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A New (and yet old) Message Board Community: Scrap Sisters Studio

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I wanted to apologize for being such a bad blogger of late but the reason is a good one. Ohhhhh, sit right back and you’ll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful….erm, message board?

You may have heard me mention, oh once or eleventy-billion times, that my message board home is a place called AMR, All Moments Remembered. It was a message board started by a sweet friend and online store owner named Stacey. At the time AMR began, I had been a fixture at the Creating Keepsakes Message Board (CKMB) for about a year or so. {Remember when I had all the CKMB girls’ blogs in my blog roll…until there were over 100 of them and I had to stop).

But, honestly, for all the fun friends and conversations I had there, it was such a HUGE place, that it never truly felt like home to me. I’m one of those gals that, if you and I are friends, I got ya back for life, sista. Don’t mess with my friends and we won’t have a problem. You know, like we did in the Old Country (I’m Italian, capice?). But I’ve only got so much love to go around, ya know? Ten-thousand “friends” on the CKMB is a lot to handle, even for someone like me, LOL!

Well, then God sent me Stacey. She joined CKMB with her little bubbly personality, enthusiasm for life, and love for scrapbooking. Like me, her dream was to open a scrapbook store. The difference between us was that I talked about it. She was actually gonna do it. We became fast friends, chatting on and off the CKMB board. She started a blog to promote her new online store which she called All Moments Remembered, and I loved reading each day what the developments were with her store, the excitement in her voice, and the positive outlook she had on everything.

Then came the day when Stacey got booted from CKMB. {This story is well-known folklore, so I’m not speaking out of school, k?}. The TOU at CKMB clearly said you could not have a business name as your message board name, nor anything in your message content or signature line that promoted another business. Because obviously, Creating Keepsakes is a business who wants to continue as such, and they want you to buy THEIR products, not some cute lady’s from Oregon who just started the best online scrap store in the world. Apparently, Stacey was *cough* unclear on those rules, or her glasses fogged up that day, or SOMETHING…because she changed her MB name from whatever it was (“scraphappy” or something like that) to “AllMomentsRemembered.”

Scandal. Just pure scandal.

So, CKMB powers-that-be sent her a nasty-gram and when she didn’t cease and desist, they booted her. In true Stacey spirit, what did she do? Oh, she just started her OWN message board, of course. And THAT, my friends, is how the All Moments Remembered Message Board was started. I signed up on the first day the AMR-MB was up, which was December 27, 2007. I was proud to be member #29. As of closing today, there were 826 members but I believe at times there were over 1,000 or more). Also, as of today, I was the #3 poster @ AMR, right behind those Chatty Cathy’s named JENNIFER/Jingle and ABBY/scrapbookfrenzy.

So, for almost 2 years now, I’ve been chatting pretty much daily with the AMR Girlz. I would never have thought you could be “true friends” with people you’ve never even met face-to-face, who live all over the country, most of whom you’ve never even spoken to. If you stop to think about it, it’s our computers, our technology, that is actually making the connection, so it’s kind of bizarre. The only way I know most of them is from words they’ve typed that I’m reading, kwim?

But I have to say, I love those gals and they are my TRUE, dear friends. AMR was a smaller board and it didn’t move that the speed of light, like CKMB, 2peas, or the Cricut board. Sometimes I get frustrated when I want to chat and no one is around. “I need some chat, people!” Sheesh. But I would trade “busy but impersonal” for “quieter but more meaningful” any day of the week.

Stacey really set the tone for that board to be encouraging, friendly, supportive, and fun. We joked, we laughed, we shared our work, and our scrap shopping finds. There was a Chit Chat board for discussing TV shows, family stuff, you name it. There was a Spiritual forum where we could ask for prayers, and where a special lady named MISTY/snowlady posted daily quotes from Scripture. And we can’t forget the Recipe forum, where you could share or request yummy recipes from your AMR friends.

Another cool thing Stacey did was to give us “Stacey names.” Under your message board name and above your avatar photo, sometime when you weren’t looking and maybe didn’t even notice for a while, Stacey would add a special name chosen just for you, based on her getting to know you over time and finding out what phrase really represented you, be it funny, sweet, or serious. For instance, MARILYN/Melonscraps was christened “Stickles Queen” for her amazing love of and collection of Stickles; ANGIE/craftyscrapr became “Miss Pretty Toes” because she loves the beach and her flip flops with painted toenails; and I was given the Stacey name “Director of Advertising.” Which was funny because some people may have thought it was an actual title I held with the AMR store, and that I was a paid employee, but nope, lol. I just loved AMR so much, I talked about it and steered people towards her store any time I could. Stacey was living my dream and I did whatever I could to support her.

Which reminds me of a story….Remember that crazy scrapbook product frenzy, the THREADING WATERS punch by Fiskars? The first time I saw that thing, I knew it was going to be a hugely popular tool so I tipped Stacey off about it, and she had faith that I knew what I was talking about. So she right away ordered a whole bunch of them from Fiskars. And when they flew off the shelves at Michaels, Target, and all the online scrapbook stores, no one had them in stock anymore….except Stacey. For a while there, AMR was one of the only places you could buy that darn punch, and not on backorder, but actually get it right then. Stacey never forgot I had told her about it. She never tried to take credit for it or anything. She told everyone else, “Erika is the one who told me to get those!” And she sent me the most generous gift box of supplies from her store, just as a way to say thank you. Actually, that’s another thing Stacey was known for was being very generous in giving away her products as RAKS, crop prizes, and you always got extra items with your order, things she had handpicked for you, knowing what each of us liked. I don’t know how she did it, honestly.

Well, fast forward to the economic collapse last year, and long story short, the AMR online store eventually was closed. However, in the meantime, Stacey had realized her other dream of opening an actual brick-and-mortar store in her hometown. Over time, Stacey has had to move on from the AMR MB and the inmates have taken over the asylum, LOL! Stacey could no longer support the MB so several months ago, she offered to let members take it over, and DENISE/denisewalks stepped up to the plate. Denise has been running AMR since then, with a little bit of admin support from me, and lots of help from lots of other members. We’ve managed to keep AMR MB going and as fun and wonderful as it ever was.

But the time had come for a fresh start, where Denise and the loyal board members could be more in control of the mechanics of the board. Also, with Stacey no longer associated with the board, a new name for our gathering place was in order. A new domain name was procured by Denise (at her personal expense, but we’re going to find a creative way to make the board pay for itself and/or many generous members have offered to chip in so Denise doesn’t have to absorb the cost herself).

So today, October 27, 2009….Scrap Sisters Studio was born.

We had a Scrap Chat Hour tonight to kind of kick off the new site, and help get the word out to everyone that we’ve officially moved. I can’t think of a more perfect name for our board, because the ladies there are truly like family. Don’t get me wrong, we’re not perfect. Like any family in the world, we occasionally have scuffles and squabbles, hurt feelings and unspoken hurts, frustrations and unfairness. I mean, we’re women after all, LOL! But it always works itself out and the family bond is as tight as ever. New members are welcomed from Day One like they’ve been there the entire time.

It felt weird writing all those things above about the way AMR “was,” in the past tense. Because those things still apply to the way Scrap Sisters Studio “is” and “will always be.” It’s a warm, fun, friendly home away from home and even if they try to kick me out, I’m never leaving. Seriously. Don’t even try ‘cuz I grew up in The Hood and can kick serious ass.

Capice?

This post is just my way of memorializing AMR, Stacey’s store, everything that brought this group of sweet scrapbookers together and still bind them. I wanted to honor Stacey because it was her personality and efforts that set us up to be the way we are now. And for that, we owe her a debt of gratitude. {Stacey, if you’re out there, MWUH! Love ya, girl}.

And this post was a way to celebrate, and document on my own blog, this day being the start of something new and fun for me and my scrappy girlfriends.

We always welcome new members. HERE is where you would sign up. (ETA: When you register, you will NOT get an e-mail confirmation. Sorry, this new board doesn’t have that feature. We’re approving new members as quickly as we can, so please give it a little wait, then try to log in until it works :). We’ve got some fun plans for the Scrap Sisters Studio website as a whole, so this is going to be a great new adventure! Thank you for letting me talk about my buds…I {heart} them like sisters.

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Book of Me: Challenge Layout #1

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Over at my favorite message board home ~ AMR ~ we are just starting a Book of Me challenge. It will be going on in the coming months, with periodic layout challenges by ABBY aka ScrapbookFrenzy.

The first challenge was “Stuff That Brings Me Joy.” Here was a sample layout Abby provided to give us some inspiration:

LAYOUT BY REVLIE

Here is Abby’s submission for the first layout. She liked the above layout so much, she chose to scraplift it. I love her take on it. It’s going to be so fun to learn more about my online friends through these Book of Me layouts, like this:

LAYOUT BY ABBY

Edited to add a layout by AMR girlie LISA aka LBOregon….

LAYOUT BY LISA

… and layout by AMR friend ANGIE aka mommiextwo

Here is my take on the first BOM challenge:

LAYOUT BY ME {ERIKA}

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The base is Bazzill cardstock (is there any other kind?), and everything else is from the PINK PAISLEE GRAB BOX I just got. I think I’m going to try and do most of my BOM layouts with the PP stuff, so I will actually use it and not hoard it like I usually would cuz it’s SO cool. What could be more special to use it on than a book about moi, LOL!

So, “Stuff That Brings Me Joy” is AMR friends, summer rain, lazy Sundays, hugs & kisses, Bible study with my girlfriends, down time with a good book, vanilla lattes, good wine made by friends, and scrap mags. Wouldn’t this be a fun layout for YOU to do? {Hint, hint}. What stuff brings YOU joy? Don’t you think your family and friends would like to know? I had so much fun doing this layout that I went on to create another layout about my job. {The journaling is not done or I would post it}. The BOM challenge at AMR is very easy going; you can do the challenges presented, skip the ones you don’t like, add ones from other sources, whatever you want to do, in whatever way, size, or style you’d like. I love that, because this is a very personal book so I’m glad I can make it the way I want to and not feel pressured to work on it when I get busy and don’t have time.

I posted my layout at AMR asking for some CC (constructive criticism), asking if I should maybe replace the photos with black and white or sepia versions, because I almost feel like all the color looks too busy. But the consensus SO FAR seems to be that it’s fine the way it is. I love those girls over there….they are so encouraging and made me feel a lot better about it. {Can you tell I lack scrap confidence?}. I can scrap shop like nobody’s business, but when it comes to putting my layouts “out there,” I feel so inferior and talentless after seeing all the beautiful work ~ all the artistry ~ that is out there.

But I decided to take the plunge because I feel like doing a Book of Me is SUCH an important thing to do. For all the scrapping you have done, for all the birthday party and travel and Christmas layouts you’ve completed, what do your scrapbooks say about YOU? How many photos of YOU are in them? If you were to die tomorrow, how much of YOU would be left behind for your family?

When I think about this subject, ALEIDA FRANKLIN always comes to mind. Please think about doing a Book of Me for your family. There is a ton of inspiration online for doing one, and we would love to have you join us at the All Moments Remembered message board. It’s quick/easy to become a member and it’s just one big bunch of friendly and helpful ladies over there.

Have you or will you do a Book of Me scrapbook? If you have linkees, I’d love to see them :)

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Scrapbooker Blahs

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I’ve got ’em and it’s not just me. I’ve noticed the following in the last week or so:
– The scrapbook message boards are slow. Like watching pain dry. This pains me.
– The CK Media “reorganization” news is harshing everyone’s mellow.
– Either the new CHA products do not excite, or if they do, no one can afford to buy them. Manufacturers are desperately calling/e-mailing retailers, who can’t afford to buy much.
– Erin Lincoln says she’s not been paid in awhile….where does that leave CKMB?
– 2peas boards have been down all night

For me personally, there’s this kinda stuff:
– I posted a restaurant rant on 2peas, expecting about 90% support, and got much less than that. Didn’t ‘splain myself well enough, for one thing. And beyond that, it’s just cranky time, I guess.
– Landry was overnight at the vet hospital getting his manly bits removed. It was practically unbearable how much I missed him.
– DH and I got our first paychecks today since pay cuts….major ouch. How do you cut hundreds more dollars from a budget that is already bare bones? {Yes, I would get rid of my internet but I need it for work, natch}.
– Lastnight to cheer myself up, I decided to cash in a $15 product credit I’ve had for 6+ months at MEMORY WORKS (it was a consultant referral reward). Got all twitterpated over the Jenni Bowlin “Farmer’s Wife” and die cut calendar cards I had in my cart. Went to cash out and it declined my card. Found out today from the bank… they closed my scrapbook spendy account back in December…due to lack of activity. What in the HAY-ELL is that about??
– Just plain tired and feeling the blues…

As for my scrapping, I’m actually kinda’ re-energized after my crop last weekend, yet there has been no TIME or ENERGY to get to it.

How can we turn this around, ladies?
– Stacey at AMR had the right idea. She started a HAPPY THREAD with a little prize. That cheered me a bit :)
– SASSAFRASS LASS and new BAZZILL cardstock packs at Mike’s!!!!! And a coupon this week!!!!!
– Would a couple Landry photos help? Well, here ya go…Could he BE any cuter?!?!

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Are you having the Scrapbooker Blahs? Lie right down on my couch and tell me all about it…..

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“Splendid” and “Summer Soiree” by Fancy Pants

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I just saw ^^ this ^^ in the store over at ALL MOMENTS REMEMBERED and fell in {LOVE}. Which is appropriate, considering the theme of this line is love and Valentines Day. Here’s another view of the line, although you get MORE than this in the above kit from AMR:

You can order the Splendid 12×12 paper kit {the one in the top photo} HERE.

I’m also loving this one by Fancy Pants called “Summer Soiree.” I’m hoping Stacey will be able to carry it at AMR; she is so good about getting pretty much any product you ask for. Anyway, LOVE it! The colors are so bright and fun. With all this winter, I’m looking ahead to scrapping some fun spring and summer photos with this.

This is from the Fancy Pants website:

You can see the whole line HERE.

What do you think of “Splendid” and “Summer Soiree”?

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Joanna Campbell Slan Scrap Chats @ AMR!

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Stacey at AMR was nice enough to host JOANNA CAMPBELL SLAN tonight for Scrap Chat Hour…read it all HERE. I don’t know about everyone else, but I had a blast! What a treat to be able to pick the brain of someone who is not only a scrapbooker but a hugely successful writer. She was as nice as can be, to boot. She even has her own Wiki….CHECK IT OUT!

The contest to win a free copy of her book is still going…see my last post below and leave a comment!

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HSN Scrapbooking and a Mega 3 Birds Special

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Hey, whadyaknow? I’m back. Well, I’ll try to be back and see how it goes. If you read THIS post, you know I lost my buddy Dallas a week ago Friday. I have to say, times like this make ya understand clinical depression. I’ve been lethargic and spacey and severely sad. I’ve slept a lot to try and avoid the sadness. I’ve been “flat” and weepy and angry and you name it. It’s one thing to lose a pet you’ve loved and snuggled for 11 years, but to lose him the way we did, it’s just too much to deal with sometimes. I appreciate SO much the well wishes I’ve received here on the blog, and from my sistas on CKMB and AMR. I’ve found out what a strength “all these ladies I don’t even know” truly are. So, time to dip a toe back in the water, and write a quick post. About what else? Scrapbook shopping…

It’s time for some HSN Scrapbooking {and forgive me for not giving you the proper “heads up”}. Here’s the sked:

Tuesday 7-8-08
12am, 1am, 5am, 8am, 10am, 11am, 2pm, 5pm, 6pm, and 9pm
*These times are EST; adjust for your time zone

The 2peas girls are talking about the TODAY’s SPECIAL HERE – too much of a good thing, perhaps? CKMB’ers are chatting about HSN too…HERE. And HERE the question is, “Is she preggers, or just wearing an unfortunate blouse?”

Here’s the Today’s Special in all it’s glory:

3 Birds Exscrapaganza All-in-One Craft Kit Item: 319-918

Contents:
Storage box
48 sheets of printed pattern paper 12×12
24 sheets of solid cardstock with linen-textured paper 12×12
Mini goodie box
1,799 cardstock stickers
330 chipboard shapes (many with glitter)
343 chipboard die-cuts (many with glitter)
24 buttons
24 jumbo brads
51 glittered felt die-cut

What do you think of that megalopolis of a scrapbook kit?

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The Cycle of Life: Purge…Then SPEND!

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Just thought I’d share a Challenge I posted over on the All Moments Remembered MESSAGE BOARD. If you’re not already a member over there, you should come join us…I’m dangling a little RAK and maybe a SPECIAL RAK in front of you. Here, scrapper, scrapper….come to mama! Seriously though, we have a blast over there. Everyone is so nice, so supportive, so helpful and not a snarky tone ever to be heard. It’s refreshing and I know you would like it.

{Note: For all the AMR pimping I do, you’d think I was a paid sponsor or something. But really, truly I’m not. I just believe in sharing good things with you…that’s my only motivation. I pinky swear…}

Okay, here’s a short version of the challenge….to see the whole thing, go HERE.

Let’s get rid of all the scrap stuff that, while still in excellent shape, we’ll never use. It’s just taking up space and clogging our creativity. Don’t you feel the Urge to Purge?!?

Here’s the challenge: Sell your unwanted scrapbooking, stamping and/or papercrafting supplies. You can use any means you like, whether to friends and family, having your own garage sale, or listing it somewhere like Craigslist or E-bay.

Report back in this thread what you sold. Then use some or all of that cash to GO SHOPPING at the AMR STORE!! Once I verify with Stacey that you indeed spent at least $25 of your profits at AMR, I’ll send you a little RAK for playing.

To earn a RAK:

1. You must spend at least $25 retail at AMR (that’s the price BEFORE tax and shipping).
2. You have until FRIDAY, 8-8-08 to spend.
3. There will be a SPECIAL RAK for the person who spends the largest dollar amount (retail) with Stacey!!!

Thanks for playing I can’t wait to hear about what you sell, and what you get to buy at All Moments Remembered!!

Then I posted some tips for selling your scrap stuff on CRAIGSLIST. My bud Jingle (Jennifer aka Queen of Chat) posted some wonderful E-BAY tips. Hope you come join our challenge!

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A Review: Cricut Solutions Shape Storage Binder

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EMILIE AHERN {one of my fave bloggers and I adore her blog music} posted a review of the new CRICUT SOLUTIONS SHAPE STORAGE BINDER over HERE on the Craft Critique blog.

I really appreciate that she did, as I’m now convinced I DON’T need to spend my money on one. What do you think? Will you or have you? Love to hear some more reviews…

While you’re over at CRAFT CRITIQUE, I hope you’ll look around. It’s a wonderful blog if you need to find a review of a craft product. For instance, I enjoyed reading the review of one of my latest obsessions, STICKLES (which I buy, of course, at ALL MOMENTS REMEMBERED). Also, I found THIS review of the new flocking system by Doodlebug Designs. The company I’m a consultant for, MEMORY WORKS, recently started to carry this product and I can’t wait to get my hands on it! The review at Craft Critique just got me more excited :) So go take a browser over there at CC…good stuff.

Speaking of AMR, Stacey is adding a lot of new products recently. All that overdue CHA stuff must finally be hitting her doorstep, LOL! Check out these cool JOURNALING TICKETS by her boyfriend Timmy (aka TIM HOLTZ). I just love ’em, and lots of other new stuff at AMR so go check out the store! Stacey BLOGS about the new stuff as she adds it, and you just aren’t going to find better or sweeter customer service anywhere. If you order from Stacey, you’re a forever friend and will be treated like gold…

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Cosmo Cricket: Hello Sunshine

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I have a new scrapbooking line on my wish list. It’s called Hello Sunshine by Cosmo Cricket and I found it on my friend STACEY’s store website, where she is taking PRE-ORDERS on it.

Okay, are you ready for this?? Here is a peek:

My Fave:

I found the entire line on Cosmo Cricket’s BLOG, in this ENTRY. That’s also where I got these awesome pages made with CC Hello Sunshine.

I assume they were designed by blog author, Julie???

Honestly, I don’t know what’s more fun, the scrapbook products or those stinkin’ cute kids!

JULIE tells a great story HERE about the inspiration for Hello Sunshine, and about her creative process. Not being artistic myself, I’m fascinated by the process artistic and creative people go through. That’s one reason I love Christine Middlecamp’s BLOG, because she shares that kind of detail and I consider her a true artist. She finds inspiration in magazines, fabric, everywhere. Ah, to have such an artistic eye…

Well, do you like this new release from Cosmo Cricket? For me, it’s the happy colors and how versatile it’ll be for summer. What do you think?

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Wonderful Scrapbook Rooms

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The girls on AMR have been posting links to some great eye candy lately…awesome scrapbook studios that we can all drool over and be inspired by. I also love to look at them for storage and decorating ideas. Here’s a list of some we’ve looked at recently:

WYSCRAPPER/DEBBIE picked JENNY F’s ROOM and a here’s a Sneak Peek…

CHRISPEA/CHRIS led us to GEMM’s ROOM and here’s a peek…

KELLIANNIE/KELLI has been especially good at finding these cool rooms. She showed us THIS one posted by “christmasnotebook” (?) on Flickr with all those white cabinets. This is my kinda dream room, with all that closed storage so it looks neat all the time and you can do cool things like decorate for Christmas!

Kelli also shared Masonpaige’s room HERE; get a peek below of all the pink and green goodness:

They got me going, so I went and found these on 2PEAS (just Search All Forums for Scrapbook Rooms and you’ll find plenty). THIS ONE belongs to scrappindiva55 and lookie here at one pic:

And I love THIS ROOM belonging to peainthepod – just one view below…

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Change to My Blog

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Lately I’ve had several readers point out to me that they weren’t able to read my blog because the bar along the right hand side was blocking some of the text. In some cases, it was blocking the photos too. Well, we can’t have that! I tried every single format offered by WordPress and this is the only one that seemed to solve the problem.

I like that it makes the blog entries the center of attention, and kind of minimizes everything along the right. But I hope that doesn’t make it too small for anyone to read. Then again, I’m on a laptop so all you PC’ers are probably fine, right? I’m not crazy about the black bar under the title and the way it crams all the categories in there, but whatever. I didn’t like the black-n-white color scheme at first, thought it was too Plain Jane. But it’s growing on me and I feel better about it since some of the AMR girls said they like it.

Do you like the new format? Leave me any “goods” or “bads” in Comments please. Peace out…

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Overwhelmed by Scrap-Related Projects…In a Good Way

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I may have bitten off more than I can chew…but, oh, is it delicious! I have so many scrap ‘thangs’ going on right now and there never seems to be enuf time to do them (ummmm, Erika, you could, like, get off the computer….). So! I have 2 sets of ATC CARDS to make for swaps over at the AMR MESSAGE BOARD. The first one is hostessed by MARTHA and it’s called Your Favorite Verse. So I’m making 14 ATC’s with my favorite Bible verse to exchange with the other ladies. I signed up for this some time ago, and I can’t tell you how many verses I’ve seen or thought of and gone, “Oh! That would be perfect for my ATCs!” and then I find another one I like too and another and another (have you noticed the Bible is FULL of good stuff?!). The deadline is 5/23/08 so I need to decide on a verse…and actually MAKE them, LOL! I think I have it down to 2 verses, one which is actually my favorite but I can’t think of a visual to go with it, kwim? Whereas the other one has the words “apple of my eye” in it, so I could clearly have a theme or a visual. What should I do?

The second ATC swap is hostessed by Jingle (she also ran the first/only other ATC swap I’ve ever done; I talked about it HERE and HERE). It’s called Drink It Up! and you “Choose your favorite soda, smoothie, coffee, tea, or cocktail and create your ATC’s all about it!” It won’t be any surprise to my AMR girlz that my Drink It Up ATC will somehow include StarCrack…er, um…I mean, STARBUCKS. I’m positively addicted to a certain fine drink at that establishment. You’d think with the price of gas and the fact that I”m about to be laid off my job, I would be able to quit those things but nah. Still hooked like a sad, sad junkie.

THEN…I have a new Scrap Pal on AMR who I’ve been getting to know through PM’s. Her name is Gay aka “Gaybow” and she’s a total sweetheart. We have a lot in common – Christian, trying to lose weight (well, I’m TRYING, she actually IS…), and we’re both scrappers who’re addicted to AMR. Part of being a Scrap Pal is sending each other little gifties on our birthdays, Easter, Christmas, and just whenever we see something that we know they’d like. We live on opposite ends of this fine country…you gotta love the internet. This is going to be fun!

Fourthly (yep, uh-huh, I was an English major and “fourthly” is an actual word). (Okay, just kidding, I made it up on the spot). FOURTHLY, I’m involved with a little sneaky surprise that we have going on at AMR to help out one of the message boarders. It’s a big secret, so keep yer trap shut about it! Got it?? Good. Now quit asking me! That’s all I’m gonna say about that.

(Is it just me, or is there a trend here??? AMR seems to be the culprit).

Herm…..let me think….anything else I’ve gotten myself involved in??? Oh yeah, I’m planning another crop for early June and I haven’t even fully unpacked from the May one yet. I have 2 cards to make and some scrappy things to mail out; as always, I’ll look to KELLIEANNIE for card inspiration. The girl has talent, and even her own CARD GROUPIES. Here are some recent samples of her work (I stole these images from Kelli’s blog, but they are watermarked so it’s okay).

CARDS by KELLIE CASLOW:

The biggest thang I have going is a scrapbook-related business venture (in addition to the 2 I already have) that I’m about 90% ready to unleash on the world. There have been many late nights working on that one. I’ll post about it here when it happens. My fellow Scrapbook Obsessed peeps are always the first to know!

Do you ever feel overwhelmed, or just super busy, with all the scrap projects you have going on? Would love to hear that I’m not alone…

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Online Crop at AMR for April

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As you know, I can’t stop talking about how great it is at AMR, er, All Moments Remembered. The owner, Stacey, has an awesome ONLINE STORE (where I was one of the first to get the amazing Fiskars “Threading Water” scallop punch), a BLOG, and a MESSAGE BOARD. AMR also has a monthly kit, which they celebrate each month with an online crop. Please come on over and join us this Saturday, April 5th ~ just click on the MB link above, or down to the right in my Blog Roll. The membership there is growing so fast, we literally shut down the message board she started with because we were posting so much! Stacey had to get a new board with much larger capacity, LOL. {We’re pretty proud of ourselves for that one…}. So, please join in the fun for challenges, RAKs, and lots of chatting. This time there’s even talk of margaritas!

I copied this from the message board post about the crop:

(from Heather)
“Hey ladies just wanted to let you know about the upcoming AMR Online
Crop!! This month’’s crop will be held on Sat. April 5th starting at
4pm EST – 12am EST. I will host the event and each amazing DT member
will provide a challenge including one from Stacey!! Yup, the whole
event is AMR sponsored!! Of course there will be RAKs given away and
this time there will be a separate forum for the event. In addition to
the challenges, the DT members will be on the board to answer any
questions you may have and to chat away with you! As an extra surprise
this month, the wonderfully talented KARLA DUDLEY [I added the link to Karla’s blog] will be chatting
with us also, so have your questions ready!!! (Put her name in your
subject line so she knows which ones are directed to her). I hope you can all make it!!

_________________
Heather
Lead DT Member & Coordinator, Creative Director”

If nothing else, attend just to chat with Karla Dudley. What a talent! She designs for Technique Tuesday and October Afternoon.

karla

Remember to register beforehand with Stacey at www.allmomentsremembered.com and tell her I sent you so she knows your not some kind of robot spammer, lol.

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ATC Card Swap on AMR

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Sorry I haven’t posted for over 3 days, I think that’s a record for the most time between posts for me, LOL. I started a new job and it’s so stressful that by the time I get home and do family/house stuff, all I want to do is go to bed! Which is also why I was lagging on getting my ATC cards done. BUT….I got them finished lastnight and I’m so happy and relieved. So, I guess I should explain about the swap…

Over on the AMR MESSAGE BOARD, about 20 of us are doing an ATC Swap hosted by JINGLE (who does not have a blog….what???…is that even legal in the scrapbook world these days??). We each make a batch of ATC cards, keep one for ourselves, and send the rest to Jingle by April 5, 2008. Then she will separate them out into piles, and mail a set of the ATC cards to each of us. Fun, huh?!?

I’ll admit, before deciding to sign up for this swap, I had heard of ATC cards but didn’t really know much about them. I thought they were the territory of those ‘artsy’ types (um, that would be, NOT ME!) because I thought you had to use all kinds of fancy painting, inking, embossing, altered art kinda stuff on them. But, I found that they have evolved into something more accessible to scrapbookers like me, who just like to play with our pretty paper and scallop punches, LOL.

As shared by ANNE MARIE on the AMR board, here is the Wikipedia definition of ATC Cards:

Artist trading cards
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“Artist Trading Cards are individual art miniatures which pass hand to hand. Some sources have credited M. Vänçi Stirnemann, who began trading sessions in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1997, as popularizing ATCs in the modern era, although modern ATC’s can be traced back to portrait miniatures and to a kind of business card popular with Impressionistic era artists.[1]

Artists have produced miniatures for trade or self-promotion in many eras and places, and the current trend is thus part of this larger context. Historically there were few standard rules or guidelines to art trading cards, and many variances in sizes can be seen in older cards. The standardization in size of baseball cards is credited with creating the standardization in size for art cards. Today the only rule for these cards is their 2.5 by 3.5 inch size, same as baseball cards and collectible card games. There are, however, certain conventions usually observed by those who make and trade these cards, such as the expectation that they be traded, not sold, and that they be created as unique works or small limited editions of prints. Artists generally sign and date the back, and may also include a title and contact information. The face-to-face trading session is considered an integral part of the concept, although many people find each other via the internet and trade by mail.

Artist Trading Cards are typically made on a base of card stock. However, ATCs have been created on metal, stiffened fabric, plastic, clay, glass, balsa wood, leather, embroidery canvas, acetate, heavy watercolor paper, and many other materials. The art on the cards can be done in any media: textile arts, pencil, watercolor, acrylic, oil, collage, scratch board, mixed media, assemblage, digital art, calligraphy, beadwork, rubber stamps, carved soft block stamps, pen and ink, colored pencil, airbrush, pastels, and many others – anything artists use.”

So, yeah, you can get fancy with it, but the goal of our swap was to “create ATC’s that in some way represent YOU. Please be sure to sign each ATC so we know you created it!” And here was my favorite part of the instructions from Jingle: “Please show your best work and be sure to send in pieces that are made neatly and cleanly. (You know…avoid glue boogers and stuff! LOL!)” Yeah, of course we gave her a hard time about the glue boogers comment :) But you know what she’s saying…do a good job, not rushed, as people will be showing these off in some manner.

The challenge sounded all well and good but, when I sat down to actually make them, I was shocked at how SMALL 2.5″ x 3.5″ really is. I mean, I’m a 12×12 scrapper for googely sake! How am I supposed to create something that expresses who I am in such a small space? Well, after being in panic mode for awhile, I noticed that other ATC girls started posting their completed ATC’s on their blogs and/or the message board, and made them look totally do-able, like KELLIANNIE:

atc2

and SCRAPPYSAM:

atc3

A late addition from ~Q~ (no one knows her real name, a real lady of mystery…), posted just the backs of her ATC’s as a teaser:

atc5

Also, I think it was Sam who posted a link to fabulous MARFA’s blog, where she’s been going a little ATC crazy, which works for me because she gave me such inspiration. Here is a POST with some of her beautiful ATC’s and I copied some of them below.

atc

atc1

When I receive everyone’s ATC’s from this swap, I think I’ll include them in my album in a similar holder page to Martha’s. Except I won’t sew it myself like she did (cuz I don’t know how to sew), but I’ll cheat and buy something similar to baseball card holder pages, or maybe there is a 12×12 version from Crop In Style?

But anyway, after seeing how you could just relax and have fun with these cute little cards, I sat down and designed a prototype card in about an hour. Tune in tomorrow for photos of what I came up with, and how I put them together….

Have you done ATC cards? Or a swap of any kind? How did things turn out and would you do it again?

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Ordered Ur Fiskars Scallop Border Punch?

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Peep this, and you’ll see why it’s THE hot item in scrapbooking. Fiskars debuted a new punch at CHA and it will make this type of eyelet or scalloped border.

fbp

Hel-LOW! No more paying $1/sheet for Bazzill just cuz it has that pretty little edge. I’ll just buy regular Bazzill and make my own…so there!

It’s taken a while for Fiskars to get them shipped out to vendors but, according to Stacey at www.allmomentsremembered.com, she’s shipping them out this Friday. Yahoo! I’m so anxious to get mine. Anyway, here is what Stacey said:

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I have total confirmation they are almost here! I went and tracked them! YIPPPPEEEEEE!!! But I also wanted to tell you I was able to get a bunch extra before my vendor sold out again. So tell everyone you know that I have them in stock to ship by Friday!!!!I have like 15 extra coming in this order and then another 40 on order if I need them!!!
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So if you haven’t ordered yours yet, AMR is a great place to do so. This is gonna’ be a sellout, folks…

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Online Crop at All Moments Remembered

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Please save the date: Next Saturday, March 8 and here are the times:

2pm-Midnight (Eastern)
1 pm-11pm (Central)
12pm-10 pm (Mountain)
11 am-9 pm (Pacific)

The awesome message board at ALL MOMENTS REMEMBERED is hosting another online crop and I’m inviting you! Please come on over and play with us, whether you are already a member over there or not. You do need to be approved to join the MB by the owner Stacey, so you could do that sometime this week. If you think you might, leave a comment below so I can let Stacey know I sent ya’ and which MB name you’ll use. She gets a lot of spammers so it helps if she knows beforehand. Also, when you sign up you can tell her Erika/journeyfan sent you.

Okay, what is an online crop, you ask? It’s a pre-set time when a bunch of people are on the message board at the same time. There is usually a separate forum set up; if not, just go to the Scrapbook forum. Usually, board moderators and/or just everyday users host challenges for which there may or may not be a prize, also known as a RAK (comes from Random Act of Kindness). If the challenge needs any specific items you might not have on hand, the moderator usually lets you know so you can have it ready when the crop starts. Examples of challenges: “Do a layout that’s all black and white including the photo” or “Make a card that includes use of an acrylic stamp, Basic Grey paper, and scraps from your stash” or “Create a 12×12 layout about a loved one who has passed on, using a song quote.” You get the idea! Once the online crop starts, you’ll have a set amount of time to post your challenges, either in the message board gallery or directly into a post on the message board.

Now, specific to the AMR online crop next Saturday (here is the LINK to the thread about it), Anne Marie will be the official hostess and she will post the Warm-Up Challenge at 2pm EST (11am PST). Then each hour on the hour, a message boarder will post another challenge. These challenges were arranged ahead of time between Anne Marie and anyone on the message board who offered to help. Another reason to make sure you’re an AMR MB member ahead of time: There are already some “heads up, you will need this item” type of posts for the challenges. These are the ones posted so far:

* 2 colors Acrylic paints (any brand; will be used together on a lo)
* Brush (those 1″ foam brushes are great, but ANY brush will do)
* Plain or Kraft gift bag (any size)
* 1-2 black/white photos of yourself
* Clothing tag (gee, guess you’re all going to have to go out and buy a new outfit, LOL! — no, this can be cut off any existing garment)

Ladies are also posting questions they have about the crop, and kind of chiming in if they hope to “be there.” You know, in a virtual kind of way…

Here is what Anne Marie says about the Challenges Schedule: Non-competitive hourly challenges will be posted with RAKS for participating! A break has been scheduled during the crop … AND you can come in at ANY TIME during the crop and play ANY challenge! You will also have until NOON SUNDAY to post your submissions in the challenge threads. Winners in each challenge will be drawn at random.

Now, for non-competitive types like me (who aren’t very confident in their work “winning” anything), this is the cat’s meow. All I have to do is participate in one or two or all of the challenges ~ as many as I want or have time for ~ and I have as good a chance at winning as the next girl. And knowing Stacey’s generosity, the prizes will be most excellent. Sweet….

I’ve never participated in an online crop before, although I’ve come in after the fact and read through all the posts. (AMR, for example, plans to hold online crops once per month and CKMB has held several in the last year). They seem to generate all kinds of fun projects and, most importantly, COMPLETED LAYOUTS! So far, my Saturday is open and I really hope to participate in my first-ever online crop. Even if I only get to one or two of the challenges, I’ll feel I’ve accomplished something. On the day of the crop, THIS is where you will go!

So, c’mon, will you join us?? Have you participated in an online crop before and what was your experience like?

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Scrapbook Trends for 2008

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With CHA-Winter coming up this weekend, everyone is talking about and trying to predict what the new trends in scrapbooking will be for this year. HERE is our discussion on the All Moments Remembered message board. Over on the SCRAP SCENE blog, they are doing a series of articles about Scrapbooking Trends for 2008. Here is PART ONE and PART TWO; will add PART THREE when it’s published.
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Here are my predictions and musings, as I said over at AMR:

Scallops and pretty edges
Journaling items
Acrylic stamps by every company, not just stamp companies
Distressed or shabby chic look
Glitter and bling
Pre-sewn items and papers, for those of us who don’t sew!

I’m really trying to think what the hot new material will be for letters and such. We’ve already done chipboard, felt, foam, grungeboard…what could be left? Hmmmm….

I saw some new thinner glass/mosaic type squares the other day…I wonder if that material will catch on?
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One thing I left out was: scrapbooking organizational items. I think all the companies have finally caught on that we have loads and loads of STUFF! And we need cute, functional ways to store it all. Personally, I’m tired of all the little org. pieces here and there, or ones sold to store just one type of item. We need more systems on a broader scale, something you could do your entire scrapbook area in that would cover all your bases and give everything a cohesive look. I’m truly surprised that Cropper Hopper hasn’t taken the lead on this. They would make a fortune if they did! At least, that’s my prediction…

What do you predict will be the hot trends for 2008?

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Are You Ready For Some…Scrapbook Shoppin’???

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Yeah, yeah, we know it’s Superbowl weekend! Only thing I like about it is it keeps DH busy so I can crop and shop. Here’s some things I’ll be checking out…

Home Shopping Network (HSN) has several scrapbooking shows coming up. Check HERE for HSN program listings and make sure to adjust for your time zone.

QVC also has a bunch of shows coming up, and the big TSV (Today’s Special Value) will knock your socks off. It’s a 9,000+ piece (yes, I said NINE THOUSAND), papercrafting extravaganza by one of our favorite companies, COSMO CRICKET. HERE is one link shared by CKMB’er and expert QVC shopper, Gladys/Oreosmom. Lisa Bearnson talks about upcoming show items HERE and HERE. And the program guide is HERE. Sorry, I’ve been out of the loop on this huge CC thing on QVC but go to any of the message boards and they’re talking about it if you need the scoop. Looks like it has multiple shipments…

My favorite scrapbooking shop-site, ALL MOMENTS REMEMBERED, is having 2 big events this weekend. Today is the big reveal of their first monthly kit (February 2008), which sold out in record time, and sight-unseen no less! Stacey, Heather, and the AMR ladies promise lots of MESSAGE BOARD fun, RAK’s, challenges, etc.

And in a sure case of “the inmates taking over the asylum,” AMR Message Boarders themselves will be hosting a Superbowl Crop on the message board this Sunday. Check out both events ~ I promise you’ll have a great time!

As for me, I’m a total nutcase and have chosen to hold my Superbowl Widows Crop this weekend even though I had (minor) surgery last Tuesday night. Yeah, I’m certifiable alright. So my Tivo will be working overtime this weekend, and I’ll be checking in at AMR with every spare moment.

Have a SUPER scrappin’ weekend, everyone! Let us know what your plans are, what you’re gonna buy or, afterwards, what didja’ get??? Please do tell…inquiring minds want to know.

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