Stampin’ Up Leadership Convention 2014–Day 1

Oh. My. Word.  I just finished the first day of Stampin Up’s Leadership conference and there has been so much great stuff that has been happening that I’m going to have to be super brief so I can try to share it all with you! 

That and the fact that it is almost 3am here in Houston and I really ought to go to bed soon before my 7:00am wakeup call.  ; )

If you are looking for lots more pictures – check out the albums on my Facebook page, these are my highlights reel and exciting news scoop!

Leadership Day 1 Highlights

This year Leadership is smaller in terms of attendance than last year (no surprise because last year was an anniversary year) but that meant I had an easier time finding friends that I was excited to see and catch up with!  I may not be the best about staying in touch, but everyone is so amazing when you see them again at an event like this!

Hanging with the Seattle-based SBStamper crew!  And then quick pictures with two amazing gals I got to hang out with at Founder’s Circle this year – Tamra Davis and Julie Davison!

Then session was ready to start.  I had the new snazzy bag they gave us and we waited to hear what new exciting things SU had in store.

Let me say, they did NOT disappoint!  First up was Shelli Gardner, CEO of Stampin’ Up!  She was in a horse riding accident last August and was unable to walk due to fractures of her pelvis, clavicle, and wrist!  And check it out, not only is she walking now – but in HEELS!  What a strong and driven woman.

After a great message from Shelli, her daughter Sarah took the stage and started sharing some stamping projects with us.  Little did we know we were going to be BOMBARDED with new product announcements! 

My poor seat neighbors probably go some ringing in the ears from my excited screaming as we saw and heard about new goodies such as:

Blendabilities – Alcohol based blending markers

These markers will come in sets of 3 – with different shades (“light”, “dark”, etc) of the same color that will blend together to allow you to create gorgeously smooth colored images.  And it will only be $11.95 for the set which is a great deal for this type of marker!

The markers are currently in production right now so we didn’t get to play with them, but we saw them demo’d up close and I CAN’T WAIT to get my hands on some!

See all 12 colors that will be released in the first quarter of this year

New Photopolymer Stamps & Update

Then she talked about photopolymer stamps – aka “completely clear stamps” – and share how they will be continuing to not only release a new photopolymer stamp set each month, but there will be photopolymer stamps in the June annual catalog!

Plus, they will start coming in CASES mid-year, yay!  And they will be picking designs for these stamps sets that are most benefited by the completely clear nature of the stamp (like alphas and outlines).

Even new photopolymer personalized name stamps!

After the initial sessions, we got lunch and a chance to check out the Gathering Place. It was full of great stuff including

Children’s Hospital Service Project

We were working to put together 500 Birthday Celebration kits (notebooks, banners, stamp, marker, etc) to give to kids at the hospital.  We all chipped in on assembling the kits and boxing them up.

there were lots of resources for business building tips and tool training, but I didn’t get a chance to hit most of the booths on day 1.  So more on the interesting parts another day.

But there were lots of samples and project displays!

Like I love this lollipop decorated with the new Spiral Flower die!

And of course, display boards!

 

Then it was off to more classes for sharing all kinds of great ideas for projects, classes, ways of meeting new people, better using social media, etc.  Fun stuff!

We finally got a break, which I TOTALLY needed because my cell phone had died earlier in the afternoon.  But soon it was time to head back to the convention center to catch a bus to Manager’s Reception.

Stampin’ Up! sets up a special event every year for anyone who has grown their group enough to have earned the title of Manager or above.  They plan a fun activity and some snacks to eat while you are there.

So, our wild crew got ready and waited in line for our bus.  (Aren’t those sharks adorable?!?  They were our tickets to the event!)

We headed to the Houston downtown aquarium and boy was it more than I ever expected!  We got off the bus and were greeted by staff, stilt walkers, and not just fish but amusement rides!

 

Plus there was SO MUCH AMAZING FOOD!  I’m glad I didn’t eat dinner before I came!

We rode a huge ferris wheel

We had a chance to feed some stingrays. 

(If you want to check out the hilarious faces we all made when the stingray took the fish from our fingers, click and be ready for a laugh!)

And generally wanderd, talked, and had a great time!  It was a full but super fun day and though I’m still up even though it is almost 4 in the morning, I can’t wait to get up and see what is in store for us tomorrow … err… later this morning.  : )

I’ll be back tomorrow with more details as I get them.

Thanksgiving Album from the Tablescape Setting Kit

I was given one of the Tablescape Setting kits this fall and while I thought it was cute for it’s intended purpose – making neat table settings and food labels – I knew I wasn’t going to be hosting Thanksgiving this year and realistically, wouldn’t be needing table decorations. 

This is how the kit is designed to be used

But, I decided to create a mini-scrapbook album instead!  I used all of the pocket cards to become pocket pages in my album and turned the black squares into photo frames (I just need to print the photos from yesterday to add them to the pages).  You get 20 pages for your album and still end up with LOTS of supplies left over!

Here are a few of the pages I created:

Many of the double pages, I’ll put a photo of the family member from Thanksgiving and use the insert page to write a bit about what they are thankful for this year and memories of or from them.

 

Other pages will just have pictures or descriptions from our day together.

 

I plan to punch holes in the pocket pages and use rings to hold the pages together.

All you need to complete this project is the Tablescape Bundle and some brown ink and a sponge (I used Soft Suede).

The bundle includes everything you see above including the Thankful For single stamp.

So, hopefully this gives you some ideas for preserving your favorite memories!

Spooky Halloween Scrapbook Layout with Washi

I may be super behind on scrapbooking (for example, I started sorting out my printed pictures from the last year or two and my husband told me even if I started now it would take me decades to scrap them!  I think he is crazy, but still… I have a lot of pictures!)…. but I was getting ready to work on a card and I pulled out a piece of Halloween paper from the Witches Brew designer paper pack and was suddenly inspired to create a scrapbook layout.

So this is what I ended up with:

Stampin’ Up! Supplies
Stamps – Tags 4 You, Delightful Dozen
Paper – Witches Brew designer paper, Pumpkin Pie cardstock, Whisper White cardstock, Vellum
Ink – Versamark, Summer Starfruit
Accessories – Bracket Label punch, Neutrals candy dots, Witches Brew washi tape, glue dots

 

So this started out with the background paper and the black inner mat are all part of the same piece of paper.  I just cut out the middle…. you can see below I flipped over the base paper (which is orange on the flip side) so you can see the center part on the left and the rest of the 12×12 piece on the right.

Then I fussy cut around the center image so it was closer to the chalkboard art frame.  I glued another piece of paper (the Starfruit yellow pattern – also from the Witches Brew paper pack) over the opening I had cut out from the 12×12 piece, and then used dimensionals to put the center back in place!

Add some of the Witches Brew washi tape to make a frame and we are getting somewhere!

I also added the other two patterns of the Halloween washi tape to add some extra colors and layers.  I used the orange chevron pattern in the center and the newsprint looking tape to the bottom of my page (this is where I’ll put the date once I pick a picture for the layout).

Also, I added the sentiment from the Delightful Dozen stamp set for an additional element.  I heat embossed it with Basic Black embossing powder on some vellum and then adhered to my page with glue dots.

Finally, I added an embossed piece from the Tags 4 You stamp set and punched it out with the Bracket Label punch to give some extra color in the corner.  Oh, and some black candy dots too. 

Can you really have too many embellishments?  

Last Day for the $25 Sign-Up Special !

Just a reminder that today is the last day to join Stampin’ Up! for only $25!  So if you have been thinking about going for it, just remember you have until 11:30pm MST tonight to hop on it.  After that, the starter kit goes back to the regular $99 kit. 

Learn more about the perks of being a demo

Get started and sign up here! 

And for once, I got a little bit of intel on the weekly deals starting tomorrow!  Tomorrow they will be announcing 25 stamp sets available for 25% off!  So, it is an awesome deal for everyone (I just wish I knew what stamp sets would be on sale!) And if you are a demonstrator, your 20% commission comes off the sale price too!  So, it’s a double whammy of savings! 

Check back tomorrow and I’ll have the full list of stamps up for you as soon as I can get them! 

Washi Tape on Sale–Make these Projects & More!

So, I guess the good thing about my internet going out last night and not getting fixed until this morning is that I didn’t get a chance to schedule the blog post I was going to originally share with you today. 

I still plan to share that project with you soon, but it gave me a chance to see the first of Stampin’ Up’s Daily Deals!  They have decided to offer one product (or set of products) on sale every Thursday of October.

TODAY ONLY (10/3): you can get any of the following Washi Tape sets for only $3.71:

• Epic Day This & That washi tape set (#131269)
• Gingham Garden washi tape set (#129314)
• Witches Brew washi tape set (#132156)

So, just to give you some ideas of what you can create, here are some samples I’ve posted in the past.  Click any of the links to see more details on the actual projects:

Thank You Notes with Gingham Garden Washi Tape Accent

 

Frosted Glass Butterfly with Washi Tape Trim

 

Scrapbooking with Epic Day Washi Tape Banners

 

So, check them out and don’t forget to grab them today while the sale is going on!

Use Hostess Code XJZ6BCKR when you check out and be entered to win an extra spool of Washi Tape from me!    

 

Making a Memory Book for Shelli with This & That

I wanted to share with you today a cool project using the Stampin’ Up! This and That journal that was made as a gift last week for Shelli Gardner by the Founder’s Circle attendees. Since I’m pretty sure she doesn’t read my blog and I’m guessing she got our gift already anyway, it should be safe to share a bunch of pictures.

So, the backstory is – Shelli was in a horseback riding accident a month ago and suffered major injuries (fractured wrist, pelvis, and clavicle).  She has months of healing and rehabilitations and because of that, she wasn’t able to join us at Founder’s Circle as she does each year.  Everyone attending was sad she couldn’t make it but wanted her to know that we were thinking of her, so someone suggested we put together a book for her.  Patty Bennett offered to bring This and That journals and Sharon Armstrong took over gathering notes and printing photos to put in the book.

This is the fabulous Miss Sharon with the finished book.  So cute!

Now, I have a This & That journal… I even took it with me on a trip one time.  But I was so used to scrapbooking by having to have the photos to start with, that I was really challenging myself to figure out using my book.  If you haven’t seen it, this is what a journal looks like:

The outside:

The inside (and a bunch of the Epic Day This & That suite):

But look at how pretty it gets when you add cards, notes, and photos!  Even without getting fancy with embellishments and tape –

I love that quote!

Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass.  It’s about learning to dance in the rain.

I also really loved this quote too.  It was so perfect for Shelli!

She not only saw the light at the end of the tunnel, she became that light for others.

And as for the pictures, they are fun because if you look closely, you will notice that Shelli is in each one!  Ha ha! 

Sharon printed out a picture of Shelli’s head and put it on a popsicle stick so we could all take our picture with her.  Too much fun!

So, I hope that gives you some new ideas for creating with your journals as well as a neat idea for sending a little sunshine to someone you love.  It doesn’t have to be fancy or over the top… it can be as simple as a note, a card, and a couple pictures; and you have something special and meaningful.

If you want to make your own journal like this, you can see more ideas and supplies online here:

 This and That Journal & Accessories

 

Quatrefancy Window Sheets for Scrapbooking

Ok, so I know I promised to share some projects with the Christmas Star single stamp today… but that was before I remembered that today was the Stylin’ Stampin’ Inkspiration’s scrapbook sketch for the month!  I love playing along with sketches and I don’t scrapbook nearly enough…. so design team duties came first today.  But, I do have my Christmas Star projects and post ready for you… it is just moved to Wednesday now.  I promise this time.  

But, I still have a fun project to share today!  The amazing Jennifer Campbell put together a great sketch this month and I love it because it was so easy to put together an interesting layout with it.  In fact, this page came together from looking at the sketch to done in less than an hour!!

September Scrapbook Sketch Layout

 

I have a stash of photos that I know I want to scrap that I got printed at Costco a couple months ago, and so I grabbed the pile and started flipping through until I found the perfect photos I wanted to scrap.

It was so special to me this year at convention that I had a group of downline who were able to attend with me and share the awesome experience.  And it was so fun to have some friends to cheer with, lounge with, or just share ideas we saw or heard around the convention center.  I really am lucky to be able to call these gals my friends!

Once I found the pictures and looked at the sketch, I knew I wanted to recreate the group bag tag for my main embellishment.  I used the Fun Flower die to create the same shape, added the Fancy Flower punch, and then a 1-1/4” circle punch out of designer paper.  Then, instead of our group name, I used the Banner Greetings hostess set to create my sentiment and as a throwback to the banner shape in the original sketch.

My other fun variation was to use the Quatrefancy window sheet that comes with the Quatrefancy Specialty designer series paper.  This is one of those papers that often you look at and think,” how in the heck am I going to use this?”  Well, I loved the subtle pattern effect it gave and thought it would be a great accent to pull out the pattern from the Convention backpack we received this year.  Since the pattern was the same, it was a great way to tie together the photos, designer series paper (from the same pack) and the background paper.

Using window sheet papers this way is great because it is EASY to figure out adhesive.  If nothing else, you have a HUGE piece of cardstock (from your photo mat) that will be covering up parts of the window sheet strip, and so you can happily put adhesive in that area.  And in this case, I decided to layer some Pear Pizzazz taffeta ribbon over the top, and so I could also run a strip of adhesive across the window sheet to glue it to the base cardstock and then just adhere the ribbon over the top of the window sheet to hide the glue.  Sneaky, huh?!

So, there you go.  A fun, easy sketch and some ideas to get you started.  If you want to play along and try it out yourself, you can use the sketch above and then hop on over to the Stylin’ Stampin’ Inkspiration blog to add your finished photo to the Linky there.  Or just visit to see other great takes on the basic sketch.  Have fun!

Card Supplies Used
Stamps – Banner Greetings
Ink – Midnight Muse
Paper – Pool Party Core’dinations cardstock, Quatrefancy designer paper, Pear Pizzazz cs, Whisper White cs
Accessories – Big Shot, Fun Flower die, Fancy Flower punch, 1-1/4” circle punch, Pear Pizzazz taffeta ribbon, Rhinestones

Stamping with an Embossing Folder for a Scrapbook Sketch

Happy Monday!  Today over at the Stylin’ Stampin’ INKspiration blog, we are sharing a fun scrapbook sketch idea. 

I didn’t create the sketch, but let me tell you how much I LOVE designing off of sketches.  It makes the scrapbooking process so much easier for me because I don’t have to think too hard about the set-up of the page (or card!) and instead can focus on things like which color do I want to use and what should I write in my journaling.

 

Oh, and did I mention that my layouts are typically like my cards…. I start from a sketch or design, pull in key elements, and then totally change everything else up.  But hey!  It’s the inspiration that is important – and the fact that I’m actually getting my photos in an album!

You may be wondering how I got that honeycomb look on my base paper for my scrapbook…. well, check this out… I used my embossing folder as a stamp!!!

Seriously, its totally cool!  First I wiped my ink pad across the raised side of the embossing folder to ink it up.

Then I just flipped over the embossing folder and pressed it down like I would a stamp!  I liked the distressed (didn’t get all the ink down on the paper) look, so I didn’t worry about evenly pressing and getting it all off on the base paper.

Then for my accents, I created my own layered ribbon banners in the upper corner.  I took some of the Strawberry Slush Ruffle Trim and the Natural Trim ribbons and layered them.  Then snipped the ends at an angle.  Then to soften it even more, I use the Flower Shop bundle to get the simple flower to go on top.

Finally, I needed a title and ended up actually cutting out my letters using the Typeset Alphabet Bigz dies in the same Wisteria Wonder as the background paper.  But that was a little too tone-on-tone and so I drew around the outside of the letters with my white gel pen to make them pop a bit more. 

I would say that it worked!  And look at that face… isn’t Sweet a good title too?    Ok, I really didn’t know what to title these too pictures but I loved them so much that I had to scrap them somehow!

So, I hope you got some inspiration!  Play along and create your own scrapbook page with this sketch and let me know what you think!

Scrapbooking Sunday: This Paper is not just for Valentine’s Day!

When I first saw the More Amore Designer Paper and the Hearts a Flutter stamp set I had Valentine’s Day on the brain.  And in fact I originally got both for a Valentine’s Day treat class I was holding earlier this year.

But as I started going through pictures and wanting to scrap this picture from Leadership convention with my mom, I saw the quote printed on the paper and thought it would be just right.

The quote is

A loving heart is the truest wisdom – Charles Dickens

Perfect for a picture of my mom who flew out to Orlando, FL with me from Seattle, WA to share the learning and excitement of Leadership and my first time being eligible to attend Manager’s Reception.

 

So with my base paper chosen, I started adding embellishments and it turned out the Hearts a Flutter stamp set and framelits fit my mood just right.

I grabbed some scrap fabric from the retired Springtime Vintage collection to add textured borders instead of my usual paper layering.  Then I tucked in some banners I cut out using the coordinating framelits.

For the journaling block, I just created an extended photo mat with Very Vanilla paper to give me space for my writing and then added some stamping and a little bit of ribbon to separate the journaling from the picture.

 

It turned out to be a fairly quick layout but one that I love for the great memories it captures!

 

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products Anytime, click here!

See the Latest Availability & PDFs of all the retiring stamps and accessories here

Supples Used
Stamps – Hearts a Flutter
Paper – More Amore designer paper, Very Vanilla
Ink – Real Red, Basic Black marker
Accessories – Big Shot, Hearts a Flutter framelit, Springtime Vintage fabric, Crochet Ribbon, Stampin’ Dimensionals

Scrapbooking Sunday: Got to Love Those Kiddie Rides

This is why I have a hard time giving up my old patterned papers.  Because that pack of paper that you thought totally wasn’t your style and you have no idea how you would use it…. well, along comes a scrapbook layout that suddenly that paper is perfect for and you are so glad you didn’t chuck it in the recycle bin!  And today that paper is Big Top Birthday from Stampin’ Up!

Everytime we go to Fred Meyer, Nicholas *has* to ride the Fred Meyer kiddie ride truck.  We walk in the door and as we walk by the area with the truck he notices it and asks if I have a quarter so we can ride it.  Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don’t, but either way we invariably stop so he can at least sit on the truck and pretend to drive it.

And of course, now that Caitlin is getting older, she has to get in on the action as well and wants her turn!  So, I had to snap a picture a couple months back of each of them in the truck and create a layout just for this ride.

 

I had no idea what I wanted to do, so I started shuffling through my (I’ll admit) large amounts of misc patterned papers and cardstock and the bold primary colors in the Big Top Birthday caught my eye.  I had a hard time getting myself to use the paper when I was working on cards because it was so bold, but when used as an accent for a scrapbook page – suddenly it was a whole new paper!

But, one of the best things about this layout was creating my embellishments from random supplies around my craft room.  I especially like how this tag turned out:

It’s a simple rectangle of the Natural Composition designer paper that I snipped off two corners to make the tag shape.  Then I used on of my beloved Jumbo Eyelets (why did these have to be retired!?!) to give me a grommet for my Stitched Pacific Point Grosgrain ribbon.  Then I just used a little bit of linen thread to tie the ends of the ribbon together and added some matching cardstock trim to the bottom of the tag.  Add some dots with the White Gel Pen and some journaling and there you go!

I have to admit, I LOVE how this layout turned out and its kind of nice to do a layout that doesn’t involve pinks and flowers.

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products Anytime, click here!

See the Latest Availability & PDFs of all the retiring stamps and accessories here

Supples Used
Stamps – Rough Type Alphabet (retired)
Paper – Whisper White, Basic Black, Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Going Grey cs (retired), Natural Composition designer paper, Big Top Birthday designer paper (retired)
Ink – Basic Black, Pacific Point, Real Red
Accessories – Large Star punch (retired), Small Star punch (retired), 2-3/8” Scallop circle punch, 1” circle punch, Scallop Trim edge punch, Crop-a-dile, jumbo eyelets (retired), Stitched grosrain ribbon Pacific Point, Linen Thread, White Gel Pen, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Sponge Daubers

Scrapbooking Sunday: Sent with Love–a Leadership Layout

If you remember, this was my first year attending Leadership convention.  I was so excited that I had promoted to Manager and so I had earned an entry into Manager’s Reception.  Well, this year, Manager’s Reception was at Harry Potter’s Wizardly World in Orlando.  Um, yes please!!

The whole weekend was super fun and so I just had to try to start committing at least some of it to a scrapbook.  And I found that the Sent with Love designer paper was a fun way to accent this first photo I scrapped:

The title here was actually made up of two different elements that I cut out of one of the pages of the Sent with Love Designer series paper (and even though you can’t see some of the pieces, I promise you they are from this page :

See… isn’t it perfect?  And oh so true because the adventure of earning Leadership and then going their with my Mom (who is also my upline) was a blast!

Then, for a bit more whimsy on my page, I took squares of the designer paper and cut them in half to make triangles and then stacked them like arrows.  I totally mis-cut some paper, so when I fixed it I had thin strips of paper which I glued as a center piece in the triangles.

Then I used my Tombow liquid glue to draw dots where I wanted my twine to do loopty-loops along the side of my page and then pressed my Island Indigo baker’s twine into the loopy pattern on the right!

The sad thing is that I love this paper and I completely hoarded it and suddenly realized that it is retiring in 2 days!  Yikes!

So if you want to get in on the Sent with Love suite, check it out online today and grab yours before it goes away April 30th.
Use Hostess code EQ9PM3NX and be entered to win a free stamp set of your choice!

 

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And since I’m in a reminiscing mood… I thought I’d share some of the other memories I need to scrap:  Harry Potter and Manager’s Reception, Amazing on-stage demonstrations, winning Prize Patrol, and meeting Shelli!

                               

Love these Stampin’ Up! events. 

 

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products Anytime, click here!

See the Latest Availability & PDFs of all the retiring stamps and accessories here

 

Supples Used
Stamps – Sweet Shoppe Alphabet (retired)
Paper – Whisper White, Island Indigo, Calypso Coral, Sent with Love designer paper
Ink – Calypso Coral, Island Indigo marker (for journalling)
Accessories – Island Indigo Baker’s twine, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Sponges, Tombow liquid glue