Membership Monday ~ October 2022 Kit of the Month ~ Unity Stamp Co.

 Hello there crafty friend!

Today I'm sharing some inspiration for the gorgeous Kit of the Month from Unity Stamp Co! Did you see the lovely card that Echo Noble shared last week using the KOM? If you missed it, hop on over to last Monday's blog post to check it out... here. And then head on back here to see the two cards I'm sharing today using the gorgeous pumpkin stamp in the kit.

I just adore this sentiment too! It's perfect for your loved ones or dear friends just to let them know how special they are to you. I started my card by stamping the pumpkin arrangement with Black Amalgam ink and again on a large post it note for a mask. I fussy cut the mask on the black line, laid it on top of my stamped image and stamped the textured background stamp that's also in the Kit of the Month.

Two fun plaid dies adhered together create the background for this card. The panel was wrapped with {Natural} May Arts Burlap string a few times tied off with a pretty bow. I adhered the card front to a white A2 top fold card that I turned on the side.

I traced around my oval die with a pencil and fussy cut the oval shape by hand enabling me to get the shape I wanted for my image rather than cutting off some of the leaves and berries. The sentiment was mat on kraft and I adhered it to the oval panel. I popped them both up with foam tape.

There's just something about Fall images and copic coloring on Kraft so I just had to replicate the card on Kraft to see how it would look.

Here's the list of Copic markers I used for both cards:

Pumpkins ~ BG70, BG72, BG75, E51, E53, E55, E57, E59

Sunflower ~ Y11, Y06, Y15, YR15, YR27, E53, E55

Green Leaf ~ YG03, YG67

Berries ~ RV32, RV34, RV66, RV69

Twig ~ E53, E55, E57

Oak Leaves ~ YG93, YG97, YR21, YR15

Background ~ E51, E53, E55, E57

I love the richer tones the Kraft card stock gives to the Copic coloring. So lovely for Autumn.

If you're interested in seeing my Copic coloring on Kraft card stock, you can check it out here... Copic Coloring on Kraft | October 2022 Kit of the Month | Unity Stamp Co.

Here's a look at the whole Kit of the Month for October!! Can you believe you get a full sheet of red rubber for only $42. That includes shipping! You also get a $6.95 discount on every order from Unity over $40. You also can get any past kit for only $26 plus shipping. So amazing! I love my when my Kit of the Month comes to my house each month!

Hope you've been inspired to get inky with your October Kit of the Month and if you haven't received yours yet, why not try Copic coloring on kraft with some images from last month! I just love this technique. I hope you'll give it a try.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

{BYSHC} Sketch Challenge 27 ~ Easy Cut Apart Cards ~ Simple Stories

 Hello there crafty friend!

I'm back with my weekly Christmas card for the {BYSHC} Sketch Challenge 27 but today I'm actually sharing four cards!! So you know how some paper pads have cut aparts in them... well, I remembered I had a beautiful paper pad from Simple Stories called Simple Vintage Country Christmas with these beautiful cut apart papers. I actually thought about finishing up as much of the paper pad as I could since I had twelve cut aparts left, but I ran out of time so we just have the four. These were so easy with this sketch!

It's just a matter of mixing and matching pattern papers. I like to lay them out on my desk and just start laying them on top of each other to see which ones work well together. 

The red text paper is a lovely contrast to the plaid and the diagonal stripes has both colors so it ties it all together with the cut apart. I finished off this card with a couple Christmas Mirrored Metallic enamel dots from Gina Marie Designs.

This card has a similar bottom layer with the polka dots and the plaid papers contrasting well. I liked the lighter holly paper to break up the polka dots and then the solid red on the cut apart is another nice contrast. 

I added a couple banners using scraps from the paper pad and a couple red enamel dots from the Merry & Bright Clear Christmas enamel dots from Gina Marie Designs.

Poinsettias are my favorite flowers for Christmas so I just had to use the poinsettia cut apart and it only made sense to use the poinsettia paper, as well.

The green of the cut apart helps to make this layer pop on the lighter polka dot papers and the gingham papers. I added a couple banners to this card too and the green enamel dots are from the Pine Branch Clear with Color enamel dots from Gina Marie Designs.

I also added some glitter to the poinsettia... you can see it a little bit in this photo. I used a Nuvo Glitter Gloss Aqua Shimmer pen.

For my last card I went with the gorgeous aqua papers... I love these papers! They were the whole reason I bought this paper pad. LOL! I paired up as much of them as I could for this card and added the green paper for a nice contrast.

A little red banner for this one to compliment the red in the sentiment. I also added a couple light green enamel dots from the Pine Branch Clear with Color enamel dots.

So excited to have four more cards for my stash and these were so easy to make! I really love how they turned out too!

Here's another look at {BYSHC} Sketch 27 for the month of October!

I hope you'll join us and play along with the sketch! If you're interested in seeing a bit more inspiration for this sketch, check out the amazing inspiration from the design team over on the {BYSH} Cardmakers blog! I'll be back next week with my weekly Christmas card using this fun new sketch!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky hugs,

Crystal

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A{moose}ing Holiday Card ~ October Sketch Challenge ~ Unity Stamp Co.

 Hello there crafty friend!

I'm so excited to be hosting the Unity Challenges again over in the Unity Show & Tell Facebook group. Let's kick off the challenges with a fun sketch!! Woohoo! Sketches are a wonderful starting point for a card design. I love to use them for my cards! I hope that you'll join us and play along.

Loving the fun layers for this sketch - perfect for pattern papers! The measurements included are for an A2 size card, but this sketch could be easily altered for a mini slimline or an A7 card... it could even be used for a fun scrapbook page! I share measurements just as a guide and keep in mind that they are approximate.

Today I'm sharing inspiration using the adorable A{moose}ing Holiday - Clarence. This is a sweet Itty Bitty stamp and he's just perfect for this sketch. In fact, many of the Itty Bitty stamps will work perfectly with this sketch!

Here's a quick list of the Copic Markers I used to color up this adorable moose:

Heart / Red Ornament ~ R20, R14, R27

Yellow Ornament ~ Y11, Y15, Y35

Blue Ornament ~ BG0000, BG11, BG23

Antlers / Hooves ~ E21, E23, E25, E27

Head / Body ~ W00, W1, W3

The adorable moose and the sentiment are both popped up on the card with foam tape. You can check out my process video here... A{moose}ing Holiday Card | October Sketch Challenge | Unity Stamp Co.

One card just wasn't enough! I made a couple more to share as inspiration for other holidays.

This one features the cute Acorn Greetings Itty Bitty... a cute Thanksgiving Day card. The pretty plaid paper breaks up the patterns of the busy background papers just enough that mats aren't necessary for these layers.

Here's a quick list of the Copic Markers I used for this card:

 

Leaves ~ Y15, YR21, YR15, YR68, YR27

Acorns ~ E21, E23, E25, E27

Outline / Dots ~ BG0000, BG11, BG32

A Halloween card was a must! My sweet daughter, Saydee, has been counting down the days to Halloween... just 25 days to go! She is a serious Halloween lover, like her mama! So I had to make a Halloween card! Aren't these jack-o-lanterns just the cutest?! Love them!! They're from the Get Spooked Itty Bitty stamps... perfectly paired up with some spook-tacular Halloween papers for a fun Halloween card.

Here's a quick list of the Copic Markers for these spooky-cute pumpkins:

 

Stem ~ E53, E55, E57, E59

Pumpkin ~ YR21, YR15, YR68, YR27

Eyes / Mouths ~ Y06, YR15, N1

Outline ~ V000, V12, V15

A card for each of our upcoming seasons! Yay! I hope I've inspired you to pull out your Unity stamps and play along with this fun sketch challenge.

Here's another look at the sketch! Please know that the sketch is meant to inspire and not require. Feel free to alter it to work for your creation and most importantly have some inky fun! I can't wait to see what you create! Be sure to share your cards in the Unity Show & Tell group and also add them to the sketch challenge album in the group to be entered for a prize!! I'll see you back here next Thursday with more inspiration for this month's sketch challenge.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

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Membership Monday ~ October 2022 Uniquely Unity Here Comes Amazon ~ Unity Stamp Co.

 Hello there crafty friend!

Welcome back for another Membership Monday blog post... today I'm featuring the super cute Uniquely Unity membership from Unity Stamp Co. called Here Comes Amazon!! As you may know, I love Christmas so when the memberships have Christmas stamps I get especially giddy! The beautiful holiday lights in this month's Uniquely Unity membership are so pretty, but I think the sentiments actually steal the show!

I only had time to play with one of the sentiments for this one card, but if you haven't seen the others you HAVE to!! They are so perfect and kinda punny too! So for my card, I tried out a new technique... Copic coloring over ink smooshed Distress ink. Echo Noble had shared this technique when the Design Team was visiting Unity and I just fell in love with the texture in this technique. I had to try it!

I'll be honest... I was scared to touch my Copic markers to the ink smooshed distress inks but it's totally fine and they are all good!! Yay! I'm so glad because I love this technique! I'm sure I'll be playing around with it again soon!

Here's a quick list of the Distress Inks and Copic markers I used:

Tumbled Glass Distress Ink

Kitsch Flamingo Distress Ink

Purple Bulb ~ V000, V12, V15, V17

Blue Bulb ~ B000, B00, B02

Pink Bulb ~ RV10, RV21, RV14

I die cut the panel with the largest stitched rectangle die from the Scallops & Rectangles {nesting dies} from Unity. I also die cut a piece of Tempting Turquoise card stock with the largest stitched scallop die from the same die set. I adhered all my layers on a white A2 top fold card base measuring 4-1/4 x 11"; scored at 5-1/2". If you're interested in seeing my process video for this card you can check it out here... Copic Coloring on an Ink Smooshed Background | October 2022 Uniquely Unity | Unity Stamp Co.

Isn't that stamp just too cute!! So fun to color! Be sure to check out the Uniquely Unity membership over at Unity Stamp Co. I'll be back next Monday with another Membership Monday post - this time using the gorgeous October 2022 Kit of the Month!!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

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~ Friends of Unity October 2022 Blog Hop ~

 Hello there crafty friend!

It's one of my favorite times of the month... time for the Friends of Unity Blog Hop!! Our cue this month is a fun one that we played with last year. We had lots of fab ideas last year... can't wait to see the creations our friends have to share with us this year! 

Now, let's get to the cue...

... Anything But a Card!! Fun, right?! 

I had several ideas come to mind and I thought about revisiting one of the ones I shared last year but I decided to go with something new. You may have heard that I was lucky enough to visit the wonderful family behind Unity ~ the Magnuson and all the crew!! Such an amazing experience!! The Unity crew is amazing and they're truly a wonderful family!! Anywho, I made little gifts for everyone and I may have been early but I went with a fun Halloween theme. This way I wouldn't forget to send out my Halloween cards! Haha!

 

A few years ago, Bobbie Sue hosted a Napkin Decoupage challenge in the Unity Show & Tell. I got to thinking I could decoupage the front of these cute little Kraft gift bags I had found at Walmart. I also got some cute orange plaid napkins from Walmart in their dollar section. I separated the 2-ply napkins leaving me with just 1-ply for the orange plaid design. I unfolded them and cut them into sections that were slightly longer than the front of the gift bags. I then used Mod Podge to adhere the napkin to the front of the gift bags. I let the Mod Podge dry and then I tore the tops of the napkins off.

I placed the gift bag in my Stamp Platform and stamped the fabulous tree and the Happy Halloween sentiment from the Hallow's Eve Tree stamps with Black Amalgam ink from Gina K. Designs.

Copics I used for the Witch Gnome:

Skin ~ E000, E00, E11, E04

Hair ~ C00, C2

Hat ~ V000, V12, V15, V17, YG11, YG23

Shoes ~ N1, N3, N5, N7

Cauldron ~ N1, N3, N5, N7, V000, V12, V15

Broom ~ E21, E23, E25

I used a tiny blending brush to add a bit of Black Soot Distress Ink around the edges of the napkin. I wrapped each gift bag twice with some {Black} May Arts Burlap string and tied it off with a pretty bow.

Copics I used for the Vampire Gnome:

Skin ~ E000, E00, E11, E04

Hair ~ C00, C2

Hat ~ R20, R14, N3, N5, N7

Shoes / Bat ~ N1, N3, N5, N7

I fussy cut each of the adorable gnomes from the Witch Way stamps and cleaned up the edges by coloring them with a Memento Tuxedo black marker.

Copics I used for the Frankenstein Gnome:

Skin ~ E000, E00, E11, E04

Hair ~ C00, C2

Hat ~ YG11, YG23, G14, YG91, N1, N3, N5

Shoes ~ E21, E23, E25

Pumpkin ~ YR21, YR15, YR68

Candy ~ YG11, YG23, V12, V15, YR15

I slipped a napkin, a Halloween card, some cute Halloween stickers and candy inside the bags. 

So fun! I love how they turned out!! I think everyone liked them too.

For my second Anything But a Card Project I went with my fave... a bookmark!! I love making bookmarks for my friends and family. I started with a die cut bookmark using the Bookmark Die from Newton's Nook Designs. I die cut two bookmarks - one from white card stock and the other from Hawaiian Shores card stock and set the Hawaiian Shores one aside.

I blended Twisted Citron Distress Ink on the bottom of the bookmark. And then I blended Peacock Feathers Distress Ink in the center. And last was Tumbled Glass Distress Ink which I let fade into white by just lightly blending near the top. I went over each section being sure to blend into the other colors until I was happy with my blends. I have found that three times is usually the charm for blending. I loved the blends but it needed something so I grabbed a stencil... I used a cute one from Gina Marie Designs called Mini Triangles 6x6 Stencil. I blended over the stencil without adding more ink to my brushes leaving a light background of the cute little triangles.

I stamped the beautiful stack of books from the I Love Big Books Itty Bitty directly onto the bookmark and also on a scrap of white card stock. I also stamped the sentiment directly on the bookmark. I colored the books on the white card stock with my Copic Markers and then fussy cut the image on the black line. Here's a quick list of the Copics I used ~ RV21, RV14, RV29, C00,C2, YG11, YG23, BG10, and BG23. While fussy cutting the image I cut off the twirly black line because I was basically paper piecing my image onto the bookmark. I cleaned up the edges of the fussy cut image by coloring them with a Memento Tuxedo black marker and then I adhered it to the bookmark. The back of my ink blended bookmark did get a bit messy from the ink on my desk so I adhered it to the Hawaiian Shores bookmark I had die cut at the beginning. Love how this turned out!!

Now before we get to the hopping, I chose a lucky winner from the comments on last month's hop to win a fun prize package and that lucky winner is...

... Carla Hundley!! Congratulations, Carla!!

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

Prize must be claimed within two weeks. 

Well, that's it for me this time! I hope you'll try your hand at some handmade gifts. I had so much fun! Please hop along and enjoy some more inspiration from the Friends of Unity... I can't wait to see all the different projects being shared! I'm sure that some of my friends are having a giveaway so be sure to comment as you hop along.

Let's get to the hopping...

Crystal <--- you're here

up next ---> Amber

Kim

Rachel

Bobbie Sue

Gaylynn

Dawn F.

Colleen

Eileen

Joyce

Dawn B.

Robyn

Thanks so very much for supporting our little hop!

We appreciate you!!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

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{BYSHC} Sketch Challenge 27 ~ Nut Cracker Holiday ~ Unity Stamp Co.

 Hello there crafty friend!

It's time for a new sketch challenge over at Build Your Stash Holiday Cardmakers and I have a cute Christmas card to share using a punny stamp from Unity Stamp Co. called Nut Cracker Holiday. This detailed nutcracker stamp was so fun to color up all festive and I just love that punny sentiment!

I paired the Nut Cracker Holiday stamp up with the beautiful My Favorite Christmas 6x6 paper pad from Echo Park Paper Co. I couldn't find a paper in my stash with just the right colors but I think this one coordinates nicely. Yes, that means I colored before looking for my pattern paper... it happens sometimes! 

You'll see the sketch down below in my blog post but I've altered it just a bit to work with my nutcracker. He's a little taller than the focal piece in the sketch calls for so I made my panels 2-3/4 x 4-1/4" and they are both mat with white card stock measuring 2-7/8 x 4-3/8". It takes up a bit more room on the card front but I think it still works nicely with this sketch design.

Here's a list of the Copic markers I used for the Nutcracker:

Skin / Eyes ~ E000, E00, E11, E04, B000, B00, B02

Hair / Facial Hair ~ C00, C2, C3

Clothes / Scepter ~ Y15, Y35, Y28, R20, R14, R27, N0, N1, N3, N5

Here's a look at {BYSHC} Sketch 27 for the month of October!

I hope you'll join us and play along with the sketch! If you're interested in seeing a bit more inspiration for this sketch, check out the amazing inspiration from the design team over on the  {BYSH} Cardmakers blog! I'll be back next week with my weekly Christmas card using this fun new sketch!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky hugs,

Crystal

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