Hero Arts March 2024 My Monthly Hero Ink Smooshing Watercolor

~ Christina

You know a crafty purchase is justified when it inspires you enough to move out of your comfort zone and try new things. The March My Monthly Hero Premium kit did just that. and I think it might be my all-time favorite kit.
For this card design, I pulled out some Distress Watercolor Cardstock and tried my hand at some fancy-schmancy ink smooshing. This technique creates dramatic results and was actually super easy and a lot of fun to create. I started with Distress Ink Pads, smooshed them to my glass work surface, added a little spritz of water, and then swirled things around a bit with a paint brush to get the ink moving before smooshing my paper into the ink puddles. I started slowly, heat setting in-between the smooshing, to get more defined inky areas and less muddling. I added some water ripples with a stamp from the March 2020 My Monthly Hero, and I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out.
The rest of my card design features some previously released Hero Arts goodies, including the Lily Pond Fancy Die (which is no longer available from Hero Arts??) and the Hero Arts Koi Bunch Stamp Set for the sentiment, which I fussy cut because there aren’t coordinating dies for the sentiments. I used Distress Mica Stains to paint the koi fish and water lily die cuts for intense color and lots of shimmer and sparkle. Lastly, embellishments from last month’s card kit add the finishing details.
Detailed instructions and a supply list can be found below. Thanks for stopping by!

STEPS

1.) Create ink smooshed watercolor panel.
▪️ With Distress Ink colors Pine Needles, Lucky Clover, Cracked Pistachio and Mermaid Lagoon, smoosh the ink pads onto a glass work surface and spritz lightly with water. Use a paint brush to swirl the ink around a bit.
▪️ Using a piece of Distress Watercolor Cardstock, smoosh different areas of the cardstock panel into the inky puddles, just a few times before heat setting with a heat gun. Repeat the process, allowing some areas to remain white, until the panel reaches desired results.
▪️ Use the small water ripple stamp from the My Monthly Hero March 2020 kit, or a similar stamp, to add second generation stamping in Mermaid Lagoon across the panel.
2.) Finish the watercolor panel.
▪️ Use the cover plate included in the March 2024 kit to add the embossed detail design and then die cut with the Lily Pond Fancy Window Die.
▪️ Trim the panel to 4 x 5 1/4.
▪️ Use Distress Inks mixed with a little water and a paintbrush to add more color to the lily pads, giving them more definition.
3.) Create the remaining background pieces.
▪️ Ink an A2 white cardstock panel with Pine Needles Distress Ink and a blending brush.
▪️ Ink a 4 x 5 1/4 white cardstock panel with Cracked Pistachio Distress Ink and a blending brush before die cutting the medallion design, included in the March 2024 kit, from the center of the panel. Attach this to the back of the watercolor panel with liquid adhesive.
▪️ Attach these glued panels to the A2 Pine Needles card panel with liquid adhesive, leaving a thin border around the watercolor panel.
4.) Create remaining card elements.
▪️ Die cut the koi fish and the lily from the Lily Pond Fancy Die set from white cardstock. Add shading to the koi fish with Copic neutral grays. Use Distress Mica Stains in Winterberry, Jack-o-Lantern, and Flickering Candle to paint the koi fish and the lily with a paintbrush. Add a black Glaze Gel pen to the eyes of the koi fish.
▪️ Stamp the dragonfly from the March 2024 kit, three times, in black ink and die cut with the coordinating die.
▪️ Stamp the sentiment from the Koi Bunch Stamp set on white cardstock and in black ink. Trace a light pencil line around the text and then fussy cut. Trace this piece onto a blank piece of scrap cardstock and fussy cut again. Stack the pieces and secure with liquid adhesive.
▪️ Use a banner sentiment die to die cut a piece of white cardstock and apply some of the rub-on transfers included in the March 2024 kit to the
banner.
5.) Assemble the card.
▪️ Use liquid adhesive to attach all the die cuts, the sentiment, and the banner, tucking the koi fish under the Lily Pond Fancy Die panel.
▪️ Add a few of the Translucent Pink Enamel Dots included in the March 2024 kit.
▪️ Attach everything to an A2 side-fold card panel.

SUPPLIES

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