Jean Manis - Right as Rain

Spellbinders | City Holiday Collection

Hello! Today, I’m sharing a festive Christmas card created with Yana Smakula’s City Holiday Collection for Spellbinders. My inspiration began with one of the Spellbinders Holiday Color Deck cards. You can read more about the cards HERE. I used the same illustration and palette as on the barn card HERE. With those colors as my guide, I created a charming apartment dressed for the holidays and finished the scene with a hot-foiled BetterPress sentiment for an elegant touch.

- Dry-emboss a 5″ x 7″ Raven cardstock panel with the Sparkling Snow folder. Add to a card base.
- Cut the City Holiday building and snowbank from a variety of cardstock colors and assemble.
- Hot foil in gold the Christmas Cheer sentiment and cut with the coordinating die. I cut foam with the same die and glued to the back for stability and depth.
- Adhere the building, snowbank, and sentiment to the prepared base using glue and foam squares.

Spellbinders | Make a Splash

Hello! I’m back with another underwater-themed card, this time featuring the Splash Tales die set, the August 2025 Large Die of the Month at Spellbinders. This fun and generous set includes everything you need to build a lively ocean scene. I used repetition to create five colorful fish in a variety of hues—almost like an underwater bouquet—surrounded by flowing plant life. The die-cut sentiment “Make a Splash” is perfect for a cheerful hello or celebration.

- Create an A2-size card base from white cardstock.
- Cut Seaside cardstock with the largest die in the Essential Arches set and adhere to base.
- Cut scene elements from a variety of cardstock colors using dies in the Large Die and Small Die sets. (You can see my Small Die set card HERE.) Assemble. Die-cut the sentiment from white cardstock and white foam. Assemble with glitter foam side down. This method ensures that the sentiment is well-supported, although the step is not required.
- Add elements to prepared card base with glue and foam squares.

Spellbinders | Dive Into Joy

Hello! Today I’m sharing a card that takes us on an underwater adventure, made with the August 2025 Small Die of the Month set from Spellbinders. I built a lively ocean scene complete with two divers, colorful fish, and flowing underwater plants. The sentiment “You Brighten My Day” adds a cheerful touch, making this card perfect for sending a little sunshine to someone special. The details in this die set make the scene come to life—it was such a joy to put together!

- Create an A2-size card base from white cardstock.
- With the two largest dies in the Essential Stylish Ovals set, cut a vellum oval and a Teal Topaz oval. Adhere to card base.
- Cut Small Die elements from a variety of cardstock colors. Assemble.
- Press sentiment and cut with coordinating die.
- Add elements to card base with glue and foam adhesive.

Hero Arts | Halloween Gallery Wall

Hello! If you’ve ever thought about decorating a gallery wall for Halloween, why not bring that idea to a handmade card? For this playful project, I used a collection of Halloween-themed dies from the Hero Arts August 2025 Die Set of the Month—Haunted Gallery—to create a wall of framed icons including a witch, her pointy shoe, a ghost, and a curious black cat. The background is an aptly themed patterned paper, and the card is finished with the BetterPress sentiment “Sending Spooky Hugs.”

- Cover A2-size card base with Halloween-themed pattern paper.With the die set, cut elements for the gallery wall from a variety of cardstock colors and textures. I used a restrained palette of gold, silver, black, white, and vellum to keep the design cohesive. Assemble.
- Press the sentiment and cut with the coordinating die.
- Adhere elements to the card base.

Penny Black | Watercolored Hydrangea

Hello! Today, I’m sharing a handmade card featuring a watercolored hydrangea bloom in a vintage-style watering can—created with stamps from Penny Black. I stamped the sentiment on vellum and cut it with a circle die sot that the words would not get lost over the background. It’s a simple, yet heartfelt, design that feels timeless.

- Cover an A2-size card base with patterned paper.
- Stamp Hydrangeas and Sprinkles images on watercolor paper and color with media of choice. I used Kuretake Gansai Tambi watercolors. Once dry, cut the watercolored items with the coordinating die sets. I added white enamel accents to the floral centers.
- Stamp the Sprinkles sentiment on vellum and cut with a circle die. Adhere the circle and floral assembly to the prepared card base.