Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Growing in Unity (Day #2) - Stamping for a Subtle Touch

Hello and welcome to Day 2 of my week as a GIU girl! Today, I wanted to demonstrate that even a subtle stamp can pack a punch. Since I have two young girls who love to receive little gifts, I chose to "pretty up" some organza bags (purchased on EBay). Before stamping the bag, I simply slid a scrap piece of cardstock in the bag to prevent the ink from bleeding through.


As an entomologist, I'm a little partial towards insect stamps. :) The bag on the left uses the butterfly from Blossom Soup and Love Truly {Through Time} while the one on the right uses Flight of Courage. I liked how the black ink stood out against the white organza.

I was curious to see if I could add a little bit of color - and so I did, using my Spectrum Noir markers and a little bit of glitter (bag on left uses A Floral Hello while the bag on the right uses Happy Birthday).

However, my favorite bags were those with bold designs (I liked the butterfly best!), featuring The Best Love Story {March 2013 Sentiment Kit} and Written in the Wings.

Well, I couldn't let you go without showing a few cards, too - and I wanted to showcase two more Suzi Blu stamps - here's GiGi Party, based on the sketch from My Favorite Things (MFTWSC174).

I didn't have room for all of Gigi's body, so I just used the head and popped a pompom on the tip of the party hat. Some of you may recognize that vintage Imaginisce birthday paper...


And don't forget to participate in this month's Inspiration challenge! There are only a few days left before the next challenge is up. I used the card sketch for Suzi Blu's adorable kitty.


I'm actually a "big dog" person, but I really love Pooey Love - he's got sass! I combined his image with one of my favorite sentiments from Hugs and Kitties.


I mean, seriously - how perfect is that sentiment, "you're the cat's meow"! I love it!

I'm not sure which version I like better...but I'm partial towards shiny objects like sequins... :) Another freebie from Unity, don't you love those free gifts? I do!


But I think I might like this tag best, with the fun patterned papers (part of a Unity "free gift").

Thank you for joining me for Day 2 of my GIU week! I'll see you here again tomorrow! Happy crafting!

Monday, May 5, 2014

My "Growing in Unity" Week (Day #1) - Fun with Paper Clay

Good morning, friends of Unity Stamp Company! I'm honored to be the GIU Girl, for my first time ever - for those unfamiliar with GIU, we get to share our projects throughout the week and while readers have a chance to win two free itty-bitties by leaving comments for each day. Unity Stamp Company has hundreds of wonderful and adorable Itty-Bitties (you can check them out here), so it would be hard to just pick two!

Last week's GIU girl was the phenomenal Heather Hoffman, who provided a week of incredible water coloring. She's an amazing artist, so it's impossible to follow that act! Instead, I just wanted to remind you how versatile Unity stamps are, and that you don't just have to stamp on paper or canvas or paper to have some fun. :)
Today, I'm going to show you how easy it is to make simple crafts with paperclay and Unity stamps. You can purchase this paperclay (Creative Paperclay) at Joann's or Michaels for $10 (before coupon discount), but if you don't live near a crafts store, you can order it at Amazon here. Paperclay is very light and perhaps best of all, it air-dries within a few days - you just need some patience. After your items are dry, you can sand them, paint them, or use them as they are.


The process is simple. You simply roll it out to about 5 mm thick (if it's too thin, it will start to crack), stamp what you want, and then use a cookie cutter to cut it out. You don't have to, but I chose to ink my stamp before I stamped the paperclay, just to help define the impression.

Here are some paperclay ornaments I made, using the Gossip, Hot-Flashes & Crazy kit. I glued two strong magnets to the back (E6000 adhesive) and now they are "fridge-ready".

Here is another example of a magnet stamped with Beauty of Dreams - I subtly colored it with some green and silver gelatos (I was going for a "moss-covered" look).

For this ornament, I added an eyelet screw while it was "fresh" and later threaded some ribbon for decoration. This was colored with Spectrum Noir markers (thin black Sharpie for the "Mother Teresa" though). The stamp is called Small Things, Great Love. I sealed this with a light coat of Mod Podge.

I made door hanger ornament for my little girls... I punched the holes out with a drinking straw (while the paperclay was fresh) and threaded knotted ribbon through it to hang. This sentiment is from the You Will Shine kit.

This ornament was a little difficult to stamp, just because it was larger than the others. Because I have zero confidence in my painting abilities, I colored this with markers (Spectrum Noir) and sealed it with Mod Podge.

So, as you can see, you make make many different projects from paperclay. I purchased a one-lb package and was able to make all of this - plus more (not shown) - AND one of my girls got some pieces to make her own creations (see, it can help you keep the kids busy so YOU can craft!). When the time gets closer, I'd like to make some Christmas ornaments with this material. :)

I'm almost done! I simply couldn't leave you without a card or two! So, before I leave you today, I wanted to mention that Suzi Blu and her wonderful stamps are BACK at Unity. I had actually received Chickadee & Me in a grab bag a few weeks back and thought it was a great time to play with it. In fact, I had so much fun, I made two variations based on the same sketch (Freshly Made Sketch 134).
This card uses the complete image (angel), whereas the one below, it looks just as sweet without the wings. 

Some of you may recognize that gorgeous doily stamp, Half of Her Doily. That image really *pops* when it's embossed (bottom card). These images are colored with both Copic and Spectrum Noir markers.

Thanks for visiting my blog today and hope to see you here tomorrow again. Don't forget to leave a comment for your chance to win two free itty-bitties! I'll pick and announce the winner next Monday.

Friday, May 2, 2014

Weird, Crazy Weather and FWF #17

It's hard to believe we're almost one-third of the way through 2014! And yet, here we are, with week #17 of Unity's Friends with Flair Fridays. :) I hope everyone's week has been a good one!
 
The Santa Ana winds have been blowing like crazy this week and to top it all off, we're supposed to hit 98 degrees today. It's just so bizarre, considering California has had a really warm winter while everyone east of the Rockies seems to have had a terribly long and cold winter.
 
Speaking of hot stuff, it was DaddyDude's birthday earlier this week. I didn't want to make an average Joe-Schmo kind of card for him, so I dabbled with a three different Unity kits to make it a bit more amusing...
 
...and based it on Sunday Stamps' Sketch #74.
  
 
I have enough paper to last me for the next 10 years, so I decided to use some old Basic Grey papers and had some more fun with my Stamp-Ma-Jig and Everything Love Kit (and Party All Day Kit - love this one for the mix of birthday sentiments - used this one on the front and inside of the card).

 
And finished with some cute taters on the inside (from Pun Potato, Fry {and Beans}. :)
 
Don't forget to check out Unity's awesome weekend sale. Yeah, yeah, I know - every weekend, it's another great sale. Yes, it is! I have to admit, though... I feel much less guilty about my Unity rubber stamp collection (no small potatoes there) than my paper stash. At least rubber stamps can be used over and over again. :)
 
Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Thanks for visiting my blog!
 

Thursday, April 24, 2014

FWF #16 - The Winding Down (of the School Year) Begins :)


Hi, folks! It's Friday and that means it's time for Unity's Friends with Flair posting! The end of the school year is drawing near - the school's Joggers' Club ended this week (Yay! No more rushing out of the house every Tuesday and Thursday!) and the kids begin "testing" today on Friday. California is having an academic overhaul so this year is considered "practice" and doesn't count at all.

I had a little bit of time over the week and made a birthday card for one of Mika's friends (an 11-year old fashionista), using Mojo Monday's Sketch #341.
 

Papers were all from "My Mind's Eye" and yes, I really love my stamp-a-ma-jig! I used the following Unity kits: Everything Wonderful and Cake Wishes for the inside sentiment.

I've given up trying to shop for the girls' friends - kids these days seem... picky and particular. So, I always opt for the safe bet - gift cards! Hey, who remembers when shopping at Target wasn't considered "cool"? I do! My how things can change over time...

Thanks for visiting and hope everyone has a lovely weekend! Don't forget to visit Unity Stamp Co this weekend and shop - every purchase this weekend gets a free Unity koozie! :)

Friday, April 18, 2014

Why Gator Stamps are Handy To Have - FWF #15


For those of you with kids who have played rec sports, you know how much the kids look forward to the post-game snacks. In fact, there are some children who only come to the games FOR these snacks (I kid you not!). So, in my opinion, if you're going to bring snacks, you might as well make them as cute as possible, right? This is where Unity Stamps come in. :) After all, this is Friday's Friends with Flair!

 Marika's on the Gators this year and I found myself thinking, "if only I had an alligator stamp..." and then *lightbulb moment* - I realized I did! Here is Unity's "Later Alligator" stamp kit to the rescue!


I also wanted something motivational on it, so I added the banner and sentiment from the You Did It Itty-Bitty. And here's another bit of honesty - I put each child's name on the bag because it gets REALLY OLD to be asking at the end, "who didn't get a snack???" 


With a little bit of color (Spectrum Noir & Copic markers), voila! I think this was a pretty cute snack bag! And what was in it, you ask? A juice box, cheezits, fruit snacks, and of course, since Easter is on Sunday... an Easter egg with some chocolate eggs. :)

I hope everyone has a Happy Easter! Thank you for visiting my blog! Be sure to check out the weekend promo at Unity Stamp Co! :)

P.S. And yes, the Gators beat the ducks, 4-2.

P.P.S. In case you didn't already guess - that's Marika pitching. Yes, that's what fast-pitch softball looks like. Completely unnatural! I love how fierce she looks, though. :)


Friday, April 11, 2014

Back Safe and Sound - FWF #14

Hey, it's Friday again and that means it's time for another episode of Friends with Flair with Unity Stamps! They're having a garage sale right now, so might want to check it out...it never hurts to look, right? ;)

It's felt like a long week, because DaddyDude was in Tennessee for a work conference and just returned this afternoon. My hat is off to those single mothers out there - how do they do it? They rock! 

I am hoping to get a solid, uninterrupted night of sleep tonight since the girls wanted to sleep with me (during his absence) in the big bed. You'd think there would be plenty of room to keep everybody happy (okay, so there were also four stuffed bears in there, too, but they hardly complain) but NOOOOO... at least a couple of times during the night somebody yelled out when they got kicked (it certainly didn't help that somebody likes to sleep upside down - and it wasn't me!). *sigh*

Once DaddyDude was back, I finally got a chance to craft. I've been assigned the task of creating a thank you card for the kind custodian who helps to set up the cones and music for their Joggers' Club every Tuesday and Thursday morning (DaddyDude and I help the teachers run it). The kids get a paw print stamp (school mascot = the Jaguars) for every lap they run and for every eight laps, they earn a paw print token for a necklace. It's been a long year (it's hard enough to get everybody to school on time, right? Try getting there 15 minutes earlier than that!) and now there are only four more sessions. Whew! I can't wait!

So, I made three cards, trying to use their school colors (yellow/brown) and incorporating paw prints to represent the running stamp. I need your help to select which one to give him! Which do you like best?

I used one of my favorite Unity stamps (from the Everything Wonderful kit - but the frame for card #2 is from Everything More) on each one (the paw print is from Hero Arts) and the patterned paper is all from My Mind's Eye...

 
Card #1 is based on Deconstructed Sketch 147.


Card #2 is based on Sunday Stamps Sketch #52.

And finally... card #3 is based on Sweet Sunday Sketch #213.



So, please leave a comment below and let me know which card you like best! I wish you all a wonderful weekend and leave you with a picture of our favorite "lap" dog (not!). Thanks for visiting my blog!

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Another Birthday and FWF #13


Today, my DD is turning 11. WOW! Where does the time go? I used Sketch #339 from Mojo Monday to create her birthday card.

(patterned papers by MME, stamps by Unity Stamp Co, embellishments were all part of "free gift with purchase" from Unity - love that!!!)