MMH April Countdown

Hello there, the countdown has begun for the Hero Arts My Monthly Hero Kit for April. It's a fab kit, especially great for all of the women in our lives. Great for mums, sisters, friends - everyone! It will be available to purchase on Monday, April 3rd at 1pm EST/10am PST/6pm BST.

Today I am sharing a card over on the Hero Arts Blog using one of the beautiful dresses from the main kit stamp set, along with a sentiment from a fabulous add-on set. Remember you can subscribe to the kits at anytime here. Thanks so much for popping by today. I hope you have a great weekend!

Happy Anniversary

Hello there, today I am over on the Hero Arts Blog sharing a card made using the Color Layering Birds & Blossoms set. It is such a beautiful set and I love the simplicity of the layering on the birds.

 

 

I had originally planned on creating a hello type card but when I added the birds on, I thought they looked like they were in love so I went with an anniversary theme. Aren't those birds so sweet?! I love the blue and kraft colours together too. You can see the blog post over on the Hero Arts blog here. Thanks so much for visiting me today. I hope you have a lovely rest of the day!

A Little Decorating ...

Hello there, I wanted to pop in to let you know that I am taking a break from my blog for the rest of the month.

 

As you are reading this, I am having new windows installed today in my craft room *updated - they are now being fitted on Saturday*. I have wanted new windows for years since the old ones were letting in a draft and were rather un-functional (is that a word?!). I am super happy to finally be getting brand spanking new ones! Since my room is pretty small and the fitters need to have access to the windows, I am having to clear out my entire room.

 

 

Since I have to do this, I have decided now is a good time to freshen up my room. I will be getting a new carpet, along with painting the walls to brighten things up. This means no crafting for me for a week or so. I hope you will bare with me while I do this. I'm sure I will still be posting on Instagram during this time, so if you don't follow me already, please do! My username is thecardgrotto :)

 

Thanks so much for popping by today, see you next month!

His & Hers Watercolour Backgrounds

Hello there, today I am over on the Hero Arts Blog & You Tube Channel sharing two cards made using the Hero Arts Watercolour Dot Palette. I am a big fan of these dot sheets as although they were originally made to be little samples so that you can then go on and buy the full watercolour, they are great for card makers as you only need a small amount of watercolour per project.

 

 

My cards today use the emboss resist technique along with Bold Prints Backgrounds. You can see the post here and the video directly on You Tube here. Thanks so much for popping by today. I hope you have a great rest of the day!

Lovely Day

Hello there, today I have a card to share using the Hero Arts Color Layering Flowers For You. These colour layering sets are great for adding dimension with ink pads. The colour palette for my card was inspired by the Kelly's Flowers Ink Pad set. I deviated slightly but I love the bright pink together with the aqua tones.

 

I started off by stamping the flowers using Bubblegum, Ultra Pink and Raspberry Jam Shadow Inks. I find it easier to use a Stamp a-ma-Jig for layering stamps but these are pretty easy to layer up without one. For the leaves I used Mint Julip and Tide Pool inks. These were then cut out using the coordinating dies.

 

 

I took a white 4.5"x5.5" white card base and then made a layer to go on the front slightly smaller. On to this layer I die cut a circle using the Circle Infinity Dies. Using the aperture piece as a guide, I stamped the sentiment from the Color Layering Peacock Stamp Set on to the card base using black ink. The aperture panel was added on top with foam tape. The flowers and leaves were then added on top using a mixture of glue and foam tape. To finish off, I added a few gems and a few white dots using a gel pen.

 

SUPPLIES:

Here are the links to what I have used on the card. Please click on the picture or wording to be taken to where I purchased it. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links. Please click on the letters below the product to shop at your favourite store - Simon Says Stamp (SSS), Hero Arts (HA), Seven Hills Crafts (SHC) Amazon (AZ) etc.

PTI Stampers Select White Cardstock Hero Arts Color Layering Flowers For You Stamp Set Hero Arts Color Layering Flowers For You Stamp Set Hero Arts Color Layering Peacock Stamp Set Hero Arts Color Layering Peacock Stamp Set Hero Arts Shadow Ink - Bubble Gum Hero Arts Bubble Gum Shadow Ink Pad Hero Arts Ultra Pink Shadow Ink Pad Hero Arts Shadow Ink - Ultra Pink Hero Arts Shadow Ink Pad - Raspberry Jam Hero Arts Raspberry Jam Shadow Ink Pad Hero Arts Mint Julep Shadow Ink Pad Hero Arts Shadow Ink Pad- Mint Julep Hero Arts Tide Pool Shadow Ink Hero Arts Shadow Ink Pad - Tide Pool Hero Arts Intense Black Ink Hero Arts Circle Infinity Dies Hero Arts Circle Nesting Infinity Dies Hero Arts Clear Gemstones

InLinkz.com

 

I will have to remember that colour combination, I like it! Thanks so much for visiting me today. I hope you have a great day and rest of the week!

Happy Birthday To You

Hello there, today I have a card to share using the gorgeous Elizabeth Background that I picked up in my latest haul from Simon Says Stamp. It's such a stunning stamp and perfect for emboss resist which I have done today. I decided to have a play with the new Distress Oxide inks too.

 

I started off by taking a sheet of watercolour paper and stamped the Elizabeth Background stamp on to it using Versamark ink. I applied clear embossing powder and then heat set. Using an ink blending tool, I blended over Distress Oxide Inks in Cracked Pistachio, Broken China and a little Faded Jeans. I then spritzed over some water and heat set. Once dry I cut this down using a Stitched Rectangle Die.

 

 

I die cut the 'you' die three times from black cardstock and layered these up. I then stamped the sentiment from the You Matter stamp set on to a piece of white cardstock with black ink. This was then cut in to a strip. The background piece was added to a white A2 card base with ATG and then the You die cut added on top, along with the sentiment strip. To finish off, I added a few Moonshine and Sparkling Clear sequins, and a coating of Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pen on the 'you'.  

 

SUPPLIES:

Here are the links to what I have used on the card. Please click on the picture or wording to be taken to where I purchased it. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links.

Simon Says Stamp Black Cardstock PTI Stampers Select White Cardstock Tim Holtz Watercolour Cardstock SSS Elizabeth Background Stamp SSS You Matter Stamp Set Versamark Ink Pad Memento Tuxedo Black Hero Arts Ultra Fine Clear Embossing Powder TH Distress Oxide Ink Pad - Cracked Pistachio TH Distress Oxide Ink Pad - Broken China TH Distress Oxide Ink Pad - Faded Jeans Tim Holtz Mini Ink Blending Tool TH Distress Sprayer SSS You Die Simon Says Stamp Stitched Rectangle Dies Simon Says Stamp Moonshine Sequins PPP Sparkling Clear Sequin Mix

InLinkz.com

 

I love the finish on the Distress Oxide Inks. They have a nice chalky, silk like finish which is really pretty! They did blend really well on the paper too. I love the colour combination I used here. Thank you so much for visiting me today. I hope you have a great day and a great rest of the week!

Beautiful Birthday

Hello there, today I have a card to share using the Hero Arts Color Layering Butterflies stamp set. As the name suggests, the stamp set uses different layers to build up details on the butterflies but I wanted to show that you can just use the one layer and they are still pretty!

 

I started off by cutting a panel of white cardstock using one the Rectangle Infinity Dies. I then stamped the sentiment from the Birthday messages set using Intense Black Ink. The butterflies were stamped using Soft Pool ink for the bottom one, Soft Yellow for the middle one and Soft pink for the top one. I kept them as one solid colour but they would look nice using the Ombre inks too!

 

 

I took an A2 white card base and added a piece of patterned paper from the MFT Sweet Celebration Paper Pad to the front panel. The butterfly panel was then added on top with foam tape. To finish off, I added Tonic Nuvo Jewel Drops in Sea Breeze, Lemoncello and Rose Water. I think the Jewel Drops may be my favourite drops in the collection, I love that they are transparent.

 

SUPPLIES:

Here are the links to what I have used on the card. Please click on the picture or wording to be taken to where I purchased it. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links. Please click on the letters below the product to shop at your favourite store - Simon Says Stamp (SSS), Hero Arts (HA), Seven Hills Crafts (SHC) Amazon (AZ) etc. Products marked with an asterisk (*) were kindly sent to me to use.

PTI Stampers Select White Cardstock MFT Sweet Celebration Paper Pad Hero Arts Color Layering Butterflies Stamp Set Hero Arts Color Layering Butterflies Stamp Set Hero Arts Birthday Messages Stamp Set Hero Arts Birthday Messages Stamp Set Hero Arts Soft Pink Shadow Ink Pad Hero Arts SHADOW Ink Pad - Soft Pink Hero Arts Shadow Ink Pad - Soft Pool Hero Arts Soft Pool Shadow Ink Pad Hero Arts Soft Yellow Shadow Ink Pad Hero Arts Shadow Ink Pad - Soft Yellow Hero Arts Intense Black Ink Hero Arts Rectangle Infinity Dies Hero Arts Rectangle Infinity Dies Tonic Nuvo Jewel Drops - Rose Water* Tonic Nuvo Jewel Drops - Sea Breeze* Tonic Nuvo Jewel Drops - Lemoncello*

InLinkz.com

 

A very simple card but I am sure it would put a smile on someone's face and it makes me feel all springy/summery! Thank you so much for visiting me today. I hope you have a great day!