A Muse Studio

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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Style your Party with A Muse Studio!

Sneak Peek: Matching Dies!!

Spotlight - time to save!

Each month, we select 5 stamp sets to feature in our Studio Spotlight along with a gorgeous color palette.  These stamps and an assorted paper pack are available for a special price for the entire month. 

For our January Spotlight, we are featuring the following stamp sets: 

• Let it Snow
• Winter Stag
• Snow Day Background
• Best of Times
• Graceful Greetings

 

I love this wintery palette. It feels just right for January crafting. 

A stack of thank you cards is always handy to have.  Jenna designed these simple, gorgeous cards. She combined images from the Winter Stag and Graceful Greetings stamp sets.  These would make a lovely gift.

 

After the holidays, I prefer a more neutral option for gift wrapping and this feels just right.  The snowflakes from the Let it Snow stamp set look fun and wintery stamped in Eucalyptus ink.  I also love the Kraft paper paired with our Vanilla twine.  Did you notice the fold in the wrapping that allows you to tuck a gift card inside?  So clever!

Here are a few different tag options.  I love the snowflake stamped in while on Eucalyptus cardstock. 

I will be back with more Spotlight projects to share with you.  I hope you have a beautiful day.  It is sunny here in Seattle for a change (but rather chilly!) 

Happy stamping!

 

 

 

 

Homemade Holiday Gifts - Stationery Gift Set

I happen to think crafty gifts are the best kind of gifts.  They are fun to make and truly a pleasure to receive.  As a lifelong card-maker (I started designing cards in 6th grade... forced my dad to take them to work and get his secretary to photocopy them!), handmade cards are one of my go-to gifts for the holidays.

Our talented designers have done it again with this Spotlight project - fabulous notecards in a pretty stationery gift box!

This beautiful stationery gift box is easy to make.  It's made from A Muse Studio's Clear Cardstock and lined with French Roast Woodgrain.  (It's easy to change the look by swapping in any of our patterned cardstock.)  Here's a couple of tips:

• Our Clear Cardstock is super sturdy (why it's SO great for card bases and projects like this).  Because of this, you will want to go over your scorelines multiple times, using more pressure than you would for normal cardstock
• Use our Super Stick Tape to adhere the box sides together - other adhesives simply won't hold
• The lining is cut to match the dimensions of the box, minus the sides - so 5.75 x 10.25.  For an easy fit, score it just slightly UNDER the scoring dimensions for the box (If your lining peeks over the top at all, just trim)
• The lining isn't adhered in any way

Add some ribbon for the handles and voila! 

Download StationeryBoxTemplate 

 

As we add more templates to our blog, you will be able to find them quickly by clicking on the Templates category in the right column.

All of us at A Muse Studio hope you are enjoying this holiday weekend! 

 

 

 

A Muse Studio Spotlight - November

Each month, we feature 5 stamp sets and a cardstock assortment as part of our monthly A Muse Studio Spotlight program.  We'll share fabulous projects using these products and also offer you a sweet discount.  Here's the details of our November 2012 Spotlight. 

To order A Muse Studio products, contact your A Muse Studio Creative Consultant or visit www.amusestudio.com.  If you do not have a Creative Consultant, you will be given the opportunity to choose one during the checkout process. 

Interested in hosting a holiday workshop?  What's more fun than getting together with friends, celebrating this fun holiday season and making some crafty projects? Our Creative Consultants are at your service!  Your friends will thank you for a great time and we'll thank you with fabulous rewards.

Have questions?  Post them here or email us at yoohoo@amusestudio.com.

Hope you are having a fabulous holiday weekend.

Holiday Gift Giving - homemade treats!

Every year, I spend a special day with each of my girls making holiday gifts for friends, family and neighbours.  We enjoy planning what we're going to make, getting the supplies and then finally (!) our special day together.  We have learned new skills, had some spectacular failures but all in all we've had some really special times making what are my most favourite gifts of the year.

Of course, an essential part of the gift-making is the packaging!  Baking is almost always on one of the girls' lists.  (Especially fudge - we swear by this *foolproof* recipe!)

This tray, designed by Heather, our chief creative officer, is a great solution for your baked gifts this holiday season.  It can be seasonally decorated to match any holiday.

 

Here's a link to download the template for making the tray. 

 

 

Of course, A Muse Studio stamps, ribbon, felt, dies help to make it pretty!

What are you making this holiday season?  We'd love for you to share your favorite homemade gift ideas or recipe in the comments.

Have a beautiful day!

Halloween Party ideas - wicked fun (and easy)!

I tend to go a bit overboard when it comes to parties. <sheepish grin>  I love to paper-craft and having an excuse to play in my craft room makes me happy.  As a busy mom, my time is pretty limited so I need to make sure that my projects are fast and easy to execute.  Now that my girls are a bit older (10, 12 & 14) they are fabulous helpers and together we can accomplish so much more!  And, they love to "play".

This month's Studio Spotlight color theme was inspired by the musical Wicked.  I went to see it on Broadway for my birthday last year... so fun!  And, it's actually playing in Seattle right now.  I think the colors work perfectly for a Wicked Halloween party, don't you?

I love my apothecary jars.  I have a few different sizes and shapes and I use them *all* the time!  I found a few of them at the Goodwill, and a couple at Target.  The A Muse Studio Vintage Labels 1 stamp set and matching dies are a staple for me! They are the perfect solution for lots of crafting projects.  Here we used them to make labels for the candy jars.  LOVE the look of the white embossing on this label! 

More jars with labels.

Another great way to add that special touch is to simply cut out a pretty shape, add some glitter and twine.  Here we used our Spider Web die, diamond glitter (applied with a Quickie Glue Pen) and Onyx Baker's twine.

 

Here's a view of the party table.  Wicked, right?

Have a wicked day (that's what my friends in MA say!)

Stunning Hallowen Crafts in the Spotlight

Last week I shared some of my favorite Halloween projects from our Studio Spotlight last year.  Our Creative team has outdone themselves again with this year's Halloween Spotlight!  Let's take a peek...

Pretty Party favors are my favorite thing to make.  Look how easy these ones are to make.  A little tissue paper to wrap your goodies, a stamped sheet of cardstock and some baker's twine to tie the ends.  Fast. Easy. Pretty. Perfect!

Here's another FUN treat for your halloween party (I think they'd be cute for a back to school party or a baby shower for a teacher friend too!)...

These adorable owls are easy to make.  To make them, you'll need a piece of cardstock that measures 8" x 2-3/4".  Score at 3", 3-1/2" and 6-1/2".  Make diagonal cuts from the 6-1/2" line to the center to make the beak. (If you're like me and you have a hard time following these kinds of instructions, grab a piece of paper and sketch it out before you start cutting your good cardstock.  I promise, it will make sense once you draw it out!)

Did you spot the orange and black baker's twine?  Make your own with our Onyx Baker's Twine and Orange Splash!  The possibilities are endless! Cut a length of baker's twine, spritz some Splash! into a plastic container and roll the twine around in the Splash! ink.  Let stand to dry.  Colored twine in an instant!

Did you know that our baker's twine rolls are 280 yards each for only $9.95?!  Such a great deal!  Available in three essential colors - Cherry, French Roast and Onyx.  One of my favorite A Muse Studio products!

Thanks for stopping by.  Have a beautiful day!

 

 

 

Studio Spotlight - October {Part 1}

I hope you enjoyed yesterday's post highlighting our Studio Spotlight projects from 2011.  Today I get to start showcasing some of the amazing work our Creative Team has done for this month's Studio Spotlight.

First, I want to share with you a clever way to use our Gift Card Die.  This die is perfect to hold a gift card (of course) but it also holds all sorts of other goodies - especially Halloween treats!

The light grey (Seattle) piece is cut using our Gift Card Die (3 1/4" x 4 3/4").  $19.99

Here's another angle so you can see how the treat bag is held by the tabs on the die. Pretty awesome, right?

Here's a fun project that uses our NEW! A Muse Studio Splash! Sprays in a non-spray kinda way! To make the green circles on this card, we dipped a foam brush into Splash! and swirled the brush on our Bristol Paper (100 lb weight, great for watercoloring) for some fun effects, stamped right over that and voila!  Fun card.

Allrighty!  I have more to share but need to take the kiddos to school.  Will be back later.  Stay tuned!