A Muse Studio Blog Hop

Welcome to our A Muse Studio Blog Hop for Krystie's Muses group. I thought it would be fun to do another ice cream card.

Supplies Used:
Cardstock: Vanilla, Bubblegum, Blush, French Roast Polka Dots
Ink: French Roast
Stamps: What's the Scoop Set
Ribbon: Bubblegum 5/8" Satin
Pearls: Vanilla

All stamps and supplies from my A Muse Studio webstore

If you want to start at the beginning of the hop please go to Krystie's Blog. Your next stop is KELLY'S BLOG.

If you get lost, here is the complete list:
Krystie Hersch
Lianna Vigil YOU ARE HERE
Kellie Maggio
Kari Bell
Kristen Watson
Veronica Zalis
Kathy Hatzke
Kelly Spivey
Lisa Wakabayashi
Karen Crisp
Kristie Hartfeil
Angela Schellenberg
Heather Wroe
Krystie Hersch

Bunny Love!

Marianne Walker from Copic, CHA Winter 2011

I think Marianne Walker is awesome!  She is
one of the instructors for Copic and I got my certification from her a few years ago.  On top of being a great teacher and super nice she is an awesome artist!  Sometimes we are lucky enough to be able to purchase her art.  She designed the cutest set of Bunny stamps for Our Craft Lounge and the second I saw it I knew I would have to have it.

Above she is showing off her original art that matches one of the stamps.  You can see her amazing Copic coloring tutorial here.

Our Craft Lounge Stamps from Stampin' EJ

Our Craft Lounge Stamps from Stampin' EJ

Since I know I can't compete with her amazing Copic skills on the parasol bunnies I thought I would try my hand at the lovely image of the bunny family in the ginger jar.  I wanted to use non-frilly colors and give a different feel to the image so I started with some beautiful washi paper and took my color scheme from there.  I picked up the golden colors to use for the jar and accented with the same greens and pinks.  For this card I used a combination of Copics and Prismacolor Pencils to get just the right look.

The floral spray on the side is colored entirely in pencil to match the paper and the jar.  The ribbon was colored with my Copics to get just the right match.  It works wonderfully but will make your ribbon a bit stiffer than usual.  The jar is colored in Copics but then I added some auburn pencil over the copics in the corners to make the shadows deeper and richer.

Our Craft Lounge Stamps from Stampin' EJ

Finally we come to the sweet girl holding a bunny.  If you want to see how Marianne colored it then click here.  I decided to use my blender pen and dye ink to color this image.  The left side of the gatefold uses some lovely washi paper and the right side has the image embossed using copper EP.  then I made a watercolor effect by putting some ink onto the lid of the stamp pad and then using a blender pen as a brush.

Birthday Blog Hop

All supplies available from my A Muse Studio Online Store.

Welcome to our blog hop.  If you are participating in the blog hop, you should have come from Kristie's blog and if not, then you can start from the beginning with Samantha's blog until you come to my blog.

It's my Father in Law Diego's birthday so I made this card for the blog hop.  I always have trouble with guy cards because I always want to add too many frills on a card.  But I am learning that simple is better!  Today's challenge was to make your own patterned paper but I wanted to keep it bold and graphic looking.  (For some reason I didn't think the backgrounds I made with flowers would work for his card, ha ha!)

I used the "Tini Time" stamp set diamond border to make the backgrounds with the lovely A Muse Studio pigment chalk ink.  Unlike dye ink, this ink will actually show up when you stamp on darker paper.  So the Grass ink looks awesome both on the Ocean and the Onyx cardstock.  I love how you get two different looks from the same exact pattern.  On the Ocean you notice the diamonds more but on the Onyx you see the "white space" of the circle pattern instead and the diamonds recede into the background.  The birthday sentiment is Contemporary Greetings.

All supplies available from my A Muse Studio Online Store.

I wanted to make sure to show you the inside of the card because even though I didn't decorate it I love the fact that A Muse Studio paper is white on one side so you don't have to waste time lining your cards when you use dark cardstock.

All supplies are available from my A Muse Studio Online store.


Happy Birthday to my dear Father in Law--I am so lucky to be part of your family!

Your next stop is  Lindsay Spencer's blog.

Operation Write Home Memorial Weekend Blog Hop

Welcome to the Operation Write Home Blog Hop!  You should have arrived from Kris' Blog.

Supplies available from https://www.amusestudio.com/liannallama

My Card today uses A Muse Studio Papers, Inks and Supplies along with the heart stamp from the "Hearts A Plenty" set (or get it in your Consultant Starter Kit) and the sentiment from the "On the Wing" set.

Supplies available from https://www.amusestudio.com/liannallama

 Your next stop is Karen's Blog! Enjoy!

One Card - three color schemes!

All papers, stamps and border punch from Stampin' Up.

I thought it would be fun to make some cards with the cute hostess set I got from Stampin' Up a couple of months ago.  I haven't had a chance to use it yet.  I couldn't decide which colors to use so I used three different combos!  The cute pearls and rhinestones (from A Muse Studios) add the perfect
touch to the center of each little flower.

Very Vanilla, Ruby Red, Cameo Coral, River Rock

I thought I would like the coral card the best until I made the blue one.  It was so soft and sweet it reminded me of old china and I knew my Aunt would like these colors together.

Very Vanilla, Bordering Blue, Not Quite Navy, River Rock

But then I made the cocoa card and it had such a pretty vintage feel and the brown pearl gave it a warm glow.  My great aunts loved earth tones and I know Ellie would have approved of this card for sure.  Sometimes neutral colors are good for general cards and they have a homey feel and coziness about them.  What do you think?  Which one is your favorite?

Very Vanilla, Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, River Rock

Happy Birthday, Moira!

All stamps and supplies from A Muse Studio

Welcome to our A Muse Studio Blog Hop for Krystie's Muses group.  Last weekend was Moira's birthday.  She turned nine and we had an awesome vampire dance party in her honor!  This is the card I made her (not very "goth" but I thought she would also like something sweet!)

Supplies Used:
Cardstock: Sugar, Buttercup, Buttercup Gingham
Ink:  Memento Black, Papaya
Stamps: What's the Scoop Set, Harlequin Background
Nestabilities Scallop Squares, Squares
Copics: Blender pen, RV06, BG13

If you want to start at the beginning of the hop please go to Krystie's Blog.Your next stop is LISA'S BLOG. 

If you get lost, here is the complete list:
Krystie Hersch - http://www.cleanandsimplecards.com
Kathy Hatzke - http://www.kathatstamps.blogspot.com
Kelly Spivey -http://www.southpawpaperarts.com
Liane Vigil - YOU ARE HERE
Lisa Wakabayashi - http://www.dragonfliesandcats.blogspot.com
Lesa Wolfe - http://www.thepaperpundit.blogspot.com
Lisa Chapman - http://www.piesafepapergoods.blogspot.com
Veronica Zalis - http://lk2thestarz.blogspot.com/
Kari Bell - http://www.karikards.blogspot.com

A Muse Studio Card

All stamps and supplies from A Muse Studio

Welcome to our A Muse Studio Blog Hop.  If you want to start at the beginning please go to Krystie's Blog.Your next stop is KARI'S BLOG. 

All items can be purchased through me or on the A Muse Studio website.  Anyone who places a $50 or more order will get a free pack of pearls or rhinestones of your choice.

Anyone who hosts a qualifying workshop in May or June will get a free A Muse ink pad along with all your other wonderful gifts!

A Muse Studio Stamping Workshop Open House

Lovely project form A Muse Studio website!

I am planning two FREE open house events next month to kick off my new stamping workshops. [Thursday, April 28th at 6:00-9:00 pm] and [Saturday, April 30th at 2:00-5:00 pm] I hope you can make it to one of them!

PLEASE RSVP SO I CAN MAKE SURE TO HAVE ENOUGH SUPPLIES! Friends are always welcome so please bring someone for a chance to win a prize!

THE FORMAT:
...This is a FREE stamping workshop to introduce you to the art of rubber stamping and card-making. There is no obligation except to come and have fun! I will have three make-n-take card projects for guests to complete; a new one will be featured each hour! If you come for the whole event you can make up to three different cards or if you just want to stop by for a quick visit you can make whatever card that is presented for that hour! I will have everything prepared for you and all supplies set out.

THE PRODUCTS:
A Muse Studio is a company that has been around for years but they just started doing home sales.

Here is a link to the current catalog:
https://www.securedcontent.net/amuse/pdfs/2011AMuseStudioCatalog.pdf

Online ordering available.

Anyone who places a $50 or more order will get a free pack of stickers of your choice.

Anyone who hosts a qualifying workshop in May or June will get a free A Muse ink pad along with all your other wonderful gifts!

Hero Arts Luscious Cards

Hero Arts - CL509 Luscious Patterned Flowers

I made four new cards for Stampin EJ's store using the new stamps from the Hero Arts/Basic Grey Luscious line.   The first card uses silver embossing powder, teal glitter embossing and some pretty foil, metallic, and glitter paper.  I thought this would make a pretty wedding card (but I had already used the "Best Wishes" sentiment and didn't want to re-use it, ha ha!)

Hero Arts - CL509 Luscious Patterned Flowers
    Hero Arts - CL509 Luscious Frames   

The second card uses a resist technique by stamping white StazOn onto a book page (Jane Austen) and using a brayer to apply Tim Holtz Distress ink once the StazOn is dry.  For a detailed flower tutorial CLICK HERE.

Hero Arts - CL509 Luscious Patterned Flowers
    Hero Arts - CL509 Luscious Frames

Card number three is a simple card using more book pages matted and stamped.  I originally put them on upside down because I thought the text detracted from the design but I ended up changing it so the text is now right-side-up.

Hero Arts - CL509 Luscious Patterned Flowers
    Hero Arts - CL509 Luscious Frames
    Hero Arts - CG302 Luscious Ledger

The final card is another simple design using more inchie squares with pretty rhinestones to bling them up!  Don't you love these flowers!? Stamps and supplies available at: Debra's Cottage.

Two Cats

Today I decided to start the New Year off right and play along with the Operation Write Home Sketch Challenge I made two cards today- one for our pet sitter and one to send to the heroes! I decided to keep things simple for this one and followed the sketch closely.

Cat paper from Bo Bunny and sentiments paper from Pinecone Press. Stamp from Inkadinkado colored with Copic Markers. Smooch Ink accents.

Contest for a Cause!

If you have an extra $5 or less to spend why not make a card for a soldier and enter a contest that will help the organization win too! Go to this page to see a QUICK, EASY, CHEAP Tutorial



I was able to make the card shown for just over a dollar! I spent $.59 on a piece of patterned paper and $.50 on a discount sheet of clearance rub-ons! The card took less than 5 minutes to make and now I will make some more cards to go with this one and send it over to Operation Write Home--one of my favorite charities!

Someone put a hex on me!

Last week, I went to the Long Beach Int'l Quilt Show with a friend of mine and I got hypnotized by the beauty of hexagons. Before I knew it I had purchased a hex kit along with some Halloween fabric that caught my eye. The technique uses English Paper Piecing to make the hexes by basting them onto paper. I settled on a method where the basting is only on the back of the fabric instead of through the paper to save myself from having to remove the stitches later.


So far I've made over 110 hexes and I had to order more papers. I have been stitching them while I watch TV in the evenings. Sewing the hexes together to make a flower is taking me almost an hour for each 7-hex group and the stitches are so tiny I have to put on my reading glasses!

Instead of the recommended whip stitch, I started using a running stitch for the construction as I think it gives a nicer look to the front. For durability, I am whip stitching each corner several times to secure it.

Here is a view of the back so you can see that I am using squares to baste instead of spending the extra time to cut hexagon shapes. When complete I am hoping I will have a lovely table runner as a gift for someone special!

Happy Whisky with Chocolat

Well, on this post I think the title says it all! Yes the whisky was very happy with the chocolat and so were we to taste it! Suntory Whisky—nothing else like it to warm you up on a cold day!

Continental Breakfast, Anyone?

When we were in Tokyo we stayed at a businessman's hotel that included a continental breakfast. Consisting of dry dinner rolls sealed in plastic, they were not very tasty.


Matt found a much better use for his roll. Can you guess what he did with them? Ah, yes--his poor tired feet hurt so much that all he could think of were pillows of bread to walk on.


A photo of the sorry-looking rolls at the end of a very long day!

J-Sign

If you ever get to Japan, one thing you will notice are the signs that may have lost a little something in the translation. Some of them are a funny mix of English and will just make you smile. This sign comes complete with a fun diagram.

"You tossed your cigarette out the window. You looked like you were fleeing the scene of a crime. RUNS AWAY - VICTIM - WITNESS" Below this dire warning against littering is the slogan for Japan Rail: "Meet your delight"

NOTE:
I appreciate your comments, but I am now closing comments on this post. For some reason, I am getting 2-3 spam comments every day on this one and it is driving me nuts!

Embroidered Napkins

I am a huge fan of old-fashioned linens and white-on-white things. They seem so pretty and pure and elegant to me. This is one of the last things I sewed and it was way back in 2004. I made these linen napkins for my cousin Matt's wedding to Gina.

I mail ordered some exquisite linen cloth and cut it into 18" squares. I finished the edges with a serger rolled-edge hem. The machine embroidery was done using silk thread and (I believe) a Martha Pullen monogram for the "B". I'm not thrilled with how the edges turned out but I didn't have time to re-do them by hand. I do love how the monograms turned out. Hopefully Gina appreciates old-fashioned finery (I know her mother-in-law does!)

Another Frame-up

Here is the second set of pics I have added to my bathroom. They are beautiful tropical photos hung to remind me of beauty and our relaxing time in paradise.


This was taken at Club Bali Hai in Moorea, Tahiti. I love the soft colors of the twilight here and it is so tranquil and lovely this time of evening. I set my camera on the dock and laid down on the wooden planks to compose this shot. I could have stayed there forever with the warm wood under my skin and the cool breeze melting over me. Sigh! I wish I could be there again.



We saw the most perfect sunset on our last night in Honolulu. We were leaving our hotel to walk along the beach to get to our special dinner we planned for our anniversary. It was such a wonderful evening.





This is an overwater bungalow at the Moorea Pearl Resort. It was that early peaceful time of the morning when the sun was just starting to come up. I had left our bungalow and wanted to enjoy the peace of the morning on our last day there. Not as soul was awake except myself and the pool boy who was rearranging the chairs for a new day of sunbathing.

ATC set

I realized I hadn't posted these anywhere last year so I thought I'd share them here. They are for a Jane Austen Theme swap I did with some friends. I used pages torn from an old Jane book that my mother-in-law was going to toss. She had worn through her second full volume of Jane Austen because she loves her so much! Now she is on her third.

I put a thin layer of gesso over the page and then stamped and colored the image. (stamp from Great Impressions) I kept this one simple like so much that I do lately and I put it on some pretty patterned paper from Daisy D's. The corners were rounded, inked and I stamped a simple sentiment from Stampin' Up with a tiny gel heart sticker to dot the "i".

Some notes about the coloring: I had issues using my Copics on top of the gesso. It will come off onto your marker so it is wise to test your process first if you try this. In the end, I only used the Copics for the skintone and used my stamp pad and a blender pen to watercolor the rest. I had tried two different inks to stamp the lady and was having trouble either with the color running or with it bleeding into the Copic color. I think the brown ink for stamping I tried was my Adirandock and SU Basic Brown (my favorite brown color and the one I use for almost any non-Copic technique.)

All in all this was an unsatisfactory experiment, but I liked the final results anyways. I never found a happy medium but it all worked out OK since it was a small area to color and I didn't mind the softening effect from the image blending.

I've been framed!

After 6 years I finally decided to hang some photos on the wall. I thought I would share the ones I added to a triple 4x6 frame in my bathroom. I thought they might add a little color and beauty to my life as I get ready for work in the morning.

The first photo was taken in Osaka, Japan. It is the plum orchard next to Osaka Castle. I remember how haunting and beautiful the blossoms smelled that day. I wish I could bottle the elusive scent of the plum blossoms to remind me of the loveliness in the world.


This was taken at Man Mo temple in Hong Kong. I love the repetition of pattern and color here and the photo soothes me and reminds me of a lovely day of sightseeing.


This fragile beauty is a hibiscus blossom from Tahiti. I love how delicate and serene this singular flower is. It reminds me to enjoy the beauty around me and to be at peace in the moment.



I hope you enjoyed this small break in your day and the world photo tour I have given you! Enjoy a beautiful day.

Stamptoberfest

I've finally got a start on Stamptoberfest--a fun stamping event at one of my favorite sites. If you want to look at some wonderful cards or read through the challenges, please go to the site and check out anything labeled SOF09!

Two Peas Stamping Board

My desk is a disaster and I will be gone all day but hopefully I can get lots done tomorrow. Cleaning up can wait until next week, ha ha!

Card Credits:
Paper by Basic Grey, Little Yellow Bicycle and Stampin' Up! Stamps by Karen Lockhart and Clearly Wordsworth. Coloring using Copics and memento ink.