Another Birthday *sneak peek*

Here is another card from the Mainly Men clear stamp set. Again, this image can easily be used for a woman. I think that is one of the best things about this set.

If you look at Emily's blog, you'll see a similar version. I really love hers, with the old school printer paper. She is a genius!

If you are on the A Muse email list, you may have already had a special surprise in your inbox. Didn't get the surprise? Well, what are you waiting for? Sign up here! You won't be sorry (especially because A Muse won't share your info with anyone, but they will share fun stamping tips with you!).

card info: all materials by A Muse (Mainly Men card kit), Copic marker - warm gray no.4.

For the Birthday Boy *sneak peek*

This card features one of the new clear sets being released in two days. It is a set for all the men (and boys) in your lives. The set is really terrific because the images are specifically for a man, but some can very easily cross the gender line, like this one.

There really seems to be a lack of stamps designed for manly cards, but this clear set is just perfect! Every once in a while we do need to send a man a card, right?

When making this card I asked my husband what he thought and he liked that it was simple and not full of frills (i.e. twinkle stickers, ribbon, glitter, pastel colors, etc.). I have to agree with him. Masculine cards can really be so simple, therefore, so easy for us to make, if we can just keep ourselves from reaching for all the frills ;)

I will have another card for you tomorrow, leading up to the release on May 1. I can't wait to hear what you all think of the new stamps and paper!

card info: all items from A Muse (Mainly Men card kit), Prismacolor marker - muted turquoise.

Lots of White Space Below and a *Sneak!*

A quick and simple card with a *sneak peek* for you. I wanted something that could be used for any occasion and be made easily. A card like this could for a friend who loved polka dots. I thought to use red polka dot ribbon, but I am almost out! Got to fix that quick.

So, many of you spotted the "to go" cup in the cards yesterday, but no one noticed the *new* yellow notecard from the guilty pleasures card. It goes with the beautiful soft pink notecard and there are other colors, too! I've got another sneak for you tomorrow featuring another color, too ;)

Have a great Monday!

card info: notecard, papers, ribbon, image and sentiment by A Muse, eyelets by Making Memories, Copic markers - lipstick red, grass green, blush.

VMAA Recap - Can You Spot the Sneak Peek?

Last night was the A Muse Addicts VMAA and it was a lot of fun. I enjoyed the challenges of making cards set to the theme of the 70's. I kept wondering if Geeta had some Bay City Rollers playing in the background *hee hee*.

Last night, as I participated, blogger was running very slow, so I uploaded the first three challenges to SCS. I had to head to bed before the last two challenges, though, because we get up for church very early. I finished the last two cards this afternoon between loads of laundry. So, here are all of my cards from VMAA #2:



The first challenge was "Let It Be" - no embellishments on the card. I decided that I would keep with the 70's theme, too, and created a VW bug line, 70's catch phrase and some tacky plaid (I used an A Muse Pretty Little Paper and added stripes with my Copics).



The second challenge was "Disco Ball" and we had to use real glitter, not Stickles. I think that there are some beautiful glitters out there and I have a small collection myself, so this was another fun challenge. I had been working on making gift card holders for my kids' Sunday School teachers (I used the *new* 8.5" x 11" A Muse paper - it is A W E S O M E !!! - and was able to make three from one sheet). Since these were Starbucks gift cards, I used a coffee cup with a glittery Starbucks green circle logo. So easy and simple.



The third challenge, "Do The Hustle" was a sketch challenge. I thought it was such an interesting sketch, so I decided to do something interesting with the card. I cut the card in half, then trimmed the front, added the black strips, etc. and re-attached the front with a brad so that it swings to the side. Below is a look at how it works.



I kinda like it just because it is different.



The fourth challenge was "Saturday Night Fever" and we had to create a card using NO COLOR, only the beautiful black and white from John Travolta's dancing duds. Well, I had to do this one today. The first stamp I saw when I sat to stamp was the fancy frame. "Hmmm, what can I do with that one?" Well, I have a cousin getting married next week and I need to send a card with her present, so I made a wedding card. I don't know if she is having a "Black and White" wedding, but this would be perfect for one of those. All in all, I like that I could do a challenge and actually use the end result.



The final challenge was using the word "weekend" to inspire a card. That was a little tough, but then I realized that for the nest three weekends we have invitations to Cinco de Mayo/Margarita/Tamale parties! So, a margarita card was born. I changed the sentiment for this one, because I think I'd feel a little guilty drinking margaritas three weekends in a row! (The lime slice idea came from Julie Ebersole - gotta give her credit)

So, did you find the sneak peek? All the card making materials are by A Muse, but if you have a question about something specific, email me. I'll be back tomorrow with another sneak peek for you!

The Sneaks Are Coming! The Sneaks Are Coming!

I am so glad that we finally get to share some *new* and fun stuff with you! First off, A Muse will have new stamps and paper releasing on May 1, so there will be sneak peeks for a few days. There are wood mounts and some new clear sets, too.

If you notice, the notecard is NEW! It is a beautiful shade of light pink, a perfect partner for flower and baby images, in the 4-bar size. The colors being released are just lovely shades, too. I hope you can find some of the others during the sneak peeks.

One of my new favorite wood mounted stamps is this flower cart. It reminds me of photos I've seen in magazines from beautiful gardens. I'd love to have one of those beautiful gardens, but the Virginia clay, deer and my children have joined forces to thwart my plans! It would be a splendiferous day for me if I were able to collect a cart full of flowers, sans skunk. I had this vision of Flower from "Bambi" when I was looking through my stamps ready to make sneak peeks, so I couldn't resist putting these images together.

If you are excited about new stamps, check out the other A Muse Designers and Instructors for more sneak peeks. And don't forget about the VMAA on
A Muse Addicts message boards tonight!

card info: notecard, papers, images and sentiment by A Muse, brads by Making Memories, ribbon by May Arts, Copic markers - sepia, burnt umber, begonia pink, shadow pink, dark pink, new leaf.

News and Lots of Pictures

Hi everyone. I've been slaving away on some new stamping assignments lately and I am happy to announce that I can share these with you starting Saturday!!! Told you there would be treats later this week.

Speaking of Saturday, the A Muse Addicts are hosting their second Virtual Meeting of the A Muse Addicts (VMAA) at 8pm CST. You can find more details here, but you will have to register first. I hope to make it through at least half of the night.

Speaking of the A Muse Addicts, there is a Step It Up Challenge this month to make a mini book. I decided to use up some photos of our big family gathering from Easter to make a book for my mom. I used the new clear frames sets from A Muse for journaling spaces, which, I have to tell you, are PERFECT for mini books! Below are some pictures of the book and some pages. I'm in a hurry this morning, so I'll leave it at that. All patterned papers and stamps are from A Muse and I used a Bind-it-All to put it together.

Looking For Summer

Last week we had the most wonderful weather, even reaching into the 80s a couple of days! My kids and I decided to plant some snow peas, hoping that the weather would get a little cooler for the plants to thrive. Hopefully the deluge of rain we've received didn't wash away all the seeds.

In our gardening madness over the weekend, I thought about Farmer Hare and thought he needed to be used. I used Heather's spark challenge, using blue and orange together, too. I've been wanting to use buttons on my cards for a while, so I poured out the buttons in my little jar, picked out a few and added those to the mix. I even used a technique Julie talked about in this post about using thin strips of cardstock on the buttons. Very cool idea!

I've got a mountain of work ahead of me this week, so posts might be meager. But, never fear, you will be rewarded at the end of the week! *wink*

card info: image and sentiment by The Saltbox Studio, notecard and papers by A Muse, kraft cardstock, colored pencils, buttons, pop dots.

Sparked by Pottery Barn

I thought Heather's spark for last week was going to be a toughie for me. I take photos, but mostly of my kids. I love my kids, but could they spark inspiration? Hmmm, well, uh, did I mention I love my kids?

Well, I was helped along by the arrival of a PB Teen catalog. There are some really neat things in the catalog, especially color combinations. I struggle with this from time to time because I tend to get into a "same old thing" mind-set. Anyhow, I saw this rug and thought that the colors were really so striking (sorry for all the links, not sure if I am allowed to post PB's photo!). I turned to my stamps, and tried to create a reasonable facsimile of the rug. I love the brown one, but for stamping purposes, I decided to go with the cream one. I used clear flower stamps from A Muse and the clear branch from The Saltbox Studio. I like it, but I think I'd try it again. What do you think?

card info: flower images, sentiment, papers, and twinkle sticker by A Muse, branch image by The Saltbox Studio, Copic markers - robin's egg blue, sepia, begonia pink, honey, new leaf, Prismacolor marker - sunburst yellow.

For the Gardener

Good day everyone! Just a quick share today. I made this card for my sister last week. I really love the new clear frames because there are so many shapes and sizes to mix with my wood mounted images (this one was stamped with chalk ink then colored and glitterfied). I am going to keep working with these to see what images fit in each frame. I think that the possibilities are boundless!

Any So. Cal. stampers out there? One of the A Muse crew, Michelle White, is opening her own paper crafting store in San Diego on May 1! She will carry all of the A Muse product, as well as some fun art prints by another A Muse crew member, Nina! Check it out if you are in the San Diego area, then report back to me - I'd love to hear all about it.

card info: notecard, stitched ribbon and images by A Muse, glitter by Stampendous, sentiment by Elzybells NA, scrap piece of ribbon, Copic markers - sand, sepia, new leaf, shadow pink, tender pink.

Open House at The Saltbox Studio

Today is the day for all you stampers looking forward to The Saltbox Studio April release. You can find all the goodies here. This card features stamps from two sets and I really don't know which I like more; both are so much fun to use! I love the different birds and the birdhouses are such great images. Have fun shopping :)

card info: images and sentiment by The Saltbox Studio, notecard and twinkle sticker by A Muse, cardstock, ribbon and brads from my supply, Copic markers - powder blue, robin's egg blue, sand, burnt umber, grass green, shadow pink.

SPARK-ly *sneak peek*

Last Friday, Heather shared her "spark" with us here: use glitter. I love making sparkly cards for people, but I sometimes forget that element when I am in a quick mood. But these birdies, when colored in blue, needed a little bit more blue, and I found this pretty blue glitter and *presto-chango* a sparkly card happened.

There are so many new birdies in the new release from The Saltbox Studio and I really just love using them. I seem to want to use the birdies on all my cards now. I think that I need to watch birds in my yard to find some new ways to color the birds, though. I love the blue, but there really aren't that many blue birds out my window.

Don't forget, stampers, tomorrow is the release of these great new clear stamps! I'm sure that you'll find something that you have to have. Oh, and we get to share a new talent with you, too, in the form of a new Design Team member!

card info: images and sentiment by The Saltbox Studio, notecard and papers by A Muse, glitter by Art Institute, Prismacolor watercolor pencils.

A Little Birdie *sneak peek*

I wanted share another quick card with some more peeks at what is coming from The Saltbox Studio on Thursday. The other day a similar card was posted on The Saltbox Studio blog that was made by Kelly. I really love hers, such beautiful colors (I was using up some scraps of cards that I had laying on my desk, so at least my desk is a little bit more clean). I also found this sketch (SC159) on SCS the other day, although, I must say, this is a layout I use a lot.

Speaking of posts on The Saltbox Studio blog, Beth shared a card by me. You can see it here. Today is a beautiful card by Becky and the other day, there was a genius card by Lexi. Be sure to check these out when you have time.

My time on the computer has been limited because I am potty training, so for those who have tagged me recently, I will see if I have time, but when the potty calls...

card info: images and sentiment by The Saltbox Studio, patterned papers by A Muse, kraft cardstock from my supply, brads by S.E.I.,
Copic markers- warm grey no.2, sepia, new leaf, robin's egg blue, manganese blue, raw silk, sand.

Another *sneak peek* for you

Here are two more new mice from The Saltbox Studio. These little guys come in a large set with lots of images, including a mama mouse and a baby, too. Great for your Mother's Day and any baby card needs.

This card was actually my daughter's idea - she saw the stamps and said that if I put the boy and girl together it would be like my son and her. I tried to get her to make the card but she was a little nervous. She always wants perfection and thought she'd mess things up. I'm going to try to get her to do a card soon, though, because I know she'd have fun with it. If I only had two children this would be a card easy enough for my husband to make with my kids to give to me, but I since I've got four, he's out of luck!

I'll be back tomorrow with another peek-a-loo for you.

card info: images and sentiment by The Saltbox Studio and A Muse (oval), notecard and papers by A Muse, Copic markers - blush, warm gray no.2 and 4, shadow pink, manganese blue, black pen, Spica glitter pen, ribbon by Martha Stewart crafts, flower by Doodlebug Designs.

Tweet *sneak peek*

I have a tweet for you today - another sneak at the new images from The Saltbox Studio. This card has images from three different sets. The sets are great because the images all work together so nicely. I love this sentiment, too. Anything that involves treats is good, right?

I found the sketch for this card on SCS when I was browsing the other day. It is kind of a different look for me, so many panels, but I was still able to keep it simple. Happy Saturday!

card info: images and sentiment by The Saltbox Studio, papers and notecards from A Muse, twill ribbon from my supply, Prismacolor markers - sky blue light, sepia, walnut, crimson, cool grey 20%, deco pink.

Just Beecause *sneak peek*

I am so glad that I am finally able to share some fun new images with you. First of all, these will be available starting April 10 from The Saltbox Studio. This image is actually from a new banner mini set of stamps. It has all kinds of cute bee sayings to go with it, but this is my favorite. I love being able to send someone a card for no reason at all.

I was looking over the challenges at SCS and found a sketch challenge (SC60) and a limited supply challenge (LSC159 - tool free) that were perfect for simple cards and this is my take on it. And, it was so quick, too. My kind of card! Make sure to check out the other designers' blogs for more sneaks today.

card info: images and sentiment by The Saltbox Studio, notecard by A Muse, cardstock from my supply, ribbon by May Arts, stickles, sunburst yellow Prismacolor marker, sepia Copic marker.

Almost Sneak Peek Time...Again!

Tomorrow I get to start sharing some sneak peeks from The Saltbox Studio. These images for spring are terrific. I cannot wait to share with you, so be sure to check back tomorrow.

P.S. I'm an early riser and on the East Coast, so my first peek should be up before 9am!

Birthday Wishes

Happy Birthday to my niece, Lily! She loves to play dress up, so I wanted a fun, sparkly, dress-upy birthday card for her. And this tiara is just so girlie that it was perfect for Lily. While my aunts were visiting, they loaded up my mom's dress up box with lots of tiaras for all the grandchildren to wear, so I guess I had tiaras on the brain (thanks Aunt Julie and Aunt Angie!). These were so popular that Lily's little sister even wore a tiara for the Easter egg hunt!

I used an A Muse card of the week designed by Jennifer Pebbles from a long while back as my inspiration (it used the scallop line like this one but it had all kinds of yummy chocolate goodies). If you don't get the weekly A Muse Newsletter, sign up here. It is such a wealth of ideas and fun card ideas every Friday, right in your inbox.

Here is something totally random: a shout out for my husband, David, out in St. Louis!

card info: images, notecards and twinkle stickers by A Muse, sentiment by Elzybells NA, quickie glue pen, glitter by Stampendous, Stickles.