Stay Crafty with Hero: Challenge #1- Encouragement Cards

Happy Saturday my friends. The #staycraftywithhero challenge by Hero Arts is on and I could not wait to jump on board. With all that is happening in our world right now, a kind and encouraging word is definitely in order.  The particular card I designed here will be going out in the mail to a dear friend that could use a little cheering up. And honestly, a card is a great way of letting someone know you care. I don’t know about you but when they are handmade, the love just oozes out.

For my “Hello” card, I used two dies and two sentiment stamps, some bright colored markers and Reactive inks on a tri-fold base. I have taken a lot of the guess work out of this card so that you can make one too! Lucky me, got to make a few mistakes along the way but I got you covered! And the sentiment inside this card was just perfect!

This is a 5 1/2″ x 4 1/4″ side folded card. You will need to cut a strip of cardstock 1″ X 5 1/2″ that is scored in half lengthwise. Fold it on the score line and attach it to the back of the card as seen below. You have now created a tab for your card front. Oh, take a minute to make a slight trim off the card front (not the tab) that faces the tab. It will help to relieve the snugness when the card folds up.

Since I created a 1/2″ tab for the front of the card base, I was able to attach an acetate piece to it. BEFORE attaching it though, make sure to color the tab with the same colors of Hero Hues Reactive Inks that are used on the inside of the card otherwise you see a white band. (My mistake and I started over.) I used Lemon Drop, Creamsicle and Taffy inks. (See below for a better pic). You will need to heat set them with a heat gun before adhering the acetate to the tab or the adhesive will have a hard time staying attached to the card.

For the card front itself, I die-cut the Flower Garden Fancy Die from Dove White cardstock and adhered it to a 5 1/2″ x 4 1/4″ acetate card panel. (I like to spray the back of these detailed die images with spray adhesive. They stick really well. It’s just a personal preference).

I used Copic markers to color in the flowers and leaves.

TIP: To add some detail, try dotting the flowers, leaves and sentiment with a white pen.

Cut a rectangle from white cardstock. Stamp and attach the “hello” sentiment from the Affirmation Messages stamp set to the front of the card using foam dots. If desired, cut another Flower Garden Fancy image from white cardstock and trim out a few flowers. Color and attach to bottom of sentiment.

Once the front is complete, open up the inside and blend away using Reactive Inks again. When finished, die cut the center out. Save the square that was left behind, turn it over and trim it down on the top and bottom by 1/4″.

Stamp sentiment onto square using clear VersaMark ink. Side note, is this not just the perfect words for affirmation? I built this card around this sentiment. In fact, this entire set is a favorite of mine. Anyway, color in with…colored chalk. Yes, that’s correct! This technique is known as chalk popping. The VersaMark ink takes on whatever color of chalk is used. 🙂

Close the card with the cut square and use foam dots to attach stamped sentiment image through the square and onto the back of the card base.

And that’s it! Super fun and happy! Hoping this card made your day and gave you all a little break from everything going on around us. If you aren’t into cardmaking then I encourage you to text, call or write someone and speak words that are hopeful, uplifting and positive. Everybody needs them, some more often than others. As for Hero Arts and myself, if you do create, we would love to see what kind of cards of encouragement you are making. We invite you to share them with us on Instagram at #staycraftywithhero. Stay safe my friends.

XO,

Debi

Hey friends, you can find most of the items I used for my card down below. Please note that I am part of an affiliate link which means I earn a percentage of the sales of these items but the cost is never passed onto you the customer. 🙂