Heart of Christmas Week 1

Welcome to Week 1 of the Heart of Christmas 2026 blog hop! It’s lovely to be creating Christmas cards again with the Art With Heart team, and I’m looking forward to sharing a new project each week as we head towards Christmas.

This week’s card is a CASE of a beautiful design created last year by Mikaela from The Crafty Oink Pen in 2025. CASE stands for Copy And Share Everything, and it’s a wonderful way to take inspiration from another card maker while adding your own creative touches.

There were several elements of Mikaela’s original card that immediately caught my eye. I loved the way the embossing folder was positioned on an angle, rather than straight across the card. The neutral combination of dark green, cream and dark brown was also beautiful, as was the stamping directly onto Designer Series Paper.

The Perennial Postage Dies added another lovely detail, giving the layers a decorative edge without overwhelming the design. I wanted to retain these elements while creating a version in my own colour palette.

When you look at the two cards side-by-side so you can see how I’ve CASED Mikaela’s card and changed the elements of the design to make it my own.

Both cards have a Mossy Meadow card stock base with an embossed Mossy Meadow card stock or my card. Once again I’ve used the Softly Woven 3D Embossing Folder.

The beauty of a large embossing folder is the ability to angle the card stock layer in any direction you chose. I kept the angled embossing detail that I loved so much in Mikaela’s design. It adds movement and texture to the background and makes the card feel a little different from a traditional straight-layered layout.

However, I’ve used a slightly different colour scheme and moved my pinecones and foliage to the other side of the card to allow the elements on the DSP to be seen

I chose a limited colour scheme, combining Mossy Meadow, Basic Beige and Early Espresso (colours in the Yuletide Carols DSP), with touches of gold to finish.

The foliage was created using the large oval wreath die from the Noel Tidings Dies. Rather than using the wreath as a complete oval, I snipped the die-cut apart to create individual branches. The pine cones are stamped in Early Espresso onto Basic Beige card stock.

The “Sending Cheer” sentiment is from the Noel Tidings stamp set, stamped directly onto the Yuletide Carols Designer Series Paper. I love stamping onto patterned paper when the design is subtle enough to allow the sentiment to remain clear. It creates an extra layer of interest without needing another piece of cardstock.

I carried the design through to the inside with more stamped foliage and the sentiment: From our home to yours.

It’s a simple detail, but I always enjoy adding something to the inside of a handmade Christmas card. It makes the card feel finished and gives the recipient another little surprise when they open it.