Just What I Needed

Finished another watercolor card l started last week using Unity’s May 2020, Beginning of Anything KOM. Again, I had stamped the image on watercolor paper using Antique Linen Distress ink. This time I decided to pair it with papers from Dress My Craft’s Whimsical Hues. 

My daffodils are blooming and our flowering fruit trees are giving off beautiful blossoms right now. However, I know much of the US has had a cold wintry snowy month, so far, so I thought I’d share a bit of my early “Spring”. A sign of what’s to come.

When I finished painting the tulips, I fussy cut them out. I used 2 papers from the pack to back the image. I embossed a sentiment from Beauty Comes From Being Yourself KOM, from October 2015. The sentiment applies to several things going on in my life, including the weather!

To embellish this simple card, I used sticky strips of green, red enamel dots and pretty ribbon.

Well, that’s it for today. Take heart, Spring is coming! Till next time, happy crafting!

Your Heart and My Heart Tag

 Started this one before my Growing in Unity week and finally finished it. Well, I used quite a few products on this one! First off, the Unity kits used were: Vibes, Be My Bird, the 4/17 KOM, Sentimental Journey, the 5/16 SMAK, Hello It’s Me, Your Heart and My Heart, and, finally, Anything is Possible from 1/21 Whit Kit. The media used were: acrylic paints, Primary Elements pigments, Lindy’s Stamp Gang Magical pigments, bird ephemera, Prima Metallics watercolors, Gansai Tambi watercolors, Stazon inks, Stabilo black pencil, texture paste, Nuvo Mousse, gel pens, white Posca pen, TCW stencil, Brutus Monroe stencil, brayer, spatula, and ribbons.

Since it was a while ago, I can recall I started by brayering on mostly white and red acrylics, with a little blue added in, onto a tag. Then adding the pigment powders in red/magenta/purple to give it depth of color and shimmer. Once dried, I mixed blue acrylic into texture paste and added large hearts to the tag. I then used a sponge with red paint to add visual texture with a TCW stencil. I used the pencil to highlight both. I finally added stamped bricks and painted them with the acrylics.

I took another sheet of mixed media paper and used the pigment powders to create a shimmery red paper. I then stamped all the hearts on it and fussy cut them out. I used the watercolors to add color dimension to the hearts and the white Posca pen on the large heart.

I used plain matching blue paper for the sentiment and a silvery pen to outline the letters. I fussy cut the birds and added metallic coloring, and used foam dots to adhere it to the large heart.

So, there were plenty of missteps in here, which, luckily, with mixed media can be somewhat corrected. But I really like how this one turned out... it’s dramatic, love the color scheme, and totally different from other tags I’ve created. 

Well, that’s it, on this one. Be back again today, on another watercolored card. Happy crafting!

Growing in Unity - Final Day

Can’t believe it’s finally here. I had so much fun creating new cards this week! However, I am getting tired, so, I’ll be taking a bit of a break. Remember to comment on each blog this week for a chance at winning some Unity stamps! 

I started this card by watercoloring the image from Abundant Blessings, after doing my usual light ink on watercolor paper.

Once dried, I turned to my Prismacolor pencils and Staedtler pens to add more vibrant colors, still keeping to rust colored theme. I also used my Posca pen. I decided to try to make and offset a frame. After various attempts at paper alternatives, I turned to Washi tape. 

I pulled out my beautiful Stamperia Time is an Illusion paper that matched beautifully with the colors I used. I then found a scrap patterned paper from Graphic 45 (this week has been useful using up some paper scraps 😀), I could use for backing the various pieces. 

I found a sentiment that matched my mood today from a SMAK kit, Let Life Unfold from 9/18. I pulled out another white scrap paper and painted it using the same tones in the painting. I pulled out some other random Unity stamps and lightly stamped the paper. I then stamped the sentiment in both Speckled Egg and Mermaid Lagoon Oxide inks and embossed it using Speckled Egg embossing powder.

I used a cream colored A7 sized card base, assembled the pieces, added enamel dots and string, and called the card done.

This one turned out darker than my others, but I think it’s a reflection on the long week... after all..it’s Friday! Well, thank you for stopping by and for all the lovely complements. I so appreciate the feedback! Till next time, happy crafting!

Growing in Unity - Day 4

Welcome back to another GIU day. Today, I needed to take a break from intricate watercoloring, because I took advantage of a notice I got this morning to get my first Covid 19 vaccine in a fairground 15 minutes away. I just couldn’t pass it up! So I cancelled my other appointment and spent early afternoon there! 

So today, I am sharing the Valentine I’ve yet to give my 2 year old grandson! I was inspired by several of my talented friends in the Friends of Unity blogging group. I used the cute bunny from Unity’s sentiment kit, Bunny - Keep You Forever, from March 2017. I also used a variety of papers on this card, including magazine paper. 

I stamped and embossed the image twice on mint and pink patterned magazine paper. I then fussy cut out all the pieces, glued pink elements on and then used a knife to cut out middle spaces.

I took Bristol paper and the cute image from Heart Strings and embossed the image. I watercolored the hearts with coordinating colors and added a light paint spatter. I die cut the paper and affixed the bunny.

I then found 2 sheets of patterned paper for the background and cut them down. I found fussy ribbon and cut out a sentiment and added both at the top of the card. Finally, I found some matching heart embellishments to finish the card.

Hope you didn’t mind my sharing about the vaccine, but the good news is they are coming your way, and I can attest to a pretty efficient process already! So, take heart!

Hope you can make it back tomorrow for my last day! Till then, happy crafting!

Growing in Unity - Day 3

Wow, half way mark in my GIU week! Remember to comment on each day for a chance at winning Unity stamps!

Today, I wanted to create a card for a very old acquaintance that lives across the country. So, I pulled out 2 kits for this one. I used the image from Unity’s sentiment kit,  ...aging gorgeously. However, I chose the sentiment from Simply Blessed.

I again used my watercolor paper and the Distress ink I’d been using all week. This time I used color inspiration and paper from Mintay, the Homemade collection. As you can tell, besides having a beloved Unity stamp collection, I also have a fetish for beautiful paper!

So, I chose peaches and cool browns for this image. After painting it, I cut it down and backed it with a cool brown. I used on A6 card size on this one as well. I cut down a sheet of the Mintay paper and backed that as well with the brown paper. I found a peach toned scrap paper and used Brown Nuvo embossing powder for the sentiment.

To complete the card, I added soft peach and white gold flecked Prima crystals and a peach ribbon. I will be adding more Mintay paper and another Unity sentiment to the inside of the card before it’s done. But, all in all, I think it turned out pretty nice.

I hope you are enjoying my endeavors this week. Thanks for stopping by. If you are interested in my style, add your email address for posts to be mailed to you, or just click follow. Until tomorrow, happy crafting!

Growing in Unity - Day 2

Welcome back to another day of my GIU week. Well, somehow, not sure about you, but my Whit Kits have been piling up unused. So, today I have used another stamp set from a Whit Kit, July’s Friends are like Flowers. Love this stamp set... so pretty. 

So, again I stamped the image onto watercolor paper again using Distress Antique Linen ink. This time I decided to match the colors with a pretty Lemoncraft paper pad, called Silence, by using combinations of blue, green and a cool red.

After I finished painting, I pulled out a WinsorNewton White Gouache, and tried to lighten up some areas. I then die cut a frame for the watercolored image out of the papers. I painted a pink wash into the background and then spattered blue/green and red watercolors, the white gouache and silver Perfect Pearls over the image.

I ended up using an A6 size card base, added a ribbon, and used another paper from the pad as a background. I stamped the sentiment and cut it in half, backing the 2 pieces with coordinating scrap paper. I then added a butterfly embellishment, fussy cut from the pad, and Nuvo drops again. 

My watercolor skills are definitely still a work in progress, but I’m trying hard to love myself in spite of it! Hope you do the same and that you like this card. Come back and visit tomorrow please, for Day 3 of my week! Till then, happy crafting!

 

Growing in Unity - Day 1

Hi... I’m so lucky and excited to have had my name drawn for a 2021 Growing In Unity spot! And, today, is the start of my week. I hope you enjoy my efforts.

The first card I have for you was stamped out using the image stamp from Unity’s Anything is Possible Whit kit. I used Distress Antique Linen ink on watercolor paper. Using my Schmincke watercolors, I started painting the image in rusty browns and blue green. 

Halfway thru painting the image, I found this older pad from Prima Mktg., that I could use for background paper and tried to follow the color scheme used in the pad. To add touches of white, I used my Posca pen to add highlights and white touches to the flowers and a brown pen for shadowing. I embossed the sentiment on another paper from the kit using Ranger Brown powder. I ended up backing the image and sentiment with a darker scrap paper I found.

To complete the card, I added Nuvo drops in matching colors. 

Hope you like this fun collage type card. Over the weekend, I was able to secure a spot next Saturday, the 20th, for my first vaccine! (Yes, I’m just a feather over 65... just one!) They are opening up the Oakland Coliseum this week for mass inoculations. And this card, with the Eiffel Tower in it and houses reminding me of France, just reminds me things are changing for the better, with the potential in the future to travel again. 

Thanks for stopping by, see you tomorrow! Happy crafting, till then!

Friends of Unity Blog Hop

Welcome back to another Friends of Unity Blog Hop! February’s theme Is Paper Piecing, woohoo! This month, I decided to make Valentine cards for special friends of mine that live 3000 miles away. We’ve been close friends since grade school. Of course, we do love our fun lively chats over drinks, hence the kits selected!

As always there will be giveaways, just comment on each blog in the hop for a chance at winning some Unity goodies! And I hope you give some extra love to our new bloggers, Colleen and Rachel!!

For my first card, I used Unity’s Give Love - Laugh Lots Kit. I stamped the image on drawing paper using Antique Linen Distress ink and used Prismacolor pencils to color in the skin areas and the drink. I used My Mind’s Eye’s Gal Meets Glam paper pad to paper piece her outfit, as the background, and for all embellishments on the card. I used Prismacolor pencils to color all skin areas and the glass in the image. I used heart and wreath die cuts and dots for embellishments. I also stamped, fussy cut and painted another butterfly to layer onto the hat. I added a sentiment from the kit and a small Gina K sentiment to complete the card. Inside I’ll add the Valentine’s sentiment.

The second card started with Simple Stories Simple Vintage My Valentine paper pad and Unity’s Just a Glass kit. This time I stamped the image, again using Antique Linen Distress ink, onto Spectrum Noir watercolor paper. I used my Schmincke’s watercolors on the, wine glass, face and hair. For further definition, I also used pencils and pens. Again, I used the paper pad to create the non-skin and hair components by stamping onto the papers and fussy cutting out the components. I also fussy cut out a rose, the heart image with children and the Be Mine sentiment from pad. I embossed one of the sentiments from the kit using Red Carnation powder. I created a blue card base and rounded the corners. I used a frame die with red paper to accentuate the girl. I then cut down a background paper, added the framed image, die cut hearts, the fussy cut pieces, and called the card done. 

Hope you are having fun designing your Valentine cards for the special people in your life. Remember to comment on each blog in the hop for a chance at winning some Unity stamps.

Next stop on the hop: 

Robyn

If you’d like to start at the beginning:

Crystal