2025 Holiday Series #1 | Modern Poinsettia

Hi crafty friends!  Today I am sharing my first official Christmas card of the 2025 season.

The supplies used were:

Gina K. Designs – Modern Poinsettia Stencil Set

    Gina K. Designs – Master Layouts 13 Die Set

    Gina K. Designs – O Christmas Tree Stamp/Die Set

    Gina K. Designs – O Christmas Tree Poly-Glaze Foiling Sheets

    Gina K. Designs – Black Onyx Heavyweight Cardstock

    Scrapbook.com – Mixed Media 6”x8” Paper Pad

    Spellbinders – Poppy Field Color Essentials Cardstock

    Simon Says Stamp – Cranberry Pawsitively Saturated Ink

    Simon Says Stamp – Rhubarb Pawsitively Saturated Ink

    Simon Says Stamp – Sangria Pawsitively Saturated Ink

    Simon Says Stamp – Field Pawsitively Saturated Ink

    Simon Says Stamp – Sprout Pawsitively Saturated Ink

    Altenew – Antique Gold Pigment Ink

    Kid’s Fun Foam (white)

    Nuvo Crystal Drops – Red Berry

    Therm O Web – Gold Deco Foil

    Spellbinders – Fashion Poppy Self-Adhesive Embellishments (half pearls)

    Plastic Palette Knife

    Altenew Enchanted Gold Shimmer Relief Paste

    Altenew Sticky Mat

    Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue

    Misti Original Stamp Positioning Tool

    Heidi Swapp Minc Machine

    Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

I started today’s card cutting a piece of 6” x 8” mixed media paper from Scrapbook.com in half so that I have two pieces that measure 3” x 8”.  I will be stenciling down the center of both card panels.

I placed the first 3” x 8” card panel onto my Altenew Sticky Mat and placed the first stencil from the Gina K. Designs “Modern Poinsettia Layering Stencil” set onto the strip of cardstock so that the three center poinsettias line up across the center of the cardstock panel.  I used Simon Says Stamp’s Cranberry (center portions) and Rhubarb (tips of leaves) inks to ink blend the poinsettia leaves from Stencil #1.  For now, I skipped ahead to Stencil #4 and centered it to align with the leaves from Stencil #1 onto the cardstock panels.  I used Altenew “Enchanted Gold” Shimmer Relief Paste and spread it evenly with a plastic palette knife across the openings in the stencil.  I removed the first cardstock panel and repeated the process onto the second cardstock panel.  These two pasted panels must now be set aside to air dry (shouldn’t take more than an hour) – using a heat tool may cause the paste to blister/bubble.

Once the shimmer paste had completely dried, I began ink blending using Stencil #2.  I applied Simon Says Stamp’s Sangria Ink toward the center of the leaves and the Simon Says Stamp Rhubarb ink at the tips.  The final stencil is #3 and I ink blended Simon Says Stamp’s Field and Sprout inks onto these (Sprout at the leaf tips and Field toward the centers).  Once ink blending was completed, I washed all my stencils with some rubbing alcohol and a lint-free cloth before putting them back into their packaging.

From the Gina K. Designs “Master Layouts 13” die set, I used the 1-5/8” x 5” stitched rectangle die and used it to die cut panels from the two poinsettia inked pieces of cardstock.  I cut two panels of Black Onyx card stock using the matting die from Master Layouts 13 that measures approximately 1-3/4” x 5-1/8”.  I adhered the poinsettia panels to the front of the black matting layers and set them aside as I continued building the card. Additionally, I die cut a piece of white cardstock using the stitched die in the set that measured approximately 2” x 3-1/2” and a piece of Black Onyx cardstock from the matting layer die that coordinates with the stitched one.  I adhered this white cardstock panel to the black one and glued it to the front center of my card front, but only applied glue to the left gatefold panel side (you don’t want to glue your card shut!)

My card base will be a gatefold design.  I used my paper trimmer and cut a piece of Spellbinders Poppy Field cardstock to be 8-1/2” x 5-1/2” and then scored the card base at 2-1/8” and 6-3/8”.  I folded the card base along the score lines and reinforced the folds with my bone folder.  Then I adhered each of the black matted, poinsettia panels to the center of each side of the front of the gatefold card base (I find this easier if I put temporary tape on the inside of each gatefold to keep it closed while I work).

Using the Gina K. Designs “O Christmas Tree” Poly-Glaze Foiling Sheets, I trimmed out the Christmas tree design I wanted to use on my card front as well as the “MERRY CHRISTMAS” sentiment and foiled them using Therm O Web’s Gold foil sheets.  Once the poly-glaze tree and sentiment was foiled, I placed the tree into my Misti and used the Gina K. Designs “O Christmas Tree” stamp/die set to stamp the green (Simon Says Stamp Field Ink) portion over my foiled tree trunk/branches as well as the star from the stamp set which I stamped using Altenew’s Antique Gold Pigment Ink and subsequently used the coordinating dies to die cut the tree, sentiment, and star for the card front.   I also cut the tree and star shapes one more time from kid’s fun foam to add dimension and lift when applied to the card front. 

I glued the tree, star, and sentiment die cuts to the white fun foam and glued them to the undecorated, white cardstock panel on the card front.  Lastly, I used Red Berry Nuvo Crystal Drops to change the Christmas tree’s star from gold to red.  I simply felt that small center panel needed a touch of red to tie it to the poinsettias in the background.  For my final touch, I added Spellbinders’ Fashion Poppy Self-Adhesive Embellishments to the tree to represent ornaments.

That completes today’s card!  Thank you so much for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed this fun-fold card that kicks off my Christmas card making season. If you found inspiration and created something similar, please tag me on Instagram @veehatt_inspired - I'd love to see what you create!

Until next time… happy making!

Day 13 | Spellbinders 13 Days of Craftoween

Hi crafty friends!  I’m back to share my final creation for this year’s Craftoween box kit with you.  Today’s card is Day 13’s die envelope and I’m going to reach out of my comfort zone and make my very first  pop-up card!

The supplies used were:

Spellbinders – 13 Days of Craftoween Box Kit, Day 13 Dies

    Lawn Fawn – Platform Pop-Up Die Set

    Spellbinders – Halloween Wonder Die Set

    Spellbinders – Halloween Wreath Add-Ons

    Sizzix/Tim Holtz – Moonlight Die Set

    Pretty Pink Posh – Spooky Fence

    Spellbinders – Royal Amethyst Essentials Cardstock

    Ranger/Tim Holtz – Distress Black Two-Tone Woodgrain Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Beeswax Colorwheel Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Alabaster Colorwheel Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Onyx Mirror Metallic Treasured Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Peridot Colorwheel Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Lilac Colorwheel Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Lunar Grey Essentials Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Graphite Essentials Cardstock

    Gina K. Designs – Onyx Black Cardstock

    Simon Says Stamp – Clear Acetate Sheets

    Ranger/Tim Holtz – Tea Dye Distress Ink Pad

    Ranger/Tim Holtz – Antique Linen Distress Ink Pad

    Brutus Monroe Alabaster White Embossing Powder

    Simon Says Stamp Clear Watermark and Embossing Ink

    WOW!  Heat Embossing Tool

    Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue

    Misti Original Stamp Positioning Tool

    Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

I started today’s card by die cutting and assembling the pop-up platform from the Lawn Fawn “Platform Pop-Up” die set.  If you want to do the same type card you might want to do what I did and look for the instructions on YouTube… it’s a bit confusing at first, but overall easy to assemble.  The pop-up platform was die cut from Spellbinders Royal Amethyst Essentials cardstock with Ranger’s Distress Black Two-Tone Woodgrain cardstock for the decorative squares that go around the outside of the platform.  The little tabs that will hold up your decorations were die cut from Simon Says Stamp Clear Acetate.  I also die cut two of the grass strips from the die in the set using Gina K. Designs Onyx Black cardstock.

I created a moon for my background layer of the pop-up using the Sizzix/Tim Holtz “Moonlight” die set.  The base of the moon was die cut from Spellbinders Alabaster cardstock ink blended with Distress Antique Linen ink and the front layer of the moon was die cut using Spellbinders Beeswax cardstock that was ink blended using Distress Tea Dye ink.  The two moon layers were glued together and set aside to dry.

For some of the decorative die cuts, I used the Spellbinders “Halloween Wonder” for the tombstone which was die cut from Spellbinders Lunar Grey and Graphite Essentials cardstock.  The picket fence was die cut from Pretty Pink Posh’s “Spooky Fence” die set out of Spellbinders Onyx Mirror Metallic Treasured Cardstock.  Then from Spellbinders’ “Halloween Wreath Add-Ons” die set, I die cut three bats from Gina K. Design’s Onyx Black cardstock.

Now for the Day 13 die set – I die cut each of the elements from the following cardstock and glued them together after die cutting was completed:

    Coffin Front Panel:  Ranger/Tim Holtz Distress Black Two-Tone Woodgrain Cardstock

    Hand:  Spellbinders Peridot Colorwheel Cardstock

    Skull and Bone:  Spellbinders Snowdrift Cardstock

    Coffin Back Panel:  Reverse Side of Distress Black Two-Tone Woodgrain Cardstock

    Coffin Lining:  Spellbinders Lilac Colorwheel Cardstock 

I glued the picket fence to the first tab of the pop-up platform and glued one of the black grass strips to the front of the fence.  Once the glue on those dried, I added the tombstone and bone to the right side of it.  On the second platform tab, I glued the cute coffin die cut onto a strip of acetate and then adhered the acetate to the actual platform tab.  Lastly on the third tab of the platform, I adhere the moon die cut to a strip of acetate to elevate it in the scene and adhered the acetate strip to the pop-up platform’s tab and glued the three bats directly to the moon front.

For the sentiment, I used one of the sentiment stamps from the Craftoween box set.  I stamped the sentiment onto Onyx Black cardstock and applied Brutus Monroe Alabaster White embossing powder, tapped off the excess and heat set the sentiment.  I fussy cut the sentiment and glued it to the front panel of the platform base. This card fits perfectly in a 5x7 envelope!

That completes today’s card!  Thanks so much for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed this final, Day 13 pop-up card showcasing the dies from the Spellbinders 13 Days of Craftoween boxed kit and found inspiration for some of your own card making projects!  Craftoween was such a treat this year – Spellbinders really knocked it out of the park with the imaginative, fun die sets.  I’m only sad there were just 13 days versus 31!

Until next time… happy making!

Day 12 | Spellbinders 13 Days of Craftoween

Hi crafty friends!  I’m back to share my creation for Day 12 from the 2025 Spellbinders 13 Days of Craftoween kit. 

The supplies used were:

Spellbinders – 13 Days of Craftoween Box Kit, Day 12 Dies

    Spellbinders – Friendship Lace BetterPress Plates

    Spellbinders – Precision Layering A2 B Die Set

    Spellbinders – Precision Layering A2 A Die Set

    Hero Arts – Nested Circle Infinity Dies

    Spellbinders - Antique Matte Metallic Treasured Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Brushed Black Cardstock

    Spellbinders – Carrot Essentials Cardstock

    Gina K. Designs – Onyx Black Cardstock

    My Favorite Things – Limelight Cardstock

    Altenew – Forest Canopy Glitter Cardstock Set

    Thin Vellum from Amazon

Spellbinders Glimmer Hot Foiling System

Spellbinders - Opaque Black Glimmer Foil

    Sakura Moonlight Gelly Roll Pen #405P

    Sakura Black Glaze Pen #849

    Simon Says Stamp Black Foam Squares

    Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue

    Misti Original Stamp Positioning Tool

    Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

I began today’s card by doing some hot foiling.  I used the Spellbinders Opaque Black Glimmer Foil and the Spellbinders “Friendship Lace BetterPress Plates” to hot foil the large press plate from this set onto a piece of My Favorite Things Limelight cardstock.  Then I used the largest die from both the Spellbinders “Precision Layering A2 A” and “Precision Layering A2 B” die sets to cut out my hot foiled panel and well as the Brushed Black matting layer for my card front.

Now for the Day 11 die set – I die cut each of the elements from the following cardstock and glued them together after die cutting was completed:

    Cauldron Base:  Spellbinders Brushed Black Cardstock

         (Sakura Black Glaze added to highlight area on cauldron)

    Cauldron Rim and Handles:  Gina K. Designs Onyx Black Cardstock

    Skull and Bone:  Spellbinders Antique Matte Metallic Treasured Cardstock

    Witches Boots, Sock Stripes, and Skull Base:  Gina K. Designs Onyx Black Cardstock

    Cauldron Bubbles:  Altenew Peridot, Jadeite, & Titanite Glitter Cardstocks

    Witch Socks:  Spellbinders Carrot Cardstock

    Straw:  Scrap purple from my stash (stripes added using Moonlight Gelly Roll #405P)

The cauldron base, witch’s boots, and socks were each cut three additional times from regular black cardstock to add dimension to the focal point that will be adhered to a circle of vellum in my next step.  I glued two of the additional die cuts to the back side of the cauldron and set the other extra die cuts aside for now.

Using the fourth largest circle from the Hero Arts “Nested Circle Infinity Dies”, I die cut a piece of thin vellum that I purchased years ago from Amazon.  This vellum circle will be a landing point for the cauldron on the card front.  I positioned the vellum circle over the opening in the background that was foiled onto the Limelight cardstock and once the correct position was found, I glued the cauldron to the front and trimmed the excess vellum off the right side of the card front. I also glued those last three black diecuts (cauldron base, socks and witch boots) to the reverse side of the vellum and lined them up with their coordinating piece from the front side of the vellum - this is being done to make it easier to hide the glue on the vellum.   Next, I glued the cauldron/vellum focal point to the card front and then glued the card front to the Brushed Black card front matting panel.

For the sentiment, I used one that I had created in an earlier cardmaking session from the Spellbinders “Halloween Icons” press plate set.  I added a few strips of scrap black cardstock to the back side to give it dimension and adhered it to the card front.  To finish the card, I added few green gems that I’ve had in my stash for about a decade (and glad I’ve kept them all these years!).

That completes today’s card!  Thanks so much for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed this Day 12 card showcasing the dies from the Spellbinders 13 Days of Craftoween boxed kit and found inspiration for some of your own card making projects!  One more day to go!!

Until next time… happy making!