July Hero Arts Kit + Giveaway

Okay - if there's one thing that I think every American can agree on for once - it's that food on a stick is delicious.

I remember the first time I went to the Texas State Fair vividly. It was 9000 degrees outside, as usual, and they hold the fair on the large patch of hot concrete known as Dallas, Texas. (The only larger, hotter patch of concrete in America is called Las Vegas.)

But there is magic lurking there on that burning piece of earth. I especially loved the agriculture pavilions, where you could go see both the animals and the technology that you find on American farms. There are petting zoos and rodeo events, cooking contests, art exhibits and much, much more.

For whatever reason though, county and state fairs are MOST known for their food on a stick, and in Texas, at the heart of the stick food is the Fletcher's corn dog. That slightly sweet batter and deep fried perfection comes flying into the mind any time anyone says the word "fair" to a Texan.  Yes, there's also deep fried butter (not kidding), deep fried Snickers, deep fried ice cream, Spam, you name it, but our Texas State love affair begins and ends with a Fletcher's corn dog. MMM I could use one right now!

Anyway, the theme of this month's Hero Arts kit and add-ons is County Fair, so it speaks to my corn dog loving heart in an epic way. The images are adorable, and it's one of those kits that will be good for all occasions and all year, which I love.

So I'll start with my favorite image from the main kit, which is the long, border silhouette of the fair. It's so detailed and beautiful, that it makes for very quick cards. I stamped the image on an old Gel Press print, and then stamped the little airplane with a banner above it. The gold glitter paper is the new no-shed paper from Concord & 9th, and I die cut the little stars out of that as well with this die.

July My Monthly Hero Kit [ HA ] All July Add-Ons at a Discount [ HA ] Neutrals Glitter Paper Pack - Concord... [ C&9 ] CAS-ual Fridays FUNFETTI Fri-Dies... [ SSS ] Hero Arts Intense Black Ink [ HA ] Gel Press 5 x 7 REUSABLE GEL PRINTING... [ SSS | BLIC ] Inovart Pro-Roller Brayer [ BLIC | BLIC ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | SBC ] Lawn Fawn STAMP SHAMMY Cleaner LF1045 [ SSS | ELH | CST | ART | SBC ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Multipurpose Liquid Glue by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ] Absorber - Synthetic Cleaning Cloth [ AMZUS ] Mudder 10 Pack White Buffer Sanding... [ AMZUS ] Xyron ADHESIVE ERASER 23675 [ SSS | ART | AMZUS ] Essentials by Ellen Storage... [ ELH ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Heavy Base Weight Card Stock- White [ GNK ] Tombow MONO MULTI Liquid Glue Two... [ SSS | ART | BLIC | ELH ] Ink Off Cloth [ INK ] Purell Advanced Hand Sanitizer... [ AMZUS ]

I took the same image from the kit and used it on an Artist Trading Coin for a one for one swap in my Facebook Community Group - I've been waiting to post a photo of it in our group till today! I cut the coin with the Circle Infinity Dies from Fabriano watercolor paper and just blobbed watercolor on it. Then I stamped it with the add-on County Fair Bold Print stamp in Wet Cement Ink before stamping the sentiment and image from the kit in black. I glued the paper onto two more circles I cut from this lightweight matboard before mailing it. I love making these trading coins, and I have more coming up for our larger swap in our group, so stay tuned for those soon! ATCoins are 2.5 inches, and that just happens to be one of the die sizes in the Circle Infinity dies, which made me squee a LOT when we set up this swap, and I became obsessed with making these.

July My Monthly Hero Kit [ HA ] All July Add-Ons at a Discount [ HA ] County Fair Bold Prints [ HA ] Circle Infinity Dies (H) [ HA ] Amazon.com: Stuart W114 Economy... [ AMZUS ] Fabriano Artistico 140 lb. Cold Press... [ AMZUS ] Wet Cement Mid-Tone Shadow Ink | Hero... [ HA ] Hero Arts Intense Black Ink [ HA ] Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors [ BLIC ] Escoda Versatil Brushes, Travel Round... [ UTR ] Da Vinci Cosmotop Sable Mix F Brushes... [ BLIC | ELH ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | SBC ] Lawn Fawn STAMP SHAMMY Cleaner LF1045 [ SSS | ELH | CST | ART | SBC ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Multipurpose Liquid Glue by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ] Nesting Porcelain Bowls - BLICK art... [ BLIC ] My Favorite Watercolor Sketchbook [ UTR ]

So here is what the full kit looks like, and this month it comes with just gorgeous card front die, vintage postcards and red, white and blue ink cubes. I'll wait here while you go buy it - because it's while supplies last. Go on - open a new tab - I'll be here when you get back. :)

Now - on to the add-ons!

First up - a stunning carousel set with matching dies where you can switch out the carousel images and use the top and the bottom on each image. 

I decided on a warm, vintage pink, so I mixed Quinacridone Gold and Quinacridone Rose watercolor, and then added some shimmer on top with Pearlescent Shimmer. You can barely see the sparkle here, but it's really shimmery and fun in person. The sequins are the Like Magic ones, and the card base - if you look closely - is my dark brown wood grain cardstock, which just felt right with this image. 

July My Monthly Hero Kit [ HA ] All July Add-Ons at a Discount [ HA ] Ornate Carousel [ HA ] Ornate Carousel Frame Cuts [ HA ] Tsukineko VersaFine Clair PINECONE... [ SSS | CST ] AF249 Unicorn Pigment Ink Pad | Hero... [ HA ] Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors [ BLIC ] Da Vinci Cosmotop Sable Mix F Brushes... [ BLIC | ELH ] Escoda Versatil Brushes, Travel Round... [ UTR ] 8 1/2 x 11 Bubinga Brown Wood Grain... [ PPR ] 8 1/2 x 11 Mahogany Linen Paper 80#... [ PPR ] Fabriano Artistico 140 lb. Cold Press... [ AMZUS ] Hero Arts White Detail Embossing Powder [ HA ] Neat and Tangled LIKE MAGIC Sequin... [ SSS | N&T ] Ranger .5 Oz. MINI MULTI MEDIUM MATTE... [ SSS ] Marvy Uchida JEWEL PICKER Tool 91GRC [ SSS ] Ranger US HEAT IT CRAFT TOOL United... [ SSS | SSS ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | SBC ] Lawn Fawn STAMP SHAMMY Cleaner LF1045 [ SSS | ELH | CST | ART | SBC ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Multipurpose Liquid Glue by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ] Nesting Porcelain Bowls - BLICK art... [ BLIC ] My Favorite Watercolor Sketchbook [ UTR ]

Next, I did some combo projects, where die cutting gave me the pieces I needed for a second project - I love project that naturally double themselves. First, I stamped three card fronts with background stamps. I'll list the supplies for all three cards under this first one, because the supplies are so similar. All three feature the County Fair pig images, which are adorable, and the matching dies, and I cut all three card fronts with the circle infinity dies to make an opening for my piggies, which are all colored with Copics. This first background is the Brushstroke Bold Print, stamped in Intense Black.

July My Monthly Hero Kit [ HA ] All July Add-Ons at a Discount [ HA ] County Fair Pig [ HA ] County Fair Pig Frame Cuts [ HA ] Festive Bauble Bold Prints [ HA ] Scribble Bold Prints | Hero Arts [ HA ] Filigree Pattern Bold Prints | Hero Arts [ HA ] Brushstroke Bold Prints | Hero Arts [ HA ] Circle Infinity Dies (H) [ HA ] Hero Arts Intense Black Ink [ HA ] Copic Sketch Markers - BLICK art... [ BLIC | ART ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | HA | SSS | ELH | SBC | MFT ] Absorber - Synthetic Cleaning Cloth [ AMZUS ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Mudder 10 Pack White Buffer Sanding... [ AMZUS ] Xyron ADHESIVE ERASER 23675 [ SSS | ART | AMZUS ] Essentials by Ellen Storage... [ ELH ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Heavy Base Weight Card Stock- White [ GNK ] Tombow MONO MULTI Liquid Glue Two... [ SSS | ART | BLIC | ELH ] Ink Off Cloth [ INK ]

Next, I used the Scribble Bold Print the same way to send hogs & kisses.

Finally - I had to make a little piggy who is blue because he is missing you pig time! :) He's framed by the Festive Bauble Bold Print stamped in Intense Black.

Now that I had those circles cut out, along with one stamped with the Filigree Pattern Bold Prints background that I didn't make into a card, I had the perfect backdrops for three gift card holders. Half of a 4 bar card size is the perfect size for a gift card holder, so I cut those up and scored them so that I could do a matchbook style gift card holder with a pretty colored staple. 

The images for all three are from the You're Sweet as Pie add-on set - the images are awesome and the perfect size for coloring, so I die cut all three with the matching dies and placed them on the leftover patterned circles on each gift holder and stamped the sentiment from the set. Love that cherry pie.

July My Monthly Hero Kit [ HA ] All July Add-Ons at a Discount [ HA ] You're Sweet As Pie [ HA ] You're Sweet as Pie Frame Cuts [ HA ] Scribble Bold Prints | Hero Arts [ HA ] Festive Bauble Bold Prints [ HA ] Brushstroke Bold Prints | Hero Arts [ HA ] Filigree Pattern Bold Prints | Hero Arts [ HA ] Circle Infinity Dies (H) [ HA ] Hero Arts Intense Black Ink [ HA ] Amazon.com : BAZIC 3000 Ct. Standard... [ AMZUS ] Sakura 6 WHITE Gelly Roll Classic... [ SSS ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | HA | SSS | ELH | SBC | MFT ] Absorber - Synthetic Cleaning Cloth [ AMZUS ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] 05816-1008 - Da Vinci Cosmotop Spin... [ BLIC ] Xyron ADHESIVE ERASER 23675 [ SSS | ART | AMZUS ] Essentials by Ellen Storage... [ ELH ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Heavy Base Weight Card Stock- White [ GNK ] Tombow MONO MULTI Liquid Glue Two... [ SSS | ART | BLIC | ELH ] Ink Off Cloth [ INK ]

Then I had to try a rainbow bright snow cone!

Then for the last one, I did that adorable pretzel from the set, and accented it with a white gel pen.

Those were so fun and easy to make, so I thought I'd give myself a challenge and so some masked no-line watercolor with the supremely cute Hay Party Animals add-on set. This set does come with matching dies. During this watercolor and video (below) there was a series of unfortunate events, which I discuss in the video. BUT - they prove that a) you can fix watercolor mistakes and b) you can fix masking mistakes. So don't give up on your cards when you realize you've done something really bone-headed. The paper is Fabriano, and the watercolor is Daniel Smith.

July My Monthly Hero Kit [ HA ] All July Add-Ons at a Discount [ HA ] Hay Party Animals [ HA ] Hay Party Animals Frame Cuts [ HA ] Fadeout No Line coloring Detail Ink [ INK ] Hero Arts Intense Black Ink [ HA ] Avery Self-Adhesive Removable Laser... [ AMZUS ] Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors [ BLIC ] Da Vinci Cosmotop Sable Mix F Brushes... [ BLIC | ELH ] Escoda Versatil Brushes, Travel Round... [ UTR ] Neenah Environment 100 LB SMOOTH... [ SSS ] My Colors Canvas 80 lb. Textured... [ ART ] Fabriano Artistico 140 lb. Cold Press... [ AMZUS ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | SBC ] EK Success HONEY BEE Non-Stick... [ SSS ] Lawn Fawn STAMP SHAMMY Cleaner LF1045 [ SSS | ELH | CST | ART | SBC ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Multipurpose Liquid Glue by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ] Nesting Porcelain Bowls - BLICK art... [ BLIC ] My Favorite Watercolor Sketchbook [ UTR ]

So do you want to watch the video and see my hilarious mistakes? Enjoy below or click here to watch on YouTube in HD.

They are offering all the add-ons at a discount this month, as usual, so you can grab those when you order the kit. I'm pretty excited that they released a new liquid watercolor with the add-ons, so I'll have to order that, especially now that I got my new shelves for all my coloring mediums. Here's what is included in the discounted bundle, and you can also get them individually. 

As usual, Hero is giving away one kit this month, and if you win and you're already a subscriber, they will give you a refund. You just need to comment on the blogs in our hop today, and your next stop is my sweet friend May.

So now that I've given myself and probably you the hangries for a corn dog and a snow cone, it's time to go find a snack!

Loveyameanitbye.