A Look Back At 2016!

Hey!

Welcome back to another 'Look Back At 2016! This year has been an amazing year for myself personally, but it has been a fantastic year for Uniko. We have had 5 fabulous releases, with 16 new clear stamps sets lining the Uniko HQ shelves. 

I don't know about you, but to me this year has almost passed by in a blur! With that in mind I thought it would be nice now the main seasonal festivities are over and as 2016 draws to a close, to take a look back at Uniko's 2016.

Apologies for the delay in posting and not posting yesterday, I had little sleep Wednesday night due to a Josh bean having nightmares, poor little fella. Then on Thursday I had to take Mr Cat to the vet and he had an operation to remove his eye as he had a large tumour in it. Another poor little fella that needed my attention and love post op last night.

Anyway, I am back today, I am taking a look back at the September/October 2016 Release and giving some fresh inky love to Originally Organic, Marvellous Mehndi, Simply Said II, Winter Foliage & Christmas Sparkle clear stamp sets.

First up a super CAS card using Originally Organic...

I was inspired by the current challenge over at TIME OUT Challenges HERE, which is an inspired by words challenge.

'With each sunrise we are given a chance for a new beginning'

I thought the sentiment I chose was appropriate and related to the 'new beginning' part of the challenge phrase. I then decided to accent the sentiment with the leaf cluster and a trio of sunny yellow buds to represent the 'sunrise'.

Next I dusted off Marvellous Mehndi...

For this card I got my distress inks out and enjoyed some relaxing ink blending! The sentiment is a mix of 'Happy' from Simply Said Birthday, which is partially stamped and the 'New Year' is from Simply Said II.

Lastly, I switched gears back to Christmas and combined both Christmas Sparkle & Winter Foliage. Plus I really gave my new MISTI a workout on this card.

I love this multi card layer stamping and lining up the bauble was SO much easier using the MISTI! I was also able to stamp the bauble in Altenew Cosmic Berry ink and then stamp over it again in VersaMark to be able to heat emboss it with Crystal EP.

I hope you will join me again tomorrow, when I will be taking a look back at the 2016 November Release and the last of 2016. Until then, thank you for stopping by.

Hugs

A Look Back At 2016!

Hey!

Welcome back to another 'Look Back At 2016! This year has been an amazing year for myself personally, but it has been a fantastic year for Uniko. We have had 5 fabulous releases, with 16 new clear stamps sets lining the Uniko HQ shelves. 

I don't know about you, but to me this year has almost passed by in a blur! With that in mind I thought it would be nice now the main seasonal festivities are over and as 2016 draws to a close, to take a look back at Uniko's 2016.

Today, I am taking a look back at the June 2016 Release and giving some fresh inky love to Paradise  and Paradise Leaves clear stamp sets.

First up a card using Paradise...

A super quick and CAS card! I started by stamping the sentiment from the set and used my favourite of the Hibiscus flowers, stamped in Pink Grapefruit. The solid leaves from the set are stamped in Key Lime and the tiny trio of flowers in Persimmon. Hopefully in this next photo you can see the sparkle of the Clear Wink Of Stella I added to the flowers :)

For my Paradise Leaves card I used the same trio of colours, but also added in Turquoise Gem, Aquatic Splash and Sea Breeze.

The sentiment is from Originally Organic and another quick CAS card! It was lovely to play and think of warmer places, it has been SO cold here today and the frost we had overnight hardly lifted.

So, that's a quick look back at the June 2016 Release, I hope I have given you a little inspiration to dust off these sets if you have them ;) 

I hope you will join me again tomorrow, when I will be taking a look back at the 2016 September/October Release. Until then, thank you for stopping by.

Hugs

A Look Back At 2016!

Hey!

Welcome back to another 'Look Back At 2016! This year has been an amazing year for myself personally, but it has been a fantastic year for Uniko. We have had 5 fabulous releases, with 16 new clear stamps sets lining the Uniko HQ shelves. 

I don't know about you, but to me this year has almost passed by in a blur! With that in mind I thought it would be nice now the main seasonal festivities are over and as 2016 draws to a close, to take a look back at Uniko's 2016.

Today, I am taking a look back at the April 2016 Release and giving some fresh inky love to Celebrate With Cake and Fun Flowers clear stamp sets.

First up I have a shaker card using Celebrate With Cake...

I seem to have a 'thing' for shaker cards when I use this set ;) I had some Stampin' Up! Designer Paper on my desk, left over from my CAS Christmas cards HERE. I decided to put some more of it to good use, instead of sitting and admiring it!

I used my MISTI tool again to line up and stamp the top and bottom of the cupcake and used Copic Markers to colour it in. The sequins are a mix of Stampin' Up! collections and the the 'happy' die cut is from the Hello You Thinlits Collection also from Stampin' Up! which has a good smothering of Clear Wink Of Stella. I then used the Papertrey Ink Banner Die to stamp the birthday sentiment onto, which is from Simply Said.

Next, I was inspired by THIS card created by Jennifer McGuire to create my next card using Fun Flowers. 

Again I put my MISTI tool to good use to stamp the layers of the flowers. I still require a little practice for the flower centres! 

I used my Zig Clean Colour Brush pens to colour the flower which is fussy cut and adhered flat to the card. I love the vibrancy of the Zigs just used as a marker and I now have another thank you card to send :)

So, that's a quick look back at the April 2016 Release, I hope I have given you a little inspiration to dust off these sets if you have them ;) There is a small amount of 3 of the sets in stock on the website and I have planned some restocks to arrive in January.

I hope you will join me again tomorrow, when I will be taking a look back at the 2016 June Release. Until then, thank you for stopping by.

Hugs

A Look Back At 2016!

Hey & Happy Boxing Day!

I do hope you all had a wonderful Christmas Day, I think this year has to of been one of the best for us as a family of four :) Seeing the beans faces as they walked into the front room with all the new toys and train set laid out was a picture. Plus, I just loved every minute watching them play together learning their new toys and then pulling daddy down to the floor to help and play. It truly melted my heart.

Here are a couple of photos from Christmas morning, apologies for my bed head!

Me and Ben the bookworm, checking out the new Peppa Pig books!

Josh admiring the train set

Josh getting stuck in with all the toys! 

Anyway, back to the title of this blog post... A Look Back At 2016! This year has been an amazing year for myself personally, but it has been a fantastic year for Uniko. We have had 5 fabulous releases, with 16 new clear stamps sets lining the Uniko HQ shelves. 

I don't know about you, but to me this year has almost passed by in a blur! With that in mind I thought it would be nice now the main seasonal festivities are over and as 2016 draws to a close, to take a look back at Uniko's 2016.

Today, I am looking back at the 2016 February Release. This was Uniko's 4th Birthday celebration and I launched 4 clear stamp sets, Beautiful Blooms III, I Love Tea, Some Bunny and Simply Said. So, I dusted the sets off and got to work with the help of my Christmas present from Santa, the MISTI and made a few new cards to share with you...

First up is a card using Beautiful Blooms III, the perfect set to get my MISTI into action! This set features a lovely modern 4 step layering bloom. I decided to only use 3 of the layers, but with the help of the MISTI it was a breeze and such a quicker process.

I've not had the time to sit and 'play' with my stamps or join in with challenges, so I was inspired to join in on the current CAS(E) this Sketch! sketch for the layout of my card seen HERE and below.

I also got my new and neglected Altenew inks out for this card. The sentiment is from Originally Organic, a clear stamp set I will be looking at later in the week, but the sentiments work perfectly with florals, so I couldn't resit using it and showing you how Uniko clear stamp sets can work together for even more possibilities.

Next I was inspired by THIS photo on Pinterest to use I LOVE Tea clear stamp set and replicate some blue and white fine bone china.

The teacups are stamped in Encore Gold ink and again I used my MISTI for this simple stamped image. I don't know if this happens to you, but when I stamp using metallic inks onto smooth card the image can slide slightly. So using the MISTI prevented this from happening :)

The teacups were decorated using the small Beautiful Blooms III image from the I LOVE Tea clear stamp set and the larger bloom from Beautiful Blooms III. As you can see I love to coordinate clear stamp sets when I am designing them! The sentiment is from Simply Said and as I need a few thank you cards post Christmas that was the reasoning behind my choice.

Lastly, but no means least I inked up Some Bunny clear stamp set. Though this set is oriented towards Spring and Easter, it is also a perfect set for New Baby cards, Children's Birthdays and more.

I used the current Freshly Made Sketches sketch seen HERE and below for the layout of my card and I opted to make a New Baby Congratulations card. No harm in having one of these on hand for 2017, I know a few people expecting next year.

The bunny is such a fun and cute image, perfect for those who like to colour. But it also suits some paper piecing, for when you are short on time! The congratulations sentiment is another from Simply Said.

So, that's a quick look back at the February 2016 Release, I hope I have given you a little inspiration to dust off these sets if you have them ;) There is a small amount of 3 of the sets in stock on the website and I have planned some restocks to arrive in January.

I hope you will join me again tomorrow, when I will be taking a look back at the 2016 April Release. Until then, thank you for stopping by.

Hugs

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Merry Christmas 2016!

Merry Christmas!

I thought I would pop by to wish you all a VERY Merry Christmas and share one of my last minute CAS Christmas cards I made this week...

The 'merry' die cut is Stampin' Up! and die cut from black and gold metallic paper. The foliage is a mix of stamps from Rustic Wreath and Background Builders: Winter Vines and the sentiment is from Simply Said II.

I hope you all have a wonderful day spent with family, friends and loved ones, whether you celebrate the occasion or not. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS 

TO ALL

LOVE 

THE BROWNS!

WINNERS!

Hey & Happy Christmas Eve!

Sorry I have been MIA for SO long, I wasn't expecting to be so busy, stressed and ill these past couple of weeks. We have had yet more bugs in the house and two little beans that stopped sleeping through the night due to being ill :( 

Then, after a much needed mummy Christmas night out I got sick with a chest infection and laryngitis and lost my voice for 3 days! Anyway, we are just about fully recovered, just a few sniffles and a croaky voice for mummy ;)

Now, enough of the waffle, how about I announce a couple of winners...?! First up we have the winner of the Winter Coffee Lovers Blog Hop candy I offered HERE for commenting on the post.

Random.org has helped me pick the winning comment...

And the winner is...

Seleise Barrett18 December 2016 at 05:35

love the snowflake on the cup! cute card! Thanks for sponsoring the hop

Congratulations Seleise! Please email me at bev@uniko.co.uk by January 14th 2017, along with your postal address and I will get your prize on its way to you.

NEXT, we have the winner of the December 2016 Design Team Blog Hop and Giveaway HERE. This month we revisited Stunning Snowflakes. 

In blog hop and comment order, Random.org has helped me pick the winner...

And the winner is...

Arianna Barbara13 December 2016 at 11:12

Oh wow! Awesome cards!!!

Congratulations Arianna! Please email me at bev@uniko.co.uk by January 14th 2017, along with your postal address and I will get your prize on its way to you.

THANK YOU to everyone who hopped, commented and joined in on the fun here at Uniko and the Winter Coffee Lovers Blog Hop. 

December 2016 Design Team Blog Hop and GIVEAWAY!

Hey & Happy Sunday!

My apologies for being late with my post today, things have been a little hectic and tiring this weekend with a poorly bean, first a 24 hr sickness bug (again) and then high temperatures. It all seems to happen at night too, so it knocks everyone off runtime ;) 

Anyway, the Design Team and I are here today with the usual non release month Blog Hop and GIVEAWAY! This month we have decided to dust off and revisit the previously released Stunning Snowflakes clear stamp set, a popular winter favourite.

This clear stamp set was released way back in October 2013 but is still a firm favourite of mine and many ;) The set also has a Pinterest page HERE, in which you can find lots of inspiration using it.

As usual I have picked a couple of my 'old' favourites using this set...

How about some fresh new inspiration using this set and don't forget to comment along the Design Team blogs to be in the chance of winning this set or a Gift Certificate to the same value if you already own it. You have until Midnight GMT Sunday 18th December to get your comments in.

CLICK HERE to see more from Deborah

CLICK HERE to see more from Jane

CLICK HERE to see more from Lindsey

CLICK HERE to see more from Rahmat

CLICK HERE to see more from Sarah P

CLICK HERE to see more from Sarah G

Thank you for stopping by and hopping along with us today!

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Uniko Sponsors the Winter/Holiday Coffee Lovers Blog Hop

Hey & Happy Friday!

I am super happy you have stopped by the blog today as, Uniko is honoured to have been invited again by the lovely Amy from Tsuruta Designs to sponsoring another fun blog hop and challenge...

December 9th - December 16th

The winner of the Uniko prize will receive an £15 eGift Certificate to spend in store. 

PLUS Uniko is a Flash Sponsor with a chance to win either 

I LOVE Coffee or I LOVE Tea 

Anyone is eligible for a Super Sponsor prize if they link up a newly created Winter/Holiday Themed Coffee, Tea & or Cocoa project, no back-linkng please. Random.org will be used to draw the winners.

To link up your projects and more details about the hop and Super Sponsors pop on over to the Coffee Loving Carmakers Blog HERE.

To kick this FABulous hop off I've created my own Winter/Holiday themed tea card...

I decided to ink up I LOVE Tea clear stamp set and combined it with one of my other favourite Winter themed sets Stunning Snowflakes!

The layout of my card is 'loosely' based around the current CAS(E) this Sketch! layout seen HERE and below and my colour choice is a favourite winter combination of mine to use Silver and Teal.

That's all from me today, my mojo seems to have wandered a little this week and at a time where I could really do with being on top form, so many Christmas cards still to make and send! 

Anyway, before I go today, how about another PRIZE?! 

Simply leave a comment on this post by 6am (PST) December 16th and I will select one lucky comment to receive the Uniko I LOVE Coffee, I LOVE Tea AND Stunning Snowflakes clear stamp sets. If the winner owns any of the products above an alternative choice of an in stock stamp set to the same value will be offered. 

I look forward to hopping by and seeing all your wonderful creations, have fun!

Oh & Uniko have FREE Worldwide Shipping on orders of £20 or more until Monday 12th December 2016!

Supplies:-

Uniko Clear Stamps:- I LOVE Tea and Stunning Snowflakes 

Ink:- VersaFine Onyx Black, Encore Silver

Card Stock:- SU! Whisper White

Accessories: Stardust EP, SU! Enamel Dots and Foam Adhesive.

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CAS Colours & Sketches #203

Hey & Welcome to the last CC&S Challenge of 2016!

This month over at CAS Colours & Sketches we are just having challenges for the first two weeks of December. We are looking back at all the challenges of 2016, choosing one and making it FESTIVE. THIS week we would like you to look at the 2016 Sketch Challenge Archive and choose a sketch and use it to make a festive card.

I decided upon Challenge #179 from June...

You can check HERE to see how I used them last time, this is what I came up with this time and I have rotated my base card to fit the taller panel for the tree...

I've this idea using the recently released Uniko Christmas Pop clear stamp set since before I released it and I needed to find my *very* old Doodlebug mini flocking jars! I've had these for an age and I don't think I have ever used them :( They are a little awkward but I love the bright colours, slight dimension and texture they give to the tree.

I heat embossed the outline tree and decorative lines in Stampin' Up! Black Embossing powder before adding the flock using my Quickie Glue pen. The sentiment is from Simply Said II and the ribbon is Papertrey Ink.

Ok, that's all from me for now, I hope I have inspired you to give the challenge a go and join in this week. Be sure to stop on over HERE and check out what the rest of the CAS Colours & Sketches DT have done using the colours and I hope to see you in the gallery. 

Thank you for all your visits and joining us at CAS Colours & Sketches this year, see you in January with the new CC&S Design Team! 

Supplies:

Stamps: Uniko Christmas Pop and Simply Said II

Ink: VersaFine Onyx Black.

Card Stock: Hobby Craft White

Accessories: SU! Black EP, Doodlebug Flock, Quickie Glue Pen, Foam Adhesive. 

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