Hero Arts | Hero Studio October 2025 Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hello there, I am delighted to be joining Hero Arts today for a fun blog hop to celebrate the Hero Studio October 2025 release. The theme this month is Merry Era. Think Christmas disco balls! 

The Card Kit of the Month, Stamp & Cut of the Month, Dies of the Month, Layering Stencils of the Month, and Cling of the Month are all releasing today. You can also purchase the Whole Studio which includes all of the kits and a free gift. Today, I am focussing on the Card Kit and the bonus gift when purchasing The Whole Studio. 

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

HERO STUDIO CARD KIT OF THE MONTH

There is a large disco ball die in the Hero Studio October 2025 Card Kit of the Month, so I decided to create a circle shaped card with it! I die cut the ball from the gold cardstock in the kit. I then cut a circle using the Hero Arts Circle Infinity Dies and adhered the disco ball on top. I die cut another two of the circles from white cardstock, created a circle shaped card base (using the hinge method) and adhered the disco ball piece on top. 

I die cut the bow die from the kit using the Seaside and Waterfall cardstock that is in the kit. I assembled and adhered the bow together and then adhered it to the top of the card, slightly to the left. I stamped the sentiment from the kit stamp set onto white cardstock using Hero Arts Clear Embossing & Watermark Ink. I applied Hero Arts Gold Embossing Powder (also in the kit!) and heat set. 

It was die cut out using the coordinating die and then I die cut the die another three times from white cardstock and adhered them behind the stamped one for dimension, before adhering to the card. I die cut the stars/sparkles in the kit from Blush cardstock which is also in the kit. I adhered them to the card and then finished by embellishing with Spellbinders Pink Color Essentials Gems. 

WHAT’S IN THE KIT?

The Hero Arts October 2025 Card Kit of the Month includes:

Deck the Halls with Disco Balls 6x8 Stamp Set

Deck the Halls with Disco Balls Coordinating Dies

Have a Ball Die Set

Gold Embossing Powder .5 oz

10 Sheets of Cardstock- 1 of each colour, 5.5" x 8.5" (Poppy, Dahlia, Tutu, Blush, Alabaster, Beeswax, Tuscan, Fern, Seaside, Waterfall)

Two Sheets of Gold Matte Paper, 5.5" x 8.5" 

THE WHOLE STUDIO BONUS

Included with purchase of the Hero Arts October 2025 The Whole Studio is the Merry Everything Die Set. I started off by die cutting the words themselves from Hero Arts Pitch Black Cardstock. I cut the shadow from white cardstock three times. I adhered one on top of another for the shadow and then adhered the word layer on top. 

I die cut the cardstocks in the kit - Seaside, Waterfall, Gold, Blush and Tutu into strips using the Hero Arts Sentiment Strips Fancy Dies. I adhered one of each colour onto a white A2 sized card base and cut off the excess from the sides using my guillotine. 

The sentiment was then adhered on top. To finish, I embellished with Spellbinders Gold Mix Color Essentials Gems. 

BLOG HOP:

For the hop, you should have arrived here from Mindy. Next on the hop is Michelle. If you get lost along the way or want to start the hop from the beginning, please head over to the Hero Arts Blog. 

GIVEAWAY:

Hero Arts will give away a $50 gift card, drawn from the comments left across the hop. Enter by Sunday, October 5th at 11:59pm PT, and the winner will be announced on the Hero Arts blog the following week. Leave a comment on all stops for more chances to win!

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 great time on the rest of the hop and a fabulous rest of the day too! 

Spellbinders | Majestic Guitar

Hello there, I was over on the Spellbinders Blog last week sharing a step-by-step tutorial on how to create a shaped card using Bibi's Musical Notes collection. I used the Majestic Guitar to create a shaped card but there are side panels that can be purchased to make it into a 3D box too, or it can go on a normal card but you would need an A7 card for that as it is tall!

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

I created the main guitar using Spellbinders Majestic Guitar Etched Dies from Spellbinders and Hero Arts purple cardstock. I cut the strings from cardstock too but you can actually string the guitar with thread as well! I decorated the guitar with flowers from the Spellbinders Mini Guitar Etched Dies and finished with a sentiment from the Spellbinders Family Musical Mix Greetings Clear Stamp 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 information and step-by-step photos on how I made the card, please head over to the Spellbinders Blog. Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I hope you have a great week ahead! 

Spellbinders | Pretty Christmas Envelopes

Hello there, today I have something a little different to share - decorated envelopes! If you have followed me here for a while, you will know that I do like to decorate and create pretty packaging. When I saw the Spellbinders Snowflake Mini Wax Seal, I thought it would be perfect for this purpose! 

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

I started off by creating the wax seals using the Spellbinders Wax Seal Starter Kit. I like to melt more wax than needed for these little wax seals, as it gives me a better pour. I also find that I can get multiple seals from one spoon of wax which is helpful! 

For the wax seals, I used Spellbinders Wax Beads Purple Mix for the first one. I actually had some wax left over from a previous project that I remelted. I know that it wasn't just one colour but a mixture, but the colour is similar to the middle colour in the set - Enchanted, but I think there is some Pastel Lilac in there too!

I used Spellbinders Pastel Aqua Wax Beads for the second one. It did take me a while to get the size that I wanted. These mini wax seals really are mini, so you don't need to pour too much wax! Whilst wax seals look great on cards, my favourite way to use them is for packaging, so I grabbed my Hero Arts Dove White Envelopes and some dies and got creating! 

I die cut the holly leaves and pine branches from the Spellbinders Christmas Cracker Etched Dies from Spellbinders Peridot and Rainforest ColorWheel Cardstock. I then took the bow from the Spellbinders Scallop and Stitched Edge Ovals Etched Dies set and die cut it once from Spellbinders Lavender ColorWheel Cardstock and once from Spellbinders Waterfall ColorWheel Cardstock. 

I adhered the foliage first to the envelope flaps using Bearly Art Glue, I then adhered the bows on top (making sure to adhere it above the bottom of the flap so that the envelope will open easily). The wax seals were then adhered on top, cutting down Spellbinders Seal Adhesive Circles to fit the back of them. 

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.

Simple but effective, I hope! Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I hope you have a great day! 

Simon Says Stamp + Pinkfresh Studio STAMPtember 2025 Collaboration

Hello there, today I have a card to share using the Simon Says Stamp + Pinkfresh Studio STAMPtember 2025 collaboration set. It is such a pretty set with a framed image plus lots of sentiments. There are three ways to buy it - the stamp set only, the stamps and dies together, and the stamps, dies and stencils togther.

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

I started off my card by stamping the frame image from the Simon Says Stamp + Pinkfresh Studio Stamp Set onto white cardstock using Pinkfresh Studio Detail Black Hybrid Ink. I then took the stencils and placed them over the image, one by one, adding colour using ink blending. I used Pinkfresh Studio Inks in Wisteria, Hydrangea and Opulence for the flower petals and Lemon Whip for the flower centres. 

I used Fresh Pear and Key Lime for the leaves. I then die cut the image out using the coordinating dies. I cut the die again another 3 times and adhered the die-cuts behind the stamped one for dimension, before adhering to a US A2 sized white card base. 

I stamped the sentiment from the set onto a separate piece of white cardstock, die cut it out and layered it up again like the frame, but with only 2 layers. I added thin foam tape to the left hand side and liquid glue to the right and adhered it to the card. To finish, I embellished with Pinkfresh Studio Iridescent Dew Drops. 

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.

Like with all the other collaboration sets, once it is sold out it is gone. So if you like it, do grab it while you can! Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I hope you have a great day! 

Pinkfresh Studio | Rooted in Wonder

Hello there, I am delighted to be joining Pinkfresh Studio today to celebrate the Fables & Forest September 2025 release with a fun Instagram Hop (more on the hop below). I already shared one card using the release which you can see here. Today I have another two cards to share. 

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

My first card uses the beautiful Pinkfresh Studio Dreamer's Forest Stamp & Stencils. I started off by stamping the image onto a panel of white cardstock using Pinkfresh Studio Detail Black Hybrid Ink. I then placed the stencils on top, one by one, to colour the image using ink blending. 

I simply stuck to two colours - Seaside and Lavender and blended them together using Pinkfresh Studio 1" Blending Brushes. I kept the tree branches white, as well as the sky, but there are stencils to colour these in too! I then die cut the image using the largest Pinkfresh Studio Double Stitched Elongated Oval Die. 

I cut the die again from white cardstock and cut a little off the bottom. I then scored a line about 1/2" from the top to create a hinge. I added adhesive to the hinge and adhered it to the back of the stamped and ink blended one to create a card base. 

I stamped a sentiment from the Pinkfresh Studio Rooted In Wonder Stamp Set onto white cardstock using Pinkfresh Studio Detail Black Hybrid Ink and then die cut it out using the coordinating die. I cut the die another two times and adhered them behind the stamped one for dimension. It was then adhered to the card. To finish, I embellished with Pinkfresh Studio Iridescent Dew Drops.  

For my second card, I used the flower pots from the Pinkfresh Studio Flower Market Stamp Set. This image is supposed to part of a whole flower market stand (that you create using the stencils and dies) but I decided to just use the pots themselves for my card today. They were stamped onto a panel of white cardstock using Pinkfresh Studio Detail Black Hybrid Ink. 

I then placed the Pinkfresh Studio Flower Market Stencils on top to colour the pots, plants and flowers using ink blending. I used Pinkfresh Studio Inks in Grassy Knoll, Key Lime and Mermaid Cove for the foliage. I used Wisteria and Hydrangea for the flowers, and Detail Black and Ocean Breeze for the pots. 

They were then die cut out using the coordinating die. Since the die is made for them to fit inside the stand, it only cut the top and sides of the pots, not the bottom. So I simply fussy cut around the bottoms of the pots with scissors. I stamped the sentiment from the set and die cut that out also. 

I took a panel of white cardstock and dry embossed the Pinkfresh Studio Petal Trellis Die on top. The panel was adhered to a white A2 sized card base and the pots adhered on top with foam tape, followed by the sentiment. To finish, I embellished with Pinkfresh Studio Iridescent Dew Drops. 

Dana Kirby and I had the same idea for this set! Please go and check her card out. I love it! 

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.

As mentioned, this post is part of a fun Instagram Hop. You can visit my Instagram profile here, and Pinkfresh Studio's here. Thank you so much for stopping by, I really do appreciate it. I hope you have a great day! 

Pinkfresh Studio | Fables & Forests September 2025 Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hello there, I am delighted to be joining Pinkfresh Studio today to celebrate the new Fables & Forests release with a fun blog hop. The products this month all have a storybook/fairy tale feel to them. I have one card to share today and two more tomorrow. 

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

For my card today, I am using the new Nature's Narrative set which consists of a stencil set and coordinating die. I am also using the new heat-resistant acetate. Although I am not using it for it's heat-resistant properties today, I did use to create a window on my card. I am also using the sentiment from the new Twilight Tales set. 

I started off my card by taking a panel of white cardstock and placing the Pinkfresh Studio Nature's Narrative Stencils on top, one by one, to add ink blending to the images. I used Pinkfresh Studio Inks in Fresh Pear, Grassy Knoll and Key Lime for the hills and foliage. 

I used Sheer Freesia, Wisteria, Hydrangea and Opulence for the house, flowers, rainbow and book spines. I used Waterfall, Turquoise and Paradise for the rainbow, books and window for the house. Last but not least, I used Doe for the tree and Misty Coast for the book pages. 

I then die cut the images out using the Pinkfresh Studio Natures Narrative Die. I took a white A2 sized card base and cut a Pinkfresh Studio Single Stitch Rectangle Die in the front panel. I added Pinkfresh Studio Heat-Resistant Acetate to the back and then cut another panel with the rectangle die to add inside the card to hide the acetate around the sides of the window.

I cut another layer of the rainbow from white cardstock and adhered it behind the ink blended one. I then adhered that to the card first, followed by the house and books layer, using thin foam tape. I cut the layer again from white cardstock and adhered that to the inside of the card to cover up the adhesive. 

I took the sentiment from the Pinkfresh Studio Twilight Tales Stamp Set and stamped it onto white cardstock using Pinkfresh Studio Detail Black Hybrid Ink. It was die cut out using the coordinating dies. I die cut the die again from white cardstock and adhered it behind the stamped one before adhering to the card. To finish, I adhered the butterflies to the rainbow. 

BLOG HOP:

As mentioned, this post is part of a fun, inspirational blog hop. Please visit the other participants in the hop by clicking on their pictures below. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

GIVEAWAY:

Pinkfresh Studio will give away ten $50 gift cards along the hop, selected from the comments left along the hop at random. They will also give away the full release over on the Pinkfresh Studio blog and YouTube Channel. Winners will be announced on the Pinkfresh Studio Giveaway Page on 30th September 2025. Please make sure to check if you are a winner and claim your prize within two weeks. 

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 day! Take care! 

Hero Arts | Cup of Cheer

Hello there, I am over on the Hero Arts Blog today sharing a card using the new Cup of Cheer Letterpress + Foil Plate from the Yule Fuel collection. So many things you can do with his plate but for today, I went monochrome! 

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

I hot foiled the Santa cup from Hero Arts Cup of Cheer Letterpress + Foil Plate onto Spellbinders Cosmic Sky ColorWheel Cardstock using Opaque White Glimmer Foil and the Glimmer Hot Foil System. I added ink blending around the edges of the panel and then coloured the image using pencils (just blues and white). The sentiment is from the Hero Arts Christmas Sentiment Strips Stamp 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 information on how I made the card, please head over to the Hero Arts Blog. Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I will be back later with another post but in the mean-time, I hope you have a wonderful day! 

Concord & 9th | Jolly St. Nick

Hello there, today I have my last card to share as a guest designer for Concord & 9th this month. I will have other cards to share using the release but I'll share them at a later date. For now, my last card uses the Jolly St. Nick Bundle. This fun bundle consists of stencils to build a Santa face, coordinating dies and sentiments that can fit inside Santa's beard, or can be used on their own. 

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

I started off my card by placing the Concord & 9th Jolly St. Nick Stencils onto a panel of white cardstock to add ink blending to the image with blending brushes. Since I decided to cut the image out with the die, I did not use the layer to ink blend the background, but there is one if you want to make a one layer card! 

I used Concord & 9th Inks in Nectar and Ballet Slipper for the face, Sweet Pea for the cheeks, Dove for the moustache, Black for the eyes and Wildberry for the hat. I then die cut it out using the Concord & 9th Jolly St. Nick Dies. I took the 'Merry Christmas' sentiment from the Concord & 9th Jolly St Nick Stamp Set and stamped it onto his beard using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink. 

I then felt like it was missing something, so I stamped the leaves from the set using Concord & 9th Aqua Sky Ink and the berries using Concord & 9th Dragonfruit Ink onto white cardstock and cut them out using the coordinating dies. I adhered a panel of Concord & 9th Dragonfruit Cardstock onto a US A2 sized white card base and added Santa on top with thin foam tape, cutting off the bottom of his beard using scissors. I then adhered the leaves and berries on top, followed by Concord & 9th Dew Drops on top of the berries. 

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.

A huge thank you goes to Concord & 9th for having me guest with them this month. I have loved playing with the sets and I hope you have enjoyed seeing my cards. Thank you so much for visiting me today, I hope you have a wonderful day and a great week ahead! 

Hero Arts | Apple Branch

Hello there, I'm delighted to be joining Hero Arts today to celebrate the new September 2025 collections. The fun is happening over on Instagram but I wanted to share my card here too. There are two new collections releasing today - I Pick You and Yule Fuel. I am using the Apple Branch set from I Pick You today. 

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

I started off my card by taking the image from the Hero Arts Apple Branch Stamp Set and stamped it onto a panel of Hero Arts Pitch Black Cardstock using Hero Arts Dove White Core Ink. I then coloured the image using Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils, adding in a little Caran d-Ache Luminance White Pencil in places (the colours that I used are listed below the supplies area). 

The panel was adhered to a black A2 sized card base. I then stamped the sentiment from the set onto more black cardstock using Hero Arts Clear Embossing & Watermark Ink. I applied White Detail Embossing Powder and heat set. It was die cut out using the coordinating dies and I cut another of the die twice to layer up behind the stamped one for dimension. It was adhered to the card with liquid glue. To finish, I added white gel pen dots. 

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.

PENCILS: Apples - Black, Dark Red, Permanent Carmine, Rose Carmine, White. Leaves - Black, Pine Green, Leaf Green, Light Green, White. Branches - Walnut Brown, Raw Umber. 

As mentioned, this is part of an Instagram hop. You can see my Instagram profile here and Hero Arts' here. 

Before this, I hadn't done any pencil colouring on black cardstock for a while, but I recently rediscovered Jennifer Rustioni on Instagram and was inspired by her feed to give it another go! Thank you so much for stopping by today, as always, I really do appreciate it. I hope you have a great weekend! 

Concord & 9th | Winter Bouquet

Hello there, today I have another card to share using the Concord & 9th September 2025 holiday release as a guest designer. Today's card uses the beautiful Winter Bouquet bundle. There is a stamp set, as well as coordinating dies. 

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

I used the packaging as a guide for where to stamp the elements for the bouquet. I first stamped the large background leaves from the Concord & 9th Winter Bouquet Stamp Set onto a panel of white cardstock using Concord & 9th Peacock Ink. I stamped the stems for the flowers and berries in the same colour. 

I stamped the small leaves using Concord & 9th Sprout Ink and the berries with Concord & 9th Aqua Sky Ink. The panel was adhered to a white A2 sized card base. I then stamped the poinsettia flowers on a separate panel of cardstock using Concord & 9th Ballet Slipper Ink for the petals, and Concord & 9th Sunflower Ink for the centres. 

They were die cut out using the Concord & 9th Winter Bouquet Dies and adhered to the card with thin foam tape. I stamped the vase onto more white cardstock using Concord & 9th Black Ink. It was die cut out also and adhered to the card with thin foam tape. To finish, I embellished with Concord & 9th Dew Drops. 

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.

I really love this set! Although I kept to the design on the packaging for this card, I can't wait to try out different arrangements for future cards! Thank you so much for stopping by today, I really do appreciate it. I do have another post going up later but in the mean-time, I hope you have a great Saturday! Take care!