Case me a Christmas Card with Michelle Lupton

Hi there

My lovely crafty friend from across the pond, Michelle Lupton has invited me to join her once again in her CASE Me a Christmas Card Series.  I'm so happy to be part of Michelle's series again.  CASE can either stand for 'Copy and Share Everything' or 'Copy and Selectively Edit'.  The aim is to take inspiration from any card made by the other and make a Christmas card.

I had a great time scrolling through Michelle's Instagram feed, she has shared so many wonderful makes.  It was a gorgeously clean and simple card that caught my attention so I chose that one as my inspiration for this card...

I began by die cutting a panel with a diagonal stitched edge.  I then ink blended through a star stencil with two shades of ink.  I chose a pink and a teal green, fading out slightly in the centre as Michelle did.  I then simply stamped the holly image and the sentiment in black ink.  The panel was then adhered on fun foam.

Materials used:

• Die: MFT Die-namics - Inside and Out Diagonal Stitched Rectangle Stax
• Stencil: Efco - Stars
• Stamps: Watercolour Wonders Festive Collection (free set with Simply Cards and Papercraft magazine); Clearly Besotted - Brushed Sentiments
• Ink: Altenew - Pink Diamond, Volcano Lake; Versafine Clair - Nocturne

And here is Michelle's gorgeous card, I loved the simplicity of it...

I think you can clearly see how I CASED this one...an ink blended central shape, a linear stamped image and a sentiment.

  

I'm now off to visit Michelle to see which of my cards she chose to CASE.  You can find her post, here.

Thank you so much for taking a look and thank you once again to Michelle for inviting me to take part.  Why not take a look through Michelle's feed, she has had lots of crafty friends joining in so far and more to come.

CASEing cards is a great way to craft if you need a creative nudge, just remember to give credit to the original designer.

Uniko October/November 2024 Reveal, Release, Brand Ambassador Blog Hop & Giveaway!

Good morning!

It's release day over at Uniko and I'm here to reveal the whole release and share another card.

Here's the final card I made and I used the new Big & Bold Joy stamp set, along with the Plaid stencils which were part of the Picked Posies collection which was exclusive to Craft Stash but no longer available... 

I wanted to go with traditional Christmas red and green but wanted to use muted shades so I inked up the plaid background in a pink and soft green.  Then on a die cut panel, I simply stamped various elements from the Big & Bold Joy set and adhered the panel on 3D foam.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Big & Bold Joy
• Stencils: Uniko - Picked Posies Plaid
• Ink: Distress Ink: Worn Lipstick, Bundled Sage; Altenew - Forest Glades, Coral Berry; Versafine Clair - Nocturne
• Die: MFT Die-namics - Wonky Stitched Rectangle Stax

So, now to reveal the new and reintroduced products in full.

Reintroducing...Christmas Pop clear stamp set...

and Pure Florals Poinsettia clear stamp set...

And the new addition to the Background Blocks series of stamps...Background Blocks Snow Flurry...

The new addition to the Big & Bold sets...Big & Bold Joy...

and finally, another new set to join the Framed series...Framed Fairy Lights...

So, lots of festive inspiration for you in this release.  Be sure to leave some comment love either on the Brand Ambassador blogs or social media.  You can find all the links over at the Uniko blog, here.

There is a giveaway too, go over to the Uniko blog post and use the links to each of the Brand Ambassadors' posts.  Just comment along the way for a chance to win the whole release.

The products are available from the Uniko store now, here.  Happy shopping!

Thanks for visiting today.

Uniko October/November 2024 Release - Introducing...Framed: Fairy Lights

Good morning and Happy Saturday!

It's time for the final introduction from the latest Uniko release, coming tomorrow.

Bev has designed another great stamp set to join the Framed family...Framed Fairy Lights.

Here's my first card where I've just used part of the stamp to create a window scene...

I stamped part of the fairy lights image onto my card base and coloured the lights with Copics.  I then stamped the illusion of a Christmas tree using a small foliage stamp from the Season of Beauty stamp set.  I die cut some purple cardstock to create a panel with an aperture, and then die cut the window frame in white and then adhered these to the card base to leave the lights showing through.  I finished with a sentiment which is also from the Framed Fairy Lights set.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Framed Fairy Lights; Season of Beauty
• Ink: Memento - Tuxedo Black, Cottage Ivy; Versafine Clair - Nocturne
• Coloured with Copics
• Dies: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles; Clearly Besotted - Window Die

And for my second card I used the image in it's entirety, together with greetings from the set...

I simply stamped the whole of the framed image directly on my card base in Copic friendly ink and coloured in the lights with markers.  The sentiments were heat embossed in white on black sentiment strips.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Framed Fairy Lights
• Ink: Memento - Tuxedo Black; VersaMark
• Coloured with Copics
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Opaque Bright White
• Die: Altenew - Featured Sentiments

As always, there's plenty more to see over on the main Uniko blog, here.  My fellow Brand Ambassadors have some lovely projects to share with you.

The whole release will be revealed tomorrow, Sunday 3 November 2024 at 9.00am GMT, and will also then be available to purchase from the Uniko online store, here. 

I hope you've enjoyed the introductions this week and please do drop by tomorrow to see the whole release.  There will also be a chance to win all these new goodies.

Uniko October/November 2024 Release - Introducing...BIG & BOLD Joy

Good morning.

It's time for another new introduction from the upcoming release at Uniko.

And this time it's another great addition to the Big & Bold family of stamp sets...Big & Bold Joy.  Another great set, I think you'll agree.

The focal point on my first card is all heat embossed stamping...

On a panel of raspberry coloured cardstock I planned out where I wanted the various elements.  I started by stamping and heat embossing the dove in white.  Next I masked the dove and then stamped and heat embossed the word Joy in platinum.  I then stamped and embossed the foliage in green glitter and then finally the second part of the sentiment was heat embossed in red glitter.  And finally, before adhering the panel to my card base, I blended a darker shade of red ink around the edges to give it some depth.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Big & Bold Joy
• Ink: VersaMark; Distress Ink - Aged Mahogany
• Embossing Powder: Brutus Monroe - Alabaster; Wow! - Platinum; Heat It Up Embossing Tinsel - Green and Red

Next I combined the set with stamps from the Christmas Pop set...

On the card base I stamped the tree and star to create a backdrop which was to show through an aperture.  I die cut an aperture from a panel and I then heat embossed the Joy in gold on a strip of vellum which was fussy cut and then wrapped around the panel and adhered on the reverse before adhering the panel flat to the card base.  The rest of the greeting was heat embossed in white on a grey sentiment strip and adhered on 3D foam.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Big & Bold Joy, Christmas Pop
• Ink: Memento - Cottage Ivy; Versa Color - Gold; VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Metallic Gold Rich; Brutus Monroe - Alabaster
• Die: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles
• Vellum from stash

We still have another introduction tomorrow before the big reveal on Sunday so be sure to pop back if you can, and visit the main Uniko blog, here.

I'll be back tomorrow with a couple more cards using another of the new products.

Uniko October/November 2024 Release - Introducing...Background Blocks Snow Flurry

Hi there

Ok, so, the last two days we've been welcoming back two re-introductions at Uniko.  Today we have the first of the new introductions and it's another addition to the fabulous Background Blocks series...Snow Flurry.

In this festive design, Bev has once again used her much loved snowflake designs and I just love how this stamp is in reverse, so the emphasis is on stamping the background.

I have two very different cards for you today, here's the first, and I've combined it with stamps from the Big & Bold Snow stamp set...

I began by stamping the snow flurry stamp on the card base multiple times with three shades of ink until I achieved a nice blend of colours.  I then stamped the Snow sentiment and heat embossed it in white on vellum and die cut it with the co-ordinating die.  I adhered the vellum on tiny 3D foam pads behind just the white parts and then finished by adding the white embossed sentiment strip.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Background Blocks Snow Flurry, Big & Bold Snow
• Ink: Altenew - Winter Lake, Wisteria, Pink Diamond; VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Opaque Bright White
• Die: Altenew - Featured Sentiments
• Vellum from stash

And now my second card...

On a piece of white cardstock I randomly blended ink in pink, aqua and lime shades.  I then stamped the Snow Flurry stamp over the top in a very dark navy ink which then let the snowflakes show through in the bright colours.  I die cut three rounded squares and adhered these to the card base.  The sentiment strip, embossed in white on black and mounted on a pink frame, was then adhered on 3D foam.  This sentiment is from a set we are introducing later in the week.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Background Blocks Snow Flurry
• Ink: Altenew - Pinkalicious, Aqualicious, Bamboo, Dark Night; VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Opaque Bright White
• Die: MFT Die-namics - Stitched Rounded Rectangles

Take a look at the Uniko blog, here, for more inspiration from the rest of the team.  It's amazing what different projects have been created using the same background stamp.

All the new products will be available from Sunday 3 November 2024.

I hope you'll pop back tomorrow where myself and the team will be introducing another new stamp set.

Uniko October/November 2024 Release - Re-introducing...Pure Florals Poinsettia

Good morning

Pure Florals Poinsettia is a beautiful stamp set which is making a comeback as part of the upcoming release from Uniko at the weekend.

The set features a beautiful poinsettia bloom, together with many two-part sentiments.

So I'll get straight to it with my first card...

I began by stamping the bloom image on some hammered red cardstock and then added some shading with some Copic markers.  With my stamp still in place in my Misti, I restamped the image in VersaMark ink and heat embossed it in gold.  I then die cut around the flower with a stitched rectangle die.  The sentiment from the same set was heat embossed in gold on black cardstock and die cut into a sentiment strip.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Pure Florals Poinsettia
• Ink: VersaMark
• Coloured with Copic Markers
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Metallic Gold Rich
• Dies: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles; MFT Die-namics - Stitched Sentiment Strips

And for my second card I kept it fairly simple, just heat embossing the linear image...

On a die cut panel I stamped and heat embossed the poinsettia bloom using a pink metallic embossing powder.  I stamped the sentiment in white on a raspberry coloured sentiment strip and adhered this on 3D foam.  To finish, I added some pink Stickles to the centre of the flower.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Pure Florals Poinsettia
• Ink: VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Strawberry Sundae, Opaque Bright White
• Dies: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles; Altenew - Featured Sentiments
• Accents: Stickles - Pink

As always, my teammates are sharing more makes over at the main Uniko blog, here, to showcase this set.  Why not take a look at their individual blogs too, there may be even more projects being shared.

This set, along with all the products being introduced this week will be available from 9am GMT on Sunday 3 November 2024. 

Please do pop back tomorrow if you can when I'll be introducing one of the new products from the release.

Uniko October/November 2024 Release - Re-introducing...Christmas Pop

Good morning

Welcome to Day 1 of the introductions for the upcoming October/November festive release at Uniko.

Bev is re-introducing Christmas Pop, a fabulous stamp set featuring modern, triangular Christmas trees with decorative elements, which can also be used together with the Christmas Pop Trio stencil. 

I have four cards using this stamp set, and for the first one I've combined the set with a bold greeting from the Festive Sentiments stamp set...

I stamped the striped tree from the set in three bright colours, masking off the bright pink one so the other two trees appeared to be behind it.  Once the ink was dry I stamped the sentiment in black ink and then finished with three little stars from the set in the same three bright colours.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Christmas Pop, Festive Sentiments
• Ink: Altenew - Rubellite, Aqualicious, Bamboo; Versafine Clair - Nocturne

And for my second card I kept it super simple, just using the solid triangular tree with embossed decorative elements...

On a die cut panel I stamped the solid triangle three times in shades of green.  Once completely dry I applied anti-static powder before stamping the decorative elements in VersaMark ink and then heat embossing in gold.  I wanted to keep this one super modern so I didn't even add the tree trunks at the base.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Christmas Pop
• Ink: Altenew - Emerald, Evergreen, Galactic Stream; VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Metallic Gold Rich
• Die: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles

Next up I combined an element from the set with the Christmas Pop Trio stencil and a sentiment from the second stamp set which is being re-introduced, more info tomorrow...

On a small die cut panel I stamped and heat embossed the decorative triangle pattern in white, and then blended pink and blue ink over it through one of the tree stencils.  I adhered the panel on 3D foam and added a pink star topper, before stamping the sentiment in pink.

Materials:

• Stamp: Uniko - Christmas Pop, Pure Florals Poinsettia
• Stencil: Uniko - Christmas Pop Trio
• Ink: Distress Oxide - Kitsch Flamingo, Tumbled Glass
• Die: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles
• Accents: Papermania - Sparkling Stars Assorted Pastels

And finally, I used the trees to create a modern winter scene...

I used a panel of pale blue cardstock and blended Distress Ink from the top edge in purple and pink.  I then stamped three triangle trees overlapping in shades of grey and black.  To create the snow I sprinkled chunky embossing enamel over the panel and heated it from underneath so as not to blow it off the surface.  The sentiment is from the second set being re-introduced in this release.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Uniko - Christmas Pop, Pure Florals Poinsettia
• Ink: Distress Ink - Dusty Concord, Kitsch Flamingo; Altenew - Pure Graphite, Industrial Diamond; Versafine Clair - Nocturne
• Die: Altenew - Featured Sentiments
• Accents: Stampendous - Chunky White Deep Impression Embossing Enamel

To see more projects and this stamp set in action my fellow Brand Ambassadors are sharing more makes over at the main Uniko blog, here.

This set, along with all the products being introduced this week will be available from 9am GMT on Sunday 3 November 2024. 

I'll be back tomorrow with another re-introduction so please do pop back to take a look.

Uniko October/November 2024 Release Sneak Peeks!

Good morning!

Bev at Uniko has been a busy bee behind the scenes again and is bringing you another release next Sunday, 3 November 2024.

This upcoming release is full of festive delights and, as it's now less than two months until Christmas, I guess many of you will be looking for some new goodies to inspire you if you've not yet finished making your Christmas cards.  As is always the case, Bev's designs are such that they work brilliantly with so many Uniko products already available.

In this release there are two very much missed stamp sets which are being re-introduced, as well as three new sets.

So, without further ado, here are the sneak peeks.  And I'll begin with the two re-introductions, two very different but beautiful Christmas sets...

And next we have a festive addition to the brilliant Background Blocks series...

...as well as another set to join the Big & Bold series of stamp sets...

And then there is an additional set to join the Framed series...

So, be sure to check out the Uniko blog, here, over the next few days to see the introductions by the Brand Ambassadors and to see the new products in action.  I'll be back tomorrow with the first of the reintroductions.

Uniko - Let's Have Some FLIPPIN' Seasonal Fun - Release Day, Brand Ambassador Blog Hop & GIVEAWAY

Good morning and Happy Card Making Day!

What a way to mark the end of the FLIPPIN' week....it's World Card Making Day AND it's release day over at Uniko.  The two new Ink & Flip Layering stencils are now available.

I made another card using the new Ink & Flip Layering Cobweb stencil and paired it with the cat from the Mid Century Modern Purrfect Day stamp set, and a couple of elements from other brands...

For the cobweb this time, I used ink through the first side then, once flipped, I used some glimmer paste.  Be sure to clean off your stencil straight away if using pastes, they dry quickly!  Once dry, I stamped the cat, the sentiment and the spider in black ink and then added the spider's thread using a silver pen.  These spiders are far too small for this design but it's all I had in my stash and my drawing skills are zero! :D 

Materials used:

• Stencil: Uniko - Ink & Flip Layering Cobweb
• Stamps: Uniko - Mid Century Modern Purrfect Day; Clearly Besotted - Simple Script; Card-io - Field Day
• Ink: Versa Magic - Oasis Green; Versafine Clair - Nocturne
• Paste: Nuvo Glimmer Paste - Moonstone
• Accents: Uniball Signo pen - Silver

So, let's now take a look at the two additions to the Ink & Flip stencil series in full.

Ink & Flip Layering Cobweb...

and Ink & Flip Layering Geometric Christmas Tree...

Aren't these great?  As you can see from the projects shared by the team, they can be used in so many ways.  Be sure to leave some comment love either on the Brand Ambassador blogs or social media.  You can find all the links over at the Uniko blog, here.

Make sure you have commented along the hop as Bev will be giving away 3 Ink & Flip Stencils of the winner's choice. Comments will close for the chance to win at midnight on Sunday 13th October 2024 BST, with the winner announced on Monday 14th October 2024.

The products are available from the Uniko store now, here.  

Thanks for visiting today.

Uniko - Let's Have Some FLIPPIN' Seasonal Fun - Introducing...Ink & Flip Layering Geometric Christmas Tree

Good morning!

It's time to introduce the second of the new Ink & Flip stencils from Uniko.

This one is a great layering set, it's the Ink & Flip Layering Geometric Christmas Tree.  As you can see from the two makes I'm sharing today, both of the flip stencils can be used independently to create the Christmas tree, or both together.

On this first one I've used just the stencil which creates the central design and combined it with stamps from the Pattern Building Christmas Tree stamp set...

I used two shades of green Distress Ink to ink up the tree using both sides of the stencil, making the ink more concentrated towards the centre of the tree.  I then used Memento ink, which is Copic friendly, to stamp the string of lights four times.  I purposely used Distress Inks so that I could add water to the light bulbs and blot away the colour, before then colouring them in with Copics.  It's not perfect but it worked pretty well.  I die cut using a stitched rectangle die and finished by stamping the sentiment and adhering the panel flat to the card base.

Materials used:

• Stencil: Uniko - Ink & Flip Layering Geometric Christmas Tree
• Stamps: Uniko - Pattern Building Christmas Tree
• Ink: Distress Ink - Rustic Wilderness, Pine Needles; Memento - Cottage Ivy; Versafine Clair - Nocturne
• Coloured with Copics
• Die: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles

And for my second card I used just the stencil that creates the outer background detail, with stamped elements once again from the Pattern Building Christmas Tree stamp set...

I inked and flipped with two shades of green ink.  This then leaves the central tree white.  I then used my heat gun and anti-static powder tool to ensure that the ink was fully dry before stamping and heat embossing the star and tree base in gold.  I used the same gold embossing powder for the sentiment on a die cut sentiment strip.

Materials used:

• Stencil: Uniko - Ink & Flip Layering Geometric Christmas Tree
• Stamps: Uniko - Pattern Building Christmas Tree
• Ink: Distress Ink - Rustic Wilderness, Pine Needles; VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Metallic Gold Rich
• Die: Altenew - Featured Sentiments

Please do pop over to the main Uniko blog, here to see what my fellow team-mates have been creating.  

This stencil set and the new Cobweb set which was introduced yesterday will be available to purchase tomorrow, Saturday 5 October 2024. 

I'll be back tomorrow to show the full reveal of the new products.

Uniko - Let's Have Some FLIPPIN' Seasonal Fun - Introducing...Ink & Flip Layering Cobweb

Good morning, folks

Today it's the first of two introductions from Uniko.

Bev has done it again and come up with two new Ink & Flip layering stencil designs.  The second you'll have to wait until tomorrow to see but today we are introducing the new Ink & Flip Layering Cobweb stencil set.

I have two cards for you and on this first one I've used both of the stencils together with stamps from the Mid Century Modern Purrfect Day and Alphabet Outlined sets...

Although this is a one layer card it took quite some time to create.  I began by stamping just the eyes from the MCM Purrfect Day set and the letters from the Alphabet Outlined set in Copic friendly ink, coloured them in then stamped and cut masks for all the elements.  I then inked up the first flip stencil which creates the outer area surrounding the cobweb in a purple and blue/grey ink.  With the masks still in place I then inked through the central cobweb stencil in two shades of grey.  Once the masks were removed I added some Glossy Accents to the eyes.

Materials used:

• Stencil: Uniko - Ink & Flip Layering Cobweb
• Stamps: Uniko - Mid Century Modern Purrfect Day, Alphabet Outlined
• Ink: Altenew - Nimbus, Ultraviolet, Limestone, Industrial Diamond; Memento - Tuxedo Black
• Coloured with Copics
• Accents: Glossy Accents

And for my second card I used just the central cobweb stencil, along with stamps from the Alphabet Outlined set...

Here I inked through both sides of the stencil in the same shade of Distress Oxide on dark grey cardstock.  I then stamped and embossed the spider in black ink and clear embossing powder.  I finished the design by stamping the letters and heat embossing in white.

Materials used:

• Stencil: Uniko - Ink & Flip Layering Cobweb
• Stamps: Uniko - Alphabet Outlined; Clearly Besotted - In Print
• Ink: Distress Oxide - Lost Shadow; VersaMark; Versafine Clair - Nocturne
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Clear Gloss, Opaque Bright White

To see more projects and this stencil set in action my fellow Brand Ambassadors are sharing more makes over at the main Uniko blog, here.

This stencil set will be available to purchase on Saturday, 5 October 2024. 

I'll be back tomorrow to introduce the other new Ink & Flip set so please do pop back to take a look.