The Magic Starts at the Santa's Workshop - Light it up.

Here is my First Card!

The Magic Starts at Santa's Workshop

 Hello Crafty Friend,

I am excited to share two cards I created for you this week using stamps from the latest release. And one of the cards lights up. I used Canson XL watercolor paper and painted the images with Tombow markers.

Here are the step-by-step instructions for the first card, which features Santa's Workshop (stamp #6250), Poinsettias (stamp #6253), and the Christmas Blessing set (stamp #6252), along with light fixtures from Pear Blossom Press:

1.  Stamp Santa's workshop in the middle of the paper.
2.  Color the stamped image using Tombow markers.

3.  Stamp the poinsettias above Santa's workshop, and the gate and trees below it. Lightly sketch a pebble path from the workshop to the gate using a pencil.
4.  Color the elements with Tombow watercolor markers and paint the sky light blue.

5.  Carefully cut out the windows and light fixtures using an X-Acto knife.

6.  Apply Dr. Ph. Martin's Bleed Proof White to create a snow effect.

7.  Poke small holes in the Christmas trees for the lights.
8.  Cut a piece of vellum and color it with a yellow alcohol marker.
9.  Glue the vellum to the back of the painting, ensuring all cut-out areas are covered. Use a gel pen to draw the window's frames.

10. Cut a piece of cardstock to match the size of the card panel.
11. Tape the Pear Blossom Press Twinkle Lights to the cardstock, positioning one light for Santa's workshop and one for each tree, with the push button centered at the bottom, (I moved it down after I took the picture)
12. Apply foam tape around the workshop and tree areas.

13. Test the lights to ensure proper positioning, then adhere the cardstock cut on step # 10.
14. Cut a card base measuring 5.5 x 5.5 inches.
15. Cut a piece from the Christmas Journal cardstock collection slightly smaller than the card base, glue it to the base, and center the painted panel on top.

The best way to appreciate this card is through a video. Use the link below to watch a short YouTube video of this card, and while you are on that page, check out other videos that I have made using Art Impressions Stamps on my channel, Crafts and Designs by Neema. 

https://youtube.com/shorts/8PW6EYsNqco?feature=share

My second Card!!!!

For the second card, I created a Thanksgiving design using the barn from set #6249 and the Thankful and Blessed set #6254.

I hope you enjoy these projects! You can find the links to all the supplies below. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Stay crafty, and I will see you in the next project!

Neema

Sunny Scarecrow Friend Card and Thinking of Home 3D Storybook Frame by Diane Mason

   Hello, and welcome back for Watercolor Weekend!

Hello, my Ai Watercolor friends and fans! I have two projects to share with you today. The first is a book-binding fun fold card featuring a friendly scarecrow surrounded by a field of sunflowers in full bloom. The second project highlights one of the newest additions to the Storybook Box Series – Thinking of Home.

Sunny Scarecrow Friend Card:

I just love this time of year. Everything about fall makes me happy—the cooler temperatures, the colorful autumn leaves, the festivals, the comfort food, and of course the golden sunflowers. Today’s book‑binding fun fold card was inspired by all the good things autumn brings. The friendly little scarecrow stands in a bright field of sunflowers, capturing the cheerful, cozy spirit of the season.

Colors and Supplies Used:

Paper: Canson XL Watercolor Paper

Cardstock: Green and white

Patterned Paper: 5973 – Fall Series 2 Paper Pack

Brushes: No. 4 round brush, No. 0 round brush

Stamps & Dies:

• 6255 – FG Sunflower Border

• 5594 – Harvest Scarecrow Set

• 5734 – Friend Sentiment Set (You brighten my day! - sentiment)

• 5507 – Harvest Together Set (Hay Friend! - sentiment)

• 5061 – Square Double Stitched Dies

Ink for stamped images: Versafine Vintage Sepia

Tombow Dual Brush Pens: 026, 055, 177, 228, 555, 565, 772, 837, 912, 925, 933, 942, 946, 969, 993

Other: Post-It tape or Masking Paper, foam squares, Brown and Orange TwinTone Markers, and twine.

Stamping:

To begin, I die‑cut a 3.25" x 3.25" stitched square from Canson XL watercolor paper using the second‑largest die in 5061 – Square Double Stitched Dies. Since masking would be needed for this scene, I first stamped the sunflower border (6255) in Versafine Vintage Sepia onto the die‑cut square, then stamped it again onto masking paper to create a mask (Step 1). Refer to the step‑by‑step photo above for Steps 2–5.

Painting:

I brushed in the sky with a watery mix of 555 and painted the foliage with 177. The sunflowers were painted using 055, 993, 946, and 933, with centers in 969.

For the scarecrow:

• Face & neck: 912
• Cheeks: 772
• Nose: 933
• Hair & hands: 026
• Hat: 228
• Wine‑colored patches & shirt stripes: 837
• Overalls: 942
• Yellow‑orange patch: 993 + 933
• Shadows under the hat brim and collar: 565
• The robins were painted with 969, 933, and 925.

To finish the details, I added small stitching lines to the scarecrow and darkened the eyes of both the scarecrow and robins with a Brown TwinTone marker. The Orange TwinTone marker was used to add plaid lines to the yellow‑orange patch.

Card Assembly:

I matted the finished painting with green cardstock, leaving a narrow 1/16" border.

For the book‑binding card base:

• Cut white cardstock to 4.25" x 11.5"
• Score at 4.25" and 5.5"
• Fold at the 5.5" score line

For the green book‑binding panel:

• Cut green cardstock to 4.25" x 5.5"
• Score at 1.25"
• Adhere to the card front, aligning score marks
• Add glue only inside the book‑binding section

Decorate the front with patterned paper:

• Leaf paper: 1 1/8" x 4 1/8"
• Red/brown check paper: 4 1/8" x 4 1/8" 
• Leave a small border around each piece.

Mount the painted panel with foam squares for dimension. Wrap twine around the book‑binding three times and tie in a bow.

Interior:

Die‑cut a stitched square of white cardstock using the largest square die from 5061. Add a decorative strip of green cardstock and leaf patterned paper along the bottom edge. Stamp the sentiments from 5507 – Harvest Together Set and 5734 – Friend Sentiment Set.

This sweet fall sunflower and scarecrow card is now ready to brighten the day of a friend who loves autumn as much as you!

Thinking of Home 3D Storybook Frame:

My bonus project features the recently released 6116 – Thinking of Home Storybook Set. This set has been very popular among the Design Team lately—here’s my take!

I stamped the images onto Canson XL Mix Media paper using Versafine Onyx Black Ink. Colors used: 026, 177, 555, 565, 856, 993, 947, 969, N52, N25. The decorative paper is from 5963 – Winter Woodland Paper Pack.

For the back of the box, I used the same patterned paper and added the “hello” die cut from 5718 – Mini Journal Template. These little 3D Storybook Boxes make wonderful gifts for a friend or anyone who loves miniature scenes!

Thank you so much for joining me for Watercolor Weekend. I hope you have enjoyed today’s projects! Until next time, Happy Painting!

Vintage Victorian by Janet

Ai just released a whole new set of exciting new stamps called the Countryside 2 Collection. The new sets of foregrounds and buildings work great with each other just like the first set does. This series has  fall, holiday, and winter scenes that offer more options beyond spring and summer found in the first set.

For my card, I've combined the Victorian house in the 6250 - Victorian Shop Set and 6255 - FG Sunflower Border Set. I'm just not quite ready for sunflowers yet so I colored them like Gerber daisies instead. It shows the versatility you can get out of the sets to make them slightly different than was intended.

To make my card, I first stamped the flower border near the bottom of a white rectangle made of Copic marker friendly paper. Then I stamped the Victorian house as the background. I colored the house and flowers and then stamped the included Hello! sentiment at the bottom right corner. It was a lot of fun to color these images because I could let my imagination run wild with my colors and shading.

I matted and placed the finished image on a large diagonal card base using complimentary papers from the 5930 - Encouragement Cover Paper Pack. The size of these papers allow for use on larger cards like mine today. The finished card measures 5 1/4" x 6 3/4."   

Thanks for stopping by and spending time with me and Art Impressions today. Please visit the Ai store to pick up your favorite stamps, dies, papers, accessories, and supplies, including all the supplies I used in this card. 

Happy Crafting!

A Little Pink Halloween Magic! Card by Tasha

 Happy Friday Art Impressions friends!

Tasha here sharing a Halloween card created with the 5506-Peek-a-Boo Set. Now that we are in the month of September, I am in full Fall mode and have been having so much fun bringing out my Halloween sets

I love the color pink, so I decided to add tons of pink shades to this card. I love how the pink pops against the black and white spiderweb pattern paper. The sky was created with Distress Oxide Ink, and I used Copic Markers for the rest of the coloring. I added some fun white gel pen accents and finished the card with the spiderweb pattern paper.

I had so much fun making this spooky and bright Halloween card!

Gift Card Holder GIVEAWAY!

 Hello Ai fans!

Welcome to our GIVEAWAY!

It's time to start thinking about working ahead on our Christmas cards
and such.

In honor of our newest Design Team member Andrea,
we're having a giveaway.

The Gift Card Holder series is such a fun one. Once you have the envelope template,
you can use any of the add on sets with it. It's also beautiful when used on its own
with designer paper. The Journal Cover Paper Packs are perfect for the envelope.

   

How can you win these?

Leave a comment below welcoming Andrea to the Art Impressions family.

One comment per person please.

International entries are welcome.

Commenting will close at 3 PM EST September 30th, 2026.

Winner will be randomly selected.

The winner will be announced on the challenge post, October 1st, 2026 at noon EST.

Welcome Andrea! 

GOOD LUCK everyone!

On the Border Challenge #436 Week #1

 Hello Ai fans and welcome to our new challenge.

On the Border

We want to see your creations featuring something on the border.
Deck out those borders with stamps, dies, embellishments...whatever you like!

Our Featured Artist for this challenge is Neema and she has a stunning floral Storytile

 card to inspire you.

After looking through her photos and reading her tutorial, be sure to scroll down
to see who won our Furry Friends challenge.

Take it away Neema!

Hello crafting friends,

Welcome to this week's challenge! Today's theme is "On the Border", and there are so many creative ways to enhance them—whether you use stamps, scissors, dies, paint, or any other technique to make them stand out.

For my project, I created a bookbinding card and used a border stamp from the "Sing to the Lord" set (#6220) to decorate the spine. Here is how I put it together:

Making the Card

1.  Cut the card base to 11" × 5.5" and fold it in half along the longer side.
2.  Score at 1.25" from the center fold on one side to create the spine.
3.  For the cover, use the "Story Tiles" template set (#6158). Cut the frame twice and stack the pieces to create dimension.
4.  For the inside of the tiles, use the "Garden Friends" set (#6177). Stamp the images onto watercolor paper using Tombow markers 696 and 565, and use the markers to color them in.

Making the Spine

1.  Cut a strip of watercolor paper to 1.25" x 5.5".
2.  Use a border stamp from the "Sing to the Lord" set (#6220) to stamp the image. Since the stamp is shorter than the paper, repeat the pattern to fill the entire strip.
3.  Color the stamped image, then glue the strip to the card base.
4.  To finish, wrap twine around the card twice, tie it into a bow, and add small pearls to the ends.

I hope you will join us and participate in this week's challenge!

Happy crafting,

Neema

This was Neema's first time as Featured Designer and she hit a home run!

So beautiful.

Now let's see who won our Furry Friends challenge.

For our Top Spot we selected #17

Becca Yahrling

Please contact Leah at Feedback@artimpressions.com

to claim your free stamp set.

Our Lucky Random Winner was #7

Julie W.

Please contact Leah at Feedback@artimpressions.com

to claim your free stamp set.

Congratulations to our winners!

Enjoy your new stamps.

Now, onto the details of our new challenge.

Please use something to make your border extra special.

It doesn't matter what as long as it's not just a plain old border.

Here are the rules...

✻ Please make a new card or handmade crafty creation using either stamps, dies and or designer paper from Art Impressions. You can make any item you wish; this is not limited to cards! (unless specified)

✻ Limit two submissions per person.

✻Top Spot Winner and Lucky Random Winner each receive a free 

stamp set from Art Impressions

 ✻Please include your first name and last initial on your submission. You may include your entire last name, but it's not necessary.

✻We love to comment on your entries, but keep in mind if you use a private group or a platform that you need to sign up for, we probably won't be able to.

✻ The Ai Challenge is open to everyone, international submissions are welcome!

✻ Include a link back to the Ai Blog or grab our button on the top right of our sidebar!

✻ Share the Ai love if you can, by clicking and commenting on your fellow crafters.

✻ Make sure to get your link up by the deadline to enter your creations.

✻ Good luck and happy stamping! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Dance Like No One is Watching! By Andrea Pierron

 Good morning, Ai friends!! Andrea here, and I am so excited to be a part of this team and to get to know you all! I have been a fan of Art Impressions products for over 20 years! They have been one of my favorite stamping companies since I started card making. I absolutely love how unique their products are and I love seeing all of the gorgeous products you all create with Ai stamps. So today, I am sharing a card that I made using these two adorable seniors! I have wanted to put something together with these two for quite a while. 

First, I stamped the 2 seniors onto my card stock using Momento ink. I made a mask by stamping the images again on regular printer paper (to lay over the original images) and I cut the masks out. I then carefully lined up the masks on top of the original stamped images and stamped a background stamp from Purple Onion Designs over the images. Then, I removed the masks and voila! You have the couple dancing inside a cute little room! I wanted to have some pattern on their clothing, so I chose the paper I liked for it and stamped the images a 3rd time on the patterned paper and cut out the man's pants and woman's apron. Then, I then got to work on all of my coloring. Once finished, I added some cute little flowers to the windows and stamped a sentiment and added it to my card front. I glued on the apron piece and the pants. The card front panel was then glued to the card base. That is it and I hope you like it! 

Materials Used

Stamps

• 5279 Be Happy Laugh Lines
• 5278 Dance It Out Set
• 4868 Watercolor Flower Set 2

Paper

• Distinguished Gents by Unity Stamps
• 6205 Floral Shop by Art Impressions
• Neenah Classic Crest card stock for stamping on

Markers & Inks

• Momento Ink Pad
• Black thin Liner Pen
• Copic Markers Used: E93, E00, E13, E21, E000, Y35, N3, N2, N5, G40, B0000, B00, G43, G46, E49, E47, E57, E41, B32, B37, B34, 110, E42, E43

Gnome Storybook by Dori Mendiola

 Happy Wednesday AI Friends!

Have you seen the latest storybook stamp and die sets?  Bonnie knocked it out of the park with the #6223 - Whimsical Storybook set with the little gnome and fairy!  Who doesn't love gnomes and fairies? 

There is a perfect little storybook box die that fits this set but I chose to use the #5902 - Mini Scallop Frame set and pop up the layers using foam tape instead of frame layers.   I thought I would show you how versatile these sets are and how you can use them with other products you may have in your collection.

With Khaki colored cardstock, I cut the mini scallop frame with the oval window die placed in the middle.  I then placed the scallop edge of the die on the straight edge of the frame piece and did a partial die cut so that the straight edge had a scallop cut as well.  I cut a piece of pattern paper with the same process and adhered to the front of the frame.  I also cut a small piece of pattern paper to fit the inside of the frame as the background.  

I stamped the images of the storybook stamp set onto copic friendly paper using Memento black ink and colored with my copic markers listed below.  I die cut each with the coordinating dies that are included with the stamp set.  I added stickles to the fairy wings.

You can trim off part of the curved tabs from the images but leave some for gluing into the frame.  I adhered the house flat to the background and then popped up the other pieces to create dimension within the frame.  

I added the sentiment from the #5935 - Fairytale Houses set to the label die, included with the frame set, and adhered it to the front of the frame with some twine.  To finish off, I added the easel to the back of the frame so that this little cutie can be placed on display.

Thanks for joining me today!  I hope you have a wonderful week and you find time to create with this cute set!

Copics used:  R20, R22, R24

E00, E01, E11, E21, E23, E50, E51, E53, E55

N0, N1, N2, N3    B0000, B000, B00, B01

   Y15      YG61    G12     BG93