12 Nesting Circle Die Cut Ideas You’ll Want to Try!

Whether you're an experienced paper crafter or just getting started, the Nesting Circles Die Set is a must-have in your die-cutting arsenal. These versatile dies can transform your crafting, turning ordinary paper into extraordinary designs. You can also mix and match them with almost anything in your existing crafting stash. All you need is a bit of imagination and creativity! 

This new die set from Altenew is releasing soon, alongside lots of new amazing goodies from the September release! While waiting, you can get a head start on some crafty inspo. 

Nesting Circles Die Set

From clean and simple card designs to interactive masterpieces, we’re showing you 12 ways to use the new Nesting Circle Die Set from Altenew to maximize its value and spark your creativity. 

Circles are one of the most basic and universally appealing shapes in design. They are soft, balanced, and endlessly versatile. In die cutting, they offer:

• Visual harmony: Circles create a focal point without harsh edges, making them ideal for sentiments, photos, and frames.
  
  

• Endless versatility: From tags to shaker windows, flowers to spinners, you’ll find dozens of ways to use circle die cuts.
  
  

• Perfect layering: Nesting circles allow for precision layering, framing, and spotlighting, something critical for dimensional card designs.
  
  

• Effortless elegance: A simple circle can elevate a card to look clean, modern, and thoughtful in seconds.

No matter your crafting style—whether minimalist or maximalist— circle dies offer a canvas for your imagination. They're a foundational die-cutting tool that delivers extraordinary results with minimal effort. And when you're short on time? These dies are a go-to for quick, high-impact projects.

We prepared a roundup of project ideas courtesy of the amazing Design Team and Guest Designers at Altenew! Let u know if any of these spark any ideas for your next project or if you’d like to make your own rendition of them! 

While crafting with your die-cut circles as is can be perfect, you can take it up a notch and add some embossed details. It’ll elevate the design and add extra interest to your designs too! 

A large circle can be many things, and a moon or a sun can be one of them! Die-cut one giant circle die and use it as a breathtaking backdrop to your scene-building projects. You can add some rays of sunshine or stars while you’re at it. 

Circles symbolize many things, with themes such as unity, wholeness, and the essence of life being among them. If you’d like to add that kind of symbolism and turn it into an elegant card, a wreath, or even a semi-wreath with beautiful details, you can make a stunning creation with just a few easy steps! 

Tags are typically a type of square or rectangular shape, but you can also make things a bit more interesting by making a circular tag. It’s perfect for any occasion and will also make for a unique design! 

Sometimes, even simple designs can make the biggest impact. If you die-cut a bunch of circular dies and emboss or even paint over them, that’s enough to make an interesting background. Add some sequins, ink splatters, and a heartfelt sentiment, then you’re good to go! 

A spotlight coloring technique means somehow creating your own spotlight within a paper crafting project to direct someone’s attention to your desired area. Well, the amazing thing about circle dies is that they make perfect spotlights and work wonders with drawing the eye! 

Placing something in the middle of your card is one thing, but if you really want to bring more attention and emphasis to it, add a circle (or two, or three) around it to make your foal points pop. 

Looking to add more shine and interest to your cards? When playing with circle dies, double up on the circle shapes and place two parallel to each other. Pair this with some ombre ink blending, and you’ve got some very impressive-looking designs. 

Nesting Circles Die Set

Circle dies can be an amazing backdrop to accompany any other crafting supplies you already have. Use a neutral-colored cardstock base and die-cut your circle in a completely different color before putting the layering dies on top for a more dimensional effect. 

If you want to highlight your sentiments a bit more, you can turn them into a badge by placing a circle die behind your sentiments. This usually works when your sentiments are small and very short, around 1-3 words long. 

Have some leftover circle dies? Use them to make your scrapbooking or journaling projects more interesting! You can add two or three large circles in a layout to complement the other elements of your design, like photos, embellishments, stamps, dies, or sentiments. 

Circles and florals are simply a picture-perfect pairing! As mentioned earlier, you can make floral wreaths, but you can also use circle dies as an accent to the other elements of your card. It may not be the star of the show, but it certainly completes the look. 

Who knew a bunch of circle dies could help you make some of the most beautiful and versatile projects? If you think about it, there’s really no limit to what you can do with some basic shapes and a lot of imaginative ideas.

Let us know if any of these projects inspired you! In the meantime, don’t forget to do some exploring In The Craft Room for more daily tutorials, inspiration, and ideas. Till next time!