Hello from San Antonio

We've arrived in San Antonio for the Stampin' Up! Leadership Conference.  It is absolutely picture-perfect weather — blue skies and 68 degrees!  We got in around midnight  on the 18th and slept in until 10AM then went out for a walk on the River Walk.  It's so beautiful!

I share a birthday with my daughter Aly and it was so fun to be traveling together and celebrating!

Here's Jen and Aly enjoying the river.

Then it was on to pick up our bags.  This darling bag highlights a new line being released in the Summer Mini Catalog in April!  So cute!

Here's a close-up so you can see the details.

Next stop was Make and Takes.  But before we began here's what was waiting at our places.  It's a coordinating piece to the bag which can be used as a notebook or for using at a workshop for a place to put money and orders inside.  Didn't take a pick of it open!

There was even a cute little box with a candy treat to keep us going while we stamped.

Tomorrow's schedule is jam packed starting at 6AM, so I'll post more when I can!  For those of you on the From the Heart Stampers Team, plan to join us next year for this amazing event!

Swap for Leadership Conference

Getting ready to head out to the Stampin' Up! Leadership Conference in San Antonio on January 17th – I leave on my birthday!  AND I'm going with my daughter who's birthday is the same day!  Wow – this will be a fun celebration!  Part of the fun of the conference is all of the swapping going on.  I've made 110 card fronts that I'll be trading with other top demonstrators from around the country (and Cananda!) and will be bringing all of those samples back to Rochester to share with my customers.  I'll also post some of my favorites on my blog.  For now, I wanted to share with you the swap I'll be bringing.  AND this is a sneak peek of Sale-A-Bration 2012 that will be starting on January 24th!  I'm featuring a new stamp set called Bordering on Romance that is in the Occasions Mini Catalog as well as some new designer paper called Everyday Enchantment.  You'll be able to take this gorgeous package of designer paper FREE with a $50 purchase beginning on January 24th!

Here is each swap separately.  I changed up the card base to coordinate better with the particular designer paper I was using.  I wanted to use more than one print.

This one is Riding Hood Red for the card base.

Here it is with an Early Espresso base.

And finally a Calypso Coral card base.

I can't decide which one I like best – leave me a comment below and tell me which one you vote for!

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:
Item No. 125480 Bordering on Romance wood $27.95 OR
Item No. 125482 Bordering on Romance clear $21.95
Item No. 122495 Petite Pairs wood $28.95 OR
Item No. 122497 Petite Pairs clear $20.95
Item No. 126154 Everyday Enchantment Designer Series Paper  – SAB exclusive
Item No. 117335 Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder $7.95
Item No. 121810 Petal Cone Die $32.95
Item No.  120906 2-1/2" Circle Punch $16.95
Item No. 119868 1" Circle Punch $10.95
Item No. 119247 Jewels Basic Pearls (150) $4.95

REMINDERS
EARN FREE STAMPS with Kriss's Online Customer Perks – be rewarded for your shopping loyalty.  Click HERE!
TRY A SAMPLE OF NEW PRODUCTS from the new Occasions Mini Catalog in a Product Share.  Click HERE!
SIGN UP FOR STAMP SHOPPE, either attending or "on the go".  Click HERE!

Stampin’ Up! Leadership Conference Invitation

This will be the fourth year in a row that I've had the privilege of attending the Stampin' Up! Leadership Conference and being simply spoiled at the Manager's Reception there.  Stampin' Up! really treats its demonstrators like royalty right down to the clever invitation I just received in the mail.

We're being treated to a performance by the Chinese Acrobats of Hebei.  And can you believe this invitation!  Here's the other side.

I'm working on my swaps and will post them soon – I've used some brand new products from the Occasions Mini and the Sale-A-Bration catalog!

Jewelry Shoppe

Only at April Stamp Shoppe!

Friday, April 8th 6:30pm – 9:30pm OR
Saturday, April 9th 10am – 1pm

at Trinity Communion Church, 759 Winona Blvd., Rochester NY 14617

Registration pre-payment due March 28th!

At the Jewelry Shoppe, you will receive a 1-1/2"x2" Simply Adorned Charm and 1 yd. of white satin ribbon to use to wear it.  Then you'll create 3 hand-stamped inserts for the charm in addition to decorating a small jewelry box in which to keep it.

Jewelry Shoppe is just in time for Mother's Day!  Come to Jewelry Shoppe to make this as a gift for your mom or special woman in your life.  Or maybe you want to treat someone to the class to maker her own!  A day of creativity to share together is always priceless.  Of course, this Shoppe doesn't have to be a gift – you can always come and make it for yourself!

While we don't ask for pre-payment of class fees for our regular Card and Scrapbook Shoppe classes, we will need pre-payment of the class fee by March 28th so that we can order your charm and have it ready for you at the Shoppe.

The cost of Jewelry Shoppe is $28.

RSVP before March 28th by sending payment to Kriss Huels, 15 Woodland Circle, Rochester, NY 14622 OR by clicking the link below.  Please indicate whether you're coming on Friday or Saturday.

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Jewelry Shoppe On The Go!

Can't make it to the Jewelry Shoppe but want to have the set? No problem! You have TWO options.

Jewelry Shoppe on the Go Option #1: Receive the Simply Adorned Charm, Box, 1 yard of ribbon and cardstock, accessories and designer paper for 3 inserts – you stamp and assemble the inserts yourself.  Cost: $28 + Shipping

Jewelry Shoppe on the Go Option #2: Receive the Simply Adorned Charm, Box, 1 yard of ribbon and 3 fully designed, stamped and assembled inserts. Cost: $34 + Shipping

Stampin’ Up! Fabric

At the Stampin' Up! Leadership Convention in Nashville in January, we were treated to the most beautiful make and take projects ever!  We made the brooch above using the Springtime Vintage Designer Series Fabric and Fun Flowers Die for the Big Shot.  Did you know that you can cut up to 8 layers of fabric at a time using the Big Shot?  It really makes for fast results!  Tucked in between the fabric layers are pieces of First Edition Specialty Designer Series Paper punched with the 2-3/8" Scallop Circle Punch, as well as a Paper Daisy painted with Platinum Shimmer Paint.  Snips of Victoria Crochet Trim and Baja Breeze Seam Binding are also part of this brooch.  But wait – there's more!  The crowning glory is the pretty motif on the top center – a stamped butterfly image from Clearly For You stamp set adorned with a Beveled Window Pane, Vanilla Seam Binding, Vanilla 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon and a Trinket Key!  This brooch is vintage all the way!  It's all held together using a hot glue gun for each layer and for the pin on the back.

I came home and made my simpler version using the Sweet Stitches Designer Fabric, along with a Sweet Stitches Designer Big Button, Pompom Trim, Vintage Trinkets safety pin and 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon in Pumpkin Pie.  It matches my new apron using the same fabric that I'll show you in another post!

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:

Item No. 121817 Springtime Vintage Designer Fabric $9.95
Item No. 122331 Baja Breeze 1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon $6.95
Item No. 120999 Very Vanilla 1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon $6.95
Item No. 118481 Victoria 5/8" Crochet Trim $6.95
Item No. 121812 Fun Flowers Bigz L Die 32.95
Item No. 121911 Clearly For You wood mount $23.95 OR
Item No. 121976 Clearly For You clear mount $17.95
Item No. 121881 Beveled Windowpanes $7.95
Item No. 121892 Trinket Keys $5.95
Item No. 121878 First Edition Specialty Designer Series Paper $11.95
Item No. 118874 2-3/8" Scallop Circle $16.95
Item No. 116807 Platinum Shimmer Paint $5.95
Item No. 119960 Very Vanilla 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon $5.95
Item No. 119243 Paper Daisies $6.95
Item No. 121818 Sweet Stitches Designer Fabric $9.95
Item No. 123322 Melon Mambo Pompom Trim $6.50
Item No. 122302 Sweet Stitches Designer Big Buttons $8.95
Item No. 118764 Vintage Trinkets $5.95

Don't Forget!
To register for the March Stamp Shoppe – click HERE!
To sign up for the Birthday Card Special – click HERE!
Order Stampin' Up! products online 24/7 — click HERE!

March Stamp Shoppe

Friday, March 11th from 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM OR
Saturday, March 12th from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM
at Trinity Communion Church, 759 Winona Blvd, Rochester NY 14617 (near Titus and St. Paul Blvd.)

Registration deadline:  Thursday, March 10th at noon

It's time for a preview of the projects we'll be completing at Stamp Shoppe in March! Not sure what Stamp Shoppe is? Click HERE for all the details.

Here's a look at the "The Card Shoppe" line up for March! You'll make 6 cards for $15 or FREE with a $20 order!

For more details on Card Shoppe, click HERE.

Here's a sneak peek at the pages for March – you'll make a total of 3, 12"x12" layouts (3rd page not shown) for $20 or FREE with a $25 order!
The "Lucky" layout has been designed to be extremely versatile. While we didn't want to ignore St. Patrick's Day – we recognize that not everyone has photos from the day to scrapbook. So – the whole alphabet stamp set will be available to you – instead of stamping "Lucky" you can stamp any word! Additionally, the shamrocks can easily be changed to flowers – a flower punch will also be out for your use if you would prefer to use that. Just 2 simple changes and voila – you have an "every day" page that is simply cheerful, bright and fun!

For more details on Scrapbook Shoppe, click HERE.

I also have an Early Bird registration offer – RSVP for the March Stamp Shoppe by Tuesday February 22nd and you'll be entered into a drawing to win a FREE Sale-A-Bration Stamp Set of YOUR Choice! To win the free set, you must both RSVP AND attend the March Stamp Shoppe (cancellations are not permitted to win).

In addition to the Early Bird registration offer, I also have a coupon for the month of March! The coupon is for anyone who has never attended or signed up to attend the Stamp Shoppe before. This makes March the month to give it a try!

Finally, if you are a long distance customer unable to attend the March Stamp Shoppe, I have "On the Go" kits available. Contact me for more information.

Be sure to RSVP by Thursday, March 10th, at Noon – but if you know you don't want to miss this great event, click HERE and RSVP now!

Leadership Swap No. 2

Here's a swap I took with me to the Leadership Conference in Nashville last month, as well as made some thank you cards for my wonderful customers (changing the sentiment to "thanks" from the same stamp set).  It uses two exclusive stamp sets from the Sale-A-Bration promotion (check out details HERE) – So Happy For You for the sentiments and Sweet Summer for the images.  I love this color combination – Pretty in Pink, Rich Razzleberry, Elegant Eggplant and Wild Wasabi.  Pretty simple card!

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:
Item No. 121853 So Happy For You wood mount – FREE!
Item No. 123220 So Happy For You clear mount – FREE!
Item No. 121849 Sweet Summer wood mount – FREE!
Item No. 123214 Sweet Summer clear mount – FREE!
Item No. 120906 2-1/2" Circle Punch $16.95
Item No. 109032 Pretty in Pink 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon $4.95

Don't Forget!
To register for the February Stamp Shoppe – click HERE! 
Order Stampin' Up! products online 24/7 — click HERE!

February Stamp Shoppe

Friday, February 11th from 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM OR
Saturday, February 12th from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM
at Trinity Communion Church, 759 Winona Blvd, Rochester NY 14617 (near Titus and St. Paul Blvd.)

Registration deadline:  Thursday, February 10th at noon

It's almost time for another round of Stamp Shoppe! If you've attended in the past, we hope to see you again! If you've never attended before, we hope that this is the month you'll consider joining us – you'll love it!
 
And with Sale-A-Bration going on, consider giving BOTH Shoppes a try! When you attend both Card Shoppe and Scrapbooking Shoppe, the Shoppes are FREE with a $45 order. But with Sale-A-Bration, you get a FREE Sale-A-Bration gift of your choice with a $50 order. So now is the PERFECT time to sign up for both Shoppes and benefit even more with Sale-A-Bration. If you normally create cards, try scrapbooking, too! If you normally scrapbook, give cards a try! You have nothing to lose with the AWESOME Sale-A-Bration benefits available to you.

Today I wanted to give you a sneak peek of what's in store for our Card Shoppe and Scrapbook attendees this month.

Here's a collage of our Card Shoppe projects:

At the Card Shoppe this month, you'll make a great stash of cards good for any time! While you can always change up the greetings to what you need, the sentiments provided include but are not limited to Thanks, Thinking of You, For You, Good Luck and Sympathy. I think this line up of cards is my favorite yet – you're going to love their striking simplicity. And while you're creating this months cards, you'll be using lots of brand new products! Almost all of the stamp sets featured are from the Sale-A-Bration and Occasions Mini Catalogs. You'll even get to try out some of our brand new accessories and fabric!

At Card Shoppe, you'll make a total of SIX Cards for just $15 or FREE with a $20 Order!
And with Sale-A-Bration going on, if you place a $50 order, your cards are free AND you receive a FREE Sale-A-Bration gift of your choice!

And here are two of our three scrapbook pages at the Scrapbook Shoppe!

This month at The Scrapbook Shoppe you'll make 3 "love" pages. Use them for Valentine's Day photos, Anniversary photos, Wedding photos, photos of your darling children or grandchildren or any photos you took when love was in the air!

Scrapbook Shoppe is just $20 or FREE with a $25 order!
 And with Sale-A-Bration going on, place a $50 order and your scrapbook pages are free AND you receive a FREE Sale-A-Bration gift of your choice!

WANT MORE FREE cards at the Stamp Shoppe? You've got it! Bring a friend who has never stamped with me before and you'll get to make an entire EXTRA set of cards for FREE! That means that you'll get to make TWELVE cards total – 2 of each design – 1 to keep as a sample and 1 to send!   Or make your 3 scrapbook pages and receive a set of cards FREE!

If you are a long-distance customer, feel free to e-mail me about long distance kit options.

For those of you who are local, I hope that you're able to join us either Friday night February 11th or Saturday morning February 12th and join in on all of the fun!

If you'd like more information on the Stamp Shoppes, click HERE to go to my website.  Be sure to RSVP by Thursday, February 10th, at Noon – but if you know you don't want to miss this great event, click HERE and RSVP now!

Leadership 2011 – Nashville

It's been a while coming, but I just wanted to share with you some of my favorite pics from my trip to Leadership Convention in Nashville.  We stayed at the Opryland Resort & Spa which was an experience in itself!

Downline team member Ruth Petrovich attended for her first time as a Sr. Supervisor!

The first night there we headed out to the Wild Horse Saloon for a fabulous dinner and line dancing.  Here's Aly with her cowgirl hat – courtesy of Stampin' Up!  Notice the ANTIQUE BRADS on the hat band?  Get out of town!

Our stamp set gift was wrapped in brown paper and had this label on the front.  I can't show you the stamp set that was inside – it isn't even available yet!

Main stage is always an exciting time.  Here we're posing in front of this year's theme "+One" which encourages us ALL to do at least one more thing for our business this year.

This was just one of the Prize Patrol giveaways this year – a package containing a CD for My Digital Studio SAB downloads, some Springtime Vintage fabric and some Sweet Stitches Designer Big Buttons.

Here's our Convention bag this year – absolutely gorgeous!  And we were able to purchase the matching wallet at Memento Mall!

Make & Takes at Leadership were extraordinary this year – we received a Simply Adorned 1-1/"x2" Charm, plus a matching chain, Simply Adorned Vanilla Pearl Bauble, and Keys and Crowns Trinkets, and several of our projects were gorgeous inserts.  Here we're making a fabric pin; we've just sprayed all of our fabric with starch and are letting them dry.

I'm pumped up and ready to work hard after all of the wonderful classes, tips and project ideas I received! 

A Little Somethin’ for my Roomies

Sharing a hotel room during the Stampin' Up! conventions really cuts down on the expense of traveling — plus it's uber fun!  My roommates on this trip are my daughter and upline Aly Schilling and a dear friend and downline team member Ruth Petrovich.  I wanted to make them a little goody bag for between meal snacking during the Convention, but it had to be a stamping project, too, right?!  So I filled a baggie full of treats and made a topper for it Stampin' Up! style.  Simply measure the width of your bag and the distance you want it to drop down over the bag times two (for the front and back) and cut your card stock accordingly.  I used So Saffron card stock as my base then added some Play Date Designer Series Paper.   I created a tag using the Level 1 Hostess stamp set Afterthoughts inked up with Stampin' Write Markers in Early Espresso and Real Red, punched it out using the Decorative Label Punch and added a button from the Brights Designer Buttons pack with Linen Thread tied through the holes.  I adhered it with Dimensionals.  To secure the topper, I simply folded it over the bag and added a Chocolate Chip Jumbo Brad from the 5/16" Neutrals Jumbo Brads pack to each side.  Viola!  I hope this little treat is a fun surprise for my roomies!

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:
Item No. 118388 Afterthoughts wood mount – free with $150 purchase or workshop
Item No. 120121 Afterthoughts clear mount – free with $150 purchase or workshop
Item No. 117168 Play Date Designer Series Paper $9.95
Item No. 120907 Decorative Label Punch $16.95
Item No. 119747 Brights Designer Buttons (72) $8.95
Item No. 104199 Linen Thread $4.50

Don't Forget!
To register for the January Stamp Shoppe – click HERE!
Order Stampin' Up! products online 24/7 — click HERE!