Stampin' Up Convention 2008 Salt Lake City, Utah

I need to report a little about my trip to the Stampin' Up Convention in Salt Lake City. It was five days of pure adrenline rush!! We heard about the introduction of the BIG Shot to the Stampin' Up line. That was SUCH a wonderful surprise!! There were two things I always felt SU was behind in and that is ONLINE ORDERING and carrying a DIECUT MACHINE. Did they hear me or what!! LOL

Anyway, I have ordered my BIG SHOT and it will be here on Monday, August 18th. Mark your calendars, as I will be having a OPEN HOUSE on Saturday, September 20th at the Outback Pizzeria in Prineville from 11:00 to 3:00. Come and pick up your new catalog, see a lot of new products and try out the Big Shot. You can have some pizza and do a couple of Make 'n Takes!! So mark those calendars, because you don't want to miss the fun!! I will also have fall class sign-ups. I have SO much planned!!

THE BIG SHOT

I'm so thrilled to be able to introduce you to the Big Shot. Stampin' Up has teamed up with the company who came out with the Sizzix, The Ellison Company. The Big Shot has been on the market for a while, and they sell many die cuts for the machine. The beauty of this machine is that is will take ANY die cut from ANY machine on the market. So if you have other die cuts, the Big Shot will cut them. And.....Stampin' Up will have exclusive die cuts to coordinate with their line of stamps.



The machine will cut almost ANYTHING you need!! I'm not kidding.

Here is a list of Big Shot Approved Materials

Cut through the following 50 materials using steel rule dies and your Big Shot machine. Please note the maximum thickness of several materials.

Brass (.055)
Light weight steel
Aluminum (.016)
Tin (.008)
Aircraft plywood (1/64")
Basswood (1/16")
Balsa (3/32")
Paperwood
Mat board (adhesive or none)
Chipboard
Fabric
Silicone
Foam with chipboard (.1)
Corrugated pad
Adhesive-backed cork
Fine sandpaper (.00)
Strene
Extra thick template plastic
Template plastic
Plastic canvas (7 mesh)
Bubble wrap
Sheet foam
Friendly (jewelry) plastic
100% pure beeswax (cut with parchment paper on top & bottom of beeswax)
Adhesive and non-adhesive rubber
Ruffleboard
Static cling vinyl
Warm & natural batting
Fusible fleece
Quilt batting
Adhesive and non-adhesive flexible magnet
Heat n' shrink plastic
Adhesive and non-adhesive felt
Pop-up sponge
Shiny self-adhesive and non-adhesive paper
Iron-on fabric
Poly foam adhesive and non adhesive
3-D illusionary plastic
Glow in the dark adhesive and non adhesive
Suede paper
Funky fur
Personal Embossing Plastic (PEP)
Shaggy plush felt
Canvas
Vinyl flooring
Shelf lining
Placement
Embossing rubber
Thin leather
Gasket material

So you can see what this little machine can do. Mine is coming on Monday, August 18th and I can hardly wait (did I already say that??)!!

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The other exciting news which was actually unveiled just before convention is that we will soon have On-line Ordering. This will be a wonderful tool for every customer! When you want something, you can order it through my web site, and it will be delivered directly to you. I will still be here for you with my classes and any kind of help you need, but if you need something and I'm not placing an order, you can go ahead and order through my Demonstrator Website. If you have never checked out my website, you can see it here. This is my "company" website and always has my class schedule. I am determined to keep it up, so that you can use it as a resource for anything you want/need!!

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More Convention Notes

I went to convention with my upline (and sister-in-law) Lana and HER upline Kathy. We had SUCH a great time - now we can't wait until next year. I took 175 card fronts to swap (thanks Lana for helping me swap them!!) and also did a swap for mini albums. You will be able to view these swaps at my Open House on the 20th of September.

We had four FULL days. We arrived on Wednesday morning, July 30th - waited for Kathy to arrive and then took a taxi to the Raddison (just 100 feet from the door of the Salt Lake City Convention Center). We left our luggage as it was too early to check in and then headed over to the convention center. Our first "job" was to pick up our bags - the new catalogs were in there. While I waited in line for my "special prize" (I was awarded a pin, a stamp set and walked across the stage) in honor of my sales for the year, Lana and Kathy got in line for Memento Mall. Well, that was a BIG mistake (although we did a lot of swapping while in line). We were in line for about 2 + hours. We finally were able to shop in the mall - that was a blast. Project Totes, Camera Bags, Chap Stick, to name a few of the things we purchased!

At 6:00 we loaded into a bus and were taken to the Stampin' Up Headquarters outside of Salt Lake City.



We came back and spent the rest of the evening (pretty late actually) checking out our catalogs!!





Thursday morning we had a general session and you should have heard the roar when Shelli Gardner, The CEO and founder of Stampin' Up, announced SU was partnering with Sizzix to sell the Big Shot. WOW - 6000 demonstrators going crazy!!

Lana was honored with a trip across the stage for being a demonstrator for five years. Congratulations Lana!!

In the afternoon we had classes and did our make and takes.

Friday was the same with each general session bringing more fun times. We saw those who had earned the trip to Hawaii and all those who earned honors for sales, recruiting and much, much more!!

Saturday, we had classes in the morning and then the general session in the late afternoon. Things started to wind down, when a "doorbell" rang and a UPS man came in carrying a box!! Also a UPS TRUCK drove onto the floor of the convention center.



Shelli asked the UPS man if she could help him. He said he had a package - she asked for whom, and he said EVERYONE. Everyone in the audience received a FREE stamp set - the Ronald McDonald set, "Say It with Scallops". For every set that SU sells, they donate $2 to the Ronald McDonald Foundation. And.....UPS purchased a set for every demonstrator who attended convention!! What a surprise. The crowd went crazy!!



Here is a Stampin' Up employee handing out the Stamp Sets



And here are Kathy, Lana and I with our FREE stamp sets



We flew home Sunday morning and for two weeks after, I was good for nothing. But I'm hopefully back in the routine and ready to share all I learned and saw!!

Ribbon Tying

We had a club meeting in July and practiced ribbon tying. Here are two cards with ribbons

Touch of Nature




Stamp Set: Touch of Nature
Card Stock: Tempting Turquoise, Certainly Celery, Whisper White, Flowers For You Designer Paper (retired)
Ink: Tempting Turquoise
Embellishments: Tempting Turquoise 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon

Very simple card with the ribbon tied in the classic knot.

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More Ribbon Tying



Stamp Set: Blossoms Abound (retired)
Card Stock: Whisper White, Pretty in Pink
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Chocolate Chip
Embellishments: 5/8" Chocolate Chip Grosgrain Ribbon and 1" Taffeta Ribbon Originals

Ribbon tied in a "tiered bow."

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More Bella Rosa - Cards This Time

I just can't stay away from this new designer paper. So, I'm sharing five cards I made. I received inspiration for this first card from mudflapmamma on Splitcoast Stampers here. Of course, I changed it, but essentially it's similiar

Bella Rosa Card #1



Stamp Set: Heard from the Heart (NEW in the Fall/Winter 2008 Catalog)
Cardstock: Pink Pirouette (NEW In-Color), Bella Rosa Designer Paper (NEW), Kiwi Kiss
Ink: Kiwi Kiss Classic Ink
Embellishments: Old Olive 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon, Hat Pen and baubles from the Pretties Kit
Punches: Scallop (NEW)

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Bella Rosa Card #2



Stamp Set: Wow Flowers
Cardstock: Regal Rose, Pink Pirouette, Bella Rosa Designer Paper, Whisper White
Ink: Regal Rose
Embellishments: Whisper White Taffeta Ribbon, Rhinestone Brad
Punches: Scallop Circle, 1" Circle Punch, Scallop

I punched the Scallop Circle in the Pink Pirouette Textured Paper and then applied the 1" square I had stamped. I then used my snips and snipped each petal and folded them out - neat flower!

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Bella Rosa Card #3



Stamp Set: Wow Flowers
Cardstock: Pink Pirouette, Bella Rose Designer Paper, Riding Hood Red
Ink: Riding Hood Red
Embellishments: Chocolate Chip Twill Ribbon
Punches: Scallop, Corner Rounder

This was a fun card - trying out the new Scallop Punch to see what it will do!!

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Bella Rosa Card #4



Stamp Set: Wow Flowers
Cardstock: Riding Hood Red, Kiwi Kiss, Pink Pirouette, Bella Rosa Designer Paper, Whisper White
Ink: Riding Hood Red, White Gel Pen
Embellishments: Rhinestone Brad
Punches: Scallop Circle, Scallop, 1", 1 1/4", 1 3/8" Circle Punches

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Bella Rosa Card #5



Stamp Set: Wow Flowers
Cardstock: Kiwi Kiss, Riding Hood Red, Whisper White, Bella Rosa Designer Paper
Ink: Riding Hood Red, White Gel Pen
Embellishments: Old Olive Brad
Punches: Scallop Circle, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" Circle, Scallop

Do you like the look of the "rick rack" - I did this with the NEW Scallop Punch. I punch one side, turned it over slightly off-set the punch and punched it again!!

Interestingly enough all these different combinations in are ONE designer paper pack!! Lots of combinations!!

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Bag in a Box with Bella Rosa Designer Prints

I have had some more fun using my new Bella Rosa Designer Prints and the new "In Colors". I saw a tutorial from Paula Goff's Blog here on how to make these bags in a box. They are easy and fun!!



#1 Bag in a Box




Cardstock: Red Hood Riding, Bella Rosa Designer Prints
Embellishments: Real Red 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon, Real Red Brads
Punches: NEW Scallop Punch, 1/4" Circle punch, Round Tab Punch, Scallop Circle Punch, Boho Punch

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#2 Bag in a Box



Cardstock: Pink Pirouette, Belle Rosa Designer Prints
Embellishments: 1/4" Pretty in Pink Grosgrain Ribbon, Pretty in Pink Brads
Punches: NEW Scallop Punch, Round Tab Punch, 1/4" Circle Punch, Scallop Circle Punch, Boho Punch

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Bella Rosa Designer Paper in Flip Flop Album

I just finished making two more Flip Flop Albums using the NEW Bella Rosa Designer Paper and the Brand New In-Colors, Riding Hood Red and Pink Pirouette

Oh, these colors are to die for.



Bella Rosa and Riding Hood Red Flip Flop Album












No Stamp Sets
Card Stock: Riding Hood Red Textured Paper, Bella Rosa Designer Paper, Whisper White, Pink Pirouette
Embellishments: 5 Petal Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Boho Blossom Punch, Gold Brads, Regal Rose 5/8" Gross Grain Ribbon

To make my flowers for the inside doors, I punched out with the 5 Petal Flower Punch in Riding Hood Red and Pink Pirouette - I then used the Ticket Corner Punch and clipped off each petal - a different effect. Mounted those and the boho blossom flower punch with a gold brad in the center and then used my white gel pen to add accents.

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Here is a softer version with the Bella Rosa Designer Paper and Pink Pirouette









Stamp Set: A Beautiful Thing
Card Stock: Bella Rose Designer Paper, Pink Pirouette Textured Card Stock, Whisper White
Ink: Pink Pirouette, White Gel Pen
Embellishments: 5/8" Regal Rose Grosgrain Ribbon, Scallop Cirle Punch, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Pretty in Pink Brad from the Soft Subtles Collection

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Hope you enjoy a little glimpse at what will be in the NEW CATALOG which will be here after the first of August and will be available to order from on August 11th!!

Iris Fold Apple and Balloon Card

I did make two more cards in the Iris Fold technique. That is SUCH a fun technique.

Apple Card



Card Stock: Real Red, Summer Picnic Designer Paper, Wild Wasabi
Ink: White Gel Pen

That's all I used - don't have a sentiment yet.

Below are places to find instructions on how to do these fabulous techniques.

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Balloon Card

I made this card for my son for his birthday!! They are gone on a trip to Sweden, Norway and Iceland, so this was a fun card to help them on their way (especially what was in it!! hee hee)



Stamp Set: Happy Birthday from a retired set
Card Stock: Bashful, Bordering Blue, Real Red, Very Vanilla, Wild Wasabi
Embellishments: Natural Twine

Another fun card to make!!

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Technique Tuesday I and J

Happy 4th of July!!

We stayed home and I've been preparing for my Technique Tuesday class. These letters were rather difficult for me, but I've finally come up with some ideas.

Iris Twist Or Iris Folding

This is SUCH an interesting technique. Looks hard, but really isn't. Thanks to all the help I scrounged from the internet for patterns and ideas!!



Stamp Set: Priceless
Card Stock: Groovy Guava, Certainly Celery, Groovy Guava Designer Prints, Certainly Celery Designer Prints
Ink: Wild Wasabi, Garden Green Stampin' Write Marker and White Gel Pen
Embellishments: Soft Subtle Brads
Technique: Iris Folding

To do this technique you can download the pattern here and see the instructions here on www.splitcoaststampers.com

There are lots of other cool patterns on this website and also this website

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Just Scraps

Although this name doesn't really do justice to this technique, I was astounded when I finished it - just love the way it turned out!! It looks Victorian!!



Stamp Set: Stitched Exotics, Sincere Salutations
Card Stock: Lovely Lilac, Almost Amethyst, scraps of anything and everything
Ink: Gold Embossing Powder, Versamark
Punch: Ticket Corner Punch

I covered my Almost Amethyst cardstock (it can't even be seen) with scraps from my scrapbox. I cut them up in various sizes and then adhered them. I then stamped the flower image from Stitched Exotics in Versamark ramdomly and covered it with Gold Embossing Powder. Then heat set it and I just love the effect!!

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