Mother's Day Roses

The Everything's Rosy release could not have been more timely.  These beautiful blooms have been perfect for Mother's Day designs.  I'm not sure when a stamp release has given me such creative satisfaction.  Not only are they so very pretty and oh, so versatile but the quality is such that I'm stamping perfect images time and time again.  Let's hear for deeply etched red rubber!   I made this particular card for my daughter to send her grandmother.  I started by stamping off Wild Rose Branch with Memento Cottage Ivy ink onto Poison Ivy shimmer cardstock.  Next, I added Wild Rose using Grape Jelly Memento Ink.  One of the rose centers was cut out for interest and placed on with a foam adhesive and then a bit of yellow glitter was added to the center of each rose with a Sakura Quickie Glue pen.  The Happy Mother's Day script sentiment was cut out with a Nestability and attached with some very old SU ribbon (knew I had a reason to save that.)  The panel was then adhered to a Blackberry Shimmer Couture card.  This truly came together in less than 30 minutes!  Be sure to check out the Everything's Rosy release now available for purchase on the A Muse website!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

Teacher Appreciation Week

Note click HERE to see today's post for Amuse-bouche!

As many of us with school-aged children know, this week is dedicated to the wonderful women and men that educate our children.  Rachel's school has activities planned all week but she wanted to show her teacher, Mrs. Stover, more personal appreciation.  We have little tokens of thanks planned for everyday this week except Tuesday (that is the day Rachel has an MRI.)  So stay tuned for some more goodies. 

Last summer, I got 3 of these cute SLAH (Southern Living at Home) terra cotta pots as a gift with a purchase.  I put them aside in my gift-stash knowing they would come in handy.  Mrs. Stover has already received 2 of these little decorated pots- one for fall with a little mum and some tiny decorative cabbages and one at Christmas with a poinsettia.  So now at the end of the year, she has 3 little pots to use for whatever she wants.  I had made little picks for each occasion and tied a cute sentiment around each pot.  I thought the Swiss Red and Red Petite Polka dots worked well for our cute little geranium (I actually did all of the paper crafting last week- thank goodness after the sick week and weekend here at our house)!  Here are some close up shots of the pick, tie around and card:

I was inspired to distress this set by our own, most awesome Jenn Shurkus.  I thought it went right along with the old-fashioned sweetness of the geranium.  Be sure to thank all the awesome educators in your life this week.  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

A Muse supplies- stamps- mushroom trio, ladybird, grasshopper, thank you for everything, make a difference.  paper- swiss red, petite gingham in red, kraft (SU);  other- red polka dot ribbon.

One More Morsel

Today is the final helping of the Everything's Rosy Amuse-bouche and it's Designer's Choice.  I had picked up these little resin (I think?) frames at M's for 1.00 a while back with the idea that they would be just right for A Muse projects- simple, quick and fun!  I started with a square of Robin's Egg cardstock then stamped Daisy Duet a couple of times in the corner.  After heat embossing with Seafoam EP, I added a bit of Yellow Stickles to the center.  Gossamer wings silhouetted in black above the Daisies and I'm finished with my insert.  The outside banner uses the brand new "dreams take flight" sentiment.  If I could have changed anything it would have been to have some Papaya Polka Dot ribbon in the place of the Onyx (guess what is waiting in my cart.)  A sweet little gift to go along with a gift card for a grad or even a little Teacher's Appreciation memento!  Which by the way, I stay tuned tomorrow to see what I made for Rachel's teacher in tomorrow's post!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

Amuse-bouche Takes Flight

One thing about the Everything's Rosy release is the big, bold images are perfect for playing with your favorite stamping technique.  Here I inked up this awesome Flutterby Flock image in Memento Cantaloupe then "kissed" it with Tiny Flower inked up with Memento Rosebud ink.  I really think this made for a fun effect!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

Stamps:  A Muse- long grass, dreams take flight, flutterby flock, tiny flower  Paper:  A Muse- Apricot, Watermelon, Sage  Inks: Memento- Cantaloupe, Rosebud, Bamboo Leaves  Supplies: A Muse Orange Twinkle stickers, Fern Polka Dot Ribbon  Fiskars Scallop Border punch

Everything's Rosy!!!!

                                                                          

Just a quick post today.  My entire family has a nasty stomach virus so not much up for being my usual chatty self.  I have had the most fun with these 2 images- wilde rose and wilde rose branch.  I've made a couple of really neat Mother's Day cards that I hope to share soon!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care.

A Muse supplies:  wilde rose, wild rose branch, hello fl;  paper- robin's egg, sage;  polka dot ribbon in eucalyptus.  Other- yellow stickles, foam white EP, colorbox pigment ink- frost and apricot

Another Helping of Beautiful Botanicals

THIS may be my favorite addition to the A Muse image family- bare branch with leaves.  Like blossom branch with bird and wreath with berries, fabulous minds at A Muse have placed the leaf stamp on the end of the branch stamp- genius!  After I stamped the branch with Memento Rich Cocoa, I stamped and stamped off random leaves on the branch to add dimension and the look of a fuller branch- much like the trees around here right now- I love spring!  The little flowers are actually made from the MS hydrangea trio punch but I thought when punched from yummy Watermelon paper, they had the look of Dogwoods- something that were everywhere growing up in Knoxville.  Little Chocolate pretty pearls and foam adhesives were the finishing accents for my dogwood look.  You will definitely want to check out the rest of the Muses blogs to see even more beautiful botanicals.  Also, be sure to stop by A Muse News at least daily for fun and prizes, yes, and these prizes aren't slacking!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

Yummy Botanicals

Welcome to Day 3 of the A Muse Birthday Bash!  It is the first day that we will be sharing from the brand new Everything's Rosy release of wood mounted stamps!  There are tons of wonderful samples on A Muse News and the Creative Team blogs so you will want to be sure to check out those.  One thing I love about checking out all of the blogs- it demonstrates how versatile these images are!  Certainly a lot of stamping bang for your buck when you can use the same image in so many different ways! 

So what do you think about the 2 new stamps I used here- Bursting Blooms and Flowers Whisper?  What a gorgeous floral silhouette those bloom make in the Memento Tangelo ink. After stamping each of the images, I stamped off to give a bit of soft dimension to the design.  A very simple card that I embellished a bit with a punched butterfly (MS) enhanced with Latte pretty pearls.  Tomorrow may just be my most favorite of the cards that I made for this release, so be sure drop by in... It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

A Muse Supplies:  stamps- bursting blooms, flowers whisper;  paper- apricot, latte;  other- sheer french roast ribbon, latte pretty pearls.
Other supplies- MS butterfly punch, EK Success 1' circle punch, Memento Rich Cocoa & Tangelo ink

HAPPY Birthday A Muse!

My biggest problem with using today's Happy Everything clear stamp set?  I had too many fun ideas running through my head and I only had time to use one!  The best description for this new set is versatility, versatility, versatility!  My new "go to" color is this yummy Watermelon 8 1/2 x 11 paper.  It seems to be showing up in so many of my designs.  Here I paired it up with some black petite gingham scallops for a fun contrast.  The ink I used for "Happy" is Palette's Boudoir Blush.  The color goes great with the paper and I love Palette inks for clear stamps!  And since you can't have a birthday without a cake, I punched a portion of a 1" circle from the bottom of the card and stamped Cupcake in the punched out space.  When you open the card you see this: 

                             

Is this set "fontabulous" or what?  You will find more awesome ideas on A Muse News, as well as, the Creative Team blogs!  Stay tuned, this is only day 3 of our 9 day celebration!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

Vintage Amuse-bouche!

Welcome to day 1 of a fun little feature that we like to call "amuse-bouche"- a little preview of wonderous things to come with A Muse's latest release!  So ready to wet your rubbah appetite?  The first 2 days will feature 2 special clear sets  released especially for the Birthday Bash celebrating 9 awesome A Muse years! 

For day one, we have some old but dear friends returning to our collections in the form of this new Vintage clear set!  Be sure to check out A Muse News and the other Creative Team members' blogs to see what other "oldies but goodies" have returned!  So... how about this cute little kite and "what's up" sentiment!  I absolutely loved this and since a kite should fly, I paired it up with one of my favorite images- clouds!  Some quick paper piercing gives this kites traveling through the wind!  Whahoo!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

A Muse is Turning 9!

Be sure to check out A Muse News for deets for exciting Birthday Bash fun beginning today and lasting through May 4th!  Yes!  9 days of fun for celebrating 9 wonderful A Muse filled years!  Tomorrow the Creative Team will begin with a little amuse-bouche so I will have some eye candy to share!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

Masculine Birthday

I never seem to have any masculine cards on hand and when I need one I need it right away.  A Muse sentiments are perfect inspiration for clever cards!  They truly increase the versatility of my images!  The design for this card was insprired by a card in Dave Brethauer's Card Design.  I love this book!  It showcases Dave's clean and simple style while giving tutorial for using colored pencils and water colors.  Fun stuff!  It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

A Muse supplies:  stamps- tin plate, recliner, ready set recline, mini oval:  paper- chiffon green, brown petite gingham, fern; other supplies- nestabilities, memento bamboo leaves ink

A Girl Scout Thank You

Wahoo!  A quick minute for a post!  This accordian card project has been made as a farewell "thank you" for our SU Manager.  Each girl from my Cadette troop created a card and then I connected them accordian style.  Here is a pic of the inside:

A Muse products used:  Stamps- mushroom trio, frond, ladybird, tiny bird,fancy alphabet, paper- red petitte gingham, woodgrain, ribbon- swiss red polka dot.

It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time!  Take care!

Build-a-Bear Birthday

Happy birthday, Madison! I made this card for my best friend's daughter's birthday party last Sunday. Today is the actual birthday so I just wanted to send a quick shout out to her. The party was at Build-a-Bear and, as always, Rachel has a great time! We have had so many Build-a-Bear events that when I saw this set in the SU mini catalog I knew I had to get it! I colored the cute little girl bear with Copic markers and cut her and her A Muse Sage mat with Nestabilities. The background paper is Doodlebug, as well, as the cute brads. The Vintage frame punch is McGill and the Cupcake punch is Martha Stewart. I finished it off with some May Arts ribbon and Stardust Stickles. I was so excited that the A Muse sentiment went well with the confectionery theme of the card! Hope everyone has a super weekend. It's ALWAYS a Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

Simply Scent-sational

Ah, the fourth and final day for the Woodland Critter feature over at A Muse News but these little creatures are not going away. Stay tuned next week to Split Coast Stampers and 2 Peas in a Bucket. The Creative Team has been challenged to upload as many projects featuring the Woodland Critters from April 5th - 9th to those to community sites. I would love to have you join us so I am working on a contest right here at A Stampin' Good Time. Be sure to check back on Sunday evening for the details and of course, prizes!
Now onto my card. One of the things that I love about 8 1/2 x 11 paper (beside the fact that is now comes in this yummy watermelon shade) is you can make so many different sizes of cards. My Quickutz flower was too big for a cute little 4-bar, so today I decide to go with the traditional 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 card. I loved the way the little skunk looks like he is springing through the flowers. If you look closely you will see that I actually used tiny Easter Egg for my flower blossom and the stems are a partial stamping of seedlings in Memento Bamboo Leaves. The rest of the grass is a MS border punch! I mounted the flower on to Petite Gingham paper in black then attached that to a Watermelon card and added a bit of Black Polka Dot ribbon. It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

Stamps: A Muse- Skunk, seedlings, Tiny Egg, scallop dot border, spring is in the air
Ink: A Muse Black Dye ink, Memento Bamboo Leaves, Colorbox Pigment Coral
Paper: A Muse- Watermelon, Black Petite Gingham, Juliette sage
Supplies- Quickutz flower, MS grass border punch, A Muse Black Polka Dot ribbon, A Muse pretty pearls in black

Spring is in the Air

So.... what do you think... I am head-over-heals for the new A Muse Clouds paper. It comes in
8 1/2 x 11 sheets so the sky's the limit for creative fun (sorry for the pun)! And what better
"silver lining" than a rainbow shooting from the Clouds. Of course, to get a rainbow, you must have the Sun and this one is sparkling bright with a bit of Yellow Stickles. I had the most fun making this cheerful card and hope to brighten some one's day with it soon! Be sure to check out the rest of the A Muse Creative Team for Day 3 of our Woodland Critter feature, and of course, A Muse News for even more crafty ideas! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

Stamps: A Muse- Clouds, Sun, Tiny Butterfly, Tiny Bird, Silver Lining
Ink: A Muse Black Dye ink
Paper: A Muse 8 1/2 x 11- Clouds, 4-bar notecards- Swiss red, Paprika, Papaya, Lime Peel, Blueberry and Blackberry
Supplies: A Muse Polka dot Swiss red ribbon, Nestabilities, Quickutz,Yellow Stickles, Copic markers, Spica Glitter pen, Foam adhesives

Woodland Friends

Welcome to Day 2 of the A Muse Woodland Critters feature! I just love the cute little Squirrel image! A little masking, and viola, there he is perched upon the Tree Stump! To make things a bit easier, I only cut a mask to cover his bottom half- no need to cut his curly, swirly tail! In keeping to squirrl-y theme, I stamped Acorn in Tangelo ink on to a background of, yes, did you notice, Apricot paper. This yummy NE W color comes in 8 1/2 x 11" and offers so much versatility for sizes and styles of paper crafting! Now look carefully, can you find a 2nd new paper, hmmmmm, you guessed a NEW woodgrain, Birch wood, also in 8 1/2 x 11! Be sure to check out A Muse News and all the individual Creative Team blogs for further commune with nature. It's ALWAYS a Stampin' Good Time! Take care.

Stamps: A Muse- Squirrel, Acorn, Nuts about you

Ink: A Muse black dye ink, Memento Tangelo

Paper: A Muse 8 1/2 x 11 Apricot, Birch wood, 4-bar notecard- Paprika

Supplies: A Muse Grosgrain Stich ribbon in sky blue, Nestabilities, Copics, McGill Vintage label punch, Sakura white gel pen, foam adhesives

Crawling Critters

Hello! Hello! I'm so excited to get a chance to blog this morning and share some eye candy with you! From today, March 29th until Thursday, April 1st (I just can't believe it is already April) the A Muse Creative Team will be featuring a cute category of stamps that have been deemed "Woodland Creatures!" While the images are not brand spakin' new be sure to watch closely because you are definitely going to see some new goodies each day! You will definitely want to check out A Muse News for new and exciting ideas, as well as, the Creative Teams individual blogs for some Woodland goodness!

So.... do you notice anything new on my card featuring the caterpillar, snail, and dandelion images? It may be a bit hard to see in my less than adequate natural lighting but, yes, indeed that is a new 8 1/2 x 11 paper color. I am beyond pleased to introduce Watermelon!!!! It truly is completely yummy and possibly my new favorite color. It is a gorgeous vivid pink with just a splash of coral- my mouth just waters thinking about it! This design, also, features a fun tool by Martha Stewart- Shredding Scissors- don't they make some cute, quirky grass! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

Stamps: A Muse- caterpillar, snail, dandelion, just sittin' here
Ink: A Muse Black Dye Ink, Memento London Fog, Bamboo Leaves
Paper: A Muse- 8 1/2 x 11- Woodgrain, Watermelon, Petite Gingham in Grass, notecard- Chiffon Blue
Supplies- A Muse Stitched Grosgrain in Papaya, Copic markers, MS Shredding Scissors, scallop oval punch- Marvy Uchida, white flocking, Sakura Quickie glue pen

A Quick Birthday Card

My daughter is attending a birthday party this evening for one of her friends so I made this quick little birthday card to hold the gift card she is giving. This gal is after my own heart- she loves squirrels! I have several squirrel images but my daughter choose this little group of "friend" squirrels from The Greeting Farm set, Forest Friends. Truthfully, this set had never seen ink so I was pleased to put it to good use. After coloring the image with Copic markers and stamping and cutting the acorn to add some dimension, I teamed it up with some DSP from SU. The little flower layer was embossed with my Swiss Dot embossing folder from Cuttlebug and the cute little yellow gingham is cut by the Top Notch die from SU. I added a layer of Regal Rose ribbon and added my Nestabilities cut oval image. I thought I was finished but Mary Elizabeth wanted me to make it look like a birthday party. I had the little balloon from the Build-a-Bear stamp set already cut and colored, just laying on my workspace so that was an easy add on. She wanted me to add a candle to the acorn so I found one in A Muse's Cupcake Builder set and added a tear drop Twinkle sticker that I colored yellow with a Copic for a flame. M.E. was very pleased with this and I hope her friend is, as well! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

A Hoppy Baby Shower

I'm heading to a baby shower later this afternoon for my scrappy friend Sunny and her baby boy on-the-way! Her nursery theme is "frogs" so I had to make her a froggy greeting to go with her gift! It had been a long time since I had played with my Artful Inkable stamps which is a shame because they truly are beautiful stamps- deeply etched red rubber goodness! This cute little frog from the Daring Duo set fit the bill for my shower card so I was on my way! I inked up the little frog and then the sign with cattails in the background. Next, I masked the frog and added some A muse Long Grass in the background and Waves down front in the water. I knew from the start that A muse's "boy oh boy" sentiment was a must so I thought the cute little Quickutz dragonflies would definitely make our froggy friend make that exclamation! It has been a long time since I "mixed it up" with images from different companies onto one card and quite frankly I'm pleased with the results. It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

Supplies: Stamps- Daring Duo by Artful Inkables, A Muse images- long grass, waves, & boy oh boy.
A Muse Paper- Petite Gingham Grass Green, Woodgrain, Shimmer solid grass, and then vellum from stash
Other: Copic markers, Spica Glitter pens, Quickutz, eucalyptus Stickles

Keepin' Warm with a CAS Challenge

It has been ages since I've participated in a challenge at SCS and since my last challenge they have added a Clean and Simple challenge on Mondays. Perfect for my "Think Simple, Think A Muse" cards! This week's CAS49 challenge is to "Cut it out!" I was so... excited because I lovie me some scissors! Cutting out images has almost a therapeutic effect on me- yes, I'm strange, but that isn't new to anyone, is it?

In keeping with my "Warm Blast" theme, I decided to make this quick little card using Mandy's World Hawaiian Girl. The Mandy's World stamps are some of my favorites, not only are they super cute images but they are pure coloring fun. Here I have used Copic markers but I have had just as good results when using colored pencils. My cutting aspect is the little palm tree accent hopefully, offering Mandy some much needed shade in from the warm tropical sun! I finished if off with the "what's shakin'? sentiment peeping out of a punched word window. A super simple way to highlight a sentiment! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

A Muse Supplies: Stamps- MW Hawaiian Girl, What's shakin'?, Open palm tree, Skinny Oval Small; Cardstock- Petite Gingham Chocolate, Cranberry Red

A Warm Blast from the Past...

With the Artic Blast that has besot most of the country, I decided I wanted to warm things on my blog up a bit by featuring a few past projects that had a warm or tropical theme! SCS was the easiest way to go through my past designs so I spent a bit of time perusing my gallery. I found it very interesting to see how my crafting had evolved over time. It seems I went from simple designs to much more elaborate designs (probably due to the fact that I had acquired more tools and supplies to use. as I blush) and now back to more simple but more sound designs. The A Muse key phrase is "Think Simple, Think A Muse" but I think people often get the words "simple" and "easy" mixed up. Simple is not synonymous with easy by any means and often my simple designs have much more of a thought process behind them than past more elaborate ones. That being said, this little tropical project went to my daughter's favorite preschool teacher for her birthday. The teacher absolutely loved this little tin set which I filled with coconut macaroons in keeping with the theme. The stamp set is from Artful Inkables and you can find the rest of the deets at THIS blog entry. Hoping everyone is staying warm and sending prayers out to those whose circumstances make this difficult! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

It's Good Weather for Penguins

Nothing crafty to show today so I thought I would share a cute photo of my 6-year-old daughter Rachel and a penguin friend from our local Santa's Village taken this past December. It was a fun evening complete with a snow machine for a bit of a white Christmas in Alabama. Today we don't need a machine, we are getting some flurries as I type and the kids are all hopeful for a bit of accumulation so they can play! Schools were called at a half day so they are all waiting and watching! I know many parts of the country are being hit with ugly winter storms so it is my wish for everyone to stay safe and warm and remember It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

Coming Up For Air

I hope that you have had as much fun with the Sea of Love Amuse-bouche as I have! Remember to check out you lss to see if carry this new release. They are now available on-line as well! Don't get me wrong, I love the Christmas and New Years holidays but after the hustle and bustle is over, I am definitely ready to have A Stampin' Good Time! I hit the ground running in 2010 with Amuse-bouche and making January class samples. Figuring that I'm on a roll, I decided to look around a get a different idea for Rachel's class Valentine's. I, actually did a little blog hopping- something that I have not had time to do in months, and realized what a valuable part of this craft it is! Not only did it feel good to re-connect socially with many blog friends BUT it reminded of me of the proliferate nature of this industry. I may not "need" every new thing out there (as she looks around her craft room sheepishly) but it is good to be "in the know." With that said, I am going to try to set aside a few minutes of each day to catch up on my blog list. Won't make to all of them each day but hopefully, I'll be able to stop by every couple of weeks!

But back to Rachel's Valentines, I must surely have been living under a rock because I had not "discovered" the wonderful U-tube videos from Stamping with Dawn. What a treasure chest of ideas she has! This is where the idea for this cute little "Valentine Candy Holder" can be found. I did modify the measurements just a tiny bit, reducing the height of the project to 4 1/4- that way I can make 2 with 1 sheet of the 8 1/2 x 11 Pink Petite Gingham paper (I like to be thrifty when mass producing.) Also, since A Muse has the lovely white one side card stock, I had to pay extra attention to the punching and folding. I thought the Moby image and the "true, blue friend" sentiment were cute for a Kindergarten Valentine and tied it all together with Popsicle Pink Polka Dot ribbon (say that 3 times fast)! The inside (below) will house a little foil covered chocolate heart (Dawn suggested the Nestle Crunch ones, yum) in the little scalloped circle. The inside sentiment is the brand new "Happy Valentine's Day" from A Muse.

Well, I only have 16 of these cuties to do and Rachel will be ready for Valentine's Day! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

A Muse Supplies: Stamps- Moby, True Blue Friend, Happy Valentine's Day, 8 1/2 x 11 Card stock in Pink Petite Gingham and Popsicle pink, Ribbon- Popsicle Pink Polka Dot

Colored- Copics, Scallop punch- SU, Oval and Oval Scallop punch- Marvy Uchida

Amuse-bouche Day 5- Valentine's Treats and Packaging

It's the 5th and final day of the Sea of Love pre-release peeks- what does that mean- tomorrow all of these wonderful goodies will be on-line and available for sell. If your lss carries A Muse check with them- they just might already have these lovelys already on their shelves ready for the inkin'! Today's little bonbon box just yelled out for a cute and chubby little creature to adorn it! It was a quick and simple little container to make and very easy to personalize to your own particular design. Here I added some a wave border trimmed in Star Dust Stickles. I love the shade of blue in the new Ocean 8 1/2 x 11 paper plus the white reverse side was perfect for capping waves! A bit of bling was added in tear drop Twinkle stickers as Moby is really kicking up a splash! An easy peasy project to share with friends, classmates, you name it! Be sure to check out The Lounge for other ideas from the A Muse Creative Team, as well as, the Designers contributions on A Muse News! Some goodliness for sure! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time. Take care!

A Muse Supplies: Stamps- Moby, True Blue Friend; 8 1/2 x 11 paper- Ocean, Popsicle Pink, & Blue Petite Gingham; Popsicle Pink Polka Dot ribbon, Clear Twinkle Stickers

An Elegant Amuse-bouche

I'm back again today to serve up the next tantalizing tidbits from the latest A Muse release- "Sea of Love!" Today's theme is Elegant Sea-themed greetings. For some reason, I am fascinated by coral. It's fragile beauty in the form of hard coral reefs comes in so many shapes and colors and is home to so much marine wildlife, makes me wish for my scuba diving days once again! When I saw this wonderful Coral image, I knew it was a "must have" and I've been looking forward to this particular amuse-bouche day for quite some time!

I started by stamping the Coral image in, yes, Colorbox Coral pigment ink onto a Sky Blue note card. What a lovely color contrast this made! Next, I sprinkled some of my favorite A Muse Simple Stick powder onto the image and heat set it 'til sticky. After applying some yummy coral glitter, I heat set it again and Voila, a very pretty piece of coral, indeed!

I would like to make a quick plug about Simple Stick powder- it is truly the BESTEST powder adhesive I have ever used! If you have been turned off by adhesive powder in the past, do yourself a favor and give this a try. It will open up a whole new world for adding glitter and flocking to your crafty creations!

I added an little oval of "sand" and then popped this cute little sand dollar image beside it for a mini ocean scene. The sentiment is actually a single line, so once again, I used the scotch tape masking technique to give "truly madly deeply" a new twist. Be sure to check out A Muse News and all the team posted on The Lounge for more elegant A Muse ideas! And tomorrow is the last day of Amuse-bouche and you know what THAT means, the BIG release is just around the corner. It's ALWAYS a Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

A Muse supplies used: stamps: Coral, Sand dollar, Truly madly deeply, micro oval; notecard- Sky blue, Latte; Pretty Pearls- Chocolate; Simple Stick Powder

Ink- Colorbox Pigment- Coral, Memento- Rich Cocoa, Dessert Sand; Glitter-Art Institute.

As coincidence might have it, I did not order any of the stamps for today's amuse-bouche. I have 2 or more from other days just none listed for a "general greetings with a sea/ocean theme" card today. After checking out all of the other Creative Team members that are participating today, all I can say is "WOW!"- you definitely don't want to miss any of them! So be sure to check out A Muse News and the Lounge to see some truly incredible creativity!

Also, for all A Muse addicts in the northeast Alabama area, be sure to check out my class blog for descriptions and dates of my January classes! We will definitely be using the latest A Muse release in these classes!

So I'll be back with Day 4 and 5 of Amuse-bouche! Hope to see you then! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

Amuse-bouche- Let's Sass it Up a Notch

The first time I saw this new Anchor image from the A Muse "Sea of Love" release, I thought, "I've got to turn that into a tattoo!" Now personally, I have no tats (I have nothing against them, they simply are not "me") but I guess I took care of enough WWII Naval Veterans during my days in the ER to associate an anchor with ink! Initially, I had it in my mind to make a muscular arm shaped card BUT since today's sneaks were to be "Love Expressions to our Men," I thought that the man in my life would much rather see a card with a little va va voom! This brings me to the second new product I used- Chiffon Pink 8 1/2 x 11 card stock! Yes, be on the look out for new solid colors of A Muse card stock . Still the same wonderful color on one side, white on the other BUT now you can use them to make different sized cards and crafts such as this cute bra and pantie template (yes, if you can't wait to see the backside of this card scroll on down)! I had such a fun time decorating the Robin's Egg Damask undies with Robin's Egg Pearls and this adorable Ocean polka dot ribbon. Truly a fun card!

Before I reveal the backside of my card, I'd like to point out the new sentiment "you are my ANCHOR." It is a single lined sentiment but by masking each line individually with scotch tape, I was able to have it frame the anchor image. This is a technique that I love and demonstrate often in my A Muse classes! For me, this is a perfect sentiment because my husband is truly my anchor of life. Would not want to imagine my life without him!

So without further ado, this amuse-bouche will leave the building- teeheehee! Remember to stop by A Muse News and The Lounge for more sensational sea faring ideas by the Creative Team! It's ALWAYs A Stampin' Good Time! Take care!