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Posts tagged “Uniko” (Page 2)

16 Jan

Introducing… Background Blocks Scattered Hearts & Re-introducing Always & Forever

Hey!

I’m back today with one new product introduction and one re-introduction of a previously retired clear stamp set. It’s always nice when older stamp sets can make a return as trends change & they fit in nicely with new products.

I have a trio of cards to share with you today using these stamp sets and I’ve also combined another popular stamp set which coordinates beautifully with Always & Forever.

First up I have used Background Blocks Scattered Hearts combined with the ‘Happy Heart Day’ sentiment from You Are… Sentiments Outlined, which I introduced yesterday HERE.

For this card I have stamped the block as a focal image and overlaid the sentiment stamped on a simple panel raised with foam adhesive. I use 1mm thick foam adhesive as it still gives dimension, but is still mail friendly!

The layout of my card is from this weeks CAS Colours & Sketches challenge seen HERE and below, such a fun sketch to join in on 🙂

I used Catherine Pooler Midnight ink to stamp both the heart background and the sentiment, as this ink is alcohol marker friendly & I knew I wanted to try out some of my new Altenew Artist Markers.

I used all four markers from the Rose Petal collection to randomly colour the hearts and then I used the darkest shade Cosmic Berry to colour the ‘heart’ in the sentiment. The ‘happy’ and ‘day’ are coloured with a black fine liner. I also added some clear Wink of Stella to some of the uncoloured for some subtle sparkle.

Next I decided to combine both Background Blocks Scattered Hearts with Always & Forever.

This card layout was inspired by the new sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches this week seen HERE and below.

When stamping the Background Blocks Scattered Hearts, it is possible to stamp it so that you can fill a larger area, like I have on this card.

I’ve used a stitched border die (MFT, I think) to die cut the curved panel and I have stamped the ‘Always & Forever’ sentiment in black ink. The ‘Love You’ heart is stamped, fussy cut and adhered using 1mm thick foam adhesive.

Lastly for today I wanted to create a card using Always & Forever and a stamp set it coordinates with, Beautiful Blooms I.

As you can see the floral heart from Always & Forever features the Beautiful Blooms I flower.

From the very beginning of Uniko, I have always tried to design Uniko stamps so that they can be used together for more creative options.

On this card I have stamped the largest Beautiful Bloom onto my base card with VersaMark ink and heat embossed with detail white embossing powder. I’ve then ink blended a pink over the top. The red Beautiful Bloom heart is stamped, fussy cut & adhered with foam adhesive. I’ve added a small line of glitter around the edge of the heart using a quickie glue pen and fine glitter.

That is all the cards I have to share with you today, I will be back tomorrow with one more product introduction. All of the new stamps will be available on Saturday 18th January at 9am GMT.

Thank you so much for stopping by today & I do hope you will come back tomorrow.

Crafty Hugs

By Cards, Challenge, Floral, Introducing, Love, New Release , , , , , , , , , 10 Comments Read more...
16 Jan

Uniko Challenge #57 Anything Goes & Optional Twist Cool Winter Colours

Hey!

Welcome to the January/February 2020 Uniko Challenge.

We’re kicking off 2020 with an Anything Goes theme and have added in the optional twist of Cool Winter Colours for those of you that like to challenge yourselves even more.


We’ve the amazingly awesome Trina P joining us as our Guest Designer and I know you’ll adore her awesome card.

How fabulous is that! Do pop over to her blog and let her know how clever she is – HERE

In January & February I have a few male birthdays & so I thought with the cool winter colours twist of the challenge I would make a masculine birthday card.

For my blues I chose the Altenew Sweet Dreams colour collection of inks and blended them onto my card base using my Taylored Expressions blender brushes. I do love how handy the blender brushes are and seem to be able to control them a little better than the standard foam pad tool!

I kept my design simple by using the Background Block Graffiti Texture and stamping it in Teal Cave ink and the sentiment from Simply Said Blocks stamped in the darkest shade Galactic Stream. The sentiment is adhered to the card using foam adhesive.

Be sure to check out all the inspiration from the Brand Ambassadors HERE on the challenge post & you will also find the link up to the challenge there too.

Need a little more incentive to join in? How about some prizes!

THE PRIZES

  • Main Winner Chosen By the DT – £25 eGift Certificate
  • Random Twist Winner – £5 In Stock Clear Stamp Set of Winners Choosing
  • Random Uniko Stamps Winner – £5 In Stock Clear Stamp Set of Winners Choosing
  • Top 3 Chosen By DT – 150 Loyalty Reward Points

You’ve got plenty of time to play along with this challenge. The deadline for submission is midnight (GMT) on Friday 21st February 2020.

Crafty Hugs,

By Challenge, Masculine, Uniko Challenge , , , , , , , , 2 Comments Read more...
15 Jan

Introducing… BIG & BOLD Love & You Are… Sentiments Outlined

Hey & Happy Hump Day!

I’m here to brighten your Wednesday with the first of the January 2020 Release introductions – yay! Today I have two mini clear stamp sets to introduce, BIG & BOLD Love and You Are… Sentiments Outlined. Both these sets are new additions to the popular BIG & BOLD series and the Sentiments Outlined series.

How about some inspiration using these new stamps. First up I got all rainbow inky with BIG & BOLD Love…

Like all of the BIG & BOLD stamp sets, the set features a beautiful bold word, smaller accompanying sentiments and accent image stamps. For this first card I wanted to go for a rainbow theme to really show off the fun striped heart image.

I’ve used a variety of Altenew inks to stamp the hearts before fussy cutting them out and adhering them to the card. I used two depths of foam adhesive to adhere the orange heart and just one to add the lime green heart.

Next I went for a one layer card with a more muted colour palette…

This time I used the graffiti style heart image and used three new Altenew colours Amethyst, Pumpkin Pie and Nimbus. I used all 3 sizes of the smaller hearts, colouring in the largest small heart once stamped with a fine liner. The sentiment is from Simply Said Blocks II.

The second stamp set I am introducing today is You Are… Sentiments Outlined. I love this style of focal sentiment and having had requests for one of the sentiments contained in the set it was a no brainer to release another set 😉

As you can see from the photo, there are three sentiments in the set. For this first card I have used ‘Happy Heart Day’. This is such a good sentiment for Valentine’s Day to make loved themed cards for friends & family without it being a ‘traditional’ Valentine’s card.

On this design I have stamped the sentiment in black ink and then coloured it in with a black fine liner. In hindsight I wished I had coloured the word heart in red ink. I’ve used the striped heart and the two small solid hearts from BIG & BOLD Love to accent the sentiment to create a super CAS design.

Lastly for today I had to make my ‘signature’ card for this style of sentiment. AND yes, I am a Grey’s Anatomy fan and I have been watching them far to much again and from season one – LOL!

As you can see I have repeat stamped the sentiment to create a fun background. I have coloured all but the top centre sentiment in black fine liner and used an Altenew alcohol marker in Emerald to colour the focal sentiment.

My thinking behind it all is that the coloured sentiment represents the person you are sending the card to, highlighting them from all the ‘people’ around them represented by the black coloured sentiments! That’s just where my creativity comes from sometimes – ha!

With the shape of the sentiment layout, the repeated design left some gaps which I have filled with some stamped accent hearts from BIG & BOLD Love. I also added some clear Nuvo Drops to the coloured sentiment to make it stand out a little more.

That is all the cards I have to share with you today, I will be back tomorrow with more product introductions. All of the new stamps will be available on Saturday 18th January at 9am GMT.

Thank you so much for stopping by today & I do hope you will come back tomorrow.

Crafty Hugs

By Cards, Introducing, Love, New Release , , , , , , , , , , , 3 Comments Read more...
14 Jan

January 2020 Release Sneak Peeks!

Woohoo!

It’s finally time to share the July 2019 Release Sneak Peeks. This is a LOVELY release with a nod to Valentine’s Day, but all of the stamp sets can be used for a variety of occasions throughout the year.

This month there are four new clear stamp sets and one returning clear stamp set.

Here are the peeks at the new & returning products…

First up, how about a new addition to the Background Blocks, with some scattered hearts.

Next we have an addition to the BIG & BOLD series with BIG & BOLD Love. This one has been designed for a while & awaiting the right time to be released 😉

Next I have some more Sentiments Outlined, this time with a ‘You Are’ theme to them. I’m excited for these to be added to the sentiment line up for sure.

Lastly for the new clear stamps, how about a floral and I think my new favourite 😉

This stamp set is called So Lovely and you might just recognise those Peonies! These are smaller than Pure Florals Peony and there is something a little different to this set too.

Lastly for this release I am bring back an old favourite…

Those who have been long time followers might remember this set. If you do, why not leave a comment telling me the name of the stamp set in the comments and I will draw a random winner from the correct comments to win a prize!

That is all the sneak peeks for this release, I will be back tomorrow with the first of the product introductions. All of the new stamps will be available on Saturday 18th January at 9am GMT.

Thank you so much for stopping by today & I do hope you will come back tomorrow.

Crafty Hugs

By New Release, Sneak Peeks , , , , , 4 Comments Read more...
03 Jan

A Stitch In Time – Craft Stamper Magazine

Happy Friday!

Today I am super happy to share with you a few sneak peeks from the latest issue of Craft Stamper magazine, which hit the stores today.

My feature in the magazine is a series of four projects that are inspired by my love for the 1950s & 1960s that incorporate the trendy technique of pairing stitch with papercraft & stamping supplies.

Below are a few sneak peeks of the projects and I have linked to all the Uniko clear stamps I have used at the end of the post too.

Mixed Media is not a style I would say I am comfortable with, it pushes me out of my comfort zone, BIG time!

I have a love for stitch, though it is not a craft I have done for a while and you know I have a passion for card making and paper crafts, so by chance when making my first project for the feature I combined the two and continued the theme of stitch for all of the projects.

It is definitely something I will be having a go of again in the near future and sharing here on the blog.

I will share a few more photos from the feature on social media once my copy of the magazine has arrived. If you would like to get a copy of the magazine, head on over HERE to find out where and how you can buy it.

Thanks for stopping by.

Crafty Hugs

By Cards, Craft Stamper Magazine, Featured In , , , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment Read more...
01 Jan

Happy New Year!

Hello & Happy 2020!

I do hope you all had a lovely and safe New Years Eve and have enjoyed a wonderful New Years Day. I have been soaking up the last of the family time, as hubby heads back to work tomorrow 🙁 The Beans still have a few days left of the school holidays and lucky for me are off out tomorrow afternoon to the pantomime!

I managed to sneak in the studio yesterday morning to make this quick ‘Happy New Year’ card. The doily I have used from Decorative Doilies – The Hands of Time reminds me of fireworks and it is nice to have it currently in stock to showcase and use on my card today!

I’m not setting any resolutions or words for the year, as I find I forget so easily and they always seem to go astray as the year progresses. One thing I will be doing is setting myself some monthly goals to achieve throughout the year, some personal and some to grow Uniko and myself as a small business/business owner.

One of my goals for January is to create brighter cards! I was surprised at how little the bright colours were in my ‘Year of Colour’. The muted and neutral tones really took centre stage, with the brights so small around the edge.

So for my ‘Happy New Year’ card I selected some bright Copic colours to create rainbow fireworks! The sentiment is from Festive Sentiments Outlined and I coloured it with a black fine liner to stand out against the rainbow.

That’s all I have to share with you today, it’s almost time for The Beans to go to bed – yay! This mummy is worn out – LOL!

Until next time, thanks for stopping by.

Crafty Hugs!

By Cards, Revisited Clear Stamp Sets , , , , , , , , 4 Comments Read more...
31 Dec

A Year in Review – 2019

Hello!

I do hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and Holiday Season. I had a lovely time with my little family. Most of all I have and still am enjoying some much needed downtime and family time. Just doing a little bit of work here and there. It’ll be all back to normal on Monday 6th, when The Beans go back to school!

I thought I would pop by today and share a Year in Review, looking back at each of the releases and picking out a few of my favourite products I’ve designed this year.

February…

The releases in February are always one of my most favourite and memorable as it coincides with Uniko’s Birthday celebrations. This release saw 6 clear stamp sets, two coordinating designer die collections and 1 new stencil design.

From all the products released this month, it was really hard to pick just one favourite to use on a card today, as I am biased and loved all the products! But, as you can see I chose to use Background Blocks Graffiti Texture.

I chose this stamp as a favourite as it is so good to use for those hard to make masculine cards. Especially teens and younger men. Simply pair the stamp with an ink blended background and a trio of sentiments and voila! a simple masculine birthday card.

April…

This year April is my all time favourite release! These clear stamp set designs in this release come from the heart, my love and passion for design. I ignored all the trends I was seeing and just went with what I love. AND it looks like you all loved Background Blocks Mid Century Modern as much as me, as it is still proving to be popular and it’s the best seller the this year! And not surprisingly, closely followed by Mid Century Modern Florals.

With this is seemed only fitting that I should make another card using them both!

July…

This release was quite trend based. With the Tropical trend still in full swing and forecast to make appearances in 2020, I added to the Uniko Paradise collection with the Large Background Tropical Paradise. The other trend that is growing more and more is animal print and again is set to continue into 2020.

I chose though to use Sentiments Outlined for my card today. I love the simplicity of this sentiment set and though it be small, there are so many creative possibilities with it!

On this card I have paired it with the Uniko Style flower, an oldie now, but still a favourite. With the sentiment being fairly large for the layout I chose, I have kept it as an outline sentiment and the embellishments minimal.

October…

This was my final release for 2019 and a simple Christmas themed release. With the mix of florals, snowflakes & traditional Christmas clear stamps, designer dies and stencils, it was again hard to choose a favourite to focus on.

But, I have a thing for snowflakes and as we’ve yet to have any snow here, I had to use the Designer Die Sparkling Snowflake!

Here I have done some simple but effective inlay die cutting and added a simple ‘Let it Snow’ sentiment from Festive Sentiments Outlined. I added some white gel pen to the inside of the sentiment and embellished the card with some random white gel pen snowflake dots.

In comparison to previous years, the products I have designed and released is quite modest. A total of 17 new clear stamp sets and 1 re-introduced. 6 designer die collections and 1 stand alone die AND 8 new stencil designs.

It’s nice to look back and see what I have achieved as a designer and a small UK business. It’s also a reminder to be true to myself, take chances and be unique.

Don’t forget that there is still time to take advantage of the little Christmas discount, it ends 9am GMT Thursday 2nd January 2020.

Here’s the end to a FABulous year and the start of new and exciting year ahead!

Thanks so much for sticking with me on my journey, supporting my small business and most of all for all your truly appreciated custom. See you in 2020!

Crafty Hugs!

By Cards, Revisited Clear Stamp Sets , 1 Comment Read more...
12 Dec

Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas!

Happy Thursday.

The serious countdown is on now, with less than two weeks till Christmas Day!

As usual I am still making Christmas cards and added a little more pressure to myself when I committed to sending some to a residential home. I wanted to pay it forward and spread Christmas cheer to those who need it and some who don’t have family and friends.

Today I decided to dust off Jolly Christmas, this Santa puts a smile on my face when I see him, so I am hoping it will be the same for others.

I’ve paired him with the ‘Ho Ho Ho’ background builder from Background Builders Christmas 2018 and a Merry Christmas sentiment from Festive Sentiments.

How are your Christmas preparations and plans coming along? Apart from Christmas cards and the fresh food shop, I think I am just about sorted.

Before I go today, I have one more thing to tell you about…

I hope you will join Uniko on Saturday 14th December at 9am GMT for a Christmas Party with inspiration & prizes!

Warm Crafty Hugs!

By Cards, Christmas , , , , , , , , , , , , 0 Comments Read more...
06 Dec

The Holly & The Ivy

Happy Friday!

Oh my, the days are just flying by and the last Christmas posting dates are fast approaching. I feel like I still have a mountain of Christmas cards to make and post – ack!

With no new release here until January 2020, I thought I would do some much needed restocks. This week a HUGE batch of clear stamps arrived in the studio – YAY!

As you know, I love a good restock. It inspires me to dust off stamps I’ve not used for a while and give them some fresh inky love. One of the clear stamp sets that came back in stock this week is Background Builders: Vines, and this is how I was inspired to use it today, along with Background Builders: Vines Winter Additions…

These stamp sets were designed to be used independently, but also together. I just LOVE how this card turned out. I used the vine boughs from Background Builders: Vines and embellished them with the ivy leaf, holly leaf and berries.

The sentiment is from Festive Sentiments and I popped it up on the card with some foam adhesive.

That’s all I have to share with you today. I hope you all have a wonderful day and find some time to be creative.

Crafty Hugs 

By Cards, Christmas, Revisited Clear Stamp Sets , , , , , , , , 0 Comments Read more...
30 Nov

Coffee & Friends

Happy Weekend!

Today I am super excited to share another feature and Uniko FREE Digital Stamp Download Collection in the NEW issue of Simply Cards & Papercraft magazine, which is now on sale.

This FREE collection of digital stamps features a large Block Party style stamp and two sentiment stamps. They can be downloaded from the Simply Cards & Papercraft website HERE.

The photo above shows a variety of ways the digital stamps can be used and in the magazine I share some Top Tips of using digital stamps 😉

I thought I would make one more card to share with you here using the main Block Party Coffee stamp and one of the sentiments.

When I saw the current two week sketch over at CAS(E) this Sketch! seen HERE and below, I knew it was perfect to use with these digital stamps!

I use Photoshop when using digital stamps and I always create a document the size of the card I am going to make. My standard size card is 10.5 x 14 cm. I started by placing the ‘Sending You a LATTE Birthday Wishes’ sentiment and copying & pasting it to create a fun border style background as seen in the sketch. This was then printed, cut to size and coloured with Copic Markers.

With using Photoshop, digital stamps are easy to scale up or down to suit your need & use of them. Here I have scaled the Block Party Coffee stamp down to a small rectangle. Again I have coloured with Copic Markers, trimmed to size & layered with some black card before adhering to the card base using foam adhesive.

I hope that you download and enjoy using the FREE digital stamps I have designed. If you use them and share your makes on Social Media, be sure to #unikoltd on your post, so that I can find them easy!

Crafty Hugs 

By Cards, Featured In, Simply Cards & Papercrafts , , , , , , , , , , 0 Comments Read more...