A Muse Studio

Patriotic Party time!

We know that a lot of you are planning Memorial Day BBQs and fun get togethers.  Here's some fun Patriotic Party ideas for your event that will wow your friends and family! These ideas were from our June 2012 Spotlight but well worth revisiting here.

Soda bottles with fun paper straws (taped on with washi tape) adorned with a die-cut star.

 

Popcorn boxes - easy to decorate and fill with yummy snacks (pretzels, cookies, cheese puffs, etc.)  We adorned our boxes with rosettes (made with our rosette die) and glittered starts (also a die cut).

 

Pretty food picks are so easy to make with a little striped paper (we used our Candy Cane Stripe - perfect year round!), a star die cut and our Let Freedom Ring stamp set.

These are so stinkin' cute and easy to make!  Simply dip marshmallows in melted chocolate and add some sprinkles.  We've got clear bags in all sizes, tie with baker's cording, add a glittered star and VOILA!

 

Paper Bag Luminaries add a festive look to your outdoor parties.  So easy to make with our white paper bags and some fun stars. 

BBQs at my house always lead to S'Mores making.  Your guests will be thrilled with these fantastic S'Mores kits. We used our Hello From Camp stamp set for these. 

Serve up some cool lemonade or iced tea in Mason Jars with patriotic lids and pretty paper straws.

Here's another food label - using our Let Freedom Ring and Vintage Labels 2 stamp sets.

I have more Patriotic Party ideas to share in the coming days.  All of the supplies used are from A Muse Studio so you'll want to contact your A Muse Studio Creative Consultant for a catalog. If you need assistance finding an A Muse Studio Creative Consultant near you, please call us at 206-783-4882 or use our Consultant Locator link here.

Spring is in the air with these fun crafty projects!

I love Spring!  I love the budding trees (even if they bother my allergies!), I love to hear the birds sing in the morning and I love that the days are longer - more time for crafting!

Have you heard of our monthly Studio Spotlight Program?  It's great!  Each month, we select five stamp sets and pair them with a custom color pallette.  These products are on sale the entire month and we offer some fabulous creative inspiration for you on ways to use them. 

Here are the Spotlight products that are on sale for the month of April - perfect for you spring projects!

 

Look at the fun projects our designers came up with for you!

Butterflies! 

These butterflies are cleverly crafted from the A Muse Studio Flowers 2 die set by simply folding the top and bottom petal back and joining together with a bit of adhesive.  Add a green foil candy (or other treats), some antennae and voila!

Here's a closer look.

 

These sweet treats are so easy to make and can be filled with all sorts of candies.  Jelly beans would look adorable. The packaging tag was made from our Vintage Labels 2 die set.  We stamped the Mod Backgrounds image over the tag and added the medium-size buttefly from our Butterfly Trio die set.  Sweet!

Our Creative Consultants would love to show you how to make these projects and others featuring our Spotlight stamp sets.  Don't have a consultant?  Use the consultant locator found on our website or follow this link.  

Happy stamping!

It's an Easter Party - Studio Spotlight - Part I

Easter is such a fun occasion for decorating.  And we've got some awesome ideas to share with you to make your Easter Party cute and colorful! 

Look at these darling Peep treats!  Our new small striped treat bags make it easy.  You'll also need a circle die, a scalloped circle die, some clear cardstock and some pretty ribbon. 

 

Carrots made from jelly beans is one of my favorite ways to use our Cone Treat Bags.  Super easy and a fun way to wow your Easter guests - of all ages!

Make this adorable banner using our Peeps and grass dies.  They don't have to be circles...  combine with other shapes you have or simply cut squares or rectangles.  Lots of options to adapt this project to the supplies you have on hand! 

I'll be back with a few more fun and easy Easter party ideas in the coming days!  Stay tuned.

 

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It's an Easter Party - Studio Spotlight - Part I

Easter is such a fun occasion for decorating.  And we've got some awesome ideas to share with you to make your Easter Party cute and colorful! 

Look at these darling Peep treats!  Our new small striped treat bags make it easy.  You'll also need a circle die, a scalloped circle die, some clear cardstock and some pretty ribbon. 

 

Carrots made from jelly beans is one of my favorite ways to use our Cone Treat Bags.  Super easy and a fun way to wow your Easter guests - of all ages!

Make this adorable banner using our Peeps and grass dies.  They don't have to be circles...  combine with other shapes you have or simply cut squares or rectangles.  Lots of options to adapt this project to the supplies you have on hand! 

I'll be back with a few more fun and easy Easter party ideas in the coming days!  Stay tuned.

 

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Sneak Peek: Matching Dies!!

Sneak Peek: Matching Dies!!

AMUSE BOUCHE

I'm back with another tasty morsel from our 2013 Catalog and Inspiration Guide!  Today I get to share some exciting news about our new dies!  We have a dozen new dies that will be available in our new catalog.  Eleven of the dies match brand new stamp sets.  How fabulous is this?  This has been a popular request from our Creative Consultants and Customers and we are happy to deliver.

This fun Easter card showcases a brand new stamp set called Color Me Happy and it's matching dies. Both the bunny and the egg were stamped then cut out using a matching die.  Easy peasy!  I also love the clever use of our Rosette die to make the basket!!

 

This next card showcases our brand new What's Up stamp set with matching dies.  This set is perfect for cards but also for Project Life scrapbook pages. 

Our matching dies come with clear positioning plates.  This idea was pioneered by our Chief Creative Officer, Heather Cullen, to ensure that you get perfect positioning with every cut!

So, what do you think of stamps with matching dies?  Would you like to see more of these in future product releases?  Your feedback is important to us so thanks for sharing your thoughts.  And, we'll thank you when you do...  we'll be drawing some winners from our comments this week! 

Have a beautiful day!

 

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Mini Valentines

Mini Valentines

Valentine's Day is fast approaching.  I had fun making a bunch of mini Valentines last night using a limited set of supplies.  I find that when I do this, I am actually *much* more productive.  It focuses my attention and I can relax and get creative.

My A Muse Studio supplies list:

• Slate Woodgrain, Sugar and Burano cardstock
• Burano ink pad
• Versafine black ink pad
• Cherry felt
• Sending my Love & At First Sight stamp sets
• Heart Trio die set

To get started, I decided that my mini cards should have a finished side of 2 1/8" wide x 3.5" tall.  This is such a cute size for a note and perfect to slip into your child's lunch box or into your husband's suit pocket or wallet.  Here's a peek at the 5 little cards I made. 

I love the simplicity of this card. 

I love them all so much... I can't pick a favorite! 

For this card, I stitched together two felt hearts and then filled the heart with dried lavender that I harvested from my garden.  It smells fantastic.  This mini card is earmarked for someone super special!

This next card was a happy accident.  I had just cut out the heart with the word LOVE (shown above).  I then cut out the tiny heart and the word always with the heart die  BUT I forgot to clean the residual ink from the die before doing so.  You can faintly see the word LOVE on this heart too.  I think it's pretty awesome!  A happy mistake!

 

 

Linda's positioning TIP!

Our dies that coordinate with stamp sets come with an awesome positioning plate.  Here's a little trick you can try when you want to get perfect positioning when you do *not* have a positioning plate.  Cut the die out of a piece of felt (I happened to have this handy from the stitched felt heart I made earlier).  Stamp your image and then use the die-cut felt as your positioner.

Then place the die into position and hold firmly in place while you remove the felt (felt works better than cardstock because it is flexible.)

Hold the die in place with a bit of washi tape. And voila!  Perfect positioning every time!

Did you see that it is Love is in the Air?  We LOVE our customers and to share that love with you we are giving a FREE polka dot notecard set with every order $40 or more ($40 before any applicable taxes & shipping).  Contact your A Muse Studio Creative Consultant to place an order. February 1st through February 17th.

Have a creative weekend!

A Muse Studio Creative Consultants are ready to offer a personalized workshop for you and your friends.  Your friends will love the creativity and we'll thank you with fabulous free products!  Treat yourself today!

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Holiday Tags - Part II

Most everyone that I chat with seems to have the same problem... not enough time!  (Well, not enough time to do all of the FUN things we *want* to do!)  I think this is why I try to keep things SIMPLE. 

For me, the thing most time consuming aspect of crafting is coming up with a design that I like.  Once I've got that figured out, I have all sorts of tricks for making mass production easy. 

Here are a few more gift tags we made in our class last Friday. Perhaps they will serve as a "jumping off" point for some of your gift tag designs.

This first tag looks a bit complicated but it's really quite simple.  We cut out the fun shape of the pocket using Spellbinders' Nestabilities Labels 8 die set.  Cut two of the same size/shape.  Apply adhesive to three sides to create a pocket, fold one edge down, and add some pretty ribbon. 

This next tag looks so pretty slipped inside one of our small glassine envelopes (20 for $3.95).  Would be fun to slip some $ inside too!

This last tag is one of my favourites!  I think I'll be making LOTS of these ones.

I hope these tag ideas provide you with some inspiration.  Have a beautiful day!

 

 

 

 

Holiday Gift Tags!

I often have grandiose crafting plans for the holidays that often do not all become reality.  Anyone else have the same issue?  Holiday tag making is something that I really enjoy because it is FAST and easy.  The canvas is small... so just a few stamps and an embellishment are the perfect combo.

We taught a class on Holiday Tags at our retail outlet here in Seattle today.  Here's a peek at some of the tags we made.  I hope they inspire you to get your tags done.  Don't forget, most of our holiday products are on sale through December 16th (next Monday) at 30% off, while supplies last.

This first tag is made from the A Muse Studio Vintage Labels 2 die set.  One of the dies works beautiful as an ornament.  We added some washi tape and a stamp and voila!

This next set of tags is made with the A Muse Studio Classic Tag die set.  You get all three shapes and they are perfect for all of your tag making!  We added some Super Stick Red Line tape and Cranberry glitter to each tag and a stamp from our Holiday Mini Messages stamp set with some cherry & white baker's twine.  Fast and easy!

Here's one more set of tags from using our classic tags die set.  These were cut from our coasterboard and have a nice letterpress look.  Jenna added some vanilla twine and a button to each tag.  Super cute!

We have a few more holiday tags from today's class to share.  Check back tomorrow.  I need to run to pick up my girls from school.  Enjoy the rest of your day.

 

 

 

DIY Holiday Decor - two trees

Last night, the girls and I went out in the POURING rain (that's the way it goes here in Seattle!) to get a Christmas tree.  Today, our decorating will start in earnest after school.  We'll be making popcorn garlands, drinking eggnog, eating candy canes and listening to holiday tunes.  Fun!

Here are two fun and easy holiday decor items that are fun and easy to make. 

The girls and I made our glitter button tree a few years ago and it is one of our favorite holiday decorations to unwrap each year.  Warning! You will be sparkly when you are done with this project! 

Supplies list:

• styrofoam cone (any size will do!)
• foam brush
• a|s Crystal Clearl Lacquer
• a|s Glitter (cranberry, lime or diamond will all work well)
• a|s Buttons (to coordinate with your glitter color)
• pearl straight pins

Use the foam brush to apply Crystal Clear Lacquer on the cone (you'll want to use a generous amount, just not dripping).  Sprinkle the glitter over the adhesive... be sure to do this over a large sheet of paper to capture the extra glitter (a|s Grid Paper works great for all your crafting projects.)  Once the adhesive dries, add buttons using the straight pins.  So easy!

This next tree is also easy to make - especially with the a|s Rosette die set.  

Supplies list:

• a|s rosette die set
• star trio die set
• die cutting machine (we like the Grand Calibur)
• super stick red double-sided tape (to hold rosettes together)
• a|s sugar buttons
• a|s glitter (for the star)
• patterned paper (we used a|s cardstock:  candy cane stripe, cherry woodgrain, polka dots and blush solid)
• glue gun

To make this lovely tree start by die-cutting 7 rosettes.  We used 7 for our tree.  Once you have die cut the rosettes, you will want to trim 6 of the rosettes by varying amounts (trim on the flat edge, 1/4" increments will work well).

The rosettes are stacked together with buttons.  We used a glue gun to attach 4 similar-in-size Sugar buttons together to form small stacks - you'll need one stack to fit between each two rosettes.  The stacks of buttons were then attached to the paper rosettes with a hot glue gun.

For the base, we stacked a number of large buttons together, adhering them with a hot glue gun as well. (TIP: Make sure to choose a flat-bottomed button for the very bottom so it will stand.)

Have you started decorating for the holidays yet?  I hope you will try these fun projects.  If you do, let us know by sharing a photo on the A Muse Studio FaceBook page.

One die, four ways!

Do you ever challenge yourself to see what you can create with just a few supplies?  I love to do this and often find new ways to use the products I have. 

My challenge started with the A Muse Studio Tree die. I really like the simple shape of this tree... it works well with solid or patterned card stock.  And, did you know that our dies also work with felt! 

First up is the card I made.  I cut five trees total from a mix of a|s sage solid and polka dot cardstock.  Scored the trees down the middle and folded them in half.  I then adhered them together alternating polka dots & solid for a three-dimensional tree.  I added one of our brand new 4.5" doilies and some twine.  The sentiment is from the Say it with Style stamp set.

 

 Here are some cute gift tags...  easy peasy!

This 3-D ornament was a natural evolution from the one on the card. This paper ornament uses 6 trees and vanilla twine.

Holiday hand towels are so easy to make with A Muse Studio felt, heat n' bond and our holiday-themed dies.  You'll want to wash the towel first to remove any sizing in the terry cloth.  Then adhere the heat 'n bond to the felt, cut and adhere to the towel.  The most time consuming part of this project is washing the towel first! 

A Muse Studio felt is a 65% polyester and 35% wool and is completely washable in cool water. Cool dryer only!  If part of the die comes away from the towel after washing (because you've accidentally thrown it in the dryer) you can just iron over the die cut and it should readhere itself.  Yep, I've done this!

Hope you are having a creative weekend!