Friends Of Unity Sept Autumn Colors

Friends of Unity

September

Autumn Colors

There is so much to love about fall; especially the colors. My favorite thing about fall though is.... just watching the leaves drop from the trees. They have a way of floating through the air perfectly; in such a way as to float, swirl and catch your attention for just a moment.

I was lucky enough to get this Sept 2016 KOTM from participating in Unity's Growing In Unity guest designer program.

Prisma colored pencils were perfect for laying color on top of the dirt (kraft paper). I used a blender pent to melt the colors of the leaves together. It also helps put the pigment into the  micro valleys of the paper. The sentiment is from a grab bag.

This same Kit of the Month has some amazing stamps in it. These pumpkins are just adorable and were perfect to continue on with the fall theme. I used the same Prismas as the above card. I also used the same SU sweater embossing folder for both cards. I think it just wraps the card in some more fall.

Happy Fall Y'all!

Crystal
Eileen
Robyn
Dawn B
Alaine
Kim
Dawn F
Joyce
Jeanie (you're here)
Bobbie Sue

I will be giving away a random Itty Bitty this month. Comment for a chance to win. Look for other giveaways in the hop as well!

Disclaimer: Friends of Unity appreciates every single comment we get. So much so that we use our own stash every month for a giveaway. We are NOT sponsored by Unity Stamp Co. But, they DO approve of our hop by lovingly enabling us. We started this hop because we love Unity. That is all. This hop is our way of showcasing our cards made with Unity Stamp; our favorite stamp company.

Friends of Unity August Furry Friends

Friends Of Unity

Furry Friends-August

I was that little girl playing with My Little Ponies, that little girl with her faced pressed against the car window just to get a glimpse of a horse in the field, that little girl who locked herself in her bedroom for hours just to sketch horses, that little girl who had white glossy glass unicorns on her dresser and that little girl who made her sister crawl around the floor on all fours and whinny like a horse (I would then smack her to make her go. I was an awful sister.). Yeah... the horse fever was that bad. It was something I was born with and will never get out of my blood. 

Remember long ago when The Black Stallion movie came out? It was then that my little girl mind became determined that I was going to one day own a black Arabian. God must have heard every prayer that dirty blonde tangly haired girl prayed because in my early twenties that prayer became REAL. Imagine that! 

I won't go into all of the details about Chukka; the drop dead gorgeous black Egyptian Arabian that God put into my life. I will tell you that he would take me into a world that was so full of peace and contentment; a world that only God could create. The timing of Chukka in my life was perfect and his departure perfectly timed as well. God gives and God takes away. Chukka is now running with a herd of horses in the clouds.  I truly believe that God gives us animals to remind us that our time here on earth is sort. One day I will be drawn up into the clouds as well. I hope that the Lord puts me on my black horse's back once again, maybe next to Him riding his white one. 

(A blessed time in my life.)

Card Recipe:

Unity Stamp- easier with YOU by my side by Phyllis Harris

Canson XL Watercolor paper

Arteza brush pens

SU Archival Ink

Tim Holtz stitched die

Kelly Parker is my winner from last month's blog! Please email me with you mailing address at jeaniehays00@yahoo.com

Show some love to all the furry friends to have a chance to win some Unity. Trot on over to Joyce's blog!

Crystal

Eileen

Kim

Dawn

Jeanie (you are here)

Joyce

Bobbie Sue

Robyn

Disclaimer: Friends of Unity appreciates every single comment we get. So much so that we use our own stash every month for a giveaway. We are NOT sponsored by Unity Stamp Co. But, they DO approve of our hop by lovingly enabling us. We started this hop because we love Unity. That is all. This hop is our way of showcasing our cards made with Unity Stamp; our favorite stamp company.

Petals for the Pittmans Friends of Polka Dot Orchard

We are here to help one of our own. Larissa Collins Pittman is a cherished part of our crafty family. Her bio is inspiring when you look and see how many amazing companies she has worked with, sharing her time, energy, and love of this incredible crafty journey. And whether you realize it or not you have been enjoying her work for years, seeing her projects for so many of the companies we all love! She needs our help and as one of the most caring communities we know, we are reaching out to all of you to help us help her. 
Larissa has been facing her own health issues. Gary, her husband, has been a police officer for over twenty years. He was in the process of trying to find work closer to home so that he could take care of her, when his own medical needs began to surface. He has had many hospital stays, lots of ups and downs, astronomical medical bills, and is still battling, every day, to just be able to be at home and try to regain his health. They are out of money, yet the medical bills continue to mount. Please help us to help them!

(tag made out of my origional artwork)

Hello friends, today I have a very special card to share with you. It's created with one of the images available in a unique floral digital stamp set being sold by Polka Dot Orchard. This lovely set is part of a fundraiser to help the Pittmans during their difficult medical ordeal. (Larissa Pittman is one of our crafty friends who blogs at Muffins and Lace.)

(featuring PDO ribbon)

You can read more about Larissa and her husband Gary here: Pittman’s Go Fund Me

Polka Dot Orchard has collaborated with several different artists and companies to put this digital stamp set together. It only will be available for a limited time, so stop by their Etsy shop today and purchase yours!  ALL PROCEEDS from this special set will go to directly to the Pittman's. There is also a crafty link up with sponsored prizes on the blog....you can find all the details by visiting  Polka Dot Orchard

(the Trumpet flower as it is in it's natural state as I saw it and sketched it; on it's side)

Even if you can't purchase a digi set to support the Pittmans I ask that you please pray for them. Pray for God's healing hand to touch both of them and for His love to surround them during this difficult time.

Friends of Unity July Hop Vintage

I am just a vintage SOUL

Old, distressed, worn, rustic, well loved and maybe even a little dirty. Those are the words I think of when I think of vintage. So..yeah... I'm getting kinda old, kinda distressed, worn out, rustic, my clothing often looks well loved and maybe even a little dirty. LOL! ha! So this blog post could totally be about me! Thank the Lord it's not. Thank the Lord it's just about paper and ink.

Ring Ring!

Vintage telephones are a cool thing. I remember plugging my little child finger into the circular number hole and swirling it all the way around. It was fun to me, like my finger was on a merry-go-round...until you had to start all over again. And who remembers touch lamps?..not that this is one but I played with those when I was younger until I drove my mom cray-cray! I think there are still a few of those things around.

Unity Stamps: Call Me... I'll laugh at You by Angie Blom and Life Brighter by Joslyn Nielson

Paper: Tim Holtz & The Paper Studio

Embossing Powder: Recollections

Ink: Tim Holtz distress

Other stamps: SU
Dies: Tim Holtz

Ribbon: Polka Dot Orchard (Hand dyed crinkle)

A horse of the past

If ya'll know me, ya know my love for horses. Here is a Vintage postcard re-purposed into some eye-candy. This guy kinda reminds me of my old horse Chukka.

Unity Stamps: Rose from a grab bag, lace- Sept 2018 SMAK
Ink: Tim Holtz distress and SU white craft

Paper: The Paper Studio
Lace: SU
Frame: Hobby Lobby (just incase you like rustic things too)
Photo: source unknown

Saved

A card saved from my card front discard stack that lingers on my desk. I attempted no line coloring on kraft, didn't like it, set it aside and forgot about it. Went through the stack recently and "saved" these flowers. I think it could work as a wedding card? Idk... worth saving though. You should totally save something too.

Unity Stamps: Girl Truly, June 2017 SMAK

lace: SU
Prisms colored pencils
Pen: Gelly Roll white
Ink: SU crumb cake & white craft

The Wild Card-Inspired by Bobbie Sue

I just love Bobbie Sue's style and I wanted to try to use this classy lady in a simple way so that I can make sets of them as gifts to my snarky sisters. I used one of her examples to set the scene for this card. This one is a totally different take on vintage as far as the colors and feel. I am kinda diggin it.

Unity Stamp:  Gossip, hot-flashes & crazy by Joslyn Nielson

Ink: SU black archival

Paper: something cheap because there are dingleberries

Dot Embellishments: Nicole Love

Hop back through time with us, leave a comment on each blog to have a chance to win some Unity. I am giving away some random grab bag sentiments and images! Tell me which vintage card is you fav!

Crystal Minkler

Kim Klinkovsky

Eileen Mathys

Dawn Fields

Joyce Verdon

Jeanie Hays (that's me! you are here!)

Robyn Jordan

Disclaimer: Friends of Unity appreciates every single comment we get. So much so that we use our own stash every month for a giveaway. We are NOT sponsored by Unity Stamp Co. But, they DO approve of our hop by lovingly enabling us. We started this hop because we love Unity. That is all. This hop is our way of showcasing our cards made with Unity Stamp; our favorite stamp company.

Growing In Unity Group Hop

A dear friend of mine recently had a baby. Monday evening we are going to celebrate both her and baby Meadow. I wanted to make something; this is what I came up with.

Insightful Meadows & Whispy Blue bell

I took an old frame that I had found at the Goodwill for like $1 and painted it with white chalk paint leaving it looking kind of distressed and rough. I love love love re-purposing things. Why buy new when you can keep something from a landfill right?!

I felt like I needed some sort of direction with color so I chose a rainbow. I used SU real red and the rest of the ink is Tim Holtz distress inks on watercolor paper. This came together fairly quickly and easy. Besides sweating over a smudge that "might" occur on all that white background, it was a breeze.

I used some letter dies that Robyn Jordon so graciously sent me. They fit perfectly into the frame with the # of letters needed. My only concern was that the M had to double as a W. Do you think it looks ok?

Wink of Stella added some sparkle and smoothed out some of the color on the flower tops.

My biggest challenge when creating this was getting the old picture out of the frame to put the new in. Thought I was going to break the glass several times. lol. Check out the backs of frames before you buy.

Make sure that you visit and comment on all of the Growing In Unity blogs for a chance to win!!! how fun is that?!

Lee Ann Barrett
Shannon Pavlovic Edwards
Brianna Jackson
Jeanie M. Hays (you are here)
Bobbie Sue McConathy
DeAnn O'Neill

Friends Of Unity June Blog Hop Weddings

Friends Of Unity

June

Weddings

"Don't do it!" That is what my husband yelled when I said, "help me figure out what to write about weddings for my blog." Then we both busted out laughing. I guess that's what you get after almost thirteen years of marriage. 

Ok...so seriously just going to jump into telling you about my "Don't do it!" card. LOL

Margaret Girl must have NOT listened to my husband and instead met her fairy Godmother! She transformed into a beautiful bride in white! Guessing her balloons (I cut them off) were turned into a fabulous carriage or something.

Felt like I was playing with paper dolls when I was fussy cutting out her glittery dress. I used some fast fuse to attach some translucent purple ribbon under her dress. Now what to do with her? To me, she looked like she belonged sitting in a garden so that is where I set her. Her shoes even sparkle! 

"Forever" is a long time so I figured it needed to be repeated in the background. ha! From Wild Florals by Holly Hoffman.

I cut out some tiny flowers from the same Paper Studio-stack to give her a bouquet, added some tiny pearls around her and bibbidi-bobbidi-boo! Looks like she found her prince and lived happily over after. 
"Don't do it" "pffft whatever!"

My winner of a surprise itty-bitty from last month's hop is....majic wand swish... Michelle MichelleMay 6, 2019 at 5:21 PM

What a beautiful sentiment about a GREAT family business, and scene you created as well...it really does look like a relaxing camping setting ♥️

Make sure to email me at jeaniehays00@yahoo.com with your mailing address to claim your prize.

Hop and leave a comment using your first and last name on each blog to be eligible to win some Unity.

Crystal
Eileen
Bobbie Sue
Dawn
Jeanie (You're here)
Robyn
Kim

Disclaimer: Friends of Unity appreciates every single comment we get. So much so that we use our own stash every month for a giveaway. We are NOT sponsored by Unity Stamp Co. But, they DO approve of our hop by lovingly enabling us. We started this hop because we love Unity. That is all. This hop is our way of showcasing our cards made with Unity Stamp; our favorite stamp company.

Friends Of Unity May Blog Hop Fruitful

Friends of Unity

Matthew 7:16-20 King James Version (KJV)

16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.



Digging through my Unity stamps I stopped when I came to this one of Angela Magnuson.

I was reminded of her sweet spirit and loving nature. What a perfect example of a fruitful person and a fruitful business. Unity is a small hard working family owned company that God has truly blessed. Angela is generous with so much including donating to needy families at Christmas through customer nominations. Yes I love love love Unity sales but that isn't what pulls us all to the company. It's all about who they are.

They are real people who make themselves tangible. I never feel like I am doing business with a brick wall but real live human beings. I always feel appreciated when I make even the smallest purchase, love how much they give away when they do a new release ( Angela knows how to make it super fun), loving and encouraging all of us on all of our creations on the fb Show & Tell page. Customer service is spectacular too. Any problem will be resolved because each person matters. It all adds up and it all means a lot to 1 (or thousands)itty bitty stamper(s) (pun intended). lol.

So I dressed Angela in fruity sweatshirt to make her look fruitful! Does it work? lol Hope and Peace trees with Tim Holtz distress inks with a blue sky behind reminds me of a peaceful mountain trip or camping. I made the clouds by using water drops to lift the ink. Just a super simple card that radiates a peaceful sense of fruitfulness.

Stamp set used: Whatever Comes Next, Northwoods Peace, Emerson girl (sentiment)

Inks: Tim Holtz distress and Arteza watercolor brush pens, and SU Archival Ink

Jane Davenport makeup

I will be giving away a surprise Itty-Bitty! Check the other blogs for giveaways too! So be sure to leave a comment on each Friends of Unity blog to qualify.

And just because this amazing lady is holding a coffee cup I get to enter her into the Coffee Spring/Summer blog hop! Woot!

Crystal M.

Robyn J.

Kim K.

Bobbie Sue M.

Dawn F.

Jeanie H. (You are right here)

Eileen M.