24 April 2025

Simon Says Stamp | The Beautiful Couple

Hello there, I hope you are well. Today I have a card to share using a couple of new products from the Simon Says Stamp You Are My Favorite release, which is out now. They kindly sent me the new Mosaic Petals Stencils, as well as the She Said Yes Stamp Set and I am using both on my card today. 

PLEASE NOTE: This post contains affiliate links. Please see below for my full disclosure.


I started off my card by taking a panel of Hero Arts Pitch Black Cardstock and prepping it with an anti-static powder tool. I then placed the first stencil from the Simon Says Stamp Mosaic Petals Stencil set on top. I held it in place with low-tack tape while I pounced Versamark Ink on top using a Tim Holtz Tiny Blending Tool. I removed the stencil and applied Hero Arts Ultra Fine Clear Embossing Powder and then heat set. 


I repeated the steps until all the stencil layers were completed in the same way, except for the last stencil layer (the flower centres) which I did not use. I then adhered the panel onto a US A2 sized black card base. I die cut the Simon Says Stamp Layered Bird Bunch Dies from Spellbinders ColorWheel Cardstock - Snowdrift, Raven, Fairy Tale, Lavender and Lilac, and adhered the layers together to create two birds. 


I stamped a sentiment form the Simon Says Stamp She Said Yes Stamp Set onto more black cardstock using Versamark Ink. I applied white embossing powder and heat set. It was cut into a strip using the Simon Says Stamp Sentiment Labels Dies and then adhered to the card with thin foam tape. The birds were adhered above. To finish, I die cut two Simon Says Stamp Mini Hearts from Lilac cardstock and adhered them one on top of each other and then onto the card between the birds. 

SUPPLIES:

 

Here are the links to what I have used on the project. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links. Please click on the logo below the product to shop at your favourite store. All products were personally purchased except marked with an asterisk (*) which were kindly sent to me to use. You can read my full disclosure here.


It's really difficult to capture the heat embossing in the background in the photos (sadly!) but in real life, it looks really pretty! Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I will be back tomorrow sharing two more projects using the She Said Yes set. Wishing you a wonderful day! 

22 April 2025

VIDEO | Hot Foiling vs. Letterpress

Hello there, today I have two cards to share using the same design but different techniques - one uses hot foiling and the other, letterpress. I thought it would be fun to see which one I liked best. 

PLEASE NOTE: This post contains affiliate links. Please see below for my full disclosure.



The plate I am using for my sentiment is from the Hero Arts Love + Thinking of You BetterPress + Foil Plates set. These plates are designed to both hot foil and press. You can watch the video below to see the process for both techniques. 


For my first card, I hot foiled the sThinking of You sentiment onto Hero Arts Deluxe Smooth White Cardstock using Spellbinders Silver Glimmer Hot Foil Roll and the Glimmer Hot Foil System


I then cut the panel down to 4.25" x 5.5". Using Ink Blending Brushes, I blended Hero Arts Kiwi and Green Hills Core Inks at the bottom of the panel. It was then adhered to an A2 sized white card base. 




The panel was cut to 4.25" x 5.5" (although this time in a landscape orientation) and I added ink blending with the same Hero Arts Kiwi and Green Hills Core Inks at the bottom. It was then adhered to an A2 sized white card base. 


For both cards, I die cut flowers from the Hero Arts Spring Garden - February 2025 Fancy Dies of the Month set. I used Hero Arts Mist & Paradise Cardstock for the crocus, Hero Arts Peony & Ultra Pink Cardstock for the tulips, Hero Arts Passion Flower & Amethyst Cardstock for the hyacinths, Hero Arts Canary & Spellbinders Beeswax Cardstock for the daffodils, and Spellbinders Peridot and Rainforest Cardstock for the leaves and stems. 


The flower layers were adhered together using liquid glue and then adhered to the cards with thin foam tape. The stems and leaves were adhered with liquid glue only. I cut the stems and leaves overhanging off the bottom of the cards with scissors, but left the sides overhanging slightly. To finish, I embellished with Hero Arts Clear Enamel Dots

VIDEO:

Here is the video showing how I made the cards:


If you are viewing this post via email subscription, you can watch the video HERE on YouTube. 

SUPPLIES:

 

Here are the links to what I have used on the projects. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links. Please click on the logo below the product to shop at your favourite store. All products were personally purchased except marked with an asterisk (*) which were kindly sent to me to use. You can read my full disclosure here.


Which do you like best? I know it's not an exact comparison as the sentiments are a different colour but I do think I like the pressed one slightly better. However, I think that may be more to do with the design of the card, than the actual sentiment itself, although I do think the black pops a little more than the silver! Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I hope you have a wonderful day! 

21 April 2025

Hero Arts | Lovely Letterpress

Hello there, I am delighted to be joining Hero Arts today to celebrate the Lovely Letterpress release, which is out today, with a fun Instagram hop. There are lots of new plates releasing today, they can work for hot foiling or letterpress. Today I went down the letterpress route, but without any ink! 

PLEASE NOTE: This post contains affiliate links. Please see below for my full disclosure.



I am using the Hero Arts Starbursts Set Letterpress + Foil Plate. The set has four starburst images, I am using three of them on my projects today. 


For my card, I started off by taking a Spellbinders Porcelain A2 Cotton Card Panel and cutting it down to 3.5" x 4.75. I then cut cardstock into strips using the Hero Arts Sentiment Strips Fancy Die. I used Hero Arts cardstock in Peony, Ultra Pink, Mist, Paradise and Bermuda. I adhered the strips onto the panel with liquid glue. 


I then placed the Hero Arts Starbursts Set Letterpress + Foil Plates onto the Chase of my Spellbinders BetterPress Letterpress System and adhered the panel onto the Platen, holding in place with low-tack tape. I ran it through my Platinum Six to press/deboss the starbursts onto the panel. It was then adhered to a US A2 sized card base made from Hero Arts Paradise Cardstock, using thin foam tape. 


I die cut the envelope die from the Hero Arts Peeking Owl Fancy Dies twice from cotton card. The olive branch from the Hero Arts Dove & Olive Branch Fancy Dies was cut from vellum. I adhered the branches behind the envelopes and then adhered them onto the card with more thin foam tape. 


At this point, I thought it would be nice to have a tag to match! So I repeated the process with the strips of cardstock added to the cotton card panel. I pressed the panel with the Hero Arts Starbursts Set Letterpress + Foil Plate again, and then this time, I took the Hero Arts Tag Infinity Dies and cut it into a tag using the second smallest size in the set. 


I adhered the same arrangement of envelopes and branches to the tag using thin foam tape. I then die cut the eyelet from the tag set from Hero Arts Pitch Black Cardstock and adhered that around the hole. For the sentiments, I stamped the Hero Arts Everyday Sentiment Strips Stamp Set onto Hero Arts Pitch Black Cardstock using Hero Arts Clear Embossing & Watermark Ink


I applied Hero Arts White Detail Embossing Powder and heat set. It was cut onto strips using the Hero Arts Sentiment Strips Fancy Die. I took two and cut the sides down using my guillotine. They were adhered to the card and tag using more thin foam tape. To finish, I embellished with Spellbinders Silver Mix Color Essentials Gems and added twine through the top of the tag and tied in a bow. 

SUPPLIES:

 

Here are the links to what I have used on the projects. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links. Please click on the logo below the product to shop at your favourite store. All products were personally purchased except marked with an asterisk (*) which were kindly sent to me to use. You can read my full disclosure here.


To follow along with the hop, please head over to my Instagram HERE. You can also visit Hero Arts Instagram HERE. Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I hope you have a wonderful day! 

17 April 2025

Spellbinders | Mini Wax Seals

Hello there, I am delighted to be over on the Spellbinders Blog today, sharing three projects using the Mini Wax Seals Collection. These wax seals are smaller in size than the original ones and are oh so cute! I also shared two projects using then HERE

PLEASE NOTE: This post contains affiliate links. Please see below for my full disclosure.


As soon as I saw these mini wax seals, I thought they would look great on mini envelopes, since that is the main way that I use seals myself - on envelopes. Here is a sneak peek of one of the projects I made for the blog:


I die cut the envelope from the Spellbinders Love Note Bird Etched Dies twice. I popped them on top of an arrangement of flowers using the Spellbinders Gorgeous You Florals Etched Dies and then added the wax seals on top. They are a little big for the envelopes but I still think they look cute! 

I used the Spellbinders Puffy Heart Mini 3D Wax Seal for the purple one and the Bow Mini 3D Wax Seal for the pink one. I did miss some of the edge/border on the purple one which I don't love, but I was trying to get it as small as possible! The sentiment is from the Spellbinders Envelope of Wonder set. 

SUPPLIES:

 

Here are the links to what I have used on the project. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links. Please click on the logo below the product to shop at your favourite store. All products were personally purchased except marked with an asterisk (*) which were kindly sent to me to use. You can read my full disclosure here.


For more details on how I made the card, as well as my other projects. Please head over to the Spellbinders Blog. Thank you so much for stopping by today, I hope you have a wonderful day! 

16 April 2025

Altenew | 11th Anniversary Blog Hop Day 3 + Giveaway

Hello there, I am delighted to be joining Altenew today to celebrate their 11th Anniversary with a fun blog hop. I have had the absolute pleasure of designing with Altenew for a number of years now and their products really do fill my craft room with joy! Today I have a card to share using some of my favourites. 

PLEASE NOTE: This post contains affiliate links. Please see below for my full disclosure.



I started off my card by die cutting the Altenew Pink Star Tulip Layering Die Set (one of my favourite floral sets) from white cardstock. I placed the pieces on my Altenew Sticky Mat and added ink blending to the petals using Altenew Enchanted Garden Fresh Dye Inks (my favourite purples ever!) with Altenew Mini Blending Brushes. I then added ink blending to the the leaves with Altenew Green Valley Fresh Dye Inks (my most used greens!). 


I assembled the flower together and adhered using liquid glue. I then took a US A2 sized white card base and placed it my splat box. I mixed a little water with Altenew Carbon Black Artists' Gouache and splattered it onto the card, trying to focus the splatters in the bottom right hand corner as much as possible. 


Once dry, I adhered the leaves to the card first, using liquid glue, followed by the flower on top. I stamped a sentiment from the Altenew Sentiment Strips 1 Stamp Set (again, another favourite) onto Altenew Crafty Necessities: Jet Black Cardstock using Altenew Embossing Ink. I applied Altenew Pure White Crisp Embossing Powder and heat set. It was cut into a strip and adhered to the card using Altenew Instant Dimension Foam Tape. To finish, I embellished with Altenew Clear Enamel Dots

BLOG HOP:


As mentioned, this post is part of a fun, inspirational blog hop with prizes. Please click on the participants below to visit their blogs. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
 

GIVEAWAY:

Over $3,600 in total prizes! Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 11 lucky winners. There are also 35 awesome companies/crafty friends who are celebrating with us, and they are offering the following prizes:

Altenew: 11 x $50 Gift Certificate


Be sure to leave comments by 29th April 2025 for a chance to win one of 76 prizes! To make the hop more exciting, start your comment with "Hi from (city or country where you're from)!" 76 winners will be chosen at random from the comments left on any of the blogs listed below and will be announced on the
Altenew Blog on 4th May 2025. 

PROMOTIONS:


Get FREE U.S. Shipping on orders over $29 (no code needed) or $10 off International Shipping with code ALTENEW@11 at checkout from 14th April 2025 at 12:01 AM EDT until 18th April 2025 at 11:59 PM EDT.


Get a FREE brand-new Lace 3D Embossing Folder (worth $11.99) on orders over $89 from 14th April 2025 at 12:01 AM EDT until 17th April 2025 at 11:59 PM EDT. The free gift will be automatically added to eligible orders while supplies last.

SUPPLIES:

 

Here are the links to what I have used on the project. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links. Please click on the logo below the product to shop at your favourite store. All products were personally purchased except marked with an asterisk (*) which were kindly sent to me to use. You can read my full disclosure here.


Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I hope you have a wonderful time on the rest of the hop and wishing Altenew a very happy 11th birthday! 

10 April 2025

Altenew | April 2025 Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hello there, I am delighted to be joining Altenew today for a fun blog hop to celebrate the April 2025 release. It is jam packed full with lots of lovely stamps, dies, stencils, press plates and much more! I have loads of cards to share today, so please go grab a drink and a snack and I hope you enjoy the inspiration! 

PLEASE NOTE: This post contains affiliate links. Please see below for my full disclosure.

FLOURISHING BOUQUET

First up is the 8" x 11" anniversary set for this year - Flourishing Bouquet. This set features a stunning (huge) floral image plus lots of sentiments. There is also a coordinating stencil set.

I started off by stamping the image from the Altenew Flourishing Bouquet Stamp Set onto two panels of white cardstock using Altenew Obsidian Pigment Ink. You can stamp the image and then cut the panels but I decided to do it the other way around for these cards! 

I then used the Altenew Flourishing Bouquet Simple Coloring Stencil Set to colour the images in using ink blending and Altenew Mini Blending Brushes. I used Altenew Bubblegum Dreams Fresh Dye Inks for the flowers, Altenew Golden Sunset Fresh Dye Inks for the flower centres, and Altenew Green Valley Fresh Dye Inks for the leaves. 

The panels were adhered flat to US A2 sized black card bases with Altenew Glue Tape. I stamped the sentiments from the stamp set onto Altenew Crafty Necessities: Jet Black Cardstock using Altenew Embossing Ink. I applied Altenew Pure White Crisp Embossing Powder and heat set. 

They were cut into strips and adhered to the cards with Altenew Instant Dimension Foam Tape. To finish, I embellished with Altenew Ivory Pearl Dots

DELICATE MAGNOLIA + SHIMMER RELIEF PASTE

Next up is the beautiful Altenew Delicate Magnolia Layering Die Set. This was released last month as part of a promotion but now it is available separately. I started off by die cutting two of the flowers from white cardstock. I added ink blending to them using Altenew Enchanted Garden Fresh Dye Inks for the petals and Altenew Golden Sunset Fresh Dye Inks for the centres. 

They were assembled and adhered using liquid glue. I took a panel of black cardstock and placed the brick wall stencil from the Altenew Craft Your Life Project Kit: Flower Arch on top. Using a sponge dauber, I applied new Altenew Amethyst Shimmer Relief Paste on top, using a light touch so that the edges faded off. 

Once the panel was dry, it was adhered to a black A2 sized card base and the flowers adhered on top. I felt that it needed some greenery, so I took some of the Altenew Zero Waste: Berries & Branches die cuts that I made in the past on THESE cards and popped them behind the magnolias. The sentiment, from Altenew Build-A-Garden: Flowering Quince, was stamped and heat embossed onto black cardstock, cut into a strip and adhered to the card with foam tape. 

OVAL SERENITY + ACRYLIC MARKERS SET 2

Next up is the beautiful Altenew Zero Waste: Oval Serenity Die Set. If you are familiar with the Zero Waste sets, you will know that you can use both the positive and negative of these dies. I decided to just use the positive (and not the oval piece) for my card today. 

I die cut the die from white cardstock and added ink blending on to the little pieces using Altenew Micro Blending Brushes. I used Altenew Bubblegum Dreams, Enchanted Garden, Shades of Purple, Sweet Dreams and Green Valley Fresh Dye Inks. I kept the negative of the die cut and used this as a template to know where to place the pieces on to a US A2 sized black card base. 

They were all adhered using liquid glue but I didn't add the glue all the way to the edges, so that I could lift a few of them up to create a little dimension. The die does cut little circle pieces as part of the pattern but I decided to use the new Altenew Acrylic Markers Vol. 2 for these instead. 

Keeping the template in place, I dabbed the markers through the holes. I used white, water hyacinth and cotton candy. I then removed the template. The sentiment, from Altenew Soft Blossoms Stamp Set, was stamped onto Altenew Crafty Necessities: Jet Black Cardstock using Altenew Embossing Ink. I applied Altenew Pure White Crisp Embossing Powder and heat set. It was cut into a strip and adhered onto the card with foam tape. 

PARCHMENT BOUQUET

Next up is the stunning Altenew Parchment Bouquet Layering Die Set. I die cut the parchment wrap from Altenew Vellum Translucent Paper. I die cut the stems and foliage from Altenew Crafty Necessities: Frayed Leaf and Bamboo Cardstock. I added ink blending on top using Altenew Green Valley Fresh Dye Inks. The purple flowers were die cut from Altenew Crafty Necessities: Soft Lilac and Lavender Fields Cardstock and I added Altenew Shades of Purple Fresh Dye Inks on top. 

The pink flowers were die cut from white cardstock and I added Altenew Bubblegum Dreams Fresh Dye Inks for the petals and Altenew Golden Sunset Fresh Dye Inks for the flower centres. I also cut the bow from white cardstock and added Altenew Bubblegum Dreams Fresh Dye Inks on top. I assembled the flowers using liquid glue and then started arranging them inside the wrap. I adhered them to the base of the wrap and then adhered the top/side parts of the wrap so that the glue was behind where the flowers overlapped, as well as the bow. 

I mixed Altenew Amethyst Shimmer Relief Paste with a tiny bit of water and splattered it onto a black A2 sized card base. Once dry, the bouquet was adhered on top, adding glue behind the flowers and stems so that it isn't visible from the front. The sentiment, from Altenew Sentiment Strips 2, was stamped and heat embossed, cut into a strip and adhered to the card with foam tape. To finish, I added an Altenew Rhodonite Gem Sparkle to the centre of the bow. 

ENCHANTED ROSES + ONE-GO: SOLID SENTIMENTS STRIPS 2

My last two cards use the beautiful Altenew Enchanted Roses set. There is a stamp set, a press plate, and a die set (that works with both the stamp set & press plate). I used the stamp set (and dies) for my cards today. 

For the first, card, I stamped one of the roses onto a panel of white cardstock using Altenew Obsidian Pigment Ink. I coloured the rose using Altenew Artist Alcohol Markers (Pink Diamond, Pinkalicious, Razzleberry & Midnight Violet) and then adhered the panel onto a black A2 sized card base with foam tape. 

I stamped the sentiment from set the set onto more white cardstock using Altenew Obsidian Pigment Ink and then once dry, die cut it out using the Altenew Parchment Roses Die Set. I cut another of the die two times from white cardstock and adhered them behind the stamped one (for dimension) before adhering onto the card. To finish, I embellished with Altenew Ivory Pearl Dots

For my second card, I stamped the other image from the Altenew Enchanted Roses Stamp Set onto a panel of white cardstock and then adhered it onto a black A2 sized card base with Altenew Instant Dimension Foam Tape

I took the Altenew One-Go: Solid Sentiment Press Plate and pressed it onto Neenah Classic Crest 110lb Solar White Cardstock with Altenew Obsidian Pigment Ink using the Spellbinders BetterPress Letterpress System. I die cut them out using the Altenew One-Go Solid Sentiment Strips Die and adhered two onto the card with foam tape. To finish, I embellished with Altenew Ivory Pearl Dots

BLOG HOP:

As mentioned, this blog post is part of a fun, inspirational blog hop with prizes. Please click on the links below to visit the other participants in the hop. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

GIVEAWAY:


$300 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $100 gift certificate to 1 lucky winner and a $50 gift certificate to 4 winners! Please leave a comment on the
Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by April 17th 2025 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 5 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on April 19th 2025. The winner of the $100 gift certificate will be chosen from comments left on the Altenew blog. 

SUPPLIES:


Here are the links to what I have used on the projects. Affiliate links are used on some products. This means that if you make a purchase after clicking on my link, I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. I truly appreciate your support when using these links. Please click on the logo below the product to shop at your favourite store. All products were personally purchased except marked with an asterisk (*) which were kindly sent to me to use. You can read my full disclosure here.


If you have made it to the end of the post, thank you so much for being here, I really do appreciate it and hope that I didn't bore you too much! Thank you for visiting and I hope you enjoy the rest of the hop. Have a great day!

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