It's Great to Be 8!!

... and some monogram madness!

A Muse is celebrating an anniversary ... 8 years of amazing stamping goodness ... and it is time to party!! There are celebrations aplenty on the A Muse News Blog, and lots of inspiration to be found on the Muses' blogs! And you *need* to get yourself this new Anniversary set - it is amazing!!
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Next week is Teacher Appreciation Week, and I wanted a little something for the wonderful teachers at my son's preschool. This new set just screamed at me to make some easy smeasy monogrammed notecards!

These are pretty self-explanatory - think simple, right? The patterned paper is from American Crafts, all stamps and ribbons by A Muse. This medium circle was a perfect fit for the Small Polka Dot Lowercase alphabet.
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We are off to see Dave Ramsey Live this afternoon ... should be fun!

Bunny Birthday!

My 4 year old had a birthday party to go to yesterday ... a gymnastics party! I immediately thought of this cute bunny princess and made a quick card for the little lady! We had a blast at the party - Parker got to jump off a trampoline into a big foam pit and ride a zip line across the gym! Of course, I was the mom that forgot my camera! Doh!
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Supplies:
Stamps: Bunny Princess, Little Lady, star from clear Sports Set, Mini Oval Bl
Paper: Popsicle Pink Solid notecard, black and turquoise from my stash
Etc.: Micro dot twinkle stickers, Mini dot twinkle stickers, Mini star twinkle stickers

Doggie Thanks

We lost one of our dogs a little while ago ... cancer sucks! This card was sent to the vet that was so very wonderful to my dog and to hysterical me. You just never know what kind of cards you are going to need!
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Supplies: Stamps: A Muse Dog House, Cupcake Builder (for the clouds), Thank You Mix MA, kraft and black cs, white gel pen, red twine by May Arts (I love this stuff!)

Friends and Flowers

I love, love, love the Lily Kate line of paper by Basic Gray - it's a few years old, and I'm not even sure if it is still available, but I've been hoarding it for a while and I'm trying to use it instead of just look at it!! This is an example of one of those designs that just didn't really blow my skirt up, so I redid it and liked it a lot better!! I love it when I can actually salvage a design and not waste the parts!

Lily Kate - take one:
Lily Kate - take two -
Yep - that second one is a whole lot better!!
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Supplies: A Muse Spiral Daisy, Friends were Flowers, French Roast Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon, Mini Dot Twinkle Stickers.

Who loves woodgrain??

I picked up this beautiful woodgrain background stamp in Seattle a few months ago (and it finally saw some ink!), so technically, this works for this week's A Muse Lounge challenge!! Wow, I am proud of myself for doing something that works for a challenge!! I have lots of other ideas brewing for this beauty! And I know - a pink owl?? Just seemed like it worked!

Do you see that ribbon? It started off white, and I colored it with my dark pink Copic marker! Love that!!
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Supplies:
Stamps: Woodgrain background (by somebody - I can't remember right now!), Owl from the A Muse clear Nature set, Hoo loves you?
Paper: Ruby Red CS by SU, Kraft, Chocolate Brown, A Muse Natural White
Accesories: White grosgrain by SU, French Roast Stitched Grosgrain by A Muse

***ETA: Okay, I went back and reread the challenge, and it's supposed to be new A Muse stamps (duh!). Oh well, I just don't have it in my to retype the whole post. Don't you think it should count since I bought the stamp with A Muse girls???

Oh my ... somebody should spank me!

No ... not like that! Get your minds out of the gutter! Somebody should spank me for being such a bad blogger! Okay - that's it ... no more flogging myself! Things have been crazy, which at some point I am going to have to admit is just the norm! I have missed blogging, and I have had way too little time to get crafty! I am trying to get back in the groove, and hopefully things will be better!!
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In other news - have you checked out the newest A Muse release?? OMG - the Sweet Shop is just amazing! There is going to be a lot of Valentine's love being shared with these fun new stamps!! If you haven't gotten yours, be sure to order soon - or get yourself to your local retailer and pick some up!

Have you checked out the new A Muse Lounge??!!?? It is a beautiful, amazing place to get together with all the A Muse gals, meet new friends, and chat about all sorts of things! There is also an awesome Gallery with some great ideas to inspire you!! Be sure to check it out!!
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And now, a card!!
One of my dear friends is expecting a baby, and this sentiment is just perfect! I've been sorting and rearranging some of my stuff, and I ran across my 6x6 pad of Basic Gray Lily Kate paper. I just love it, and I tend to hoard things that I love, but I am trying to make myself use the stuff I have! What good is pretty paper if it just sits in my craft room??
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Supplies:
Stamps: A Muse expecting joy ma and maternity dress
Paper: A Muse Chiffon Green 4-bar, white CS, Basic Gray Lily Kate Pattern Paper
Accessories: A Muse Sheer Pearl Ribbon, MS scallop border punch, pink heart twinkle sticker

The 11th day!

The 11th day ... there must be something lucky in that right?? Well, I think the lucky part is that the A Muse girls saved my patootie by stuffing my box with some yummy candy! Last minute Lucy that I am, I was making this box at the last possible minute before I went to Seattle last month, and I completely forgot about getting something for the inside. This probably stems from the same part of me that is so concerned about how a card looks, and then totally forgets to send it to the person it was made for! Scatter-brain, I tell ya - that's what I am! Anyway - let's just say that I filled the box with L-O-V-E!!
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Supplies: A Muse Fawn (from the clear Peace and Cheer set), numbers from the Cupcake Builder Clear Set, Vintage Green Paper, Vintage Red Paper, Green Kitchen Paper, Red Stitched Grosgrain, Red Micro Twinkle Stickers.