Stamping Scoops

Butterfly Garden Inspired

2011-09-17T10:49:00.000-07:00

This card was inspired by this fun Butterfly Garden fabric that I saw on Elisalou's blog. I used several different A Muse Studio nature sets and inks - so fun!

Hope you had a nice Summer and are enjoying Fall!
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Images, paper, and ink by A Muse Studio. Palette Hybrid ink in Claret. Versafine black ink.

Have you seen this?

2011-07-01T16:44:00.001-07:00

A Muse Studio is going on the road!

Get the scoop and register --> here!

If you live in any of the nearby areas, you have GOT to go - good times!

Go forth!

2011-05-04T10:27:00.000-07:00

Can't believe it's May already and the school year is coming to an end. Time to think about graduation cards! My cousin recently graduated from Penn State, so I made this card with him in mind. Guy cards can be tricky so I kept it really simple.

A little trivia for you about this "go forth and do good" quote from the new A Muse Studio ConGRADulations stamp set... it was said by my uncle who was the President of Illinois Wesleyan University. He used it frequently in graduation speeches and you can hear him saying it on this youtube (scroll to around 4:35). I am *so excited* to have it as a stamp and you may have also seen a version of it on some of the "quotable cards" products out there on the market (he would vary the wording a bit to keep his speeches fresh). I think it is the perfect quote to give to a new grad and works great for both guys and gals!
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A Muse Studio conGRADulations stamp set, cobalt cardstock, white pearl, 3D foam adhesive, cobalt and onyx inks.

Me in Kindergarten

2011-04-07T15:42:00.000-07:00

When I was in Kindergarten, one of the parents came to our class and drew silhouettes of each child. We each sat in front of a white screen with a light shining just right to capture our silhouette. My mom has kept mine all this time and recently had it framed for me! I couldn't resist using it on a card after seeing all the silhouette images at the CHA show in January. It's too large to scan, so I took a photo of it and then pulled it into Photoshop Elements so that I could print it on cardstock. Kept the rest of the card simple with A Muse Studio damask shimmer paper and Nestabilities dies - plus a little white organdy ribbon for the final touch.

Sorry for the long blog break! It has been a busy first quarter! Good busy - birthdays, the launch of A Muse Studio, and spring break! Hope you are having a nice Spring!

Ooo - A Muse scoop!

2011-02-16T15:49:00.000-08:00

Been curious what's going on with A Muse? Here's some scoop! Check out the new A Muse Studio Facebook page! Click on "like" at the top of the Facebook page and then watch the video!

Olympia and Hedwig

2011-01-20T09:30:00.000-08:00

You might remember seeing this adorable owl on Lisa Spangler's blog early last year (this post is looong overdue!). Her name is Olympia and Lisa sent her to me when I sent her this fun felted flower. Well, soon after Olympia came to live with me, I was inspired to learn crochet. I know how to knit, so it wasn't too much of a stretch to pickup crochet. Within a few weeks - Olympia had a friend... soooo meet Hedwig!

Not too bad for my first crochet project! It was fun, but I don't think I'll be tackling too many other projects like this anytime soon. Just like with knitting, I found that my hands tensed up from working too long. Does that happen to you?

Hello tree

2010-12-13T11:12:00.000-08:00

I made this a while back and noticed it in my files yesterday - realized I hadn't shared it with ya yet! This was inspired by this adorable lunch box. Super simple and quick! To make the red polka dots, I used a piece of A Muse Kitchen paper and colored in the dots on the printed side with red Copic marker. The dots soak through to the natural white side of the paper! (See this tip on the A Muse blog for a photo and description of how to do this.)
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Images and notecards by A Muse. Lipstick Red Copic marker, black ink, corner rounder, circle punch.

12 Days of A Muse Christmas Wishes!

2010-12-11T16:56:00.001-08:00

We are having lots of fun over on the A Muse Facebook page! There are ten more days left in the 12 Days of A Muse Christmas Wishes - so there are still lots of chances to win!

Get the scoop on the A Muse blog --> here. Then hop on over to Facebook and share your wish! :)

December Calendar

2010-12-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Smooch white, Spica glitter pen.

November Calendar

2010-11-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Memento Desert Sand ink, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T10:37:00.001-07:00

Happy Halloween! This design is one that was shared on the A Muse News blog during the A-MUSE-A-PALOOZA sneak peeks. Thought I'd give you the scoop on how I made it. The graveyard gathering image is stamped with white pigment ink and then embossed with white embossing powder. I used post-it notes to mask off the areas where I wanted to write the invitation details and then sanded away some of the notecard to reveal the white core (the post-its keep you from accidentally sanding off the embossed areas). Then used a fine tip black pen to handwrite the invitation info. A little distressing on the edges and done! Sooo can anyone tell me based on the address who is hosting this gathering tonight? :)

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Images and notecards by A Muse. White pigment ink, white embossing powder, black micron pen, sanding block, post-its, edge distressor.

Nuts about you

2010-10-03T13:57:00.000-07:00

My hubby and I celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary last week and this is the card I made for him. We are both Ohio State grads/fans and it's also where we met, so I knew my Ohio State die cuts would be perfect for his card. I was thinking about sentiments and then it hit me that "nuts about you" would be perfect with the Buckeyes (they are nuts, but you can't eat them - they're poisonous!). Guy cards can be challenging but I just stuck to some manly colors along with the required scarlet and grey. And... I guess it worked because he loved it! He even noticed the bits of sanding I did around the "O" to reveal the white core. It was tricky to get in the small spots with a basic sanding block, so I have a Precision File set (Basic Grey) on order - for the next time I need to sand tight spots!
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Images and notecards by A Muse. Ohio State die cuts by Quickutz (varsity O and buckeyes) - created for Cord Camera but look to be discontinued - Quickutz outlet might still have them; foam tape, scoring tool, sanding block, VersaMagic chalk ink.

October Calendar

2010-10-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

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Images, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Versafine black ink, Memento London Fog and Tangelo inks, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Martha Stewart glow-in-the-dark glitter, Mono Multi glue.

2011 Calendar!

2010-09-16T13:15:00.000-07:00

The 2011 A Muse Calendar is here! This year, proceeds will benefit Charley's Fund. (Click here to learn more about Charley's Fund.)

For my calendar design this year, I printed my calendars on colored pages instead of white. As you know, A Muse has lots of solid cardstock colors in 8.5"x11", so that made it super easy! And the white core gave a finished look on the back of each page. This is the A2 Calendar, but I selected the "shrink pages to fit" option prior to printing. So that made the text a bit smaller and added a little variety to the placement of the calendar text on each page.

For the stand, I used Julie's slick design you can see here. I started with two pieces of chipboard and covered them with cardstock. Then joined the bottom of them with another piece of cardstock as shown in Julie's example.

Please note about buying the calendar: The A Muse Calendars are a download product only. Nothing will be shipped to you. Calendar orders are only processed during regular business hours (monday to friday 8am to 5pm). Once your order has been processed, you will have unlimited access to the file(s) you have purchased.
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Images, calendar, and cardstock by A Muse. White pigment ink, white embossing powder, Angel Dust Art Glitter, 2-way glue pen, Memento canteloupe ink, 1/2" O-wires and bind-it-all.

2011 Calendars are here!

2010-09-15T09:10:00.000-07:00

The 2011 A Muse calendars have arrived! Get the scoop on them along with lots of inspiration over on the A Muse News blog --> here. Stay tuned - I'll be back on Friday to share some pages from my 2011 design.

September Calendar

2010-09-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Adirondack Espresso ink, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Spica glitter pens, Pigma Micron brown pen.

August Calendar - take 1

2010-08-10T21:19:00.000-07:00

Hi all! School started for my son this week, so I am getting caught up on things. I didn't get a chance to add comments on my August calendar post, but I actually have a funny story about it to share! When I was working on it initially, I mentioned to my son (he was five years old at the time) that I thought the flamingo should be pink. I got distracted by something, left the project out on my work table and went upstairs briefly. I returned to find that he had decided to handle the coloring for me! He said happily "look mom - I colored it pink for ya - I knew it was for your work, so I did a really good job!" And he did do a really good job - see:

This is the original version that he colored with his bright pink crayon (*smile*)! He is generally sloppy in his coloring because he gets bored and rushes through it, so just look how well he colored the skinny neck area! Since I needed to make two of the calendars, I colored the second one (which is the one you saw earlier this month). But his version is the one I kept for my copy of the calendar - such a special memory!

August Calendar

2010-08-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Memento New Sprout and Summer Sky inks, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Art Glitter and 2-way glue pen.

Holly & Berries

2010-07-22T16:20:00.000-07:00

Another new *big* cling set for you - combined with a new wood mounted sentiment. The berries are a separate stamp in the set, so you can place them as needed. This is an A2 sized card and I used a 5/8" circle punch to punch out the larger berries and then popped them up on foam tape. (a 1/2" punch should work too.) And here you are seeing another new paper color - Currant!
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Images and cardstock (Currant and white) by A Muse; 5/8” or 1/2” circle punch; Memento Bamboo Leaves and Rhubarb Stalk inks; Versafine Black ink; Foam tape

amuse-bouche - Snowglobe!

2010-07-17T14:16:00.000-07:00

This is another fun new red rubber cling stamp called Winter Scene! I immediately envisioned this as a snowglobe when I first saw it! The card base is A2 in size and uses another new color - Winter Sky! Then to make the snowglobe base, I used a corner rounder on a 3/8" x 2" strip of cardstock. The circle is cut to 3" or 2 7/8" in diameter. And did you see the new snowflake swirl (look closely at the background near the words)? I have a thing for snowflakes and this one is fabulous! I have two other designs featured on the A Muse blog today, so I'll be back with those here this week and share a little more about how I created them. :)
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Images, Winter Sky and Slate paper, and black dye ink by A Muse. Memento Cottage Ivy and Summer Sky inks, Copic marker in Raw Silk, Art Glitter Polar Bear, Foam tape.

amuse-bouche - Pointsettia

2010-07-16T14:36:00.000-07:00

Here is another A-MUSE-A-PALOOZA sneek peek for you! This one is also featured on the A Muse News blog today. The Pointsettia image is a new red rubber cling stamp! And it is big! But no worries - A Muse has beautiful new clear blocks with finger grips (and the A Muse logo etched on the side - so cute!) Here you can also see the new Evergreen paper! Stay tuned - I have one more peek for you!
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Images and paper by A Muse. Versamagic red chalk ink, Brilliance black ink.

amuse-bouche - Owls!

2010-07-15T13:22:00.000-07:00

I love the new birch trees - the leaves are mounted on the side of the stamp so you can stamp them wherever you want! Fall is my favorite time of year, so I couldn't resist stamping leaves in several colors. The owls are just so fun. My aunt made a puzzle for me when I was little with lots of owls on it and I remember one of them looking very similar to the owl on the right. I think I still have it... might have to go dig it out to see. This card is A6 in size and uses two more new paper colors - squash and nutmeg! More peeks yet to come.... Are you having a fun A-MUSE-A-PALOOZA week?
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Memento ink, Copic markers, foam tape, 1 3/4" and 2" square punches.

amuse-bouche - Snow Fun!

2010-07-14T16:11:00.001-07:00

If you were looking closely at the Shop News post on Monday over on the A Muse News blog, you might have spied this card as one of the designs you can make at the DIY Creative Cafe at the Seattle shop this coming Saturday! These new snowmen are sooo cute! They look so happy - I just love them all and I thought they would be adorable together as a family.
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Copic markers, Art Glitter in Polar Bear, 2way glue pen.

amuse-bouche - Hooooot!

2010-07-11T07:55:00.000-07:00

It's A-MUSE-A-PALOOZA week and that means it's time for a sneak peek (or as we like to call it - amuse-bouche) of the new A Muse holiday and halloween stamps! If you are a regular reader of my blog, you know that scenes are one of my favorite things to create! It was so fun to put all these new stamps together to make a spooky scene! The card is cut to an A2 size... so you know what that means, right? New Orange Crush paper in 8.5"x11"! And you are seeing five new stamps here! For the mouse, I inked just one of the three that are part of the new "3 mice silhouette" stamp. Then the moon is just a clear circle sticker! This design is featured over on the A Muse blog today along with other fabulous goodies by the design team, so be sure to check them out!
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Images, paper, black dye ink, and circle sticker by A Muse. Memento brown ink, Copic green marker.

A-MUSE-A-PALOOZA is here!

2010-07-10T08:16:00.001-07:00

Woohoo! A-MUSE-A-PALOOZA 2010 is here! Stay tuned - I'll be back with some sneak peeks of the new A Muse holiday/halloween stamps this week!

A Muse U - Finding Inspiration!

2010-07-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Welcome to A Muse U! I’m excited to share my tips on this month’s topic – Finding Inspiration.

Think about the Audience
When I begin working on a stamping project, a few basics first cross my mind: my audience or the recipient of the card and the theme (birthday, etc). When I’m creating a card with a specific recipient in mind, that person is a huge source of inspiration. I think about some of their favorite things, colors, and style – which usually helps steer me in a direction, limits my supplies, and makes it easier to select the images for my project.

This first design I have for you today was inspired by the recipient and her favorite things. I needed to make a birthday card for my son’s friend who is turning six. She loves Hannah Montana and singing. A quick look at my stamps and I easily settled on Rockin’ Girl with “Party Like a Rockstar”. Then I needed to decide how to best fit them on a card. So I quickly roughed out a sketch of how I envisioned them – using the actual stamps in my sketchbook:

She had to sing of course, so I drew her a microphone! Next I needed to decide on the colors. I had a general idea, but looked up Hannah Montana online and decided on purple, yellow, with a touch of red and lots of glitter! I know I got it right because my son took one look at my finished card and said “Hannah Montana”!

Use Imagination
If I know what stamp I want to work with, another trick I love to use as inspiration is to imagine the stamp in “real-life”. If it were real, where would it be, what or who would it be with, what color would it be, and what would it be doing. This usually gives me a direction or even sparks an immediate vision for a card design!

On this next project, I knew I wanted to make a scene with the dragon stamp. I imagined him in real-life – in this case storybooks and fairy tales – and thought about things we usually see with dragons: castles, knights, and princesses! “Ooo – I have the Palace stamp I haven’t played with yet – perfect!” The scene then built itself in my mind and you can see my sketch in the earlier photo above. The dragon I imagined was green, so that also helped me settle on my color combo. The Palace I pictured in my mind was made of stone, so I dotted several Copic shades of grey. And I decided to use a similar technique to give the dragon scaly skin!

Find a Reference
Fabrics, home and fashion catalogs, magazines, and products also make great references for color combinations and general inspiration. My last design today below was inspired by these coasters from Little Design Horse which I noticed on the Print & Pattern blog.

The center bottom coaster reminded me of our seedlings stamp! I didn’t have the perfect circle to fit the seedlings, so I went through my stamps to see if I had something that could work. The little apple in the School Time clear set was just right when turned upside down!

Well there you have it - my top three sources of inspiration – audience, imagination, and references. I hope these ideas help you find inspiration for your projects! Be sure to tune in to Elena and Becky’s blogs today for more tips on finding inspiration!

July Calendar

2010-06-30T20:59:00.000-07:00

Wow - June was a busy month! Sorry for the lack of posts - was away on vacation for a week and am still catching up. Stay tuned - I have more to share tomorrow!
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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Memento Summer Sky ink, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Art Glitter and 2-way glue pen.

June Calendar

2010-06-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Continuing in my monthly calendar series - Happy June! When I created this calendar last year, the tire swing tree was a wood mounted stamp. Since then, it retired in wood mounted, but I was excited when I learned that it was back as one of the images in the Vintage clear set! Hope you had a nice Memorial day weekend.
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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Spica glitter pen.

How cool is this?!

2010-05-31T08:36:00.000-07:00

I'm the featured stamper over on Splitcoast! Check out the challenge --> here!

Teacher Appreciation

2010-05-26T08:19:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's the end of the school year already! This is a quick and easy teacher thank you note. I stamped the writing lines from the School Time clear set and then carefully centered the words. On the apple, I inked the stem in green and the rest in red pigment ink and then sprinkled Simple Stick over them and heated it. Then carefully spooned lime glitter on just the stem and tapped it off tilting the card away from the rest of the apple. Then sprinkled red glitter on the apple and punched it out with a circle punch. The A Muse team has been busy sharing lots of fun summer designs this week. You can see links to them all here.
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Images, black dye ink, Simple Stick, and cardstock by A Muse. Memento summer sky ink. Red and green Pigment ink. Art Glitter in Fire Engine red and Key Lime. EK Success circle punch, foam tape, corner rounder.

Baseball Thanks

2010-05-21T11:15:00.000-07:00

My son’s first baseball season is wrapping up, so I needed to make a card for the coach. Her son is also on the team, so I know she’ll enjoy this photo of the kids. First I printed the photo and since it was wide, I decided to make a long card – which measures 4” x 9¼” and fits a #10 envelope.

Then I stamped the banner on a piece of white cardstock and filled each triangle one at a time with Dries Clear adhesive and glitter. Set that aside to dry and came back later to carefully trim it.

Their team is the Cardinals, so I was excited when I realized that I had a cardinal bird punch. Of course I had to give him some sparkle too, so I added black and red glitter to his feathers. For the inside, I have an additional sheet that I plan to have all the kids sign and then I’ll adhere to the main card (no risk of damage from fourteen six-year-olds this way - *wink*!)

I’ve had a fabulous time as an Art Glitter guest designer over the last three months. Big thanks to Emily Miller and Art Glitter for the wonderful opportunity!

(This post is also featured on the Art Glitter blog --> here.)

Supplies:
Art Glitter Ultrafine Opaque Glitter in Fire Engine and Black
Art Glitter Ultrafine Transparent Glitter in Polar Bear
Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive
Art Glitter Ultrafine Metal Tip
A Muse Artstamps Happy Everything clear set and 2-4-6-8 rubber stamp
A Muse Artstamps Petite Gingham Blue cardstock
A Muse Artstamps Black Dye ink
Fiskars “Cardinal’s Song” squeeze punch

Blog Hop Winners!

2010-05-10T11:17:00.001-07:00

The winners of the A Muse birthday blog hop have been posted over on the A Muse blog! Check them out --> here! Thanks to everyone for celebrating with us and congratulations to the winners!

More florals!

2010-05-07T08:15:00.000-07:00

Here is the other design that I mentioned yesterday. You can see that all three cards have similar ink colors and stamps, but each one turned out unique! Ok - so which of the three was your fav? My blog hop card, Merci from yesterday, or this one today?
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Images and white 4bar notecard by A Muse. Memento ink in Pear Tart, Lulu Lavender, Rhubarb Stalk, and Paris Lights; Martha Stewart Crafts Butterflies punch.

Merci!

2010-05-06T12:58:00.000-07:00

I was having so much fun making Everything's Rosy collage designs while I was working on my blog hop card, that I made two more! Same ink colors on the Leaf Frond II and Jasmine, but then I added Daisy Duet in two different colors. Stay tuned for the other design tomorrow!
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Images and cardstock (Sage and White) by A Muse. Memento ink in Pear Tart, Lulu Lavender, Rhubarb Stalk, and Paris Lights.

Cinco de Mayo Margarita!

2010-05-05T10:10:00.000-07:00

Today I have a slushy, sparkly, BIG margarita for you in celebration of Cinco de Mayo! This 5” x 7” card is sized to fit an A7 envelope and I chose a beautiful white shimmer cardstock for the card base. I decided to go the old fashioned route and cut out the margarita glass shape manually (gasp!) I found an image online and printed it to make a template. Then I traced it onto colored cardstock (but you could skip this step and print it directly on the back of your cardstock) and carefully trimmed it.

The inner portion of the glass is filled with Dries Clear adhesive and Key Lime glitter. I purposely was a little messy with the adhesive to give it a slushy look – so fun! Of course, the glass needed to be rimmed, so I used Dries White adhesive with neutral glitter to make it look salty. For the lime, I stamped a Spiral Daisy in green ink and punched it out with a circle punch. I wanted the peel of the lime slice to be a darker green, so I outlined the edge of the circle with a Copic marker and followed with more Key Lime glitter. Here is the link to the public domain image that I used for the Margarita Glass: Margarita_Glass_(Welled)
Happy Cinco de Mayo!

This design is also featured today on the Art Glitter blog!

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Supplies:
Art Glitter Ultrafine Transparent Glitter in Key Lime and Angel Dust
Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive
Art Glitter Designer Dries White Adhesive
Art Glitter black stamp pad (must heat-set on shimmer paper)
A Muse Artstamps Make Margaritas and Spiral Daisy rubber stamps
A Muse Artstamps Shimmer Couture cardstock in white
A Muse Artstamps 4-bar notecards in Lime and Sky Blue
Clearsnap Fluid Chalk ink in Lime Pastel
Copic original marker in Lettuce Green
1 ¼” Circle Punch, Foam tape, Scissors

Blog Hop!

2010-05-04T03:00:00.000-07:00

I've had a blast celebrating A Muse's 9th birthday with you and today I'm excited to be one of the stops in the A Muse birthday blog hop! This card features several new Everything's Rosy stamps - all of which are now available on the A Muse website! They are so easy to combine in different ways to make a fun pattern or collage!

I also have a special treat for you - a chance to win two new stamps used on this card: Leaf Frond II and Hello FL! All you need to do to enter is leave a comment on this post (one per person please)!

Winner will be chosen randomly from all comments on my post and will be announced on Monday May 10th on the A Muse Blog. There will also be a grand prize winner chosen randomly from all comments on all the birthday blog hop blogs, so the more you comment, the more chances you have to win! (You can link to all the blog hop blogs from the main post on A Muse News.)

Edited to add: contest is now closed - thanks!

Next stop on the A Muse birthday blog hop tour - one of our stamping friends - the fabulous Jennifer McGuire!
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Images, black dye ink, and cardstock (Robin's Egg Blue and white) by A Muse. Memento ink in Pear Tart and Lulu Lavender; Martha Stewart Crafts circle cutter; foam tape.

amuse-bouche - Bare Branch

2010-05-03T18:59:00.000-07:00

My next design features the new "Bare Branch with Leaves" stamp. This stamp has the leaves mounted on the end so you can stamp them wherever you desire - love that! And I was jazzed that the Mini Flower stamp fit perfectly with them! Stay tuned - I have one more design to share with you tomorrow!
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Images and cardstock (chiffon pink and white) by A Muse. Memento ink in Lady Bug and Pear Tart.

amuse-bouche - Wild Rose

2010-05-01T15:36:00.000-07:00

For today's sneak peek, I am featuring several new stamps - wild rose, wild rose, daisy duet, leaf frond II, and the words are new too of course! Hope you are having a good weekend!
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Images, black dye ink, and cardstock (Latte and White) by A Muse. Memento ink in Pear Tart, Lady Bug, and Dandelion; Fluid Chalk ink Grey Whale (stamped off once).

May Calendar

2010-05-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy May! This is one of my favorite bird/tree stamps because the bird comes on the end of the stamp - so you can put him wherever you like! Stay tuned - I'll be back with another sneak peek of the Everything's Rosy stamps!

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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Art Glitter and 2-way glue pen.

amuse-bouche - Jasmine

2010-04-30T11:18:00.001-07:00

Next up in our "Everything's Rosy" sneak peeks, is the new Jasmine stamp! I was playing around with it and loved the way it looked stamped twice in different directions!
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Images, black dye ink, and cardstock (watermelon, chiffon pink, and white) by A Muse. Memento Lady Bug ink.

amuse-bouche - Marigold!

2010-04-29T08:29:00.000-07:00

For today's sneak peek (or as we like to call it - amuse-bouche), we are featuring a few of our new "Everything's Rosy" stamps! If you've been over to the A Muse News blog today, then you saw this design over there too. Isn't this Marigold amazing? It's BIG - the biggest stamp A Muse has ever had I think! This card measures 4.25" square, so that gives you an idea of it's size. I decided to keep it simple and use three colors of ink. Be sure to start with the lightest color first - so here I started with the yellow in the center, then added the orange, then the red. Using small inkpads (Memento Dew Drops) made it even easier!
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Images, black dye ink, and cardstock (buttercup and white) by A Muse. Memento dew drop ink in Lady Bug, Dandelion, and Tangelo.

Happy Anniversary!

2010-04-28T04:00:00.000-07:00

Today's amuse-bouche features the new Happy Everything clear set! On this card, I decided to use the fancy flourish under the Happy anniversary and it definitely added something special. I also embellished the flourish with twinkle stickers and there is glitter around the edge of the white layer for sparkle! If you haven't been over there yet today, be sure to see all the fabulous cards over on the A Muse news blog! I had such fun putting that post together!
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Images, twinkle stickers, and notecards (chiffon pink and white) by A Muse. Memento lady bug, pear tart, and summer sky ink; corner rounder, foam tape, Art Glitter in angel dust.

Vintage A Muse - Snappy!

2010-04-27T11:08:00.000-07:00

A Muse's 9th anniversary birthday bash has begun over on the A Muse blog and today we are sharing sneak peeks (amuse-bouche) of the new "Vintage" clear set! I decided to use the camera image (which was called "Snappy" when it was a wood-mounted stamp). To make the film strip, I punched three squares out of a piece of Slate notecard. Then used my piercing bug and Scor-Pal to make a pierced line above and below the squares. Note - to get the dots to look white, you need to run the piercing bug along the back (white) side of the cardstock. Then I layered a piece of white cardstock behind my filmstrip and stamped Snappy using three different ink colors. Since it's a clear stamp, centering them within the squares was a breeze! Now, just for fun - wanna see two more of my cards made looong ago with Snappy? Check them out here and here (LOL)! Stay tuned, I have more to share over the next few days!
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards (robin's egg blue, slate, and white) by A Muse. VersaMagic ink in Mango Madness, Pink Grapefruit, and Aloe Vera; 1 1/8" square punch, piercing bug and Scor-Pal, foam tape.

Sparkling Fish

2010-04-16T10:47:00.001-07:00

Three inch cards are such a cute size and I thought it’d be fun to make a wide fishy scene using an accordion fold. To make the waves at the top, I trimmed my 8.5x11” cardstock in half lengthwise using the scallop blade on my paper trimmer. The result is that one half of the paper will have scallops and the other will have waves! Using the half with the waves, I then trimmed it to be 3” by 9”. To make the accordion fold, I scored the white side at 3” and 6”. I love that this cardstock has a white core, so I used the white side for the front and the blue then peaks through the waves at the top when the card is closed. The blue also gave it a nice finished color on the back of the card.

I then stamped my images using Fluid Chalk ink and followed with Dries Clear Adhesive and transparent glitter in several sparkling colors. Be sure not to apply adhesive to everything at once – choose one color at a time so you can tap off your glitter and replace it into the jar. (*smile*) I love that Art Glitter has so many transparent colors to choose from! Since they are transparent, they are influenced by the color under them which makes it easy to coordinate glitter with ink!

Here is a view of the front when the card is closed:

This design is also featured today on the Art Glitter blog!

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Supplies:

Art Glitter Ultrafine Transparent Glitter in Lemone’, Orange Crush, Pink Smoothie, Tropical Rain, Key Lime, and Fauna
Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive
Art Glitter Ultrafine Metal Tip
Art Glitter black stamp pad
A Muse Artstamps Rubber Stamps: Coral, Mini Fishes, and Best Fishes
A Muse Artstamps Sky Blue cardstock
Clearsnap Fluid Chalk ink in Yellow Citrus, Tangerine, Rose Coral, Azurite, and Lime Pastel
Marvy Paper Trimming Buddy with scallop blade

Spring Sparkle Flower

2010-04-05T21:26:00.001-07:00

I love finding inspiration in everyday things! The idea for this card hit me one day when I spied an adorable gift bag while I was out shopping. It had several colorful spring flowers on a fun purple background. I was drawn to one BIG yellow flower, so I decided to make that the focus of my card. I knew I wanted to cut the flower out of chipboard, so I rummaged through my stash and was happy to find a piece that had a white top layer. So I ran that through my Big Shot machine with a flower die. Then I used Dries Clear adhesive with a beautiful shade of yellow glitter on the flower and did the same thing with pink glitter for the circle in the center. I let both pieces dry and then adhered the center to the flower. I stamped the stem with a Dandelion stamp, added lime glitter for more sparkle, and then attached the flower to the stem with foam tape. The grass layer is punched out of green cardstock and I just couldn’t resist adding glitter to it too! What are some of your favorite sources of inspiration?

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Supplies:
Art Glitter Ultrafine Transparent Glitter in Lemone’, Pink Smoothie, and Key Lime
Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive
Art Glitter black stamp pad
A Muse Artstamps Friends blossom and Dandelion rubber stamps
A Muse Artstamps Kitchen Purple and Sage 4-bar notecards
A Muse Artstamps Black Grosgrain Stitch ribbon
Martha Stewart Crafts grass punch
Memento Bamboo Leaves ink
Glue pen, Xyron, and foam tape
Sizzix flower die and Big Shot
Chipboard

This post is also featured today on the Art Glitter blog --> here!

Spring Cleaning

2010-04-04T21:49:00.000-07:00

Changed my blog template today. May not seem like a huge difference, but I like that it is more simple and this will also make it *much* easier to adjust in the future - which is a very good thing! Let me know if you experience any issues. For those that celebrate, hope you had a very Happy Easter!

Woodland Critters - Fawn!

2010-04-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

I noticed some pink fawn images while I was blog hopping recently and they inspired me to use the new watermelon cardstock with the Fawn on this card. I got tricky on the trees - did you see? The leaves are the clouds stamp and then the trunks are just the edge of the woodgrain stamp! So fun! The new paper colors are available on the A Muse website today - woohoo!
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Adirondack Latte Ink, Memento Bamboo Leaves ink, Copic Yellow Green marker, Art Glitter dries white and dries clear adhesives, Art Glitter Angel Dust and Key Lime glitter, Martha Stewart flourish edge punch, foam tape.

Woodland Critters - Seedlings!

2010-04-01T08:15:00.000-07:00

This is an adorable 3" x 3" card and it is so fun that A Muse now carries envies in this size! Had to do some color correction on this photo - it's hard to capture the true color of the new watermelon cardstock. It is yummy though - you've got to see it in person! So for this card, I used one row of the seedlings stamp and then punched out a row of daisies using an EK Success border punch! I actually punched two sets of daisies so I could layer them and curl the petals on the top layer a little. The centers of the daisies are done with dries clear adhesive and Pink transparent glitter. Oh - and I spritzed the daisies with clear Glimmer Mist prior to adhering them to my card - so they shimmer a little in the right light! Stay tuned for one more Woodland Critter design tomorrow!
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Palette Hybrid green ink, EK Success daisy border punch, Art Glitter dries clear adhesive and Pink Smoothie transparent glitter, Glimmer Mist dazzling diamonds.

April Calendar

2010-04-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Continuing in my monthly calendar series - Happy April! This one was fun to create - a little masking on the chick's egg, then stamped the tall grass and nestled in the tiny eggs! Stay tuned for a woodland critter design this morning!
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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Memento New Sprout, Angel Pink, Lulu Lavender, and Summer Sky inks, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire.

Woodland Critters - Spring is in the Air!

2010-03-31T19:22:00.000-07:00

My son has been on spring break and it seems my mojo decided to go on vacation too. I am sooo happy it has returned - woohoo! So coming to you live from Spring Break 2010 (LOL!), here is one of three designs (yes - three!) that feature the fabulous A Muse Woodland Critter stamps and NEW papers! See the Clouds? They're new! And the two papers used for the words - apricot and watermelon - they're new too! Be sure to check out all the woodland critter goodness over on the A Muse blog! And stay tuned for my next Woodland Critter design tomorrow!
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Adirondack Espresso ink, EK Success punch (this is a new one - gotta look up the name), Spica green glitter pen.

Surf and Sand

2010-03-22T14:22:00.001-07:00

I have to admit that I’m normally a “flat adhesive” kinda girl when it comes to using glitter on my cards. I’ve had the Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear adhesive in my stash for a while, but usually reach for a two-way glue pen. The two-way glue pen is ok for the neutral glitters, but I found that it just didn’t bring out the color very well for colored glitter. So I pulled out the Designer Dries Clear Adhesive and started playing. WOW – what a difference! The Dries Clear adhesive really brought out the color and sparkle in the glitter! And by adding the Ultrafine Metal Tip, I was able to add glitter in detailed spots on this surf design. I stamped the waves, sun, and surf board with the Art Glitter black stamp pad and then all of the “coloring” was done with Dries Clear adhesive and glitter – not even one marker! Such a fun and easy way to add color and sparkle all at the same time!

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Supplies:
Art Glitter Ultrafine Opaque Glitter in Fire Engine
Art Glitter Ultrafine Transparent Glitter in Lemone’, Tropical Rain, and Fauna
Art Glitter Designer Dries Clear Adhesive
Art Glitter Ultrafine Metal Tip
Art Glitter black stamp pad
Images: Surfboard, Curling Waves, Sun, Enjoy the ride by A Muse Artstamps
Shimmer Couture paper in Robin’s Egg Blue (trimmed to A6 size) by A Muse
White cardstock by A Muse
Foam tape
Scissors

This post is also featured today on the Art Glitter blog --> here!

Glitter Puzzle Sunset!

2010-03-08T08:10:00.000-08:00

I am excited to have been asked to be an Art Glitter guest designer for March-May! For my first project, I thought it would be fun to make a sparkling sunset scene, so I chose several colors of Art Glitter Ultrafine Transparent glitter and some relaxing images from A Muse, then set to work on a glitter puzzle design!

This is a fun and easy glitter technique that I learned from this tutorial on Splitcoaststampers.com.

To make my version, the basic instructions are the same. Run a piece of white cardstock through a Xyron machine. Remove the clear plastic, then use a craft knife to cut lines into the coated backing sheet. Peel away one of the backing sheet sections and add glitter. Since the rest of the backing sheet is still in place, it acts as a mask! Tap off excess glitter, then peel away the next section and change glitter colors. Then repeat one section at a time until you have covered the layer completely in glitter! Adhere that layer to your card base. Then stamp desired images on a transparency sheet and attach to the glitter layer and card base using ribbon, brads, or eyelets. With this technique, you get amazing sparkle and color with stunning results very quickly! Love it!

Be sure to check out my post on the Art Glitter blog today! Emily Miller from Art Glitter also posted a fabulous glitter puzzle Sun design!

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Art Glitter Ultrafine Transparent Glitter in Lemone’, Orange Crush, Pink Smoothie, Tropical Rain, and Fauna
Art Glitter Transparency Sheet
Rubber Stamps: Hammock and Life’s a Breeze by A Muse Artstamps
Polka Dot sheer ribbon in White by A Muse Artstamps
4-bar notecard in Slate and White cardstock by A Muse Artstamps
Black stamp ink suitable for transparencies , Crop-a-dile, Craft Knife, Xyron with permanent adhesive cartridge

Art Glitter Guest Designer!

2010-03-01T13:17:00.001-08:00

You may have noticed a new badge on my blog on the right sidebar. Well, here's the scoop! I've been invited to be a guest designer for Art Glitter! Check out the introduction post today over on the Art Glitter blog (you can also see me on the main guest designer page). I'll be sharing two designs each month for March, April, and May. The first one is coming up in a week, so stay tuned - can't wait!

March Calendar

2010-03-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

Wow - we are cruisin' through 2010 and it is already March! I have some fun crafty news to share, so stay tuned for that coming soon!

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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Memento Summer Sky ink, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Art Glitter in Angel Dust and 2-way glue pen.

Hippo Birdie

2010-02-28T10:59:00.000-08:00

Another birthday card for ya! I was in a pink, yellow, and latte mood when I made this and the last design. *smile*

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Images, black dye ink, ribbon and notecards by A Muse. Copic markers, foam tape

Happy Birthday

2010-02-24T15:41:00.001-08:00

A quick card that I sent to one of my hubby's relatives. The words are from the newish "Fancy Numbers" clear set. Then I added some clear Spica glitter pen over them for a touch of sparkle. Hope you are having a good week! I have been on jury duty most of the month, so I am glad to be catching up on things.

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Images and notecards by A Muse. Fluid chalk ink, Spica clear glitter pen, foam tape.

Bunny Bonanza!

2010-02-17T09:13:00.000-08:00

The A Muse crew has been busy sharing lots of fabulous Bunny Bonanza designs over the last few days. There are seven more paper colors that are now available in 8.5x11" cardstock - two of which are brand new colors! This is one of them - Eucalyptus - and there is also a beautiful purple called Heather! (see them all here) What I *love* about the 8.5x11" cardstock, is that you can cut it into whatever size you need. And the other side is white - which is awesome for the inside of cards! I had this idea to make a scene with all the carrot related bunny stamps, but since they are a little large, they don't all fit so well on a 4-bar size card. So - I made an A6 sized card instead! Need dimensions for card sizes? Check out this helpful chart.
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Images, black dye ink, ribbon, and cardstock by A Muse. Memento Summer Sky ink, Fiskars scallop border punch, Copics, EK Success oval punch, foam tape.

February Calendar

2010-02-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

I just love these owls - they are so fun! The pink on their bellies was inspired by a card that Julie created a while back. It is difficult to see in the photo, but the little heart trio is stamped in pink between them.

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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Memento Angel Pink ink, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Art Glitter and 2-way glue pen.

Here's the Scoop!

2010-01-20T10:56:00.000-08:00

*giggle*! This Mandy's World Ice Cream girl is sooo cute and I can't believe I waited this long to play with her - especially considering she fits perfectly with my blog! She is one of the images we'll be practicing with at my Copic 101 class - along with some of the new Sea of Love images. I have so much information to share in this class - can't wait!

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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Copic markers in E00, E33, E53, E37, E29, R29, R59, RV32, RV34, and BG10.

Copic 101 Class

2010-01-07T19:48:00.000-08:00

Mark your calendars - I will be teaching at Crafter's Connection in February! If you would like to get the most out of your Copic markers, this is the class for you! In this introductory course, you'll not only learn about the markers, but also basic blending and shading techniques.

Copic 101
Crafter's Connection, Canyon Country CA
Saturday, February 6th at 10:30am
661-297-4005

Agenda includes marker basics (types of markers, papers, inks for stamping, colors), shadowing, shading, three different blending techniques, tricks with the Colorless Blender, and working with Spicas, Multiliners, and embellishments. Students will work in a personal booklet to practice coloring some of the newest A Muse images. This technique-based course requires the full class time, so no cards are made in the 101 class.

Supplies needed for class: Copic Colorless Blender and a pencil for taking notes. You can also bring any other Copic markers you own (please label them).

One Fish, Two Fish....

2010-01-05T22:48:00.000-08:00

.... Red fish, Blue fish! Inspired by Dr Seuss! What can I say, I *love* the new mini fishes and clownfish - they are so fun and I just had to pair them with the tiny fish from the oval frames clear set and Fishy (who is also available in the Animal Wishes clear set). The new Sea of Love release is now available - so check it out over on amuseartstamps.com! And be sure to see the pre-pack special for an easy way to order one of everything at a great value too!

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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Palette hybrid green ink, Copic markers in Lipstick Red and Sky blue, foam tape.

amuse-bouche - You are a Treasure

2010-01-04T07:47:00.000-08:00

My sneak peek today is a repost of my design featured over on the A Muse News blog. I love this new shell image and it worked perfectly with the new coral stamp along with "you are a treasure". And the pearl added just the right touch of elegance. There's also white Smooch ink over the lighter colored areas of the shell - to give it a little *shimmer* and some glitter along the sand line. Be sure to see my design using the new Mini Fishes from yesterday over on the A Muse blog along with lots of other fabulous sneak peeks from the team. This release is so fun and what I love about it is that these images are great year-round - not just for Valentines! Stay tuned for more!
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Images, black dye ink, pretty pearl, and notecards by A Muse. Memento Angel Pink ink, Copic markers in O, Pink, Pinkish White, and Raw Silk; White Smooch, Art Glitter and 2-way glue pen.

amuse-bouche - Sea of Love!

2010-01-02T18:58:00.000-08:00

It's time for A Muse Valentine sneak peeks (or amuse-bouche as we like to call it!) Today's peek features the new Clownfish stamp - I thought he made the perfect "Nemo" from the movie Finding Nemo when paired with "I'd be lost without you"! Just for fun, I gave him a tiny wiggle eye and then the twinkle and clear stickers made a great thought bubble. Be sure to also check out the A Muse News blog to see my Anchor card today - and of course lots of other great peeks from the rest of the Creative team.

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Images, black dye ink, clear twinkle stickers, scallop oval clear sticker, and notecards by A Muse. Copic markers, white Smooch, wiggle eyes, Angel Dust Art Glitter and 2-way glue pen, Marvy scallop oval punch.

Crafty Christmas

2010-01-02T18:33:00.001-08:00

Catching up from the holidays... here are a bunch of the things I created in December. Didn't want to spoil any surprises, so I had to wait to share them with you.

Soapy pops - based on the Soapylove book:

Felted sweater scraps wreath inspired by Betz White - and also beaded stars inspired by Elisalou (my son helped me with the first two, but was "done" after that, so I made the rest - same with the soap - *wink*)

More felty fun - ornaments! These were inspired by Crate & Barrel ornaments I saw in the 2008 holiday catalog - only took me a year to get around to making them!

And a few gingerbread house boxes - created with a Sizzix die and then I also made little gingerbread man tags (retired Fiskars punch and Marvy merchandise tag punch) to go with them. The soapy pops fit perfectly in these.

Ok - had to finish up Christmas before moving on to Valentines - so next up, an A Muse Valentine SNEAK PEEK - woohoo - two posts in one day - stay tuned!

January 2010 Calendar

2010-01-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! I love this "Winter Friends" stamp - so fun with the little "bluebird" on her shoulder - makes me think of the song "Zip-a-dee-doo-dah" And how cool is it that this stamp just happens to be one of the A Muse Bluelight Specials this week - perfect timing!
As I mentioned in my September calendar release post, all of my calendars this year use the theme of Birds & Trees and I am looking forward to sharing them with you!

Hope you had a fabulous holiday season! A Muse Valentine sneak peeks start today, so stay tuned - I'll have something to share soon!
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Images, Black Dye ink, Juliette patterned paper, and calendar by A Muse. Memento New Sprout and Summer Sky inks, White cardstock, Copic markers, Bind-it-all and 5/8" wire, Art Glitter and 2-way glue pen.

Tips for Mass Producing Cards

2009-12-19T20:41:00.001-08:00

Hope you are doing well and enjoying the holiday season! This is the design I created for our Christmas cards this year. My hubby loves this card, so it was an easy decision! I came up with a way to help me easily, quickly, and precisely mass produce it using my stamp positioner. Sooo - my gift to you - I made a quick unscripted video today in hopes that it might help you speed along your holiday cards if you are still working on them!

YouTube Link: Mass Producing Cards using a Stamp Positioner

By adhering some corner "grooves" onto some cardstock, I was able to put the stamp positioner in the same spot everytime I switched to a new white layer. One thing I didn't mention in the video is that if you want to do the same thing for the sentiment on your card - or any other stamped images, you'll need to make a new "groove sheet" for each image - so that the chipboard pieces don't conflict with each other. So for my card design in the video, I had two sheets - one that I setup for the truck and one that I setup for the sentiment. So I cut all my white cardstock layers and stacked them near my work area, stamped all the trucks first, then switched to the other sheet and stamped all the words. Hope this helps! (Be sure to watch my other video "how to use a stamp positioner" first if you've never used one.) Happy Holidays!
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Images, black dye ink, stamp positioner, and notecards by A Muse. Memento Paris Dusk ink, Copic markers, 2-way glue pen, Art Glitter. Other items used in the video: Mono Aqua liquid glue, chipboard, cardstock, scissors.

Wool Angel

2009-12-03T18:47:00.001-08:00

Can you believe I've been waiting to share this with you since March (*smile*)! Didn't seem quite right to post it in the spring, so I decided to wait for Christmas. This project was actually what inspired me to experiment with wool. (See my Felting Fun category for my other felting projects) On my post in February, I mentioned there was a story as to how needlefelting caught my attention. Well, sit back and grab a cuppa and I'll fill ya in on the details!

It all began when I was putting our ornaments away in January 2008. I had put a bunch of them on a table so I could box them up later. Now normally my dog doesn't mess with things... But of course, it was at that time that he decided to be naughty when I wasn't looking and chewed apart one of my favorite ornaments - a handmade wool angel that my mom bought at a craft show years ago. I suppose it seemed like a soft fluffy chew toy to him, so I shouldn't be surprised. Anyway, I paid little attention to the construction of it as I was throwing it away because it was clear that there was no way I could repair it. But I was curious to see if something similar existed that I could buy as a replacement, so eventually I did a little investigating online. Didn't find anything similar but some handmade wool dolls that were made by needlefelting. Hmmm - I had not heard of needlefelting before... this I must research more... if I can't buy one maybe I can *make* one! Needless to say, I figured out what it would take to make my own replacement and added a few items to my 2008 Christmas list so I could learn this new skill. I was so excited when I achieved it! My mom actually still has one of the original wool angels, so I was able to carefully inspect hers to see how it was made - which definitely helped. Thank goodness she bought one for herself too! Below is a photo of her original so you can compare them. I made a few changes on mine above - nicer ribbon (A Muse of course) and a wool wreath instead of the artificial pine. How did I do?

December Calendar

2009-12-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

The last calendar page of 2009... And leading into my 2010 "birds and trees" theme, I used a tree on this one!
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Images and calendar by A Muse. White cardstock, SU cardstock, Bind-it-all and 3/4" wire. Memento Bamboo Leaves ink, Colorbox gold pigment ink, Martha Stewart Crafts Red Glitter.

Advent Calendar

2009-11-30T16:07:00.001-08:00

I was inspired by the advent garlands in the December issue of Better Homes and Gardens magazine... so I had to make one of my own! I already had the green dot fabric, so I picked up some red gingham and set to work making simple drawstring bags. Then I stamped each number on a snippet of white fabric (so it would stand out) and stitched the top of each one onto a bag. The bags are small enough that it will be easy to store them when the holidays are done, yet big enough to allow me to use them in different ways each year - whether it be for candy treats, or little gifts, or notes. This year I decided to go the note route and wrote something fun to do as a family (like read "Frosty the Snowman" or sing "Jingle Bells") on a bunch of 2x4" patterned tags. And if I decide not to make a garland out of them, they would also be fun to hang on the tree or hide them in various places around the house for a bonus treasure hunt! Now, if you aren't into sewing the bags... you could probably find some small muslin bags that would work well and it would be easy to stamp directly on them. Here's a photo of the whole group:

Are you making an advent calendar this year? What do you put inside each day?

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Images and notecards by A Muse. Brilliance pigment ink (not sure how well this will wash, but it worked fine for my purposes). Ribbon, Fabric, sewing machine, pinking scissors, mini clothespins, rope or ribbon for hanging the bags.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T11:35:00.000-08:00

Here's a simple Thank You card - just two stamps and a punch! This was inspired by Joyce's vase card (scroll down on this post). Wishing you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving!

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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Memento ink, Carl Vase punch.

More Twilight Goodies!

2009-11-20T16:25:00.000-08:00

As promised, I'm back to share the rest of the goodies I whipped up for the New Moon movie. Shared these with my friends who I saw the movie with today, so I didn't wanna post 'em here until they were delivered (*wink*). Saw the movie this morning and loved it of course! I made this quick and easy slider box to hold New Moon chocolates. Here is a peek at the inside:

Then I decided I needed a little bag to hold the card and the chocolate box, so I made one with my Scor-Pal. Thought it needed a little more, so I added a red felted flower pin!

We had the most beautiful sky at dawn this morning - so much like my card and I took a photo for you, but the photo just doesn't do it justice - sorry! It was a perfect start to Twilight day though! Did you see the movie yet? What did you think?
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Box: Memento Potter's Clay ink and sponge dauber; Copic W2; Scor-Pal and Scor-Tape. Bag: black cardstock, Marvy Paper Trimming Buddy with scallop blade, hole punch, Scor Pal, Scor-Tape, ribbon.

Happy New Moon Eve!

2009-11-19T09:27:00.000-08:00

For all the Twilight fans out there, tonight is the night for the New Moon movie! I've been itching to experiment with my previous Twilight inspired design to take it a little further and explore the colors that you see at twilight - be it dawn or dusk. Since I live in a place with very few clouds or rain, I actually see a beautiful clear sky out my window most mornings that looks similar to this - deep orange at the horizon line with dark shadowy trees and houses. So using that as inspiration, I stamped Bella and Edward, then masked them and sponged three Memento ink colors to make the sky. (Tip - start with the lightest color first and then blend in the darker colors.) I also made a couple of other things to go along with the card, so I'll be back to share those with you tomorrow!
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Memento ink in Potter's Clay, Tangelo, and Canteloupe; sponge dauber, post-it notes, Copic markers.

Thanks!

2009-11-16T20:23:00.001-08:00

I decided to make several of these a few weeks ago since it's always good to have a few thank-you cards handy. Super simple - just stamping, punching, and ribbon!

Hope you had a good weekend! We celebrated Thanksgiving with my mom a bit early, so I am on to working on Christmas and mass-producing our holiday cards. I am actually using one of the designs shown in my class photo below. My hubby loves this particular design, so that made the decision pretty easy. Any guesses as to which one?
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Images, ribbon, and notecards by A Muse. Memento ink, Martha Stewart border punch, corner rounder.

Class this Saturday!

2009-11-09T18:43:00.000-08:00

Get ready for the holidays this Saturday Nov 14th at Crafter's Connection!
We'll create festive A Muse designs - perfect for the season. I'll share tips for mass-producing your cards and also show you how to tie your holiday bows like a pro! I'll also share some Copic tips including how to refill and change your marker nibs. Hope you can join me!

Crafter's Connection, Canyon Country CA
Saturday, November 14th Make it Merry 10:30am
661-297-4005

As with all of my classes, please bring your preferred adhesive and sharp detail scissors.

November Calendar

2009-11-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

Hope you had a fun Halloween! Continuing in my monthly calendar series.... here is November!
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Images, Black Dye ink, and calendar by A Muse. White cardstock, SU cardstock, Bind-it-all and 3/4" wire. Copic markers: Raw Silk, Sand, Lipstick Red. Triplus fineliner orange pen. Memento Tangelo ink.

Halloween catch up!

2009-10-30T15:11:00.000-07:00

I had a great visit to Seattle last weekend - so fun to see my A Muse friends! Then came back and volunteered at my son's school yesterday and today. I can't believe Halloween is tomorrow already! I had a few more Halloween designs to share with you and since we are running out of time, you get to see them all at once! I made these little necklaces as a fun idea for kids. Super easy with a circle punch, crop-a-dile, ribbon, and clear stickers!

Then the next few designs are some you've probably seen on the A Muse news blog or as the Card of the Week in the newsletter. (If you aren't receiving the weekly A Muse newsletter, you can sign-up here!)

Love the parade kids with the crooked house! Then the witch crashing into the tree below was fun to create with the wood grain paper and a scallop oval punch. I used the retro rectangle, some stars, and some sections of one of the scallop ovals in the oval frames clear set - all stamped in black ink near the tree - to give it an "action" look.

One last card featuring the cutie mouse peeking out of the pumpkin. Hope you have lots of fun planned for tonight and tomorrow! Happy Halloween!

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Images, ribbon, black dye ink, clear stickers, and notecards by A Muse. Copic markers, circle punches, scallop oval and circle punch, crop-a-dile, fiskars scallop punch, Memento lulu lavender and tangelo ink.

Halloween Activity Sheets

2009-10-21T12:58:00.000-07:00

You might remember seeing these on the A Muse News blog during the Halloween sneak peeks. Thought I'd share them here so you could see them more closely. My son brings home worksheets from school everyday, so this idea came to me pretty easily once I was thinking about creating something for kids. These are actually a little advanced for him, but he loved seeing them when they were done! I printed the text on cardstock and then stamped in black so that they could be colored in if desired. Here is each page individually:

It was so fun to use the writing paper lines from the School Time clear set one this one:

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Images by A Muse. Versafine black ink, white cardstock, Memento Lulu Lavender (for writing lines).

amuse-bouche - Monogram Frames!

2009-10-14T13:04:00.000-07:00

Today's sneak peek features two new clear sets - Monogram Frames and also the Classic Alphabet! I thought it would be fun to create envelope seals out of the largest stamp in the frame set. This stamp fits perfectly with the EK Success 2" scallop punch - love it! The other four frame stamps in the set also work with punches and there is also a beautiful border and four different word stamps! Now, you can probably tell that I didn't actually seal the envelope here because I plan to put something in it first (LOL), but you get the idea. All I'd need to do is run the punched seals through my Xyron machine to make stickers out of them and I'd be good to go! They would be the perfect touch to dress-up your holiday envelopes!
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Images, envelope, and notecards by A Muse. Memento ink in Pear Tart and Bahama Blue, Spica Melon glitter pen.

amuse-bouche - Flatware!

2009-10-13T17:09:00.000-07:00

Two fabulous new stamps to see here - the flatware and the modern wood block! Then I used an older stamp for the sentiment. There is a new sentiment "please join us" that is great for invitations as well! And here is the new Mango Shimmer Couture paper! Stay tuned for another peek tomorrow!
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Images and notecards by A Muse. Versafine black ink, Memento desert sand ink, foam tape.

amuse-bouche - maple leaf!

2009-10-12T18:58:00.000-07:00

It's time for sneak peeks (or as we like to call them amuse-bouche!) The new A Muse stationery release is just beautiful with gorgeous shimmery paper and fabulous organic fall images. Colorful fall leaves are one of my *favorite* things. Since I live in the desert, the show of colors isn't as spectacular as in cooler climates. I delight in the *one* tree that is turning red on the way to my son's school - but I'll take it - better than none! So here I used various colors of dye ink to color the new Maple leaf stamp using the "rock 'n roll" technique. The green and brown layers are two of our new Shimmer Couture papers - in Grass and Espresso. And I thought this sentiment from the back-to-school release fit perfectly! Stay tuned for another amuse-bouche tomorrow and be sure to check out the fab creations from the rest of the team (and you can see another of my designs over on the A Muse News blog today as well)!
ETA: forgot to mention that this card is a slightly different size - worked out to be around 3.75" high and 4.5" wide. And the black ink that I used is Memories black - heat-set on the shimmer paper.
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Images and notecards by A Muse. Memories black ink (heat-set); Memento ink in Canteloupe, Rhubarb Stalk, Bamboo Leaves, Tangelo; Spellbinders label die cut; Big Shot.

Holiday class - November 14th!

2009-10-04T13:09:00.000-07:00

Had a great time at Crafter's Connection yesterday - so fun to hang out with the girls for a while! And back by request - I'll be teaching Make it Merry at Crafter's Connection on November 14th! We'll create five festive A Muse designs - perfect for the holiday season. I'll share tips for mass-producing your cards and also show you how to tie your holiday bows like a pro! I'll also share some Copic tips including how to refill and change your marker nibs. Hope you can join me!

Crafter's Connection, Canyon Country CA
Saturday, November 14th Make it Merry 10:30am
661-297-4005

Please bring preferred adhesive, sharp detail scissors, and a pencil.

October Calendar

2009-10-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Continuing in my monthly calendar series... here is October! You can't see them very well in the photo, but I stamped a few lighter webs in various spots on the page. The webs are all dusted with glitter of course, so they sparkle!
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Images, Black Dye ink, and calendar by A Muse. White cardstock, SU cardstock, Bind-it-all and 3/4" wire. SU Going Grey ink and marker, Art Glitter.

Class this Saturday!

2009-09-28T19:49:00.000-07:00

Celebrate World Card Making Day with me at Crafter's Connection this Saturday, October 3rd! Here is a sneak peek of the five Asian inspired cards we'll create using slick tricks and techniques. Hope to see you there!

Crafter's Connection, Canyon Country CA

Saturday, October 3rd, A Muse Asian Inspiration at 10:30am

661-297-4005

Please bring preferred adhesive , sharp detail scissors, and a pencil.

2010 Calendar is here!

2009-09-15T08:34:00.000-07:00

The 2010 A Muse calendar is here! This year, the proceeds from the calendar will go to Water 1st.

I'm excited about this calendar because I've had a theme in mind since last year! I was inspired by Julie's cover page on her 2009 calendar and thought it would be fun to make an entire calendar using a theme of Birds & Trees. The A Muse birds and tree stamps are some of my favorites and it was fun choosing stamps for each month! I decided I needed a little more space for stamping the trees, so this year I made an A2 size calendar. As usual, I plan to share one page each month throughout the year. But here is September 2010, to give you a little taste of what is to come. I backed each page with different colors of Juliette patterned paper - which gave me an instant color palette!

There's sparkle on both the cover page and the Leafy Tree leaves. (I hand drew the little falling leaves.) I can't wait to share the rest of the pages with you next year!

ETA: For the stand, I used the same stand design that I used last year - which is Julie's slick design and she shared details on creating it - here.

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Images, black dye ink, calendar, and paper by A Muse. Copic markers, Adirondack Espresso ink, Memento Tangelo and Bamboo Leaves inks, Art Glitter Angel Dust, quickie glue pen, Spica glitter pens, Spellbinders Nestabilities die, foam tape, Bind-it-all, 5/8" O-wires.

World Card Making Day - Class on Oct 3rd!

2009-09-03T10:30:00.000-07:00

Celebrate World Card Making Day with me at Crafter's Connection on Saturday, October 3rd - one month from today! We'll make five Asian inspired A Muse cards using slick tricks and techniques!

Crafter's Connection, Canyon Country CA
Sat, October 3 A Muse Asian Inspiration 10:30am
661-297-4005

Please bring preferred adhesive , sharp detail scissors, and a pencil.

amuse-bouche - Bella and Edward

2009-09-01T08:56:00.000-07:00

We are down to the final day of A Muse Halloween sneak peeks! And last but not least, here are Bella and Edward - based on the Twilight book series! *grin* If you visit some of the other A Muse blogs, you'll also find Jacob (well, as a wolf anyway!) and Bella's truck - so fun! For this design, I pulled colors from the meadow scene for their clothes. But I also wanted to give it that earthy twilight time of day look - so I used a new Paprika notecard and then sponged ink around the edges of the white layer. Tomorrow is the day to see all the new stamps over on the A Muse website!
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Copic markers, Memento ink in bamboo leaves and potters clay.

September Calendar

2009-09-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

Continuing in my monthly calendar series...
I had fun playing with the Leaves clear set on this one!
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Images and calendar by A Muse. White cardstock, SU cardstock, Bind-it-all and 3/4" wire. Memento Dandelion, Tangelo, Rubarb Stalk, Rich Cocoa, and Bamboo Leaves ink.

amuse-bouche - crooked house

2009-08-31T10:09:00.001-07:00

Today's amuse-bouche features the crooked house - which is one of my favs from the new A Muse Halloween release! And I am excited about the new slate notecards - they are definitely going to come in handy. There have been times where I needed a hint of black, but black cardstock just seemed a little too "heavy" for the design - so these should be perfect! Stay tuned - I have one more sneak peek tomorrow!
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Images and notecards by A Muse. Memento lulu lavender and bamboo leaves ink, Versafine black ink.

amuse-bouche - Vintage Halloween

2009-08-29T09:51:00.001-07:00

Spoooooky! For today's A Muse Halloween sneak peek, I am featuring the new tiny witch and spooky tree! I decided to leave off the sentiment on this one... and add it to the inside before sending. This was inspired by this design by my friend Sarah. It is really easy to add the background sky - dye ink and sponge daubers! Makes a really cool effect... and made me realize that I need to revisit more techniques I haven't done in while!
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Images and notecards by A Muse. Versafine black ink, EK Success Whale circle punch and scrap paper, Memento Lulu Lavender and Grape ink, sponge daubers.

amuse-bouche - halloween!

2009-08-28T14:15:00.001-07:00

Time for some sneak peeks of the A Muse Halloween stamps! This is almost the same as my design posted over on the A Muse News blog - but I used a Fern green notecard instead! This was actually my "first take", but I decided to change up the colors for a little more "pop"! BTW - the crow is one of the three crows in the A Muse "crows" stamp!
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Images and notecards by A Muse. Versafine black ink.

Hungry Caterpillar

2009-08-26T09:03:00.000-07:00

Told ya I had another idea for the solid apple stamp! *grin* One of my favorite things is making cards inspired by children's books, and it's been a while since I made one so I was excited when this idea hit me! This was inspired by Eric Carle's book The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Did you know that this year celebrates the book's 40th anniversary? Little did I know I was making this in honor of that too - bonus!

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Images, black dye ink, ribbon, and notecards by A Muse. Copic markers in Bright Parrot Green, Veronese Green, and Carmine. Triplus fine liner yellow pen, Black cardstock, 1/4" circle punch, 1" and 1 1/8" circle punches, glue dot, foam tape, Fluid chalk ink Warm Red.

Back to School

2009-08-20T13:10:00.000-07:00

If you read the A Muse News blog, then you saw these over there during the Back to School sneak peeks. Love the new apple (hmmm... just had another idea for it - might have to play with it again soon!) And I thought a filebox could make a useful teacher gift. I figured out where I needed to score and cut to make a box out of one sheet of cardstock. Then I added the scallop border all the way around. Speaking of back to school, I gotta run and pickup my son soon... Hope you are having a great week!
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Images, black dye ink, ribbon, and notecards by A Muse.
Filebox: Fiskars scallop border punch, McGill filetab punch.
Apple card: Fluid chalk ink in Warm Red and Olive.

Pencil Cup

2009-08-17T08:27:00.001-07:00

I thought it would be fun to share a few of my back-to-school designs with you this week. When I saw the new pencil stamp, I immediately envisioned using it for a pencil cup! This is a super quick and easy project - all you need is an emtpy can. (Gave me a good excuse to clean out my pantry looking for expired cans - *grin*!) I used a smooth edge can opener, so there are no sharp edges to worry about. Then I just wrapped Scor-tape around the top and bottom edges and adhered the paper, then added the pencil image layer - and done!

My son had a good first week of kindergarten! I still have some questions to be answered, but there is an open house coming up so that should answer most of them. The school has a new principal and vice-principal, so it's an adjustment for everyone I guess - things seem a bit disorganized. But it will all be smoothed out soon I'm sure!

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Images, paper, and black dye ink by A Muse. Copic markers, EK Success circle punch, Scor-Tape, can and can opener.

Class next Sat!

2009-08-06T13:32:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd give you a peek at the cards for my class next Saturday (Aug 15th) at Crafter's Connection. Space is very limited, so be sure to call the store in advance to sign-up. Hope you can join me!

Crafter's Connection, Canyon Country CA

Saturday, August 15th Make it Merry 10:30am

661-297-4005

Create five festive cards using stamps from the A-MUSE-A-PALOOZA 2009 release! I'll share tips for mass-producing your holiday cards and also show you how to tie your holiday bows like a pro!

Please bring preferred adhesive, sharp detail scissors, and a pencil.

Stamps are up!

2009-08-06T13:29:00.000-07:00

You probably know by now, but all the new A Muse stamps are up over on the A Muse website! So fun and did you see the ice cream girl and "here's the scoop" in the new Mandy's World stamps? So cute and of course I have to have them! Which ones are your favs?

amuse-bouche - football player!

2009-08-04T16:02:00.001-07:00

Here is another amuse-bouche for you from the A Muse Back to school release! I *love* football season and since I'm an OSU grad, of course I had to color the new football player in Ohio State colors! To make the yard lines on the "field", I used a lime band notecard and cut three strips of white cardstock in 1/8" widths. Then I set them on the card where I wanted them and penciled in some light lines at the top so I knew where to trim them at an angle. Then I adhered them to the card and trimmed off the bottom of each strip. So easy!
Be sure to tune in to the A Muse News blog and the creative team member blogs for more amuse-bouche! Tomorrow is release day and we still have some fun things to sneak peek for you that you haven't seen yet!
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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Copic marker in W2, Lipstick Red, Sand, Sepia, and Skin White; Spica clear glitter pen, Copic black multiliner (for the added stripe on the football player's pants); Memento Dandelion ink, Xyron.

amuse-bouche - wood frame!

2009-08-02T15:18:00.001-07:00

More back to school sneak peeks for you! I *love* the new wood frame stamp - it makes the perfect chalkboard! Lots of new to see on this card - the ribbon, the papaya notecard, the lined cardstock, and of course the stamps! I stamped the wood frame on a scrap of kraft cardstock and then colored the center with a Copic marker. Then used white pigment ink to stamp the words - so that it would look like chalk! So fun!
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Images, notecards, black dye ink, and ribbon by A Muse. Copic marker in W8, Colorbox white pigment ink, kraft cardstock, foam tape.

August Calendar

2009-08-01T11:50:00.000-07:00

I thought a lemonade stand would be fun for my August calendar. Nothing like a little pink lemonade on a super hot day! Stay tuned for more sneak peeks!
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Images, Black Dye ink, and calendar by A Muse. White cardstock, SU cardstock, Bind-it-all and 3/4" wire. Copic marker: Pale Pink, W2, clear Spica.

amuse-bouche - crayons!

2009-07-31T22:18:00.003-07:00

It's time for sneak peeks (or as we like to call them: amuse-bouche!) of the upcoming A Muse Back to School release. My son starts kindergarten soon and I remembered the notes that my mom put in my lunchbox when I was little. I loved seeing those notes everyday - such a fun surprise. So I decided to make a little set of notes for that very purpose! These are super easy and a great way to use up scraps! And they will definitely come in handy when school starts - especially the first week when we are getting into the routine of getting up early!

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Images, black dye ink, and notecards by A Muse. Copic markers in Lipstick red, sky, salad, and golden yellow.

Check this out!

2009-07-30T19:29:00.000-07:00

Link: Craft Critique CHA Summer - Day 3 brought to you by A Muse

If you are a fan of A Muse, be sure to check out the post over on Craft Critique! They have some great news on the CHA show as well.

And stay tuned for sneak peeks - amuse-bouche starts tomorrow!