3 Day Mermaid Hop ~ Giveaway Winner Announced!

Hello there crafty friend!

Just a quick post today to announce the winner of the Mer-Mazing Prize Package giveaway that I had during the 2nd Annual 3 Day Mermaid Hop!! I had a blast checking out all the fun cards and projects that were shared. I sure hope that you found some time to check them out, too.

A big THANK YOU! to those that stopped by my blog and left a comment! It was so fun to read your answers to the questions that I shared.

Well, enough chit chat... the winner of the Mer-Mazing Prize Package is...

Vannessa Osbourn!!

Please email me at crystalominkler@gmail.com to claim your prize. 

Prize must be claimed within two weeks. 

That's it for me today!

Have an ink-tastic day!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

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Unity Stamp Company ~ Giveaway Winner!!

Hello there crafty friend!!

First, I have to say a huge THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!! for all those that subscribed to my YouTube Channel and followed my blog and Instagram... and even those of you who found my Facebook page and followed me there, too!!! I appreciate each and every one of you following me on my crafty journey! And now it's time to announce the winner of my celebration giveaway and that is... 

@karenladd510 on Instagram!! Woohoo!!

Karen, please email me at crystalominkler@gmail.com so I can send you your prize!!

Now, it just wouldn't be right for me to announce the winner and not share at least one card so I wanted to share a card I created for the latest release over at Unity Stamp Company!! It's Whit's birthday and they are celebrating with a Flash Sale. I believe it's still going so head on over there and check out all the fabulous deals!! 

But before you go... here's my card using the new Take Me Home kit designed by Graciellie Designs and available at Unity!! Love this sweet house!! I had so much fun coloring this beauty up!

Well, that's it for me today! 

Thanks again for being awesome and I'll see ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

Unity Stamp Company ~ May 2020 Kit of the Month ~ Such an Amazing Mom

Hello there crafty friend!

Today we are celebrating!!! If you haven't already heard, I've started my very own YouTube channel to share some of my coloring, cardmaking, techniques... basically all kinds of crafty good stuff!! I am also celebrating being Oh So Close to having 1K followers on my Instagram! I would love if you would help me reach and even exceed that goal... eeeep! I'm so excited!! So... first of all, I have a card to share with you and there's a little video to go along with it.

A rather simple card with just one layer on a black mat and some pretty coloring... I do love how these tulips turned out! There's just something about the two-toned flowers. So beautiful!

I added a couple of strips of black card stock to give the sentiment a little focus on the card. And I finished it off with a few black nuvo drops. Now, you can check out the video for some of the coloring down below. 

To enter my giveaway go ahead and follow my blog, follow me on Instagram, and subscribe to my YouTube channel.... and then comment on any of those letting me know that you followed and subscribed!! It's that easy!! And all my links are at the top of my blog... under my blog heading! You have until May 17th 11:59pm EST!!

Here's a look at the giveaway...

But I just found some more goodies to add to it... so it'll have even more crafty goodness!!

Winner will be announced here and on Instagram May 19th!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

~ Friends of Unity December 2019 Blog Hop ~ The Winners!

Hello there crafty friends!!

Today is a very exciting day... the day that I announce the winners for the Friends of Unity prizes from our 2 year celebration!! First of all, I have to thank all of you for coming to visit our blogs! So many wonderful comments and we appreciate every single one! Thank you so much!

I have a quick card to share using the same card design I used for the December blog hop. This time I used the adorable Owl of Us {itty bitty} kit from Unity Stamp Co. along with the beautiful Brilliant Blizzard {paper pack}. I love these papers so much!

I used a wonky stitched rectangle die and added a few Icy Sparkle Crystals from Studio Katia.

Love how this turned out! Now I think I've made you all wait long enough... it's time to announce the winners...

The winner of the Oct. 2019 All Bundled Up SMAK kit is Elizabeth Roberts!! 

Congratulations, Elizabeth!!! Woohoo!! Please email me at crystalominkler@gmail.com to claim your prize. Prize must be claimed within two weeks.

Random.org chose blog #5 on our hop and that's Alaine's fabulous blog...

Random.org chose comment #34 and the lucky winner...

... of the Unity Prize Pack #1 is...

Karren Grayson!! Congratulations, Karren!!

 Woohoo!! Please email me at crystalominkler@gmail.com to claim your prize. 

Prize must be claimed within two weeks.

Random.org chose blog #9 on our hop and that's Dawn F.'s wonderful blog...

Random.org chose comment #43 and the lucky winner...

... of the Unity Prize Pack #2 is...

Linda S. Vigil!! Congratulations, Linda!!

 Woohoo!! Please email me at crystalominkler@gmail.com to claim your prize. 

Prize must be claimed within two weeks.

I just want to say one more time... THANK YOU!! 

Without the support of all of you... this blog hop wouldn't be nearly as much fun! We appreciate each and every one of you so very much! 

And a HUGE shout out to the guest designers that hopped with us... you all made this hop even more special! Thank you so much!!

And one last THANK YOU to Angela and the peeps at Unity for sending us such fabulous prizes to giveaway! We appreciate you all so much!

Thanks so much for checking out my blog post!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

~ Friends of Unity December Blog Hop ~

Hello there crafty friends!

It's my favorite time of the month and this month it's extra special because...

we're celebrating 2 years of hopping with Friends of Unity!! Woohoo! I am so beyond excited about this month's hop! Eeeep! 

We have some fun stuff planned... our usual giveaways PLUS we have 2 HUGE prize packages that Angela Magnuson graciously put together from Unity just for this celebration AND we also have 3 FABULOUS guest designers hopping with us this month!! A HUGE thank you to our Guest Designers... Donna K Baes, Shannon Edwards, and Jessica Pickeral!! We are so excited to have you talented ladies join us this month!!

So when I say HUGE prize packages... I. AM. NOT. KIDDING!!

Prize pack #1!!

And prize pack #2!!

Amazing, right?! I'll have details below on how you can enter to win one of these fabulous prizes!!

Now, onto our hop... and the cue this month is All is Calm... 

a little bit ironic, am I right?! Our cue is about a time of peace and calm when we're having a huge celebration. It made me giggle but I love it! I mean, it 'tis the season!

My first card is using the gorgeous deer stamp and sentiment called All is Calm all is Bright... a sweet Itty Bitty kit just perfect for the Holidays! I combined it with the beautiful Prancing Holiday {paper pack} to make a super quick card! No joke, this took me maybe 10 minutes... and that was only because it took me a couple extra minutes to find just the right red ink for the deer.

I just love it! Beautifully simple and a card that will go through the mail easily without any extra postage! Bonus!

I loved the design of my first card so much, I decided to make another one with a new release... this adorable snowman with his little birdie friends from the All the Small Things kit... oh my goodness! I love it so much! I decided to use another fabulous paper pack from Unity called Brilliant Blizzard!

I tied in the colors of the Brilliant Blizzard papers by coloring the snowman's mixed matched clothes with similar colors. Too cute! I just love this sweet stamp!

My last card is another take on the cue... rather than another Christmas card, I thought I'd create a scene of a calm winter's night using a few of the gorgeous stamps from the October 2019 SMAK kit called All Bundled Up. The last few SMAK kits have been absolutely amazing and this one is definitely a favorite!! 

I started by taping off the bottom portion of my card stock with some purple tape. I then blended Tumbled Glass, Wilted Violet and Chipped Sapphire Distress Oxide inks. Once I had a nice blend, I did a little water splatter and white acrylic paint splatter. I let the panel dry overnight to be sure that it was completely dry. I also heat set it just a bit the next day with my heat gun. I knew I was going to heat emboss the cabin image and I wanted to be sure that the embossing powder wouldn't stick to the background. I also rubbed my Ranger Anti-Static pouch over the panel to be safe. 

I then stamped the cabin with VersaMark watermark ink and heat set a black embossing powder. At this point you could still see the background through the cabin so I pulled out my Hickory Smoke, Black Soot and Mustard Seed Distress Oxide inks to watercolor the background with along with my water pen. It took a few applications of the inks to get a nice layer over the background but I think it turned out well. You can see some of the white acrylic paint splatters on the cabin but it almost looks like a light snow... even though I was working towards a calm winter night. I also added a touch of gray to the ground to give the snow some dimension around the cabin. 

To finish off the panel, I stamped the sentiment with VersaMark watermark ink and heat set a fine white embossing powder. I trimmed the panel down to 4 x 5-1/4" and mat it with white card stock measuring 4-1/8 x 5-3/8". I then adhered the mat panel to a black card base. Using both black and white for my layers helps to make the black and white embossed images pop on the card.

That's it for my cards this month! AND because I love the October 2019 SMAK kit SO much... I may have just bought an extra to giveaway for this fabulous celebration of 2 years!!! Woohoo!! I will be announcing the winner for my giveaway on December 14th so hopefully the winner will receive their prize in time for Christmas!! Seriously... SO exciting!!

Thank you all so much for your continued support of our little hop for these 2 fantastic years!!! I really, truly do appreciate each and every one of your sweet comments! 

A few of my friends are having giveaways on their blogs too, so be sure to hop and comment on each of our blogs!! And if you'd like a chance to win one of the fabulous Unity Prize packages be sure to hop and comment on each of our blogs... two winners will be randomly chosen from the comments and they could be chosen from any of the blogs participating in the hop, not just mine!! So be sure to hop and comment!! 

Winners for the Unity Prize packages will be announced on December 14th here on my blog and in the Unity Show & Tell Facebook group... are you a member of the group? You can join by clicking ---> here!! 

Let's get to the hopping...

Crystal <--- you are here

up next ---> Eileen

Joyce

Dawn B.

Alaine

Kim

Amber

Jeanie

Dawn F.

Robyn

Donna

Shannon

Jessica

Thanks so much for checking out my blog post!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

~ Friends of Unity June Blog Hop ~

Hey there crafty peeps!
It's one of my favorite times of the month... it's time for the June Friends of Unity Blog Hop!!
Our theme or cue this month is Wedding...

My first thought when I was looking at our cue was... Flowers! Flowers always work for a wedding card... so I pulled out my Delectable {Border Backgrounds} kit!! These flowers are gorgeous!!

I stamped the flowers on Canson XL watercolor paper with VersaMark watermark ink and heat embossed a fine white embossing powder. I watercolored the flowers with ZIG Clean Color Real Brush pens... to achieve the pretty colors on the flowers I used Yellow {No. 050} and Light Pink {No. 026} watercolor pens. First I lightly colored the flowers with the yellow watercolor by scribbling the color on my acrylic block. I then used my watercolor brush pen to pick up the color and paint on my panel. Without waiting for the yellow watercolor to dry I did the same with the pink watercolor... scribbling the color on my acrylic block and using my watercolor brush pen to pick up the color and I painted in swirls around the petals of the flowers allowing the watercolors to blend.

I love that the yellow and pink blended to make a beautiful peach color but you can still see the yellow and pink in the petals.... so pretty! I also used two greens for the leaves... Yellow Green {No. 053} and Light Green {No. 041}. I started by watercoloring with the yellow green using the same technique picking up the color from my acrylic block. I always use this technique when I want more control over the amount of color on my project. I then watercolored with the light green... blending with the yellow green but also allowing the light green to dry over top of the yellow green in some spots. I love the defined lines that it gives the leaves when you allow the layers of watercolor to dry in between colors.

Here's a close up of my favorite flowers on the card. I'm so pleased with how it turned out... so pretty!

My second card came together in my mind when I was searching through my background stamps for the Delectable {Border Backgrounds} kit... I happened to see my never-been-inked Barn Wall background stamp ~ a collaboration by Brutus Monroe and Unity Stamp Co ~ and thought it would make for a lovely background with the From This Day Forward kit. I started by stamping the Barn Wall background with VersaMark watermark ink and heat embossed Emerald Creek Patina Oxide Baked Texture embossing powder... WOW!! This embossing powder is amazing!! If you click on my photo above, you can hopefully see the awesome colors and detail in the embossed background. I watercolored the background using a mix of Light Blue {No. 036} and Turquoise Green {No. 042}. Once dry, I die cut the background using a stitched rectangle die and adhered it directly to a white card base using mono multi purpose liquid glue by Tombow.

Next I stamped the beautiful bride and groom image, as well as the flowers in the From This Day Forward kit using VersaMark watermark ink and heat embossed a fine black embossing powder. I watercolored the couple using Flesh Color {No. 071}, Light Gray {No. 091}, Brown {No. 060}, Mid Brown {No. 065} for the bride; and Flesh Color {No. 071}, Light Gray {No. 091}, Dark Gray {No. 095}, Mid Brown {No. 065}, Dark Brown {No. 062} for the groom. I added some sparkle to the bride using the Nuvo Aqua Shimmer pen...

Here's a close up of that shimmer... it's really gorgeous in person!

I ended up taking a couple close up shots because my OTT light kept giving me a shadow... but I think with the two photos you can see the beautiful shimmer. Oh, and this second photo gives you a little close up look at the Patina Oxide embossed background... if you look between the leaf and the purple flower in the bottom left corner. Love it!

I watercolored the pretty flowers blending Lilac {No. 083} and Violet {No. 080} with a touch of Bright Yellow {No. 052} and Yellow {No. 050} in the center of the flowers. For the other flowers {not sure what they are called} I used Blue {No. 030} and then blended them with clean water. For the leaves, I used Pale Green {No. 045} and May Green {No. 047}. I fussy cut the couple and flowers and adhered them to the card... popping up the couple with dimensionals. I then trimmed off the edges of my card base where the flowers were hanging off the edge. To finish off the card, I stamped the sentiment with VersaMark watermark ink and heat embossed a fine black embossing powder and then die cut it with a banner die. I adhered that to a black layer that was also die cut from the same banner die, however, I cut the black layer in half and adhered it just to the ends of the sentiment banner. I also added a touch of the Patina Oxide embossing powder to the edges of the black banner using a VersaMark watermark marker. I popped up the sentiment on the card and called 'er done! I think it turned out pretty nice!

Now before we get to the hopping... a little business. Drum roll please... 

the winner of my giveaway is...

...It's a Card Knock Life!!! 

Please email me at crystalominkler@gmail.com to claim your prize. 

Prize must be claimed within two weeks.

Thanks to you all so much for your continued support of our little hop... and for all of your lovely comments! I just feel awful that I haven't had time to reply to each comment to let you know just how much I appreciate it and I really, truly do appreciate each and every one of your sweet comments.

So real quick... while I was unpacking my Unity stamps I found a box full of grab bag stamps! Yup... a box... not a ginormous box, mind you, but a box full! Anywho, I've decided to give away two grab bags of 25 stamps each!! Woohoo! Winners will be chosen and announced in our July blog hop. So be sure to hop along and comment on each of our blog posts!

Let's get to it, shall we...

~ Blog Hop List ~

Crystal <--- you're here

up next ---> Eileen

Bobbie Sue

Dawn

Jeanie

Robyn

Kim

Thanks so much for checking out my blog post!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

~ Friends of Unity May Blog Hop ~

Hello crafty peeps!!

Can you believe that it's time for another Friends of Unity blog hop?! I cannot!! 

Time just zips on by!! It's so crazy... well, this month we have another fun cue... 

Isn't that a fun cue?! I love it!

I thought I'd stick within the citrus fruit family and play with some lemon stamps but... with a twist because I want my card to also work for the fabulous Spring / Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop so here's what I came up with... 

My favorite drink, any time that we go out to eat, is an Arnold Palmer... a yummy mix of iced tea and lemonade!! It's a great way to have iced tea without having to add sugar or sweetener... LOL! I know some of you are thinking I'm crazy.... iced tea HAS to have sugar! I'm cutting back on that stuff sooo... anywho, I thought it would be fun to combine the sweet jar from the new May 2019 KOM called Sweetness, Miracles and Wishes from Unity Stamp Company with the beautiful lemons from the July 2018 KOM called Stand Tall. 

I stamped my images onto Canson XL watercolor paper and colored them in with my ZIGs.

I trimmed my layers and adhered them to a white card base. I fussy cut the jar and popped it up on the card. I couldn't find the right yellow to back the sentiment so I just used the yellow ZIG markers to color the edges... easy peasy!

So I'm not only playing along with the Spring / Summer Coffee Lovers Blog hop... 

I used the Freshly Made Sketches #386 for my card...

AND... I'm also going to enter my card in the Three Amigos Blog Hop Challenge... 

Do you ever play along with challenges?! I think they are a great way to get inspired!

So, I think it's about time to get hopping... but before we do that. It has been a

good long time since I've done a giveaway for our Friends of Unity hops... I think we're a bit overdue! I'm not sure how it happened but I accidentally bought two of the brand new Cuddlebug Fawn stamp kits for my latest order with Unity Stamp Company so

I'll be giving away one of those kits to one lucky winner!!

All you have to do is hop along with us and comment on each of our blogs! 

I'll use Random.org to choose one lucky winner that I'll announce next month during our June hop!! 

Thank you all again for your lovely comments and support!! 

Happy Hopping!

Crystal <--- you're here

up next ---> Robyn

Kim

Bobbie Sue

Dawn

Jeanie

Eileen

Thank you friends for checking out my blog post!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal