Out With The Old, In With The New!

Today is the last day to order from the current Stampin' Up! catalog. If you have been putting it off, you literally have just hours to contact me :) Current In Colors, Groovy Guava, Wild Wasabi, Purely Pomegranate, Sky Blue, Bayou Blue and River Rock are gone as of tonight! Take one last look at your current catalog to make sure there isn't anything you can't live without.

InWith The New

Tomorrow we will begin taking orders from the new 2008 Stampin' Up! Fall-Winter Idea Book & Catalog. She's a beauty! There are bunches of new stamp sets, fun accessories and all new In Colors that are georgous! If you are in the Boise, ID area and would like a catalog, please contact me.

I know a lot of you haven't had a chance to see it yet and are waiting for Kick-Off's and Open Houses, but you can take a look at it on line tomorrow...yeah!!

And guess what???

Stampin' Up is offering 2 exciting promotions right off the bat!

You can order selected brand new, never seen before stamp sets at 15% off by viewing the flyer here.

AND
If you’ve been waiting for the right time to join the Stampin’ Up! family…this is it. You asked, they listened. Stampin’ Up! knows that over time customers accumulate lots and lots of great Stampin’ Up! products…and those of you that want to become demonstrators may be feeling like you don’t want or need a huge starter kit…so for a limited period of time, Stampin’ Up! is offering 4 Starter Kit options.
The first is the original $199 option - a great value with over $350 worth of products and business supplies PLUS one FREE any price stamp set from the NEW catalog!

The next 3 are $99 Starter Kit Promotions here offering different products designed for your specific interests! Choose from

Stamp Focused, Scrap Focused or Home Decor Focused.

Offer runs from August 11th and October 11th.

This is a great time to try Stampin' Up! either as a business or even to get a discount on the things you order all the time anyway. You are automatically active for 3 months after you sign up, that is plenty of time to get you through the holiday stamping and gift giving months before you decide to continue or not.

I'd LOVE to have you join my Inkin' Everything team!

See you tomorrow with a BRAND NEW CATALOG!!!

Woo-Hoo! Time To Kick Off A New Catalog!

Catalog Kick-Off plans are underway!!! Stacy and I are busy making samples, favors, door prizes, make & takes...all the good stuff you want!! If you are in the Boise area and would like to attend please let me know, yasou@cableone.net. I'll be posting lots of pictures for this event especially after I get to order new products on Monday!

WOO-HOO! WHO LOVES NEW STUFF????

Stampin' Up!'s Beautiful Home Office

The Legacy Room in the home office is a place to showcase Stampin' Up!'s history of where they've been and how far they come. Very impressive improvement in the past 20 years and a solid future and plan to move forward. Stampin' Up! realizes the importance of trends, even setting trends and the value of the internet and also our scary economy and is doing all they can to help us suceed and make Stampin' Up! products available to everyone. They are and will continue to branch out into Home Decor, Art and any other medium that rubber stamping can enhance. There is no end in sight for all the possibilities you can do with rubber stamping!

There are also little room vignettes set up displaying how you can best show Stampin' Up! products in your own home. This one I particularily love because it shows how you can incorporate products into your home decor ;o)

Pictures of the Stampin' Up! home office in Riverton, UT. What a beautiful place to work! Can you imagine coming through the front door each day and seeing that huge waterfall. The sound was so peaceful and tranquil...how could that NOT inspire creativity?? There are tables and chairs all around it for employees to eat lunch or take breaks.

Can You Feel The Excitement???

Sit down with a cup of coffee for this one...it's long!

Can you feel the excitement in the air? I can! Stampin' Up!'s 20th Anniversary Convention was so exciting and exhilarating. I'm exhausted but thrilled to be back to see my family and share with you the exciting things Stampin' Up! has in store for this year!

Where should I begin?!

First, the 2008 Fall & Winter Catalog & Idea Book is absolutely beautiful! It has a scalloped edge on it just like our new punch. It is full of new stamp sets and accessories you are going to love! As you know, we can begin ordering August 11th. You still have until the 10th to order from the Spring and Summer Catalog anything that is being discontinued that you may want.

One of the most exciting announcements is that Stampin' Up! has partnered with Sizzix to make a Big Shot die-cut machine exclusively for Stampin' Up! You can create multiple die-cut shapes, tags and envelopes quickly and easily. The Big Shot machine works with more than 50 materials, including card stock, Designer Series Paper, fabric, CHIPBOARD, plastic, vinyl and more! The Big Shot uses our exclusive die-cuts made to coordinate with our stamp sets or regular Sizzix dies - plus it is compatible with other dies on the market!

How exciting is that???

OK, so the machine in and of itself is pretty exciting...but wait until you see the new Stampin' Up! logo black and white checkered bag that goes with it. I need one for my Sizzix, one for my Stampin' Up! catalogs and show stuff, one for traveling, one for the kids, oh man!!! The call it a Doctor's bag (it's that shape), and it is huge and beautifully constructed to hold a lot of weight. Oh ya... you NEED one or two or three ;o)

Phase Two of the Decor Elements is on it's way soon. We saw some of the new vinyl wall decor last week. It is gorgeous and so versatile! We are now layering colored vinyl over colored vinyl like our two-step stamping! The flowers they demonstrated are in Pixie Pink, So Saffron, Gable Green and I think it was Chocolate Chip. They were darling!

Shelli, our co-founder and CEO is starting her own personal blog beginning Monday, August 4th. www.SoShelli.com.

During the first general session of convention, Shelli announced the launch of Shelli's Signature Collection, a line of products that span the entire Stampin' Up! product line, including stamp sets, home décor, and accessories. These will be products that she either personally loves or, in some cases, even played a part in developing.

For the second time, Stampin' Up! will partner with Country Living magazine to offer an exclusive holiday kit. The Holiday Collection Stampin' Kit will include exclusive stamps, a combination of Designer Series paper, and coordinating accessories that will only be available by purchasing this kit.

The kit and project ideas made from the kit would be featured among 20 pages in the magazine's December holiday issue!

Any day now if you haven't already, you should be receiving your Fall-Winter Sampler catalog. It's a sneak peek of what is in the new Fall & Winter catalog and offers some fantastic promotions!

Fall-Winter Sampler Promotions
Dates: August 11, 2008-January 18, 2009

Promotion Details:
New Recruit Incentive:

August 11-October 11, 2008

Join as a demonstrator with the standard $199 Starter Kit and choose one stamp set out of the Fall-Winter Sampler or Idea Book & Catalog for FREE.

I would LOVE to have you join my Inkin' Everything team! Come on, it's FUN!

Hostess Incentive:

October 1-November 30, 2008

Host a $350 workshop and choose one stamp set from the Fall-Winter Sampler for FREE!!!

Call me today to book your holiday show! There are some fantastic new and easy projects we can make together, perfect for holiday gift giving!

Product Offer:

December 1, 2008-January18, 2009

Spend $20 and get 20 % off any stamp set from the Fall-Winter Sampler. What a great deal!!

Have you heard enough yet? Ready for some pictures??

The convention theme was Celebrate...for their 20th Anniversary.

20th Anniversary symbols were everywhere. These were chocolate, the best kind!

Seven Inkin' Everything Team members were in attendance!!Standing: Lori Terry, Becky Roberts, Trina Tarczy & Danee Hoang. Sitting: Paulina Hoang, Kim Sinclair & Jennifer Valk The production line in the Stampin' Up! shipping warehouse in Riverton, UT
I'm sure one of these boxes getting ready to be filled is MINE!!
Every year they play a game show with audience contestants. This year was Stamptionary. East Coast vs. West Coast and Oldies vs. Newbies.
At the end of the closing ceromonies, the door bell rang. The crowd went balistic!!!! Yes, it was the UPS man at the door with a Stampin' up! box...and FREE stamps for everyone!!! Yay!! The place was full of the men in brown--and UPS delivered a free stamp set to all demonstrators attending the last session of convention. A UPS truck actually drove on stage and numerous UPS delivery employees poured out of the back, toting boxes of free stamps.
The stamp set--Say It with Scallops--is this year's Ronald McDonald House Charities set. Because Stampin' Up! is such a valuable UPS customer, UPS donated the stamp set for the giveaway as a gesture of thanks. Demonstrators always look forward to the UPS truck driving down their road, but the arrival of the truck during convention was an unexpected and unforgettable treat!
Confetti cannons shot off confetti everywhere! It was so thick you could barely see around you. It was so exciting!!!!

This was my seat when I turned to sit down...FULL of confetti!! I put my stamp set down and took a quick picture!

Nice hair accessory, huh?? Who cares! It was FREE stamps!!!

I have to tell you, I had the BEST time this year!! The demonstrator classes were great, presentations were pure Stampin' up! quality and best of all I got to see some of my team and LOTS of CA and past convention friends. I met Lorri Heiling of http://www.stampingaddict.blogspot.com/ and Jill Hilliard of http://www.jill031070.blogspot.com/ and so many other blogging friends! Thank you also to everyone who stopped me and said such nice things to me about this blog ;o)

More to come in the next few days...

More Stationary Box Contents

All four stationary boxes have different 3" x 3" cards in them. The first picture shows the cards I made using the Slit Punch. This was a fabulous idea offered by Andrea Walford on her Demo To Demo site. The second photo shows one of all 4 different sets. After a while they all started to look a like and I just needed to get them done!!!

The third photo shows one of the gift tags. They all have different colors of cardstock and a different piece of the Bella Rose paper. I left them blank so they could be stamped with a sentiment of their choice, depending on what occasion they use them for.

Finally, the picture of the Birthday Book. I didn't want to make an address book like Jackie Topa did with her original instructions, so I had my fantastic little man, Benjamin create a monthly Birthday Book. I ran the pages on regular printer paper and cut them to size. I may be willing to share those pages if you leave a nice comment. E-mail me at yasou@cableone.net if you want a copy. Edited to add: If you have received the calender pages but can't open them, let me know. We have a newer version of Word (so my comperter guys tell me anyway) and they've fixed it so all computers can read it now. Also, a wonderful lady e-mailed me with a very complimentary note...and I accidently deleted it without sending her the calender pages. PLEASE write back if you are the one who hasn't received them, so sorry!!

I attached the book to the box with 2 sticky Velcro circles so it can be removed and reattached easily.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures of the stationary boxes! I'll be back Sunday afternoon with all kinds of new photos, the NEW catalog and tons of inspiration to share.

Contents of Stationary Boxes

I love these cards!!! I almost didn't want to give them away...but I can always make more. Each box has 4 full size cards and envelopes, 4- 3"x 3" cards and envelopes (you'll see those tomorrow), 4 gift tags, 4 stamps, a birthday book and a pen.

Cardstock: Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Pink Pirrouette, Kiwi Kiss, Riding Hood Red and Bella Rose Designer Series Paper.

Stamp Sets: Fast and Fun Notes, Smarty Pants

Accessories: Ink pads and Blender Pens, Coluzzle Circle Cutting System, Small Oval Punch (for creating the scallop edge on the chickie card), Chocolate Chip and Old Olive Wide Grosgrain Ribbon, Pretty In Pink Grosgrain Ribbon, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter and Crystal Effects, Scallop Edge Punch, Paper Piercing Tool and Mat and a few Stampin' Write markers.

Gift Box For My SAM

I wanted to make something special for my SAM. That is a Service Account Manager at Stampin' Up!. You get your own SAM when you earn the cruise!

My SAM, Jennelee Radcliff has been so helpful to me especially as I transitioned my business from CA to ID this year. For any demonstrator who has had to relocate, you know how hard that is, and she has been there every step of the way with her encouragement and support! Having a SAM is a GREAT perk to your Stampin' Up! business. They keep you informed of deadlines, your downline reports, weekly messages and updates and all kinds of things you wouldn't normally get to be a part of. Plus they are available to you all the time!

I've really enjoyed getting to work with you this year Jennelee, and I hope you enjoy your new life as a stay at home mom with your boys.

I made extra boxes to give to a couple other special people at convention too. I'll post up close pictures of the cards and contents tomorrow.

Gifts For My downline Girls

Adorable if I do say so myself!!

These little purses contain a plethora of decorated gifts for attending the Stampin' Up! convention, all covered in the new Bella Rose Designer Series Paper. The purses came with a brand name embellishment on them, I ripped it off and added one of our Build A Brads to it and some ribbons to the handle. Don't know if you can see it or not but they have a tiny zipper purse hanging on the front of them. The purses are about 8" x 4" without handles, have two zipper compartments and an inside zipper pocket...perfect for a make-up bag after convention!

Hope you all love your gift!

This year I have 6 of my downline attending convention. Jennifer Valk, Kim Sinclair, Lori Terry, Trina Tarczy, Danee Hoang and Pauling Hoang. Yeah girls! What a way to invest in your business...or just have fun ;o)

Scallop Cards and Box

Andrea Walford shares the instructions for these darling little

3 x 3 Scallop Edge Cards & Envelopes and Box on her Demo to Demo blog! The directions say to use DSP and for good reason...it was impossible to punch through both layers of cardstock with the Slit Punch! I ended up doing each side separately and luckily they lined up!

The first photo shows the front, back and inside of the little cards.

Cardstock: Kiwi Kiss, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Bella Rose DSP

Stamp Set: Pun Fun, Big Flowers (for the flower on the back)

Accessories: Slit Punch, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, Word Window Punch, 1/8" Punch, Pretty in Pink Grosgrain Ribbon, White Gel Pen

Business Cards...of sorts

I wanted to have something to hand out to friends I meet at convention with my contact information on them so found these cute little matchbook notepads and matching calendars from www.Vippies.com, one of my favorite sites for fun things to stamp with. I'll give you the link because if you mistype it, you get some sick-o porno site!!! Wonder how I know that???

The adorable matchbooks come with pads of paper stapled in them. You purchase the tiny stick on calendar pads, peel and attach to the inside of the book and decorate. Matchbook Notepads were 50/$12.50 and the Self Stick Calendars (size 1 3/4" x 1 1/2") were 50/$14.00. FYI: The pads have slick white covers...M-E-S-S-Y!! Unless you emboss it's best to plan on covering them with paper then stamping on them.

Also...I have several posting on auto post while I am at convention next week. I'll be gone Tuesday thru Sunday. Check to see what fabulous gifts I'm taking to my downline girls and other things I've made that I can't show before I leave ;o). It's set post the first one on Wednesday!

Blogging Awards

I'm so grateful for the compliments I receive on my blog! Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to post a comment or drop me a line with your kind remarks. I've been nominated by several for a couple different awards and have successfully put off posting them until today...when 3 more came in. I am grateful, please know that I am, it's just that I would rather be at my stamp desk than on my computer!

I honestly can't remember all the nominations I've received since I told myself I wasn't interested in posting those silly awards (sorry, still grateful) and now I wish I had kept a list because I've really enjoyed reading interesting facts about others on their blogs. Not that I have anything interesting to share however! I know it all started with that darn Nancy Riley at iSTAMP. I've also been tagged by Karen and others I'm sorry I can't remember and lastly today by Amy Celona. It was Amy who threw me over the edge today and quilted me into posting because it's her WOW! swaps I've joined for convention and don't want to be kicked out until I've collected my goods ;o)

OK, here it goes, 7 random or weird facts about myself.

1. I'll start easy, I'll be 45 this year and have 2 boys ages 9 and 12. I've been married 25 years, the last 15 to the man I will love and be with forever.

2. Both my boys were born on a Thursdays and were scheduled inductions. George had started a new job the Monday before each birth and was only able to have the weekend with us. It's OK, by Monday I was good and ready to do it on my own and MY way!

3. I'm an extremely private person and love listening to others but rarely share about myself...hence my hesitation to do this project. Don't tell anyone my facts and don't sell my information on the Internet ;o)

4. I've earned 2 Stampin' Up! cruises and have been unable to attend both! We were living in CA and had no family to watch the boys and it would have cost $3000 to take our kids with us on our FREE cruise.

5. I wear hearing aids that have zebra stripe covers much to the embarrassment of my oldest son! He makes a point of telling everyone up front that his mom can't hear because he is mortified when people ask me about it! Oh, those pre-teen years, aren't they fun?

6. I was a Grumman's Chinese Theater (now Mann's Chinese Theater) the day John Travolta put his Urban Cowboy boots in the cement and have a couple of the paper towels they used to clean his boots off. They are firmly cemented together by green cement and folded in a 4" square to keep forever. George also knows that the day John comes for me is the last day he will ever see me again. But I 'll still love you George!

7. I did not take my husbands last name when we got married. I am Roberts and he and the boys are Papadopoulos...see why? ;o) I love the Greeks, please don't curse me.

That's it...pretty darn boring compared to some I've read who've had these fabulous lives. I wouldn't change a thing tho unless I win the lottery!!

I'm breaking the rules slightly here, I am not nominating anyone for these awards. I wouldn't know where to start, there are so many fantastic stampers and bloggers out there. Those I love, know I love them! Please feel free to cut and paste these awards onto your blog and share some interesting facts about yourself if you would like.

Have a great day!

Discontinued Accessory List

Here is the link to the Stampin' Up! Discontinued Accessory list, http://www.stampinup.com/us/enu/11276.asp. This takes you directly to the Stampin' Up! website where they will be updating the availability on these items daily.