Video: Blended Ink Backgrounds

Hello there and welcome to Monday on the Hero Arts blog! Today, I'm sharing some tips on blending ink backgrounds with Hero Arts inks, featuring the adorable Stealing My Heart thieves.

Before I started blending my background, I stamped and colored the thieves using ZIG Clean Color Real Brush pens. I then placed them over a cardstock panel I had trimmed down to 4x5.5, and used them to get an idea of where I wanted to die cut the heart openings.

If you have trouble with the video above you can try this link HERE to watch in HD on YouTube.

I then die cut two hearts, using the same size heart die from the Nesting Hearts Infinity dies. Once this panel was cut, I then started blending directly onto the card base front. I wanted a slightly ombre effect, which is why I had to have the die cut panel made before blending. I needed to see where to start the Cotton Candy (for the top and bottom) and then Pale Tomato (for the center of the card).

I just love how this looks! Some tips for blending with Hero Arts inks:

• I think the inks blend the best on watercolor cardstock, but they also work pretty well with Bristol.
• The inks, because they're shadow inks, will look a bit splotchy upon the initial blending. However, give the ink time to dry, and it will even out and give a nice, creamy look, just like when you stamp with the inks!
• For some added interest, flick ink (white or colored, whatever you like!) on the background. If you do it before the blended ink dries, then the flicked ink will slightly blend into the blended inks. Let the blended ink dry or heat set it and then flick the paint, and the paint will stand out much more.

I then adhered the die cut panels and thieves to the front, and added a sentiment. The sentiment, from Yes Stamp & Cut, was inked in Versamark and heat embossed with Black Sparkle embossing powder, and then die cut.

I finished the card off with some hearts that I had die cut from self-made black glitter paper using the Heart Confetti die.

Thanks so much for stopping in and God bless!