GIU #5 - Happy Thoughts for HHH!

I can't believe the week is already over! I've had *so* much fun sharing my {love} of Unity with you all, and you'll all made my week with the sweet comments that you've left. Thank {{YOU}} so much!

I will be back tomorrow with a post in the Unity World Record Blog Hop (see the blinkie to the right)...have you signed up yet? There's still time! *wink*

Today's card is actually one I made quickly yesterday morning for one of the Hip Hop Thursday challenges...'No Sour Grapes at Unity!'. The challenge was to make a card using black, white, and purple, and this is what I came up with:
I have to say, I *really* like how it turned out! *grins*

I pulled out my new 'Feel the Joy' image, the sentiment from the March KOTM, some scraps of Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Basic Black, and Whisper White, and my new PaperTrey Palette inks, and got to work. I stamped the image three times using Lavender Moon ink, then twice more using Plum Pudding ink onto the Whisper White scrap. I trimmed it down, and then trimmed the Perfect Plum scrap and the Basic Black scraps to mat it, tearing the bottom edge of the black scrap. I tied a piece of Plum Pudding satin ribbon around the card (cutting a slit in the folded edge, since I didn't really plan this card!), and then mounted the matted image on top with foam mounting tape. I stamped the sentiment at the bottom, and accented the card with some Heidi Swapp Bling. Yet another card that took less than 10 minutes! Love that!

And now, the winner of a single of their choice from Unity:

True Random Number Generator Result: 72

Yaritza said...

You did a wonderful job on these cards. Specially love the trees.

March 26, 2009 6:38 AM

Congratulations Yaritza! I'll be sending you and Eryn an email, but be sure to send your choice of single and your address to Eryn[at]unitystampco[dot]com *wink*

Thank you all again for making *my* week so wonderful! Have a wonderful weekend, and I'll 'see' you on the blog hop!
~Michelle

Supplies used:
Paper: Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Basic Black, and Whisper White CS (SU!)
Ink: Lavender Moon and Plum Pudding ink (PaperTrey Ink); Stazon Jet Black (Tsukineko)
Stamps: Feel the Joy, March KOTM 'Simple Life' (Unity Stamp Company)
Other: Plum Pudding satin ribbon (PaperTrey Ink); foam mounting tape (3M); Jet Bling (Heidi Swapp)

GIU #3 - LIVE all the days of your life, and a mid-week WINNER!

I {{love}} this sentiment!

Today's card was a stretch (color-wise) for me...I mean, seriously, it has pink and coral! But, in the end, I think it turned out pretty well! *wink*
This time I started with the image...I knew I wanted to combine the sentiment and this wonderful journaling spot from this month's KOTM from Unity, and that I didn't want them on plain ol' white (not that I have a problem with white, as you'll see tomorrow!). It took me a couple tries, but I finally settled on stamping the journal block with Versamark onto Baja Breeze, and then stamping the sentiment over the top with Not Quite Navy ink. I colored in the frame and the 'Live', and cut out the frame, trimming closely. Then I pulled out one of my mystery coral-ly pink shipping tags (I *think* I got them at a stamp convention, but I'm not sure who the manufacturer is), and cut off the top portion. I matted it onto white, aligning the edges of the three layers. Then I adhered them to the Kiwi Kiss card base, tied on some hot pink stitched grosgrain, and accented with rhinestones. Voila! EPLS! *wink*
On a side note, I wanted to point those of you that have asked me about my coloring to {this fabulous tutorial} that the talented Lisa Spangler made for the Hero Club Blog. She demonstrates in 9 minutes and 57 seconds what I spent several architectural rending labs learning and practicing. Truly, her video will give you all the basics, and then it's just a matter of playing with color combinations and practicing! (No blending solution, odorless mineral spirits, Turpenoid, or Gamsol required...though I do use those on occasion, too!) HTH!

And, (drum roll, please) the winner of my own extra little bit o' blog candy is:

#4 - StampinCathy

Love the Spring look! I'm so ready for Spring! Congrats on being the Unity's Stamper of the week. Can't wait to see what fabulous eye candy you have for us. Thanks

(Cathy, I'm going to attempt to figure out how to email you, but if you see this before I do, could you send me an email with your addy? Thanks!)

Thank you {{ALL}} again for the wonderful comments! Y'all melt my heart! *wink*

Thanks for stopping by! (Hopefully) See you again tomorrow!
~Michelle

Supplies used:
Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, and Baja Breeze CS (SU!); coral/pink shipping tag (unknown)
Ink: VersaMark (Tsukineko); Not Quite Navy (SU!)
Stamps: 'Simple Life' March 2009 KOTM (Unity Stamp Co.)
Other: pink stitched grosgrain (Dashes, Dots, & Checks); small clear rhinestones (Michael's); pink rhinestones (Studio18); Prismacolor artist pencils (Sanford) - White, Indigo Blue, Slate Grey, Lime Peel, Cream, Pink Rose, Pink

GIU #2 - Thanks a bunch!

Welcome back to day 2 of my Growing in Unity week! I want to start off by saying a big THANK YOU for all the sweet comments on yesterday's post! It made my day to read them all! *grins* I'm going to be pulling a name tonight (Tuesday night, 3/24/2009) for an extra little candy from me, so if you didn't leave a comment yesterday (or even if you did! *wink*), leave me one today so you'll be entered!

Okay, I know...onto the card!

This one is a much simpler one, showcasing one of the fabulous images from Unity's March 2009 KOTM (do you have yours yet?? It's fabulous, and probably the best deal in stamps you'll ever see!)
I used Taylor's Cupcake Challenge sketch from this weekend (TECC60), and built my card using that, and Friday's Limited Supplies Challenge (LSC212) on SCS to make a card featuring a bloom as the main image, and 'Soft Subtles' colors. I stamped this adorable little plaid flower onto Whisper White and colored it in with my Prismacolor pencils, then used my Coluzzle oval template to cut out the panel, and an Apricot Appeal oval to mat it. I punched the bottom edge of the second WW panel with my favorite Martha Stewart Crafts 'Scallop Dot' edge punch. That was matted with a panel of Pale Plum CS, and I tied a piece of PaperTrey Ink's Plum Pudding Saddle Stitched ribbon. Those were adhered to a Pale Plum card base (with a 4" x 5 1/4" Apricot Appeal panel) using foam tape. As a last touch, I highlighted the sentiment with a quick swipe of Chartreuse Prismacolor, a la Julie Ebersole, aka JulieHRR. *wink*
Thanks for stopping by! More Unity goodness for you (and a candy winner) coming tomorrow!
~Michelle

p.s. - Yes, I {{LOVE}} my Prismacolor pencils...they blend fabulously, they cost a lot less than Copics (not that they're exactly cheap, but they are cheap-ER), and I already had a full set from school. Glad I can finally put that color theory and blending techniques to good use! *wink*

Supplies used:
Paper: Apricot Appeal, Pale Plum, Whisper White (SU!)
Ink: Stazon Jet Black (Tsukineko)
Stamps: March KOTM "simple life" (Unity Stamp Co.)
Other: Plum Pudding ribbon (PTI); 'Scallop Dot' edge punch (Martha Stewart Crafts); Coluzzle cutting system; foam mounting tape (3M); Prismacolor pencils (Sanford) - Dark Purple, Greyed Lavender, Cream, Canary Yellow, Deco Orange, Chartreuse, Lime Peel, Apple Green

Growing in Unity Day #1!

It's here!! Since Spring arrived officially on Friday, I have a "Happy Spring" card to share as the start of my Growing in Unity week! *grins*

This is a Stair Step (aka Accordion) card...I started with a 5 1/2" x 10 1/2" piece of Pollen CS, and scored it at 1 1/4", 2 1/2", 4 1/4", 6", and 8 1/4", with the 1 1/4" fold at the front. Then, I stamped images from three different Unity KOTM's (August 2008 "Remember Happiness", November 2008 "Enjoy YOUR STORY...Laugh", and February 2009 "Endings & Beginnings") that had a Spring theme/feel onto Whisper White CS, using Stazon Jet Black ink.
I colored all the images with my Prismacolor pencils, trimmed them closely, and attached them to the different folds at various heights (the butterflies and the snail are adhered with foam tape). For the sentiment panel, I stamped 'spring' with Real Red ink and 'happy' with Tempting Turquoise, edged the panel with the Canary Yellow pencil, and then matted with 'Kachina' and 'Red Devil' Bazzill. I accented the card with 3 rhinestones, then tied it closed with some striped grosgrain from American Crafts.
Remember to leave me a comment...I'll be picking a winner for a Unity single from all of the comments this week, and am planning to throw in a few surprise blog candy gifts throughout the week! (hint, hint...)

Thanks for stopping by!
~Michelle

Supplies used:
Paper: Pollen, Kachina, and Red Devil textured CS (Bazzill); Whisper White (SU!)
Ink: Stazon Jet Black (Tsukineko); Real Red and Tempting Turquoise (SU!)
Stamps: August 2008 KOTM "Remember Happiness", November 2008 KOTM "Enjoy your story...Laugh", and February 2009 KOTM "Endings & Beginnings" (Unity Stamp Company)
Other: foam tape (3M); striped grosgrain (American Crafts); Self-adhesive rhinestones (Studio18); Prismacolor Artist Pencils (Sanford) - Lilac, Aquamarine, Light Aqua, Apple Green, Chartreuse, Canary Yellow, Sunburst Yellow, Yellowed Orange, Pale Vermilion, Carmine Red, Scarlet Lake

Sneak Peek Reminder!

Just a little sneak peek to whet your appetite!

I'm hosting Growing in Unity: day by day, week by week ALL THIS WEEK. That means I'll have a new project (or two) to share each and every day featuring my beloved Unity Stamps, and all you have to do is leave a comment for a chance to win BLOG CANDY on Friday! *wink* And I've been busy preparing...stamping, cutting, pasting, coloring, punching, tying, die-cutting, embossing...you name it! Lots to show you this week!

Plus, I'll have one more for you on Saturday when the Unity World Record Inspirational Blog Hop happens!

Thanks for stopping by! See you Monday! *grins*
~Michelle

BAD blogger ....and BLOG CANDY!

Sorry! You know how life goes...so I won't make excuses, but I will give you a little update!

Last week, my AMAZING prize from PaperTrey Ink arrived:

It included a gorgeous card made by Nichole Heady, a $50 gift certificate, the Tags for Spring stamp set, eight of PTI's color-matched Palette ink cubes, 8 eggs full of their new Vintage Buttons, and TONS of ribbon. This container is 10" square and 4" deep, and it is *stacked* with tight little coils of ribbon:
Here's a picture of the loot in my lap as my 4-year-old gleefully opened all the eggs (everything came in plastic eggs...so fun!)
There is more ribbon there than I really need ( I could convince myself otherwise, but I'm trying to work through my ribbon addiction)...so I'm going to share! Go to PaperTrey's website, and leave me a comment {by 12:01 AM Pacific time on Sunday} with your favorite stamp set, and I'll pick TWO random winners on Sunday!

Coming up in two weeks is my Growing In Unity week...5 full days of Unity goodness, culminating in Unity's World Record Inspirational Blog Hop (see the blinkie to the right) on Saturday! There will be more blog candy to be had, so be sure to come back! (Now, I must go clear off my stamping desk...it currently has an 8" layer of stuff stacked across the full 6 foot length and 30" width!) My plan is to get it cleaned off, and do some warm-up next week to make sure the "mojo" is flowing, so there will (hopefully) be some eye-candy as well!

(*ETA: Thanks Jenn!! I gained a whole extra week...my GIU week dates are actually March 22-27, and the Unity World Record Inspirational Blog Hop is March 28th*)

Have a great day, and thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to leave me a comment for your chance to win! *wink*
~Michelle

ShortCuts give-away!

If you've been reading my blog, you know how much I {love} the products at ShortCuts...their acrylics are awesome, and RIGHT NOW, they're giving away a Large Pack (20 sheets!) of Frosted acrylic to FIVE lucky commenters as blog candy!!

So what are you waiting for? Go check it out, leave a comment, and try to win! (And if you have a blog and post a link to the give-away, you get 5 more entries!)

A Frost-y Giveaway

Fun in blogland!!

Okay, since I'm not able to do any stamping at the moment, I've taken to doing gallery- and blog-surfing (aka blurfing). My head is so full of ideas and goodies to do it's about to explode!! Can't wait 'til I can push down on some rubber again!!

First up: BLOG CANDY AT RYANN'S!!! Ryann is one of my Unity forum pals, and she's got some great candy on her site...you have until Friday (10/31) to go get yourself signed up!

MORE BLOG CANDY at SHIMMERZ! I stumbled on this website during my Unity forum-stalking/blurfing, and the owner there is holding a candy giveaway of her newest colors, also open until Friday! (Shimmerz is a sparkly, glimmery kind of watercolor medium, in case you're like me and hadn't heard of them yet....the colors she has are sooooooooo yummy!)

I'm definitely going to be doing this December Daily Album project by Ali Edwards. She's showing how to put it together now (on her blog all this week) so that when December rolls around, all you have to do is slip in some photos and journaling to have a wonderful reminder of Christmas. That woman is a genius...such a great way to catch the spirit of the season while you're actually *in* the spirit of the season.

And, last but certainly not least...I just found Elvie Studios blog from a post by Jessica Rose (one of Unity's stamp artists that, f.y.i., has some fabulous stuff in her Etsy store and some great freebie templates on her blog). Elvie Studios has some gorgeous multi-media inspiration that makes me want to take up painting and sewing! She seems to do a bit of everything...card-making, scrapping, book-making, etc., and she does it well. Definitely worth a look-see! Love this little dream house and this mixed media tic-tac-toe hanging.

So, what's inspiring you??

Hope you're having a great week! Thanks for stopping by!
~Michelle