A Blog Called Wanda - Page 3 of 103 - Photography, Paper Crafting, and Life from Northern California!

The Greetery – Christmas Gallerie Collection – Showcase Day!

Hello my dear crafty friends! Today is a fun and exciting day! There’s a new release coming from The Greetery this week! (Tomorrow in fact!)…. I do so love introducing a new release to you. It is my joy and pleasure to be among the first to show you all the beautiful products. The new release is called Christmas Gallerie Collection! Stamps, Dies, Embossing Folders and more! All with a Winter/Christmas theme. Perfect for making cards and tags or whatever else suits your fancy. The new release is class and elegant and I made it vintage too! These products just gave me vintage vibes!

Today I’m sharing FOUR projects here, and then TOMORROW you can shop it all! Yeah! I have lots of info and lots of pictures. At the end of my post you will find the prize info and the links to the other designers’ blogs.

SHOP THE NEW RELEASE FRIDAY 11/21 AT 10AM EST!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LIST FOR THESE PROJECTS!

My first card for today features the brand new Capsule Christmas Gallery Prints, the brand new Capsule Filigree Dies, the new Regency Bow and the new Holly dies (and MORE)! Lots going on here and I couldn’t love it more. The Gallery Prints are gorgeous vintage Christmas images that you can use in your projects! I used the pretty street scene here. My finished card is an A2 card base layered with plaid paper and woodgrain paper….

Here’s a close up shot of the perfect new Holly Dies! I inked them, and added snow and glitter, and all the yummy things to make it Wintery.

The sentiment is from last month’s new release – put onto a banner and inked with distress inks! I used foam tape to adhere just the ends and the bowed it out from the bottom of the card.

ACK! How much do you love this new bow?? There are TWO new bows in this release! They are called Regency Bows. I used red and gold for this one….

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LIST FOR THESE PROJECTS!

It’s kind of hard to see in the photo, but I used a small paintbrush and brushed on some paste/snow onto the actual picture. I also added sparkly glitter to make the scene look icy and cool.

My next card features a new addition to the Shortbread Shapes – this one is called Shortbread Shapes Snowflake! Stunning!!! The embossing folder is lovely! My card also features the brand new Poinsettia Dies. My finished card is a 5.25″ x 5.25″ square kraft card base. I layered black gingham on top and then the center of the Shortbread Snowflake… With a classic poinsettia in the center…

Here’s a close up of that perfectly perfect poinsettia! Of course I added snow splatters and icy rock candy glitter everywhere!

I used the embossing folder and die cut out the star shaped piece from the center. I used cream cardstock and then inked over it with Antique Linen distress ink for added detail on the design. I mounted a kraft circle tag and then the poinsettia.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LIST FOR THESE PROJECTS!

My next card features the brand new Capsule products for winter…. The Capsule Holiday Borders!! My card also features the second of two new Holly Dies, and the second of two Regency Bows! My finished card is an A2 cream card base layered with snowflake patterned paper. My focal point is layers of the Capsule Basics with different elements added….

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LIST FOR THESE PROJECTS!

Here’s a close up of the new Holly dies!

I die cut some gold glitter snowflakes and placed them on the card. I edged the pieces with distress ink to age it a bit. The new stamps stamp this pretty holly border perfectly around the capsule shape.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LIST FOR THESE PROJECTS!

And finally – some Christmas tags! The Greetery always comes up with the most clever and beautiful ideas for tags every year… This year, there are two versions of tags! I used the Large Linked Labels (say that three times fast) to make these gift tags. I used the new Hang it Up dies for the tops! These are tags that die cut and then emboss like a dream in the matching embossing folder!

The details on these embossed portions is incredible! I used traditional cream, red, green and gold! Can’t wait to tie these onto some packages.

That’s it for today – and my showcase of projects for the Christmas Gallerie Collection! Thanks for stopping by to share with me today! It’s my pleasure to introduce the new release. TOMORROW is release day! Enjoy and happy shopping AND crafting! XOXO

Giveaway Information: The Greetery is giving away two $50 gift certificates! The comment deadline is 11/21 at 6:00am EST (comments from team blogs entered into giveaway). Winners announced on The Greetery blog on 11/21 at 9:30am EST (right before the new products go live) GOOD LUCK!!

COMMENTING NOTE: On my new blog – to leave a comment, you must open the post first. Then the comment box will appear at the bottom. You can click here to d o that!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP THE NEW RELEASE 11/21 AT 10AM EST!

CLICK HERE TO SEE TODAY’S SUPPLY LIST!

DESIGN TEAM LINKS FOR THE NEW RELEASE SHOWCASE:

Caly Person

Dana Kirby

Kelly Lunceford

Laura Bassen

Laurie Willison

Melissa Phillips

Wanda Guess

November 20, 2025
The Greetery – Gingerbread Marketplace Card!

Hello crafty people! I’m up on The Greetery Blog today sharing my bonus card for November! How fast did fall go by this year? It’s going to be Christmas here very quickly! And that means time to finish (or start LOL) all the pretty Christmas cards! I had one other idea from the last new release that I didn’t get made in time for release week. So I thought I would share it with you today. Didn’t you just love the Marketplace Collection? Exquisite! My idea was to take the Marketplace buildings and make them gingerbread. That’s what I have for you today, pretty row houses with a classic gingerbread vibe.

My finished card is a white A2 card base, layered with red and kraft. For my color palette, I used mainly kraft and white to mimic traditional gingerbread houses. Little pops of red and green make it perfect for the holidays. My card features the brand new Marketplace Mini dies – which are now, thankfully, back in stock!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

I started by die cutting out the three houses from kraft cardstock. I die cut out all the accent pieces from white cardstock to look like frosting! I next used the Holiday Festoons Dies set to die cut wreaths and bows from red and green cardstock. I assembled all the pieces and then generously splattered on some white paint snow! I used vellum behind the windows for a frosty look. I did also add some sparky, chunky glitter.

The sentiment was gold heat embossed onto black paper using the Rosemal Reflections Sentiments stamps and dies.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

For the background layer I used white pigment ink on the kraft cardstock and stamped the lovely Hymn Sing stamp. I love that stamp! The perfect Christmas background…. I die cut a few gold accents also.

I attached the houses to the card using foam squared to make everything pop just a little. I added a couple of enamel hearts from my stash. This card is so yummy and Christmas-y!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

That’s it for my project for today. I hope you have a very happy and creative day. It’s always my pleasure to share with you my love of The Greetery, and I look forward to sharing again soon! In the meantime, happy holiday crafting! XOXO

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

November 14, 2025
More fun with the PPP Winter new release – Joyful Penguin Wishes!

Hello friends! I’m here today with a second card I made with the lovely and cute new Winter 2025 release from Pretty Pink Posh! I shared my first card last week, and today I have another sweet penguin card! Today’s card is part of the huge multi day Instagram Hop for the PPP new release. I love a good Instagram Hop! Be sure to head over to my Instagram post today and leave a comment for a chance to win a prize! Woot!

I feel like these fun new penguins are perfect for both generally Winter cards and for Christmas cards. Last week I made a winter card…. So today I made him a Christmas Santa Penguin. LOLZ. I also made him an igloo at the North Pole, complete with a candy cane decoration for his porch!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY’S CARD!

My finished card is a white A2 card base, layered with pretty red gingham and then a crisp white eyelet rectangle. My card features the brand new Penguin Holder dies, the new Igloo Shaker Dies, and the new Winter Trees! Of course, I also combined in some favorites from the Christmas release! I love his hat – and I always love a candy cane theme….

Here’s the side view of my layers… I die cut out everything and gently inked the edges of the die cut pieces. I used an icy blue to shade the igloo, and then coated it with sparkly glitter. I added white gel pen accents to everything too (of course)!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY’S CARD!

The candy canes are from the Christmas Holder Additions – they are perfect! In this pic you can better see the igloo too…. The sentiment is from the Christmas Banner Greetings set, and I do indeed think he looks joyful! I die cut a shimmery snowflake for him to hold.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY’S CARD!

I used black enamel dots for the penguin eyes – I think that makes them look more alive – when they are shiny like that.

Okee Dokee – that’s it for today’s card! Be sure to head over to Instagram to see the entire hop and enter to win a prize! CLICK HERE for the hop! I will see you soon – be well – and keep on crafting!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY’S CARD!

November 11, 2025
Crafted by C9 Beautiful Christmas Crafting Kits!

Well helloooooo there! Have I got a fun post for you today! I have been working on this post for WEEKS! And I finally get to share everything with you! I am so excited! I was lucky enough to receive a wonderful, amazing, cool PR box from my friends at Concord & 9th that contained their brand new Crafting Kits. Concord & 9th started a new subsidiary company called Crafted by C9 and wowza. It’s awesome! The concept is this – fully curated and contained crafting kits. You buy a kit, and that’s it! You need nothing else to create a project. The kits have everything – even down to the glue and the tape! Right now all the kits are Christmas themed, but if I know them, there will be more good things coming as the new year arrives. It was a joy to open everything up and see what they made for us! I think you’re going to love it. Everything is already available for shopping and shipping!

For these kits, I imagine a few things…. Beginning crafters who are maybe a bit shy about buying a ton of supplies…. Busy busy crafters who just have a little time to make some holiday magic…. Groups of friends, family, kids getting together to make projects and enjoy time together…. Presents for your favorite crafter! I put together ALL of the kits and I can say that they were SO easy to make. The directions are in both video and print format – all you need to do is click on the enclosed QR code and it takes you straight to the instructions. The videos are beautiful and so well thought out. Literally anyone can have fun making a project!

There are trees, and reindeer, and little holiday houses….and garlands. Lovely home decor with a handmade, homespun feeling. All the kits use signature Concord & 9th color palettes. Seriously. Awesome! Today I am going to share TONS of photos of my projects. I hope to inspire you to get some kits and share with your friends and loved ones!

Crafted by C9 is here! They were kind enough to give my blog readers a discount code too! Let’s get started, shall we!?

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

WANDA10 — DISCOUNT CODE

So one day while I was at work, a HUGE box arrived at my house! I mean huge! It was a true pleasure to open every single individually wrapped box of goodies. Merry Craftsmas indeed! I feel so spoiled and I know that’s how you will feel when your kits arrive! Thank you Crafted by C9!

The first thing I put together was this beautiful tree! There are three trees, each a different size and color. Put them together and you have a mini forest for your home decor! Here are the contents of the kit – even the glue! The stand is such nice quality and beautiful wood.

Here are some step out photos of the process of building the tree. All three trees go together in exactly the same way. You build them from the bottom up by layering all the perfectly cut pieces. Could not be easier! My tree just grew and grew!

Here are all three of the trees together, so you can see the sizes and the colors. They are VERY pretty and sturdy!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

Next up I put together this wonderful garland! I do so love a felt ball! LOL. This is maybe my favorite one? (Or maybe the houses – hard to say)! Again, see how perfectly packaged it is?? Easy directions for a piece of home decor that will last forever. The needle and thread are in the box – nothing is forgotten…

Here are some photos of my finished garland. I am kinda obsessed with this color palette, aren’t you? I think this could also be very pretty in a baby’s room or for a birthday. This one does not have to be only for Christmas!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

Next up, I put together this festive metallic reindeer! This kit is probably the simplest/easiest kit to put together. You assemble the reindeer by attaching the legs. That’s it! The kit comes with three festive reindeer in the prettiest shade of gold/platinum. They are sturdy and thick cardstock too. Lovely!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

The trees and the reindeer are a perfect match! Voila – you’ve created a scene! Beautiful for a holiday table – just add some candles! I love this entire look!

And….the finale! The amazing little holiday houses! This kit comes with FIVE houses! (It was late at night and I apologize I didn’t take a photo of the kit before I made them!)… The houses are white on the outside and each one is a different color on the inside. Each house is a different size and shape, and each one has a different embellishment. All the embellishments, the glue, the tape and even the enamel dots are in the box. READY to go! Here are four of the five houses and the large tree! EEP. So pretty together! I’ll tell you in a minute why only four of the houses are in the photo. Aren’t they just the sweetest thing ever!? I love this!! The quality is outstanding. These are THICK and sturdy.

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

Here’s a close up of one of the embellishments – everything comes already cut out for you! Look at those tiny bows!

I sprinkled on some fake snow to make it look nice and wintery!

And this is house number five! I thought it might be fun to make it inside out! So instead of a white house, it’s a pretty red house! What do you think? I think it’s kinda cute! I should have put the door on the inside – but I still love it! And that tiny light garland? Get outta here!!

These next few photos are just close ups of all the different elements!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

I thought it might be pretty to put some tealights inside! Love this look! Warm and cozy!

Truly, it is my pleasure to introduce the Crafted by C9 crafting kits to you! What a treat! I hope you are inspired to make some things and have some quiet time in the midst of holiday madness! I am very blessed by the crew at Concord & 9th. Some of the best people in crafting. I’m grateful and honored to share their new endeavor with you today. Let me know in the comments what is your favorite kit!!

CLICK HERE for the comment box – I always love hearing from you!

DISCOUNT CODE – 10% OFF – WANDA10

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

November 6, 2025
Pretty Pink Posh Winter 2025 New Release! Winter Greetings!

HEY HEY HEY! How are you today? Are you ready for some cute stamps and dies? I know you are! Our minds turn towards Winter crafting officially now that Halloween is over! I’m ready to ho ho ho a bit now! Today is release day for the brand new Winter release from our friends at Pretty Pink Posh. They already did their amazing Christmas release, and this release is more about Winter fun – think penguins and igloos and trees. CUTE!! The new release is available now! Yeah! I have a card to share today, and then another one next week for the big Instagram hop. I do adore a cute penguin – especially if she is wearing ear muffs!

My finished card is an A2 white card base, layered with festive stripes and a snowflake background… I love a palette of minty blue and lavender. So fresh and icy. This card features the brand new Penguin Shaker dies, the new Snowy Hills dies, the new Winter Trees dies AND new sentiments too! I love it all!!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY’S CARD!

I combined some of my older favorites from PPP also! Like the beautiful snowflake background and this perfectly sized snowflake die….

Here’s a side view of my layers…. That penguin is too adorable. I made her some fluffy earmuffs… The new trees dies are really great and I know those will go in my crafty rotation forever…. I added white gel pen accents to the pieces and gently shaded everything with distress inks and small daubers…

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY’S CARD!

The new sentiments are called Let It Snow and once again – that pretty PPP font! I die cut my sentiment with the matching dies. I always like to add a few enamel dots hearts to put some love into it! I used just a tiny bit of Diamond Stickles on the snow and his body. And I used enamel dots for his eyes because they are so shiny – makes his eyes pop!!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY’S CARD!

That’s it for today! I know you are going to love this new release! So fresh and cute! I will see you soon! Take care-XOXOXO.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLY LINKS FOR TODAY’S CARD!

November 5, 2025
Happy Halloween 2025! Pumpkin Treat Buckets with Anna Griffin!

Hey everybody! Happy Halloween! I hope you had a great week and I hope you have fun tonight trick-or-treating or just hanging out with friends and family! We always have quite the display at our house and people come from all over the neighborhood to check it out. We love to sit outside and play spooky music (and start the fog machine) and pass out candy. It’s a nice time to chat with the neighbors. It’s so light hearted and reminds me of days gone by… My birthday is on Monday! EEK – more scary than Halloween – another birthday! And for the first time in a long time – I’ll be at work! Boo! Nothing fun planned but I’m sure my husband will think of something for us to do this weekend to celebrate just a little. Have a great weekend, my friends!!

I have one final project to share for Halloween 2025! You guys know I LOVE Anna Griffin dies, embellishments, and papers for that really cool vintage Halloween vibe! I got these new dies months ago… to make jack-o-lantern treat boxes. They are super easy to put together, and you can really use your imagination adding different colors and embellishments. I am kind of loving that shiny deep orange…. I bought the dies straight from the Anna Griffin website, but I know that HSN also has a pretty great selection of Anna Griffin products.

Here are my two treat boxes together – one orange and one gold! Super cute and not at all scary. Traditional pumpkin faces that are sure to please! The boxes hold a gift card and also maybe 4-5 small size candy bars too. I used some glitter paper from my stash and also some Stickles in various colors. Lots of photos ahead!

This is what I love! ALLLLL the small added details! An owl, some leaves, and roses too!? Oh, and a sweet little sentiment circle!

I am OBSESSED with this orange metallic!! Ack!!

These are the sides of the treat box portion. There is a jack-o-lantern on each side to create the box. More chances to customize all the different papers! That black and white harlequin print is delicious!

I used foam circles to pop the faces up from the background. I think it lets the glitter paper behind shine through a bit better. Oh, and you know I love that text paper!!

Happy Halloween my friends! November will be here tomorrow! And then Christmas! Next week I’ll be sharing loads of fun things from Concord & 9th! Have fun, be safe, love ya! XOXO

To leave a comment on this post, CLICK HERE! I love comments!

October 31, 2025
The Greetery – Thanksgiving Pumpkins Card!

Hi there creative and crafty friends! Today is my day over on The Greetery Blog! It’s Full on FALL! And now that Halloween is almost here it’s time to plan ahead for Thanksgiving! This makes me so happy! All the Fall things – Lots of good things. It’s time to make those pretty Fall crafts for Thanksgiving, with leaves and pumpkins and golden color palettes. That’s just what I have for you today – a Thanksgiving card idea with favorite supplies from The Greetery.

My finished card is an A2 card base made from kraft cardstock. I layered a cream layer that I embossed, and then the pretty orange pumpkins. I started the card by embossing my background layer. I used the Postage Die to die cut a cream panel. Then I used that amazing Herbarium Embossing Folder to emboss the panel. I used a blending brush and Antique Linen Distress ink and very lightly went over the embossed portions to make them stand out.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

I die cut out the Plump Pumpkin and the Honeycomb Pumpkin dies from orange cardstock. I inked the pieces using dark orange Distress Ink. I also splattered them with gold paint. I die cut the leaves from the Mighty Oak Die set and inked those too…. And added bits of glitter to look like they are glistening in the sun.

I stamped the sentiment from the Oakwood set and die cut it out with the matching die. My sentiment was stamped in dark brown ink instead of black to keep that warm tone. I placed everything onto my card using foam tape.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

My finishing touches were a some golden pearls and the glitter! This card makes me feel warm and cozy!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

That’s it for my project for today. I hope you have a wonderful and creative day. It’s my pleasure to share with you, and I look forward to sharing with you again soon. In the meantime, happy crafting and happy Autumn! Get ready for November!! XOXO

If you would like to leave a comment (Please do – I love it) click here for the comment box!!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

October 28, 2025
You’re my favorite BOO!

Hi Boo! How are you?! It’s Halloween week already! Yes, like usual, I am behind and I will not finish everything I had in mind for Halloween…. Such is my life…. So many ideas, so little time! Halloween came fast on me this year, especially with working full time! I want to squeeze in a couple more projects if I can! Right after Halloween it will be my birthday, and just like that the rest of the year will come!

Today I’m sharing a super cute and fun Halloween card that won’t scare anyone! Cute little ghosties with smiles and pink cheeks. The absolutely most adorable stamps and dies from Waffle Flower. I had some time to stamp the other day and this is what I made! I used a color palette of traditional black and orange, but then I popped in some hot pink and silver glitter paper too.

My finished card is a white A2 card base, layered with hot pink and white…. The little ghosties are all decked out in their outfits to spook…

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

I started by die cutting out the boo (2 layers, silver and black), the ghosts, and the other smaller elements. I glued everything together. I added white gel pen accents to everything, and white paint splatters to the Boo element.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

I added the smaller, stamped sentiment to the bottom of the white panel. Isn’t it the prettiest font combo? And I love the saying!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

I gave her an orange and hot pink witch hat! She’s stylish you know!

I sprinkled a few bats for good measure. Everything is affixed to the card using foam circles for added pop and dimension. Supplies are listed at the bottom!

That’s it for today! I hope you’re having a beautiful Fall weekend! I’ll be back this week with a Greetery card and who knows what else! Love you, mean it. XOXO

To leave a comment, (please do!) click here!!

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUPPLIES FOR TODAY’S CARD!

October 26, 2025
Crafted by C9 – Introduction!

Hello my friends! Happy Friday! I hope you had a great week. It’s been a gorgeous Autumn week here in Sacramento. Crisp air, a little rain, and the leaves are turning color. It’s my favorite! Halloween is in two weeks and my husband has been going crazy decorating our front yard. It’s kind of a neighborhood tradition – everyone loves to come by our house during the holidays. My husband is Mark Griswold (ha!) from now until new year’s!! It makes him happy and the kids love it. In two weeks it’s my birthday too. So many things to look forward to. As most of you know, I now work full time again away from home. So unfortunately there is not nearly as much time for crafting and creating. It’s been seven months since I started my new job, and I’m just now starting to feel that I have a new rhythm down. At first I was so so tired but now I’m coming back! There are going to be a lot of things left unmade this year, but I’ll get to them eventually! Thank you for all the love on my Greetery posts recently. Wasn’t that an amazing release?!

Today I’m briefly sharing something cool – a new company and new brand from our friends at Concord & 9th! They started a new line of GORGEOUS crafting kits. The new company is called Crafted by C9! I was lucky enough to receive an amazing PR box recently from them and what a joy! Gosh, I didn’t feel worthy! Everything went live on their new website this week, so you can finally shop it! These are the perfect thing to buy and craft with friends. The projects are simple and lovely, and each kit has literally everything you need, down to the glue. They thought of everything. I’m picturing a girls night with a cocoa bar and some good music – sitting around the table enjoying the holidays….

I will be putting my kits together to show you everything, and also I’ll do an unboxing on Instagram stories too! You’re gonna love it – I know for certain. Be well, have a lovely weekend! I’ll be back as soon as I can. XOXO

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

ENTER THE CODE: WANDA10 for 10% off your order!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP CRAFTED BY C9 KITS!

October 17, 2025
The Greetery – Christmas Market Collection – Release Day!

HEY FRIENDS!! EXCITING NEWS!!

THE GREETERY NEW RELEASE IS LIVE NOW!!

THE CHRISTMAS MARKET COLLECTION IS AVAILABLE!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP!!

It was my pleasure to introduce the brand new and gorgeous Christmas Market Collection to you this week! And, I hope you love it as much as I do!! Happy Crafting!! If you scroll back to my last two blog posts you can see all my projects from the new release! If you have any questions – reach out!! Thanks for all the love and kind comments! Happy Creating! Can’t wait to see what YOU make! Feeling the Christmas Spirit!

Thank you for shopping via my links!

it helps me so very much and I’m so grateful!! XOXO

October 8, 2025