, so make sure to check back to see if you have won!

I have used some compensated affiliate links in this post, to Hero Arts, and if you shop with these links I will get a small commission from them directly. At absolutely zero extra cost to you!

Income from these affiliate links are what pays for the boring stuff like blog hosting, internet security, equipment, and other tools for the creative side. I really, really appreciate it whenever someone uses my links, no matter how small the order, every single one helps, so thank you from the bottom of my heart!

Lots of love and happy crafting from Erica

September 2022 Hero Arts Monthly Release

Hi and welcome back to my little blog!

Today I’m hopping along with Hero Arts creative team, global team and friends, to celebrate the September My Monthly Hero Kit release! You can find the whole lineup of the hop HERE, and as I’m the last stop on the hop it takes you back to the first Hero Arts blog post.

The September My Monthly Hero kit is an ode to fall and elegance. Just look at this!

The kit contains :

• Clear Stamp Set, 4” x 6”
• 6 Coordinating Frame Cuts
• Rub-On Transfer Sheet
• Cling Background Stamp, 6“ x 6”
• 2 Sheets Each of Cardstock in Sand & Antique Ivory, 5.5” x 8.5”
• Rose Gold Metallic Floss, 5 yds

You can also pick and chose from the amazing My Monthly Hero Add-Ons. Including new hot foil plates!! Eeeeep! I’m firmly onboard the Hot Foil Crazy Train and do not plan on getting off anytime soon.

The kit description says: Autumn is a whisper in the air, with hints of cooler weather, falling leaves, and rich colors. Our September My Monthly Hero release takes an elegant path into fall, featuring a gorgeous vase of fall blooms as the focal point for your cards and projects. There’s also a fun new element this month – rub-ons! Use them for quick and easy cards; the coordinating die in the kit perfectly cuts out the rub-on floral arrangement as well as the stamped images. Or try the rub-ons on any smooth surface. The kit is rounded out with a gorgeous new cling stamp, metallic floss and the perfect neutral cardstocks for stamping your autumn-inspired creations.

Pre-order your kit today! Hero Arts estimate kit shipping will begin Friday, September 9th and continue throughout the following week. You can also subscribe to make sure you don’t miss out on any of the kits, as once they are sold out, that’s it.

I’m super excited about the hot foil plates, and I don’t think it should come as a surprise that I had to use these for my first card.

I’m a bit embarrassed to admit I forgot to add a sentiment to this card but the gold hot foiling and heat embossing steal the show, so maybe it doesn’t matter.

I have also used the lovely rub-ons and I was blown away how gorgeous they looked once on paper.

I need more of these for sure! The first one I did on the Antique Ivory and I did this directly on one of the two card bases that come in the kit. This one was finished off with a simple sentiment from the kit stamp set, in Root Beer ink.

The second one I did on the Sand card stock, the second colour card stock that comes in the kit, and it looked beautiful too!

The sentiments on this card is also stamped with Root Beer ink, with the help of a MINI MISTI.

These are super simple cards to make, but that image is so gorgeous they don’t really need much else.

Now for the fun stuff! There is a giveaway to celebrate. Hero Arts will give away a $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, September 11th at 11:59pm Pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week.

Thank you so much for stopping by today, I hope you enjoyed this post and the rest of the hop!

Happy crafting and lots of love from Erica

Hero Arts Global Team blog hop!

Hi everyone!

Today I’m delighted to be hopping along with the fabulous Hero Arts Global Team.

You should have come here from my little brother from another mother, Daniel Diaz, and the next stop on the hop is the incomparable Ilda Dias!

I have been sick with shingles for the last two weeks so I haven’t had the energy to do much, so making the cards for this hop was the first time I played with the February My Monthly Hero kit. One of my favourite images in the stamp set is the little umbrella. I love umbrellas, which is kind of funny, seeing as I’m not a fan of rain, lol!

The add-on cover plate, Cloud Window Fancy Die, with the gorgeous pattern and swirls, is totally fabulous. I do love a good cover plate!

To start, I stamped up the umbrella five times and coloured them in, each in a colour of the rainbow. I used a silly amount of Copic Markers for this but I love how they turned out! After the colouring was done I cut them out with the coordinating diecut, and set aside.

In one of the previous kits there was a pack of white silver glitter card stock, and I cut the Cloud Window Fancy Die out of that and also white card stock. The glittery one I cut up into four pieces and glued to the back the white one, to make it more interesting. I love the glittery clouds peeking out from behind the white ones.

As I didn’t want to fill the entire panel, I left a hole in the middle, but this of course needed a little something. On a scrap piece of paper I scribbled some blue Copic markers to make a sky looking background. This needed a little something so gold splatters to the rescue!

After all the pieces were done, I stacked and adhered it all to a card base, and the final touch was a sentiment from the stamp set. The one I picked says ‘you’re magical’ and once that was stamped onto white card stock, trimmed down and adhered to the card it was all done.

So that’s my card done for today, but don’t forget to hop along the blog hop and leave comments on all the stops as Hero Arts are giving away a $25 gift card to a lucky winner! You have until the 26th of February to leave comments and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog on the 27th. Good luck!!

Below you can find the whole lineup for the blog hop
Anna
Daniel
Erica (that’s me!)
Ilda
Jen
Lisa
Michelle
Sandi

Hero Arts 2020 Catalog Release Blog Hop!

Hi!

Today is quite a busy day here on my little blog. This post is part of the Hero Arts 202 Catalog Release blog hop and I’m so excited to be part of it!

You should have come here from Amy Kolling and your next stop is Nichol Spohr.

I have four cards to share today so I’m not going to hang around doing my usual jibber-jabbering. Who’s got time for that when there is a hop in full swing??

My first card is using the lovely Circle Pattern Bold Print and heat embossed it in Platinum. A light lilac ink blending in an ombré way finished off the background. I stamped up the Floral Lavender Bunch and coloured it in with Copics, then cut it out with the coordinating diecut.

To finish off the card I diecut the Thinking Of You four times and layered these up. This I adhered to the card and with that, it’s finished!

The second card is using the Circle Pattern Bold Print again, but this time with three pink Oxide inks in an ombré way. I L-O-V-E ombré if that wasn’t clear, lol.

I also love flowers, and to finish this card off I stamped up several Floral Tulips and water colured these in. The coordinating diecuts save so much time, I love them! While I was on a roll with diecutting, I also cut out some Oval Woodgrain Frames which I used to frame the tulips.

A quick birthday sentiment on a banner, finished the card off.

I have a slight obsession with avocados and lemons, and as there is a fabulously zesty background stamp, Fresh Citrus Bold Print, in the newest release it was a no-brainer to use that one! Twice too, and both are heat embossed with white. One on white water colour card stock and the other on black card stock.

The white one I coloured in using Zig Clean Color markers and the black one I have used paper glazes from Picket Fence Studios! This is the first time I have tried water colouring with them on coloured card stock and I LOVE how it turned out! So cool and shimmery.

The sentiment, Lemonade Message, was perfect for one of them. It’s heat embossed in white on light yellow card stock, this is cut it out using the Square Infinity Dies. I did one size bigger in a darker yellow colour. I also stamped up and heat embossed some of the images from the Orange Blossoms set. These are coloured in using the same Zig Clean Color markers and then cut out with the coordinating diecut.

The sentiment bit is popped up with foam tape, then the branch and lemon were added as a final touch.

With another sentiment stamped up and cut out, from the Orange Blossom set, I assembled the cards. This one I also trimmed down a little, adhered to a white card base and had a lime instead of a lemon.

The yellow one is my favourite though. I love how the colours pop!

Well, that’s it from me! I hope you enjoyed these cards and found some inspiration here. Your next stop on the hop is the amazing Nichol!

Blog hop prizes: We will giveaway 3 $50 shopping sprees to people who comment along the hop. Comment on as many blogs as you’d like – more comments means more chances to win! Comment by Wednesday Feb 19 at 11:59pm pst, we’ll announce the winner on the Hero Arts blog.

Hero Arts has collaborated with My Sweet Petunia to make a black MISTI! It is the original style, not the 2.0, and will be available from March 15th. If you want one, click on the ‘notify me’ link on the product page as it’s displayed as ‘out of stock’ at the moment.

Here is the full blog hop list but if you come across any broken links, the list is also available on the Hero Arts blog.

Hero Arts Blog
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Channin Pelletier
Debi Adams
Michelle Short
Caly Person
Emily Midgett
Janette Kausen
Ilina Crouse
Yana Smakula
Daniel West
Lydia Fiedler
Wanda Guess
Seeka
Laurie Willison
Amy Kolling
Erica A-B
Nichol Spohr
Jennifer McGuire
Libby Hickson

Thanks for stopping by today! I have used compensated affiliate links to Hero Arts in this post, if you shop using these links I will get a small commission directly from them, at no extra cost to you whatsoever. Any money I make from these affiliate links go directly back into running my blog and YouTube channel, so thank you so much for the support!

Lots of love and happy crafting from Erica

You can find me on various social media platforms if you want to see more of my work

My blog (that’s right here)

Instagram

My YouTube channel

CaCaCraft on Facebook

Guest Designing for Inspired By All The Little Things challenge #86!

Hello, hello! Today I’m back with another card and post as the May Guest Designer  for Inspired By All The Little Things challenge blog. This is Challenge #86! The inspiration photo for this challenge is very different from Challenge #85, with vivid colours and textures. Isn’t it just lovely? I could so picture some of those glass feathers hanging in my window, catching the sunshine and the colourful prisms bouncing off the walls. Actually, hang on a minute….. *Makes mental note for future craft room*

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My first idea was to basically stamp up feathers on a card and the colour them in with the same colours as in the photo. Sounds cool, doesn’t it? Only problem was I realised I don’t have a feather stamp in my stash…! What? How..? Once I got over the shock of not having exactly the right stamp to work with, my mind was very set on a specific one of course and anything else simply wouldn’t do. Oh no. Impossible! (My inner crafty drama queen was having a full-on temper tantrum!)

Right, plan B: Alcohol ink background with similar colours as in the inspiration photo and stencilled texture paste over it. Using Ranger Ink Alcohol inks on Yupo paper, I played around this way and that, until I had a very colourful and vivid piece to work with. The colours I used are Caramel, Sailboat Blue, Indigo, Pistachio, Coral, Cranberry, Honeycomb and Rose Gold mixative. In the photo you can see how they look once dried on the Yupo paper. For this piece I used Translucent Yupo, rather than my usual Yupo.

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I use a little air blower to puff the colours around as it gives me a headache to blow on them and breathe in the fumes. Even when I have the window open! This pump is very cheap but so helpful. If you want something similar, I got this one from Amazon but you can also check out local photography shops.

To bring in the feather element to the card, I used a stencil from Hero Arts called Peacock Feathers and Ranger Ink texture paste. The one I used is a Opaque Matte (I really like it but it doesn’t seem to be able as a single tub anymore) and I spread a very thin layer on the alcohol ink piece using a spatula.

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Once it was all dry, I cut out a panel using a Lawn Fawn Stitched Rectable stackable lawncuts and added foam tape to the back of it. This I adhered to a white A2 card base, made out of Neenah Classic Crest 110# card stock, and set aside for the time being.

To finish it off I got out some MFT Stamps goodies: a really lovely and useful stamp and dienamic set called Because You. It comes with a ‘because’ word diecut and some sweet stamp sentiments you can mix’n’match for all sorts of occasions and recipients. The ‘because’ I cut out of card stock with my BigShot and dabbed on my VersaMark ink pad before dusting it very generously with Altenew Platinum embossing powder and melting it with my heatgun. I’m a big fan of the embossing powders from Altenew, they are gorgeous!

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I also cut out a frame in platinum coloured linen textured card stock, using a mix of two different MFT Stamps dienamic sets, Stitched Rectangle Frames and Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangles, as I didn’t have one that was just what I wanted and the right size. I like calling this ‘Crafting MacGyvering’, from the 90’s tv-show MacGyver. Makes me feel very clever indeed, lol!

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The sentiment was finished off with ‘You know just what to say to make me feel better’ which is stamped on white card stock in two blue Altenew inks to create a mottled effect. The two I used are called Tide Blue and Starlight. These you can get separate or as a 4-pack called Deep Blue Seas, both in the big oval pads and mini cubes.

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To put the card together I used both foam tape and my fine tip glue pen. First the frame went on, then the ‘because’ and finally the sentiment stripe with foam tape. I toyed with the idea of adding some sequins but surprisingly decided against it. I know, I’m shocked myself…

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Well, with that, I’m finished and I hope you like it and will get inspired to join us yourself! Check back to the main blog for more inspiration from the DT and for the linkup for your own project. Thank you so much for having had me, guys, I really enjoyed myself and hope you liked my projects! To see my card for Challenge #85, click HERE.

As always, I have used compensated affiliate links, where possible, to various companies and shops for your convenience. What that means is that I will get a small commission from the company directly, if you purchase something using these links, at no extra cost to you. Some of the shops and companies linked to are Scrapbook.com, Altenew, MFT Stamps and Ranger Ink.

I’d like to take this opportunity to urge you to use these links and those of other crafters, when you do purchase new crafty goodies. By doing this, you help support our crafting journeys as well as absolutely make our days! Thank you so much in advance.

Lots of love and happy crafting from Erica

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