Growing In Unity :: Day 4 - Dream Card

Welcome to the 4th day of my week as the Growing In Unity gal!

I am so thankful for each of you that have stopped by so far to check out and comment on each of my projects using Unity Stamp Company stamps. Be sure to comment on all five of my Growing In Unity posts this week if you want a chance to win some free stamps!

If you are new here or aren't already a follower: I'd love to have you follow my blog!
If you are one of my regular readers: Thanks for coming back! I love having you!
If you are on Facebook, please "like" Ink Blots by TRD.

For today's card, I used Unity's Solar Elem stamp:

I wanted to create a simple card with the focus on this cute stamp image. I kept a very calm color palette, which worked well with the "dream" wood veneer piece I used for the sentiment.

Thanks for stopping by today - and don't forget to leave a comment so you can enter to win!

From the comments that are left on each of my posts this week I will be randomly choosing TWO winners who will each receive 25 random stamps from Unity Stamp Company - to be sent to a domestic address only, please.

Supplies: 
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Solar Elem); 
Cardstock: Discount Cardstock (Brilliant White 130#);
Patterned Paper: Studio Calico (Wanderlust - 6x6);
Ink: Ranger (Archival - Jet Black);
Colored Pencils: Prang (20 - Tan, 17 - Gray, 8 - Light Green);
Wood Veneer: Studio Calico (#331100); Chic Tags (Sequins);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

Growing In Unity :: Day 3 - Stamped Canvas Gardening Bag (& Gift Tag)

Welcome to the 3rd day of my week as the Growing In Unity gal!

I am so thankful for each of you that have stopped by so far to check out and comment on each of my projects using Unity Stamp Company stamps. Be sure to comment on all five of my Growing In Unity posts this week if you want a chance to win some free stamps!

If you are new here or aren't already a follower: I'd love to have you follow my blog!
If you are one of my regular readers: Thanks for coming back! I love having you!
If you are on Facebook, please "like" Ink Blots by TRD.

Today I am taking a break from sharing paper-crafted projects using Unity stamps to share this canvas gardening bag with you.

I started with a blank canvas riggers bag, taped off the area I wanted to keep clean, and then started spraying with a variety of mists:

After the misted area was completely dry, I stamped the bag with the flowers from the Hello Birdie and Pray Continually stamp kits:

I then added in some stamped dots (from Hello Birdie) and the word "grow" using the Liz Hicks Alpha kit.

In addition to the bag, I wanted to create a simple, coordinating gift tag to go along with it:

It was fun working on canvas and I hope my sister-in-law (who received the bag and tag) will enjoy using her new gardening bag.

Thanks for stopping by today - and don't forget to leave a comment so you can enter to win!

From the comments that are left on each of my posts this week I will be randomly choosing TWO winners who will each receive 25 random stamps from Unity Stamp Company - to be sent to a domestic address only, please.

Supplies: 
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Hello Birdie, Pray Continually, Liz Hicks Alpha); 
Canvas Bag: Harbor Freight;
Mists: Studio Calico (Mister Huey's);
Chipboard Tag: Cost Plus World Market;
Ink: Ranger (Archival - Jet Black);
Colored Pencils: Prang;

Growing In Unity :: Day 1 - Your Light Shines Card

Welcome to the 1st day of my week as the Growing In Unity gal!

Stay tuned each day this week as I show you something I've created using stamps from Unity Stamp Company...and be sure to comment on each of my Growing In Unity posts this week because Unity Stamp Company is allowing me to give away some free stamps!

If you are new here or aren't already a follower: I'd love to have you follow my blog!
If you are one of my regular readers: Thanks for coming back! I love having you!
If you are on Facebook, please "like" Ink Blots by TRD.

It's no secret that I love all things to do with mason jars (except canning...I haven't done that before...ha!). As soon as I saw this cute stamp (Your Light Shines by Joslyn Nielson) I knew I wanted to stamp with it.
(And...bonus...the sentiment stamp happens to have the words to a song I love - Hillsong's "From The Inside Out".)

I created this simple card sketch to go along with the stamp and sentiment and just added a hint of coloring on the stars. I love how it turned out, and with this design it is easy to create 3 cards at the same time...so I have extras!

Thanks for stopping by today - and don't forget to leave a comment so you can enter to win!

From the comments that are left on each of my posts this week I will be randomly choosing TWO winners who will each receive 25 random stamps from Unity Stamp Company - to be sent to a domestic address only, please.

Supplies: 
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Your Light Shines); 
Cardstock: Discount Cardstock (Brilliant White 130#);
Patterned Paper: Studio Calico (Brighton Pier - 6x6);
Ink: Ranger (Archival - Jet Black);
Colored Pencils: Prang (20 - Tan);
Dies: Spellbinders (Standard Circles Large);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

Celebrate BIG & Warm Wishes {Craftwell Guest Designer}

{I am today's Guest Designer for Craftwell - check it out!}

I am so excited to be a Guest Designer for Craftwell today! 

Craftwell sent me the Love Triangles embossing folder to work with (from the Teresa Collins Collection) and I had so much fun with it! I created two cards to share with you today:

Both cards used the embossing folder in the same way (I used it to emboss vellum for an overlay), but the results for the cards are very different. I wanted to go bright and fun with the Celebrate BIG card, but keep it warm and cozy with the Warm Wishes card.

The embossed vellum overlay on the Celebrate BIG card is placed over a background that I created using watercolor paints. I punched out a portion of the vellum to highlight the sentiment, then I wrapped the card with twine and added some enamel dot "confetti" to finish it off.

The Warm Wishes card makes me think of a snowy day, sitting in the warm house and drinking some hot chocolate. It is a simple, neutral color palette, but the embossing adds some great texture. 

Thanks for visiting today - have a great day!

Celebrate BIG Card Supplies: 
Embossing Folder: Craftwell (Teresa Collins Collection - Love Triangles);
Cardstock: Canson (140# Cold Press Watercolor Paper);
Vellum: Papertrey Ink (Vellum);
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Celebrate Big);
Ink: Ranger (Archival - Jet Black); 
Paint: Master's Touch (Watercolors - Magenta, Orange, Yellow);
Twine: The Twinery (Solid Charcoal); 
Other: Studio Calico (Enamel Dots);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board); Tim Holtz (Tiny Attacher);

Warm Wishes Card Supplies:
Embossing Folder: Craftwell (Teresa Collins Collection - Love Triangles);
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Rustic Cream);
Vellum: Papertrey Ink (Vellum);
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Retro Warm Wishes);
Ink: Tsukineko (Chalk Ink - Sahara Sand);
Twine: The Twinery (Solid Natural);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

Easter 2013 {Pocket Page Scrapbooking}

Today I wanted to share a page from my newest venture in paper crafting: pocket page scrapbooking.

I've been eyeing the Project Life/pocket scrapbooking style for quite awhile and loved the size and configuration of the Simple Stories SN@P pages, so I decided to give it a whirl. I love how it is such an easy mix between a photo album and a scrapbook page. It is so much quicker to create a layout, but still has a beautiful look.

For this page, I used some papers from My Mind's Eye and created my title easily with some Lily Bee Design stickers. I added that cute little wood veneer bird from Studio Calico to give it a little something extra. 

I am excited to continue documenting our family memories this way. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye (Cut & Paste: Adorbs - 6x6);
Stickers: Lily Bee Design (Handmade: ABC Stickers); 
Other: Studio Calico (Wood Veneer Shape - Bird);
Pocket Page Protector: Simple Stories;
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

Starbucks with Mommy

Well...this is something you haven't seen from me in a while, but I am excited to have a layout to share today:

This sweet photo was from a night out that I had with my youngest son - we went to Starbucks and got drinks and talked. (He got hot chocolate, I got coffee.) I love these sweet times that I get to share with my kids and knew I wanted to document it.

I am not a big fan of pictures of myself, but I knew since it was part of out night out, I wanted to include it in the layout somehow. A hidden pocket behind the main photo was a great way to accomplish it.
Here's what it looks like when you pull the extra photo out:

I really love how this layout turned out and I am excited to be documenting our memories again. 

Thanks for dropping by today!

Supplies:
Patterned Paper: Lily Bee Design (Lovely: Charm; Memorandum: Office Blue; Happily Lost - 6x6);
Embellishments: Studio Calico (Die Cuts); Maya Road (Bingo Circle);
Trim: Heidi Swapp (Color Magic: Scallop Ribbon);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); 

Celebrate

I love The Twinery's Solid Natural twine - it really is able to become any color you might want. My favorite way to color it is with my spray mists.

For this card I let the misted twine be the star of the show. I love how it looks! I finished off my card by stamping a simple sentiment from Unity Stamp Company. 

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Rustic Cream);
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (Sentiments O'Simple);
Ink: Ranger (Archival - Jet Black);
Twine: The Twinery (Solid Natural); 
Mists: Studio Calico (Boss Lady, Buttercup);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); Scor-Pal (Scoring Board);

Love U Mini Album

Today I wanted to share with you the cover of a mini album I created. I haven't added any pictures to the inside of the book yet, but I had a lot of fun doing the cover.

For this album I cut my own covers from chipboard, then covered it with a vintage ledger paper and some various embellishments. The houndstooth on the bottom is fabric (FabRips from American Crafts) - it's the first time I've used FabRips and I love how easy it is to work with! It's already sticky on the back, so the pleating was simple to do. I cut some various patterned papers for the pages inside and bound it all together with my Cinch. 

Thanks for stopping by today!

Supplies: 
Embellishments: Vintage (Mini Playing Card, Sunshine Candy Co. Paper); Recollections (Peach Flower); Seam Binding; American Crafts (FabRips); Studio Calico (Wood Veneer Hearts, Grid Label); Maya Road (Envelope);
Stamps: Market Street Stamps (Believing Butterfly); 
Ink: Ranger (Archival - Jet Black);
Other: Canvas; Chipboard;
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors); We R Memory Keepers (Cinch Binding Tool, Cinch Binding Wires);

Natural Twine {The Twinery}

Today over on The Twinery's blog we are showcasing the new solid Natural twine.
This twine has SO many possibilities! It is gorgeous plain, but it is also fun to break out those mists and create your own fabulous colored twine.

I wanted to create a project inspired by the beautiful 'au naturel' color of the twine. I've been doing a lot of reading lately, so I thought it would be a great time to create a bookmark:

I love the monochromatic look and think it turned out beautifully!

But, of course, I couldn't just stop there...I had to do a little misting:

My daughter (who is all about color and loves to read) loves this version. 

Any way you use it, the new solid Natural twine adds a fabulous touch to your project!

Supplies:
Twine: The Twinery (Natural); 
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink (Rustic Cream); 
Flower: Prima Marketing (Parisa Aspen White Flower);
Mist: Studio Calico (Mint Julep, Bluegrass);
Tools: Fiskars (Trimmer, Scissors);

Chevron & Green {The Twinery}

I like a challenge, but I also LOVE freedom to create my way.

It's the best of both worlds with The Twinery's new challenge! 

You get a simple theme to get you started and then have the freedom to create whatever you want within that theme.

Here's the current theme:

Many of you out there probably have more than enough chevron products to help you in this challenge...but for those of you who don't, I thought I would share a quick idea for making your own chevron pattern.
{This is not just for use on cotton bags - you can easily do this technique on cardstock.}

By taking an ink pad and a small acrylic block, all you need to do is stamp in a zig zag pattern and you've got yourself a simple chevron. 

After I stamped my chevron pattern I added a stamp (that I helped design for Unity Stamp Company) in a darker green.

Oh...what's that?!?

It's the FABULOUS new Natural twine (available soon!) from The Twinery. I love this twine au naturel, but I also just couldn't wait to spray it with some mist!

I threaded one of the strands through the drawstring tunnel on the top of my bag and added the other strands  (including some Honeydew twine) to create the finished bow.

{You can see my simple trick to changing out the drawstring that comes with the bag and replacing it with twine HERE.}

Be sure to visit The Twinery's blog where you can get all the challenge details and enter your project to win a fabulous prize!

Supplies:
Twine: The Twinery (Honeydew, Natural); 
Bag: Celestial Gifts (4x6 Cotton Muslin);
Mists: Heidi Swapp (Color Shine - Chartreuse); Studio Calico (Mr. Huey's - Estate Green);
Stamps: Unity Stamp Company (LUCKY Friend);
Ink: Memento (Bamboo Leaves, Pear Tart); 
Other: Recollections (Flower);
Tools: Fiskars (Scissors);