AHHH- NOUNCING!

Alright, enough about my birthday! My fellow co-workers are tired of hearing about my "big" day, "Mindy, It's time you update the blog!"

AHHH- NOUNCING! AMUSE-A-PALOOZA IS 11 DAYS AND COUNTING!

We are so excited that the 4th annual AMUSE-A-PALOOZA Stamp Extravaganza is just around the corner, July 10th through July 19, 2009!

We are the only store is San Antonio celebrating this wonderful event this year. AMUSE Art Stamps will be unveiling their new line of Holiday stamps on Friday, July 10, 2009. Stamp Antonio Arts will be holding a "Grand Reveal Preview Party" on that Friday from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm, with holiday music, refreshments, and FUN! Classes using the New stamps will begin on Saturday, July 11th, and continue for the entire week following, through July 18, 2009. You may check our website for a complete list of daily events that will be featured.

With each event you participate in, you will receive tickets on which to register for the Grand Prize drawing during AMUSE-A-PALOOZA week. The more events you participate in, the more chances you will receive for the drawing. For example: If you sign up for an AMUSE class by July 4th, either in person or by telephone, you will receive 3 tickets = 3 chances to WIN a PRIZE!

So, get on the horn, and give us a call! The class listings are on the website, or on our display board here at the store! Decide which classes you want to take, and start collecting your tickets for your chance at the AMUSE GRAND PRIZE!

Mindy and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

SUMMER IS HERE!

Hello, one and all! That's right, summer is here, and it is already getting HOT! HOT! HOT!

There are so many things going on at Stamp Antonio Arts, my head is spinning!

Last week we celebrated my birthday on Wednesday evening during our Artist's Night Out! What a Hoot! Amy, Carol and Zoe brought me a German Chocolate Cake, and everyone from customers in the store, to the ladies attending Artist's Night Out, gathered around to sing "Happy Birthday" and then joined us in eating cake! What a pleasant and enjoyable surprise! MY head has been in the clouds ever since!



We have received many products this week, including a shipment of Outlines Rubber Stamps, and more Punch Bunch paper punches. We have also received a "boat-load" of scrapbook 12X12 papers from "gcd papers" that are very beautiful. But of course, along with the new, comes disposal of the old! Lots of papers on SALE at 4 for $1.00. Hurry in while the pickin's are good!

We have also received a special shipment of Webster's Papers, which are very nice, and inspired our own paper maven, Jane, to create a Vintage Recipe Book Sample from our Texas shaped chipboard albums and the Webster's paper. You must come by the store and check it out. It is AWESOME!



I don't want to jinx our summer class sign ups, but I did want to thank all of our wonderful customers who have been signing up, and bringing their friends to our inspiring Summer Classes at the store. Our numbers are improving somewhat, but don't let the growing numbers scare you away from attending some of these terriffic classes. Our instructors are working very hard to plan and execute interesing and creative classes that will keep you inspired and craving more, and more classes in the weeks to come! What a wonderful way to spend your hot summer afternoons, than learning a new hobby, or technique, at Stamp Antonio Arts in our cool and comfortable environment! We hope to see your happy, smiling face there, real soon! Take care and have a safe Summer!



Mindy, and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

Memorial Day 2009

Today is a special holiday, one that everyone should remember. Memorial Day isn't just a day to have a barbecue, and get together with family and friends to swim and play. It is a day to remember all of our country's service men and women who have fought and are fighting for our country's freedom at home and in countries far away!

Today, Monday, at 3:00 pm there will be a nationwide Moment of Silence, where you can say a prayer if you like, or just stop for a moment and think of those who have fought for us, to give us a better world to live in. Thank you, all!

Stamp Antonio Arts will be closed on Monday, in observance of Memorial Day, and will re-open at 10:00 am on Tuesday. We hope you have a safe a happy holiday, and will remember all the folks who have done so much for you in the past, and will do so much in the future.

All our best, Mindy and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

"WILD"flowers in TEXAS!

I sure do miss seeing the wildflowers that "should" be blooming in South Texas right now, that AREN'T! North Texas has gotten so much rain that the wildflowers are just blooming and blooming! And what do we see here in San Antonio? Lots of dried up weeds because it felt like 108* today in the shade! The temperature only registered 100* at the airport, but in the middle of our parking lot, my car was baking at 108!

I was so happy to be inside Stamp Antonio Arts with the air on! So was the UPS man, when he came in with deliveries. We finally got in our Item of the Month for May, and they are a really cool Spirit Doll, paper doll rubber stamp from Hampton Art/Limited Edition. I have a few really neat ideas for using this stamp, now I just have to see if I can bring them to fruition within the next few days. We also got in some of the New Hero Arts Clear Acrylic sets yesterday, and the rest of the Team is working on samples from them. Maybe I will be able to put some of them on the blog next week.

Customers have been asking for card samples on the blog, but we would rather see your smiling faces in person at the store! But since the recession and all, the smiling faces have been few and far between. You, our dear sweet customers, have been staying home, and not even coming out for our wonderful and interesting classes. We have had to cancel some really GREAT classes over the last few weeks, due to non-interest and that real makes us SAD!

We will keep offering classes as long as we can, but if you have constructive suggestions, we would LOVE to hear from YOU, our trusted customers. Call us at 342-6217; e-mail us at manager@stampantonio.com; OR leave a comment on this blog.

We WILL look forward to hearing from all of you, and seeing you soon! Until then, "Keep on Stamping!"
Mindy and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

MILESTONES!

Milestones occur daily, and we must make the most of them, no matter how BIG, no matter how small.

No matter how Happy, no matter how sad. Everything from babies birth's to the first steps, the first days of school, to graduations. Weddings, to anniversaries, to promotions to retirement.

Back in 1954, this was a milestone of sorts for me. It was the day my parents (top photo) got married, and my Mother's parents (bottom photo) stood up for them. A day full of hopes and dreams, happiness and sadness, and dreams of days to come.

Today is also one of those days! No, nothing quite as spectacular as a wedding, but a milestone for me, none the less.

THIS IS THE 100TH POST TO OUR BLOG THAT I HAVE DONE AT STAMP ANTONIO ARTS!

I am so amazed that it is post number 100 already, and I have been having so much fun trying to post weekly, so that you all will be able to keep up with all of the fun things that are happening at Stamp Antonio. Sometimes I have fallen down in keeping things current, but hopefully you that check in from time to time will forgive me anyway.

This coming weekend, May 2, 2009, is National Scrapbooking Day across the nation, but at Stamp Antonio Arts it's AMUSE DAY! That's right, Geeta Suggs will be back at Stamp Antonio this Saturday, with a day full of card making mayhem with the ever popular Amuse line of rubber stamps! Geeta will hold three classes,

two card making classes, and another of the Copic Marker classes that only she teaches so well. You may check our web page for more information, or call the store at 210-342-6217 to reserve a space in one or all of these wonderful classes! Be sure to sign up early, because if you wait until the last minute, the class may no longer be available!

I want to personally thank all of you that follow this blog for your feedback, and for those of you who just found us, "what took you so long?"

Welcome to Stamp Antonio Arts!

Mindy and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

Metal Effects Cross Class!

(photo courtesy of Cindy Lyons) (click on photo to see larger image)


Last Saturday, April 18,2009 our own Carol Condos held a Metal Effects Class at Stamp Antonio Arts, and her students embossed these wonderful Crosses using the products available from Ten Seconds Studios. The works of art that come out of these classes are just awesome, and every class gets better and better. You may remember seeing in this blog about the tumblers and wall clocks that were decorated with this metal in previous blog posts, and now these wonderful crosses. I can't wait to see what she comes up with next!

If you are really interested in this Metal Effects art form, be sure to check out the web site for Ten Seconds Studios, and their Taco Tuesday videos that they do each week. The link is in the sidebar for your convenience. They really do some creative things with the metal and their templates. If you see something in the videos or on their site that you are dying to try, we do carry most of their products at Stamp Antonio, so you can come right on over and pick up some supplies. If Carol is here that day, she will even give you a mini-lesson to get you started creating some of these metal wonders.

Well, it's FIESTA Time again in San Antonio! and everyone is partying like there is no tomorrow! Parades, and floats, foods of all types from oysters to jalepenos, carnival rides, games of chance, all week with folks dressed up in the most colorful and outrageous outfits you can imagine. . . . . . . . if you haven't experienced FIESTA before, be sure and do so this week! If you want to share your experiences with love ones who don't live here, why not send them a card made with stamps from Stamp Antonio Arts. We have several different types of stamps that can be used for Fiesta type cards, and we even have samples to show you how you can decorate your own card, and even include a photo showing how much FUN you had here at the city-wide party. Be sure to stop by this week and experience a little Fiesta Fun at Stamp Antonio Arts. And don't forget. . . . . . . . . . . GO SPURS GO!

Mindy and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

Bluebonnets. . . . Have you seen any?

Bluebonnets are usually everywhere you look this time of year! But when you don't get rain at the right time of the year, the little things just don't have much of a chance to pop out and bloom.

Have you seen any bluebonnets this year? This photo is courtesy of our friend, Mark Jetton, of Deadbeat Designs stamps. He took a Road Trip one day, and had to go all the way over to East Texas to find some blooming along the highways like we usually see around here in Central Texas near San Antonio.



If you are looking for bluebonnets, you don't have to waste gas driving all over the state to find them. We have plenty here at Stamp Antonio Arts, thanks again to Mark Jetton and Deadbeat Design Stamps. He introduced three new sizes of bluebonnet stamps this spring, and even sent us a wonderful paper bag mini book decorated with the new flower stamps and some of his photos. I taught a class of this mini book last week, and we had so much fun, stamping and coloring bluebonnets for our own books. Drop by the store anytime to see these wonderful NEW Bluebonnet Stamps, along with ideas on how to decorate your home or a card with our State Flower of TEXAS! And of course, we have lots of Stickles to add just the right amount of twinkle to each one.


I also wanted to mention that we received a new line of invitations, response cards, menu cards, and place cards in various sizes from American Crafts. There are 4 Theme's available; a Damask design flocked in black on white stock; a silver metallic flourish design on cream stock; a pink glittered rose bud on white stock, and a green branch with leaves on cream stock. Each theme comes in the different sizes of invitations and such, and would be beautiful for any occasion, party, or get-together. Our own, Jane Smith, is having a class this Saturday, April 18, 2009 making various invitations for all types of get-togethers. If you are planning an event, and think you might be interested in making your own invitations, rather than spending lots of $$$$$$$$ to have them done somewhere else, you may want to come by and sign up for Jane's class and let her show you how you can save money and time by doing them yourself. You may even enjoy the time you spend working on them and be proud to say, "I made them myself!"

We hope to see you soon.

Mindy and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

It's Almost BUNNY TIME!

Hi blogger friends! It has been such a busy week around here at Stamp Antonio. We have been busily trying to get the new class calendar up on the web site, and the samples for April classes out at the store. Along with getting in lots of new merchandise, and rearranging some of the older stuff, we did get in more of the NEW Somerset magazines, "MARIE" which debuted this month, and "STUFFED" which debuted last month in which our own artist in residence Linda Rael had TWO projects published. Both of these new magazines sold out almost immediately when we got them in originally. (so they MUST be good!)

We also got in some of the new Tim Holtz ideaology line, Grungepaper, metal peices, clips, pins, and sprockets. We also received some of the new colors of Alcohol Inks - Lights and Brights, but they were gone before I ever got them worked out on the counter. Another order has been placed, and will arrive shortly. (I will keep you posted when they come in!) The new Alcohol inks also look awesome on Carol's Metal Effects projects!

"Bunny Time" is just around the corner, (April 12, 2009) and we still have a great assortment of chickies, bunnies, and eggs for your Easter stamping. We also have a few of the Holly Berry House multi layer Cross stamps that when stamped multiple times, you can make a great dimensional decoration, that would look good on the front of a card. Susan Casto will be having an Easter Make-N-Take this Saturday, April 4, 2009 from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm using the Rubber Stamp Tapestry line of peg stamps. Jane Smith will be conducting a Spring/Easter card class on Saturday, April 4, 2009 using the Outlines Rubber Stamps. Her class will make 4 cards and is just $25 for three hours of stamping fun, between 10:30 am and 1:30 pm. Call 342-6217 at once to register for this class if you are interested.

My class will be making a cute as pie Bluebonnet Paper Bag Book this Saturday, April 4, 2009, from 2:30 till 4:30 pm. This little book is made from paper lunch bags, and will hold photos of your favorite wildflowers or "wild"grandchildren. We will be stamping bluebonnets and other Texas type stamps from Deadbeat Designs throughout the book, and bluebonnet photos will be provided for each student. This class is only $15, but class size is limited to 12 students, so sign up early if this class interests you.

Well, I guess it's time for me to hop, hop, hop, on over to the Bunny Patch and prepare more special surprises for our customers. Every day is exciting at Stamp Antonio Arts, and you never know what merchandise will come rolling in the door! Stop by sometime and see what we mean. We will look forward to showing you around. . . . . . .

Mindy and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

Memory Box Weekend! What a HOOT!

This weekend was so much fun, having Theresa Laurent with Memory Box Stamp Company here teaching classes. I was awarded the opportunity to take BOTH of her classes, and let me tell you, they were terrific!

She taught us many new colored pencil coloring techniques, as well as showing us how to layer stamped images with patterned papers to give our cards depth and texture. The stamps she used were the New Spring designs from Memory Box Stamps. This collection includes many woodland creatures, including 3 different owls, squirrels, birds, and bunnies. If you remember in the past few years, Memory Box has had a specialty line of Penguins doing everything from fishing, dancing, and partying, to a penguin in hair rollers in her robe, saying "I don't do mornings!" Well, this Spring they have introduced a line of Panda's starting with the Gardening Panda that was used in this class. He is very cute!

If you were lucky enough to be able to attend these classes, you have a stack of new cards to sit and drool over. If you weren't able to attend, be sure and stop by the store and check out all of the sample cards Theresa left for us, and we will be happy to share with you answers to any questions you may have about how these cards were done, or the products used to make them. We still have almost all of the different stamps available, along with the patterned papers, cards, inks, and tiny sparkly jewels and pearls used as accents.

We have also just recently received a shipment of beautiful specialty papers from American Crafts. These are 8 1/2" X 11" cardstock weight papers in metallic gold, silver, and copper, along with pastel colors of alligator texture paper and raw silk texture papers. There are also two colors of an embossed cardstock that has a small damask design embossed into it, which would make lovely invitations for a wedding or anniversary gathering.

Come see what's New at Stamp Antonio Arts! And as always, Happy Stamping!

Mindy, and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts

And We'll Have FUN, FUN, FUN . . . . .

The Memory Box Stamp Weekend of Fun is just around the corner! Saturday and Sunday, March 21 and 22, 2009 we will be having fun with our friends from the Memory Box Stamp Company!

This weekend will consist of classes, and instruction on how to use their stamps and color them, along with a Trunk Show of New Spring merchandise from the Memory Box.

Our classes usually fill at the last moment, so don't wait until then, or you may not be able to get in.

We had a wonderful visit with Mark Jetton, of Deadbeat Design Stamps, on Friday. He was in San Antonio with his family celebrating his Mother's birthday, and he stopped by the store to check up on us. He has so many new and exciting ideas and uses for his stamps, and we will be sharing many of them with our fellow bloggers in the next few weeks. If you are a fan of Mark's remarkable Texas themed stamps, you too, can follow his blog by clicking the link on the right.

I will be teaching his Paper Bag Bluebonnet Book on Saturday April 4, 2009 here at the store. Mark has a new line of Texas Bluebonnet stamps that we will use, that are so beautiful and life-like you won't be able to tell if they are real or not! This is sure to be a popular class, so come by the store and check out the sample, so you can register early and assure yourself a space in the class. Our own State Flower will be bursting out in bloom shortly, thanks to the recent rains, so sign up for this class soon, and you will have some place to display some of your own beautiful bluebonnet photos!

Well, its off to start preparing for the arrival of the Memory Box brigade, we hope to see you all this weekend for some springtime fun, fun, fun!

Mindy and the Team at Stamp Antonio Arts