MIA: Summer 2021 + Giveaway

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We are having the strangest spring - just like we had the strangest weather. It's been cooler longer than I remember in the last 31 years! I'm not complaining about cool weather in a Texas spring in the least - don't get me wrong. It's just odd. Even odder, despite how cool it is - THE MOSQUITOS ARE THRIVING. 

Seriously - it's like a malaria horror movie down here. So even though it's cool out, it's not a great time to be outside. But my plant loss total went down by one last week, as a "dead" shrimp plant that I had transplanted with some seedum that was too close to it to separate from the dead stick and roots sprang to life! So now I'm down to just one ginger plant, two blue plumbagos, and my orange tree. My selloum is unfurling itself and looking amazing. 

To cheer myself during the depressing aftermath of the storm, I got some new plants that are also doing well - new plumbagos, a new orange tree from my sister who also dug up a HUGE shrimp plant and some arugula out of her yard for me. Immediately after planting those we had a week of rain, so they really bucked up and settled in. Then two chile pequins (our large bush died mysteriously and suddenly a few years ago), and some bulbs that I haven't seen hide nor hair of yet.

I'm ready for summer and some distance between me and that storm. 

Today's cards, not by coincidence - are all from the new Hero Arts Summer Catalog - these are some of  the cards you will see in the catalog - that is always so exciting for me to see them in print. I happen to be growing strawberries right now in my Click & Grow in my craft annex, along with my lettuces, dill and a few other things that don't do well outdoors here but that I eat all the time. Strawberries are a point of Texas pride, as the Poteet Strawberry Festival is a required bit of knowledge in all Texas history classes in public school. So this new color layering strawberry set is on point!

I used the neons to build my berries. Neon Yellow, Red and Green for the base layers - and then Forever Green and Red Royal for the shading layers. It's so bright and happy. I love how the way the stamp is designed, it just leaves white space for the blossoms. Cute. The background was created with the new checkerboard bold print - doesn't it remind you of a racing flag?? - and circle infinity dies.

When I showed you the new Looking Glass dies earlier in the month, I was sitting on my hands about the ones in the catalog - because I had worked on this catalog in the early spring and couldn't wait to show these. I used them with the mini peekabo doors die to create a layered, dimensional vignette on my card rather than a window opening. At that time the alignment stencil wasn't out yet, so the Peekaboo dies were perfect for alignment! This Canyonlands scene reminds me so much of Santa Fe, and I love this scene. I want to do it again the warm reds and oranges of the southwest.

For the tulip looking glass die, I felt super compelled to watercolor it. I painted the background with Daniel Smith watercolor and lifted the clouds, and then painted each layer. Such a sweet little shadowbox type feel, these have. 

Yesterday on my live we were talking about sea creatures, and how scary Jaws was when it first came out. I remember the hype around sharks and killer whales, and I love them both for that reason. But who says they have to be realistic colors? I chose Neon Pink for my killer whale! The background is the one from above, just tilted and cut with infinity dies. 

You know what I'm REALLY ready for? BRISKET. It's literally been a year since we smoked one - we like to do a whole one and freeze it - it's a 15 hour process, so you want to be able to eat it for a while - so it will last nearly a year, but there's nothing like eating it the day it's smoked. That is on the agenda soon! The lifestyle dies - think paper dolls - are adorable, and this little BBQ one was made for Texans, even though we don't typically BBQ - we smoke things. But it's the thought that counts. And for you Aussies - I PUT SHRIMP ON THE BARBIE :). I colored the shrimp & veggies with graphit markers to get the veins on the shrimp with the super fine point - super simple and quick card.

Now I have some super duper exciting news for you today! My dear friends have added to my cardstock bundles. Now you can order pre-cut and scored slimline and mini slimline cards - WHEE! And stay tuned for something super fun in the mini slimline department - I'll have a video for you soon.

Here are all the summery goodies I used today. I'll have details on a giveaway for you below.

https://heroarts.com/collections/summ... [ HA ] Color Layering Strawberry Combo [ HA ] Slanted Checkerboard Bold Prints [ HA ] DI199 Nesting Circle Infinity Dies... [ HA ] Looking Glass Canyon Lands [ HA ] HT206 Alignment Tool A2 & A6 Stencil... [ HA ] DI764 Square Peek-A-Boo Doors Mini... [ HA ] Looking Glass Windmill Tulips [ HA ] Sun Ray Bold Prints [ HA ] Hero Lifestyle BBQ [ HA ] Color Layering Orca Combo [ HA ] Graphit — Marker Universe [ MRK ] AF225 Red Royal Mid-Tone Shadow Ink -... [ HA ] AF229 Forever Green Mid-Tone Shadow... [ HA ] AF221 Green Neon Ink Pad - Hero Arts [ HA ] AF220 Yellow Neon Ink Pad - Hero Arts [ HA ] AF259 Red Neon Ink Pad - Hero Arts [ HA ] AF218 Pink Neon Ink Pad - Hero Arts [ HA ] Understand Blue MINI Slimline Folded... [ CTC ] Understand Blue Slimline Folded... [ CTC ] Understand Blue Card Making Bundle #3... [ CTC ] Understand Blue Card Making Bundle #1... [ CTC ] Understand Blue Card Making Bundle #2... [ CTC ] Pre-Cut & Scored Cardstock [ CTC ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSP | HA | SSS | ELH | MFT | UNT ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Teflon Bone Folder - Ellen Hutson LLC [ ELH | SSS ] Crafter's Companion GEMINI... [ SSS ] Storage Envelopes, Medium 25pk,... [ ELH ] CheckOutStore Stamp & Die Clear... [ CHC ] Extra Large -50 pk, Avery Elle Stamp... [ ELH ] Airtable: Organize your stamps & dies [ ART ] Summer Catalog Blog Hop [ HA ]

I'm part of a catalog blog hop today - so be sure and see the rest of the inspiration! We will give away THREE $50 gift cards, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, May 30th at 11:59pm pacific, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week.

Hero Arts

Channin Pelletier
Dana Joy
Daniel West
Debi Adams
Emily Midgett
Ilina Crouse
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Libby Hickson
 ** Lydia Fiedler **
Maria Willis
Michelle Short
Mindy Eggen
Pocono Pam
Seeka
Special Guests:

Nichol Spohr
Jenn Shurkus
Jennifer McGuire

Loveyahappysummermeanitbye.

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