Cute Little Feliz Dia De Los Muertos Card Idea with Ducks In a Row Bundle | The Rabbit Hole Designs

Every now and then, I love stepping outside of the traditional holiday card themes and creating something that feels fresh, fun, and a little unexpected. That’s exactly what happened when I sat down with the Ducks in a Row Stamp & Die Bundle and the Sentimentally Speaking Holidays Abroad Stamp Set from The Rabbit Hole Designs. Instead of making a typical Halloween or autumn card, I wanted to celebrate Día de los Muertos with a cheerful twist—and this cute little skeleton duck was the perfect focal point.

Cute Little Feliz Dia De Los Muertos Card Idea with Ducks In a Row Bundle | The Rabbit Hole Designs

A Playful Take on Día de los Muertos

One of the things I enjoy most about cardmaking is taking a familiar image and giving it new life. The skeleton duck in the Ducks in a Row set is adorable on its own, but I couldn’t resist turning it into a festive Día de los Muertos character. After stamping him in Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink onto Bristol Smooth Cardstock, I pulled out my Tombow Dual Brush Pens. With a little blending and a blender pen, the duck came to life with shades of black, gray, and white.

But the real fun started when I used a few Tombows to add tiny floral and swirl designs on the skull. I wanted it to echo the sugar skull patterns that are so iconic to Día de los Muertos. Outlining those details with a pigment pen made them pop and gave the duck a true personality. This is such a great way to personalize stamped images—you can add your own doodles or patterns to give them an extra story.

Pro Tip: When adding small designs like this, keep your pen tip very light on the paper. It’s easier to go back and add more detail later than it is to fix a heavy line that doesn’t feel right.

Building a Bold Background

For the background, I wanted something that tied directly into the theme but didn’t overpower the duck. That’s where the Sentimentally Speaking Holidays Abroad Stamp Set came in. I repeatedly stamped “Feliz Día de los Muertos” up and down a panel of Neenah Classic Crest Solar White 80 lb Cardstock using the same Versafine Clair Nocturne ink. To give it a polished look, I heat embossed the sentiments with WOW’s Clear Gloss Super Fine Embossing Powder.

The embossing gave the background a subtle shine while still keeping it monochrome, which allowed the duck to stand out as the star of the show. Repeated sentiment stamping is one of my favorite background techniques because it’s quick, impactful, and you can adapt it to fit almost any occasion.

Pro Tip: If you ever struggle with keeping your sentiment lines straight, use a stamping platform and line your cardstock up against the edge. This way, every impression stays perfectly aligned without the need for extra measuring.

A Simple Focal Point with Circles

To ground the duck against the busy sentiment background, I reached for my nesting circle dies. I cut one circle from white cardstock and a slightly larger one from black. Layering the two gave me a clean frame that instantly drew the eye to the center. This is one of those small design tricks that makes a huge difference—adding even a thin border of contrasting cardstock can help balance a card and give it more dimension.

The little skeleton duck was popped up with foam tape on top of the circles, and it felt like he was finally in his element—celebrating Día de los Muertos in style.

Finishing Touches That Sparkle

No card feels complete without a little something extra, so I reached for my white gel pen to add highlights to the duck and then sprinkled on a few Crystal Clear Rhinestones from Trinity Stamps. The rhinestones echoed the shine of the embossed background and added just enough sparkle without distracting from the focal point.

Sometimes, it’s these finishing touches that make the card feel intentional. You don’t need a lot—just a few strategically placed embellishments can make your design feel polished and complete.

Final Thoughts

This card was such a joy to create because it combines two of my favorite things: playful images and meaningful celebration. By mixing the Ducks in a Row Stamp & Die Bundle with the Sentimentally Speaking Holidays Abroad Stamp Set, I was able to capture the spirit of Día de los Muertos in a way that feels lighthearted yet still respectful of the tradition.

If you’ve ever felt stuck in a rut making the same types of seasonal cards, I encourage you to experiment with your stamp sets. Add your own doodles, play with repeated sentiment backgrounds, or frame your images in new ways. You might be surprised at how a little creativity can transform a simple design into something unique and memorable.

And just like this cute little skeleton duck shows, sometimes stepping outside the expected leads to the most delightful results.

Thanks for dropping by today I hope that you found a little spark of creative inspiration with my project today. Wondering what I used in this project? Everything is linked to multiple sources in the thumbnails in the Materials Used section, or in the text below. Compensated affiliate links used when possible.

Materials Used:

Here you will find the list of supplies that I used to create today's card. All supplies are linked to supply sources below. Compensated affiliate links may be used at no cost to you.

Happy Crafting,

Rick Adkins

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