Saturday, December 31, 2011

Happy New Year from our family to yours! :)

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and a very Happy New Year! Here is the holiday card we sent out this year. May you have a great year ahead!!


Edited to Add:

MY TOP PROJECTS OF 2011

Last year I posted my top cards of the year, so thought I'd do something similar again this year. You can see my top picks from last year HERE. I didn't make as much as I'd hoped this year, especially after having the baby, but I still wanted to share them with you. :) So here are some of my top projects of 2011 in no particular order. A lot of the insides are decorated too. If you click on the links, it will take you to the post!


The Mother's Day card I made for my mom. I included a picture of my sonogram inside!
The original post is HERE.


Last years's Valentine's Day card for my hubby. The inside says "...is my favorite thing to do!"
The original post is HERE.


Another card for my hubby. The original post is HERE.


 This was a blog hop card. It was fun making the Tiny Tags into a thought bubble!
The original post is HERE.



A gift set for my Aunt using PTI patterned papers. The original post is HERE.


The Lunchbox Note die, my favorite die! It was fun playing with the Postmarks set in a more CAS way.
The original post is HERE.


Another lunchbox note card using the "Est. 1776" stamp set. I decorated the inside and back of the card too. 
The original post is HERE.


I made this mini card for a friend using the Mat Stack 3 die and Floral Fusion 1. 
It was also fun finding ways to use the seed packet die too!
The original post is HERE.


I made these invitations for my baby shower. The original post is HERE.


This is the card I made shortly after I found out I was pregnant! :)
It was early spring and I liked the symbolism of renewal.
The original post is HERE.

Thanks very much for checking out my top projects for 2011. I'm very sorry for the delay in getting this posted, but thanks for stopping by! I really appreciate you reading my blog. Creativity has been a bit harder to come by with a little one in the house now, but I will try to have more crafty things up soon. :) Have a sunny day!

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

A Muse Studio Specials and Sales!

A Muse is having several sales on many of their products, including their inks. Just thought I'd share with you what those are in case you might be interested. There are some great deals going on throughout December! :)

TOP 10 HOLIDAY MUST-HAVES 
All 20% OFF THROUGH DEC. 15th
A Muse Studio has discounted ten popular items (including some inks) just in time for the holidays! A Muse is offering 20 percent off the following items (click the photo to enlarge) for a limited time only.


One of the items on sale is their holiday ink collection. If you order all 10 inks in the collection, you will receive 20 percent off! This can be a great way to try out some of the inks. The colors are: Winter Sky, Cranberry, French Roast, Slate, Pebble, Grass, Fern, Eucalyptus, Lichen and Blush. This is a great deal and the first time A Muse has had a sale on their inks!

Some other great sale items are the shimmer spray (beautiful!) and the washi tapes (very versatile colors and designs), along with 7 other sale items too!

Click on the photo above to enlarge or a PDF of the info is also available HERE.

Hurry, because the sale on the inks and all the top 10 must-haves ends on December 15th!!

SPOTLIGHT SALE
10% OFF THROUGH DEC. 31st
A Muse Studio is also having a sale on five of their stamp sets and some of the cardstock. The CS colors this month are especially beautiful! You get 5 colors (Cocoa, Toffee, Cranberry, Shell and Bermuda), 4 of each for only $7.65. It's a great way to try out several colors of the cardstock. A Muse paper is wonderful, with color on one side and white on the back, perfect for cardmaking!


Click on the photo above to enlarge, or a PDF of the info is also available HERE.

If you'd like to see some inspirational projects made using these Spotlight sale items, click HERE.

RETIRING ITEMS
A Muse Studio also just announced their stamps retirement list from the 2011 Main Catalog. For a complete list of retiring stamps sets, please click the photo below to enlarge, or view the PDF by clicking HERE.


The Holiday Catalog will have some items retiring also, but A Muse has decided to not reveal which items those might be in advance. So if you see something you like in it, buy it NOW, because it may be retiring and items in it are first come, first served. We won't know which items will carry over until the new catalog is revealed Feb. 1, 2012.

CONSULTANT STARTER KIT EXPIRING
One last bit of info, the special A Muse consultant starter kit, which is a FANTASTIC deal for only $99 (worth $350) will expire on December 31, 2011. Then it will be regular price and some items in the kit may be changing. Sign up now before the deal ends! I would love for you to sign up as a consultant with my team, even if you would just like the starter kit or if you are interested in a more active business too. Just send me an email, and I'll provide you with more info to get you started!

If you would like to order any of the A Muse Studio sale products mentioned above, they are available for sale from my web store here:



Thanks for reading, and if you have any questions or need any clarifications, please email me at amuse1303@gmail.com and I'll be happy to answer your questions and get back with you! :)

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Baby's First Thanksgiving

Hi, hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving last week! My sister just sent me these pictures that she took of us at our Thanksgiving gathering last Thursday so thought I'd share. Hope you don't mind more baby pictures! ;)



And here are some black and white ones that she snapped of Alexander too!





He is now 10 weeks old and is such a joy! Thanks so much for stopping by! I really appreciate you reading my blog. I'm hoping to post a bit more in the new year, and also to post some crafty things soon, especially with the holidays coming up. I'm going to catch up on commenting on blogs too! Have a wonderful, sunny day!

Monday, October 31, 2011

Our Little Pumpkin!

Happy Halloween, everyone! :) Just wanted to update real quick to share a picture of our little pumpkin with you!!


No trick or treating this year, since he just turned 6 weeks old, but we will have our own little Halloween celebration at home. Hope you all have a very safe and fun Halloween!! :)

Friday, October 21, 2011

A Muse Studio Ink Review-REVISED

**ADDITIONAL UPDATE ON 2/28/2013:
Three new ink colors have been added to the new catalog released March 1st, 2013. The first new ink color is called "Mermaid" and is a beautiful teal color. The second new ink color is called "Apple" and is a bright red. The third new ink color is called "Berry" and is fuschia color.

The 5 Venetian colors have all been kept but renamed. The renamed colors are:
Venetian Burano = Poppy
Venetian Belini = Melon
Venetian Lido = Saffron
Venetian Rialto = Moss
Venetian Titian = Mushroom
And no colors have been retired! Yay!

----------

****THIS POST HAS BEEN REVISED AND UPDATED AS OF FEBRUARY 2012 TO REFLECT THE NEW 2012 CATALOG AND IS CURRENT!****

There have been a few questions and interest in the A Muse Studio Inks, so thought I'd share with you some info about it! :) Hope this is helpful for you if you're curious about the inks.

First of all, here's a picture of what the ink looks like!


The inkpad case is rectangular and measures 4-1/4" long x 2-3/4" wide x 3/4" depth. The large stamping area of the inkpad measures 3-3/8" long x 2-1/8" wide x 1/8" depth. The sides of the case slightly slope inward, making it easy and comfortable to hold. It is very lightweight and the see-through lid makes it easy to tell which color is inside.

They are also stackable, as you can see here.


The inks are available in 50 individual shades. They are $5.95 each. Refills are also available for $3.95. They are sorted into 6 palette color collections, organized by the seasons. The entire collections can be bought at a discount or purchased individually.

BASIC Palette 
(includes sugar, pebble, seattle, slate, onyx)



VENETIAN Palette 
(Limited Edition colors for 2012)
(includes lido, bellini, burano, rialto, titan)

SPRING Palette 
(includes shell, blush, apricot, lemon whip, buttercup, lichen, sage, sky, amethyst, latte)

SUMMER Palette 
(includes papaya, orange, bubblegum, watermelon, lime, grass, bermuda, ocean, blueberry, grape)

FALL Palette 
(includes squash, pumpkin, nutmeg, currant, wasabi, heather, blackberry, wheat, toffee, french roast)

WINTER Palette 
(includes grapefruit, cherry, pistachio, fern, evergreen, cobalt, winter sky, navy, eucalyptus, cocoa)

The nine new (never before released) colors for 2012 are: Lido, Bellini, Burano, Rialto, Titian, Seattle, Grape, Pistachio and Grapefruit. The three colors from the holiday catalog have been added to the main catalog: Pebble, Wasabi and Cocoa. Cranberry is the only color that has been retired from the 2011 catalog.

The ink itself is a pigment ink with a chalk ink finish. It does a beautiful job stamping text as well as detailed and solid images! You can see this in the picture below, which is stamped with A Muse inks. The stamping is very crisp, and it stamps perfectly almost every time. The ink is acid-free, so can be used in scrapbooking too!


If you use Papertrey Ink colors, here are the color matches that I found to coordinate with A Muse inks:

All of these are perfect matches with PTI Colors: 
Spring Moss = Lichen
Sweet Blush = Shell
Lemon Tart = Lemon Whip
Summer Sunrise = Papaya
Plum Pudding = Heather
Dark Chocolate = French Roast
Spring Rain = Sky (Winter Sky could also work)
New Leaf = Grass
Orange Zest = Pumpkin
Scarlet Jewel = Currant
Smokey Shadow = Slate
Simply Chartreuse = Fern
Harvest Gold = Buttercup
Fine Linen = Wheat
Kraft = Latte
Hibiscus Burst = Watermelon (Bubblegum could also work)
Pure Poppy = Cherry
Soft Stone = Pebble
Autumn Rose = Currant

*New color match* Berry Sorbet = Burano

All of these are great matches with PTI Colors: 
Blueberry Sky = Blueberry (just slightly brighter)
Ripe Avocado = Fern (slightly lighter)
Blackberry = Royal Velvet (slightly lighter)
Ocean Tides = Eucalyptus (darker bluer)
Aqua Mist = Bermuda (just slightly bluer)
Enchanted Evening = Navy (slightly brighter)
Hawaiian Shores = Bermuda (coordinates well with, but much lighter)
Raspberry Fizz = Bubblegum (coordinates well with, but much lighter)

Other colors that don't have PTI matches, but are beautiful colors: 
Lime, Evergreen, Cobalt, Ocean, Seattle


Here is a handstamped ink card chart that I made of the A Muse inks. I have almost all of the colors, and will be ordering the rest soon. If you would like a chart so you can see the colors with your own eyes, please email me at: amuse1303@gmail.com with your mailing address and I'll mail a hard copy of one to you! (ETA: I now have all the ink colors and they are all included on the new updated chart! If you request one, you will see all of the new 2012 colors.)


If you would like to order any A Muse Studio inks, they are available for sale from my web store here:


Hope this has been helpful and clears up some questions you might have. If you have any more questions, feel free to email me at: amuse1303@gmail.com. The inks really are amazing and so fun to stamp with. I own a LOT of inks from many different companies and these are some of my most favorite, a true joy to stamp with. Thanks so much for reading my blog and I hope you have a great and sunshine-filled day!

Thursday, October 20, 2011

A Muse Studio New Spotlight Sale!


In case you missed my post earlier HERE, I am now an A Muse Studio consultant. :)

Each month, A Muse Studio has five stamp sets on sale for 10 percent off! There is also a cardstock sampler set on sale too featuring 4 sheets of 5 different colors. It is a great chance to try out the cardstock and also to buy some stamps you might have your eye on!

From now until November 14th, the following 5 stamp sets are on sale:

Autumn Leaves $22.49

Calendar Fun $18.89

Fresh Foliage $17.09

Harvest Blessings $9.89

Perfectly Polished $16.19
Also available is this month's special paper pack, Autumn Harvest, which is $7.65 and features 4 sheets each of the following colors of cardstock:

French Roast
Squash 
Toffee
Orange
Currant


Click HERE for some beautiful projects featuring the spotlight specials.
Click HERE for a pdf flyer with all the details of the sale!

If you are interested in trying any of these items, they are available for sale at my web store:


If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them! Thanks so much for stopping by. I'll be back tomorrow with some info about A Muse Studio inks. I give a review about them and also some detailed info too! Have a wonderful, sunny day!

Friday, September 30, 2011

Introducing Baby Alexander! :)

Our sweet baby boy is here! Alexander William was born September 17th (on his due date!) at 5:12pm. He weighs 7 pounds, 9 ounces. The delivery went very well! I was admitted to the hospital at 11am and delivered him at 5pm.

Here are a few photos from his first days.

Here I'm holding Alexander after the delivery.


In the hospital room, father and son together.


Our sweet baby boy sleeping...


Checking out of the hospital.


And here is Alexander later back home.


We love our son and are very excited to be new parents! :)

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Baby Shower Favors and Highlights

Yesterday I shared with you the baby shower invites I made HERE. Today I thought I'd show you the favors and some highlights. The baby shower was a lot of fun and it was nice spending time with everyone! :)

I made several favor boxes to hand out to the guests.


I used the PTI Favor it 4 box and diecut more of the Martha Stewart Baby boy patterned paper (seen in yesterday's invites post) for the base and then added some PTI cardstock for the handles. 


I love PTI's favor boxes and own them all and love them all!! They work so well and add such a great touch. Patterned paper works great with these boxes, and it helps to dress them up quickly if you need to make several! :)


To go inside the favor boxes, I stamped some address labels with baby theme images from the PTI Limitless Labels set and PTI Bitty Baby Blessings set and attached them to some chocolate candies. I was able to fit up to 6 chocolate nuggets in each box. The labels were stamped with A Muse inks: Sky, Papaya and Ocean.


We had a lot of fun at the shower and played a few baby games too, including guessing how big my baby belly is. Everyone kept guessing larger than it was for some reason. Only my grandma guessed smaller (thanks Grandma!).


My mom (in the purple) checked to make sure people measured their guesses correctly.


My niece Alexa kept jumping into my lap throughout the baby shower to hug her future cousin. :)


I also made some cupcake toppers to go onto the cupcakes.



I stamped the circle with Papertrey Ink's Tag-Its #2 stamp set (my favorite Tag It's set) using A Muse Papaya ink. The elephant is from PTI Tiny Treats: Birthday and the sentiment is from PTI Bitty Baby Blessings. I punched it out with an EK Success circle punch and scalloped circle punch and then scor-taped it to a lollipop stick from Michaels.



The cupcakes were a big hit...especially with Alexa who ran straight to them! She has a sweet tooth just like her mom and her aunt!


Thanks for stopping by my blog today. Hope you're having a wonderful and sunshine-filled day!
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