Halloween treats and another giveaway!!

Hope it's okay that I'm jumping into Halloween already! ;) I thought I would share with you some Halloween treats I made. They're great to hand out at Halloween to friends or co-workers and could work for school treats too.

 

I actually made these treats last year, a couple months after giving birth. It was such a crazy time and I'm not quite sure how I managed to make these! However, I didn't find time to post it so wanted to share it with you now. :)

I used the A Muse Studio stamp set, "If You Dare", which I'm giving away a copy of at the end of this post.

Here's a closeup:

I attached a diecut using the fun A Muse web die, which measures 2" wide and looks great on lots of projects. If you have the PTI web dies, I'm sure those would also work great as well. The stamped sentiment was heat embossed with A muse white embossing powder on a diecut tag and then wrapped overtop the thin treat bag. I cut out the stamped spider and dangled him over the web to add some whimsy and fun. It was so much fun making these.

I'm also doing another giveaway!!! Both giveaways are open to everyone including international readers.

Giveaway #1: "If You Dare" A Muse Studio stamp set 

This is the stamp set I used on the project above and it's so fun to stamp with! It is rubber stamps on cling mount and I'm giving away one copy of it.

Giveaway #2: $10 gift certificate to ANY online crafting store of your choice (Papertrey Ink, A Muse Studio, etc.)

All you have to do to enter both giveaways is be a follower of this blog (click "follow me" to the right) and comment on this post! That's it! ;) Also, it is not required, but if you spread the news about this giveaway on your blog or anywhere else, you may enter twice!

You have 2 weeks to enter this time, which is when I get back from my trip. I will choose two winners by random.org on September 10, 2012 and so you must enter by September 9th at 11:59 pm to be eligible.

Thanks as always for stopping by and good luck with the giveaway! Have a wonderful, sunshine-filled day!

Winners of the Giveaway!

Thanks so much for all of you who entered my giveaway. Only a few people entered, so you all had great odds of winning! ;)

It was fun reading your answers where you love to travel. To answer my own question that I asked of you, my favorite place to travel is London (obvious from the last post, ;) and my dream vacation would be Bali or Sydney (or maybe both since they're somewhat close)!

First of all, I'm posting one more giveaway in a few hours so if you don't win this time, you still have another chance!

Without further ado, the winners are:

The winner of Stamp It magazine is random.org #7:

Miriam Prantner!

And the winner of the $10 crafting gift certificate is random.org #5:

Amy!

Big congrats to the winners, and I hope you enjoy your prizes! Please email me by clicking on the email in my sidebar and I'll mail you the goodies.

Remember, if you didn't win this time another giveaway is being posted today so check back by if you get a chance! Have a sunny day!

British Invasion card and a Giveaway!!

Hope you're all having a nice summer! Did you get a chance to watch any of the Olympics? We really enjoyed watching the Olympics and are going to London in a few days, so thought I'd post a card celebrating London.

I used the A Muse Studio stamp set called, British Invasion. It is my favorite set, and I just love all the architecture icons in the set. London is such an awesome city.

And here's the inside:

The happy birthday icon is a remake of the London tube "mind the gap" icon and the bottom has a piece of washi tape. (I also had to blur out the message that I wrote to the recipient.) 

In late celebration of the Olympics, because it's my birthday next Friday and also because it's been so long since I've done a giveaway, I thought I'd post a new giveaway for you! :)

GIveaway #1: Paper Crafts Stamp It magazine

I recently won an embossing prize package on the Paper Crafts connection blog, and one of the things included in it was a copy of "Stamp It" magazine which I already own! So I thought I would pass it on to one of my blog readers!

To enter this giveaway for the magazine you must be a U.S. resident (International readers, keep reading, there's a giveaway for you too).

Giveaway #2: $10 GCF

I'm also doing a giveaway open to everyone, including international readers. It is a $10 gift certificate to the online craft store of your choice (PTI, A Muse Studio, etc, or anywhere else that sells gift certificates).

To enter either giveaway, you must also be a follower of this blog, so please sign up to the right if you're not yet a follower. It's not required, but would be appreciated if you'd like to spread the word about the giveaway too! In the comments below, specify if you are interested in just one prize, otherwise you'll be entered into both giveaways! Also, in the your comment mention where your favorite place is to travel and where your dream vacation would be! You must enter by this Weds, August 23 at 11:59 pm. I will choose 2 winners by random.org generator on Thursday. So enter quickly, because it will be over in a few days!

Thanks for entering and have a very sunny day! :)

Giveaway Winner Announced!

Thanks for all of you who entered the giveaway! I ran the numbers through the random.org generator and the winner is #6: Colleen Wold!

Congrats, Colleen!!! Please send me an email and I'll mail your A Muse Studio gift certificate information to you. :)

The A Muse Studio main catalog is now available online as a PDF. You can view it here:
https://www.securedcontent.net/amuse/pdfs/2012AMuseStudioCatalog.pdf

If you would like a hard copy, you can also purchase a new 2012 catalog for $5 plus $5 priority shipping. Just send me an email to: amuse1303@gmail.com and I'll be happy to mail one to you! I will also include an updated ink chart and cardstock chart with all the colors.

Thanks again for playing along! There will be a non-A Muse giveaway coming soon for everyone, including international readers. Have a very sunny day! :)

A Muse Studio Gift Certificate Giveaway!

Last year, I did a month long series of giveaways in honor of my first blogiversary. I've decided to do another giveaway this year too in honor of my 2nd blogiversary! Since I'm now an A Muse Studio consultant, I thought it'd be fun to do a giveaway of A Muse products. :)

I'm giving away a $25 GCF to my A Muse Studio web store! The link to my web store is here: www.amusestudio.com/MonicaK.

This giveaway will be open throughout the rest of January. I will pick a number from the random.org generator on February 1st, when I'll also be announcing the new A Muse 2012 catalog.

Here is what you need to do to enter:


1. Follow this blog, if you aren't already following. Just click the "Join This Site" button to the right!


2. Post a link to this giveaway on your blog, Facebook, Twitter or other social media page. Mention that I'm giving away a gift certificate to A Muse Studio!


3. Comment on this post and include the link(s) to where you posted about it. One comment per person please. 


3. This is optional, but I'd love if you'd sign up for my A Muse Studio newsletter too. It will keep you updated on sales and giveaways. Just send an email to me at: amuse1303@gmail.com. 

Here's a fun twist! For every 50 comments, I will increase the gift certificate amount by $10. So 50 comments will be $35, 100 comments will be $45, 150 comments will be $55, etc. So the more people who comment, the higher the amount!

Here's another nice bonus: this gift certificate is also retroactive, so if you make a purchase from my web store in January and then you win, you can apply it to that order.

If you are new to A Muse Studio, we are a company that sells exclusive products such as cling-mounted rubber stamps, dies, inks, papers and more! You can check out the main catalog HERE. I'm also accepting pre-orders for the new catalog being released on Feb. 1st.

Thanks for entering this giveaway and good luck!! :) If it's successful, I will definitely do it again! Also, check back soon if you have a chance. I'll have some more info about the A Muse inks!

FINE PRINT: The giveaway ends 11:59 pm on January 31, 2012. This giveaway is only open to those with a US mailing address, per A Muse policy. I'll do another non-A Muse giveaway in February that will include International readers! Gift certificate does not include tax and S/H. It can be used on previous orders made in January. You may buy anything from my web store with the certificate and it does not expire. This certificate can be used in combination with any sales A Muse may be offering too!

My San Francisco trip plus a ribbon GIVEAWAY! :)

Source: fleetstreetscandal.com via Monica on Pinterest

My husband and I took a wonderful trip to San Francisco a few weeks ago. I've been meaning to share with you some pictures I took there. It's really a lovely place and I highly recommend going if you're ever able to. We also did quite a bit of driving around including a Pacific coastal drive along the Big Sur. I also picked up some goodies there to share with you so be sure to check out the end of the post for the giveaway!

I took along my regular camera as well but these two pictures were taken with my iPhone. I really love my iPhone camera! Along the Big Sur, are a couple of famous bridges, including the Bixby Bridge, built in the early 1930s during the Great Depression (part of the New Deal I believe?).

The vistas were breathtaking...

Here's my hubby and me posing...

On our drive, we also stopped by the Santa Cruz pier and amusement park. It's very old, one of the first beachside amusement parks. I didn't get to ride on any rides this trip (not until the baby is born), but it was fun just to walk around and take it all in! It was surreal to see a roller coaster so close to the beach!

Beautiful California poppies. These were popping up everywhere. Being used to Florida which is quite monochromatic, California's landscape is very colorful and vibrant with beautiful flowers.

We also stopped by Alamo Square which had gorgeous views of San Francisco. And someone was flying a kite that day too! ;)

And this is what it feels like to be crossing underneath the Golden Gate bridge...I took this with my iPhone in the car looking up as we passed through. Really amazing feeling!

Here's a foggy vista of the Golden Gate bridge. The ship going underneath the bridge there is the same one that we took when we took a Bay Bridge cruise underneath the Golden Gate. It was sooo windy, but so worth it!

And here's a pregnant belly shot of me with San Francisco and the bay in the background. ;)

We also stopped by Boudin's bakery and restaurant in Fisherman's Wharf. They are famous for their yummy bread bowl soups, which I tried. They also have the neatest breads baked into all kinds of shapes and animals including a lobster, a turtle, a crab, a bear, a gator and more!

I'm a total bookworm so a stop by the City Lights bookstore was a must! Such a cool store filled with unique books. This is where the Beat poets got their start and published their works, and it was named a historic site in 2001. They still publish books today.

And this was the view from the top of Macy's in Union Square in downtown San Francisco. You must go to the top floor if you're ever there. Very pretty views!

One of the crafting stores I found in downtown Union Square was the amazing store Britex Fabrics.

It has four floors filled with fabrics, ribbons, buttons and any other kind of trim you could think of from all around the US and the world. It is truly heaven! It is a one of a kind store, only one location and it's been there since 1952. Some of the famous guests include fashion designer Diane von Forstenberg and other designers and celebrities.

Here are some pictures inside this amazing store.

They had a huge section with tons of new and vintage laces in many colors.

Here are the cream laces...so many in a row and very elegant!

Here is their third floor filled with ribbons as far as the eye can see! Every width and style of ribbon.

That wall behind the counter is covered in BUTTONS. A whole wall of buttons all arranged by color (love!). Sorry there are no close-up photos. They do not allow that in the store!

Here I am standing in front of their wonderful wall of trims. ;)

More of the color coordinated fabric...I so appreciate that because that's how I have everything arranged in my home!

One of the ribbons that caught my eye were the 100% silk hand dyed, hand cut ribbons. They are so beautiful and silky and would be wonderful tied on a card or on project or sewn into something special.

As a thank you to my blog readers, I bought a yard of several different colors of this pretty 100% silk ribbon to give away.

You must be a follower to enter (just click the follow link to the side if you're not yet a follower) and then just leave a comment below. That's all you have to do! I'll ship it anywhere in the world and I'll pick one winner by random.org generator next week.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Sorry about the delay in posting, I have many more crafting posts ready to go and can't wait to share them with you!

Final PTI Giveaway #5: WINNERS ANNOUNCED!!!!

Thanks so much to everyone for playing along with all of these giveaways. It's been so fun this past month celebrating the blogiversary and I've loved reading all of the wonderful comments! Also, hello to the new blog followers, so glad to have you here and I hope to see you again soon!

Now it's time to announce the winners again. Yay!! The winners of the final giveaway from Giveaway #5 are...

The winner of the Giveaway #1 package with PTI papers, etc. is...

MELISSA LADD!!!!

Congrats, Melissa!!!!!! You can check out her gorgeous blog here.

The winner of the Giveaway #2 package with PTI Impression plate, etc. is...

CATHY WEBER!!!!

Congrats, Cathy!!!!!! You can check out her lovely blog here.

And the winner of the Giveaway #3 PTI 2010 Anniversary stamp set is...

JEN ADCOCK!!!!

Congrats, Jen!!!!!! You can check out her really cool blog here.

Woohoo, congrats ladies! Please email me your mailing address and I will mail you the goodies! My email is under "contact info" on my sidebar.

Thanks again for playing along with these giveaways and I will have more giveaways in the future! Have a great sunny day!!

Final Papertrey Ink Giveaway #5!!

It's been a lot of fun doing these giveaways and reading all of your comments! Today I am offering lots of PTI goodies for this final giveaway. It is a sampler of many of PTI's products: stamps, impression plate, ribbons, buttons, paper, felt and more!

For those stopping by for the first time, I am celebrating my blogiversary by posting several Papertrey Ink giveaways throughout the month of January. Everyone can participate, so if you would like a chance to win, feel free to leave a comment!


There are three chances to win today!!

Giveaway #1 includes PTI Cardstock and patterned papers...

And it also includes three colors of felt, ribbons and buttons.

Giveaway #2 includes a Moroccon Motifs Impression Plate, mini paint cans, a 2011 blank mini calendar, a new pink PTI bag, and a PTI notepad.

Giveaway #3 is the yet to be released limited edition 2010 PTI Anniversary stamp set. For those who will not be earning one, this is a great chance to win a copy. I will send the Anniversary set free to you as soon I receive it later in the spring.

I will ship these free to 3 winners anywhere in the world. 

Here are the details to enter:

1. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment saying why you love papercrafting. Also, please mention which giveaway you'd like to win, or if you'd like to win any of them.

2. Since this giveaway is for my blog readers, I am asking that you must also be a follower to enter. Just click the "Follow" link to the side, if you are not already a follower. Please let me know if you are already a follower.

3. Also, it is not required, but I would so appreciate if you'd like to spread the word about the giveaway too.

I will announce the winners to the Giveaway on Thursday, February 3rd. This is the final giveaway for this round, but I will try to have more giveaways in the future!

Thanks again so much for reading my blog and for playing along with these giveaways!

Have a very sunshine-filled day!

PTI Giveaway #4: WINNERS ANNOUNCED!!!!

Thanks for sharing where your favorite places are in the world. Many of you chose "home" as your favorite place, which is very sweet. My favorite place is probably the house that I grew up in. Every time I visit it, it reminds me of so many happy memories from growing up.

Now it's time to announce the winners again! Thanks for everyone who played along with the PTI Giveaway #4! So without further ado, here are the winners of the ribbon samplers from Giveaway #4.

The US winner is...

KARA!!!!

Congrats, Kara!!!!!! You can check out her very cool blog here.

And the international winner is...

MINA!!!!

Congrats, Mina!!!!!! You can check out her wonderful blog here.

Please email me your mailing address, ladies, and I will send you the ribbon sampler! My email is under "contact info" on my sidebar.

The final PTI giveaway will be posted tomorrow! Sorry for the delay, it is going to be a big giveaway!

Papertrey Ink Giveaway #4: Win some RIBBON!

Thanks so much for playing along with these giveaways! For those stopping by for the first time, I am celebrating my blogiversary by posting several Papertrey Ink giveaways throughout the month of January. Everyone can participate, so if you would like a chance to win, feel free to leave a comment!

I am offering these goodies up today.

A PTI ribbon sampler! The sampler includes a foot of Papertrey Ink ribbon in almost all of the colors and styles, and also includes speciality PTI ribbons and twine for a total of 150 ribbons. This ribbon sampler is great if you want to keep it by your desk for reference or if you'd like to use them up on your projects too.


There are two full sets and I will ship it free to two winners. One winner will be in the US and the other will be International.

Here are the details to enter:

1. Leave a comment saying where your favorite place is in the world and why.

2. Since this is a giveaway for my blog readers, I am asking that you must also be a follower to enter. Just click the "Follow" link to the side, if you are not already a follower. Please let me know if you are already a follower.

3. Also, it is not required, but I would so appreciate if you'd like to spread the word about the giveaway too.

I will announce 2 winners on Thursday, January 27th. That same day I will also post the final giveaway.

Thanks again so much for reading my blog. I've really enjoyed posting these giveaways for you and hope you've had fun playing along!

Have a wonderful and sunny day!

PTI Giveaway #3: WINNER ANNOUNCED!!!

Thanks so much for sharing your stories about how you got started in papercrafting. I loved reading all of them! It was especially interesting to find out that most of you started with scrapbooking, and then eventually started making cards and other things. Many of you have also been papercrafting for awhile, some since when you were kids.

I have always loved crafting, but started papercrafting 1-1/2 years ago. I went to Joann's to find scrapbook supplies, but found the stamping and cardmaking aisle instead somehow. I was amazed, yet slightly overwhelmed by all of the types of inks and especially the clear stamps. A nice woman in the stamping aisle helped me out and explained what everything was. A month ago, I had an interesting experience in that same stamping aisle. Someone came up to me and asked me about the supplies. And I began to tell her all about dye inks vs. pigment inks and clear vs. rubber stamps, and I realized I had come full circle and now I was the experienced stamper.

Now it's time to announce a winner again. Thanks for everyone who played along with the PTI Giveaway #3!

So without further ado, the winner of the paper sampler from Giveaway #3 is...

CAROL!!!!

Big congrats, Carol!!!!!! You can check out her gorgeous blog here.

Please email me your mailing address and I will get your paper out to you! My email is under "contact info" on my sidebar.

Remember, there will be two more chances to win this month. Another PTI giveaway will be posted shortly! See you soon!!

Papertrey Ink Giveaway #3: PAPER!

Hi everyone! Hope you're having a great day. Thanks so much for playing along with these giveaways! I really appreciate it and hope you are having fun! For those stopping by for the first time, I am celebrating my blogiversary by posting several Papertrey Ink giveaways throughout the month of January. Everyone can participate, so if you would like a chance to win, feel free to leave a comment!

I am offering these goodies up today.

It is new sampler featuring 50 sheets of Papertrey Ink 110 lb. cardstock in all the colors, even the neutrals.

I am also including this...

A sampler of PTI envelopes (2 of each, 16 total) in a variety of neutral colors and sizes, including all A2 envelopes and square sizes.

And also this...

A PTI diecuts sampler with 50 different shapes. It includes all of the favor boxes, mat stacks, fillable frames, Beautiful Blooms flowers, tags, limitless layers, borders and more. They were all carefully diecut from PTI's Stamper's Select white cardstock.

I will ship all of this free to one person anywhere in the world.

Here are the details to enter:

1. Leave a comment saying what got you started in papercrafting.

2. Since this is a giveaway for my blog readers, I am asking that you must also be a follower to enter. Just click the "Follow" link to the side, if you are not already a follower. Please let me know if you are already a follower.

3. Also, it is not required, but I would so appreciate if you'd like to spread the word about the giveaway too. If you post the giveaway to your blog, you may enter twice.

I will announce a winner in 1 week on Thursday, January 20th. That same day I will also post a new giveaway. I won't say how many giveaways there will be, but there will be a few! ;)

Thanks again so much for reading my blog. Enjoy the giveaway!

Have a very sunny day today! :)

PTI Giveaway #2: WINNER ANNOUNCED!!!

Thanks for playing along with the PTI Giveaway #2! It's been a lot of fun doing these giveaways, and I hope you're having fun playing along too. I enjoyed reading your comments and seeing which colors are your favorite. Many of you chose blue as your favorite color, particularly Hawaiian Shores. A lot of you also chose green and pink. Your favorite PTI colors were Hawaiian Shores, Raspberry Fizz, Simply Chartreuse and Aqua Mist. All gorgeous colors!

My favorite colors are usually bold, such as blacks and reds. My favorite PTI colors are Pure Poppy and Aqua Mist.

Enough chit chat, I'm sure you want to find out who won. The winner of the felt sampler from Giveaway #2 is...

Jessica Wekenman!!!

Yay, congrats, Jessica!!! I hope you have fun with your felt! You can check out her lovely blog here.

Please email me your mailing address and I will get your felt out to you! My email is under "contact info" on my sidebar.

Thanks again for playing along!! Remember, there will be several more chances to win this month.

Another PTI giveaway will be posted shortly! See you soon!!

PTI Giveaway #2: Win some FELT!

Thanks for all of the sweet comments the other day! I appreciate all the blogiversary wishes so much and I loved reading which seasons were your favorite. (Just so you know, this is today's second post. To find out if you won the First Giveaway please scroll down to the first post!)

It was also wonderful to learn why each season is meaningful to you. Here are some overall results from the comments. The most favorite season was...AUTUMN! 15 people chose it. Spring was a runner up with 7 people. You seem to like the seasons that introduce a refreshing change. Autumn is a relief from summer heat, while spring begins the warm up from winter's cold. 5 of you chose Summer, 3 chose winter and 1 chose all seasons!

Autumn is my favorite time of year too when visiting a place where the leaves change. But here in Florida, my favorite season is spring. It is the prettiest time in Florida (and the best time to visit by the way). We love to go bike riding, take walks through the many state parks here and visit the beach too. Summer and fall are a bit hot and rainy here, winter is too cold but spring is just right! :) It is blue skies and in the 70s every day!

So, onto today's giveaway! 

It is sampler of 100% wool Papertrey Ink felt in eight colors, each measures 5"x10". I will ship it free to anywhere in the world.

Here are the details to enter: 

1. Leave a comment saying what your favorite color is and why. (If you think in Papertrey Ink colors like I do, you can also choose a PTI color. :)

2. Since this giveaway is for my blog readers, I am asking that you must also be a follower to enter. Just click the "Follow" link to the side, if you are not already a follower. Please let me know if you are already a follower.

3. Also, it is not required but I would so appreciate if you'd like to spread the word about the giveaway too.

The winner will be announced on Thursday, January 13th. That same day I will also post a new giveaway. I won't say how many giveaways there will be, but there will be a few! ;)

Thanks again so much for reading my blog. Enjoy the giveaway!

Hope you have a sunny day and stay warm out there!!

PTI Giveaway #1: WINNERS ANNOUNCED!!!

Thanks so much everyone for the blogiversary wishes and for playing along with my first giveaway! And hello to the new blog followers too. It was fun reading through all of your comments the other day and finding out which seasons were your favorite. :)

Without further ado, the grand prize winner of the 3 PTI button samplers from Giveaway #1 is...

STEPHANIE!!!!!

Woohoo, congrats, Stephanie!!! She has a lovely blog, by the way, be sure to check it out here.

And I had a couple of extra button samplers, so I decided to choose two winners! Two winners is more fun than just one, right? :)

The winner of the 2 extra Spring and Autumn button samplers is...

BECKY!!!

Big congrats, Becky!! You can check out her cool blog here.

Please email me your mailing address ladies and I will get your buttons out to you! My email is under "contact info" on my sidebar.

Thanks again for playing along!! There will be many more chances to win this month, and I will try to do more giveaways throughout the year too. When I decided to have a giveaway for my blogiversary, I wanted there to be many chances, so several of you could win.

Another PTI giveaway will be posted shortly today! See you soon!!

Papertrey Ink Giveaway #1: Happy Blogiversary!

I'm celebrating my Blogiversary today! Woo-hoo! In celebration of one year of blogging and also in celebration of the new year, I am offering up some Papertrey Ink goodies to give away to you!

I am continuing the giveaways throughout the whole month of January, each featuring a different type of Papertrey Ink sampler, so keep checking back. 

Here is today's giveaway!

It is set of new Papertrey Ink button samplers and includes Spring, Autumn and Winter buttons! I will ship it free to anywhere in the world. To enter you must leave a comment saying which of these seasons is your favorite and why.

Since this is in honor of my blog's anniversary, I am asking that you must also be a follower to enter. Just click the "Follow" link to the side, if you are not already a follower. Please let me know if you are already a follower. Also, it is not required, but I would so appreciate if you'd like to spread the word about the giveaway too.

I also wanted to add my biggest thanks to all of you who read my blog and comment! I started this blog as a way to share ideas and I hope you've enjoyed a thing or two that I've posted in the last year. I plan to share lots and lots more ideas with you this coming year.

Joining the blogging world and the PTI community has been such an amazing experience. It's been such a blessing to meet and get to know so many of you who are such kind and very talented crafters. It's a true joy to visit your blogs and to see the new creative and inspiring things that you're making and I hope you will stop by to say hi often when you can too!

I will announce a winner to the Giveaway on Monday, January 10th. That same day I will also post a new giveaway. Since the winner is randomly selected, it is possible to win more than once. I won't say how many giveaways there will be, but there will be a few! ;)

Thanks again so much for reading my blog. Hope you enjoy the giveaway!

Have a very sunny day! :)