A group of creative friends from the Art with Heart team are back with our Annual Heart of Christmas blog hop. Follow through the blogs each Monday night until the end of November for Christmas card inspiration.
No peeking… this Christmas card has a little surprise in the bag!
Welcome to Week 9 of the Art with Heart team’s Heart of Christmas blog hop. This week, I’ve made a Pop-Up Gift Bag Card, complete with ribbon handles and red tissue paper for a miniature version of a Christmas gift bag.
My card was also made for Day 2 of the “30 Days of Christmas” cardmaking challenge: “No Peeking”, which invites us to create a card inspired by Christmas surprises. A gift bag hidden inside a card seemed the perfect way to capture that excitement!
The front gives very little away. A panel of holly-patterned paper sits against the green card base, with dashed lines running down either side. I’ve echoed the paper’s design with die-cut holly leaves and red berries, framing the gold heat embossed “Merry Christmas to you and yours” sentiment.
I love the stitched detail on the holly leaves and sentiment label. These little touches add texture while allowing the patterned paper to shine.
All of the products in this card come from the “A Stitched Season” suite.
The real fun begins when you open the card!
Inside, a red patterned paper gift bag pops up along the centre fold. Shimmery ribbon handles and a flourish of red tissue paper make it look just like a tiny Christmas shopping bag.
Alongside the bag, a white panel provides space for a handwritten Christmas message. Small foliage motifs decorate the corners, while die-cut holly leaves and berries frame the greeting, “Sending warm wishes this Christmas.”
This video shows the surprise reveal inside!
Take a look at some more Heart of Christmas inspiration!
Now it is time to continue our Heart of Christmas Blog Hop and see what the next talented member of the Art With Heart Team has created.
Next in our blog hop is Judy May. Click on the link below to see her beautiful Christmas project.
If the next button link is not working or you’d like to see the entire list of participants, go to is Judy May‘s blog.
For Day 1 of the “30 Day Christmas Card Making Challenge”, the theme is Merry & Bright and I’ve embraced the “bright” with gold foil, hot foiling and gold heat embossing!
Against a Coastal Cabana background, these three gold finishes create a festive burst of shine.
A Coastal Cabana background
I started with Coastal Cabana Cardstock, using a Blending Brush to add more Coastal Cabana ink around the edges. This deepens the colour while leaving the centre lighter, drawing the eye towards the gold starburst and sentiment.
I love this fresh alternative to traditional Christmas colours, especially paired with gold.
Three ways to add gold
The narrow Gold Foil strips, cut using a die from the Stampin’ Up! Festive Cheer Dies, radiate out from behind the sentiment. Their arrangement gives the card a sense of movement, almost like a little burst of Christmas fireworks.
The large, flowing “Christmas” is hot foiled in gold, using part of the “Merry Christmas” sentiment from the Magical Christmas Hot Foil Dies.
For the smaller words, I heat embossed “May Your Days Be Bright” in gold, using the Soiree Salutations Stamp Set. I then chopped up the sentiment, keeping “May Your” and “Be Bright” to frame the hot-foiled “Christmas”.
Together, the pieces create a new greeting:
May your Christmas be bright.
It’s a lovely reminder to look at sentiments beyond their original wording. Combining sections from different greetings opens up so many possibilities, and the contrast between the small block lettering and the large script makes this greeting a real focal point.
A finishing touch of sparkle
To finish, I added Pool Party Adhesive-Backed Sparkle Sequins to the ends of selected gold strips. They pick up the colour of the background while adding another layer of sparkle to the starburst.
Three types of gold, a scattering of sequins and a bright Coastal Cabana background — a sparkling start to the challenge!
Do you enjoy mixing metallic finishes on your cards, or do you have one favourite way to add a little gold?
Welcome to Week 23 of the Art With Heart Team’s 2026–27 Colour Creations InstaHop!
A group of our team is working through the Stampin’ Up! colours in alphabetical order, and this week we’re showcasing Flirty Flamingo. This cheerful pink is a lovely colour for a birthday card.
For my project, I’ve paired the Words & Wishes Bundle with the stunning Beautiful Ordinary Life 12″ x 12″ (30.5 x 30.5 cm) Designer Series Paper, using a Double Door Fancy Fold to show off the paper.
A colour combination inspired by the paper
Designer Series Paper is often my starting point when choosing colours for a card. The Beautiful Ordinary Life DSP gave me this combination:
Flirty Flamingo
Lost Lagoon
Pretty Peacock
Daffodil Delight
Timid Tiger
Basic White
I love the mix of warm pinks and yellows with Lost Lagoon and Pretty Peacock. The cooler colours balance the brighter shades, while Basic White gives the layers a crisp finish.
A fancy fold for showcasing DSP
The Double Door Fancy Fold is a great design when you want to showcase several panels of beautiful paper. I’ve created a template below if you’d like to make your own.
The larger flap opens from the left, while the smaller square flap opens from the right. They overlap when the card is closed, creating a layered front, then reveal more of the design as you open them.
I’ve paired the watercolour stripes with a softly blended design from the Beautiful Ordinary Life DSP. Using two coordinating patterns adds interest to the overlapping panels, while the Flirty Flamingo border draws your eye to the birthday cake.
It’s a lovely way to make the paper part of the experience of receiving the card, with something new to enjoy at each turn.
Cake, leaves and a little sparkle
The cake from the Words & Wishes Bundle makes a sweet focal point for this birthday card. I coloured it using Stampin’ Blends to coordinate with my paper-inspired palette.
Die-cut leaves in Lost Lagoon and Pretty Peacock frame the cake and bring those deeper colours into the focal point. The embossed detail on the leaves adds lovely texture and contrast against the pink cake.
For the finishing touch, I coloured Basic Rhinestones with Flirty Flamingo Stampin’ Blends. I’ve added them around the leaves and along the cake’s icing for a little birthday sparkle.
Colouring rhinestones is such a simple way to create coordinating embellishments using supplies you already have.
A matching handmade envelope
To complete the set, I made a custom-sized white envelope and decorated the flap with matching striped DSP, finishing it with a coordinating “happy birthday” banner.
Making your own envelope is a lovely finishing touch for a card that doesn’t fit a standard envelope, and the matching paper gives a little hint of what’s inside!
Take a look at some more Flirty Flamingo inspiration on our Insta Hop!
Our blog hop is now an Instagram hop but the good news is that you don’t need to have an Instagram account to view all of the other projects!
Simply go to my Insta handle in a new search engine window to follow the Instagram hop: @whatcathymade.
I’m having a little break for next few weeks, so I’ll see you again in November!
A cute Christmas mouse on the front, a whole festive scene inside! This week’s card has a little surprise waiting beneath its baker’s twine bow.
Welcome to Week 22 of the Art With Heart Team’s Colour Creations hop. We’re exploring the Stampin’ Up! colours in alphabetical order, and this week it’s Early Espresso.
This rich chocolate brown makes a beautiful base for my Christmas shadow box card, created using the A Little Christmas Suite Collection. Paired with crisp Basic White, festive reds and greens, and touches of soft blue, it gives the card a warm, cosy feel.
The shadow box frame is constructed from basic white card stock, sitting inside a card base made with Early Espresso Two-Tone Card stock.
A mouse with Christmas on its mind
How cute are these mice!
On the front, a little mouse looks up beside a stack of presents and an open red box filled with tiny candy canes. I love how the detailed die cuts bring these simple shapes to life, right down to the folds in the box and the ribbon on the gifts.
The Basic White panel, cut using the Perennial Postage Dies, provides a clean backdrop for the scene. A “Merry Christmas” sentiment and three Christmas Epoxy stars finish the panel, while the Multicolor Christmas Baker’s Twine ties the card closed like a little gift.
Untie the bow for a Christmas surprise
Open the card and there’s a miniature Christmas scene tucked inside a white shadow box frame.
The Christmas tree image is from the A Little Christmas Designer Series Paper and makes a lovely backdrop for the scene. I fussy cut presents from the same paper, arranging them around the tree and along the front of the frame to create extra depth.
Another little mouse, wearing a cosy hat and holding a gift, sits at the front, with a candy cane peeking up behind it. A wreath with a soft blue bow decorates the top corner.
I love the way the mouse, wreath and presents overlap the white frame. It makes the scene feel as though it’s spilling out of its little Christmas box!
On the inside cover, red bow-patterned Designer Series Paper surrounds another Basic White postage-edge panel. The sentiment, “Sending little moments of joy & cheer”, feels just right for this little Christmas world, with plenty of space left for a handwritten message.
Colouring the Christmas mice
I coloured the mice using light and dark Stampin’ Blends in Barely Blush, Old Olive, Crumb Cake and Pecan Pie, together with the Deep combo pack.
For the hats, candy canes, presents and other festive details, I took my colour inspiration from the A Little Christmas Designer Series Paper, using Lost Lagoon, Old Olive, Pool Party and Real Red.
Taking colour cues from patterned paper is one of my favourite ways to create a coordinated project. Here, the paper does double duty, providing both the Christmas tree backdrop and little presents to fussy cut and layer.
A suite full of little details
This project uses all five products from the A Little Christmas Suite Collection:
*Christmas Mice Photopolymer Stamp Set
*Christmas Mice Dies
*A Little Christmas Designer Series Paper
*Multicolor Christmas Baker’s Twine
*Christmas Epoxy Shapes
From the tiny candy canes to the cheerful mice, there are so many details to enjoy in this suite. And Early Espresso provides a lovely, warm foundation for them all.
Wouldn’t this be a fun little Christmas surprise to receive?
Take a look at some more Early Espresso inspiration on our Insta Hop!
Our blog hop is now an Instagram hop but the good news is that you don’t need to have an Instagram account to view all of the other projects!
Simply go to my Insta handle in a new search engine window to follow the Instagram hop: @whatcathymade.
Next week we are showcasing the dark brown neutral, Early Espresso.
Who says a poinsettia die can’t be used to make a sunflower? Not me!
Welcome to Week 21 of the Art With Heart Colour Creations Blog Hop. This week we are showcasing Darling Duckling, a warm golden yellow that is perfect for creating cheerful sunflowers.
I’ve seen a few talented crafters use the Pretty Poinsettia Dies to create sunflowers, so I thought I would give it a go too.
My colour combination is:
Darling Duckling
Old Olive
Mossy Meadow
Early Espresso
Pecan Pie
Copper Foil
The Pretty Poinsettia Dies were used to create the two layered Darling Duckling sunflowers and much of the surrounding foliage. I used the Help Me Grow Dies for the flowerpot and the Early Espresso sunflower centres, cutting these pieces from the Wood Grain Wonders Designer Series Paper to give them plenty of natural texture.
For the background, I simply had to use the beautiful sunflower-patterned paper from the Radiant Foils Specialty Designer Series Paper. Its copper foil details add a lovely glow and complement the warm, earthy colours of the card perfectly.
The happy birthday sentiment is from the Lovely Arrangements Stamp Set. I stamped it in Early Espresso onto Darling Duckling cardstock, layered it onto Old Olive cardstock and added it to the card with Stampin’ Dimensionals.
A double Linen Thread bow tied around the flowerpot adds the finishing touch.
I love discovering unexpected ways to use my crafting supplies. The Pretty Poinsettia Dies might have been designed for Christmas projects, but with a change of colour and a little imagination, they can create the most cheerful sunflowers too.
Have you ever used a die to create something completely different from its original purpose?
Take a look at some more Darling Ducking inspiration on our Insta Hop!
Our blog hop is now an Instagram hop but the good news is that you don’t need to have an Instagram account to view all of the other projects!
Simply go to my Insta handle in a new search engine window to follow the Instagram hop: @whatcathymade.
Next week we are showcasing the dark brown neutral, Early Espresso.
