Cardmaking Glossary

A must-have for clear stamps. These reusable blocks let you temporarily mount your stamps for precise placement.

Use these dies to personalize your cards with initials, names, or bold sentiments. Perfect for banners, monograms, and more!

Blending brushes or blending tools are soft-bristled tools designed for smooth, controlled application of ink, allowing cardmakers to effortlessly create seamless gradients, soft backgrounds, and intricate stencil designs with minimal streaking.

A background stamp is a large stamp designed to cover an entire card front, making it easy to add texture, patterns, or scenery that serves as a stylish foundation for your card design.

Build-A-Garden is Altenew’s monthly subscription series—formerly known as Build-A-Flower—featuring coordinated stamp, stencil, and/or die sets that let cardmakers easily create stunning layered floral designs with effortless elegance and creative versatility. Each set also comes with a mini blending brush to help subscribers build their collection.

Blog hops are online events where cardmakers and crafters visit a curated list of blogs to discover inspiring projects, new product releases, creative tips, and often enter giveaways—all while hopping from one blog to the next in a fun, community-driven celebration.

Brads are small, two-pronged fasteners used in cardmaking and scrapbooking to attach layers, secure interactive elements, or add decorative accents.

A bone folder is a flat, handheld tool used to score, crease, and fold cardstock cleanly and precisely, ensuring professional-looking edges and folds in your cards.

The sturdy paper foundation for your handmade cards. Comes in a range of weights, textures, and colors.

A design style featuring minimal elements and lots of white space. Elegant, uncluttered, and beginner-friendly!

A crafting challenge is a themed creative prompt that encourages participants to make and share handmade projects, often with specific techniques, colors, or products, fostering creativity, skill-building, and community engagement.

Craft-A-Flower is Altenew’s beloved monthly die set series featuring intricately layered floral dies that allow cardmakers to build dimensional, realistic blooms with just paper and creativity—no stamping required.

The Craft Your Life Project Kit is an all-in-one monthly subscription bundle that includes coordinated stamps, dies, stencils, and embossing folders to help you create cohesive, layered card designs with ease and style.

Create & Inspire is a collaborative crafting event or workshop experience that brings cardmakers and instructors together—either virtually or in person—to learn, create, and be inspired through classes, kits, and creative community connection.

Creative Cuts is Altenew’s monthly subscription featuring a surprise assortment of cover dies, word dies, or layering dies—each thoughtfully designed to spark creativity and add bold, professional-quality detail to your cardmaking projects.

Color blocking is a cardmaking technique that involves creating bold, contrasting sections of solid color to add modern flair, highlight focal elements, or build eye-catching backgrounds.

Coloring pages or coloring sheets are printed or digital outlines of designs—like florals, mandalas, or sentiments—ready to be colored with markers, pencils, or paints for creative relaxation or card fronts.

A technique using metal dies and a die-cutting machine to cut out shapes, sentiments, or designs from paper.

Dies are metal templates used with a die-cutting machine to cut precise shapes, sentiments, and layers out of paper, making them essential tools for adding dimension and polished design elements to handmade cards.

Dye inks are fast-drying, water-based inks that soak into paper for vibrant, smooth impressions—perfect for stamping, blending, and layering techniques in cardmaking.

Dry embossing is a technique that adds raised, textured designs to paper using embossing folders or styluses, creating tactile interest without any ink.

Double-sided adhesives are versatile crafting tapes or sheets coated with adhesive on both sides, ideal for securely layering cardstock, die-cuts, embellishments, and interactive elements in cardmaking.

Dual-tip pens feature two different nibs—typically a fine tip and a brush or chisel tip—offering versatility for coloring, lettering, journaling, and detailed embellishing in paper crafting.

Embossing powder is a fine, heat-activated powder used with embossing ink to create raised, glossy, or metallic designs that add texture and shine to stamped images and sentiments.

Embellishments are decorative accents—like sequins, gems, enamel dots, ribbon, or die-cuts—used to enhance card designs and add sparkle, texture, or dimension.

The eclipse technique involves die-cutting a shape or sentiment from a stamped or stenciled background and popping it up with foam tape to create a hidden-in-plain-sight, 3D effect.

Emboss resist is a technique where heat-embossed areas repel ink or watercolor, revealing a crisp, untouched design beneath colorful backgrounds or blended layers.

Enamel dots are glossy, adhesive-backed embellishments used to add pops of color and polish to your cards—perfect for mimicking confetti, accents, or flower centers.

Foam tape is a double-sided adhesive with a raised, cushioned center that adds instant dimension and height to card layers, die-cuts, and sentiments.

Fussy cutting is the careful, hand-cutting of stamped, stenciled, or printed images using precision scissors to isolate and highlight specific elements in your card designs.

A floral layering stamp is a multi-step stamp set designed to build realistic, dimensional flower images by stamping multiple layers of coordinating designs in different colors or shades.

The gatefold technique involves folding a card into two flaps that open from the center, like gates, creating an interactive and elegant presentation for your card design

Glitter is a sparkling decorative material used to add shimmer, festive flair, or eye-catching highlights to your paper crafting projects.

Glitter cardstock is a heavy-weight paper with a glittery surface that adds bold sparkle and texture to die-cuts, backgrounds, and layered card elements—without the mess of loose glitter.

The ghost stamping technique involves stamping an image with white or light pigment ink, then slightly offsetting and restamping in a darker color to create a soft, shadow-like effect. Another way to do ghost stamping is by pressing a piece of cardstock onto a stenciled or ink-blended surface and putting it through a die-cut machine to lift a soft, reverse impression that creates an ethereal, “ghosted” effect.

Glue tape is a mess-free, double-sided adhesive in a roller applicator—ideal for quick and precise sticking of paper layers, embellishments, and photos.

Gemstones are small, faceted embellishments that add a touch of elegance and sparkle to your cards, mimicking the look of real jewels in various shapes and colors.

Heat embossing is a technique that uses embossing powder and a heat tool to create raised, glossy, or metallic designs that add texture and shine to stamped images and sentiments.

A heat tool, or heat gun, is a handheld device that emits focused hot air, used to melt embossing powders or activate heat-sensitive crafting techniques without scorching your paper.

The hot foiling technique uses heat and pressure to transfer metallic foil onto cardstock, creating luxurious, high-shine accents perfect for sentiments, frames, and detailed designs.

A hot foil plate is a metal die-like tool designed to work with a hot foil machine, pressing intricate foil designs onto paper when combined with heat and foil.

An ink pad is a foam or felt surface saturated with dye or pigment ink, used with stamps or blending tools to add color and design to paper crafting projects.

Ink blending is a technique that uses brushes, sponges, or blending tools to smoothly apply and blend ink colors, perfect for creating soft backgrounds, ombré effects, or seamless transitions.

The die-cut inlay technique involves fitting die-cut pieces back into their original negative space, like a puzzle, to create a smooth, flat design with intricate, multicolored detail.

The ink smooshing technique involves dabbing or pressing wet ink onto a surface (like acetate or plastic), then “smooshing” it onto your cardstock to create random, organic, watercolor-style backgrounds.

Ink swatches are small samples of ink colors applied to paper and labeled for easy reference—ideal for organizing, comparing, and selecting inks during crafting projects.

The Altenew Inspiration Challenge is a monthly creative contest where crafters create a project inspired by a shared image or color palette, offering a chance to win prizes and be featured on Altenew’s blog.

A precision crafting tool with a sticky tip that helps pick up and place small embellishments like gems, sequins, or enamel dots with ease.

Journaling is the creative practice of writing down thoughts, memories, or reflections—often enhanced with stamping, embellishments, and decorative elements in planners, scrapbooks, or handmade cards.

A junk journal is a handmade, mixed-media journal created using a variety of found, recycled, or leftover materials like tags, envelopes, paper scraps, and fabric—perfect for artistic expression, memory-keeping, or storytelling with a vintage flair.

The Keyhole System is Altenew’s innovative alignment guide that uses simple shapes—like keyholes, arrows, and triangles—on die-cut layers to help crafters effortlessly align, match, and assemble layered elements with precision and ease, ensuring perfect placement every time.

Kraft paper is a durable, brown cardstock with a natural, rustic finish—ideal for earthy, vintage, or minimalist card designs.

The kiss stamping technique involves pressing a patterned stamp onto a solid stamp (before stamping on paper) to transfer texture or detail, resulting in a unique, layered design.

Layering stamps are coordinated sets of individual stamp layers that, when stamped in sequence with varying colors, create detailed, dimensional images—often florals—with depth and realism.

Layering dies are coordinated die sets designed to be stacked or pieced together to build dimensional images such as flowers, mountains, foliage, or backgrounds with depth and intricate detail.

Layering guides are visual reference sheets included with Altenew stamp and die sets that show the correct order and positioning for each layer, helping crafters easily achieve beautifully detailed and aligned designs.

A letterpress plate is a metal tool used with a letterpress machine and die-cutting machine to deboss inked or uninked designs into paper, producing a luxurious, tactile impression.

The letterpress technique involves pressing a design into paper with ink and a letterpress plate to create a debossed, elegant texture reminiscent of traditional engraved stationery.

The lifting technique removes ink from a stamped, blended, or watercolored background—typically using a water-reactive or stamping medium—to reveal lighter impressions or patterns for subtle contrast and dimension.

A masculine card is a handmade card designed with themes, colors, and elements traditionally associated with men, often featuring bold, neutral tones, geometric patterns, or minimal embellishments

Masking is a stamping technique where specific areas are covered to prevent ink or color from reaching them, allowing for layered designs, clean edges, or spotlight effects.

Matting involves placing a colored or textured paper layer behind a focal image or sentiment to create contrast, frame the design, and add visual interest to the card.

Memory-keeping is the art of preserving life’s moments through journaling, photos, and decorative elements, often using cards, layouts, or albums to document personal stories and milestones.

Metallic watercolors are shimmering, pigment-rich paints that add a pearlescent or metallic finish to cardmaking projects—ideal for adding shine to florals, sentiments, and backgrounds.

Metallic markers are ink pens filled with shimmering, opaque pigment that adds rich, reflective accents, ideal for writing, detailing, or embellishing on dark or light cardstock.

Messy watercoloring is a loose, expressive technique where colors are applied without strict precision, creating a relaxed, artistic effect that adds charm and spontaneity to stamped images.

Mini Delight is Altenew’s monthly subscription series of compact stamp and die sets featuring small-scale, versatile designs perfect for quick cards, tags, and embellishments.

Mixed media in cardmaking refers to combining various materials and techniques, like inks, pastes, fabric, die-cuts, and paints, to add layers, textures, and artistic depth to cardmaking projects.

A monochromatic card design uses different shades, tints, and tones of a single color to create cohesive, stylish, and often elegant visual harmony.

Nested dies are a set of metal cutting dies in the same shape but varying sizes, perfect for creating layered frames, windows, and dimensions in cardmaking projects

Negative die-cut pieces refer to the leftover cardstock surrounding a die-cut shape, which can be creatively repurposed as frames, windows, or design elements to add depth and contrast to your cardmaking projects.

Outline stamps feature bold, clean linework designed for coloring techniques like alcohol markers, watercoloring, or paper piecing, making them ideal for detailed and customizable card designs.

The One-Go System is Altenew’s innovative stamping and die-cutting solution that allows you to stamp multiple images at once and cut them all in one pass, saving time and ensuring perfect alignment.

Ombre is a color-blending technique where hues gradually shift from light to dark (or between two colors), creating a soft, gradient effect that adds depth and visual interest to backgrounds and stamped images.

Permanent markers are alcohol- or solvent-based pens designed for long-lasting, smudge-proof results on a variety of surfaces, perfect for bold outlines, coloring, or mixed media use.

Pigment ink is a thick, slow-drying ink that sits on the surface of the paper, offering vibrant, opaque color and excellent results for heat embossing and stamping on dark or non-porous surfaces.

Photopolymer stamps are high-quality, clear stamps made from durable light-sensitive resin, known for their crisp impressions, excellent cling to acrylic blocks, and long-lasting performance.

Polychromatic refers to a design or color scheme that incorporates multiple colors, often vibrant and varied, to create a lively, eye-catching effect in cardmaking.

A pop-up card is an interactive card that reveals a three-dimensional element or scene when opened, adding surprise and dimension to your handmade greetings.

A press plate is a metal plate used with a letterpress or foiling system to press inked or foil designs into paper, creating tactile impressions with elegant, professional-quality results.

A fast-setting liquid glue used in cardmaking for secure bonding of paper, embellishments, and intricate die-cuts—ideal when time or precision matters.

Quilling is a decorative technique that involves rolling and shaping thin paper strips into coils or scrolls to create intricate, dimensional designs on handmade cards and DIY crafts.

A registration plate is an innovative letterpress tool that uses a multi-colored mylar template to help crafters effortlessly align and layer multiple ink colors, allowing you to create perfectly positioned, multi-colored letterpress designs in one go—no stamping, stenciling, or blending required.

Rock and roll stamping is a fun inking technique where you ink a stamp in a base color and then gently roll the edges in a darker ink, creating a soft, blended two-tone effect with added depth.

The Stampwheel is Altenew’s revolutionary stamping platform that combines precision, ease, and versatility—perfect for radial stamping, layered designs, wreath building, and seamless alignment every time.

Stamping is the foundational cardmaking technique of transferring inked designs from stamps onto paper to create images, patterns, or sentiments.

Stamps are reusable crafting tools made from rubber, clear acrylic, or photopolymer that allow you to imprint designs onto paper using ink, enabling endless creative possibilities in cardmaking.

Stationery refers to paper goods like cards, envelopes, and writing materials, often personalized or decorated, and used for correspondence, journaling, or creative paper crafting.

Stencils are thin sheets with pre-cut designs used as templates to apply ink, paste, or other mediums through the openings for bold patterns, textures, or layered effects.

Stenciling is the technique of applying ink, paint, or paste over a stencil to transfer the cut-out design onto your cardstock, often used for backgrounds, focal images, or dimension.

A sentiment is a word or phrase, such as a greeting, wish, or customized message, used on a handmade card to express the occasion, emotion, or theme of the design.

Shimmer Relief Paste is a creamy, metallic paste used with stencils to add raised, shimmering texture and elegant dimension to your paper crafting projects.

The spotlight stamping technique highlights a specific part of your design, usually by stamping in full color over a masked or monochrome area, to draw attention and create visual contrast.

Stencil Art is Altenew’s bi-monthly subscription featuring six expertly designed layering stencils that let you effortlessly build large, intricate designs—just add ink and blending brushes for stunning, next-level stenciled creations.

The splattering technique involves flicking or tapping ink, watercolor, or paint onto your card surface to create artistic, speckled effects that add texture, movement, and visual interest.

Second generation stamping is when you stamp an image once, then stamp it again without re-inking to achieve a lighter, softer version—great for layering or background effects.

Sequins are flat, shiny embellishments that add sparkle and movement to your cards, often used as finishing touches or inside shaker cards for extra fun and flair.

The tearing technique involves ripping cardstock or paper by hand to create organic, textured edges that add a touch of rustic charm or artistic flair to your card designs.

A T-square ruler is a precision tool used to align elements, draw straight lines, and ensure perfect placement of layers, sentiments, or embellishments in cardmaking.

Tone-on-tone stamping is a technique where you stamp an image using an ink color similar to your cardstock, creating a subtle, elegant design that adds depth without overpowering the background.

Unboxing is the joyful experience of opening new crafting products—often shared through videos or photos—where cardmakers reveal, explore, and react to the latest supplies, kits, or subscription boxes.

Using scraps or previously used materials—like packaging, old cards, or leftover die-cuts—to create new handmade card designs, making crafting more sustainable and creative.

A technique borrowed from art where a light layer of color or wash is applied first to establish tone or shading before adding more vibrant layers—used in cardmaking with watercolor, gouache, or acrylics.

Vellum is a semi-transparent, frosted paper used in cardmaking to soften backgrounds, layer over designs, or add elegant overlays without obscuring details.

A video hop is a coordinated online event where crafters share project tutorials or product features via YouTube videos, inviting viewers to “hop” from one channel to the next for inspiration, giveaways, and creative tips.

Washi tape is a decorative, repositionable paper tape available in various patterns and widths, perfect for adding borders, accents, or layers to your cardmaking projects.

Watercolor is a translucent, water-activated paint medium that allows for soft washes, vibrant blends, and artistic expression in paper crafting and cardmaking.

A watercolor palette is a tray or compact container that holds multiple dried watercolor pans or wells of paint, allowing artists and crafters to blend and paint with ease using water.

Watercoloring is the technique of applying diluted watercolor paints to paper—often used to color stamped images or create dreamy, artistic backgrounds on handmade cards.

A wax seal is a decorative embellishment created by melting wax and pressing a design stamp into it, adding a classic, elegant touch to cards, envelopes, or gift tags.

Wax seal stamping is the process of pressing a metal stamp into melted wax to form an impression, commonly used in cardmaking for luxurious, vintage-inspired embellishments.

Wax beads are small pellets of sealing wax that can be melted with a wax warmer or spoon to create wax seals in various colors and finishes.

The wet-on-wet technique involves applying watercolor onto a wet surface, allowing the colors to blend organically and create soft, fluid effects—ideal for dreamy backgrounds.

The wet-on-dry technique involves painting watercolor onto dry paper, resulting in more precise lines and controlled color placement, great for detailed stamped image coloring.

An X-Acto knife is a precision cutting tool with a sharp, fine blade—perfect for trimming intricate shapes, detailed fussy cutting, or customizing card elements with expert accuracy.

Yupo paper is a non-porous, synthetic surface ideal for alcohol ink techniques, offering vibrant color flow, smooth blending, and the ability to rework inks without warping or tearing.

A Z-fold card is a fun-fold design where the card base is scored and folded into a zigzag (or “Z”) shape, creating a dynamic, interactive layout that’s perfect for layered scenes or surprise reveals.

The Zero-Waste System is Altenew’s eco-conscious die-cutting approach that transforms both the positive shapes and negative spaces of your cardstock into usable design elements, ensuring nothing goes to waste in your creative process.