Cocoa Greetings Santa Card

Used Spellbinders products for these two cards for Christmas. I made two cards and made changes to Santa's face so they are not the same:

For the Santa mug on the cards I used the Spellbinders Small Die of the Month, July 2025, "Cocoa Greetings":

The packaging for this die set only shows one of the three mugs you can make - a Penquin. But I put together an extra Santa to stash with the die set so in the future it will remind me this die set can also make a Santa:

I also used the Spellbinders Better Press Plate "Snowfall Shimmer" that I hot foiled in the Spellbinders Glimmer Hot Foil machine using matte silver foil:

For the sentiment strips on the cards I used the Spellbinders Better Press Plate "Merry Messages" and foiled shiny silver hot foil onto black card stock. Here is the first card I made using the die set as it suggested:

***  The above card was chosen as a Fav of the Week this week on Splitcoast Stampers  ***  :0)

For this Santa I used scrap card stocks to die cut him out. This die set also embosses as it die cuts so you know where to place your die cut pieces. I cut out his red base and I sponged the edges of that. For my Santa I used pop dots behind his beard when I placed the beard on the red base (body piece). For the face, nose, and cheeks I die cut these out or a blush card stock and sponged the edges of the face and added ink over the nose and cheeks pieces using a dauber. Used liquid glue to add the black pieces that the die set cuts out behind the eye openings. I used liquid glue to add the mustache, nose, and cheek pieces to the face. Added liquid glue to the tab and buttons to the front of his coat. I added small black gems to the buttons piece for dimension. 

For the mug handle I die cut a red handle and layered the white piece over it so it looks like a peppermint handle using liquid glue. Set this aside. Die cut the brim of his hat out of glittered white card stock. Die cut the white hat piece and the white swirls on his hat I die cut those from white mirror card stock I had gotten years ago at AC Moore. Layered those together using liquid glue and used tear and tape to add these white pieces to the top of the Santa face. Used pop dots to put the glittered white hat brim on the white hat piece. With that done I used liquid glue and added the handle. 

Cut and scored a white card base at the top. Used the Spellbinders Layering Rectangle die set and I cut a piece of foil red and white stripe card stock in the stash from Hobby Lobby. Put that on the white card base using liquid glue. For the snowflake piece behind Santa I had hot foiled the snowflakes plate earlier and I cut it out to the size I wanted for my two cards using the Layering Rectangle die set. I put foam tape behind this foiled piece and put it on my card front. Then used both pop dots and tear and tape to put Santa on that. 

Hot foiled the Merry Messages Better Press plate using shiny silver foil and I used a piece of black card stock to foil these on. I wanted a black sentiment rather than a red one to break up all the red on the card front with the stripes and all. Used pop dots behind the sentiment strip. I also added a small candy cane to his whipped cream topping that the die set cuts out. 

This second Santa mug card:

After all pieces were die cut I decided to flip Santa's face piece upside down - this put the two little lines the face die cuts into the face for Santa's eyebrows under his eyes now. I also added white eyebrows to his face. For his red hat I used red card stock and the swirls piece is glittered red card stock. I layered those with liquid glue and put this at the top of the face piece and then added the glittered white brim piece to the base of the hat pieces.  

For the red stripes on the background of his card I used striped card stock, again in the stash but from Hobby Lobby and this is plain card stock. For his greeting I used "Merry Christmas".  Easy cards to assemble as I did it in steps - die cut and assembled Santa, did the hot foiling, and cut and scored the card stock base, and then cut the card striped pieces for the fronts of the cards.  Added small red crystals to the front of the cards for some sparkle. 

Merry Messages Better Press Plate

At the stamp show I attended on Friday in Duluth, Georgia I was able to buy the BetterPress "Merry Messages" plate. This plate has 5 sentiments with a matching die to cut them out. Here is a photo of the set:

All five sentiments are on one plate and the die to cut them out is also one piece so they make for easy additions for holiday projects:

When I foiled this BetterPress plate I used a variety of colours of foil not knowing what colours my cards and treat holders could be. I used both regular foil and holographic:

The above photo shows foiled pieces and the different fonts these sentiments have. Here is the pile of sentiments I foiled and die cut:

Ready for projects ahead which will be posted soon enough....... Certainly happy Spellbinders had their products at the Stamp and Scrapbook Expo this past weekend that I attended as this is a popular product and when first released it was hard to find it available any where..... Plus with show specials I was a happy customer!

Snow Notes Card #2

Recently received my order from Spellbinders and in that order was the new BetterPress plate "Snowfall Shimmer". I had also ordered the Spellbinders "The Snow Notes" die set. For this card I did not want a lot of different colours on it so I basically only used three -- here is the card:

For the card base I used white card stock and I cut and scored that at the top. I used the Spellbinders Glimmer Hot Foil machine and their opaque white foil to foil the BetterPress Snowfall Shimmer plate. This opaque white foil is a matte finish and it gives the background piece a dimensional look:

I cut the snowmen out using the Spellbinders The Snow Notes die set. Used scraps for the black mouth, buttons, orange for the nose, brown for the hands/arms, and the mint green for the scarves. A light blue scrap was used for the books. I assembled the sentiment strip "Fa La La" from the mint green over a banner piece I cut out of white card stock using liquid glue. Assembled all snowmen. 

The two snowmen on the sides are on the card front using tear and tape. The center snowman I used foam tape behind him for dimension. I also used the foam tape behind his book. This photo shows that better:

This card is non traditional colours for the holidays but it really shows off the foiled snowflakes using the opaque foil. 

While I was foiling the Snowfall Shimmer BetterPress plate I decided to use different foils and different card stocks so I have extras for future projects:

For the above foiled pieces I used opaque white foil, plain foil, holographic foil and they all foiled perfectly with no over foiling. When I had ordered that opaque foil awhile back I was not sure how it would look but when I foiled this new Better Press plate I wanted to try all the foils I have in the stash and I wanted to use a lot of different coloured card stocks. These are all from the stash, with many different manufacturers, so they are not all Hammermill and they still foiled beautifully. Happy to have so many pieces ready for projects ahead! LOVE this press plate and the new Snow Notes die set that Spellbinders has released for new holiday projects! 

Snow Notes Card #1

Just received my new order from Spellbinders that included their new The Snow Notes die set:

The first card I made I used blue card stock from Close To My Heart and it foils beautifully. I used a holographic foil for the background and I foiled the new BetterPress Snowfall Shimmer press plate for that. I cut out my snowmen from a piece of white card stock and all other colours I used are scraps. Here is my card:

The card stock base is white card stock cut and scored at the top. I trimmed my foiled background piece to the size I needed for the card front and then I sponged the edges of this piece using a light blue ink. I assembled all the snowmen. For the sentiment strip "Fa la la" I cut that out of the blue card stock and I cut the banner piece behind that out of holographic foil to match the foiled background. With all pieces assembled I put the card together.

Used liquid glue to put the snowflake background on the card front. Put the two snowmen on the sides on the card using tear and tape. For the center snowman I put that on the card front using foam tape to give him some dimension. Here are photos to show the holographic foil on the card front:

Easy card to assemble and happy to be able to use more card stock scraps for all the smaller pieces. Fun die set and when you die cut the pieces they emboss your cut image -- on the snowmen there is an embossed area on the die cut piece so you know where to put the carrot noses. On the music books the white pages are also embossed so you know where to place the book cover piece. Fun holiday card!

Shhhh.... Who's There? Halloween Card

Catherine Pooler Designs had a sale last week and I picked up three items -- first is her hot foil set "Sweet Nothings" which will be good for Valentine's day: 

This next item is her "Christmas Glory Cover Plate" die:

and of course I had to buy a Halloween cover plate for a favorite holiday..... It is her "Who's There? Cover Plate" die..... and here is the card I made:

My card stock base is black card stock from PaperTreyInk and I cut and scored that at the top. I used a spiderweb Better Press plate to hot foil holographic foil onto a black card stock. For the "Happy Halloween" greeting I used an older Spellbinders Halloween hot foil plate set and I used plain silver hot foil for that. Used banner dies from Pink & Main to cut that out.

With the hot foiling done I used the Who's There cover plate die and cut that out on the spiderweb foiled piece. Went through the stash and found one sheet of lime green card stock I trimmed down  to put behind my die cut eyes piece for the card front. Used liquid glue and put the spiderweb card front piece onto the lime green card stock. Used liquid glue and put these onto the black card stock base. 

With using the holographic foil for the spiderweb piece I decided for the greeting I would use plain silver foil. With the greeting piece die cut into the banner shape I used foam tape behind the greeting banner to put this on the card front for dimension - did not want the white edges of my white foam tape to show so I used a black Sharpie and ran that across the sides of the foam tape so it looks black. Put this greeting banner on the card front using the Pear Blossoms Card Maker's T Square ruler to line it up to not only make it straight but evenly placed in the center of the card. 

Here is a photo that shows the spiderwebs are holographic -

Very easy card to put together and spooky for BOO Day so a fun card.... Happy to be able to use some of the hot foil plates and foils from the stash as well as making a spooky card using sale items!  BOO!

Sorted sentiments for holiday projects - -

Recently bought two BetterPress holiday sentiment plates on sale at Spellbinders after I found out you can hot foil the BetterPress plates using the Glimmer Spellbinders hot foil machine - which I have. I used various hot foils and foiled these plates - using the waste foil as well once the sentiments were foiled:

Then used the included matching die sets and die cut out all the strips:

Once they were cut out I tossed them into a basket on the work table:

But once all were die cut the basket was really full and I decided I would need to sort these sentiment strips for future holiday projects. A recent trip to the Dollar Tree I picked up a box of snack bags to use for these strips to store in. Sorted the strips into piles on the the work table and put them in the zip lock bags when done and I have these bags in the basket now. The bags will help when I am looking for a sentiment strip for a holiday project.

Happy to have a sentiment stash on hand so when time is short at holiday time I will not have to stamp and die cut sentiments then.....

No wasted foils -

Did all the die cutting for the Spellbinder Better Press plates I had foiled yesterday. Once I foiled the plates I also foiled the 'waste' pieces of foils - here is a photo of the spider web I had foiled onto black card stock and then I foiled the piece I peeled off the black card stock,  the 'waste', and I foiled that onto white card stocks:

I foiled the sentiments and then foiled the 'waste' from the sentiments:

Die cut all the sentiments out with the banner dies included in the sets and now I have more than enough holiday sentiment strips for Christmas:

The last Better Press plate I bought on sale is for Halloween and it is a background plate. Once again I foiled that and then foiled it again with the waste:

It is the Pumpkins and Ghost plate. Here it is on white card stock with black foil:

and the black 'waste' foil:

For this one I used holographic rainbow colours foil with a circle design on it:

This one I foiled it with holographic rainbow colours in a striped pattern:

and then the 'waste':

Easy background to foil and use for card fronts. 

While I was foiling I decided to try to foil a small Gemini foiling plate I had picked up awhile ago at the Reconsidered Goods store in Greensboro. It was marked $1.00 and I liked the saying it says so I thought I would give it a try:

I used silver holographic and sparkly holographic foils in silver and gold to foil this onto white card stocks:

and the 'waste':

Happy the Gemini plate worked so well - was not sure if I would have to use a shim or be able to just use the two foiling plates that came with the machine to get a good foiling piece. I will have to say the Better Press plates foil wonderfully and the finished pieces have no over foiling and that is always a good thing.... now to make projects to use all these on!  :0)