Video Tutorial: Graduation Money Card + Giveaway!

Just in time for college and high school graduations, here's a super simple and quick money card.

AND - I'm doing my first ever GIVEAWAY! :) Leave a comment on this post by 8pm on Wednesday, May 11 for a chance to win a copy of the stamp set I used in this video - ConGRADulations by A Muse Studio. For an extra chance to win, Tweet about my giveaway, and leave another comment to let me know you Tweeted. Be sure to use @afkeyes in your Tweet and link to the post!

Watch the video here, or on YouTube.



All materials from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore:
- solid cardstock in Sugar and Onyx
- polka dot cardstock in Buttercup
- ConGRADulations stamp set
- Memento Tuxedo Black ink
- Buttercup Tombow Dual-Brush marker
- 1/8" super-stick tape
- Tombow tape runner
- Standard Circles Large and Standard Circles Small Nestabilities

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great week and don't forget to comment! :)

Wedding Wishes

Hi there! Just popping in with a quick post to share a super-simple wedding card I made. Hubby and I are trying to keep our vacation from breaking the bank this year, so I schlepped a whole mess of A Muse Studio supplies up to Maine with us. Haven't ended up using them as much as I might have liked, but I got this card made as well as a dry run of next week's video tutorial project.

Just 3 colors, and some very very very (!) basic Copic coloring....

... and a sweet sentiment on a little tag.

Thanks for stopping by!

Video Tutorial: Triangle Box Wedding Favor

Greeting's from Orr's Island, Maine! :)

I honestly didn't think there was going to be a video tutorial this week. I had a really busy week and didn't get a chance to get my video edited. So I'd planned to edit it while we were on vacation, and post it next week. But it turns out we have a great internet connection, so here I am! Right on time! :)

So anyway, about the video. I know three people who got engaged over Easter weekend. And as spring to early summer is, traditionally, wedding season, I decided to make a wedding favor project. You could use this project for any party or celebration as well, and you can also very easily change the size of the box.

One of the people who got engaged is a girl I work with, and I decided to use her as my inspiration. (Plus my hubby's and my initials are T & A - Hah!)

I have no idea what kind of color scheme she's considering, so I decided to use two of my absolute favorite (right now!) color combinations: gray and yellow, and gray and turquoise. Very non-traditional, but I think they'd both be fabulous for modern weddings.

Watch the video below, or watch at my YouTube channel.



All materials from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore:
(These are the materials I use in the video to make the gray and turquoise box.)
- solid cardstock in Slate, Bermuda, and Sugar
- rings stamp from "Happily Ever After" stamp set
- pigment ink in Slate
- Standard Circles Large and Standard Circles Small Nestabilities dies
- stitched grosgrain ribbon in Ocean
- 3D foam adhesive
- Tombow Mono tape runner
- Copic marker in BG10
- Copic Multiliner black pen
- other: white embroidery floss, hole punch, scoring board, ruler, American Crafts foam letter stickers

Have a great week!

Happy Easter!

To all my Christian friends, I hope you have a lovely day full of family, friends, and good food!

This is the card I made to send to my grandmother in Michigan. Note the Epic Stamp-A-Ma-Jig Sentiment Fail. I still have no idea what happened, but I just couldn't make the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig work properly for me on anything I made that evening! 

Video Tutorial: Watercolor Stamping with Markers

Disclaimer: Due to the Easter holiday, this week's video tutorial is a day early! Next week I'll be in Maine, so you may see the video go up as early as Friday... But I haven't decided for sure yet :)

Remember this card I made for the A Muse Studio blog hop? Here's how I made it!



All materials from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore:
- solid cardstock in Sugar and Watermelon
- gingham cardstock in Grass
- Tombow Dual Brush Markers in Grass, Cranberry, Currant, and Blackberry
- stitched grosgrain ribbon in Grass
- Thank You stamp from "Hand Scripted"
- flower stamp from "Beautiful Botanicals"
- pigment ink in French Roast
- other: Mini Mister by Ranger

If you have any questions, please let me know!

Video Tutorial: Mini Easter Basket

Welcome to this week's video tutorial!

Since Easter is only a week away, I decided to share this little Easter "basket" with you. I love this project because you can literally make any size box you want (as long as you've got paper big enough!) with this template. It's so easy! :)

I used images from "For Peep's Sake" - the same stamp set I used in last week's tutorial. This little baby chicken is so cute!

I love adding unexpected details like these custom colored paper flowers on the handles. I made this basket to fit 4 eggs. We share dyed Easter eggs every year with my Grammy, and this year she'll be receiving them in this. Be aware though, if you're going to put anything even slightly heavy in your basket, you may want to hold it from the bottom rather than by the handle. It is only made of cardstock after all!

Watch video below, or watch on YouTube.



All materials from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore:
- solid cardstock in Lemon Whip and Sugar
- gingham cardstock in Sage
- polka dot cardstock in Sage
- mini brads in Silver
- Tombow Dual Brush Markers in French Roast, Grass, Papaya, and Lemon Whip
- Copic Marker RV14
- paper flowers Meadow Mix
- Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
- Spellbinders Nestabilities in Classic Scalloped Ovals Large and Classic Ovals Large

Mr. Roboto

I've been playing with the Sushi and Wasabi set from A Muse Studio, and that Styx song has been stuck in my head on and off for days! :)

All materials from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore:
- solid cardstock in Blush, Sage, and Sugar
- patterned cardstock in woodgrain (I used a scrap of the old A Muse woodgrain cardstock from my stash. The new stuff is just as cute, but a little bit lighter in color.)
- pigment inks in Grass, Bubblegum, and French Roast
- "Sushi and Wasabi" stamp set
- pearl stickers in Sugar
- Woodgrain Background stamp
 

I inked the branch stamp in French Roast ink, and then "kissed" it against the Woodgrain Background stamp to create the texture of the tree bark. (I love that the A Muse Studio inks are pigment inks because they stay wet longer so you can do a lot of great techniques with it! If you're not familiar with the kissing technique, stay tuned for a video tutorial in the not-too-distant future.) I used a Copic marker to color some of the Sugar pearl stickers so they would coordinate with the pink flowers.

All materials from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore:
- solid cardstock in Fern, Sage, and Sugar
- polka dot cardstock in Cherry
- Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
- "Sushi and Wasabi" stamp set
- other: Sakura Stardust Pen, various Copic and watercolor markers
 

I absolutely love the sentiment on this card! So cute! (Except it kind of bugs me that the comma after the first line is completely unnecessary! - Sorry A Muse!) Nothing too fancy on this card... I just colored in the stamped image with a combination of various Copic and watercolor markers, and added a little glitter to the centers of the sushi.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope your week went by faster than mine did! :)

We go together like...

Hey there! Happy Monday to you! Just a quick post today to share a one-layer stamped card I made using the Perfect Blend stamp set from A Muse Studio... I think this might be my new favorite stamp set! :)

How cute is this sentiment?! I used masking to create the border and keep the stamping within the center area.

I also did a little paper piecing to make two of the cups go together. So cute!

All materials from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore:
- solid cardstock in Kraft
- polka dot cardstock in cherry
- pigment ink in Cranberry and French Roast
- mug image and sentiment from "Perfect Blend"
- label image from "Vintage Labels"
- Tombow Dual-Brush Marker in Cranberry
- Sakura Quickie Glue Pen
- Other: Stamping Mask Paper by Inkadinkado

Have a great week!

Video Tutorial: Sweet-n-Tiny Easter Treat

Welcome to this week's video tutorial project!

I have to say I really can't take any credit for this adorable little matchbook treat. This is one of the templates given to A Muse Studio consultants, and I took a lot of inspiration from the A Muse blog when they featured the project.

These little matchbooks take no time to make, are super easy to mass-produce, and cost next to nothing. And they're endlessly customizable, making them perfect for party, shower, or wedding favors, Sunday School treats, something fun to leave in the office lunchroom, etc. :)

Watch video below, or watch on YouTube.



All materials from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore:
- polka dot cardstock in Sage
- solid cardstock in Sugar
- pigment ink in Bubblegum
- Memento Tuxedo Black ink
- Peeps stamp and sentiment stamp from "For Peep's Sake"
- Tombow Adhesive Dots Tape Runner
- 1-1/2" circle punch
- other: stapler, Mini Treat Matchbook Template

Coffee Shop Gift Card Holders

I was so excited to see the Gift Card Holder Challenge over on the Moxie Fab World blog, because I knew I wanted to make some gift-type items with the Perfect Blend stamp set from A Muse Studio. So I hope you'll forgive me for tooting my own horn a bit, but I think these gift card holders are some of the cutest things I've made in a long time. I kind of surprised myself with the cleverness of this idea :)

I live in New England, and Dunkin Donuts is pretty big around here. (I have to say I don't quite understand why, though, with the great family-owned coffee and donut shops we have in my area.) So, of course, when I open a big box of A Muse Studio goodies to find a coffee cup stamp and bubblegum polka dot paper, what else do I think of...?

And, of course, because Grass is my other favorite A Muse color...

Can you tell where that cup is from? lol.

Love it!

All materials used in these projects from A Muse Studio, and available at my webstore (unless otherwise noted):
- coffee cup and sentiment from "The Perfect Blend"
- solid cardstock in Sugar, Papaya, Kraft
- polka dot cardstock in Bubblegum and Grass
- Memento Tuxedo Black ink
- mini brads in silver
- polka dot organdy ribbon in Papaya
- stitched grosgrain ribbon in French Roast
- Tombow watercolor markers in Papaya and Grass
- Copic markers in E40 and RV14 (E40 not available through A Muse Studio)
- Signo Uni-Ball white gel pen
- Tombow Adhesive Dots tape runner

Thanks for stopping by!