Tag: hot foiling

Two handmade cards featuring stenciled and foiled gifts. Rainbow Ink Stenciled Cards with Foil Accents | Year-Round Inspiration
cardmaking · Hot Foiling · stitching

Rainbow Ink Stenciled Cards with Foil Accents | Year-Round Inspiration

Karen BrownLeave a comment
Two cards in soft pinks and other pastel colors that are stenciled, hot foiled and die cut. The theme is gift wrapped packages and the elements can be used for Christmas, thank you cards, birthdays, showers and graduations.

The new Hero Arts October 2025 Best Gift Ever Collection is here, and I couldn’t resist creating with the Best Gift Ever Boxes Bundle. These products are incredibly versatile—you can use them for birthdays, Christmas, graduations, showers, or anytime you need a festive card. I went with pastel rainbow colors and magenta foil for two cheerful and celebratory designs.

Handmade pastel rainbow card with hot foiled, stenciled and die cut gift packages with magenta foil perfect for a birthday or shower.

✨ Card Process

  1. I began by hot foiling the ribbon and bow details from the Wrap It Up LetterPress + Foil Plates in Magenta Foil on Deluxe Smooth Cardstock. This cardstock gives crisp foiling and smooth ink blending results.
  2. Next, I pulled out the Gorgeous Gifts Layering Stencils to add sherbet-like rainbow colors to my packages.
  3. Once stenciled, I die cut the gifts with the Gift Boxes Die Set. I repeated steps 1-3 twice to create enough pieces for two cards.
  4. For the sentiments, I again hot foiled in magenta foil:
  5. I arranged the die-cut gifts and sentiments into a loose square composition, mounting them with foam squares onto a white scalloped square panel (from the Square Scallop Infinity Dies). Finally, I adhered them to a pale pink card base.

The result? Two pastel, rainbow-inspired cards with a touch of elegant foil shine. These gifts are perfect for any season or occasion—and I love how the foil details elevate the look for something extra special.

💡 Foiling Note: I own two foiling machines, but I consistently get my best results with the Spellbinders Glimmer System. In fact, I haven’t reached for my other machine since 2023! This is, of course, just my personal experience, but I thought it might be helpful to share if you’re curious about foiling systems.

Handmade thank you card in rainbow pastel colors using Hero Arts Best Gift Ever Collection. Hot Foiling, Layered Stenciling and die cutting techniques used.

I am also participating in an Instagram Hop for this release, and we’d love for you to pop by! You can find all the details HERE.

Interested in another post on foiling? Click HERE.

Video: Make This Playful Elf Christmas Card
cardmaking · Hot Foiling · Video

Video: Make This Playful Elf Christmas Card

Karen BrownLeave a comment

Today I’m sharing a playful Christmas elf card that combines bold colors, a cheeky sentiment, and a versatile foiled background. Even better—I filmed the entire process so you can craft along step by step.

I have a list of key supplies used below the video.

👉 Or Watch the full video tutorial here!

Interesed in more of my videos? Click HERE to go to my YouTube Channel.

Key Products Used:

Adorable die-cut Christmas elf card on a hot-foiled background that simulates falling snow.

The Background – Snow or Confetti, You Choose!

I started with the Hero Arts Celebration Press Plate (part of the Yule Fuel Collection). I love how versatile this plate is—it looks like snowflakes when foiled in white but could also become a confetti background in bright colors. For this project, I went snowy, since my elf needed a winter wonderland to stand in.

Close-up of foiled snowy background created with the Celebration Press Plate. White foil dots on blue cardstock, resembling falling snow for a handmade Christmas card.

The Sassy Elf

Next came my focal point: a die cut elf from the Yule Fuel Collection. He’s cheeky, a little silly, and absolutely festive. To give him personality, I used ColorWheel Cardstock in:

  • Cascade (blue)
  • Dahlia (pink)
  • Fern (green)

The mix of colors makes him bold and fun—perfect for standing out against the snowy background.

Title: Fun & Festive Christmas Elf Card | Yule Fuel Collection Description: Create a quirky, colorful handmade Christmas card featuring a sassy die cut elf, snowy foiled background, and the playful sentiment “OMG! Santa!”. Step-by-step video tutorial included—perfect DIY holiday card idea!

The Cheeky Sentiment

Every good elf needs a punchline, and this one couldn’t be better:
“OMG! Santa!”

The die cut letters are crisp, bright, and perfectly straight across the card front (in the video, I share my favorite tip for gluing letters evenly every time).

Watch the Video Tutorial

And in my video, I show you:

  • Exactly how I foiled the Celebration Press Plate
  • How to glue tricky die cut letters so they’re straight and evenly spaced
  • My step-by-step process for putting the whole card together

 Or Watch the full video tutorial here!

Handmade Christmas card featuring a die cut elf in pink, blue, and green standing on a snowy foiled background with bold die cut sentiment reading ‘OMG! Santa!’ from the Yule Fuel Collection

Trust me—you’ll be smiling the whole time you make this card.

cardmaking · Die cutting · Hot Foiling

Spring Whimsy with Hero Arts: Bold Colors, Butterflies & Birthday Cheer

Karen Brown2 Comments

Spring is in the air, and so is a burst of bold color and whimsy! Today, I’m taking a closer look at the new Hero Arts Spring Whimsy Collection with four vibrant cards featuring hot foiling, ink smooshing, ink blending, heat embossing, and die cutting. Let’s get crafty!

>>> You may also be interested in my recent video and blog post: Easy and Festive Cardmaking <<<

Card 1: Hot Foil Butterfly Elegance

This card is all about shimmer and movement! I started with an aqua ink-smooshed background—the perfect backdrop for a gorgeous, hot-foiled butterfly. The butterfly itself was hot foiled onto an ink-blended panel of soft pinks, corals, and oranges before being die cut and centered on the background.

A hot-foiled butterfly in pink, coral, and orange, die-cut and placed on an ink-smooshed aqua background.

My Process for Creating This Foiled Butterfly Card:

✨ Pro Tip: Ink smooshing is a great way to create organic, watercolor-like backgrounds.

Gorgeous Hot Foil Glimmer Butterfly card on a dreamy aqua ink smooshed background.

Card 2: Striking Ink-Blended Background & Black Butterfly

A bold ink-blended background in Fruit Punch, Creamsicle, and Taffy with a striking black die-[cut butterfly as the focal point.

For a dramatic look, I ink blended a bold background using Fruit Punch, Creamsicle, and Taffy inks. These warm hues set the stage for a striking black die-cut butterfly, creating a high-contrast, modern design.

Key Product: Delicate Butterfly Fancy Die (also used on card #1 and #3)
Bold pink, coral and orange ink blended background with a lovely die cut black butterfly focal element. Hero Arts Delicate Butterfly Fancy Die.

Card 3: Heat Embossed Floral Background + Die Cut Butterfly

A white heat-embossed floral background over a vibrant coral and pink ink-blended panel, accented with a small black butterfly and a die cut “hello” sentiment. Hero Arts Whimy Floral Bold Print Stamp.

This card keeps the same coral, pink, and orange hues but introduces texture with the Whimsy Floral Bold Print background stamp. I heat embossed the pattern in white over my ink-blended panel and added a small black die-cut butterfly and a “hello” sentiment for balance.

Key Products Used:

Hero Arts Floral Bold Print Stamp heat embossed over an ink blended gradient from soft orange to hot pink.

This next photo shows two cards I created with the Delicate Butterfly Fancy Die.

2 handmade cards featuring Hero Arts Delicate Butterfly Fancy Dies. Both cards have an orange to pink gradient color scheme with black die cut butterflies.

Card 4: Elegant Window Birthday Card

A birthday card featuring a 9-pane Hero Artd Elegant Window Die with small, Copic-colored birthday images and a stamped “cheers” sentiment with Mist blue cardstock.

For a completely different vibe, I created a charming birthday card using the Elegant Window Fancy Die. The die creates a beautiful 9-pane window, which I die cut from Mist cardstock. Each pane features a tiny, Copic-colored stamped image from the Spring Bunny Stamps, Our Day Messages, and Birthday Animal stamp sets. A simple “cheers” sentiment ties it all together.

Charming 9 window pane stamped and die cut birthday card featuring small stamped images of cake, party hats, balloon animal, duck, butterflies and flowers.

This collection is packed with so much creative potential! Whether you love hot foiling, ink blending, or stamping, there’s something here for every cardmaker. I hope these designs inspire you to play with color and try new techniques!

Four beautiful handmade cards created with Hero Arts Spring Whimsy Collection + hot foiling, ink blending, stamping, ink smooshing and die cutting.

Thank you for stopping by!

cardmaking · Hot Foiling

Spellbinders| Glimmer for the Holidays| Swirling Foliage Tree

Karen Brown2 Comments

Quick and easy Christmas cards are my favorite! Today I am sharing three bright colorful DIY cards that came together very quickly.

Glimmer for the Holidays Hot Foil Christmas Cards

Sometimes, it seems that it takes me several tries to get the hot foil result that I am looking for, but this Spellbinders Swirling Tree and Comfort and Joy sentiments came out perfectly everytime!

I did three versions, and I love them all. These glimmer plates would work so well for mass producing Christmas cards. And I love that I get 6 sentiments with every foil and die-cutting pass! I have tons leftover for future cards. Such a time-saver.

For the Rainbow tree I angled the rainbow foil and I really like the end result. I also used the rainbow foil for the sentiment on the blue and amythest cards.

Products Used:

Supplies Available at Amazon:

X-Press It Blending Cardstock For Great Foiling Results

Waffle Flower Foam Strips

6 Inch T Square Ruler
cardmaking · hot foiling · papercrafting

Spellbinders | Its My Party Too Collection: 3 Colorful Rainbow Card Ideas

Karen BrownLeave a comment
Spellbinders Hip Hip Hooray clean and simple foil glimmer card. GLP-388

Clean and Simple Foil Glimmer Card

Today I am sharing some sentiment focused hot foil cards and the first one was so quick and easy! I wanted to spotlight the fun sentiment so I added some 1/4″ paper strips to the bottom right corner and then angled my sentiment. Done!

Products Used:

Paper Trimmer available at Amazon:

Tonic Studios paper trimmer

Spellbinders Glimmering Hooray Hot Foil Plate and Die Set + handmade card | GLP-388

Hot Foil Stamping + Texture + Rainbow Colors

For my second card, I wanted some texture on my background panel and I thought the Tiny Dots Embossing Folder would be perfect. To add fun pops of color, I added a 1″ rainbow accent strip to the bottom of my card. The width of each strip is 1/4″.

Products Used:

Spellbinders Glimmering All About You Hot Foil Plate and Dies Set GLP-389 + handmade card

Hot Foiling + White and Gold Floral Die Cuts

For card #3, I kept the rainbow color theme but I added lots of white and gold floral elements to emphasize the lovely gold foiled sentiment. I started with the star of the card, which is the gorgeous hot foiled sentiment. Next, I ink blended a rainbow panel that I die cut into an oval shape and then embossed with the Tiny Dots embosssing folder. At this point, I thought the card looked too plain so I die cut a bunch of my favorite flowers and added them around the perimeter of the center oval. I also embellished with some colorful enamel dots. I die cut the card base from an A2 top folding card. To keep the top fold, I positioned the top edge of the die just above the fold.

Spellbinders Glimmering All About You Hot Foil Plate and Dies Set GLP-389 + Tiny Dots Embossing Folder SES-051.

cardmaking · Hot Foiling

Spellbinders | Glimmer Cardfront Birthday Sentiments 6 Ways

Karen BrownLeave a comment
Spellbinders Glimmer Cardfront Birthday Sentiment handmade card in Rainbow Hot Foil

Making Your Own Backgrounds with Rainbow Strips of Cardstock

Big bold sentiments can really add a lot of impact to your cards, so I was so excited to see Spellbinders new Glimmer Cardfront Sentiment Collection. Today, I am sharing 6 different glimmer hot foil birthday cards featuring the Best Wishes on Your Birthday Foil Plate.

I love bright colored cards so I started with Rainbow Hot Foil and then created coordinating backgrounds made of colorful strips of cardstock. The sentiment panel was die cut using Stylish Oval Nesting Dies. For card #1, I used a paper trimmer to cut fifteen 1/4″ strips of cardstock. Next, I applied a tape runner over a cardstock panel and then adhered the cardstock strips in rainbow order. Surprisingly, this is actually fast and easy to do.

PRO TIP: To assemble my card, I used craft foam and liquid glue to add a layer of dimension under both the background and sentiment panel. On many projects I prefer craft foam to foam tape. With craft foam and glue, I can slide my element and make micro-adjustments for perfect placement.

Don’t you just love the shine and shimmer?

How to make your own Make Your Own Backgrounds with Rainbow Strips of Cardstock

For card #2, I used my paper trimmer to cut six 1/2″ strips of colored cardstock and then I cut five 1/8″ strips of white cardstock. I think the white dividers really brighten up the look! I again used a tape runner to adhere the white and colored strips to the background. For the second card, I used gold foil and and then matted the sentiment with brushed gold cardstock.

Spellbinders Glimmer Cardfront Birthday Sentiments 6 Ways

Using Printed Designer Paper for Quick and Easy Cards

These fun foiled sentiments do all the heavy lifting so it is easy to quickly make cards using printed designer paper for the background. Spellbinders Cheerful Occasions pad (I think this pad sold out) has such fun designs and I used the papers on the backgrounds of cards #3, #5 and #6.

Using Printed Designer Paper for Quick and Easy Cards + Spellbinders Glimmer Cardfront Sentiments hot foiling

Reverse Foiling | Using the Glimmer Hot Foil Negative Space for 2 For 1 Cards

I hated to throw away the foil after I created the cards above, so I created 2nd bonus cards with the leftover foil. The result is so bright and eyecatching! Card #3 uses the negative from the Rainbow Foil.

I cranked up the heat and time and ran the “foil negative” through a second time using a solid foil plate. I used the highest heat setting for 1 minute and got a beautiful result.

PRO TIP: There is a thin protective layer on top of the foil that I peeled off after my card was finished. I kept the foil covered (with the clear protective layer) during assembly to prevent scratches on the foil.

Using the Glimmer Hot Foil Negative Space for 2 For 1 Cards + Spellbinders Glimmer Cardfront Sentiments

Card #5 uses designer paper paired with the negative from the gold foil.

Quick and Easy DIY glimmer hot foil cards.

My final card pairs designer paper, black foil plus I added a second mat die cut from velum. The velum mat is subtle but very pretty.

Spellbinders Glimmer Hot Foil Cardfront Sentiments Birthday Card

Products Used:

Do you have a favorite? I’d love for you to tell me in the comments.

Karen

cardmaking · Die cutting · papercrafting

Spellbinders | Stylish Ovals Collection 4 Ways

Karen Brown1 Comment
Spellbinders Stylish Oval Hello You Floral Dies (S5-565) + Oval Nesting Dies (S5-562) on a handmade card.

Oval Shaped Cards

Shaped dies can really change the look of your cards and projects so I was excited to see Spellbinders new Stylish Ovals Collection. I created the first card for my mom’s upcoming birthday. Red is her signature color so I paired corally reds with aquas and greys for a very eye-catching color palette.

To make my oval cardbase, I used the largest oval die for the base. I took a white A2 top folding card base and put the top edge of the die just above the fold so that the die would cut around the top. I die cut the stem twice and glued together for added heft and stability.

Supplies Used:

Shaped Oval Card with Spellbinders Stylish Ovals Collection

Spellbinders Floral Die Cut Cards

Spellbinders Stylish Oval Hello You Floral Dies (S5-565) + Oval Infinity Punch and Pierce Plate Cover Die handmade card.

I needed a card for a bridal shower so I made a second oval shaped card with die cut flowers. This one is smaller than card 1, it is 5″ x 3 3/4″. I think it makes for a sweet gift encloser.

I used the same products as card one but added a pretty little oval frame from the Infinity Punch and Pierce Plate Cover Die. This die is so beautiful and a has an incredible amount of detail, but it cuts beautifully. I used just the middle section on this card and I used the other 2 sections on card #4 below.

Products Used:

White oval shaped card with die cut red flowers.

Die Cut Rainbow Arch Birthday Card

Colorful Rainbow Arch card with Spellbinders Stylish Oval Nesting Dies (S5-562) handmade card.

In case you haven’t noticed, I LOVE these oval nesting dies. Just for fun, I wanted to make a bright cheerful rainbow card so I selected 8 bright shades of cardstock and then die cut my rainbow elements.

This type of birthday card is so versatile that I love to keep them on hand. I could send this to anyone…man, woman or child.

Products Used:

Festive Rainbow Colored Die Cut Birthday card.

Spellbinders Infinity Punch and Pierce Plate Cover Die

Spellbinders Stylish Oval Infinity Punch and Pierce Plate Cover Die (S5-566) handmade card.

This cover die is gorgeous in person! I started by making a rainbow gradient background with inks and blending brushes. I then placed the center and exterior components of the cover die over the top and added two floral embellishments that echo the spring colors.

Supplies Used:

Oval pierced cover die with spring ink blending on a handmade card.

I hope I offered some inspiration for your crafting.

Karen

cardmaking · Hot Foiling

Altenew March 2023 Marvelous Monthly Series Release Blog Hop #2 + Giveaway ($300 in Total Prizes!)

Karen Brown35 Comments
Altenew Spark Joy: Sweet Strawberries Foiling Kit + handmade card

The March 2023 Altenew Spark Joy release is pure sweetness! These strawberries are just adorable and I had so much fun creating my cards. Today’s post is part of a HOP for the Marvelous Monthly series and there are wonderful prizes along the way.

Hot Foiling + Coloring Stencils

For my two cards I am using Altenew’s Sweet Strawberries Hot Foil Plates and Coloring Stencils. The darling sentiment is included with the kit.

Rainbow Foil + Coordinating Coloring Stencils on an Altenew Spark Joy Sweet Strawberries handmade card

For my first sweet card, I used rainbow foil with my plates and then I “colored” the images with the coordinating coloring stencils and Altenew Crisp Dye Ink. I LOVE coloring with stencils and with the slick cardstock (I used Yupo Paper on card #1), the blending is so easy. I got a great result foiling on Yupo paper. It isn’t bright white, but is a bit creamy and I love the soft result.

Altenew Sweet Strawberries Hot Foil Kit + handmade card.

For Card #2, I used X-Press It Blending Cardstock, black foil and I also added some black enamel dots. The X-Press It paper is whiter, but the foiling on the Yupo paper (Card #1) was flawless.

Hot Foiling on Yupo Paper and X-Press Blending Cardstock.

Products Used:

Giveaway Prizes

$300+ in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $100 gift card to 1 grand prize winner and a $20 gift card to 10 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by March 26, 2023 for a chance to win.

Altenew will draw 5 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on March 28, 2023. *The grand prize winner will be chosen from comments left on the Altenew Card Blog.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter
https://fresh.inlinkz.com/js/widget/load.js?id=c0efdbe6b4add43dd7ef

I am so pleased you stopped by!

Karen

cardmaking · Die cutting · Hot Foiling

Spellbinders | Four Petal Collection

Karen BrownLeave a comment
Spellbinders Four Petal Bloom Reflection Die Kit: S4-1263 handmade card.

Hi friends, I am sharing two cards from Spellbinders new Four Petal Collection. The cards are very different but they are both so pretty!

Spellbinders Four Petal Bloom Reflection Die Kit: S4-1263

I adore die-cutting so The Four Petal Bloom Reflection Kit called to me. I love all the gorgeous detail on these dies! I added an extra metal shim while die-cutting which resulted in beautiful die-cut results. I framed the florals with the Essential Rectangles die as I liked the way it complimented the small die-cut circles on the fan flowers. I also embellished the white flowers with enamel dots.

Products Used:

Spellbinders Four Petal Bloom Reflection Die Kit: S4-1263 + Handmade Card

Spellbinders Four Petal Scroll Label Hot Foil Plate: GLP-370

Last year, I finally bought myself a foiling system and I really love the results! For this card, I used the new Four Petal Scroll Label Foil Plate. The shine can be difficult to photograph, but I did my best. This card just glows in person!

Spellbinders Four Petal Scroll Label Hot Foil Plate + handmade card

I used Gold Foil on Yupo paper and the results are beautiful! I then ink blended Lagoon and Parrot ink over the foiling and let the ink dry overnight so it would not smear. I like foiling on the slick Yupo paper but it does take longer for the ink to dry. The next day, I matted with Brushed Gold cardstock and added some Crystal Gems to further enhance the beautiful shine of the foiling. The sentiment is included in the kit.

Spellbinders Four Petal Scroll Label Hot Foil Plate: GLP-370 + ink blending over gold foil.

Products Used:

I am so happy you stopped by!

Karen

cardmaking · papercrafting

Spellbinders | December 2022 Club Kits

Karen Brown3 Comments
Die Cut Rainbow Heart Valentine Card using Spellbinders December 2022 Large Die of the Month Club Kit.

Rainbow Heart Die-Cut Valentine

Who is ready for Valentine’s Day? The Spellbinders December Club Kits are live and there are so many fresh ideas for Valentines Day and beyond. I am excited to show you the cards I made. I started with the Large Die of the Month called “Blooming Heart”.

I made this colorful card for my husband and I am so pleased with it! I started by cutting 20 1/4″ strips from leftover card stock scraps. The only color I repeated is the green that shows on both edges. Using a dot-liner glue runner, I added adhessive to cardstock and then I adhered each strip. This goes much more quickly than you think. Next, I die cut the heart from a 5 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ panel. Using foam tape, I attached the heart to the background panel. For me, the most difficult part was selecting a sentiment. I tried a bunch but eventually decided on this simple hot foiled sentiment from Spellbinders Mini Everday Sentiments set: GLP-260. It expresses my feelings without drawing the eye away from the rainbow heart.

Using 1/4" strips of paper to make a rainbow colored die cut heart valentine card,

December 2022 Large Die of the Month: “Blooming Heart”.

Spellbinders December 2022 Large Die of the Month Kit: Blooming Heart.

The December Large Die of Month kit (Blooming Heart) is stunning and oh so fun! I die cut all my pieces using an additional metal shim for precise cutting. I then assembled the heart with liquid glue. Using foam tape, I attached the heart to a mushroom colored background and then adhered it to an A2 card base. The sentiment is again hot foiled using Spellbinders Mini Everday Sentiments set: GLP-260.

Die Cut Floral Heart Valentine card.

Embossing Folder of the Month: Heart Blooms

Spellbinders December 2022 Embossing Folder of the Month: Heart Blooms Valentine Card.

Don’t you just love the texture on this gorgeous embossing folder? It is called Heart Blooms and I wanted it to be the star of this card. I embossed a panel of mushroom colored cardstock. I then added a hot foiled sentiment to a 2″ strip of cardstock and then embellished with die-cut flowers from this month’s Large Die of the Month and greenery from a previous release.

Supplies Used:

Handmade valentine using Spellbinders December 2022 Club Kits.

Small Die of the Month: Stitched Heart Card Front

Spellbinders December 2022 Small Die of the Month: Stitched Heart Card Front "stitched valentine".

This stitched valentine kit is so pretty….the card just glows in person! I started by die cutting the diamond backdrop in salmon and brushed gold cardstock and then I stacked them. You don’t really notice the bottom layer but it adds nice dimension. I glued the two delicate pieces together with E6000 spray glue, which is perfect for this type of die cut.

The background is lovely but simple and I know I’ll be using it a lot on future cards. I cut one white panel and two from brushed gold. I assembled by scooting one of the gold panels slightly above the white and one slightly below so there is a pretty band of gold at the top and bottom. The sentiment is included in the kit.

I die cut the heart from white cardstock and then did my stitching in front of a fire in our hearth. I used DMC gold floss. I added some white enamel dots for embellishment and attached to an A2 Top Fold Card Base. I made this card for my mom.

Products Used:

"Stitched" Valentine in gold thread using Spellbinders December 2022 Small Die of the Month: Stitched Heart Card Front

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen