Uniko July Mini Release and Blog Hop

Good morning!

It's release day at Uniko so as usual we are having a BA blog hop and giveaway. All the details can be found on the Uniko blog where you can also find links to the BA's own blogs for you to comment for the chance to win a £20 e-gift card!

So to start here is a card using the BB Rays.

 

Instead of a sunny vibe I've gone cool and Christmassy. The BB Ray was stamped around a central spot in Salty Ocean DI, wiping off the edges to create the fade away effect. The snowflake was cut from the same card as my base and added to the vellum die cut circle and white circle die before adding to the stamping. My sentiment from Stunning Snowflakes was stamped in Versamark and embossed with WOW Sparkling Platinum EP. A few pieces of snowflake confetti add to the wintery feel.

My second card uses the Scattered Polka hearts Stencil and Pawprints Hearts with the addition of the paw print from the Wild stamp set.

I first cut a heart from a panel of white card before dry embossing with the stencil. On a separate smaller panel I traced the heart shape onto it with a pencil before stamping the heart and rainbow of pawprints. When dry, I added it behind the opening and then the sentiment on a matching white strip of card. The finished panel was then popped up on pads over an A6 white base card.

This next card uses the Scattered Polka Hearts stencil, incorporating a couple of the heart stamps from Background Builders Hearts. 

Before embossing the panel with the stencil, this time I brayered on some Salty Ocean DI. A scrap of DP and a thin inked scrap card border separate the top panel with two fussy cut hearts and a simple sentiment. A perfect masculine card for an engagement or anniversary or even a wedding.

My final card uses the new Tropical Leaf 2 stencil and some stamped elements from Paradise and Paradise Leaves together with a sentiment from Wild.

I first stenciled the large leaf with Twisted Citron DOx, then using the mask, added the stamped leaves with Altenew's Tropical Forest ink set. The gaps were in filled freehand with dots of matching ink. My sentiment from Wild was stamped in black and the Wild element was fussy cut from white card and added. Almost a OLC!

So that's all from me but don't forget to leave a comment before you leave for a chance to win that £20 e-gift card! Here are the links for the rest of the team to help you navigate the bog hop.

Anita 

 Bev 

Hannelie

Izzy

Jane

Julie -that's me

Steph

Wiebke

Before you leave don't forget to leave a comment here and happy hopping!

Introducing - Tropical Leaf #2 Stencil

Good morning. It's the second day of introducing the new mini release from Uniko.

Today we are showing the second of the Tropical Leaf stencil series, a huge Monstera leaf. Here's how I used it, combing it with the hibiscus flowers from the Paradise set.

I first taped the stencil down over a panel of white card and stamped the solid flowers through it, adding the stigma and leaves after. I washed and dried the stencil then replaced it and added Versamark with a sponge applicator before heat embossing with clear gloss EP. I was now able to add the background colour without it effecting the stamped elements. For a belt and braces approach I also used the mask which comes with the stencil. If you are very careful, I suppose you could get away with just using the mask.

I wanted to have tropical greenery background so used as election of DOx and DI inks to avoid a flat, solid background.

To make the card, I simply cut down the panel, added it to an A6 white note card, added a pre stamped sentiment from my stash (Beautiful and Bee Happy), with a couple of slivers of gold linen effect card.

So that's all for today, but there's lots more over on the BA's and Uniko blogs.

I'll be back tomorrow with the final introduction.

Uniko's July release in review

Today the Uniko Brand Ambassadors are revisiting the July release to share a few more ideas using some of those stamps and stencils, as well as showing how to incorporate other Uniko sets. There's also a chance to win by commenting along the way.

So this is my first card to inspire you.

For this card I've used Block Party Summer as a background combined with elements from the Paradise stamp set and a sentiment from Simply Said Blocks III.

I played around with a new technique when I first got hold of the stamp that I saw Jennifer McGuire using. I stamped the background with Versamark and heat embossed with white EP on MM paper.

Using some DI inks in Peacock Feathers, Salty Ocean and Mermaid Lagoon, I added colour straight from the pad randomly over the embossing. I then spritzed it with water containing some perfect pearls and set it aside to dry. Once it was really dry, I sandwiched it between a couple of pieces of typing paper and ironed over a towel to remove the embossing. Only use the paper once or you may transfer embossing where you don't want!

The end result left a soft, shimmery panel that is completely flat. I didn't use this panel for the release day as I wasn't sure how to use it but I then picked up on the tropical bloom in the background stamp and used the toucan and foliage from the Paradise set and the tropical flower from Block Party Summer to create the design. These elements I coloured with Copics, fussy cut them and added to a die cut aperture in my now trimmed down panel. A sentiment was stamped in black, trimmed and added to complete the coloured elements. The finished panel was added to a white linen effect base card on pads.

My second card focuses on the BB Grid stamp which I used to create a subtle background for the peonies from Hello Lovely.

To start, I stamped the large spray from Hello Lovely onto a panel of white card and them made a mask for it which I fussy cut. After placing the mask over the stamped image, I stamped the grid over the panel with Versamark ink. I wasn't too bothered about completely covering the stamp with ink as I was aiming for a shabby chic look on the finished panel. I then added white EP, removing where not required with a soft paint brush, and heat embossed. I got slightly carried away with this section and forgot to remove the grid pattern from around where I was going to stamp the greeting!

I then removed the mask and coloured the flowers using coral coloured Zig Markers. Using the plain acetate backing of the BB Grid stamp, I added some Zig marker and added some clean water, then used the acetate to stamp colour over the panel, adding more when required and also to deepen the colour in  certain areas. When satisfied with the coverage I added some splatter in the green and coral over the whole panel. Finally I stamped the greeting, from Wonderful Day.

I used an ancient peach coloured base card which I trimmed to size and added Abandoned Coral DI around the edge before adding my trimmed down panel, leaving a border all around.

My final card features BB Layered Floral and a sentiment from Simply Said III.

Instead of stamping a solid image, I tried a faux layered effect by adding a partial inked flower over the original stamped image and blended it out with a damp paint brush. I rather like the subtle effect this gives you.

I used the reds from Altenew's Red Cosmos and the greens were from Tropical Forest.

Over at The Flower Challenge they want us to use dies along with flowers, so as we don't have a matching die cut, I used a stacked pierced rectangle set from Avery Elle to die cut my finished panel.

I also cut some pink fun foam and mounted two of the layers before adding them back onto a white note card. A sentiment strip stamped in a matching coral pink completes.

To see the full July release, check out the Uniko blog

To see what the other Brand Ambassadors have come up with check out the links below.

Bev
Hannelie

Izzy 

Jane 
Julie -that's me

Rahmat

Steph

Don't forget to leave a comment on all the stops along the hop. Bev will be randomly selecting one lucky comment winner to win a £20 eGift Certificate. Commenting to be able to win will close at Midnight BST my Sunday 22nd August 2021. The winner will be announced on the blog before the end of August.

I'd like to join in over at:-

  

Release Day at Uniko

Good morning. 

It's time for the full release and blog hop at Uniko, so grab a cuppa and settle in.

My first card uses the Doodle Flower set and Squared stencil.

This card started off as a bit of an experiment using alcohol inks on my Gelli plate. You can't take a print directly but have to add a layer of acrylic paint over the top. Check this link on how to do it.

For my panel I used the same purple, deep pink and lime green alcohol inks as in the tutorial and some household emulsion paint that I had under the sink as my craft acrylic had completely dried up from lack of use! 

The flowers from Doodle Flower and BB Doodle Flower, were stamped onto the piece of copy paper I used to dab away the excess once I'd added the stencil, embossed with gold EP and fussy cut before some detail with a couple of Zig Watercolour pens was added.

Likewise, the sentiment was heat embossed with gold EP and sequins added to complete.

My second card featured BB Layered Floral set and my go to layout for using leftover panels.

If you remember this card from Wednesday, you'll recognise the pattern. When I die cut the panel for that card, I had a long thin strip of the stamping left so I turned it into this card. The two narrow pink strips started as a scrap of white card that I dragged a matching pink ink cube down each edge and then trimmed and added to the top white panels. A simple sentiment from the Simply Said Block III stamped in matching ink completes.

The next two cards use the Tropical Leaf stencil, matched with Doodle Flower sentiments.

This card also has a few of fussy cut elements from Block Party Summer and a Toucan from a previously released Paradise set.

On a panel of lime green card. I stenciled the Tropical leaf all over it using Mowed Lawn DI in varying degrees of intensity, cut in half and trimmed down to leave a small border when attached to an A6 white card. 

On a die cut white card panel, I stamped the sentiment then added the other tropical elements and used pads to layer it up over the base.

This second take is the other half of the panel but just a simple gold embossed greeting on dark green and mounted on gold mirror card. Very much a masculine card.

So that's it from me but don't forget to leave a comment for a chance to win the WHOLE July release, as you hop along to the other BAs. You have until midnight BST on Sunday August 1st to comment.

Bev
Hannelie

Izzy 

Jane 
Julie -that's me

Rahmat

Steph

Release Day @ Uniko

Good morning all.

The day has finally arrived when you can get your hands on the latest release from Uniko.

This release will be available to purchase HERE at a NEW time of 9pm GMT tonight.

In time honoured fashion we will be having a blog hop with GIVEAWAYS!

So without further ado here are a few cards made with the July release. Some with a little twist and some showing how you can mix them in with stamps you already have.

Remember the simple lifebuoy card from day 3? Well how about adding in a character to create something different such as this. 

I've use the same anchor stencil background and life buoy but replaced the sentiment with one from Simply Said Sentiments and added this cute character, coloured with Copics and fussy cut.

My second card uses the Giraffe stencil but with a bovine twist!

How about instead of a giraffe you saw the patches as part of a Holstein Friesian cow? Well there are quite a few of them around these parts,  award winning Cheshire cheese is made not far away so plenty of inspiration!

My bovine beauty was made with some of the same die cuts as the giraffe I made yesterday, with a background made from a couple of scraps from the bits box.

I cut an oval from the stencilled panel and added a banner greeting, stamped using the Big n Bold Happy set.

Finally this card uses quite a few different sets, including Paradise, Large Tropical Background, Background Builders Classic and Outlined Sentiments.

This design owes a lot to Jennifer McGuire and my enforced time out earlier in the year. Check her video out here.

The interior panel was stamped with the Large Tropical Background stamp on hot pink card with Versamark and embossed with clear gloss EP, then the sentiment was added with black ink and coloured with a fine liner. I attached the triangular flaps as per the video and added a backing panel in the same pink.

My band was made from a strip of white paper stamped with the 'stave' stamp from the Background Builders Classic set and some vellum. The roundel includes various elements from the Paradise set, coloured with Copics and fussy cut. The small sentiment is also from the Paradise set.

So that's it from me for this release, what do you think, have we inspired you?

Here are all the stamp sets and stencils that are released today at 9pm GMT.

STAMP SETS

STENCILS

as well as the re-released Nautical Treasures stamp set.

All details can be found on the Uniko website.

Now it's time for a blog hop and GIVEAWAY!!!

To be in the chance of winning The ENTIRE July 2019 Release! (5 clear stamp sets, 1 previously released clear stamp sets and 5 stencil designs). Simply comment along the blog hop, it's as easy as that! You have until Midnight 3rd August 2019. Winner will be announced a few days after. 

So check out the rest of the DT and our talented GD Karen Baker for a chance to win.

Bev

Carol

Izzy

Jane

Julie - that'll be me

Linda

Rahmat

Sarah G

Sarah P

Wiebke

Happy Hopping!

I'm joining in over at:-

Summer colours

Introducing- Large Tropical Background

Good morning.

It's day 2 of the July release at Uniko and today we introduce the large tropical background stamp.

I think this will be a very useful addition to anyone's stash, complementing the previously released Paradise and Paradise Leaves sets, as well as a fab background. In my example I've only used a small portion of the panel I made and I made a few others with this stamp too!

The panel under the frame was made by creating an alcohol background on Yupo paper and the Tim Holtz Alcohol lift pad and refill. There is also a little bit of gold from some foil I added for a little extra glamour, but I think I left the ink too long and it wasn't wet enough to get good coverage.

It was my second attempt at using the ink lift pad and I'm still not completely happy with my technique. To get more definition on the foliage, I went back to the outlined fronds and removed more ink with a fine brush and a spot of the re-inker. 

My Hibiscus flower was stamped alongside a couple of leaves from the Paradise set and coloured with Copics before fussy cutting and arranging them in the corner of my die cut frame. Aloha was stamped in black on a scrap of matching card and slipped under the flower. 

I cut my alcohol panel in half and framed it with the die cut. I'll still have the other half to use later!

We are joined for this release by the talented Karen Baker  as well as the rest of the DT.

Bev

Carol

Izzy

Jane

Julie - that'll be me

Linda

Sarah G

Sarah P

Wiebke

Check out what great ideas they've come up with and come back tomorrow for some more fab new release inspiration.

Joining in over at:-

My choice Die cut frame, Copic colouring and fussy cutting