Breaking news: Yet another scrapbooking company has sold to mega-company American Crafts!
Here is the blog post from American Crafts with the announcement.
From the post:
Jan, who started BoBunny at the urging of her sister, says she’s pleased that the BoBunny brand will continue with American Crafts.
“It’s bittersweet to say goodbye to the industry, the store owners and the friends that we’ve made over the years, ” says Jan. “But with me retiring, I wanted to make sure that crafters could continue to enjoy BoBunny for years to come. I have confidence that American Crafts will do a great job of making sure that happens.”
I for one am glad they sold to AC instead of closing down.
PS: Want a cute BoBunny image for your desktop? Here ya’ go. Enjoy!
This being a scrapbooking site and all, it makes sense that I usually talk about one of my favorite places to online shop called Scrapbook Steals.
But I saw that one of their sister sites called She Steals had something you might also love, so I thought I’d share.
They have some awesome specials for Labor Day Weekend – over 30% off on MacBook Air latops (Saturday only) and iMac desktop computers (Sunday only).
In April, I bought a MacBook Air and shopped around a LOT (I’m a total bargain hunter). But Apple products are notoriously difficult to find discounts on. The best I was able to find was $100 off during a holiday sale at my local Apple store.
Here’s the pic I took of my new gorgeous baby when I bought her:
I’m absolutely in love. I had an ancient MacBook Pro 17 inch that was my workhorse for 10 years. But it had started overheating so I had to use a laptop desk with a fan, which made it even bulkier (for a laptop) than it already was. I hardly used it because of the hassle and was pretty much chained to the iMac in my office.
My new Air is soooo much lighter and portable (well, duh! AIR!) and I find myself using it constantly. I now work from the couch or bed, a coffee shop by the beach some days, and even take it on trips so I can write my book from the passenger seat. I blog from it, read the scrapbook boards, and cruise Pinterest for scrapbooking ideas.
The links below are my affiliate links but if you’d rather not use them, just type shesteals.com into your browser, no hard feelings ;)
That’s why I wanted to share the love and let you know about the MacBook Air sale today at SheSteals.com. My other computer is an iMac that I use daily for work – another amazing computer. Those are on sale Sunday so take a peek at SheSteals.com then if you’re interested.
Well, this is fun! MAMBI is selling a Happy Planner kit at 16 select Costco’s.
It’s hard to see because the photo they provided is so small but it looks like there’s an 18-month Happy Planner, 5 rolls of washi tape, 3 pens, some pocket page inserts, 2 little paper pad inserts, etc. MAMBI says, “If all goes well, we are hoping for a chainwide set in the near future.”
To see a list of stores, check out their post on the MAMBI blog. If “your” Costco is carrying these kits, I think it’s your duty as a scrapbooker to go buy one, take photos, and tell us about it. C’mon, I would do it for you!
PS: I still haven’t decided if I’m keeping mine. Does Michaels have a so-many-days return policy?
ETA 06-15-16: Thanks Abby! HERE is an Instagram slideshow of the contents. You get a lot for that price – wow!
As you saw in my last post, I recently bought the MAMBI Happy Planner at Michaels (reg. $34.99 minus 30% off coupon = $24.49). It’s the 8.5 x 11 version, not the more popular smaller one that you’ve probably been seeing everywhere.
Not only are the binder discs my favorite color but they also have my favorite shape: HEARTS!
The front and back covers are soft but laminated and very sturdy. The inner pages are about the weight of your average scrapbook paper, not thin like cheap paper but not thick like Bazzill or Carta Bella. This planner goes for 18 months, from July 2016 to December 2017. Guess I have about a month to decide if I’m going to keep her ;)
The first 2 pages are 2016 and 2017 year at a glance, then starts the 18 monthly sections. Here are a few of those intro pages, where you see a variety of designs on the right, from quotes to very designed pages to very open ones like the first one, where you can have a ball decorating or journaling. I really like the “Currently” section for each month, since that’s something I always mean to scrapbook or track but then never do. Here, it’s right in the day planner – can’t forget it.
After each monthly intro page, there’s a month-at-a-glance page with room for notes; in my current day planner, I used the monthly pages for bill tracking and budgeting and would keep doing that in the Happy Planner.
Then there are 4 or 5 of these week-at-a-glance pages, depending on how long the month is. I like that each day is sectioned into 3 boxes. You could use that for morning, afternoon, and evening. I’m thinking of using it for personal, work, and blogging/e-learning.
My hold-up is that I have large handwriting and this might be too cramped for me. Dang :( I’m not a “planner girl” who does this for fun and creativity. I use my day planner FOR REALS. Like, it gets down and dirty, people. Family events, business deadlines, client launches, sports schedules, and more.
So anyway, that goes on for 18 months in the same format. There’s nothing extra in this planner except for a blank page at the very back for more notes.
It is quite hefty so I understand why there’s not more included, yet I want to add more pages to make it useful for me. I didn’t see any extra pages at Michaels that I could buy separately. When I got home, I checked online and nada. Lots of extra pages on the MAMBI site HERE but they’re all for the smaller sized Happy Planner.
So I did what any Scrapbook Obsessed girl would do. I Tweeted MAMBI:
@ScrapbookObsess: I just got the 8.5×11 Happy Planner. What can I use with it? Everything seems made for the smaller size. Punch, extra pages?
@mambitweets: All the CLASSIC sized accessories work inside the BIG planner, and NOTE: a bigger punch is coming. :)
@ScrapbookObsess: ETA on the bigger punch? I’d like full size pages so I’ll make my own or look for free printables. Thanks!
@mambitweets: No exact date as of now, but once we know, we’ll be sure to share! <3
So that’s another strike against keeping this planner, at least for now. My plan was to insert pages for notes, keeping track of blog and work goals, exercise and diet, and projects. Yes, it’s already bulky but because of the snazzy binder disc system, I can take out pages I am not currently using or am done with to thin it out.
Overall, I think the 8.5 x 11 Happy Planner by MAMBI is well-made, cute, and functional for the basics of life. It would be my dream planner if:
The week-at-a-glance pages had the days laid out horizontally instead of vertically so there was more room for my big handwriting
There were extra pages available to supplement what comes with the planner and/or …
A punch were available so I could make my own extra pages or utilize free printables
So I’m undecided for now if this is the planner for me. I may end up returning this one, then trying again in January when hopefully the larger punch is available. Thanks for reading!
Did you see my last post about a recent trip to Michaels? It was the first time I’d shopped there in a while so of course I had to do some damage.
Here’s a photo I took in the store while “in progress” of shopping. I thought it was funny that I had a color theme going :)
I ended up putting the washi tape back for another time because I found the MAMBI Happy Planners on an island in the back of the store. Here’s what I actually came home with (you can’t see it but the teal-colored Iris bin is still under there, lol):
The 12×12 Recollections album was too pretty to pass up. I love sea blue, watercolor, and chevrons. I scrapbook these days using D-ring albums by WRMK so I really didn’t “need” this album … but I wanted it. Ha! Now I need an excuse to do a theme album. Hmmm, beach photos maybe? Only $3.99.
All the Heidi Swapp “Insta” products were 40% off. I got these super cute clear stickers. I love these because you can put them right onto your photos, on the outside of your pocket page protector, or on your layout. When you take them off the sticker sheet, the colored parts are more transparent than you’d think by looking at them (which I like).
The Iris cases were not on sale and I’ve only bought clear ones so far because I like the consistency of look in my scrapbook room. But again – couldn’t pass up that pretty color. My “30% off every regular priced item” coupon was applied.
The MAMBI Happy Planners were not on sale either – bummer. And this large 8.5 x 11 size isn’t cheap: $34.99. At least the 30% off coupon helped. I’ll be looking online to see if I can get some add-on pages. This planner goes from July 2016-December 2017 so I have a little time to “get organized.” Eh? See what I did there?
Changing gears, here’s just a pic of some cute stuff in the dollar bins at Target:
I didn’t get anything but thought you might like to see some of what’s there.
As a total side note, I got these pretty binders recently for my home office. The two multi-colored ones on the left were from Walmart. I can’t remember the price but I think they were under $5 each. The periwinkle blue binder and write-on page dividers were from Staples. My fab photography skeelz cut off the tabs on the right but you can see on the insert sheet that they have a half-pocket and are cute colors like lavendar, yellow, and green.
I came across this video and thought I’d share it with y’all.
HERE is the entire line on the Heidi Swapp website – cute stuff!
On the one hand, the photos seem really tiny so I wonder how much you can capture in that amount of space, photographically speaking.
But I love the idea of having that little printer handy on trips and events, printing right there from my phone, and putting them in an album or hanging them on that cute arrow right over your desk.
My 3 favorites from the “InstaLife” line by Heidi Swapp:
Well, the E-Bay’ers are going to be ticked. You know, the ones who saw the frenzy for these tapes that were sold in such small quantities at Michaels, so they’re selling for 3 to 4 times retail. Yeah, those ones.
Because I heard online that Michaels stores will finally be getting more of these tapes, perhaps due to customer requests!
If you’re wondering what I’m talking about, it’s these (clickable links):
Shout out to Scrapaddict702 for sharing this photo! (She’s redsonic20 on IG; go check her out). I couldn’t find one online because the images on the Michaels site (see links above) weren’t shareable and all the ones from Etsy and Ebay listings had expired or weren’t good quality. Sorry, I couldn’t find a photo of the ombre ones but you can see them in the 2nd link to Michaels.com above.
These retail for $12.99 and of course with our handy-dandy 40% off coupon, that brings the price down to less than $8.00. While looking for photos to post, I saw them selling on E-Bay for $50!
I’m going to blame the Planner Girls for those wack-a-doodle prices because Scrapbookers simply don’t get “obsessive” enough to pay that much for supplies! I mean, really (eye roll).
(And I’m totally kidding, by the way. I’ve done way stranger things than pay $50 for $13 washi tape in my day. Believe you me).
So keep an eye on your Michaels if you were hoping to buy these Color Splash washi tubes. They’re on their way back soon!
A while back, I clicked on a link that a fellow scrapbooker shared. It was a video by KIWI LANE scrapbooking called, “Married to a Scrapbooker, Volume 1.”
I was enjoying the video, LOL’ing at the scrapbooker humor and then, right after the narrator’s wife engages in paper sniffing, something really crazy caught my eye.
Um, the photo of his wife’s scrapbook paper stash? “That’s MY SCRAPBOOK ROOM!” I yelled at my computer screen. My darling iPhone was sitting nearby, my raised voice got the attention of Siri – who was pretty pissed that I woke her – and it was hard to focus for a minute there as she tried to help me.
I thought maybe I was imagining things so I backed up the video and, yep, there it was . . . Say wha’????
So please check out the video and you’ll see my Store in Style cubes and paper stash at 1:34.
HERE’s a link to the video on YouTube if you’re not seeing it embedded here.
Houston, We Have a Problem
Isn’t that crazy?! I’d never been contacted by Kiwi Lane requesting to use the photo or even letting me know they were planning to use it. I figured it must’ve been grabbed from a very old blog post of mine because the cubes haven’t looked all messy like that for years ;)
*All images in this post are courtesy of the Kiwi Lane blog
I know some people feel “if it’s on the internet, anyone can use it.” But, in fact, anything posted on a blog has an automatic copyright and can only be used with express permission of the blogger. Plus it’s just good karma to ask if you can “borrow” a photo and offer to link to the source, especially if you’re a business using it to sell something or promote your business.
So I reached out to Kiwi Lane to see what was going on. The CEO wrote back and couldn’t have been nicer. Apparently, there was a rush to get the video online (it’s the first in a series). Their video person did grab the photo from the interwebs and the owners didn’t have time to vet the video properly before it was posted.
I really try in life NOT to go from 0 to 60 without asking some questions first. So I was very happy that, as I suspected, it was an honest mistake and they admitted it immediately. {I’ve heard of so many similar scenarios where this wasn’t the case}.
A Happy Ending
Kiwi Lane offered to either give me credit in the video commentary section on YouTube or remove the photo – my choice. They also offered me a $25 gift certificate to their website as a way of making up for the mistake. I decided that sounded pretty happy-making :) I didn’t want them to have to go to the trouble of editing the video.
The photo credit with a link to my site was done right away, and the coupon code was also provided. I asked if it was transferable because I wanted to do …. A GIVEAWAY ON MY BLOG!!! She said they’d be happy to ALSO send a Kiwi Lane paper kit or provide another $25 coupon code for the giveaway.
So I told her the plan was I’d use the original $25 code to order some of their products and do a review, and use the other for a blog giveaway. Don’t you just love happy endings?
Now let’s get this GIVEAWAY PARTY STARTED!
To enter, just leave a comment on this blog post. Please tell me which one of Kiwi Lane’s products you’d like me to review OR what you’d buy if you won the $25 prize {or both, if you’re feeling ambitious today}.
Deadline is Saturday, April 30 at midnight PST. Good luck!
Please share this blog post on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and with your scrapbooking friends. There are share buttons down below that make it really easy. Thanks peeps!
I recently signed up to get the “new products” e-mail from Scrapbook.com and thought, “Hmmm … I bet my peeps would also like to see the new stuff.” So I might just make this a regular feature.
Here are my picks from this week’s Scrapbook.com e-mail. Note: I’m an affiliate and will receive a small commission if you click any of my links and end up placing an order. I appreciate the support for ScrapbookObsession.com!
Latest Issue of Scrapbook and Cards Today
I had no idea that they carried magazines! It makes me so happy to see a scrapbooking mag, even if it’s half cardmaking, LOL.
Here’s some of what’s inside, per the description on Scrapbook.com:
In this issue:
Top ten list of must-have supplies
Learn to make paper mosaics
How to make a mini album in one night
10 Free online downloads
Sequin secrets – make your cards shine
I never did find the scrapbooking magazine at Barnes and Noble that I talked about on my Facebook Page HERE. Did you?
The easiest, cleanest watercolors you’ll ever use. Either swipe the included waterbrush across the Swatch Stick to pick up the pigment for painting, or use the Swatch Stick to paint directly onto a damp surface, then blend further using the waterbrush.
Here’s a sample of what you can make with it, also from Scrapbook.com:
I tend to resist scrapbooking techniques that take a bunch of extra effort. My scrapping time is too limited to get busy with buying tons of supplies, setting everything up, using it, then cleaning up and putting everything away. But, wow, could this BE any easier?!
Wedding Wordplay Washi Tape by Little B
I like this wedding tape that is wider than normal washi.
Cute, huh? I love the blue mixer and the polka dot galosh. Wait, galosh? Is that the singular for “galoshes”? Well, yes, we just made it the rule! ‘Cuz I’m the mom and I said so ;) {See what I did there?}
If I’ve tempted you into shopping, make sure to check out all the deals and discounts Scrapbook.com currently has going’ on right HERE. Happy shopping!
I don’t know what happened and why they weren’t downloaded the last time I did my card. Maybe I glanced at them and thought they’d already been done. Who knows? Total blond moment either way.
Here’s my 3-part plan:
1. Create new blog entries for the booths I didn’t even realize I had photos for
2. For the booths I already did posts on, update those with the new pics.
3. Write a new blog post with all the found photos in one place
No. 3 is for those of you who already read the original CHA 2016 posts. That way you don’t have to wade through them all again to see the new pics.
This will take a while because I have 87 photos to edit first so don’t be expecting this all tomorrow :)
I’m totally shaking my head at myself. Sheesh. How do I operate on a daily basis? LOL. Looking back, I *was* pretty sleep-deprived around CHA time. Yep, that’s what I’m going to blame it on: lack of sleep.
And, yes, in case you’re wondering, I CAN chew gum and walk at the same time. Unless it’s cinnamon flavor. Or a SQUIRREL! runs by. {Like you can do better! Sheesh}.
Let’s end the first week of the blogging challenge with a nice long read for your weekend :) Join me, will you, as I pretend I’m going on my dream scrapbook retreat? This is not, I repeat NOT, a real retreat. This is only a drill.
I Love It When the Weekend Starts Early
I have to work until noon on Thursday but the retreat is only 30 minutes from home. It’s so great to have an early check-in … so I get 4 days of scrapbooking!
Of course, I packed my crop bags perfectly, bringing enough to keep me busy but not too much to haul and unpack, with page kits containing photos and all I’ll need to scrapbook them. {Hey, it’s MY dream! If I want to pretend I’m retreat-organized for once, you can’t stop me}.
I pull up to the retreat location, a huge modern home right on the ocean. Hunky Patrick Dempsey look-alikes … erm, I mean, the nice lady retreat coordinator Lisa greets me and helps me carry my stuff into the house. We chat the entire time like old friends. She’s super nice, caring, and funny – I can tell this is going to be an amazing weekend!
A Table in Paradise
I’m the first to arrive so I get to pick my perfect crop space, my own 8-foot table at the end of the row. I like to talk with my fellow scrappies but I also like the ability to tune out and just scrap, so this is awesome. There will only be 6 of us total so it won’t get too crazy anyway. The huge living room that we’re in has windows on 3 sides. No matter where I look, I can see the beautiful ocean.
And because I’m at the end of the row closest to the front window, I can open it to create the perfect temperature {don’t you hate being too hot or too cold at a retreat?} and hear the waves pounding about 20 feet below us. I always say that the beach is My Happy Place and I can’t believe I get to combine it with scrapbooking!
Right now, the sun is starting to lower over the horizon, the sandpipers are skittering among the waves, and I can’t wait to get onto the deck and take some photos!
And the FOOD! ANd GIFTS!
Lisa has taken my suitcase to my room and, while I unpack my crop bag and start setting up my table, she brings me a cucumber mint iced tea from my favorite coffee place down the street. {She knew that I loved this tea from the guest preference sheet we submitted as part of the retreat}. She tells me the gourmet salad bar is set up in the kitchen whenever I’m hungry.
There’s also a variety of healthy – and not healthy :) – snacks set up on a table in the cropping area, along with a mini fridge full of our favorite drinks. Champagne and a yummy local white wine are chilling in ice buckets. Lisa has made extravagant goodie bags for each of us, full of the latest 12×12 papers and embellishments from the local scrapbook store. She had those preference sheets so she knew exactly what special items each of us would love!
Scrapping, Movie, Magazines, Hot Bath, Bed …
The rest of the day is taken up with completing 2 layouts, eating and drinking, greeting my 4 dear friends who are joining me, and watching “New In Town” on the big screen in the home theater. I’ve seen it several times and it always makes me laugh. Plus buttered popcorn and champagne, my favorite!
I turn in earlier than the others; it’s been a long day and I can’t wait to chill with my new scrapbooking magazines from Barnes and Noble. I’ve been holding off for a week to save them for the retreat and it’s been torture! I have the latest issues of Creating Keepsakes, Simple Scrapbooking, and Ivy Cottage. {Okay, apparently, I’m not only writing a dream story but also entering a time warp – because these magazines don’t exist any more, boo hoo!}.
My room is a master suite upstairs with another big view of the ocean, a huge soft bed with a white down comforter and fluffy pillows, and the bathroom has a sunken whirlpool tub. Ahhhh, the better to soak my tired neck and back after all that scrapping. Champagne again? Oh, well, sure, if you insist, but just 1 more teensy glass! Then it’s off to bed, lulled to sleep by the ocean sounds, and dreaming scrappy dreams.
The Rest of the Weekend
The remainder of the retreat couldn’t be more perfect. I have a blast chatting with my friends, catching up on everyone’s news (mayyyybe a little gossip thrown in for good measure), and getting 15 layouts done and several pocket pages,too. Lisa provides one amazing meal after another, all so rich and delicious but miraculously devoid of any calories or fat grams. When I get home, not only didn’t I gain weight but I LOST 5 pounds!
Throughout the weekend, we listen to all kinds of music depending on the mood we’re in – 80s, hip hop, country, spiritual, Top 40, you name it. We take walks on the beach, do a little shopping in the nearby town, watch movies, scrap late into the night, and sleep in as late as we want. No kids, no chores, nothing pulling our attention away from pure relaxation and fun.
Lisa is always there with an offer of the perfect beverage (like a breve’ latte’ just when we needed some scrapping energy), keeping the house tidy, and being such kind company. You can tell she truly loves her job and having us there is HER favorite thing in the world.
Although nobody wants to leave this amazing place, we all miss our families and are ready to go home. The hunky guys … shoot! I mean WE help each other pack up our cars. Then we thank Lisa for the most amazing scrapbook retreat EVAH!, say our goodbyes, and drive home, with one last glance at the beautiful sea in our rearview mirrors.
The Perfect Scrapbook Retreat
So that crazy tale was all about my dream retreat – if only it could come true! What are a few things your dream scrapbooking retreat would include? Have you ever been to one that was close to perfect? I’d love to hear about it!
PS: Save your crazy, awful, and unbelievable scrapbooking crop and retreat moments for another time. There’ll be a post soon where you can share those stories with us. Oooh, can’t wait!
I love these 12×12 Iris cases and used them in my recent scrapbook room reorganization. I took things like scrapbook PIPs (projects in progress), sticker alphas, and 12×12 papers out of the open storage bins I had them stored in and put them in these cases.
Now it’s so much easier to find things because they’re see-thru and I was able to label them, which I couldn’t easily do with my cloth bins. Plus being closed storage, they keep the dust off of my beloved scrapbook products.
I always use clear but I love that they have these fun colors too. This is a great price so if you need some scrapbooking storage, this week at Michaels is a great time to get some.
Happy Organizing!
ETA 04-04-16: Here’s a photo of the cases as they were displayed in the Mike’s I went to the other day. Aren’t they purdy?
I recently went to Tuesday Morning and Michaels in search of scrapbook stuff and wanted to report in :)
Tuesday Morning
This display greeted me when I walked in, which I figured was a good sign since it’s my favorite shades of blue + my first initial.
Here are some things that were new to my Tuesday Morning – by Jillibean Soup, Studio Calico, Cosmo Cricket, and Prima.
Some of those cute straws from American Crafts, enamel dots in 3 color ways from Basic Grey, and Tim Holtz tissue tape.
If you love Echo Park kits, now’s a great time to check out Tuesday Morning! Even in my little store, there were 4 options, each for $5.99.
Also a bunch of paper pads for $6.99 each.
Guess which one of these pretty American Crafts spiral books I bought? I’m going to use it for the listing challenge I’m doing. There are 48 heavy cardstock-weight pages including some pockets and die cut pages.
If you Instagram, maybe you’d like this 4×4 Album Kit by WRMK?
Does that label say “HEID” Swapp? Must’ve rubbed off, huh?
Some cool tools and stamps . . .
Here’s my purchase at the Tuesday Morning counter. It’s a happy coincidence that the enamel dots I chose match the album perfectly.
Michaels
If you love COLOR, now’s a great time to visit Michaels. First, I saw these cute tapes, twines, and clips . . .
. . . then all the crazy-colorful storage and office items I’ve been hearing about! My favorites were the padded patent leather notebooks and the big “to do” list pads.
As I talked about HERE, there were new (to me) Hot Buy paper pads and I timed it just right = 70% off. Woot! Pink Paislee “Memorandum” came home with me. I had mentioned in that post wanting the Craftsmith “Words to Live By” pad but in person, I didn’t care for it.
It was all I could do to resist these pretty dark teal spinner trays. They were $35 but, even with the 40% off coupon on my phone, more than I wanted to spend. I hope they’re around long enough for me to get one later. Michaels had a lot of deco items in this vein – kind of boho crafty.
I looked at TJ Maxx too but didn’t find anything scrappy – although I did find 2 hoodies similar to this one:
Note: To picture me and MY hoodies, please adjust this model for a larger, older version :P
One hoodie is distressed black and the other a deep fuchsia, with different sayings. They’re super soft and comfy. This brand is usually out of my price range but they were each $30 instead of $50-ish. Yahoo for my winter work-at-home uniform, LOL. Now I just need to get Old Navy carrying their awesome sweatpants again and I’m golden. They’re really into the compression pants right now and, well, um, me and compression don’t get along. Bwahahaha!
Like I talked about here, I haven’t been very active since I joined Youngevity as a direct seller of Lisa Bearnson’s new product line called “Anthology.”
As with any new venture, there have definitely been some bumps in the road as the HUGE company of Youngevity – which sells everything from supplements to pet products to jewelry – has been figuring out how to incorporate Lisa’s new brand into theirs.
The Youngevity umbrella already included paper scrapbooking products (Our Memories for Life, kind of like Creative Memories) and digital scrapbooking and gifts (Heritage Makers). With Lisa’s new brand, they’ve done a great job with:
– Creating fun new products with a wide appeal
– Showing how involved Lisa Bearnson is in the company
– Having rewards that incentivize consultants to be successful
– Providing resources to consultants, like our MyAnthology websites
I’ve seen a lot of women having a lot of success with “Anthology” and it’s been awesome to watch.
And then there’s me: the least pushy, most shy direct seller who ever lived, LOL.
It’s Not Easy Being Green
When it comes to Youngevity, Anthology, and Team Lisa, I’m kind of an odd duck (or frog?). I don’t have any interest (at least currently) in holding in-person parties, hitting up my IRL scrapbook friends, nor selling products other than Lisa’s. My intention from the beginning was ONLY to sell Anthology products and ONLY to sell online.
Unfortunately for me, the way things are currently set up, it’s pretty difficult to do so. For one thing, Youngevity isn’t a “party plan” company like Close to My Heart or Young Living (although we DO sell essential oils, heh). So consultants have to be creative in finding ways to offer their hostesses some type of reward for hosting parties, which usually involves spending their own money or credits.
The current focus of Youngevity, and therefore Anthology, is to build a team and get individual customers to purchase; that’s how you make an income. Since I’m not able to do in-person events and I’m not pushy and I’m pretty shy, you can see why I’m such a raging success at this, LOL.
I’ve been a little frustrated with the ability to share product images on my blog, link directly to products in my own Anthology shop, etc. Well, I won’t bore you with all the details but here’s my point: Change is a’comin’ and I couldn’t be happier. Because I DO want to be a success with this and find a way to make it work for me. (Let me make it clear that I don’t blame Youngevity/Team Lisa for ANY of this. They’re incredible! Like I said, it’s just a matter of making things work for my situation).
Hope on the Horizon
But now I’m feeling really hopeful. The amazing team at, erm, Team Lisa have been instrumental in creating a new program for many of the lines Youngevity sells, not just Anthology. It’s called “Youngevity Social Selling”.
This pilot program will enjoy a full scale launch at our upcoming Leadership Summit that we are building up to. During the Summit, which will held April 14-15, in Anaheim, CA, participants will be able to hold social events in any of Youngevity’s product categories and combine any products they choose. The second phase of this program will be designed to provide virtual events allowing distributors to hold social gatherings via their smart phones, tablets or computers.
Long story short, not only are hostess rewards now available but there will be avenues to hold online parties!! There will also be more resources like product graphics for social media and blogging use.
I think things are meant to be rolling pretty well with it by this Spring or Summer. For now, I’m kind of sitting back, watching and learning, seeing if there are any kinks to be worked out before I try my hand at Social Selling. I’m really looking forward to seeing how this unfolds and hope it means great things for my Anthology business! The best part will be … VIRTUAL PAR-TAYS!! Reaching out to your own peeps on Facebook, Twitter, and Periscope, for example. How cool is that?
*Image courtesy of Youngevity Social Selling
And if I do go back to holding crops or retreats, I can designate a hostess for each event – and SHE gets rewards for any products I sell during the event. Win-win, baby!
If you happen to be interested in more details, THIS video has a great explanation of Social Selling and it’s great advantages. {On the off-chance that you’d like to join Team Lisa and sell Anthology, please e-mail me first so we can get you signed up under my ID – thanks!}
If You’ve Read This Far, You Deserve Some Eye Candy
Since we’re talking about Anthology, here are some sneaks of the 3 new items releasing on 02-01-16:
Page Kits
Stamp Kit
Paper Kit
And here are some of the wonderful basics and past kits that are on a huge sale right now:
12×12 “leather” 12×12 album, 50% off, only $17.50
These are just like the WRMK albums; the only difference is the shape of the spine label :)
30-pack of textured cardstock, 50% off, only $8.05
Similar to American Crafts textured cardstock
So I just wanted to give an update on how Team Lisa has been going for me and share my excitement for the future. Thanks for listening to my “biz talk.” :D
This is the last post in a series about the scrapbooking booths I visited at CHA 2016. If you’d like to see all the posts in the series, please click HERE.
Well, this is the end of my CHA blog series. Is it bad to end it with Unlucky 13?
I just wanted to wrap up my experience there this year with some final thoughts and impressions. And add anything I forgot to say :) ‘Cuz I’m a straggler like that.
State of the Scrapbooking Industry?
As I was taking photos, I overheard a conversation amongst those working in a booth. They were saying how this year it seemed like the crowds were definitely thinner; one estimated there was about 1/3 as many shoppers as usual. I wasn’t there last year but from 2 years ago, I would agree the attendance was down a bit. Not 1/3 the amount of people but maybe 2/3 as many. I’m no math major but I think our estimates differ by quite a bit, LOL. I wonder if the attendee numbers are available? Hmm…
One thing I noticed was that in many of the scrapbook vendor booths I visited, company reps were talking to Spanish-speaking women placing orders. I thought that was encouraging about the scrapbook market in Spanish-speaking countries; is it booming? Hope so!
In fact, I heard people speaking languages from all over the world, not just in scrapbooking areas but all over the CHA show floor. Again, I took comfort in that and was pleased by it. #craftingisinternational
Who Was and Wasn’t at CHA 2016
Paperclipping wasn’t there doing videos; online someone said they lost their sponsorship and someone else said their child had something going on but since Phoenix is their home turf, they’ll probably be there next year. I haven’t kept up with the Paperclipping podcast or their message boards so I’m not sure what’s correct. If you know, please leave a comment!
I thought perhaps Nancy Nally from Scrapbook Update wasn’t there but I see now from her recent blog post that she was at CHA. Boo! I missed her this time.
Basic Grey was noticably absent :( They were my favorite booth to visit last time, mainly because of the lovely conversation I had with owner Rachel Brenchly.
Big Change to CHA in 2017
Next year, CHA will move to Phoenix and will be 3 days instead of 4. I mentioned it to several people I talked to and the consensus was that Phoenix is more geographically desirable to many scrapbook companies, but everyone will miss going to Disneyland.
Free Classes
I attended a free 15-minute class about e-mail marketing called “Create the Perfect Subject Line to Get Your Emails Opened.” As someone who handles social media for companies as a living, I see a lot of mistakes being made with this in the scrapbooking industry. I wish there’d been more of an audience for this class.
VENDORS I Visited but HAVE No Photos
Echo Park/Carta Bella
The booth was very busy. I wasn’t able to get photos of the lines displayed because there were staff and customers standing in front of them. It seemed like they were taking several orders and that’s a great sign.
Pink Fresh Studio
They had one of the smaller booths and didn’t have a ton of product displayed but I believe they’re fairly new. Someone with a nice video camera was waiting to interview them so I stayed on the outskirts :) I love their products and wish I’d remembered to look for the “Life Noted” acrylic letters I Pinned that included “Meh” – dang, wanted to see those in person!
Random Photos
The Spellbinders wall with some amazing paper garlands!
Create and Craft TV
Remember when I talked about them here? Well, they film live shows at CHA which is pretty cool.
Hey, that’s Teresa Collins!
Speaking of Scrapbook “Celebs”
Here’s who-all I saw at CHA this time, whether I spoke to them or just lurked, LOL:
Becky Higgins
Teresa Collins
Ali Edwards
Shimelle Laine
Julie McGuffee
Layle Koncar
Vicki Boutin
Amy Tangerine
Paige Evans
Cathy Zielske
All Good Days Must Come to an End
I knew it was a long shot but I wanted to see if there were any scrapbook stores in Anaheim that I could slip into before leaving town. Here is the sad return I got for my search :(
I had to drive through downtown LA because of some traffic on my usual route …. only to sit in more traffic. But, hey, it’s LA. Plus it was Golden Globes night. I tried to just enjoy the view.
Catalogs and Such
When I got home and had time to look in my CHA tote, this is what I had. Some came with and others were handed to me in booths I visited.
So that was my CHA 2016 experience! I hope you enjoyed being along for the ride and that I didn’t inundate you with too many posts.
As with any new venture, there have definitely been some bumps in the road as the HUGE company of Youngevity – which sells everything from supplements to pet products to jewelry – has been figuring out how to incorporate Lisa’s new brand into theirs.
Hey, that’s Teresa Collins!
