Platinum 6 Die Cutting Machine

Best Cardmaking Supplies for 2026 Quad Graphic showing cardstock, swatching, tool organizer, Inks and die cutting machine

There’s something extra special about the first blog post of a new year — a fresh start, new ideas, and (let’s be honest) a little craft room daydreaming.

Today I’m sharing 14 of my most-used, most-loved cardmaking supplies for 2026. These aren’t just trendy products — they’re the tools I reach for again and again. If you’re stocking your craft room, refining your supplies, or just love seeing what other cardmakers actually use, this list is for you.

1. Favorite Card Kit Subscription: Spellbinders Large Die of the Month

Cute die cut card with hummingbirds hovering over a daisy floral garden.

If I had to choose one subscription kit to keep, this would be it. The Spellbinders Large Die of the Month never disappoints, and January’s kit — Hummingbird Delight — truly lives up to its name.

This kit features a beautiful floral postage / polaroid-style frame paired with the cutest hummingbirds. We get loads of hummingbirds in my garden every summer, so this theme instantly stole my heart. The floral border alone makes the card feel finished and elegant with very little effort.

✨ Runner-Up Favorite Subscription:
The very first kit I ever ordered — Hero Arts My Monthly Hero, now available in two versions for 2026:

Spellbinders January 2026 Embossing Folder of the Month Club Kit Card: Cloud Nine

2. Best Die Cutting Machine: Spellbinders Platinum 6

I use my Platinum 6 die cutting machine almost every single day. I’ve tried other machines over the years, but this one is reliable, smooth, and powerful. The others? They’re collecting dust.

3. Best Cardstock: Spellbinders ColorWheel Cardstock

Best Cardstock: Spellbinders ColorWheel cardstock shown in several assortment packs.

With 48 gorgeous colors, ColorWheel cardstock makes color selection easy and stress-free. I use it almost exclusively.

I recently placed a big order and am sharing a photo of my shipment, including:

4. Best Planning Tool: Swatching Dies

Best Cardmaking Planning Tool: Spellbinders Swatching Dies.

I use my swatching dies on nearly every project. Being able to flip through physical cardstock swatches saves time and helps me confidently choose colors that work together.

👉 Find all the details in my original swatching post

Key Swatching Products:

You’ll see these swatches featured throughout this post.

5. Best Inspiration Tool: Color Cubes

Best Papercrafting Inspirational Tool: Color Cubes.

Color planning is always my starting point, and Color Cubes are essential to my process. I own two volumes (1&2), a birthday gift from several years ago, and they’re well loved.

I like to start with the Color Catalogue where I can search by Color, Key Word or Collection and then I grab a few cards for inspiration.

Paired with my cardstock swatches, they make choosing beautiful color palettes effortless.

👉 Find all the details and dies used in this Be Beautiful Blooms post

6. Best Inks: Hero Arts Reactive & Core Inks

Best Inks: Hero Arts Reactive and Core Inks.

I have a large tub of Hero Arts inks — and honestly, I rarely reach for anything else. The colors are vibrant, blend beautifully, and are incredibly reliable.

Some favorites:

7. Best Blending Brushes: Waffle Flower

Best Blending Brushes: Waffle Flower with the color coded handles.

I love that Waffle Flower blending brushes have color-coded handles, so I instantly know which brush goes with which ink family. Small detail, huge time saver.

8. Best Die-Cutting Staple: Hero Arts Infinity Dies

Nesting infinity dies are true craft room staples, and I use mine constantly. I’ll be linking to 8 of my most-used sets in this post with my most used at the top. I’ll also link to a card using each die.

If you’re building a die collection, start here.

9. Best Embellishment: Enamel Dots

Best Papercrafting Embellishment: Spellbinders and Hero Arts Enamel Dots.

Hands down my favorite finishing touch. I use Spellbinders and Hero Arts enamel dots the most — clean, modern, and endlessly versatile.

10. Best Way to Add Texture: Embossing Folders

Best Way to Add Texture to Your Papercrafting Projects: Spellbinders Embossing Folder of the Month Club Kit.

Embossing folders are one of the easiest ways to add interest to a card. I subscribe to the Spellbinders Embossing Folder of the Month, and my collection has grown quickly.

I used January’s folder, Cloud Nine, on my Hummingbird card. It’s a stylized sky with clouds — perfect for so many scene cards.

11. Best Desk Organizer: Hero Tools Handy Holder

Best Crafting Desk Organizer: Hero Tools Handy Holder perfect for holding scissors, bone folders, pokey tools, jewel pickers and brushes.

This Handy Holder organizer keeps my scissors, tweezers, bone folder, palette knife, and brushes within arm’s reach. I love it so much… I own two!

They sit front and center on my desk.

12. Best Work Surface Organizer: Craft Stax

Best Craft Organizer: Stash Stax. large clear bin with lid to store crafting supplies.

One tool I reach for constantly while creating is Craft Stax. There are several sizes and they’re perfect for organizing, protecting, and corralling all of my crafting components as I work.

The photo above with my Fergus Felt components is the Stash Stax. I also love this size for storing cardstock.

I use Craft Stax to hold die-cut pieces, partially assembled cards, sentiments, and embellishments so nothing gets lost or damaged mid-project. They’re especially helpful when I’m working on detailed die-cut cards or stepping away and coming back later — everything stays exactly where I left it.

Best Papercrafting container for protecting components mid-project as you create.

The photo above is the Medium Craft Stax. 4.8″ x 6″

Craft Stax also make it easy to stack multiple projects on my desk without creating chaos (always a win!). Simple, smart, and incredibly useful — this is one of those tools you don’t realize you need until you have it… and then you can’t imagine crafting without it.

13. Best Die Organizer: Hero Arts Magnetic Sheets & Envelopes

Best product for storing and organizing dies: Hero Arts Magnetic Sheets and Envelopes.

These are absolute must-haves for staying organized:

Magnetic sheets keep dies secure
Labeled envelopes make everything easy to find

Two Sizes:

If organization is your goal in 2026, start here.

14. Best Tool for Stenciling & Stamping: Waffle Flower Sticky Mat

Best Tool for stenciling and Stamping: Waffle Flower Sticky Grip Mats.

I never stencil without a Waffle Flower Sticky Mat. I even wrote a full blog post about them — which turned out to be my most popular post of 2024!

👉 Find all the details in my original post

Sticky Grip Mats are perfect for stenciling and stamping. And they work great in your Misti and Mini Misti Stamp Positioners…no need for magnets anymore!

Grip Mat Options:

Waffle Flowers Store
7.5″ x 11″ Grip Mat (Biggest mat)
4″ x 4″ Grip Mat (Smallest Size, great for holding ink pads)
Misti Grip Mat
Misti Stamp Positioner
Mini Misti Stamp Positioner
Stencil Grip Mat Bundle
Stamper Grip Mat Bundle
Waffle Flower’s Grip Mat Bundle

Final Thoughts

These 14 products form the backbone of my cardmaking in 2026. They help me craft more efficiently, choose colors with confidence, and enjoy the creative process even more.

If you’re building or refreshing your craft room this year, I hope this list gives you a helpful starting point — and maybe a little inspiration too. 💛

18 Tips and Tricks for Making Cards with Wax Seals.

My Husband gave me Spellbinders Wax Seal Starter Kit for Christmas, and I have been having SO much fun! I also received a Platinum 6 Die Cutting Machine and I have to say I loved the results!

In today’s post, I used three beautiful new wax bead colors: Pistachio, Velvet Rose and Ink.

Tutorial + 18 Tips and Tricks for Making Wax Seals:

With a Sharpie marker, I put a dot on my seal so it was easy to keep track of where the top of the design is.
I read that it helps reduce soot if you trim your tea candle wick, so I did this.
I put 4 beads in the warming spoon and it took 2 minutes to melt.
I poured the wax and found it is easy to make a circle pattern, but I do like seals that aren’t perfectly round.
Don’t press the seal into the wax, just gently position and allow gravity to work.
After experimenting, I found that if I wanted a thicker, more button like seal you should pour the wax and then wait 15-30 seconds before gently dropping the seal into the wax. The card with the pink seal was done this way.
If you like a thinner seal with a higher rim then place the seal immediately after pouring.
I found if I used just my thumb and pinky or middle finger that I was better able to center the seal more precisely.
I left the seal in the wax anywhere from 15 to 90 seconds. The time didn’t seem to matter and no wax was ever left on the seal itself.
I also found it helps to move your pours around on the silicone mat so you don’t get warm spots on your work surface.
I also let my seal cool in between pours.
If you don’t like a seal, you can remelt it.
You can mix colors for a lovely marbled look. I really love the blue and green combination that I made which is shown in the upper left of the first photo. I also love blue and gold together and you can see two with that combination in the upper right corner on the blue card.
You can add flakes, glitter or pearls to the melted wax.
I used a paper towel to clean the spoon when changing wax colors.
I used a Decocolor marker on some of my seals (see the card with the green seal). I have Gold but wish I had bought silver too. Just lightly go over the raised ridges.
I experimented using Posca Pens too. They work, but I did like the result of the Decocolor markers better. The navy wax seal was highlighted with a silver Posca.
I love the Sealed Twine Die for a perfect twine look every time!

Quick and Easy Die Cut Card with Custom Handmade Wax Seal.

Each seal is so beautiful and unique!

Floral card with blue and purple flowers and Ink Navy blue Wax Seal Element.

Once, my seals were made, I got out two favorite die sets – Sealed Wildflower, and Autumn Sealed Sprigs – and started creating my floral designs. I also used the Sealed Twine die on all of my cards.