Five Faves: Very Vecchi Edition

Wendy Vecchi's newest collection for Spellbinders came out this October and not only is it brilliant on its own, it mixes beautifully with literally every previous thing she's designed! I had a lot of fun and made quiiiiite a few samples, so it was a challenge just to choose five, but here they are in no particular order. Click the linked text under each photo to go to the original blog or Instagram post for more info and direct links to all the products.

New Wendy Vecchi? (Yes, Please!)

I think I used every piece from the Everyday Add-Ons set along with the Tabbed In and Out Sentiment Stamps and Dies; as well as the original Essential Envelopes pocket, of course. 

So! Much! Texture!

I used the embossing folder from the Thank You Bouquet Bundle on my pumpkin layers (it's just five ovals of exactly the same size!) and the blooms are from there as well. I cut the background into squares which I embossed with the Polka Dot and Posy Duo Embossing Folder.

More Pink

I did some light stenciling with Thank You Bouquet Bundle before using the  Polka Dot and Posy Duo Embossing Folder on the background. The blooms are from the Thank You Bouquet set too, and I've added just a little bit of ink to emphasize their fabulous texture.

Freestyle Stencil Thank You

Apparently I only posted this on social and there wasn't a blog post? But the essential facts are: I tried Wendy's brilliant Tip Tuesday idea of using her Perfect Stamp Positioner and STAY-tion with the layered stencils from the Thank You Bouquet Bundle, which meant I could easily reposition the orientation of the blooms to make a fun all-over pattern. I did the stenciling on sticky-back canvas paper with Wendy's Archival Inks; the canvas makes the design a little less crisp, but has a fun vintage fabric flare to it!

Merci Bouquet

Features the Essential Envelopes pocket doing double duty as a vase; and the pocket cover adorned with the Build a Plaid Layered Stencils. Blossoms from the Everyday Add-Ons set and the Polka Dot and Posy Duo Embossing Folder singin' backup in two shades of purple.

(Note to self: the radiating pieces of cardstock are pretty cool as staging!)

For more inspo check out Wendy's Instagram @wendyvecchi (Tip Tuesdays are my fave!); the Make Art with Wendy Vecchi FB Group (everyone's welcome!); or click THIS LINK to see all my previous Wendycentric projects.

No Time Like the Presents

Woohoo... the Jingle Belles (Stephanie and myself) are back for our sixteenth (16th!) year of holiday mayhem, and we'd be absolutely thrilled if you were along for the ride. We love that we get to use our large selection of holiday papercrafting products all year long.

Here's how it works: every other Friday at 12am EST (except for today, since we always love starting on January 1st) we'll post a new prompt to inspire your next holiday card; you can join us for one OR you can join us for all. Then the following Friday, we'll post a second card inspired by the same prompt, in case you need a little more inspiration. 

And VOILA! At the end of November, we'll each have 48 holiday cards ready to give to our friends, family and co-workers.

The first prompt of the year is "No Time Like the Presents" so before you put away your gift wrapping supplies, pull out some of your favorites (or that paper from a gift you unwrapped that was just too pretty to recycle) and make a card featuring wrapping paper or holiday gift tags.

Here's what I made this week:

My friend Gina wrapped her gifts in paper with these adorable holiday character mugs all over it, so OF COURSE I had to unwrap verrrrrrrrrry carefully to save as many as possible. I like to back giftwrap and other thin materials with cardstock, which is what I did here, and then I could fussycut and pop them on foam tape for a little dimension. The sentiment came from a page of Lawn Fawn gift tags; I had intended to use the whole thing, but it was just too big; thus I trimmed it to fit on my 5.5" square card.

Hop over to Jingle Belles to see Stephanie's beautiful giftwrap-centric card and check out the fun little prize that one lucky (random) cardmaker will score; then start planning what you'll link up with us this fortnight. JB2601: No Time Like the Presents will run until 6pm (Eastern) on Wednesday, January14th.

Five Faves: Eyelet Outlet Edition

Here are my personal faves (in no particular order) from my Eyelet Outlet cards in 2025. Click the link under each photo if you'd like to visit the original post, which as a handy linked shopping list for all the EO products used!

Cozy Fall Vibes

I have lots of Reading Friends, so I make at least a couple of cards per year with EO Book Brads and Book Tape. It's exciting that I can still think of new twists!

Home and Away

These adorable retro Camper Brads were brand new this summer and I was instantly smitten. (I still am, actually!)

Life is Better at the Beach

I never get tired of the actual ocean OR of ocean/beach themed cards. And since there are so many great EO beachy brads (Shells, Gulls, Flamingos, etc) the possibilities are nearly endless. 

Kind of a Big Deal

Card Suit Brads were new in 2025 and as soon as I saw them, I knew exactly what I wanted to make!

Ahoy, Matey!

I cannot tell a lie: I was given-- and couldn't wait to use-- this pirate-themed stamp set, and so I deliberately sat down and thought about how many brads I could incorporate. The answer was six... (the parrot from our Tropical Birds set is my fave!) ...plus some Glitter Gold Enamels.

♥♥♥

Stay tuned for more Design Team faves on the Eyelet Outlet Blog; then c'mon back next week for lots of brand new cardmaking inspiration!

SOS564: FREE is Good!

It's time for the last Shopping Our Stash challenge of 2025 and this time we'd like you to use something you got for free. Think: an RAK from a friend, a freebie included with an order, something you got as a door prize at a crafty event, something gifted to you because people think you can use just about anything on a card... you know: FREE!

I had to laugh when at the last sentence above, because I am SO lucky that my friends and family (and sometimes THEIR friends and family) are always showing up with a little bag or box or envelope of miscellaneous "stuff" they thought I might like... and a surprising amount of the time they are CORRECT! So I was able to make almost my whole card from such bounty, including: old sewing patterns and a phonebook from my mom; tiny sunflowers and buttons from my aunt; pieces of vintage road map from my friend Barb; part of an old, falling-apart Chinese dictionary from my friend Liz; and Hambly Transparencies and vintage Tall Corn Trading Stamps from my chosen sister, Stephanie! 

Be sure to check out the other Crew Members' cards at Shopping Our Stash. SOS564: FREE is Good! runs until the evening of Monday, January 12th.

Five(ish) Faves: Mandala Monday Edition

Not to be braggy, but I had a hard time only picking FIVE of this year's fifty-one mandalas; not because I'm conceited (well maybe a little, lol!) but because I love drawing/ composing/ dreaming them up. My advice to artists and makers who want some time to make something for themselves: start a weekly, fortnightly or monthly post based on something you LOVE doing; whether it's coloring or collages or frosting cakes or... WHATEVER; create a regular strand for your blog or socials and honor it like any other deadline. You'll be glad you did!

MM05

Using Ranger's Perfect Pearls as watercolors is a lot of fun and the results are SO SHIMMERY!

(Shout out to Dina's Watercolor Journal which has VERY sturdy watercolor paper!)

MM08

I love the concept of viewing a traditional mandala through a cluster of "windows"; I'd like to try some more of these with different shapes next year!

MM11

For a sticker-loving, cupcake-eating Irish American girl, a Mandala Monday which falls ON St. Patrick's Day MUST be made of Pusheen stickers, right?!

MM15

Becca Sadler had the GENIUS idea of starting a weekly strand called "Mondrian Mondays" in which she posted journal pages inspired by Dutch Utopian artist, Piet Mondrian. And when I saw how creative and cool her interpretations were, I wanted to try it in Mandala form. I did five or six versions throughout the year (you can see them together HERE) and this one miiiight be my fave!

MM42

My friend Gina has published her first clipart book on Amazon, I was lucky enough to get an advance copy, and I had a blast making cards and mandalas and all sorts of things with it this year.

(You can see all my Gina is Arty stuff HERE!)

MM45

I sometimes neglect my Posca Pens quite shamefully, but truly, there are few artful things more dramatic than drawing a bright and colorful design on BLACK paper... so luscious!

♥♥♥♥♥

To read more about the process and supplies used for any of these Mandalas, just click the link beneath the photo. To see ALL fifty-one Mandala Mondays of 2025, click THIS LINK!

I (heart) Goodreads

If you're NOT a "Book Nerd" just go ahead and skip this post right now; there will be more "art stuff" tomorrow! But as a lifelong reader, I LOVE doing the Goodreads Challenge each year, and I especially love getting the email with all my stats in it. Full Disclosure: 99% of my reading is via audiobooks, hence the fairly high total of 125. Oh yeah, and I read a truly embarrassing number of Sherlock Holmes pastiches this year, even for me. If you're on Goodreads, I'd love for you to tag me as a friend there... I love seeing what other folks are reading and what books they LOVE!

Here are all of my 4 star reads from 2025, in reverse chronological order:

The Christmas Jigsaw Murders by Alexandra Benedict

I love holiday mysteries generally, and this one kept me guessing until the end. I fell in love with Edie, the grumpy protagonist; but the characters, all round, were great!

The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar

This one popped up as a recommendation on SO MANY Bookstagram posts, I had to succumb... and it is indeed a beautiful and original story. I suggest the audiobook, as it has an outstanding narrator AND original music and singing by the author and her sister.

The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie

Technically I've read this before, but it somehow never made it onto my Goodreads list. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Sean Pratt and it was every bit the classic, cozy, Golden Age mystery I remembered.

We Solve Murders by Richard Osman

I honestly didn't think he could write a set of quirky characters I'd love more than the gang from Thursday Murder Club, but I was wrong. (Note that this book is less "cozy" by which I mean stronger suspense/danger and some realistic violence; probably NOT a good bedtime book!)

A Travel Guide to the Middle Ages by Anthony Bale

If you're not a hardcore history-lover with an interest in the Middle Ages, this won't be the book for you; but I am and it was!

Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett

I have read ALL of Discworld, multiple times, and have no intention of stopping any time soon. Death and The Watch are my favorite characters and this book is a stand-out, imo.

Tourists by Lucy Lethbridge

Again, if you're not into sort of "niche" history, you probably won't love this. I happen to love historical travelogues and this taps a lot of unpublished first person sources (letters, diaries etc)  to give a great overview of the relatively recent time when we humans started traveling for fun.

The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper by Roland Allen

Again with the niche history. I find these hyper-specific types of "round up" books fascinating; and this one was especially well-written and narrated.

Vermeer's Hat by Timothy Brook

Surprise! More funky history! This time the "filter" is a survey of some of the more status items in Vermeer's paintings, pointing up the fact that the seventeenth century is when global trading originated and the Dutch were leading the way.

Gods, Wasps and Stranglers by Mike Shanahan

Everything you never knew you wanted to know about fig trees! Surprisingly fascinating; tho I confess that I LOVE fresh figs AND am lucky enough to have a neighbor who generously shares her fig tree with me, so I was basically this guy's target audience!

Unruly by David Mitchell

This is the British David Mitchell, half of the British comedy team Mitchell and Webb. But first, he was a history major at Cambridge University and this is a fun, fast, funny (but accurate) history of the monarchy up to Elizabeth the first.

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

(NOT the same David Mitchell as above!) It is hard to believe this book is 20+ years old; it feels VERY current and it's hard to imagine a better example of metafiction. I recommend the audiobook because it has six different (excellent!) narrators; one for each of the interconnected stories. 

Wrap It Up

I love fancy giftwrapping all year round... but I go all out for Christmas. As a papercrafter, I have LOTS of paper scraps, diecuts, texture paste, ink, bling and washi tape... all of which comes in very handy for wrapping and making unique gift bags!