August My Monthly Hero + Giveaway

Hi friends! It's the first Monday in August and we're kicking the month off with another FABULOUS My Monthly Hero release. The August kit is truly magical. Castles, nights, unicorns, this is the stuff of fairy tales! The add-ons are magical, too, so be sure to check them all out in the shop! 

If you've been hopping along, you should have arrived from Jessica Frostt-Ballas' blog. Your next hop stop after this will be Libby Hickson's blog. The entire hop list can be found later in this post.

Once again, Hero Arts is generously giving away a fabulous prize for a lucky commenter along the hop.  Leave a little love in the comments section for all these amazing artists and if your name is drawn you'll receive this month's kit absolutely free! If you're not a kit subscriber, what are you waiting for? I seriously have so much fun with this Kit every month! Even when my first impressions is the kit isn't really my style, I start stamping and suddenly I'm transported to a magical place and end up making some of my favorite creations ever.! The kits are a FANTASTIC value and frequently sell out. Subscribing guarantees you'll never miss a kit. Plus there's such a wealth of inspiration from the designers each month! Speaking of inspiration, let's head off to the land of magic!

The boys have a birthday party to attend in August. These sweet girls are completely obsessed with all things pink, purple, glittery, and anything princess or unicorn themed, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to get a jump start on their card. I started out with the GORGEOUS castle fancy die from the August My Monthly Hero kit, cutting it from watercolor paper and then watercoloring with Zig Clean Color Real Brush pens and a clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen.

When it was dry, I added accents to the clouds with the crystal clear lacquer pen and then poured sparkle embossing powder over it and heat set it. I LOVED the way it turned out! So puffy and awesome.  However, I then decided to cut it with an infinity circle die, so I could pop it up on another circle element. This process flattened the puff of it in the die cut machine. So the lesson to be learned here is, do your accenting AFTER die cutting!😆

On the larger circle I blended ink lightly into the center and then embossed the sentiment from the kit with black ink and clear embossing powder. I then layered the castle over this, popped up on foam tape.  I then stamped the unicorn image from the kit and cut with the coordinating die, then watercolored. This was added as an accent to the castle, then I got to work on the background.

I am all about the new Rose Bush Cover Plate add-on! I'm a huge Beauty & the Beast fan, and this background totally reminds me of the story. I die cut it from the Mirri Matte Lava Purple paper included in the kit. This paper is absolutely dreamy! I finished by layering the die cut over a card base cut from Arctic cardstock and then popping up the castle circle element in the center.

So the other day in the car, the Girl on Fire song by Alicia Keys came on the radio and the boys started singing along. Then all of the sudden, Trevor stopped and said, "Wait, is she on fire fire or basketball on fire?" It took me a second and then I realized yep, she's on fire like being good at basketball! LOL  So when I saw the thou be-eth on fire sentiment in the kit I just had to use it (and sing the song the whole time!). So this is my ode to Girl on Fire.

I stamped the flag, banner, dragon and princess from the kit on watercolor paper, cut with the coordinating dies and then colored. For the sentiment, I did a little stamp surgery to cut the sentiment into two lines, but it could also be done pretty easily with masking.

The scroll in the background is from the awesome new Scrolls Infinity Dies. I cut it from the parchment paper from the main kit, then sponged with soft brown and cup o-joe inks.  I added some scribbles with a brown color pencil to look like writing and then layered the dragon, banner and princess over it.

Next I pulled out the Maze Bold Prints add--on and stamped in ultra pink on peony cardstock then sponged around the edges.  I layered everything together and stuck a bit of foam underneath the bottom scroll for a little dimension. THEN I decided I wanted to use the congratulations sentiment from the Majestic Beasts set. Since it was uneven with the foam, I couldn't stamp directly on the scroll, so I die cut another scroll from vellum, embossed the sentiment in gold and then cut just the bottom portion and layered it over the scroll.

I thought my princess needed a little something more, so I added a flame to her arrow and then embossed the crown from Majestic Beasts in gold and cut with the coordinating frame cuts.  I accented this with some teeny rhinestones and finished off with a shiny gold mat around the background panel.

Next I decided to depart a bit from the pinks and purples. I colored the knight and the tent from the main kit with Zig markers, then added a bit of crystal clear lacquer pen accents and glitter to the horse's mane. I created a wall backdrop using the Cobblestone Bold Prints add on, stamped on the parchment paper in soft brown and then sponged with soft brown and cup o' joe inks.

I used the birthday sentiment from Majestic Beasts and embossed it in gold, then cut with the Tag Frames Infinity Dies. The bottom portion of the card features the Stained Glass Window Stencil. I used the stencil with some gold glitter paste on sand cardstock. Love how it shines! Shiny gold mats finish off this masculine birthday card.

My next card, also features the Stained Glass Window Stencil. I used the stencil to blend reactive inks to create the scene, then cut it down and matted with pitch black cardstock. The background of the card is done by embossing the Trefoil Bold Prints in sea salt reactive ink and clear embossing powder on a panel of arctic cardstock.  The sentiment is from the Majestic Beast set and is stamped onto a banner die included in the Scrolls Infinity Dies set. I finished with some square embellishments from my stash.

For my final card today, I made a one layer card. I loved the elegant roses in the Fairytale Book Alphabet, so embossed those in gold at the bottom of a white card base. I then used the alphabet stamps to spell the word wish.

I masked off a straight line under the wish sentiment, then sponged with green apple and lime fizz reactive inks.  I then moved the mask and blended in taffy around the sentiment and flowers. I turned the card and worked from the other end to blend in pool party and then blue raspberry for the sky.  I finished off with some spritzes of water and blotted off.

Okay,  if you're still with me, you deserve a crafty high five! ✋  

I hope you've enjoyed my makes and a bit of my creative process. I had so much fun adventuring in magical lands with this kit! If you're not a subscriber already, the kit is only available while supplies last, so pre-order your kit today! Kit shipping begins Friday, August 9th and continues throughout the following week.

If you ARE a subscriber, remember you can order any of this month's lovely add-ons to ship with your kit with no additional shipping fees if you place your order before Thursday. All of the add-ons are added to the Hero Arts catalog and restocked. 

Here's a closer look at the August My Monthly Hero kit. I've also linked the entire release along with the supplies I used for these cards below for your convenience.

Kit Contents:

• 6" x 8" Clear Stamp Set
• 17 Coordinating Frame Cuts
• 1 Fancy Castle Die
• 2 5.5" x 8.5" sheets of Mirri Matte Lava Purple Paper
• 2 5.5 x 8.5" sheets of Parchment Paper
• 3 Glimmer Ink Pots (Gold, Purple, Red)
• Dragon Scale Sequins

For a chance to win the giveaway of this month's kit, leave some comments for the talented designers linked below. Here's the full hop list. Next up on the hop is Libby Hickson.  Happy hopping!

The Hero Arts Blog
Amy Kolling
Caly Person
Daniel West
Debi Adams
Ilina Crouse
Janette Kausen
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Julee Tilman ✋That's ME!
Libby Hickson
Lydia Fiedler
Mariana Grigsby
Michelle Short
Yana Smakula

Compensated affiliate links are used where possible. When you place an order after clicking one of my links, I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thanks so much for using my links and supporting this blog. 💙

August My Monthly Hero Release

My Supply List