Introducing... Christmas Sentiments

Hello & Happy Thursday! 

I am so glad you come back today as we continue the September / October 2021 Release product introductions. Today myself and my awesome Brand Ambassadors have another inspiring blog hop and we are introducing Christmas Sentiments. 

I am delighted to be adding to these sentiments in this fresh font to the Uniko festive line up. The ways the Brand Ambassadors have used these are genius and inspiring, so be sure to hop along with us.

All the products will be available for purchase on Sunday 3rd October at 9am BST. 

Okay, lets get to the good stuff...

Bev

Hannelie

Izzy 

Jane 

Julie

Rahmat

Steph

 

 

Wiebke 

Again, WOW! 

I am again, simply blown away by all the inspiration. I love seeing how everyone used the stamps in this set. 

Be sure to pop back tomorrow for the next of the product introductions.

Crafty Hugs

 

Introducing... Background Builders: Winter Wonderland

Hello & Happy Wednesday! 

I am so glad you have popped by today as it is the first of the September / October 2021 Release product introductions. Today myself and my awesome Brand Ambassadors have an inspiring blog hop and we are introducing Background Builders: Winter Wonderland.

I am delighted to be adding to this growing series of Background Builders and especially the festive ones. The ways the Brand Ambassadors have used these are genius and inspiring, so be sure to hop along with us.

All the products will be available for purchase on Sunday 3rd October at 9am BST. 

Okay, lets get to the good stuff...

Bev

Hannelie

Izzy 

Jane 

Julie

Rahmat

Steph

Wiebke 

WOW! 

I don't know about you, but I am simply blown away by all the inspiration. I love seeing how everyone used the stamps in this set. 

Be sure to pop back tomorrow for the next of the product introductions.

Crafty Hugs

 

September/October 2021 Release Sneak Peeks!

 Hello!

FINALLY! After a few hiccups along the way, the day is here and I can officially kick off the countdown to the September / October 2021 Release with some sneak peeks! 

Though, you might have caught some HERE on the blog yesterday and on my Instagram HERE. Be sure to check the fun Funky Fossil and Uniko Collaboration Instahop out for your chance to win! 

So let's have a peek at what is to come this week...

Firstly I have a sneak at a new addition to a popular series of stamps and one with a Scandinavian / Nordic feel to it. 

Do I spy some new sentiments in my current favourite font?! 

This looks intriguing! Honestly this is SO much fun 🤩 I had a blast designing this set and the concept to work with other festive sentiments and images that I have already released. Then it's been just as fun creating with it 😉 

Lastly, but by no means least a new addition to the stencil line up...

Just a little release this time, but one that I think packs a punch and fits in well with our festive range of products. 

What do you think? What are you most looking forward to seeing more of? I can't wait for you to see what the Brand Ambassadors have been creating!

We have our first product introduction tomorrow, so be sure to pop back and hop along with us. Until then, thank you for stopping by.

Crafty Hugs

 

Special Event - Funky Fossil and Uniko Collaboration Instahop!

Hello & Happy Monday!

Today sees the beginning of an amazing and inspirational Instahop collaboration between Funky Fossil and Uniko. 

Members from both teams are sharing Christmas inspiration using products from both companies and the cards created with these products combined are not to be missed.

The purpose of the hop is simply to show how kindness in the crafting communities work. How two small businesses can work together to support each other and promote each others products without competition and rivalry. 

PLUS we all love a giveaway?! 

Funky Fossil and Uniko will each be giving a £15.00 credit to their respective stores for ONE lucky winner.

All you need to do is head on over to @unikoltd on Instagram

1. Like, follow & comment on each of the hop participants

2. Tag some friends for extra entries - one per comment please.

A random draw of all those who comment will take place at 12.00pm UK time on 11th October and the winner announced shortly after on each company's Instagram story.

If you get lost you can find the complete list @unikoltd or @funkyfossildesigns Instagram accounts.

The prize opportunity is open to everyone. Unfollowers/giveaway accounts do not qualify. As per Instagram rules we must mention that this is in no way sponsored, administered or associated with Instagram or Facebook. By entering entrants confirm that they are 13+ years of age, release Instagram or Facebook of responsibility and agree to their terms of use.

That's all the formal details about the Instahop, but as I am sharing FOUR projects combining Uniko and Funky Fossil products, I thought I'd share them here too with a bit more detail 😊 AND you will get some sneaky previews of some Brand NEW Uniko products being released on Sunday! 

How cute is this polar bear? This bear is from Funky Fossils Nordic Noel clear stamp set designed by Donna Gray. Here I have paired it with a soon to be released stencil and sentiment from Uniko. I used some Gina K Glitz Glitter Gel through the stencil. And how about this sentiment? Do you love this font as much as me?! Keep your eyes peeled for more details on these later this week on the blog 😉 

It seems like Funky Fossil brings out the cuter side in me! For this next card I used the birds from the Nordic Noel set. They were tweeting at me to use them to hold this string of Christmas lights. I used Nuvo Drops to colour the lights. 

The sentiment is from Nordic Noel and I've used some new tiny Uniko snowflakes to embellish the card, fill some white space and balance the design.

Next up is a HUGE peek at something else new coming this week...

How fun is this tree? The elements used to build it is from a new, soon to be released Uniko clear stamp set. It gives just a tiny peek at what this clear stamp set contains and how fun it is! 

For the background I used a Funky Fossil stencil, Scandi Sweater, it creates a lovely Scandinavian feel to this card. I can't wait to show you more using this stamp set.

Lastly for today I have one more clean and simple Christmas card...

For this card I combined another of the stamps from the set featured above to create this background. I've then embellished with the trio of Christmas trees and sentiment from Nordic Noel.

That's all from me today, be sure to hop on over to the Uniko Instagram HERE to join in and comment along the hop.

I do hope you will keep checking back on the blog here this week, so much more fun planned! 

Crafty Hugs

 

Brand Ambassador Inspiration, Spinning Snowflake

 Good morning folks, Julie here with a bit of brand Ambassador inspiration. Today I'm embracing my inner Jennifer McGuire with a take on a spinning card I saw her make on You Tube. The snowflake on this fun card spins! So grab a cuppa and settle down, there are lots of photos and instructions to follow plus a very short video, if it works!

To start, I took the Sparkling Snowflake Designer Die and cut out one snowflake from holographic card, then, using a small circle die, cut an aperture in the middle.

 

The size of the aperture needs to be just slightly larger than a flat sided button. It has to be flat and not domed to allow the spinning action.

On a panel of blue card, slightly smaller than an A6 card base, I inked through the Let It Snow stencil with Chipped Sapphire DOx. This gives a subtle background for the star of the show! This was then glued onto an A6 white base card, leaving a white edge showing.

The greeting in the center of the snowflake is made up from sentiments from Doodle Flowers and a new Christmas sentiment set coming soon! Using some of the same blue cardstock, I die cut a slightly larger circle than the opening and heat embossed the sentiment with white EP. This was then mounted onto a circle of white card, I found in my stash!

To attach the snowflake to the spinning mechanism is so easy. Place the snowflake onto the inked panel, a little bit of low tack tape keeps the die cut in place, and carefully glue the button of your choice into the center, careful not to get glue on the snowflake. 

Once the glue on the button is completely dry add some to the top, again keeping it away from the snowflake, and add the sentiment.

Once the glue is dry the snowflake can spin to it's heart content!

Take a look.

So that's that, hope it encourages you to have a go, it's really simple but looks fab and it's fun!

Keep safe and keep crafting, 'til next time.

Uniko Challenge #67 - Anything Goes + optional twist Autumn Colours

 Hello & Happy Friday!

Welcome to the September/October 2021 Uniko Challenge.

We have the super simple theme of Anything Goes, with an Optional Twist of using Autumn Colours.

For this challenge we are delighted to welcome Nonni as our Guest Designer.  

How beautiful do the Uniko butterflies look in their glorious autumnal colours! I know you'll want to pop over to Nonni's blog to let her what an awesome design she's created - HERE.

The Uniko Brand Ambassadors have also been busy creating cards to inspire you to play along. Let's see how they've interpreted the theme.

Bev

Hannelie

Izzy

Jane 

Julie

Steph

Are you ready to play?

Well, just in case you need some more incentive to play along with the challenge here are the details of the prizes.

Due to the current chaos around the world and here in the UK, I have temporarily reduced the value of the prizes. This is so that I can keep my small business afloat during these uncertain times. I hope you understand and will still join in on the fun.

Thank you for your continued support & joining in with the fun at Uniko.

  

THE PRIZES

• Main Winner Chosen By the DT - £15 eGift Certificate
• Random Twist Winner - £5 eGift Certificate
• Random Uniko Stamps Winner - £5 eGift Certificate
• Top 3 Chosen By DT - 150 Loyalty Reward Points

There is plenty of time to join and play along with this challenge. 

The deadline for submission is midnight (GMT) on Friday 22nd October 2021.

Crafty Hugs,

 

Throwback Thursday and Last Chance!

 Hello & Happy Thursday! 

Today I am doing a little reminiscing with a throwback Thursday. 

Unfortunately, the time has come to say farewell to a couple of clear stamp sets. I never find this easy and it really does take me a while to let them go. BUT, as much as I do love these sets, trends change, just like the seasons AND there is always so much newness around the corner.

So what are we saying farewell to? 

Decorative Doilies - The Hands Of Time

Firstly it is with a heavy heart we are saying farewell to Decorative Doilies - The Hands Of Time. This stamp set holds a special place in my heart. I originally designed elements of this set at college while studying for my degree in Textiles and Surface Design. 

This set is closely connected to the two clear stamps I launched Uniko with back in February 2012, Today, Tomorrow and Always Time and Today, Tomorrow and Always Extra Time. These sets were designed for my final major project and I poured hours of research, drawing and designing into them as I learned Adobe Illustrator. 

Here are a couple of my favourite cards made using this set. You can see more on Pinterest HERE.

And for old times sake, I have a fresh card to share with you using this set...

Yep, I am still on that slimline card band wagon! However, I was inspired by the new sketch over at CAS Colours & Sketches seen HERE and below for the layout of my card. They have also requested it to be slimline.

The sketch was perfect for using lots of the doilies from the set. The hardest part was selecting which largest doily to showcase as the main feature. 

I knew I wanted this card to be super colourful, so I opted for this one as I love colouring it in rainbow! I love how it turned out. I used a selection of Stampin' Up! markers to colour the doily and then I used some of the coordinating inks to stamp the backdrop of doilies. I used all but two doilies for this card. 

The sentiment is from Simply Said Blocks III and I added some enamel gems to add the final touches. I know this won't be the last time I ink up these stamps. They will forever remain a firm favourite. Especially when it comes to quick sparkling Christmas cards. However, it will probably be the last card I make and share here on the blog using it.

The next stamp set we are bidding farewell to is...

Background Builders - Vines 

This is another stamp set from the early years of Uniko, April 2014 to be exact! Here are a few of my favourites using this set. And you can see more HERE on Pinterest.

And a close up of a different card 

And again, for old times sake, a new one...

It's funny how you don't use a stamp set or product for a long time, but when you finally ink it up and start creating a whole host of ideas come to mind! 

For this card I selected one of the long leafy stamps to create this garland across my card. I then stamped a variety of the tiny flowers in a selection of inks. I tried to choose colours with an autumn feel, but it came out pretty summery.

You might recognise some of the flower designs from the Flower Power series. Don't worry those aren't retiring just yet, they'll be about for a while longer. The sentiment I have used is from Floral Vines.

So that's it, my Throwback Thursday and a farewell to these two stamp sets. It's been lovely looking back and I know for sure these early stamp sets will always have a special place in my heart and crafting stash. 

There are still some available on the website HERE at bargain prices, waiting for a loving inky home.  Once they are gone the product will be removed from the website 😢 

That's all from me today.

Crafty Hugs