April / May 2019 Release Sneak Peeks!

Woohoo!

It is finally time to share the sneak peeks for the April / May 2019 Release! I am so excited about these new products, it's been hard to keep them a secret!

Anyway, this month I have 4 new clear stamp sets, 2 designer die collections to match previously released clear stamps AND 1 stencil design. These will be available to purchase on Sunday 5th May 2019 at 9pm GMT. 

Let's have a look at the peeks...

First up is sure to be a new favourite of mine! I love it when I come up with an idea to combine my love of textile and design history with clear stamps and this is one such set I have done this.

This set of clear stamps is inspired by the design movement of Mid Century Modern (1945 - 1975). I will talk a little bit more about MCM when I formally introduce the stamps.

Now, I couldn't stop at one set inspired by MCM! As I was having so much fun with the patterns and designs I incorporated these into two more Background Blocks clear stamps...

AND I couldn't stop there with the MCM, I had to then create a stencil design...

Lastly for the stamps this release, I have a new Large Background clear stamp design...

This design is from a drawing I did way, way back in probably 2006 when I first started my degree in textiles and surface design. Unusually for me I have decided to keep it 'rough' around the edges and I have barely edited it. I am excited to add this more naturalistic look to the Uniko stamp line up.

Recently I did a poll on the Uniko Facebook page to see whether stampers prefer small or large background stamps. I was surprised at the majority of you preferring lager backgrounds. So I have listened and I will be bring more of these larger background stamps in the near future :)

Lastly I have two coordinating Designer Die Collections to previously released clear stamp sets. Can you tell which ones from these peeks?! 

That is all the sneak peeks for this release, which means tomorrow the FUN starts!! Myself, our Guest Designer Jenny from Crafting in the Country & the Design Team will be back to start the product introductions with lots of inspiration. 

I'd LOVE to know what you are most excited to see in this line up of products and what your favourite is! 

Thank you so much for stopping by today & I do hope you will come back & see what these sneak peeks can do?! 

Hugs

Welcome to another Stencil Sunday ........

Hello there .....

I hope you're enjoying your weekend ..... can you believe we're almost in May!!!  Doesn't time fly when you're having fun! 

It's Linda here again with another quick and easy idea for using your Uniko Stencils ....... why not create your own pretty backing papers.
Here's a really simple idea using just a small part of the background piece I created.

I took a large piece of smooth watercolour card and blended Distress Oxide inks over the top. 
I started at the bottom with the lightest colour (Scattered Straw), and then worked my way up the card getting slightly darker each time to create a sort of ombre look.

I used Wild Honey, Spiced Marmalade and Picked Raspberry  ....... just think of all the fab combinations you could try!

Because the Oxide inks blend so well, you get all these fab shades in between too.

I then took my stencil ..... the pretty Stylised Floral, and used Abandoned Coral Distress Oxide to add the design over the top.  The result was a pretty piece of cardstock that I can cut up and use for lots of different projects ..... backgrounds, even die cutting.  You'll no doubt see some of it again!

For this card I cut a piece to fit on the bottom third of a 7x5 cardblank, and then I used a fancy, stitched edge die to trim down a piece of white card to fit over the top

I stamped my sentiment, from the Birthday Wishes Clear stamp set using one of the Oxide colours I'd used on the stenciled card ...... so that everything matched. 
If you haven't tried stamping with your Distress Oxides, give it a go.  They are so different from the original Distress ..... you get a much crisper image.

The pretty matching floral embellishment was made using the Stylised Floral stencil again.

I simply inked through the design onto a scrap of white card, fussy cut around the flower shape and attached it to the front of my card using foam pads.  I added another layer on top for the centre.

Thanks for popping by .......enjoy what's left of the weekend, and Happy crafting!

Cheerio until next time ......

DT Inspiration - Hello, Hello!

Hello there friends it's Sarah P here with a little DT Inspiration post.

Last month's DT Inspiration post from me featured the newly released BIG & BOLD 'Happy' stamp set and it occurred to me that I missed the August release last year due to other life commitments! As well as a bundle of other goodies, the August release included a brand new BIG & BOLD set called 'Hello' so I've finally had a play with it!

Here's a few of my examples - all very similar in design but different colour schemes and sentiments. I've also included some of the mini flower stamps from the set to show how useful they can be in creating a background.

I'm hoping Bev will perhaps bring out the matching word dies for 'Hello' as well as 'Happy' ... I hate fuzzy cutting!!!

I hope you like my creations and thanks for calling by the blog today!

Uniko Challenge #52 Winners

Hey!

I'm here today to announce the WINNERS of Challenge #52 Spring, optional twist of EASTER. 

A huge thank you to everyone who played along with this challenge.

First we have our overall WINNER chosen by the Design Team...

#15 Magic Flying Boots

Congratulations Magic Flying Boots

Here's your winner's badge

You have won a £25 eGift Certificate to spend in the Uniko store. Please contact me at bev@uniko.co.uk by 10th May 2019.

We would also love to have you join us as our Guest Designer for our next challenge. If you are interested please contact Jane at jane.taylor52@btinternet.com by 3rd May 2019.

 Next up is the random winner who twisted with us....

#53 Claire

Congratulations Claire!

You have won an in stock £5 clear stamp set from the Uniko store. Please contact me at bev@uniko.co.uk by the 10th May 2019, with your choice of stamp set and your postal address.

Here is your winners badge:

Then we have our randomly selected winner who used Uniko products on their creation...

#19 Radhika

Congratulations Radhika!

You have won an in stock £5 clear stamp set from the Uniko store. Please contact me at bev@uniko.co.uk by 10th May 2019, with your choice of stamp set and your postal address.

Here is your winners badge:

Now for our Top 3 chosen by the DT and in entry order:

#21 Mugdha

#69 Hannelie

#85 Ishani

Congratulations to you all & here is your Top 3 badge:

You have all won 150 loyalty reward points.

Please contact me at bev@uniko.co.uk

Congratulations to ALL the winners & EVERYONE who joined in with the challenge!

The next Uniko Challenge starts on Friday 17th May.

Hope to see you come back and join in with the fun :)

Odd Rule of Composition

Hi it's Lindsey here for some DT inspiration.

I've been looking back at some of the early Uniko stamp sets and I've dusted off the "Delicate Doilies" stamp set.  The set has some wonderfully intricate stamps; it reminds me of the Spirograph toy I had as a child.

I've chosen a small, medium and large stamp.  I nearly always choose 3 images in my designs following the "Odd Rule" of composition.  Ditto, I've used just 3 sequins.

Odd numbers always look better than even numbers as it keeps the eyes moving around the design - if you have even numbers the brain automatically pairs them and then stops looking.  With an odd number we feel compelled to look into a picture trying to seek the missing component and find a balance.  Honest!  Try it and see for yourself.

The sentiment is from the new "Birthday Wishes" stamp set from the February release.

You can find "Decorative Doilies"in the Uniko shop HERE.

Thank you for your visit today.

DT Inspiration - Don't like colouring? ........ no problem!

Happy Easter weekend .....

It's Linda here, with a little DT inspiration for you.
I'm using a couple of my Uniko favourites (I have a few!) ..... the beautiful Pure Florals - Peony clear stamp set and the Broken Lines stencil.

I think we all love floral images and me personally, the bigger the blooms the better!

Now I'm not the best at colouring in my stamped images, I do like to use Distress Inks, I love using my ZIG Markers, and I have dabbled occasionally with watercolours and Copics. Sometimes I get it right, sometimes I don't!
So .... if you tend to stay clear of pretty florals just because colouring in is not really your thing, why not leave those beautiful blooms simply black and white.  Colour in the easy bits, and add a touch of colour to the background like I've done here.

I stamped the large peony onto a piece of white card just with a black ink, and then fussy cut around it

I added a wash of colour to the leaves using ZIG Markers and a waterbrush, and the palest wash of pink to some of the petals, you cn hardly see it's there.

I then used the Broken Lines stencil and one of the Oxide inks to add some detail and colour to the background .....

I added a sentiment, stamping part of it directly over the stenciling and the rest onto a banner which I attached underneath using foam pads

I then attached the bloom onto the card, again with foam pads to add some dimension.

To finish off, I used a glue pen over some of the stenciled lines and then sprinkled over some fine crystal glitter for a touch of sparkle

I love the finished look ..... what do you think?

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your day and have a lovely Easter.

See you again soon ......

Products used:
Stamps: Pure Forals - Peony clear stamp set (Uniko)
Inks: Versafine Clair - Nocturne; Distress Oxide - Spun Sugar; Delicata - Golden Glitz
Other: Broken Lines stencil (Uniko); fine crystal glitter

Uniko Studio DT Inspiration...Easter Bunny Interactive Card

 Hello,

Carol here with a Uniko Studio DT showcase, where I bring out a few of my Uniko Studio products to give them some extra love.   

With Easter only days away, I decided to bring out my favourite-est EVER bunny image - Some Bunny - surround him with Easter Eggs decorated with flowers (Some Bunny), polka dots (Background Blocks: Scattered Polka Dots) and hearts (Celebrate with Cake) - then combine them onto an interactive card!  So. Much. Fun!!

I hope this Some Bunny brings you a smile today!

Wishing you a wonderful week and a blessed, happy Easter!

~Carol

Different shades of Pure Floral Gerbara

Hello Friends Rahmat here. I am up with some inspirations using the Pure Floral Gerbara stamp.

I had been experimenting coloring only one flower from this set, using various mediums and techniques.
Here is a picture of all the different ones I tried.

Today I am sharing 2 of the 3 white flower.

For this one I stamped the flower in versafine watermark ink and then masked and did some sponging around it using the hickory DI. I then did the center with some yellow, green and black markers, and the petals are done with a very light hint of green, pink and grey DIs. I drew a stalk and colored it using markers.
I finished the flower with some wink of stella.

 -------------
This one is my not so favorite one, as you see that I marked it as a cross, but my crafty friends and Instagram friends were not convinced and kept saying it looks good to their eyes, seriously! I told some of them to get their eyes checked out by a doctor 😂
Anyways after listening to them I decided to work on it a bit more and convert it to a card.

I stamped in watermark ink and used a grey DI to watercolor the flower, and I didn't like how it was coming along, so it was put aside even before I finish it..... but I shared it on Instagram and Fb along with other trials I did, and to my surprise this one has caught a lot of attention(I think it was the worst looking one, so stood out!)

 

I stamped the flower in twisted citron DI, and finished the center..... and masked and stamped the leaves and inked around with green and brown DI. Watercolored the leaves, and added some splatters. stamped the sentiment to finish off.

I hope you like what I have shared, though these are my experiments!

          Thank you for stopping by, I really appreciate your kind  feedback :) Have a great day!
                                                                     

It's Stencil Sunday ....... with the Mehndi Mandala

Happy Sunday ......

I hope you're having a nice weekend.
Welcome to another Stencil Sunday ..... a relatively new feature on the Blog where we showcase the fabulous Uniko Stencil designs.

It's Linda here, and I've chosen the beautiful Mehndi Mandala to create some quick and easy cards that you can use for any occasion.  Change up the colour combinations for a different look.

The inks I've used are all Distress Oxides, I love how they work through stencils, they blend perfectly and give such a nice crisp finish.

The mandala is such a great size and perfect for using the full design but ....... why not give it a different look by chopping it in half ...... right across the centre

I inked through the stencil using Worn Lipstick and Picked Raspberry Oxides and then literally cut the mandala in half.  I attached the two halves to my card front leaving a small gap across the centre, which I covered using the sentiment banner.

I added some pretty scalloped edges to the banner and then attached it using foam pads to add dimension.

Use just half of the stencil design ...... I've gone for the top and bottom of my card, but it would also work on each side for a different look.

Distress Oxides again through the stencil ..... love this colour combination! (Cracked Pistachio and Mermaid Lagoon)

I stamped the 'happy' from the Big & Bold Happy stamp set using Mermaid Lagoon Distress Oxide and heat embossed with a sparkly powder.  The matching die cuts it out beautifully .....

I cut it again twice, from plain white card and layered them together to make it more dimensional, and then attached it across the centre of my card using foam pads and stamped the rest of the sentiment underneath.

Diagonals is another great layout ...... one of my favourites in fact.

I've used the stencil with inks on opposite corners and stamped the sentiment in the centre to create the topper

I then used the stencil again, this time on a larger piece of card and with some pretty Glitter paste to give me a little more detail in the background

Not sure the sparkle comes across that well on the pictures ...... trust me though it does give a nice delicate detail to the background.

Happy stenciling!

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your Sunday.

Cheerio until next time ......

Uniko Products used:
Stencils: Mehndi Mandala
Stamps: Big & Bold Happy clear stamp set and matching die; Birthday Wishes clear stamp set