My trick for getting a nice, deep red with my sponging is to cut the shapes from kraft cardstock. If you start with white you are adding a lot of ink to get the deeper tones, but with kraft you start ahead of the game. 

I like to sandwich the die nice and tight so it embosses the veins at the same time. I have a cute stamp set that coordinates with the shapes, but I love the raised embossing... 

I made a set of these and they're currently en route to various places around the globe... Spreading Christmas cheer... It's what I do.. lol...