13 Days of HEROween: Days 1–4 + Spooky Ink-Blended Backgrounds
Hello, crafty friends!
It is officially time to begin revealing the projects I created for the 13 Days of Heroween from Hero Arts! For each day, I opened a new surprise and challenged myself to turn it into a finished Halloween card.
Today, I’m sharing my cards from Days 1–4. Although each card has its own personality, three of these projects came together around one technique I return to again and again for Halloween crafting: creating colorful, spooky ink-blended backgrounds.
From glowing greens and eerie purples to a warm haunted-house sky, ink blending helped set the mood before I added the main card elements. Be sure to keep reading—or watch the accompanying video tutorial—to see the cards up close and learn how to create your own spooky ink-blended backgrounds!
Day 1: A Colorful Trick-or-Treater
For Day 1, I created an adorable ghost ready for a night of trick-or-treating, complete with a pumpkin bucket filled with colorful candy. Two little black bats join the ghost against a vibrant pink, purple, and black background.
I blended the brightest pink near the top, transitioned into purple through the center, and deepened the bottom with black. The blend creates a dramatic Halloween sky while still keeping the card playful and colorful. Black and white splatters add even more movement and texture.
The white ghost stands out beautifully against all that saturated color, while the white embossed “Trick or Treat” sentiment ties everything together.
Day 2: Jeepers Creepers
The Day 2 card features another sweet ghost—this time holding a black cat and surrounded by creepy-crawly spiders and webs.
For this background, I blended vivid green through the center and surrounded it with deeper teal shades. The lighter center creates an eerie glow behind the ghost, while the darker edges draw your eye toward the focal point.
After blending, I added spiderweb imagery over the background along with dark splatter and small white details. The combination of the glowing green center, layered webs, spiders, and stitched border gives this card plenty of spooky texture.
The “Jeepers Creepers” and “Have a Haunting Halloween” sentiments finish the scene without taking attention away from the ghost and its feline friend.
Day 3: A Haunted House That Lights Up
Day 3 brought a haunted house scene—and an interactive surprise!
I created a smooth Halloween sunset by blending orange at the bottom, coral through the center, and purple toward the top. This softer background allows the purple and black haunted house to remain the star of the card while still creating an atmospheric nighttime scene.
Several white ghosts float around the house, and a small “press here” prompt lets the recipient know that there is something special to discover. When pressed, the window lights up, making this haunted house even more fun!
The card is finished with the sentiment “’Tis the Season to Be Spooky.”
Day 4: You’re Scary Sweet
The Day 4 card took a different direction from the first three. Instead of creating an ink-blended scene, I used a bold black background to display a colorful assortment of Halloween candy.
The pink, peach, blue, and purple wrappers soften the spooky theme while helping every tiny stamped and die-cut detail stand out. Sentiments such as “Trick or Treat,” “Death by Chocolate,” “Bone Appétit,” “You’re Spooky,” and “Open If You Dare” make the card feel like a collection of novelty Halloween treats.
Small glow-in-the-dark candies scattered throughout the design fill the open spaces and help balance the larger pieces. The final “You’re Scary Sweet” sentiment was the perfect way to complete this playful card.
Creating Spooky Ink-Blended Backgrounds
Looking at these first four cards together, I love how much variety can come from a simple ink-blending technique. By changing the color combination and adding different finishing details, you can create backgrounds that feel bright and playful, dark and eerie, or warm and atmospheric.
Here are a few tips for creating your own spooky blends:
* Begin with your lightest color and gradually work toward the darker shades.
* Overlap neighboring colors to avoid harsh lines between them.
* Place the lightest area behind your main image to create a glowing effect.
* Darken the outer edges to frame the scene and add drama.
* Use black ink sparingly at first—you can always deepen it with another layer.
* Add water droplets, white paint, metallic splatter, or black ink splatter for extra texture.
* Allow the background to dry before stamping or heat embossing over it.
Download my FREE Spooky Distress Oxide Color Combos printable and keep these 12 Halloween-ready blends handy for your next spooky project!
In my accompanying tutorial, I’m sharing a closer look at all four cards and demonstrating how I create a spooky ink-blended background from beginning to end.
These projects are also a wonderful reminder that you do not need a completely different technique for every card. One favorite method can be adapted with new colors, images, and details to create several completely different designs.
Which of these first four Heroween cards is your favorite—the colorful trick-or-treater, the glowing green ghost and cat, the interactive haunted house, or the scary-sweet candy card? Let me know in the comments!
Stay tuned for the next group of projects from my 13 Days of Heroween series!
Use What You Have • Make What You Love • Craft Your Stash
Thanks for stopping by! Happy crafting :)
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