unity and crayons...

Hello my wonderful friends!

It's time for another Unity hop!
(and sale! *starting noon central today*)

If you are arriving here from Erin's blog you are right on track... if not, go ahead and start at the beginning by clicking HERE.. You don't want to miss any of the fabulous inspiration (or chances to win!)

So, there are SEVERAL new Angiegirls being released today... which of course means that they, along with all the old Angiegirls, are on SALE this week! YAY!

This one is Shari. 

LOVE. 

Isn't that puppy just adorable??? And the overalls? Yeah, I used to have a pair... kinda missing them now. =)

There is also this crazy awesome HUGE distressed heart with fabulous phrases as part of the AngMag exclusive kit... This card is a typical A2 card... that heart is BIG!  I used to think that big stamps were only for scrapbooking and mixed media.... NOPE. I'm loving these oversized stamps Unity has been releasing for cards as much as scrapbooks! 

(gotta grab one of these kits before they are gone... limited number being made!)

Do you Facebook?

all you have to do is click the little owl on the Unity FB page....and you get a coupon code to get this sweet stamp FREE with your Unity purchase this weekend! 

Adorable, right???? 

I'm not great at sticking to only one kit...what can I say? I LOVE options. 

SOOOOOO... the background is  In Circle Me, & the phrase is from Tribal Trend)

Another kit combo... (I read someone's comment of FB that they wanted to see kits used together... well, here ya go!)

This one uses... Build a Damask for the phrase, Moments in Bloom for the flowers (love that kit!), and Spring Inspired {LOL} 3/14 for the text on the butterflies. 

Now.... for those of you who have made it this far through my photo heavy post... here's a quick tutorial. {cuz you know I love tutorials!}

The background for my owl card, and the purple flowers in the card I just shared were both made using the same technique.  

With the watercolor look being a current trend, and me not being very good at it.... this is my happy medium. Watercoloring ON stamps... using crayons. (you know, the water soluble kind.)  This also works with water based markers like Distress Markers.

Step 1: Prep the stamp. Using a mister, apply a fine mist of water to your stamp. It doesn't need to be dripping, just damp. This will allow the crayon to lay down color.

 If you are using markers, skip this step!

Step 2: Scribble randomly (or meticulously depending on your desired outcome) using water soluble crayons or water based markers... I like to use several colors for awesome blends.

Step 3: Spritz with water. This time you want to put a good amount on... not drenched, or you lose all detail in the image, but to get a true watercolor look, the pigments have to be nice and wet. This may take some experimenting to get a feel for exactly how much water YOU like. 

Step 4: Stamp onto paper... you will have BEST results if you use a watercolor paper, but it isn't necessary.  At this point, it may not look all that fabulous, but let it dry. I find that images I didn't really like when wet, look a lot better after they are dry. 

*If you are interested in watercolor crayons, there are lots of different brands.... I use Neocolor, but they are kinda pricy... feel free to check out other brands.*

Don't forget---
 Leave a comment on EACH blog in the hop (including the Unity blog) for your chance to win one of the TWO prizes!  The winners will be announced Saturday night on the Unity blog.

Your next stop is Lisa!

Enjoy!