Happy Halloween ~ {Boo} to You ~ Unity Stamp Co.

Hello there crafty friend! 

I'm back with a fun Halloween card for Unity's latest release. Christmas is definitely my favorite season to make cards for, but Halloween is a close second! And I am loving the adorable {Boo} to You stamps from Unity! This adorable set of stamps is also available in photopolymer... {Clearly Unity} Boo to You. Are you loving that Unity is now offering some stamps in photopolymer?! I do!

Such adorable stamps! I, of course, love the kitty! I had to include it with the ghost. I stamped the kitty and ghost using Black Amalgam ink from Gina K. Designs and then I colored them up with my Copic markers. I then die cut them using a die from the Scallops & Circles {nesting dies}.

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

Ghost: C00, C1, C3

Hat: YG11, YG23, V000, V12, V15, V17, N2, N4, N6

Pumpkin: YR21, YR15, YR16

Cat: R00, R20, N0, N2, N4, N6

Ground: C00, C3

Inspiration for my card today comes from an older Tawny Owl Paperie Inky Inspiration Sketch... lucky number 13! Haha! This is a favorite and it works really well with scraps! I had a bunch of scraps in my Trick or Treat {paper pack} so this was the perfect sketch. Of course, I altered it, but the basic design was my starting point.

I didn't want to use a larger circle to mat the ghost circle so I just die cut a circle from True Black card stock from Papertrey Ink and offset it from the focal circle. I really like the dimension it gives to the card. I stamped the sentiment using Black Amalgam ink and trimmed it up. I mat it with black card stock.

I adhered the circles together and then I adhered the sentiment to the bottom portion making sure it was lined up on the card where I wanted it. I was then able to add foam tape to the back of both pieces and then I popped them up on the card. To finish it off, I added three black enamel dots. Such a fun card to make! I hope you have an ink-redible day! 

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky hugs,

Crystal

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Fun with Circles Holiday Card ~ Just for You Dear ~ Unity Stamp Co.

Hello there crafty friend! 

Today I'm sharing one more holiday card for Unity's August release. This time I inked up the super cute and adorable Just for You Dear. This adorable stamp is also available in photopolymer... {Clearly Unity} Just for You Dear. I love that Unity offers some of their stamps in clear and rubber now!

I had a fun idea for layering circles in a card design and wanted to give it a try! I thought the deer from Just for You Dear would work perfectly with this design. I stamped the sweet deer and sentiment with Black Amalgam ink and colored up the deer with my Copic markers. 

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

Deer: E51, E21, E23, E25, E29

Ears: R00, R20

Scarf: R20, R14, G24, G46

You can check out my Copic coloring video here... Copic Color with Me | Just for You Dear | Unity Stamp Co.

I die cut the sweet deer, a green mat from Garden Green card stock from Stampin' Up, and a bunch of circles from the wonderful Watercolor Winter {paper pack} using the Scallops & Circles {nesting dies}. I die cut the sentiment using a die from the Scalloped & Stitched Sentiment Nesting Dies. I trimmed a mat from the same Garden Green card stock.

You can check out my process video for this card here... Fun with Circles Holiday Card | Just for You Dear | Unity Stamp Co.

The green striped pattern paper in the background measures 4 x 5-1/4". It's adhered to a 4-1/4 x 5-1/2" card front of Garden Green card stock and then I adhered the panel to a white A2 top fold card base. The adorable deer circles and the sentiment are popped up using foam tape. Such a fun card to make!

I hope you have an ink-tastic day! 

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky hugs,

Crystal

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Tawny Owl Paperie Inky Inspiration Sketch 24 ~ Mousing Around: Hiya, Pal ~ Unity Stamp Co.

 Hello there crafty friend!

Today I'm sharing inspiration for the Tawny Owl Paperie Inky Inspiration Sketch Challenge 24 in the Tawny Owl Paperie Inky Inspiration Facebook group. Just like last week's card, I had this adorable stamped heart on my desk just asking to be made into a card. These adorable mice are from the Mousing Around: Hiya, Pal stamps from Unity. Love them!

I'm continuing to use up some of my leftover papers. This 4 x 3-1/2" piece of pattern paper is the only left in the scraps that would work with this month's sketch. All the other were cut down for last week's card so I'm thinking next week I'll do my August scraps cards. 

 

Here's a look again at the original scraps I started with this month. I should have taken a current picture so you could see what's left. It's not nearly this much.

Here's a look at the fun sketch for Tawny Owl Paperie Inky Inspiration Sketch Challenge 24. The sketch, as always, is meant to inspire not require. So let the sketch lead in your design, but don't feel limited by it. I like to think my inspiration is usually a good example of this since I'm always adjusting the sketch. Today is no different since I added the heart over the pattern paper.

 I stamped the mice from the Mousing Around: Hiya, Pal with Black Amalgam ink from Gina K. Designs. I stamped the hearts with a reddish purple ink but since this has been sitting on my desk for months, I'm not sure what actual ink I used. I die cut the mice using a die from the Dashes and Frills Hearts {die set}. I colored up the mice with my Copic markers. I coordinated my colors with the papers. 

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

Black: N0, N2, N4, N6

White: C00, C1, C3

Yellow: Y15, Y06, Y38

Pinky Purple: RV10, V91, V93, V95

Red: R20, R14, R46

Ground: C00, C1

I adhered the pattern paper to a 4 x 5-1/4" piece of Stampers Select White card stock from Papertrey Ink. I trimmed up the star paper and adhered it to the heart and then I added a bunch of foam tape to the back of both the heart and the star paper. I popped those up on the panel and then I adhered the panel to a white A2 top fold card base. The sentiment was also a scrap on my desk. I know it's Unity but I'm really not sure which stamp. If you happen to know, please let me know in the comments. I hope you all have fun with this sketch! I can't wait to see what you create with it. 

Have an ink-tastic week!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

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Inky Paws Challenge #229 ~ Birthday Theme Challenge

Hello there crafty friend!

It's time for a new Inky Paws Challenge... a super fun Birthday Theme Challenge! I sure hope that you'll play along with us using your Newton's Nook Designs products! You have until Friday, August 16th to get your entries in for the #229 Birthday Theme Challenge and a chance to win a $20 store credit to Newton's Nook Designs!

Inky Paws Challenge #229 - Birthday Theme Challenge

Such a broad and fun theme! I'm excited to see the entries for this one!

I really wanted to give the new Fractured Card Layout Die a try. So I grabbed the Birthday Meows 6x6 Paper Pad and trimmed a few pieces of the pattern paper to fit over the die. I secured them on the back of the die with a piece of washi tape. I love how quick and easy this design was to make!

I stamped the adorable kitty from Newton's Heart Stamp Set on white card stock using Memento Tuxedo Black ink. I then stamped it again on a scrap of the pink pattern paper. I Copic colored the kitty on white card stock and die cut it using the coordinating Newton's Heart Die Set. And I fussy cut the pattern paper heart and paper pieced it to the kitty.

I wanted the kitty to fit in with the birthday theme just a bit more so I also stamped the party hat and present from the Newton's Birthday Delights Stamp Set. I colored them with my Copic markers and then die cut them using the coordinating Newton's Birthday Delights Die Set. The sentiment also comes from the Newton's Birthday Delights Stamp Set. I masked the bottom portion of the sentiment using a post-it note when I inked it up. I removed the post-it note and then stamped the sentiment. I did this a couple of times in my mini misti to get a nice crisp stamped 'partial' sentiment. I trimmed it up and then adhered it directly to the card.

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

Kitty: C00, C1, C3, R00, R20

Party Hat: RV10, RV11, YG21, YG03, B000, B00

Present: YR21, YR15

Now it's your turn to get your paws inky with your Newton's Nook Designs products and create a project with a Summer theme. Be sure to link up to the Inky Paws Challenge! Can't wait to see your projects!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

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~ Friends of Unity August 2024 Blog Hop ~

Hello there crafty friend!

Welcome to our August Friends of Unity Blog Hop!! This month's cue is a sweet one. I hope you'll hop along with us and enjoy some wonderful inspiration from our friends!

This month's cue is Friendship. I am blessed to have friends from elementary school, high school, college, church, and a bunch of like-minded crafty friends online. My focus for this cue was to create cards to send to some of these friends.

First up is a card of encouragement for a dear friend. I stamped the gorgeous sunflower from the brand new Radiant Resilience stamps six times using Black Amalgam ink on white card stock. I then colored three of the sunflowers and colored just the inner petals of the other three sunflowers.

I die cut the three sunflowers using the second largest die from the Deckle & Stitches Nesting Dies. I fussy cut the three sunflowers around the inner petals. I secured the sunflowers to the die cut panel using washi tape and then I die cut the panel again using the same die. And then I added foam tape to the back of those inner petals and popped them up on the sunflowers. You can see some of the dimension in the photo above.

I die cut a piece of Orange Zest card stock from Papertrey Ink using the largest die from the Deckle & Stitches Nesting Dies. I adhered my panels together and then adhered them to an A2 top fold card base of Early Espresso card stock from Stampin' Up. I trimmed the sentiment and adhered it to the card. Trimmed the excess off the right side and then I added several enamel dots from my stash finishing up my first card. I think my friend will like it.

Here's a quick list of the Copic markers I used to color up the sunflowers:

Petals: YR21, Y06, YR15, YR16, YR27

Center: E21, E23, E25, E29

I created my second card using some leftover pieces from my first card. These are the inner petals that were leftover from the first card. I thought they'd look really pretty on a dark background. So I die cut a piece of Early Espresso card stock using the second largest die from the Deckle & Stitches Nesting Dies again. I adhered the partial sunflowers to the background and die cut the panel again.

And then I thought it would be fun to do some splatters. I went a little crazy with the splatters but it sure was fun! I let the panel dry and then I adhered it to a piece of Summer Sunrise card stock from Papertrey Ink. I wrapped the panel a few times with {Natural} May Arts Burlap String and then I added a bunch of foam tape to the back of the panel avoiding the string.

I heat embossed the sentiment from the adorable Lil' Bloomer stamps. I prepped the Early Espresso card stock with the TE Anti-Static Powder Tool from Taylored Expressions. I stamped the sentiment with Sugar Cube White Pigment ink, also from Taylored Expressions. I dusted the wet ink with Alabaster White Embossing Powder from Brutus Monroe and melted the powder with a Wagner Precision Heat Tool. Once it cooled, I trimmed the sentiment and then I adhered it to the sunflower panel. I trimmed off the excess and pulled the backing off of the foam tape and popped up the panel on an A2 top fold card base of Early Espresso card stock that I turned on it's side for a landscape card. Another lovely encouragement card for a friend.

My last card is a fun one for another friend. These crazy chickens from the Cuckoo stamps are just too much fun!! I hope it brings a smile to my friend's face. These chickens are so funny I decided to pair them up with the Rustic Cowhide {paper pack}. My daughter said they don't go together but I thought it was funny! Dare I say... a bit cuckoo! LOL!

I stamped the funny chickens from Cuckoo using Black Amalgam ink and then Copic colored them to look like some of our chickens. So recently we rescued a couple Silkie hybrid chickens. They are the craziest looking chickens and they look a lot like the two chickens on the right. So I colored those two to look like our Rip {bottom right} and Chewy {top right}. We don't actually have any white chickens but that middle one just looked like it should be white so I went with it. And then the top left is colored like a mix of our brown chickens... I think they are ISA browns and Rhode Island Reds. And the bottom left is colored like our Plymouth Rock Chickens. So much fun!

I die cut the chickens using a die from the Scallops & Squares {nesting dies}. I trimmed the pattern paper to the same height as the square and adhered them together. And I wanted to keep this card simple so I just adhered the panel to a black A2 top fold card base.

Inspiration for my third card is from the Tawny Owl Paperie Inky Inspiration Sketch Challenge 24. Did you know I host a sketch challenge in my Facebook group? I'd love for you to join the group and play along. You can find it here... Tawny Owl Paperie Inky Inspiration.

Sometimes I forget to take photos to share, but I do like to add a white panel in my cards when I use a black {or dark} card base. I also had a strip of the pattern paper leftover so I adhered it inside the card. 

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 and the lucky winner is...

... Denise Bryant!! Congratulations, Denise!!

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

Please claim the prize before September 4th, 2024. 

*** Quick Announcement ***

Unfortunately, Gaylynn has stepped down from our FOU team so she asked me to announce her winner from last month's hop. Gaylynn's July 2024 hop prize winner is Silvia H (Anonymous). Congrats Silvia! Please contact Gaylynn Martling via Facebook Messenger or a note on Gaylynn's contact form located on her blog; within three weeks of this announcement.

Well, that's it for me this time! Please hop along and enjoy some more inspiration from the Friends of Unity! I can't wait to see how our friends were inspired by this month's cue. I will be doing another fun giveaway this month!! Be sure to hop along and comment for a chance to win. {When you comment please leave your name just in case it posts as anonymous.} I'll announce the winner next month! 

Let's get to the hopping...

Crystal <--- you're here

up next ---> Amber

Jenni

April

Kari

Tammy

Joyce

Rachel

Colleen

Thanks so very much for supporting our little hop!

We appreciate you so much!!

See ya next time.

Inky Hugs,

Crystal

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Winter Wonderland with Distress Crayons ~ A Wintry Hello ~ Unity Stamp Co.

Hello there crafty friend! 

I'm back with another holiday card for Unity's latest release. This time my card features two awesome new stamps from the August release. First is the beautiful A Wintry Hello which includes the gorgeous deer, a tree scene, some snowflakes, and four awesome sentiments. Love, love, love this amazing set of stamps! And I paired it with the absolutely beautiful Pines of Endearment that includes four lovely pine trees, a snowflake, a star, and three sentiments. This beautiful set of stamps is also available in photopolymer... {Clearly Unity} Pines of Endearment. I love that Unity offers some of their stamps in clear and rubber now!

I played a bit with my distress crayons again!! I colored a 4-1/4 x 5-1/2" piece of white card stock with 3 distress crayons. I used Evergreen Bough, Twisted Citron, and Peacock Feathers. I used a baby wipe to blend the colors on my background. And then I ran it through my Big Shot with the Simple Snowflakes Embossing Folder from Tim Holtz. I lightly rubbed the raised snowflakes with a Sugar Cube White Pigment ink pad. I love the fun mix of colors and how the white pigment ink made the snowflakes on the background pop!

I stamped the beautiful deer and the tree scene from the A Wintry Hello using Black Amalgam ink. I also decided I wanted a couple more trees so I stamped a couple of pines from the Pines of Endearment. I colored them up with my Copic markers and then fussy cut them leaving a white border. I also stamped the sentiment and trimmed it up.

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

Deer: E51, E55, E57

Trees: E55

Pine Trees: YG67, YG99

I die cut a hill using the Stitched Hillside Borders die from Lawn Fawn. I also die cut a scalloped frame using the Frames - Scalloped Stitched Rectangles die from Gina Marie Designs. I adhered all the elements of my scene onto the distress crayon background. I splattered some white acrylic paint over the scene. And then I adhered the frame over top. I had to trim off a bit of the distress crayon background. And then I adhered the framed panel to a white A2 top fold card based turned on its side. This was such a fun card to make!

I hope you have an ink-tastic day! 

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky hugs,

Crystal

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{BYSHC} Sketch Challenge 48 ~ A Few of My Faves ~ Unity Stamp Co.

Hello there crafty friend!

It's time for a new sketch challenge over in the Build Your Stash Holiday Cardmakers Facebook group! Today I'm sharing a sweet Christmas card featuring the super cute A Few of My Faves from our fabulous sponsor, Unity Stamp Co.! Unity has generously offered up a $25 gift card as a prize for the {BYSHC} Sketch Challenge 48 this month! So amazing!!

Not only am I sharing a brand new sketch, I'm also sharing a brand new stamp!! Yay! The adorable A Few of My Faves stamp just released over at Unity yesterday along with some other super cute and adorable holiday stamps!! Oh, and this adorable stamp is also available in photopolymer... {Clearly Unity} A Few of My Faves. I just can't get enough of this cute penguin!! I stamped it with Black Amalgam ink and Copic colored it with the following Copic markers:

Penguin: C00, C1, C3, YR21, YR15, YR

Scarf: R00, R20, R14

Presents: BG70, BG72, BG75, N0, N2, N4

I then die cut the penguin using a die from the Scallops & Circles {nesting dies}. And die cut a mat from the beautiful papers using the next largest die from the set. I had also stamped the sentiment on a decent sized scrap so I ended up die cutting that using the bottom portion of the same die I used to die cut the penguin. 

I love this month's sketch! The stripes in the background can be just striped paper or can be created using papers from a paper pack or even just random complimentary papers from a paper stash! The possibilities are endless!! So for my card today I decided to cut 1/2" strips from the papers in the Snowflake Elegance {paper pack}. There are 13 different papers in this paper pack so I just cut 1/2" strips of each of those 13 papers. I cut a 4 x 5-1/4" piece of a thin white card stock and I adhered the paper strips onto that card stock and then trimmed off all the excess. I adhered the penguin circles to the background and then adhered my background to a white A2 top fold card base. Easy peasy!

Here's a look at {BYSHC} Sketch Challenge 48 for the month of August. Loving this sketch! I can't wait to see what everyone does with it. 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! Lots of beautiful inspiration this month from the design team.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

See ya next time.

Inky hugs,

Crystal

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