Today’s the day – the latest Essentials by Ellen release is here, just in time for the beginning of Fall and spooky season!
If you’ve been hanging out on Instagram this week, you may have caught some of the product reveals. If not, no worries because I’ve got a release run-through for you right here, plus a few shoutouts for my favorites. Shall we get into it?
Ghost Hugger Die Set
Remember the Bat Hugger die set from last Halloween? That critter now has a friend! The Ghost Hugger has both a front and back layer, with arm cut-outs that make it perfect for holding small treats. It’s sized in a way that works perfectly on an A2 card front, on a gift tag, or even on its own. I used it to make an oval-shaped card and you can see the step-by-step process in this video. The Tiny Stars hot foil plate makes a perfect backdrop!
Sentiments: Hey Boo Die Set and Thank You Die Set
Can I get an AAAAAA-MEN for these word dies!? The ‘thank you’ is in my top 3 favorites for this release and I already know I’ll be using it ALL the time. But that aside, there are so many reasons to love these, including:
- Each has 2 pieces – the shadow and inner layer, making it easy to create dimension and contrast. Having each stand-alone letter also enables you to incorporate a wider variety of colors on a card if you use a color per letter.
- The font – I just love it!
- The size – Not so big that you can’t add other elements, but not so small that it can’t be the focal point. Perfection!
Ghost Ancestors Stamp and Die Sets
This one’s full of ghost family photos and punny sentiments, and I couldn’t resist making a little ghost family interactive card when I saw it. I used the Push Me Pull You die to achieve this, and the sentiment hides underneath the ghost family until the recipient pulls the tab up to reveal it.
Essential Ovals and Essential Hexagons Hot Foil Stamps
There aren’t many cards I make that don’t use the Essentials by Ellen nested shape dies, and now there’s oval and hexagon hot foil stamps to coordinate with the already-available dies. I love these for adding borders and frames to my designs and since there are so many sizes in each die set, you’ll always be able to find the right one for the job! For the price, the value is fantastic.
Boos Inside Stamp and Die Sets, and Pumpkin Mug Die Set
Are you a fan of pumpkin spiced everything? These items are for you! Stamp cute little mugs or make one with the Pumpkin Mug die, which also comes with elements to cut a jack-o-lantern face into the front. The sentiments from the Boos Inside stamp set also fit perfectly on the front of the mug die, which is how I’ve used them on this card:
Hocus Pocus Stamp and Die Sets
Meet another one of my Top 3 items in this release! I said earlier that I like the font of the 2-piece sentiment dies, and I also LOVE the font in this Hocus Pocus stamp set! Not only is it clean and modern, but the coordinating dies make the set even more versatile with more layering possibilities. These sentiments work just as well on a card front as they do on tags, and speaking of which…
Modern Tags Die Set
These days I can’t give a gift without making a tag for it, and this die set works as a go-to for every occasion. Make just one, or layer them up. The Hocus Pocus sentiments work really nicely on here, and I but you could use any sentiments from your stash too because there’s a wide variety of sizes.
Pyramid Box Candy Corn Add-On Die Set
You may remember the Pyramid Box from last Halloween, and this year, it’s got a new costume! This die set is intended to cut pieces that perfectly fit onto the pyramid base, but you can also use them to make a banner, or even a candy corn shaker card (the pieces fit easily on an A2 card front when assembled. I used tiny glue dots to adhere my tags to each one, and finished them off with a few silver star confetti bits.
Fallish Stamp and Die Sets
Where are my wreath-loving crafty friends at? You need this stamp and die set, because it’s PERFECT for wreath building! I colored up a whole bunch of the images, then arranged a few of them to make the wreath in the card below. To die the design together and create some visual interest in the background, I clear-embossed one of the small leaf images on a quick ink-blended background. The watermark effect is just subtle enough to see, but also doesn’t detract from the main focal point.
Leaves Die Set
We’ve arrived at my favorite item in the release – a beautiful set of leaves that can be used as intended (die cuts) or paired with an acetate sheet to make a DIY stencil. There are so many gorgeous fall color palettes and I can’t wait to dive into my cardstock stash, put together some combinations and die cut ALL. THE. LEAVES. Oh, and they pair beautifully with that 2-piece Thank You sentiment, don’t ya think?
Spooktacular Stamp and Die Sets, and Ghost Costumes Stamp and Die Sets
These items are so great for building clean and simple Halloween scenes, or more elaborate ones depending on how into it you want to get! The Ghost Costumes allow you to dress up the ghost in the Spooktacular stamp set, and the little pumpkins make great additions for the final items in the release….
Tall House Box Die Set and Tall House Box Halloween Add-On Die Set
I love all sorts of little gift boxes, and the new Tall House Box die set is big enough to hold candy, money, and even a gift card. You can use it alone to create a cute little 3D house box, and dress it up at Halloween with some wonky window frames and pumpkins. Oh, and note that when you’re putting it together, you’ll want to put the window frames on the base before you assemble the box. The process is much easier when everything is laid flat on your work surface, and I learned that the hard way!
Alrighty, have I got you in a crafty mood yet? If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out the new release here, and join in on today’s Instagram hop. Myself and the other Ellen Hutson Design Team members are sharing more creative inspiration in our feeds today, and commenting along each stop of the hop will earn you entries for an Ellen Hutson gift card. Good luck, and I’ll see you back here soon!
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