Speed Test!

Happy April!

Oh my, this year seems to be flying by at the speed of light!

I've been busy here at Uniko HQ behind the scenes, working on new product designs, features and workshops. Plus all the day to day running of things, packing and posting lovely orders :)

Anyway, talking of speed, I saw the current challenge over at AAA Cards HERE and thought I would have a go and join in!

It looks as though I am a little rusty at speedy CAS cards and not as organised as I thought I was ;) Along with this challenge I'd seen the sketch over at CAS(E) this Sketch! seen HERE and below and it sparked some creativity in me.

I knew I wanted to use the recently released Passiflora clear stamp set and coordinating Designer Dies, so I set them out on my desk along with Altenew inks. I chose Wisteria, Hydrangea & Ultraviolet for the Passion Flower and Olive & Moss for the leaves and I was set to start!

Here is the result...

AND here is how long it took me...

The longest part of this card was die cutting the flower, leaves and details of the flower. Plus as I like to use foam adhesive for dimension with this flower, it was pretty time consuming taking all the foam square backs off! I'd also not chosen a sentiment or my base card colour, so I think I wasted a few minutes deciding on those ;)

The quickest part was adding the embossed lines using my small Fiskars paper trimmer and embossing blade and adding the Nuvo Drops to add the finishing touch.

Anyway, it was still good fun and it definitely got my creative juices flowing. That's all I have to share with you here today, thanks for stopping by.

Hugs

CAS Colours & Sketches #299 - Colours

Hey!

This month at CAS Colours & Sketches our hostess is Patricia, the challenge owner.  This week is colour week HERE and seen below...

And here is how I decided to use them...

I'm still 'trying' to build up my stash of Christmas cards! I know I need to be sending them out soon, especially to those across the pond and beyond! 

The layout of my card uses the current sketch over at CAS(E) this Sketch! seen HERE and below and I love how my card turned out ;)

I used my current go to favourites of Winter Foliage and Simply Said Blocks Christmas. The sentiment is adhered using foam adhesive and I added some white dot detail using Nuvo Drops to the berries.

That's all from me today, I hope thatI have inspired you to join in on the challenge?! If you need a little more inspiration, pop on over HERE to see what the CC&S Design Team have created.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs

CAS Colours & Sketches #292 - Colours

Hello October!

This month at CAS Colours & Sketches we have another multiple hostess month and this week Samantha is our hostess.  As usual we are starting the month off with a colour challenge and HERE are this weeks colours...

Such a pretty pallete, but it had me stumped at first! I then looked through my favourite sketch challenges for inspiration and came across the current CAS(E) this Sketch! challenge layout seen HERE and below.

This helped me decide on the stamps to use and I combined the challenges to create my card...

 

Kindness Blooms clear stamp set was perfect for the overlapping circular images in the sketch and as they are quirky fun blooms they look great stamped in all colours! The sentiment is from Simply Said Blocks II, one of my current 'go to' sentiment sets!

That's all from me today, I hope thatI have inspired you to join in on the challenge?! If you need a little more inspiration, pop on over HERE to see what the CC&S Design Team have created.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs

CAS Colours & Sketches #264 - Colours

Hey!

Our hostess this month over at CAS Colours & Sketches is Fiona and we've already had two wonderful inspiration sparking challenges. This weeks colour combo HERE is no exception and is so bright and cheerful...

Due to a poorly bean with chicken pox and one without, both of them off nursery and throw in some sleepless nights and work deadlines, I've not had a whole lot of creative time :( 

Anyway, here's what I came up with though using this weeks colours...

Yep, I still have the Kindness Blooms clear stamp set within arms reach! I had a look around my favourite challenges and saw the current CAS(E) this Sketch! sketch seen HERE and below and knew the set and colours would work.

I started by stamping both sizes of bloom in Stampin' Up! Rose Red, fussy cut them out and layered them with 1mm thick foam adhesive. 

I then stamped my sentiment and adorned it with colourful polka dots stamped in all of the CC&S challenge colours using the small circle stamp from the Kindness Blooms clear stamp set too. 

Super simple from me today, but I hope I have inspired you to join in on the challenge?! If you need a little more inspiration, pop on over HERE to see what the CC&S Design Team have created.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs

CAS Colours & Sketches #236 - Colours

Hey!

It's time for another CAS Colours & Sketches challenge! This month Patricia and Karen are our hostesses. Karen is our hostess this week and has THIS fun colour combo to inspire our creativity...

I knew I wanted to keep the colours to a minimum and I've certainly done that on my card...

I've been having some fun designing some new Background Blocks clear stamps and it reminded me that I hadn't used Background Blocks Doodle Flower for a while. I was looking through some challenges that I hadn't joined in on for a while and fancied the look of the sketch over at CAS(E) this Sketch! seen HERE and below...

I started by stamping the doodle flower block in Altenew Limestone ink and die cut a circle using the Stampin' Up! Stitched Shapes Framelits. I then stamped the block again in Industrial Diamond ink and selectively coloured 3 of the flowers in the challenge colours, I used my Prismacolor Pencils. These were then fussy cut out.

The sentiment is from Simply Said and I added quite a bit of dimension to the layers, sentiment and flowers. A few Stampin' Up! Enamel Dots finished the card off.

That's all from me today using the sketch, but if you need some more inspiration using the sketch be sure to pop by the CAS Colours & Sketches blog HERE and see how the DT and Guest Designer have used it.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Hugs

CAS Colours & Sketches #234 - Colours

Hey & Hello August!

My Oh My! I really can't believe we have entered August and Summer is in full swing now. You can tell it is the Summer holidays here in the UK as all we have had since the schools broke up is rain and more rain!

Anyway, enough of that how about a fresh new month of challenges over at CAS Colours & Sketches. This month Patricia and Karen are our hostesses. Kicking the month off is Patricia with this wonderful all be it, challenging colour combo HERE...

It was the Cajun Craze that challenged me the most. I don't think I have ever used this colour and it is one that I tend to avoid if I see it in a combo - haha! Here's what I came up with...

I decided to 'play it safe' with a geometric clear stamp set! Reaching for the recently restocked Background Builders: Squared. Geometrics are still going strong trend wise and there are so many possibilities in using them on projects. 

FYI - You can see a few sneak peek examples over HERE of how the Design Team have paired geometrics on their projects they made for a feature in Septembers issue Craft Stamper magazine.

For my card today, I kept it CAS and selected my favourite building strip, stamped it in the 3 colours and added a sentiment from Simply Said Birthday. I also added a trio of circular (as they don't do square ones) Stampin' Up! enamel dots in the matching colours.

The layout of my card was inspired by the current challenge over at CAS(E) this Sketch! HERE. It's been so long since I joined in on a challenge, it was nice to combine the fun!

That's all from me today using the sketch, but if you need some more inspiration using the sketch be sure to pop by the CAS Colours & Sketches blog HERE and see how the DT and Guest Designer have used it.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Hugs

The 2017 Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop!

Hey & Happy Friday!

YAY! It's time for another Coffee Lovers Blog Hop, I'm super happy to be a little organised this time and have a project made to enter on day 1!

Uniko is honoured to have been invited again by the lovely Amy from Tsuruta Designs to sponsoring another fun blog hop and challenge, you can check out all the details over on the Uniko Website Blog HERE, I have blog candy there too ;) AND more details HERE over at the hop!

Anyway, onto my card...

At the moment Summer to me = Tropical! Hence my decision to pair I LOVE Coffee with Paradise clear stamp set.

I was inspired by a couple of challenges for the ink blended panel and layout of my card. Firstly the challenge over at AAA Cards HERE is the resist technique. 

I stamped the outline Hibiscus flower and solid leaves using VersaMark and heat embossed them with clear EP. I then blended two of my favourite distress inks over the top. 

The second challenge I was inspired by was the new CAS(E) this Sketch! layout seen HERE and below.

I continued the Hibiscus flower theme onto the Coffee cup, keeping it simple by stamping it in Lawn Fawn Merman ink and adding a touch of Stampin' Up! glitter for some Summer sparkle! 

The sentiment is a combination from Simply Said and I LOVE Coffee. I added a trio of Stampin' Up! Glitter Enamel Dots to finish the design off.

Ok, that's all I have to share with you today, but be sure to check out my post HERE with the Uniko Sponsor details, more inspiration and BLOG CANDY! 

CAS Colours & Sketches #206

Hey!

It's Tuesday, which means it is time for another CAS Colours & Sketches challenge. Don't these weeks go fast?! Anyway, Karen is our hostess for the January challenges and has another fun colour challenge HERE and seen below. 

We've used Stampin' Up colour names for reference; however, you may use any companies' products for your cards as long as you match our colours as closely as possible. You may also use neutral colours (white, cream, kraft, brown, grey, or black) for card layers, sentiments, and image outlines. However, in order to be considered for our weekly winners, you must not use any other colours.

Don't forget to create a CAS 'Clean & Simple' card for the challenge to be considered as a winner for the challenge!

This is what I came up with using the colours...

With two pinky colours I opted for a floral card and Beautiful Blooms I clear stamp set was still on my desk. This set is getting a whole lotta love at the minute as the Uniko Design Team & I have revisited it HERE. There is a blog hop and GIVEAWAY too, so be sure to check it out ;)

I used my MISTI tool to stamp the smaller of the blooms in Watermelon Wonder onto the matching die cut. The sentiment is from the Uniko retired clear stamp set Strike A Pose! and I added a couple of Stampin' Up! Flirty Flamingo enamel dots to accentuate the finished design. The layout of my card is using the CAS(E) this Sketch! sketch seen HERE and below. 

Be sure to check out all the Design Team inspiration HERE on the CAS Colours & Sketches blog and I hope to see you in the gallery :) Challenge End Time: 6:00 p.m. Eastern U.S. time/11:00 p.m. London U.K. time Monday, January 23, 2017

Hugs

A Card a Day...

Hey!

I'm challenging myself to make at least one card a day to keep the blues away! After a release and huge 'planning' event such as my recent trip to Happy Stampers Festival, I always hit a little low and lull when it comes to creating. This time I am challenging myself to not let that happen and keep the momentum going!

So last night I set about making this card...

I saw the new CAS(E) this Sketch! layout seen HERE and below and knew it would work wonderfully with the NEW Originally Organic clear stamp set due back in stock early next week, but available for backorder!

I treated myself to another Mini Distress Ink collection and as I've not done any ink blending for a while decided to give it a whirl for the sketch. I combined Mustard Seed, Ripe Persimmon and Picked Raspberry for the panel.

I kept to no fuss black stamping and a simple thank you sentiment, I need a few thank you cards, so this will do nicely! 

After making this card I decided to make another using the same sketch and stamp set...

This time I used Crushed Olive and the other large swirly foliage stamp, this time stamping in SU! Chocolate Chip ink.

Ok, that's all from me today I hope to be back tomorrow with more to share. Until then, thank you for stopping by today.

Supplies:

Uniko Originally Organic & Simply Said

Ink: Mini Distress Inks Crushed Olive, Mustard Seed, Ripe Persimmon and Picked Raspberry. VersaFine Onyx Black and SU! Chocolate Chip

Card: SU! Whisper White and Crumb Cake

Accessories: Clarity Stencil Brushes