Sometimes the hardest part of cardmaking isn’t the techniques—it’s deciding what to do in the first place. If you’ve ever sat at your craft table with supplies out and no clear plan, you’re not alone. That’s exactly why I love having a go-to layout that takes the guesswork out of the process.

Sometimes the simplest cards can have the most charm, and this one-layer thank you card is the perfect example. I wanted to create a clean and simple design that still felt playful and eye-catching, so I paired the adorable critters from the Animal Notes Stamp Set with the postage stamp image from the Sticky Notes Sayings Stamp Set . With just a little masking and thoughtful placement, this easy design turns a plain card front into something fun, colorful, and full of person

There’s something so satisfying about creating cards that feel polished and eye-catching while still keeping the design clean and simple. I always love the challenge of finding ways to let beautiful stamped images shine without overwhelming the card front, and that’s exactly what inspired these three handmade cards featuring the April 2026 C.C. Designs New Release.

Sometimes you just need a set of cards—fast. Maybe it’s for your stash, a last-minute need, or you simply want to sit down and create without overthinking every decision. That’s exactly what inspired today’s project. I wanted to create four clean and simple watercolor cards that feel polished and intentional, but come together quickly and easily.

There’s something about Easter crafting that just feels extra joyful—maybe it’s the soft spring colors, the sweet little characters, or the excuse to pull out all the pastels! Over the last few months, I’ve been creating and sharing a variety of Easter projects, and today I thought it would be fun to bring them all together in one place. Think of this as a little Easter card parade—full of inspiration, ideas, and hopefully a spark to get you creating with what you already hav

Sometimes the best cards are the ones that let a single element do most of the work. When I’m working with a fun character stamp, I often find that a clean and simple layout is the best way to highlight the image without competing with it. That was exactly the goal behind today’s card—creating a playful, comic-inspired design that feels polished while still being easy to put together. For this project, I leaned into a character-focused design with Copic coloring and just a

There’s something extra fun about working with a brand-new release. Fresh images always spark new ideas, and I find myself experimenting with layouts, backgrounds, and color combinations that I might not normally reach for. When the March release from C. C. Designs arrived on my desk, I immediately started thinking about how each stamp set could shine in a different way. Instead of creating cards that all looked similar, I challenged myself to let each stamp set lead the desi

There’s something so fun about a bold, character-driven handmade card — especially when it leans into a playful, theatrical theme. For this card, I wanted to create a Wicked-inspired design that felt bright and confident without becoming overwhelming. When you’re mixing pinks, greens, pattern paper, and a focal character, things can go from polished to chaotic very quickly. In today’s project, I focused on using a simple, structured layout to keep everything balanced. The vid

There’s something about spring cards that makes us want to use all the patterned paper at once. The colors are fresh, the prints are cheerful, and before we know it, we’re second-guessing every combination. For this handmade card, my goal was simple: create a bright spring design that feels layered and interesting without feeling busy or overwhelming. I share the full process in today’s video, but here on the blog I want to talk through the design thinking behind it—especial

Today I’m sharing a collection of handmade cards created with the February 2026 New Release from C. C. Designs , featuring the Tiger Hunt Stamp Set , Hunt Stamp Set , Spring Animals Stamp Set , and Pink Green Stamp Set . Each card highlights a different theme, but they’re all tied together with clean layouts, bright alcohol marker coloring, and soft ink-blended backgrounds. I love how these designs let the stamped images truly shine — whether it’s the bold blue tiger paired w

When I sit down to make a Valentine’s Day card, my goal is almost always the same: something cheerful and heartfelt that doesn’t require overthinking every single step. This project started with that exact intention—creating a handmade card that feels finished and polished, but still relaxed and approachable from start to finish. One of the biggest challenges I hear from cardmakers is alcohol marker coloring. Not the coloring itself, but the decisions that come with it—what

Mixing pattern paper on handmade cards is one of those things that sounds more complicated than it really is—especially when you’re also stamping and coloring an image. I hear from cardmakers all the time who love patterned paper but hesitate to use it because they’re worried the card will feel too busy or out of control. That’s exactly the problem I wanted to solve with this winter card. I created this project to show how stamping, alcohol marker coloring, ink blending, and

I recently shared a Valentine’s Day card project over on the C. C. Designs blog , where I walked through the full process using the Swissie Love Stamp Set . That post focuses on the techniques and product use step by step, so today I wanted to do something a little different here on my own blog. This post is all about the thinking behind the card — why the design works, the choices I made along the way, and how you can easily adapt the idea using what you already have in you

There are seasons when I crave all the layers and embellishments—and then there are seasons when I just want my cards to breathe . This little set of winter-themed cards came together during one of those moments when I wanted the coloring to shine, the images to tell the story, and the design to feel calm instead of crowded. Clean and simple doesn’t mean boring, and it definitely doesn’t mean plain. For me, it means being intentional with every choice. For this project, I cre

One of my favorite ways to remove the guesswork from coloring stamped images is to let my pattern paper do the heavy lifting —and today’s Warm Wishes clean & layered card is a perfect example of that approach. If you’ve ever felt stuck trying to decide which Copic markers to use, this technique is a total confidence booster, especially for beginner to intermediate cardmakers. For this card, I started with a holiday-themed pattern paper pack and used it to create a non-holida

There’s something so magical about pairing soft winter colors with colored pencil coloring, and this Winter Hi Card came together beautifully using the Let It Snow Stamp Set from C. C. Designs . I stamped Elisa onto Neenah Desert Storm Cardstock with Memento Rich Cocoa Ink and colored her with colored pencils, which really brings out the cozy, storybook feel of this sweet winter image. After fussy cutting her out, I created a softly shaped background using Chunky A2 Scall

Today I’m sharing a clean and simple winter card that features the adorable Henry & Twila Cocoa Stamp Set from C.C. Designs. I’ve always loved finding ways to keep a design simple while still packing in plenty of visual interest, and this little cocoa-themed cutie gave me the perfect excuse to play with masking, ink blending, and a fun repetitive sentiment background. If you’ve ever wanted to make a clean and simple card that still feels polished and intentional, this is a g

The holidays always seem to sneak up on me, and before I know it, I’m knee-deep in cardstock scraps and glitter, trying to finish a stack of Christmas cards. This year, I decided to keep things simple—but still full of personality—with three Clean and Simple designs that feature one of my favorite mischievous characters. Using The Green One Stamp Set from C.C. Designs , I created a trio of cards that are easy to make, fun to color, and guaranteed to make anyone grin. Each d

Have you ever reached that point in your holiday cardmaking where everything starts to blend together? The reds, greens, golds—all beautiful, of course—but sometimes I crave something that feels a little more special. That’s exactly where this project came from. I wanted a design that looked impressive but didn’t require hours of precision cutting or complicated measuring. Enter the Quadruple Z-Fold Christmas Card —a fun fold design that looks like it took forever, but hones

The holidays are just around the corner, and I don’t know about you, but this is the time of year when my craft table is covered in bits...