A Muse News

For the boys

A long while ago, Emily created a card with the A Muse Penguin Pals sitting on our Many Thanks stamp.  I've always wanted to try this out with some of our other images.  Of course, we have lots of images that would work with this idea so it was hard to choose.  Imagine how fun the Duck family would look marching along on top of the word 'many' - so cute!

I decided to use our new Scout image.  He is part of our new May release and is one of Nina's favorite designs. Of course, I only have girls so I don't really know the current Boy Scout colors.  A loooong time ago, I was chosen to represent the Girl Guides of Canada at an international camp in Zimbabwe.  What an amazing experience that was!  Zimbabwe had just gained their independence two years earlier (1980) so naturally my parents were a *little* worried about me for the six weeks I was away.  The Zimbabwe Boy Scouts uniform at that time was all khaki colored.  In fact, I still have a shirt, scarf & hat from one of the boys (no funny business involved, let me assure you!) and it lives in our dress up box. 

 

I like that the letters can be colored in to coordinate with the rest of my card.

Have a great day!

Sneak Peek - Catchin' up!

I'm a little behind on showing you some sneak peeks of our new images that will be released May 1st.  My allergies have been making it difficult for me to spend any time on the computer because my eyes are so terribly swollen!  Ick! 

I have THREE little peaks for you today.  One of my all-time favorite stamps is the A Muse Tiny bird.  I am so happy that he will have a new friend to play with - our new Song bird! Song bird is featured in all three of my cards today. 

This first card, features Song bird and Egg Nest.  Both stamps are part of our May release.  I colored the stamped images on this card with my Koh-I-Noor colored pencils.  They are so smooooooooooth! 

The branch is from the Sushi clear set and the corner bracket is from the Circle Frames clear set which was released in April.   

My second card features Song bird and our new Bird house stamp.  This card was a snap to make using my handy dandy stamp positioner. The middle birdhouse is cut from white cardstock and foam mounted over top of a birdhouse stamped beneath.  This is a fun way to create visual interest on a simple card.

To create the sentiment, I used the A Muse Home Sweet Home stamp and masked off the 's' in the word sweet.  I then cleaned my stamp, inked only the t and stamped it in place with the help of my stamp positioner.  (I really do *love* this stamp positioner! LOL!)

And, my last Sneak Peek card for today features Song bird and our new Bird bath stamp.  I added a bit of clear glitter glue to the water to make it really sparkle.  Yes, our song bird has something to sing about!

We will also be introducing a collection of solid 4-bar notecards with our May release.  We call it the Chiffon collection and it includes 6 colors.  The colors are so soft and sweet... we almost called in the meringue collection!  mmmmm!  The cards above use the green, blue and yellow Chiffon notes, respectively.

Have a beautiful day!

Cards from VMAA #2

This is just a quick post to share the cards I made last night for the 2nd VMAA (www.amuseaddicts.com).

It was fun but challenging to get all of the cards made in the time allotted.  The one challenge that stumped both Novell and I was the Black & White ONLY one.  Oh la la!  I just couldn't get any inspiration going.  When I finally did make my card and showed it to the gals, they didn't 'get' it! LOL!  Must be my twisted humor.  I won't explain it and you can let me know if you get it.

This card was for the No Embellishments challenge. I love these gymnast guys but don't use them nearly enough!

This is my card for Geeta's Messy Glitter challenge.  I used my Xyron to put adhesive on the pink scallop oval, then I applied the ballerina oval and then I dropped it in my pot of glitter to make it all sparkly.  No mess - sorry Geeta. I love the new scallop border punch we received last week.  We rec'd a big shipment and I will be putting them in my favorite tools album soon.  This card will go to Hailey and another one to her friend Mary because they just learned that they will be moving up to Level IV ballet at PNB next year --> POINT shoes.

This next card was for Rhonda's Sketch challenge.  Here is my interpretation.  I had to remake my card because I bloobed while stamping the sentiment - don't you just hate that!  You can't see that my frog is all slick - I used a Sakura Clear glaze pen on his body & eyes to give him the 'wet' look.  I probably should have drawn some music notes coming from him to go along with the sentiment.  I love to listen to the frogs "sing" up at our cottage.  They can be *very* loud some nights!

My last card is for the black and white challenge.  Tell me, do YOU get it? LOL!

I will be back soon with some sneak peeks of our new products that will be released on May 1st.  So fun!

VMAA #2 - Bonus Challenge

Have you been playing along tonight for the 2nd Virtual Meeting of the A Muse Addicts (VMAA)?  I am here at A Muse Headquarters with fellow stampers, Heather, Novell, Melissa & Rhonda. We are stamping up a storm (except for Rhonda! - this is an inside joke!)

A while back, the Fab 4 moderators of the A Muse Addicts group asked if I would be able to come up with a challenge for VMAA#2.  Of course!!  My challenge is a BONUS Challenge and I hope you will play along.

My challenge is a word and it is open for your interpretation. 

The word is weekend.

When I lived in Ontario, I used to spend my weekends at my cottage on Crow Lake.  It is a lovely lake just north of Kingston, Ontario.  My cottage was very rustic - kind of like executive camping, complete with an outhouse.  We spent a lot of time building fires to burn brush, toast marshmallows and keep warm.  Our Three Trees stamp reminds me so much of the trees {white pines} on my property there.  They also remind me of some of the paintings by the Group of Seven.  If you are from Ontario, you will know what I'm talking about.

Anyhoo... here is my card.  Heather took this photo for me... 

I hope you will play along with this challenge.  Remember, you have 24-hours to create a card, post it online and link to the challenge over on the A Muse Addicts site to qualify for a fun prize.

Birthday stuff

Birthdays in our house are a whirlwind of activity with lots of last minute creativity on my part - birthday cards, banners and a cake, of course!

For Makenna's card, I wanted to emphasize that she is now SIX years old.  This is a big milestone for her because now she can sleep on the TOP bunk.  That also means that Annabelle has to move down... more on that later!

Here's the card I made her... Makenna is the kind of kid that actually notices cards and even READS them.  I love this girl! 

   

Here's a picture of a banner that I made her.  We've made many paper banners using our notecards but this one uses our brand new 8.5 x 11" sheets of polka dot card-stock.  Woohoo!  These will be available later this month in stores so be sure to look for them.  They are fun, fun, fun!

Here's a close up of the banner:

I used our Polka Dot Monogram Letters to spell her name.  I used my Xyron 250 to apply adhesive to the back of each letter.  The pretty flowers across the top are Prima brights (1 cm).  I used a LOT of  flowers and hardly make a dent in my bottle.  I don't think I will ever use 'em all up! LOL!

I wanted to do something special for Annabelle too because she has to move down to the lower bunk tonight.  Not a bright spot in her life, for sure.  I made a fun banner to hang over her bed.  This one is made from our 4-bar notecards with a scallop edge made from our solid square notes.  The letters on her name are from our Polka Dot Lowercase Large clear alpha set.  I love this set! I punched the letters with a marvy super scallop circle punch.  So fun!  I also hung up a new light and some fun pictures on the wall to make her feel welcome. 

She just got home from school and loves the banner and the light but is NOT happy about the move.  Ah well, she'll get used to it.  Life isn't fair, right?

I must run and frost the birthday cake.  Hopefully this will be the LAST time I have to make a Winnie-the-Pooh cake!  It's a tricky one to frost. 

BTW, did you know that Winnie-the-Pooh - the bear - was from Canada?  Yup, it's true... a Canadian soldier from Winnipeg (hence the name Winnie) found the bear cub, whose mother had been killed, and brought the bear to London with him (how?  I don't know!) When the soldier had to go fight in the war, he left the bear with the London Zoo, where A.A. Milne used to take his son to visit with Winnie.  Fascinating, eh?  That's a little Canadian trivia for you.  I've got LOTS more too but I'll save that for a rainy day! 

Have a beautiful day!

Brilliant!

Check out this post by Novell! Now I want to go buy some shrink film!

Hybrid Clear stamps - clever cards by Julie

As you may have heard, we are lucky, lucky, lucky to have the Queen of Stamping, Julie Ebersole, join the A Muse team on a full-time basis.  Julie has been designing for A Muse for the past five years and we are thrilled about her new role with A Muse.  Welcome, Julie!!

These are some card samples using the new A Muse 'Hybrid' Clear stamp sets that Julie created for us to display at a recent tradeshow. Her clever cards never cease to amaze me!

Stitched frames

This card also uses the A Muse Party Time clear stamp set and the wood mounted sentiment 'Save the date'.

This card also features our fun Purr-fect clear stamp sets with lots of fun stamps for kids with punny sayings. 

Bracket Frames

This card also features the A Muse Stitched Uppercase alphabet (one of my personal faves!)

The brackets used on this card are a fun shape to cut out and use for accentuating the design on your card or scrapbook page.  This card also features the A Muse Broadway alpha set and the stars are from the A Muse Sports set.

Cowboy frames

Both the lines and the curly bracket are from the new A Muse Cowboy Frames stamp set.  The three flowers are part of the A Muse Circle Frames clear stamp set.

Rectangle Frames

The card above includes two rectangular frames from our new Rectangle Frames set.  So versatile and fun!

I hope you have enjoyed these cards by Julie featuring our new Hybrid clear stamps.  I have even MORE cards using these fun frames to share with you this week.  Please stay tuned!

Clear stamp tips

Clear challenge

One of the challenges that I initially had with clear stamps was getting a crisp impression.  Our wood-mounted rubber stamps have a layer of cushion between the rubber and the wood.  This absorbs and distributes the pressure applied when stamping an image and allows for a crisp image every time.  Due to the lack of a cushion with clear stamps, I found myself pressing a little harder to get a good impression. The added pressure thickened the lines of the art and I didn't like it.  I *know* what the original art looks like so when it doesn't stamp "right", it really bothers me.

Use a mouse pad:

One night, I decided to try stamping my clear stamps onto a piece of cardstock laid on top of my mouse pad.  Bingo!  This did the trick.  Instead of having the "cushion" between the stamp and the wood, I now have a cushion between my desk and paper.  It takes a little practice (as it does with *every* wood stamp) to know how much pressure to apply but after one or two tries, I get perfect results every time. 

I have several different mousepads and the one that works the best is made from neoprene rubber - like a wetsuit! The one with the hard plastic coating didn't work any better stamping directly on my desk.  Most computer mice are now optical and don't require a mouse pad to roll on.  So, check your mouse.  Flip it over.  If you don't see a round ball peaking out from underneath you can add that mousepad to your stamp supplies.

Bendy stamps

Photopolymer is a pliable material.  The beauty of this is that it offers lots of creative possibilities by bending your stamps into different shapes.  This is especially fun with clear word stamps.  The bendy aspect can also drive you *@#$! crazy when you are working with some of our new Hybrid Clear stamps. 

Here's how to prevent this from happening:

Before you apply one of our clear frame stamps to an acrylic block, turn the stamp upside down (so the stamping surface is on a piece of paper) and the stamp should go back to it's original shape.   

Now you can position your clear block over the clear stamp and press down to adhere the stamp to the block. 

The stamp should now easily come away from the paper and be perfectly positioned on the acrylic block.

Thanks, Mom, for being my model. J

I thought you might like to see a photo of some of the actual frame stamps to see how the shapes "nest" inside one another.  Pretty cool, eh?

I am thrilled to share with you a gorgeous spring garland Tisha made with our new Hybrid Clear stamps and A Muse Pretty Little Papers.  So fun!!  Thanks, Tisha for letting me share this work of art!

   

I have LOTS more to share about our new Hybrid Clear stamps - more great cards and photo projects! 

"Hybrid" Clear Stamps

A few days ago, I shared with you some fabulous scrapbook pages using our new Hybrid Clear Stamps.  As you saw, these fun new stamps are perfect for scrapbookers!

Our new Hybrid Clear Stamps are also perfect for card-makers! 

Two of our new Hybrid Clear stamp sets {Circle Frames & Oval Frames} were designed to coordinate with our favourite Marvy puches.  I created these images as a handy reference so you can see which punches work with which shapes.

Circle Frames:

Here is a fabulous card using our new Circle Frames stamp, made by Heather. She didn't use a punch...  I just wanted to share the link because I really love the way the circle draws you into the design.

Oval Frames:

This fun monogram card, created by Tisha, demonstrates the oval punches in action.  Again, the addition of the oval really draws you into the design!

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The new Cowboy Frame set is one of my favourites!  It has such personality!  Clearly the stamp name influenced this adorable card, also by Tisha.

The new A Muse Hybrid Clear stamps are the best value in clear stamps for your money!  Our clever nested design allows us to provide you with at least 4 frames per set for the low price of $7.75.  Comparable frame stamp sets (with only 4 frames) will cost you much, much more.   

I have much more to share with you on our new Hybrid Clear stamps.  I'm going to jump offline now to format some photos for my next post.  Stay tuned for some tips & tricks for working with our new nested shapes and clear stamps in general.

New stamps for April!

I am so excited to share with you our newest stamp designs.  Our new wood-mounted stamps celebrate the women in our lives - just in time for Mother's Day!  You can click here to see them. 

I created this fun card using our new Tiara stamp and the A Muse lowercase polka dot alphabet set (a *must-have* alpha!)  I intentionally stamped the tiara a little slanty (in case you're wondering! <smile>) On the inside, I stamped "Queen for the day" - another new stamp. I was so excited about this card that I had to show my mom so now it looks like I'll have to make her a different card for Mother's Day! LOL!

 

Our new release also includes some fun new Mini Frame Clear Stamp sets that we have been working on for quite some time.  We call these new mini clear stamp sets "Hybrid" sets because they are perfect for both stampers and scrappers alike!  The nested shapes offer an incredible value. One of the sets includes 11 stamps - all for $7.75!  And, for all of you Marvy Punch fans, the circle and oval frames were designed to work with the various punch sizes. 

I have the pleasure of sharing some scrapbook pages that were created by Jennifer using our new Hybrid clear stamp sets.  These pages are just lovely and show how versatile these new clear sets are!

This first page uses the new Circle Frames and Cowboy Frames sets as well as the A Muse Birthday builder mini clear set.  I love the flowers Jen created.  The photos are of my daughter, Makenna.  Aint's she sweet?

This next page also features the Circle Frames set and also the Broadway letters and Sushi clear stamp sets.  The photos are of our Sales Manager, Cindy's husband, Jared.  Ain't he sweet?

This next page uses an assortment of clear stamps by A Muse.  The frame in the center is from the Bracket Frames set.  Other sets used are:

• Circle Frames
• Lowercase polka dot alphabet
• Nature

Emma is a friend.  She too is very sweet!

This last page includes some very clever flowers.  I tell ya, Ms. Pebbles is one clever gal!  The flowers were created with the Circle Frames clear set, and punching circles out of the A Muse Kitchen Blue 4-bar notes and then crinkling them up.  They are held together with a silver brad.  The photo on this page if of Cindy's sweet family.  Other A Muse Clear Stamp sets used on this page:

• Birthday builder
• Nature
• Rectangle Frames

As I mentioned, these new clear sets are perfect for card-making too!  I will share some CARD ideas tomorrow as well as some tips for working with the nested shapes.

Thanks for stopping by!

A Sneak Peek - at last!

Howdy!  I'm back and just in time for a couple of sneak peeks before we release our products on April 1st.  I hope you have been enjoying the fun sneak peeks from the A Muse Crew!

I also wanted to clarify that the release date for our newest stamps shall be April 1st.  The A Muse designers and instructors that posted a release date of March 31st were correct, however, for some reason I had it in my head that it was April 1st. Because I was out of town and had the release planned for the 1st, we'll have to go with that date.  Sorry!  Be sure to check back here at midnight PDT (pacific daylight time), April 1st (that's less than 24 hours from now!)

One of my favorite stamps from this release is the "bushes" in our new Stitched Garden Clear Stamp set.  Often, my favorite stamps are "supporting" images - like our grass, tree stump, nest, etc.  My mind is reeling with the possibilities for this stamp. 

The first thought that came to my mind was the lady golfer.  You see, I've only golfed a few times and ended up in the "rough" a few times.  I enjoy the challenge of hitting the ball in these situations.  Some of the people I've golfed with (no names - you know who you are! LOL!) are "serious" players and they were a little frustrated with my abilities.  No worries... Life is GOOD when you play golf - regardless of your abilities!

There are 4 new stamps used on this card:

• 2-6112C Lady golfer
• 8-8491B Life is good
• 2-SGAR Stitched Garden clear stamp set (bushes)
• 2-REFM Rectangular Frames

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This next card just cracks me up! Every summer at the lake, someone's dog hooks up with a skunk in the woods.  It's nasty business for sure! 

The new bushes are the perfect hiding spot for ms. skunk.  Watch out sniffer!

I have some fun pictures from our spring break trip to San Diego... just need to download them from my computer which is going to take a while.  <smile!>

Have a beautiful day!

Cute little Easter treat

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  Makenna didn't catch a leprechaun but the leprechaun did leave her some gold so she was pretty happy about that.

Can you believe Easter is THIS weekend?  How did THAT happen?  Sheesh!

The girls and I started this project yesterday as a fun little treat for their classmates. 

Here's what is inside...

These are so fun and easy to make!  You can make 4 from each A Muse 4-bar notecard.  Here's the pattern, in case you feel up for a fun crafty project!

I think these would make fun wedding favors. 

Download a_muse_mini_matchbook_treat_template.pdf

Enjoy!

Green cards for March

I thought I'd share with you a few cards that my mom and I created using our few St. Patrick's Day stamps.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, my husband and I were lucky to spend 8 months in the Southern part of Ireland.  We rented an old farmhouse in Rosscarbery, a picturesque little town in County Cork.  The scenery in Ireland is gorgeous (that's because it rains a LOT!) but the best part of Ireland is the hospitality! 

We came to know many wonderful people during our extended stay.  I got involved in a community effort to raise money to revamp the playground.  My computer skills were put to good use and I even went collecting door-to-door with some local folks. We raised the funds needed in just a few months and there is a fabulous new playground for the local children and tourists to enjoy.  If you look through the photo gallery at the link above, you will see some photos of the playground.   

This link will take you to the website of the family we rented "our" farmhouse from.  It was centuries old, with walls almost two feet thick!  The house pictured on the home page is actually and old stable and was converted into a holiday house during our stay at the farmhouse.  Our farmhouse, was just next door. If you are ever looking for a place to stay in Ireland, the Harte family's Lumina cottages are a great choice!

I have found a big box of photos and will post a few once I see how they scan. 

St. Patrick's Day celebrations in Ireland are much different than they are in North America.  It is much more of a religious celebration than the party-type celebrations we have here.  We went to the pub in search of green Guinness but there was none to be found.  I seriously doubt that anyone in Rosscarbery sends cards on St. Patrick's day but these are fun cards all the same.

This "matchbook" card is super-easy to make. I think it would make a fun lottery ticket holder, or perhaps a fun coupon booklet.

My mom saw me playing with these stamps and wanted to join in the fun.  I like how she added the twinkle stickers to the pot of gold and like the sentiment she chose to go with the card.  Yay, Mom!

This card was inspired by my daughter, Makenna.  She is determined to catch a leprechaun this St. Patrick's Day.  She has decorated a box { the trap }. Apparently the "secret" to catching a leprechaun is to lay a trail of clovers up to the door.  So here comes our unsuspecting Curly Girl ready to walk through a patch of clover...  will she be caught in Makenna's trap?  Stay tuned for next week's episode of as the world turns...

At A Muse, we pride ourselves on coming up with unique and clever word stamps to go with our images.  Sometimes we come up with some pretty crazy things that give us a good giggle but we'd never make into a stamp (although we are toying with the idea of an A Muse After Dark line... tee! hee!)

Every time I use the A Muse 'Have a lucky day' stamp, I am reminded of a funny word stamp idea we came up with during our brainstorming session -  "hope you get lucky!"  I'm sure you can see how this could be mis-interpreted.  I giggled the whole time I was making this card.  And, I know it will give the recipient a good chuckle too!

I wanted to show you a close-up of the pot of gold because it is super-sparkly.  I used a Sakura clear stardust pen.  It was the perfect finishing touch!

Have a lucky day!

Talk to the flower

Michelle (one of the A Muse instructors) is an elementary school teacher.  She mentioned something a while back that made me laugh.  On her classroom wall she has an ear at her students' level.  Whenever a child wants to tattle on someone about something silly, they talk to the ear.  I love it!  Teachers are so resourceful!

This card cracks me up... makes me think that the Little bird is talkin' to the flower... just think how much money she's saving on therapy! LOL! 

Just a few notes on this card: The flower is made with the A Muse Stitched Daisy stamp which I stamped with Tangerine Fluid Chalk ink and cut out (a little time consuming!).  The centre of the flower is made with an EK Success 1 1/8" circle punch and an A Muse 4-bar Yellow kitchen notecard.  The stem for the flower is made with one of the fun borders from the A Muse Fancy Borders clear stamp set... I bent it to give it the appearance of a stem. It is stamped in Olive Pastel Fluid Chalk ink.

Have a great weekend!

 

Life's Simple Pleasures...

This week was a bit of a crazy one for me, but I did find time to enjoy some of life's simple pleasures. 

• a nice long chat with my big sis
• coffee & shopping with my mum
• mucking about in the garden with my girls
• reading Nancy Drew (oh how I love Nancy Drew!!)
• watching ballet class
• dinner with friends
• and an amazing cross-country ski trek in the Cascade Mountains

I made a few cards to send to some special people this week.  I won't say who they are for in case they pop in here and see them! 

This first card uses one  some of my favorite A Muse products...  Madeira blue notecards, Chair & lamp stamp, A Muse Palm Green ribbon... I love blue & green together but I'm always reminded of this saying...

"blue & green should never be seen, except together in the washing machine!"

This next card is super simple but reminds me of growing up in Quebec.  I spent  *every* weekend of my youth at our cottage.  In winter, when it was too cold to stay at the cottage, we would stay at my grandmother's house because she had electricity, running water, heat... these things are sort of necessary when it is -30C.  Sometimes, however, my dad would make us stay at the cottage and we'd have to ski across the lake with all our gear and cut a hole in the ice to get water for doing dishes and to flush the toilet.  He was a pioneering kinda guy back then. Despite the cold, we always had a great time.  My cousins all lived nearby and we'd go exploring on our cross-country skis every weekend. 

I like all types of skiing (alpine, skate, water) but I LOVE to cross-country ski.  I love the sounds, the fresh air, the warmth because you are working your whole body and the solitude.  Such a GREAT feeling!  You don't need a lot of fancy equipment or stylish clothing for this sport and you can go any speed you like and still enjoy it.  To me, it is one of life's simple pleasures!

This last card reminds me of my grandmother.  She loved to knit and taught me how to knit socks (which I still wear cross-country skiing!)  She also loved to drink tea.  Grandmothers are one of life's simple pleasures too!

Here are a few more of my simple pleasures:

• butterscotch pudding (the kind you have to cook)
• bubble baths
• my morning runs
• morning snuggles
• a good latte
• Leonidas chocolates

What are yours?

 

VMAA - Challenge #3

Are you playing along with the VMAA Challenges tonight over at www.amuseaddicts.com?  If you are just joining us, please read this earlier post for the scoop on VMAA.

The third challenge is a sketch challenge by Rhonda.  Here's the sketch

   

And, here's my card. 

The card size is 3.5" square.  I cut down one of our Kitchen Collection Blue 4-bar notecards.  Is this Mini Chick bee Elzybells stamp not the cutest thing you've ever seen?!!  The green frame is a sneak peek for you of a fabulous new clear stamp set that we will be releasing shortly.  All other products are A Muse.  If you have specific questions, post a comment.

One more card to go!

VMAA - Challenge #2

The 2nd challenge for VMAA (see earlier post for the 411 on this fun event!) is by Geeta. Her challeng is to create a "masculine card".  Now this is something I struggle with and I know a lot of us stampers do. 

I think I forgot to mention in my earlier post that there will be PRIZES for participating in VMAA over at www.amuseaddicts.com.

To get inspiration for this challenge, I flipped through the A Muse catalog to get a good look at all our stamps first.  I noticed that we have a lot of "girly" images and not so many images that are suitable for men.  Looks like an opportunity! Ding! Ding!

I decided that to use the A Muse Drum set for my card.  Most of my guy friends were in some kind of garage band in their younger days so this image jumped out at me. 

Here are my "rules" for adult male cards:

colors: browns, blues, greens, orange, yellows & reds

sparkle - none or *very* limited

scallop punches - in general no but sometimes yes

embellishments - some hardware is OK (brads & eyelets)

ribbon - stripes and solids ok with knots (no bows)

shape scissors - scallops no, pinking yes. 

What do YOU think?  I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this challenging subject matter.

Stay tuned... another challenge card is coming!

It's PARTY time!

In case you haven't heard, the first EVER Virtual Meeting of the A Muse Addicts (VMAA) is going on right now over at www.amuseaddicts.com.

So, what is VMAA you ask?  It's a fun night of stamping challenges with your fellow A Muse Addicts.  Every half hour there will be a challenge posted on the Addicts website (hop on over and get registered right now... Geeta will be online during the party and will approve your account lickety-split!)

I cheated a wee bit since I am heading out of town for the weekend (it's Holy Oly weekend at Hyak!!).  I begged the gals to let me know what the challenges were in advance so that I could make cards for the challenges and post 'em here for the party.

My first card is for Michelle's "No coloring" challenge.  I *love* this NEW A Muse Party Chick stamp and the greeting "You're still a spring chick".  I ofen am amazed that I am no longer in my 20s... how did THAT happen?  I like to consider myself still a spring chick and know that one of my girlfriends will appreciate this card.

Stay tuned for my next challenge card.

And another... Spring *s n e a k * peek

This sneak peek was created by A Muse designer, Becky. This adorable bunny (MB Bunny flower) is not just for Easter - it is also a great image for a thank you or friendship card. It would also be fun to pair this bunny with the A Muse Miss you stamp.

Growing up I had a stuffed bunny that looked a lot like this stamp. Unfortunately, I took him to live in my dorm room during my one year at CEGEP (in Quebec, you go to CEGEP after High School and before University) and let's just say that my poor bunny didn't fare so well. Apparently my dorm mates thought it was funny to steal my beloved bunny and do bizarre things to him. Poor bunny! I'm happy to have this bunny in my stamp collection now!

We had a great day of skiing. There is a LOT of snow. I'll take some pictures tomorrow to share with you because it is really quite unbelievable. The folks on the first and second floors of our building cannot see out their windows because there is soooo much snow! The girls and I helped a few folks shovel this afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your weekend. If you have a moment, be sure to pop on back because I will have another sneak peek for you tomorrow. Linda

another SPRING ** s n e a k * p e e k **

This new stamp {MB Spring basket} just cracks me up!  I love the bunny, chick and egg sittin' so still in the basket. 

To give the basket more depth, I stamped the image on an A Muse Madeira Brown notecard and cut around just the basket part.  I was planning to foam mount it over the basket portion on the white tag but I didn't have any foam tape handy. I adhered it directly onto the tag and it still looks pretty cute!

I *love* the A Muse Sheer ribbon.  It ties such perfect little bows.  I used my McGill ribbon punch (it's a handheld punch) to make the holes and then worked the bow from there.

We hope to do some skiing this weekend.  The mountain passes have been closed the past two weekends due to excessive snow. Our ski hill is only open on weekends so it has been nearly three weeks since anyone has been able to ski!  My husband is planning to be the first one out to get some FRESH tracks!  I will be keeping a very short leash on my three little ski bunnies to make sure they don't fall into any deep tree wells.  Yikes!

I hope you have a fun and creative weekend. 

A Muse spring *sneak* peek

Are you ready?  I know that the A Muse Creative Team has a lot of *sneak* peeks planned for you in the next five days.  All products will be viewable right here on the 19th of February. 

The card that I am sharing with you today, includes THREE new products:

• NEW A Muse grosgrain stitch ribbon
• NEW A Muse kitchen notecard - yellow
• NEW A Muse stamp - MB Bunny dress

I just love this little bunny stamp with her stylish dress, designed by Missy. (I didn't do a very good job tying the ribbon!  Ooops!  It seemed ok, until I photographed it - LOL!)

Other A Muse products used: stamps: 2-4087B Flower doodles (this stamp is a must-have in my book!), 7-8229C Egg hunt. papers: N800-TP Mango Tin Plate notes, NS200 Orange crush notes.

Happy Valentine's Day!

We sure had lots of fun these past few weeks making Valentine treats and cards.  Last night, we baked some mini cupcakes to celebrate.  Makenna wasn't feeling well so we waited until this morning to decorate them.  A *fun* project before school.  Let's just say that I'm glad it was a "free dress" day.

** Warning!  Lots of photos in this post! **

Makenna is home sick today.  She has the honour of holding the Valentine Cupcakes for this photo.  It's impossible to tell from the photo but the pink "sprinkles" are actually mini pigs.  Too funny!

This is the Valentine Makenna made for us. 

These are the Valentine's Hailey made for us.  She printed all the pictures on her computer (the one she bought with the money she raised at the Winterfest Craft Sale by selling heater packs).

I made this card for my husband, Ross.

Here's the one I made for Annabelle (my special name for her is pumpkin pie!)...

... and for Makenna

... and Hailey (she LOVES candy so I thought this would be appropriate!)

... and my Mom.

Did you spot any new A Muse products in the post?  There are two.

Stay tuned for an "official" Sneak Peek of more new A Muse products in a short while. 

All new A Muse products will be released on February 19th. We began shipping to stores late last week so check in with your LSS (local stamp/scrap store) to see if they have them yet.

Have a *L O V E L Y* Day!

An old favorite

It is so easy to get caught up in all that is NEW.  Don't get me wrong... I love it too! 

I was looking for a stamp the other day and came across the A Muse Fairy Princess stamp {2-3016G} looking up at me. This princess rocks!!  I realized that it had been years since I had shown her a little ink - poor thing!  This gal has been around a loooooooooong time - since our first year in business - but she is still one of my favorites. 

This first card is for a friend's birthday.  I thought it was fun to have the Fairy Princess wave her magic wand to conjure a tiny gift. The colors in this card were inspired by a photo of some pretty yellow tulips I saw earlier today (in a bulb catalog). I'm getting anxious for Spring and the warmer weather that comes with it! 

While I was playing around with the Fairy princess, the following idea came to me.  Please know that I would *never* give this card to anyone but hopefully it will bring a little smile today.  My husband spotted it on my desk and he had a good laugh. 

I was thinking about some Elzybells cards that the Design Team created using the 'Girl & Frog' stamp and our new 'Fairy tales to come true' stamp.  Well this is a bit of a take off from that idea. Beautiful princess waves her magic wand to turn the ugly frog into handsome prince... oh-oh!... something's not quite right...

...she ends up with Boris instead.  He still has frog skin and his crown has turned into crazy hair.  Eeek!

She better take that wand in for servicing!

Do you have an "oldie but goodie" that needs some love?

Fast & Fabulous!

Welcome to my latest obsession - the A Muse 4-bar notecards!!!

I love this format for card-making but our unique format (with the fold on the 3.5" axis) also provides  lots of creative possibilities for making little gifty-type items as well.

If you haven't finished your Valentine's projects, no worries!  There's still plenty of time left and these projects are super fast!  The key ingredient in each of these projects is an A Muse 4-bar notecard. 

This first project is one that I designed for my daughter, Annabelle. It is a fun little "matchbook" design.  (She didn't want to make "heart sandwiches" because her sisters were making them.) 

Here's the inside of Annabelle's matchbook

I scored one of our 4-bar notecards at 3.5" from the centre score-line.  I then cut the other "half" of the notecard to 3.25".  I'm a visual person so I created this "template" for you to follow - click on photo for full-size view.

I used my small scallop scissors to make a decorative edge (see diagram).  Next choose something to affix inside.  Annabelle chose Valentine M&Ms and I chose a tea bag.  You could also use a small zip-lock or glassine bag and fill it with small treats too (like cinnamon hearts - my all-time FAVOURITE!!!)  For a non-candy option, you could include stickers or tattoos.  Fold the flap over the item you've chosen and staple all layers together.  Slip the other half of the card under the flap and you've got a fun little treat.  You may decorate as you wish.  Here's the one that I made.

closed

open

This next treat holder is a slight variation on the "matchbook" idea.  I call it a *wallet*. 

Ultimately, the size you make your wallet will depend on what you put inside.  Start by measuring your item and then add some "room" around the edges .  In my example, the tea bag measures 3"h x 2.5"w.  My wallet dimensions are 3 1/8" by 3.5" (the width of an A Muse 4-bar note).  The extra room on the width allows you to get a good strip of adhesive on each side.

To make it easier to remove the tea bag, I created a cut-out using my Marvy Super Scallop circle punch.  I like how this allows you to read the name of the tea manufacturer.  I used the new A Muse 'Teacup & saucer' and 'You're my cup of tea' stamps.  (Coloured with COPIC Original markers - Blush, Shadow pink, Barely beige & Sand).

The last item that I have to share with you today is a super-fast *pocket card*.  Once again, our 4-bar notes are the perfect solution!  For this card, I folded a Red Madeira 4-bar note so that the pattern is on the inside.  This offers a nice "canvas" to stamp on and saves time! 

I will be out of town the week before Valentine's Day so I'm trying to plan ahead.  Normally I would be making these things at 2am on the 14th! LOL!!  I have made one for each of my girls' teachers as well as our fabulous drivers at the shop (Mr. UPS, Mr. Fedex & Postman Jim.) We are very fortunate to have really great drivers that are always happy to pick up our piles of packages. 

Here's one that I made especially for Kent, our UPS driver.  I used our Ice cream truck stamp and masked off the ice cream cone and the music notes. (Truck is coloured with COPIC Original marker - Sepia.) I cannot claim credit for this clever idea... one of our designers came up with it a while ago... so long ago that I can't remember who! Sorry! 

I have one more fun treat container made with our 4-bar notes that I will share in our weekly a-muse-letter this Friday (Feb 1st) along with a template.  It's a wee bit more involved - you will need a ruler and scissors.  If you are not signed up to receive our weekly a-muse-letter just click on the link over on the left under A Muse Essentials.

Speaking of *love* things... I cannot wait... tonight we are going to see the dress rehearsal for PNB's Romeo et Juliette. 

Have a *lovely* day!

Gluepad + Hearts = LOVE

I really love to make cards and little treats for Valentine's Day.  It's my favorite "holiday" for giving.  I love Christmas but things always get a little too crazy and the pressure we put on ourselves (at least I do!) is immense.  This past weekend, my mum helped my girlies made Valentine treats for their class-mates.  They are a-d-o-r-a-b-l-e!  I will share some photos tomorrow.

Here are a few cards that I made for some special friends. For these cards, I pulled out my Glue Pad.  I know that folks have had mixed results with this pad but I encourage you to play with it some more!  Here is my little tutorial for using the Essential Glue Pad. 

The key is to make sure that you add more glue to the pad *every* time you use it!  EVERY time. If you touch the pad and it feels tacky, you need *more* glue. 

To economize on glue, just apply some in a small area and then lightly tap, tap, tap your stamp in this area.  Before you stamp your image, look at the rubber and see if you have good glue coverage on the image of the stamp.  The next step is critical.  Your stamp will now be quite slippery so be careful not to let the stamp slide upon contact.  Go *straight* down and then lift straight up S-L-O-W-L-Y.  I have found that if I lift up too quickly a lot of the glue stays on the stamp.

Now, here's what happens when you add glitter:

Just look at how crisp and sparkly the glitter looks!

Here's what happens when you use the same stamp with the Shimmers Chalks:

If you click on either of these photos, you will see a bigger picture in a new window.  This shows a lot more detail. 

The glue pad works really well with the chalks.  It sort of grabs the chalk and allows you to just apply chalk to the image and not create a halo effect around it. 

Tell me, what do *you* think of the Glue Pad.  Do you have an tips or tricks to share or favorite applications? 

Sooo many cards!

Over the years, I have accumulated a LOT of hand-stamped cards.  I'm sure they must number in the thousands!  You see, whenever I make a card, I usually make two!  One to show, and one to go.  And, of course, I have all sorts of fabulous cards from A Muse designers as well.  Oh la la!

Another complication for me is that if someone sends me a hand-stamped card, I have to keep it.  The good news is that today  I was able to take some pictures of a few cards for your viewing pleasure!  Of course, they all feature A Muse stamps and papers.

This first three cards were designed by Becky. Babies and Brides are always fun to make cards for!  Aren't they awesome?

This last card, by Emily, is one of my all-time favourites.  I just love the red and silver together.  Clean, simple... beautiful!