Happy New Year!

Hello! Welcome back to my blog. I still needed to send out holiday cards but I don't think it will arrive on time so I decided to create cards to celebrate the the upcoming year. I got my inspiration from the this month's Lunar Year Challenge. 

I used a My Favorite Things number die set to die cut the numbers. The number die cuts an outline and the negative cut. Instead of putting the negative cut aside, I decided to do a two-for-one cards, interchanging the outlines and the negative cuts. 

I used the solid number die as the base of the numbers. I die cut this on black cardstock.

I die cut a red cardstock using a panel die from Catherine Pooler. I backed this with the same gold cardstock I used on the numbers.

I stamped the horse and the hat on watercolor paper using VersaFine Clair. I colored the images with a Marvy Uchida Color In Watercolor Twist Pencils. I used a water brush to pick up the pigment from the pencil then paint this on the images. I die cut the images using the coordinating die. The die cuts a small border around the stamped image. I snipped off the bottom part of the hat die cut so it looks more continuous when adhered to the horse.

Next year is the Year of the Horse which explains the image choice for my card.

I die cut a banner on red carstock using a die from Lawn Fawn. I used a Lawn Fawn alphabet die to spell out my sentiment. Although I have a sentiment stamp with this message, using the alphabet stamps allowed me to follow the curve of the banner. My alphabet stamps are over used that it does not stick to the acrylic block anymore. That can be frustrating especially when you are ready to stamp and an inked letter falls to your panel. Not to forget the effort you put in putting the letters together. Cleaning the back of the letter stamp on a stamp scrubber sprayed with a stamp cleaner will recondition the stick of the polymer. 

I inked the sentiment with an embossing ink. I poured gold embossing ink over the sticky ink then heat embossed it.

I adhered the die cuts to the panel. I adhered this panel to a top folding A2 note card.

I hope you like today's card. Happy New Year to you all!

Have a blessed, brilliant and creative day...and year!

Maria Giselle B.

I shared this card at

December 2025 Challenge #29