The Dean's Christmas Gift

I have started a tradition (perhaps inadvertently) of giving the Dean of the pharmacy school hand stamped cards for Christmas and her birthday (to fill the hand stamped card holder I gave her). This year I stamped 25 for her, mostly with a butterfly theme, but I always try to include some masculine and "generic" cards, as well. Here are a few:

I included dividers for the box this year, so now I just have to keep the box full -- I'd better start creating for her again, her birthday is in May! :-)

Happy stamping, and happy New Year!
Christina

Christmas Card Class

Each December I attend a Christmas card class that a friend holds -- although we send photo greeting cards so that family and friends across the country can see how my son is growing, so I now have a lovely huge stack of handmade cards ready to go for those people who I like enough to send Christmas greetings, but don't know enough to send a family photo. Here are the cards we made this year (All products CTMH)

I really like the shaped sparkles!

Washi tape Noel

Simple -- cutout on the Cricut!

Cricut cuts with the shaped sparkles & glitter

I love this technique -- so much easier than it looks

Cricut cut mixed with a stamp -- simple but cute!

A good one for the kids

The red heart really ties this all together!

This is my favorite -- Cricut cuts, shaped sparkles and glitter ribbon, what's not to love?!

Maybe I should have actually sent some of these out -- with everything going on it looks like we'll be sending a New Year's photo card and update letter, rather than a Christmas greeting. Maybe I'll plan better next year -- although I think I probably say that EVERY year!?!

I hope you had a lovely Christmas and holiday season! Don't forget, tomorrow is the last day to order from the AMuse Studio Holiday catalog AND the December Spotlight! See it, and so much more, on my site: https://www.amusestudio.com/christinaseeger

Happy Stamping!
Christina

Out With the Old, In With the New!

I paired the cherry strip pattered bag and small bow die on Night Before Christmas cardstock with the No Peeking set and its coordinating Classic Tag die set for quick and cute Co-worker gifts!

December is creeping to a close and that mean a lot of changes are on the horizon for AMuse Studios as the New Year dawns!

First up, good news and bad news: I'm sorry to say, the holiday catalog is quickly wrapping up. Those cute stamp sets are retiring already (and word is that most of them will NOT be coming back!) See it and place an order on my site at: https://www.amusestudio.com/christinaseeger BEFORE THE BALL DROPS ON NEW YEAR'S EVE! But there is good news, several of the items from the holiday catalog were too good to miss and will be available in the Valentine's Day Inspiration Guide, including my favorite, the bow dies (yay!)

You can see the Valentine's catalog on my site, with its CUTE project ideas (and I will have it linked after the Holiday catalog is gone), but here are some of the new and held-over highlights:

Splash!

Marshmallow, Golddust, Neon Pink, Neon Orange, Neon Yellow

Sequins

Bermuda, Cherry, Gold, Lime, Orange, Pink, Pearl, and Silver

Patterned Treat Bags

Diagonal stripe - Cherry, Seattle, Onyx, Kraft

Polka dot - Cherry, Seattle, Onyx, Kraft

Kraft solid

Baker's Cording

Orange

Cherry (NEW)

Dies

Both size bow dies
Tall alphabet die set

Even Taller Alphabet Die Set (NEW, 26 letters, letters, each 7/8" tall)

Ink Pads

Neon Orange, Neon Pink & Neon Yellow

Washi

Neon Washi assortment

Silver & Gold Washi assortment

Scrapbook Supplies

Albums - Cherry, Orange, French Roast plus NEW Pink!

Pocket Page refills - ALL

As always, let me know if you have any questions -- and happy stamping! Tomorrow I'll finally share the Christmas cards I made and I have plans this week to share photos of the annual gift of hand stamped cards for my Dean, as well as the family New Year's card that should finally get in the mail on Tuesday!

Christina

Cyber Monday Sale, AMuse Studio Style

In addition to a fabulous December Spotlight, Cyber Monday has a special all of it's own! You can order directly from my website or contact me with any questions! I'd LOVE to chat with you.

Click here for full sized PDF flyer, and below is a list of the sets for this LIMITED TIME sale: 

Item #/Item Description/ Sale Price 

SAAHERO hero mail clear set $1.00
SNSD006 sunshine & shade $2.00
SNSH019 cup of good wishes $3.00
SNSF015 let’s chat $4.00
SHMM006 my aim is true $5.00
SVSE004 go green $6.00
SNSK070 perfectly polished $7.00
SJEP014 past due $8.00 (my personal favorite, of course!)
SNSQ060 brief notes $9.00
SHMP009 victorian charm $10.00

Sale pricing is limited to stock on hand, AMuse Studio will not backorder items when stock is depleted. Sale begins at 12:01am on December 2, 2013 and ends at 11:59pm EST on December 3, 2013. The stamp sets that are part of our Take Ten Sale will come packaged in a clear cello bag.

The nice thing is that you can combine specials -- the December Spotlight is all about Christmas (although I love how they snuck in the Birthday Builder set to do double duty!), with soft non-traditional colors. I can not wait to stamp the Aspen background in Pistachio on Kraft, or, as in the Studio photo below, embossed in white ON Pistachio:

I love everything about this card, way to go AMuse Studio designers!

Click for a full-size PDF

 I am working on finishing up a project for my mother-in-law's Christmas gift and will post some of that this week. It's a box of cards, but I realized that as I saved up cards for this I seemed to have missed birthday (I guess I gave those away throughout the year), so I need to do a few of those and some of the "OTHER" category -- sympathy, hello, wedding -- where just a few is sufficient. The box is a Stampin' Up box that I got a couple of years ago -- I don't think they sell it any more (probably because the template to cover it is the reason it's taken me a couple of years to get this far!) but it will be perfect for this gift!

Enjoy & happy stamping!

Christina

Thankful for You Tag

Tags are the challenge this month at AMuse Studio, so while I was making Thanksgiving cards I made a tag. It will most likely end up in the scrapbook -- I like it too much to give it away!

Thankful for You stamp set & dies, Leaf Trio die set, Screenprint background stamp, French Roast woodgrain cardstock, French Roast bakers twine & satin ribbon, rich cocoa memento ink

 

Happy Stamping!
Christina

November Cards

My son and one of his best friends share a November birthday, and so it's fun to make cards that match each of their personality but have some similar element(s). This year I used one of my date stamps on the inside with the date and a saying: kind of a big deal. They turned 15 and so can get a Learner's Permit and start Driver's Ed. They are both ready -- but I'm not sure the parents are!

The card for my son -- he wore his suit to school on the actual day. That way it was his "birthday suit." He picked out 2 new dress shirts and several ties as his birthday gift.

An all AMuse card for his friend -- a simple, but fitting sentiment for a 15 year old boy!

I also decided to CASE a card I did at a recent SU! class for a few Thanksgiving cards. I don't always send cards for this holiday, but I have a few people that I have not had a chance to keep up with this semester and I wanted to remind them that as busy as I get I am GRATEFUL for them.

 

Thankful for you set & dies, Leaf trio dies, Woodgrain cardstock (french roast), Baker's twine (french roast), Rich Cocoa memento ink, and a button from Walmart.

I hope to be able to stamp a bit more -- and share photos of the new island my husband built for my craft room -- over the holiday break, but next post will be the tag I made to coordinate with these cards!

Happy stamping!
Christina

Square One -- a Vinyl Alternative

I have been wanting to do more customized home decor for the new house on my Cricut (I even bought a couple of cartridges specifically for that) and I found SquareOne Masterpiece as a nice alternative to vinyl. I'm going to get some to do holiday projects and jazz up my craftroom over the holidays, plus I might even get a few gifts out. because it's fabric I can stamp it, too and with 80 or so colors I'm sure I can find just the right project for, well, just about everyone! I'll post what I end up with -- and I have some left-over vinyl to practice on while I wait for it to arrive . . . hmm, where to start??

http://www.square1masterpiece.com/

Happy stamping -- and cutting!
Christina

Thankful for You!

In addition to the monthly Spotlight, the November 'Thankful For You' promotion offers you a savings of 20% on some amazing A Muse Studio products. These products were specially selected to help you with holiday crafting, and include some really interesting accessories in addition to holiday stamp sets -- so you can really turn up the bling, in a variety of styles! Add in the Happy Fall Spotlight sets and there really is something for everyone!




Be sure to check out the special paper packs put together for this sale -- what a great way to get coordinating sheets to make your project! The fine print: Sale pricing is limited to stock on hand, we will not backorder items when stock is depleted. Sale begins at midnight on November 1st and ends at 11:59 pm EST on November 30.

I'm happy to have made it through "Band-tober" where we had a marching band contest EVERY Saturday (sometimes 2 in one day) and at least once during the week, in addition to early practice. Friday night was the fundraiser dinner and my husband and I ran the Silent Auction tables -- as Freshman band parents we had NO IDEA how much work that would entail!! But it was a great evening, the 2 local middle school bands performed in addition to the high school band. I think it's as much a recruiting tool as a fundraiser, since the 8th graders get to see the FUN that the band has, and how good they are (and they really are!)

I didn't have a chance to make Halloween goodies for the people at work -- so I'd better start planning something for Thanksgiving or they'll think I don't like them anymore ;-), but I was able to put together a quick thank you for the neighbors that hosted the 15th Annual Halloween Block Party in my new neighborhood. With a spiderweb from Cricut to mark the post-Halloween theme on the pinstriped paper, I was able to just use the Vintage Label 1 dies (with a little orange distressing) and one of the lovely sentiments from the Thankful for You set to tie something together (the inside says "so very much" from Thank You Mix).

 

 

Today I have a trip to IKEA planned, and my craft room will be one MAJOR step closer to completion (until I get another idea to add, anyway . . .). I'm getting 2 long Expedit shelves to use as a workspace, so I'll finally be able have things in a good space for working (the square shelves are perfect for 12X12 items -- I'll have to see how many Cricut cartridges each will hold, though. I might need one row of shelves just for that collection) AND I'll have a space for others to craft with me. I'll post a photo when I have the room together, but it might be a Christmas Break project to really put the thought in to make it work "just right."

Happy Stamping!
Christina



 

October -- Oh, so much going on!

There is so much going on with A|Muse Studio in October that I don't know where to start!

I suppose I should begin by announcing a ONE DAY ONLY sale for World Cardmaking Day, October 5th, since that is just around the corner.

On October 5th, for only 24 hours, the following five stamp sets are only five dollars each!



* harlequin background * rock star * just my type * calendar fun * springtime day

You may order directly from my webpage https://www.amusestudio.com/christinaseeger
or get your order to me (via e-mail) BEFORE Saturday the 5th so I can place a group order. Check out the rest of this month's specials -- you can combine, and most are available the entire month!

October is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month and A|Muse Studio is bringing back the FREE Fight Like a Girl set ($3 shipping) AND a die is now available for the awesome ribbon from the set ($5.99). Each Fight Like a Girl stamp set includes a "push-pin" stamp that women can use to stamp their calendar each month to serve as a reminder to do a self-exam, which is so critical for early detection. There will also be information on breast health included with each stamp set.

 

 

 

In addition Amuse|Studio encourages you to THINK PINK by putting all things pink ON SALE (even some Valentine's sets!) for the month:

 

FREE Calendar Download

A Muse Studio is pleased to provide our free downloadable calendar again this year as part of our Stamp Out Breast Cancer awareness campaign. This full-page calendar (8.5" x 11") is a fun crafty project and includes 15 months - Oct 2013 through Dec 2014. The calendar is available on the A|Muse Studio website or you can download it here:
2014 Calendar - Color
2014 Calendar - BW
And, of course, this month's Spotlight, Tricks and Treats, sets a spooky and fun holiday mood!

  

Whew, let me catch my breath! Let me know if you have any questions or I can help you in any way!

Happy Stamping!
Christina

Age is Just A Number

Today is my husband's birthday, one of those big number (half a decade) birthdays, so I pulled out my favorite AMuse set, Eat Cake, and a few of my other favorites (I just got the SU! Chevron border punch) and this is what I came up with:

Paper & Eat Cake stamp set: Amuse Studio, chevron border punch: SU! Number background: Deadbeat Designs

 

The number background is from Deadbeat Designs, another favorite of mine. I got this stamp at the retreat I did earlier this year.

I gave him the card along with the canvas I created at the retreat. The saying on that project -- Home. The nicest word there is. -- is especially fitting for this year, since we bought a house (and are spending a lot of time and effort on it.)

Happy Stamping!
Christina

Cards for Special Occasions!

From a special birthday to an out-of-the ordinary thank you to an adventurous congratulations/farewell/good luck and sincere sympathy for the loss of a nephew, August was a busy month of events worthy of a hand-stamped card!

A congratulations & farewell card for a friend I will OWLways miss! I love the way the quiet Hexagon background and the stardust finishing spray (AMuse Studio) add visual interest without taking away from my owl (SU!) and saying (The Stamps of Life). I had so many things to say in this card -- for a colleague undertaking a major adventure with a library position in Doha, Qatar -- that there are sentiments on all 4 panels of this card, with a very personal one (from Winnie the Pooh) on the back.

One of the month's Spotlight sets put to good use thanking some friends for a favor "above and beyond." I love how easy this set is to use, and again the understated hexagon background and stardust finishing spray really added the right finishing touch to make this card far from plain, as simple as it is.

I LOVE the coordinating colors of AMuse Studio -- here Mermaid -- and I love the Eat Cake set, which was meant for chalkboard art, but works well in a variety of colors. This card helped celebrate a very special friend that I don't get to see often enough!

 

A Stampin'Up set on Mermaid paper and ink, for a time when there really aren't many words.

 

The hexagon background is one one of the September Spotlight sets -- I think I will use it on some cards I'm making this weekend. Not only is it "on trend," it's a lot of fun, and very versatile!

Don't forget the holiday catalog is out and Holiday Hoopla is on NOW -- with increased hostess benefits starting with a $250 order/workshop. Let me know if I can help you get free stuff!

I'm nearly finished assembling a Summer 2013 mini-album that was last week's free cut on the Cricut Craft Room software -- I'll share that next (and hopefully I'll have my husband's birthday card done to share -- since tomorrow is the big day!) But, until then,

Happy Stamping!
Christina

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

August is always fun at A*Muse Studio because the holiday catalog is released -- and Holiday Hoopla happens!

I have added the Holiday Catalog to the blog sidebar, it's got a lot of great stamp sets as usual, but some fabulous surprises as well . . . in addition to new dies, we now have an adorable mini scrapbook, perfect for capturing the highlights of the Christmas season. There are a variety of page configurations, and 3 nice Kraft (oh so alterable) dividers. I just received mine, but will have to wait until next weekend to decide what to fill it with. I usually scrap 12X12 so it will be a fun challenge to stick to the true HIGHLIGHTS.

One of the nicest things about Holiday Hoopla is the added incentives for hostesses

And just because there is all this holiday going on doesn't mean the monthly spotlight is neglected!

Later this weekend I will post some cards -- I just sent a birthday card for a friend and tomorrow I get to make a card for a colleague who is taking a job in Qatar -- which is a long way from Texas (in more ways than one)!

Happy Stamping!
Christina

American Crafts Giveaway

I usually don't enter contests that I have so little chance of winning, but when the prize is American Crafts supplies I can be swayed. Winner will be chosen next Wednesday (11:59 Mountain Time/ 12:59 Central). For more details see: http://create.northridgepublishing.com/friday-giveaway-american-crafts/#comment-292256


I use a lot of American Crafts paper (it works well in the Cricut, and I love the texture) but this giveaway is a great reminder of all the other great products available.

Happy Stamping!
Christina