2026 Holiday Card Series #1 | Merry Christmas Stitched Poinsettia

Hi friends!  Today marks the start of the 2026 Holiday Card Series where I try (LOL!) to have my holiday cards mostly completed before mid-November.  I’ve never tried stitching on cardstock before so I thought that would be a good start with attempting a technique I’m very new at… let’s make a card!

The supplies used:

Spellbinders – Stitched Poinsettia & Holly Die Set

     Taylored Expressions – Flickering Stencil

     Waffle Flower – A6 Piercing Layers Die Set

     Honey Bee Stamps – Simply Stated: Holiday Stamp and Die Set

     Spellbinders – Alabaster Cardstock

     Spellbinders – Merlot Colorwheel Cardstock

     Spellbinders – Poppy Field Color Essentials Cardstock

     Spellbinders – Sage Color Essentials Cardstock

     Concord & 9^th – Juniper Cardstock

     Anna Griffin – Gold Matte Foil Cardstock

     Simon Says Stamp – So Very Black Cardstock

     Tim Holtz/Idea-ology – Christmas Backdrops Patterned Paper Pack

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Old Paper Distress Oxide Ink Pad

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Lost Shadow Distress Oxide Ink Pad

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Black Soot Distress Oxide Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Sage Pawsitively Saturated Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Eucalyptus Pawsitively Saturated Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Sangria Pawsitively Saturated Ink Pad

     Simon Says Stamp – Cabernet Pawsitively Saturated Ink Pad

     Scrapbook.com – Foam Ink Blending Tool

     Scrapbook.com – All Purpose Craft Scraper Tool

     Altenew – Mixed Media Palette Knife

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Opaque Distress Texture Paste

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Hickory Smoke Distress Oxide Spray

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Shabby Shutters Distress Oxide Spray

     Iuile Watercolors – Gold (Q21)

     Ranger Ink/Tim Holtz – Distress Splatter Brush

     DMC – Gold Diamant Thread (D3852)

Embroidery Needle

     Honey Bee Stamps – Holiday Wishes Gems Stickers

     Tsukineko - VersaMark Watermark Stamp Pad

     Ranger Ink – Super Fine Detail Black Embossing Powder

WOW! Heat Embossing Tool

     My Sweet Petunia – MISTI Original Stamping Tool

     Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue

     Scrapbook Adhesives – Thin 3D Foam Squares

     Scor-Tape Double Sided Adhesive

     Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

Creating the Background Panel

I started the background by using a foam ink blending tool and Tim Holtz’s Distress Oxide Ink Pads in the colors Lost Shadow and Old Paper.  I ink blended the two colors in random places on a 5”x7” piece of Spellbinders Alabaster cardstock then spattered clean water with my fingertips across the inky panel and picked up the excess water droplets with a paper towel.  Next, I applied a layer of Distress Opaque Texture Paste through the Taylored Expressions Flickering stencil to the background using an Altenew palette knife and my Scrapbook.com craft scraper tool.  Once completed, I set the panel aside to dry completely.

After the panel dried, I used my Tim Holtz Splatter Brush and spattered Hickory Smoke Distress Oxide Spray – heat dried the panel –Shabby Shutters Distress Oxide Spray – heat dried the panel - and lastly a heavy spattering of Iuile Watercolors’ Gold (Q21) watercolor paint then I set the background aside to dry again.  I die cut a piece of Simon Says Stamp So Very Black cardstock using the largest die in the Waffle Flower A6 Piercing Layers die set and die cut the inky, pasted background using the second largest die in the die set.  Using Scor-Tape, I adhered the two background layers together.

Creating the Focal Point

Using the Spellbinders Stitched Poinsettia and Holly stitching die set, I die cut more green and red leaves than I’ll ever need from the following cardstock colors:

     Red Leaves:  Spellbinders Merlot and Poppy Field

     Green Leaves:  Spellbinders Sage and Concord & 9^th Spruce

     Foil Centers:  Matte Gold Anna Griffin Foil Cardstock with

               Honey Bee Stamps Gold Gem Stickers at Center

Before stitching the elements, I added a bit of depth to each leaf by lightly ink blending the edges with Simon Says Stamp inks in the colors Eucalyptus (light green leaves), Sage (dark green leaves), Cabernet (Poppy Field leaves), and Sangria (Merlot leaves).  I used DMC Diamont gold thread and an embroidery needle to stitch the accents onto all the die cuts.  After the stitching was completed, I glued a Poppy Field stitched die cut on top of a Merlot stitched die cut then placed one of the matte gold foil die cuts that serve as the poinsettia center to the middle of the stacked poinsettia leaves.  Once the glue dried, I adhered three gems from the Honey Bee Stamps Holiday Wishes Gem Stickers to the center, matte gold foiled die cut piece – I repeated these steps a second time to create another poinsettia bloom.

I selected one of the backdrop sheets from the Tim Holtz/Idea-ology Christmas Backdrops patterned paper pack and trimmed the paper by first, die cutting it with the second largest die from the Waffle Flower A6 Piercing Layers die set so the edges of this panel would line up perfectly and have the paper piercing that the inky/texture paste covered background panel has, then I cut this height of the patterned paper to measure 2.25 inches.  Next, I die cut a 2.5” tall scrap of the Simon Says Stamp So Very Black cardstock with the same Waffle Flower die as the patterned paper (again, I’m trying to maintain the pierced edge as the other layers).  I used Scor-Tape to adhere the black cardstock panel to the card front and used glue to adhere the patterned paper on top of the black cardstock panel. 

I arranged the five green leaves and both poinsettia flowers to the card front and used liquid glue to adhere them to the card front once I was satisfied with the positioning.  I did have to add a few small foam squares to three of the top flower’s leaves to help level them out with the other elements.

Creating the Sentiment

For the sentiment, I used a scrap piece of the inked background (before I added the texture paste) and used the Honey Bee Stamps Simply Stated: Holiday stamp and die set to stamp “Merry Christmas in VersaMark embossing ink which I heat embossed with Ranger’s Super Fine Detail Black embossing powder.  I die cut the stamped sentiment and applied a very light amount of Distress Black Soot Oxide Ink to the edges to distress the look a bit and added small foam adhesive squares and liquid glue to adhere it to the card’s focal point. 

Assembling the Card

I added strips of Scor-Tape behind the background panel and adhered them to an A6, side-folding card base to help flatten the pasted background that can sometimes warp in the drying process.   My final touch was adding a few more of the Honey Bee Stamps Holiday Wishes gem stickers to the card front to complete the look. 

Thank you for stopping by and checking out today’s blog post, I really appreciate it.  Until next time, happy crafting!

Happy Easter 2026 | Waffle Flower & Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz

Hi crafty friends!  Today I am sharing a postage themed, mixed media, Easter card.  After making this card, I’ve decided that I need to play around with mixed media projects a lot more often.  There seems like lots of steps to this card, but if I wanted to make it again, I’m certain it would go much more quickly than it did to make the first one!  I tend to be very indecisive when it comes to which stamps, papers, inks, and dies I want to use which causes delay, delay, delay…. I hope you enjoy the end result.

The supplies used:

Waffle Flower – Postage Collage A6 Die

     Stampers Anonymous – Mr. Rabbit Stamp Set

     Stampers Anonymous – Bunny Hop Stamp/Stencil Set

     Sizzix / Tim Holtz – Vault Hippity Hop Die Set

     Hero Arts – Sparkle Weave Stencil

     Spellbinders – Tuscan Cardstock

     Spellbinders – Timber Cardstock

     MFT – Grapesicle Cardstock (dyed with ink to be Fairy and Plum Cardstock)

     Simon Says Stamp – Allspice, Cozy, Plum, & Fairy Ink

     Altenew – Obsidian Black Pigment Ink

     Ranger Ink / Tim Holtz – Vintage Photo & Black Soot Distress Ink

     Ranger Ink / Tim Holtz – Distress Translucent Texture Paste

     Altenew – Carbon Black Artists’ Gouache

     Kuretake Starry Colors Metallic Watercolor Paint – Gold No. 903

     WOW! – Clear Gloss Super Fine Embossing Powder

     Taylored Expressions – Anti-Static Powder Tool

     Altenew – Mini Blending Brush

     WOW! – Dual Speed Heat Embossing Tool

     Scor-Tape Double Sided Adhesive

     Altenew – 1” x 1/16” Instant Dimension Foam Tape

     Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue

     Tonic / Tim Holtz – Mini Guillotine Trimmer

     MISTI Stamp Positioning Tool

     Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

Creating the Background Panel

First, I used the die from Waffle Flower’s Postage Collage A6 Die and placed it onto a piece of Spellbinders Tuscan cardstock and loosely traced around the outside of it using a pencil.  This will give me an idea of where things will fall on the postage collage layout once I die cut it.  I proceeded with adding a layering of stamping.  Using Simon Says Stamp Allspice ink, I stamped the rabbit from Stampers Anonymous’ Mr. Rabbit stamp set in the lower left corner.  Next, I decided the stamp the larger Easter Egg Dyes text stamp from the same set onto the upper right corner using Simon Says Stamp Plum ink.  I stamped the smaller Egg Dyes text stamp in a vertical direction on the lower right corner of the panel using Simon Says Stamp’s Fairy ink.  I inked up the polka dot pattern stamp from the set and free-hand stamped it in random locations using Simon Says Stamp Cozy ink and did the same with the plaid patterned stamp.  Once the stamping was completed, I used the Waffle Flower Postage Collage A6 Die and die cut the stamped panel. 

I placed the inked panel on a sticky mat to hold it in place, then I positioned the Hero Arts Sparkle Weave Stencil over the cardstock panel and added Ranger/Tim Holtz Distress Translucent Texture Paste in random locations across the stencil and panel.  Once the paste dried, I used an Altenew Mini Blending Brush and Ranger/Tim Holtz Vintage Photo Distress Ink to ink the edges of the card background panel. 

I used the Waffle Flower Postage Collage A6 Die to cut a second die cut from the Tuscan cardstock and I glued it behind the first want for substance.  Once glued, I used Altenew Carbon Black Gouache and Kuretake Starry Colors watercolor paint No. 903 and spatter both onto the background panel and set aside to dry.

Creating the Focal Point

For the focal point, I simply chose to die cut one of the rabbits from the Sizzix/Tim Holtz die set called Vault Hippity Hop.  I die cut the rabbit two times from Spellbinders Timber cardstock, glued them together, and used Ranger/Tim Holtz Black Soot ink to blacken the edges of the rabbit.  After the edging, I spattered the die cut with Kuretake Starry Colors No. 903 gold watercolor paint so it would blend in with the card’s background panel.

Creating the Sentiment

For the sentiment, I used the “Happy Easter” stamp from the Stampers Anonymous Bunny Hop Stamp/Stencil set.  I placed a piece of Fairy ink colored card stock that I made by dragging the Simon Says Stamp Fairy ink pad across a small piece of cardstock and placed it into my MISTI tool.  I applied a generous amount of anti-static powder to the cardstock and stamped the sentiment using Altenew’s Obsidian Black ink pad.  Once stamped, I applied WOW!’s Clear Gloss Super Fine embossing powder to the sentiment and melted the powder with the heat tool.  I used the Tonic/Tim Holtz Mini Trimmer and cut the sentiment to size then cut a couple additional layers from the same Fairy ink cardstock to glue behind it for dimension.  To finish the sentiment, I used a foam ink blending tool and edged a little bit of the Vintage Photo to give it a some-what grungier appearance.

Assembling the Card

I wanted to add the card’s background to a piece of the Simons Says Stamp plum ink, alas I did not have that color (or anything close to it) so I had to get creative and make my own by dragging the Plum ink pad across an entire piece of 5” x 7” cardstock because if I didn’t ink the entire panel I would be able to see the un-inked areas through the postage collage holes – thank heavens for reinkers!  Once the inked dried on the new plum cardstock panel, I die cut it with the largest die from Waffle Flower’s A6 Lacy Layers Die set.  I adhered the Plum panel to a side-folding, A6 card base using strips of Scor-Tape.  I added strips of Altenew Instant Dimension Foam Tape to the back of the decorative, postage collage panel and removed the backing to adhere it to the Plum cardstock panel.  I added liquid glue to the back side of the sentiment and placed it on the lower right of the card, then positioned the rabbit die cut over the top of it.  I didn’t want to add even more dimension to the rabbit/card, so I cut the rabbit’s left leg (as seen in the photo) and glued the top half of the rabbit directly to the card background (minus the trimmed portion of its leg), then trimmed the end of his left foot and glued it under the sentiment as if it were literally placed behind the sentiment.

Thank you for stopping by and checking out today’s blog post, I really do appreciate.  Until next time, happy crafting!

Thankful Silhouettes | StampersAnonymous & The Greetery

Hi crafty friends!  Today I am sharing a colorful Thanksgiving card that I made using the Thankful Silhouettes stamps from Stampers Anonymous and Tim Holtz, as well as a stamp/stencil set from The Greetery.  The large wordy stamp in Thankful Silhouettes is everything a crafter needs for a great Thanksgiving background created. 

The supplies used:

Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz – Thankful Silhouettes Stamp Set

     Spellbinders – Windy Fall Leaves Press Plates and Die Set

     The Greetery – Oakwood Stamp and Stencil Set

     Spellbinders – Precision Layering A2 A Die Set

     Scrapbook.com – Heavy Weight Mixed Media Paper Pad (White)

     Spellbinders – Timber Color Essentials Cardstock

     Ranger/Tim Holtz – Distress Archival Ink, Ground Espresso

     Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Saturated Ink – Clay, Nutmeg,

          Cocoa, Cappuccino, Cantaloupe, Sherbet, Honey

     Ranger/Tim Holtz – Distress Spray Stain – Crackling Campfire,

          Vintage Photo, Squeezed Lemonade, Bundled Sage

     Ranger/Tim Holtz – Distress Spritz – Crackling Campfire, Squeezed Lemonade

     Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz – Grime “THS130” Layering Stencil

     Ranger/Tim Holtz – Distress Opaque Texture Paste

     Ranger/Tim Holtz – Distress Palette Knife

     Simon Says Stamp – Big Momma Foam Tape

     Ranger Heat It Craft Tool

     Anna Griffin Empress Die Cutting Machine

     Spellbinders BetterPress Letterpress System

Creating the Card Front Background

I cut a piece of white, Heavy Weight Mixed Media Paper from Scrapbook.com to measure 5-1/2” x 6” and used blue painter’s tape to adhere it to a hardboard.  Since I will be using Distress Spray Stain on the panel, I placed the large wordy stamp from Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz called “Thankful Silhouettes” onto an acrylic block and stamped the image using Ranger/Distress Ground Espresso Archival Ink. 

Once the stamping was completed, I used the Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz “Grime/THS130” stencil and Ranger/Tim Holtz Distress Opaque Texture Paste and partially pasted portions of the background panel in three locations on each background to add interest.  I cleaned up my stencil and palette knife and set the two backgrounds aside to allow the paste to fully dry.

Once the texture paste was dry, I began spritzing Ranger Distress Spray Stains in the colors Crackling Campfire, Bundled Sage, Squeezed Lemonade, and Vintage Photo.  I alternated between these four colors and small amounts of water until I got the look I was trying to achieve.  I dried the panel with my Ranger Heat It Craft Tool and, once relatively dry, I sprayed a bit of Distress Spritz in the Crackling Campfire and Squeezed Lemonade colors to give the background a bit of shimmer.  When everything was completely dry, I removed the inky panel from the hardboard and die cut it using the third largest die from the Spellbinders Precision Layering A2 A die set.  I also die cut a piece of Spellbinders Timber cardstock using the largest die from the Precision Layering A2 A die set for a matting layer.  I adhered the Timber cardstock to the front of a white A2 size card base and added Simon Says Stamp Big Momma Foam Tape to the inky panel and adhered it onto brown the matting layer.

Creating the Focal Point

For the focal point, I used The Greetery’s “Oakwood” stamp and stencil set.  I started by taking a piece of 4-1/2” x 5-1/2” white cardstock and placed it on my Simon Says Stamp “Stamp and Stencil Mat” and placed the first stencil from the Oakwood set over the cardstock and ink blended Simon Says Stamp Cappuccino ink over the acorns and a combination of Simon Says Stamp Cantaloupe and Sherbet inks over the two leaves.  For stencil 2, I ink blended the top three leaf openings with Simon Says Stamp Honey ink and the same Cantaloupe/Sherbet combination for the bottom leaf opening.  For stencil 3, I ink blended the branch openings with the Cappuccino ink.

Next, I placed the ink blended panel into my MISTI stamp positioner and began placing the stamps from the Oakwood stamp set over the ink blended images they coordinated with.  These are the Simon Says Stamp ink colors I used for each stamp:

     A – Clay

     B – Nutmeg (yellow leaves) and Clay (orange leaf)

     C & D – Cocoa

I removed the stamped cardstock panel from the MISTI and fussy cut it out since I didn’t have the coordinating die. 

Building the Sentiment

Utilizing the Spellbinders “Windy Fall Leaves” Press Plates and Die set, I used Simon Says Stamp Cocoa ink and the ‘Sending Autumn Wishes’ sentiment from that set and together with my Spellbinders BetterPress system created the sentiment and die cut it with the die from that same set.  I placed additional scraps of cardstock on the back of the sentiment to give it some additional strength and dimension.   

Finishing the Design

To complete the card, I added foam squares to the back side of the leafy focal point and adhered it and the sentiment onto the mixed media, card front background.  Lastly, I adhered the card front to an A2 size card base and that wrapped up today’s card.

Thank you for stopping by and checking out today’s blog post, I really appreciate it.  Until next time, happy crafting!