Ever looked at a die set and thought… what happens if I cut this apart 👀?

That’s exactly what I did with this large city house die! By dissecting the building and changing its shape, I was able to create two completely different house card designs from the same set.

Would you like to see today’s cards.

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Also, this post contains affiliate links. If you choose to click and shop, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. It’s a lovely way to support both me and the crafty shops we all love.
Thanks a bunch 🥰!

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Stretch Your Supplies

One of my favourite ways to stretch my craft stash is to look at my dies differently from how they were originally intended to be used. Sometimes just trimming a section away, changing the proportions, or using only part of a design can completely transform the final look. It’s a fun way to build (pardon the pun 😄) fresh new ideas from supplies you already own, and I find it really helps keep the creative inspiration flowing!

Card #1 – Die Cut House Card – 5×7 Neighbourhood Scene

This is a large die which lends itself beautifully to a bigger card design. To create my little street scene, I die cut the house twice, trimmed the sides down, and placed them beside each other as though they were neighbouring homes in a street.

I added some sweet curtains and bright flower window boxes, then stepped up the design by changing the houses to color – one pale pink and the other a dark teal.

But the real cuteness comes from the black cat perched up on the window sill looking down at the little black puppy below… who clearly just wants to play 😉

Card #2 – Die Cut House Card – A2 Seaside Scene

This time I wanted to fit the design onto an A2 sized card, so I trimmed the top from the building to turn it into a smaller two-storey home. No puppy this time… just the cat sitting up on the roof looking down over the scene 🐈‍⬛

I decided this little house needed to be by the sea, so I added a soft ocean view along with a couple of clouds and a simple grey pathway leading to the front door.

PRO TIP: If you look closely, you might notice that I reversed the side where the door was originally designed to be. The building does have some light embossed detail lines, but they’re barely visible and it didn’t bother me at all – I’d much rather have the extra versatility from the set! But if it did bother you, an easy fix would be to cover the lines with a strip to create a ledge, or even add some greenery or climbing vines.

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Over to you!

I hope these cards inspire you to take another look at your dies and see how easily you can change them up to create completely new designs. Sometimes all it takes is trimming away a section, changing the proportions, or adding a few extra details to give your supplies a whole new feel.

Now it’s over to you… what are you going to dissect?

Crafty hugs,

Special thanks to my crafty assistant, Chad (aka ChatGPT), for helping me stay on track with my Gemini brain, grammar, and spelling… well, all the things! 😄

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Spellbinders: Everyday City Holiday Collection – SHOP USA HERE | SHOP UK HERE
Cardstock: Concord & 9th – Aqua Sky | Powder | Peacock | Oceanside | Ballet Slipper | Poppy | Eggplant | Parsley – Altenew – Jet Black – Ellen Hutson – Oyster Gray (+ random scraps)

*Certain content that appears on this site comes from Amazon, this content is provided ‘as is’ and is subject to change or removal at any time. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

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City Holiday SSS | OTH | SB US	Everyday Windows, Curtains SSS | SB US	Welcome Home SSS | SB US	Swinging Among the Stars OTH | SB US
Concord & 9th – Cardstock SSS | OTH	Altenew Cardstock ALT | SSS	Neenah Solar 110 AMZ | SSS	Neenah Solar 80 AMZ | SSS
Bone Folder ALT	Perfect Picker ALT | SSS	Tweezers ALT | SSS	Fine Blade Scissors ALT | SSS
Score Board ALT | SSS	Paper Trimmer SSS	Mini MISTI SSS	Platinum 6 ALT | SSS | OTH | SB US
Sticky Grid Mat ALT | SSS	Platesaver OTH	BetterPress SB ALT | SSS | OTH | SB US	Precision Glue Press AMZ | SSS
Bearly Art Glue AMZ | SSS	Glue Tape ALT | SSS	Foam Tape ALT | SSS	Satin Masking Tape ALT