Scrapbook products, industry news, organization, and lots of enabling since 2007
Scrapbook products, industry news, organization, and lots of enabling since 2007
One of my favorite scrapbooking brands, Simple Stories, is having their first ever warehouse box sale!
You get over $200 in products including 12×12 papers for only $49.99 (plus $10 shipping). Sounds awesome! Go on over HERE for all the details.
Please let us know if you take the plunge! I’d love to see/hear about what’s in the boxes as they arrive.
PS: Thanks Nadine! It’s a very good friend who makes sure you saw the Simple Stories warehouse box sale :)
All of the sad details are below, from an e-mail sent to customers …
I don’t know how long All Scrapbook Steals has been around but it seems like at least several years. I’ve shopped with them a few times.
Hey, just doin’ my part, yo’ ;)
Hmmm, looks like they have some Simple Stories …
So if you’d like some new goodies or want to take part in the discounts, head on over to AllScrapbookSteals.com and send them off in style!
…. which company would it be and what job would you do?
I saw this question posted on a message board and decided to turn it into a blog post ‘cuz it’s so fun!
I’d want to work for Simple Stories. I’ve met the owners and a few of the crew; they are the NICEST people! From seeing them interact at CHA, I can tell they have a fun time at work!
The co-owner Amber Crowell is the main designer and she’s so creative. I’d love to just be around and watch her design process from start to finish.
Also, when I read her story, I see how much we have in common. I think if we worked together, we’d be besties in no time :) Not to replace her current bestie, of course – just to add another one ME!
As for the job itself, I’d want to be assistant to Director of Marketing Layle Koncar, helping with their social media, marketing, and outreach. I have so many ideas for their blog and social channels! It would be a blast to have that job.
You might also occasionally find me in the warehouse sniffing all that glorious paper! Erm, I mean “doing social media product research” … yep! Uh-huh. That’s what I meant to say.
Okay, you’re turn! Please leave your answer by clicking the word Comments under the title to this post :)
Oh my gosh, you guys! I was just uploading the photos from my camera card to my computer and found … a bunch of CHA photos! I’m SUCH a dork :P
Here’s one of ’em.
That’s Cathy Zielske, Amber Crowell (co-owner of Simple Stories), and Layle Koncar.
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}.
Mmmmm-kay ……… Have a great day!
This is one of my favorite scrapbooking companies so I was looking forward to visiting their booth.
I have the Carpe Diem planner (#TeamAqua) and some of the embellishments so I already knew I liked it. But seeing it in person was great.
I was also excited to see Simple Stories’ new travel line, the one Layle has been teasing us with. Looks great for tropical vacations, hangin’ by the pool layouts, etc.
With great timing for their own 5th birthday, Simple Stories came out with a new birthday line that’s so fun.
Loved this cute sample album to keep track of birthdays of family and friends.
Their existing winter/snow and love lines were even nicer in person.
One of Simple Stories’ brand new lines called “Hope.”
I’d hoped to say hi to Simple Stories’ owners Kevin and Amber who I got to meet at CHA 2 years ago. They also owned Memory Works where I was a scrapbooking consultant for several years. Unfortunately, they weren’t at the booth when I went by the first time {I’d seen them over talking to the My Minds Eye peeps a few minutes earlier}.
When I tried again, I spotted Layle Koncar and gabbed with her for a while – about planners, A5 punches, kit clubs, and other fun stuff. She’s such a neat person to talk to. Then Kevin and Amber came back but Kevin was with a customer and Amber was talking for quite a while to …. Cathy Zielske!
At one point, I kind of whispered to Layle, “That’s Cathy Z right behind you” ‘cuz I’m like freaking out but they’re old friends and have worked together a lot. It looked like Cathy was really digging the Carpe Diem planner items Amber was showing her :)
Then Vicki Boutin walked up and joined our conversation. She’s #TeamPlatinum. Another super nice person, easy to talk to.
So that was my visit to the Simple Stories booth at CHA 2016.
Here’s a round-up of some cool scrappy things I saw on the scrappy interwebs and want to share with you!
– Lisa Bearnson and the Anthology crew hit the Pinners Conference in Utah last month. Here is a quick Project Life layout Lisa shared:
– Can you believe they found a copy of the flippin’ Magna Carta IN A SCRAPBOOK?!? It just doesn’t get much cooler than that. Talk about archival, LOL. Or not very, in this case. Too bad they didn’t have scrapbookers on staff back then.
– Stephanie Howell‘s version of the Simple Stories “Carpe Diem” planner made it into a Buzzfeed article. Fun! {Warning: Title and article itself contain foul language}.
– More cute free printables from Simple Stories for November.
– Want to get a jump start on your Valentine’s and springtime wedding cards? Maybe you have some time off during the holidays, don’t want to drag out ALL your supplies, but still want to get your craft on. This is a great project for that. Hey, get the kids involved too! You know how bored they get after several days of Christmas break, LOL.
To order, please go to my Anthology site HERE. Easy peasy, just like ordering online from any other site :) Less than $2.50 per card, which you can barely buy cards for anymore, and these are much nicer anyway.
Hope you’re having a Happy December!
As you know, I adore Layle Koncar and all her work for one of my fave brands, SIMPLE STORIES. So I follow her blog and saw THIS POST from her recently. Since April (2015), she’s been doing the “Listers Gotta’ List” challenge – which you can find out more about HERE.
Here’s a video Layle made of her Listers Gotta’ List album so far:
Okay, now you want to do this challenge, don’t you? Seeing her awesome little album sure made me want to jump in! I’ve been too busy with work and life to do much scrapping at home these days, but this seems like a do-able project. I know I can’t do a list per day like Layle does but even if I do 1 per week, I’d be getting something done, right? Maybe I can catch up on weekends.
The challenge is totally FREE – although the organizer The Reset Girl does have kits for sale if you like right HERE :) Super cute.
So I just went and downloaded all the challenge files that have been posted so far, April through July 2015. Here’s what the first sheet looks like, to give you an idea:
I love the font she uses for the list titles. You can either print her titles out on stickers or re-write or re-format/print them yourself. The sky’s the limit, really. There are some lists I won’t do (Favorite Non-Planner Instagrammers, for instance) so I’m thinking about – for continuity sake – just using her master list each month, picking out the ones I want make lists of, and handwriting them myself.
I like the little travel planners that both The Reset Girl and Layle used. They’re slim, affordable, have a non-intimidating space to fill up, etc.
I’m also thinking about doing this using Project Life supplies. Lawdy knows, I have enough cards to use, LOL! . . . and page protectors . . . and albums, both 12×12 and 6×8. That would make it easy to include photos in with my lists. Oooh! Or maybe even use one of these Project Life slim mini albums
Mainly ‘cuz I have this gorgeous “I Am” line to use and this project seems perfect! A little birdie told me that Simple Stories has a new line coming out in the fall that matches “I Am” very nicely. So I can keep going with the look even when I go through my “I Am” supplies.
Well, I’ll be thinking about how to approach this but I don’t want to think too long or I won’t start. Which approach would you choose?
Have you done a listing challenge before? I’ve seen others and they seem like so much fun. I’ve attempted them way in the past and never stuck with them, unfortunately. Maybe all the support for this one will keep me going. Are you going to try this one? If you do, let me know!
It’s Friday night of a holiday weekend and, yes, I’m working. Sigh. But I wanted to do a quick update and say HI.
So first of all . . . HIIIIIII!!!! I miss you. I hope you’re enjoying your summer and have fun plans for the 4th of July tomorrow (those of you in America). We’re keeping it low key as usual. I think being a 9-1-1 dispatcher all those years kinda’ soured me on going out for July 4th. Lotsa’ baaadd things happen – plus I feel sorry for my doggie, LOL. Fireworks aren’t allowed in most towns around here and, especially with the severe CA drought, we have to be so careful. Do you set off fireworks, go watch a fireworks show, or what?
I’m still doing behind the scenes stuff when I have time between working. Everything’s headed in the right direction, even if it doesn’t seem like it when it’s so quiet here, LOL. I’ll give some specifics in a newsletter soon so sign-up if you’re interested (in the top right sidebar). Why not just share everything here on the blog, you might ask? One thing I’m loving about the newsletter is that I can get more personal and share more ‘real life’ details. Because I’m writing directly to you and just you, not to the whole world wide web. Does that make sense?
One exciting thing is that we’re gearing up big time for Lisa Bearnson’s new line, Anthology, that’s coming out later this summer.
It’s getting closer and closer! If you’ve thought about – or want to know about – being a rep for her products, e-mail me, k? (address is below). The way to go BIG TIME with it is to become a CEO like I did. When I signed up in May, it cost me $500 (I’ve already made $100 of that back with very minimal work, btw). Lucky you, until 07-31-15 it’s $100 off – and you get all the same stuff I did! I’m not bitter or anything. I’m happy for you. R-E-A-L-L-Y! But seriously if you decide to do it or are just curious, please contact me. I’ll answer any questions and tell you how to sign up so I get credit and you’re on MY team! I want you to myself, girlie.
Check it out . . . my new email is: erika@scrapbookobsession.com!
In business school this Spring, one thing I learned is that a biz lady looks more professional if she ditches the gmail address (I’ve always used scrapbookobsession@gmail.com) and gets one related to her domain. Always Sometimes one to follow directions, I did just that :) Now I’m all pro-like and stuff :P
In closing, I just wanted to say thank you to Ashley for becoming the 120th subscriber to the Scrapbook Obsession Free Newsletter! Love hitting those “tens” milestones and welcoming more peeps to the family.
I can’t leave you without sharing something scrappy so go get your FREE June 2015 printables from Simple Stories RIGHT HERE! Warning – the blog entry they’re a part of deals with loss and is sad so if you’re not feelin’ it right now, just go straight HERE.
Love you, luvs!
Hiya! Hope you’re able to enjoy and honor your fathers, brothers, husbands, and other men in your life on this Father’s Day.
– If you need a last-minute printable card, check out Etsy:
– Have you seen that Layle Koncar is offering a new monthly Class Kit on her blog? The first one is super cute and uses the new Simple Stories “Summer Vibes” line. My newsletter subscribers received a coupon code good until 06-22-15 (tomorrow!). If you’re interested, hurry and sign up for my newsletter, then email me so I can send you the discount code (scrapbookobsession@gmail.com). She only has a few kits left.
– Say what you want about Studio Calico but they give away some massively cute free printables.
– I made some small changes to my blog sidebar on the right. I condensed some titles to make more room and used a new Bloglovin’ icon they just offered. I also changed the little ad for Scrapbook Steals. Now instead of a static ad, it’s a text ad that automatically updates every day with their new deal. I thought you might find that helpful – you can just click if it’s something that intrigues you :)
I lost my dad many years ago – we were both way too young. So this is always a bittersweet holiday for me. He was not a perfect man but he was mine and I miss the adult relationship we never got to have. As crazy as your Pops drive you at times, please give him a big ‘ol hug, breathe in his Dad smell, and cherish the moments you have left together.
I have something special of my own to announce on (Inter)National Scrapbook Day – Saturday, May 2, 2015 – so please stay tuned for that! I hope you’re gonna’ love it ❤️
{There will be chances to win prizes . . . is that enough to make you come back? Hee heeee}
Here’s a list of things going on around the interwebs this week and especially Saturday 05-02-15 in honor of I-NSD 2015:
I’m on Becky’s email list and in her email of 04-27-15, she linked to a Youtube video where she tells of all the fun stuff going on at her site on Saturday 5/2. When I tried to share the video here on my blog, I got this message: “This video is unlisted. Be considerate and think twice before sharing.” So apparently I’m not supposed to share the video. Sorry, I’m not a rule breaker. Well, except for on my Junior Prom night but that’s another story*. Heh. Soooo – if you’re on Becky’s mailing list, get the linkee there, Google it up, or perhaps she’s putting it out on Facebook, etc. She did say that THE VIDEO is the ONLY place they’re posting online about WHAT EXACTLY will be happening Saturday. Take my word for it – you want to be there :)
*Oops! Mom? Are you out there? . . . . (crickets) . . . Phew! She doesn’t read my blog normally but I just had to make sure.
This is copied from the Team Lisa Facebook group I’m in (I recently signed on so I can sell her *NEW* “Anthology” scrapbooking products when they come out in late summer 2015!). Lisa is hosting an IRL event in Utah and part of it will be livestreamed if you want to take a peak! There’s a link below if you want to hear first hand from Lisa. Should be fun!
A Message from Lisa Bearnson & Wendy McGee:
We are so excited for our event TOMORROW and can’t wait to see you and meet each of you!!
Come Early and Meet Lisa, create your Make & Take project, meet new friends, have refreshments and mingle!!!
Team Lisa “The Wind Beneath Your Dreams” Event
Saturday, May 2nd
LOCATION: 2929 Thanksgiving Way, Lehi, UT
AMBER ROOM (located inside the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point)
1:30 Doors Open- Registration & Refreshments
2:00 Event Begins – Business Training and more!We are planning for about a 3 hour event!! We have secured a larger room so please bring potentials CEOS, new team members who didn’t get a chance to register, spouses, etc.!! Have them come and get involved with Lisa and this amazing business opportunity!! *Make & Takes will only be guaranteed to those who registered by Monday, April 25th.
For those who can’t attend in person, please have them join us on the USTREAM Channel!! We will start at 2-2:15 and they can watch the entire event on their computer. Here is the link:
https://www.ustream.tv/channel/mcgee-dream-team
Have an amazing Friday and we can’t wait to see you TOMORROW!!!
Lisa Bearson & Wendy McGee
It’s all very mysterious …
… but Basic Grey seems to have something up their sleeve.
They’ll be posting challenges on their website – check out the NSD tab at the top for those and their sale items – washi, stickers, and clips.
Also, there’s 50% off extra kit items if you’re a subscriber.
Make sure to visit Simple Stories this iNSD. They just announced FOUR new collections that are due in April and May 2015! And they’ve got sumpin’ goin’ on for NSD, too :)
Check out Miss Cathy’s thoughts on this fine {Inter}National Scrapbook Day – and get her super cute free printables.
They aren’t billed as being for NSD but I thought you might enjoy these pretty printables that Kaisercreaft just posted. Maybe you can use them in your scrapping this weekend?
Need something to listen to while you scrap the weekend away?Here’s the latest episode of Paperclipping Roundtable.
A Beautiful Mess has you covered! YUM.
There you go! Did you find anything fun or interesting? Hope so! I may add to this list if I hear of other fun stuff before the weekend is over; I’ll put new items at the top – just keep stoppin’ by if you like :)
I’ll be hanging around here on Scrapbook Obsession all weekend so if you want to chat, I’m around :)
Tell me about all the other amazing deals and fun stuff you’ve seen going on for International Scrapbooking Day . . . purdy please?
What are your plans for this, our finest of holiday weekends?
In early February 2015, I attended a very fun scrapbooking event called “Play All Day” put on by Shelby at Embellish IT! Inc. I wanted to give you a review and share my day :)
BACKGROUND
I’ve shopped at Embellish It over the years for scrapbook supplies. They carry a lot of products from 2 of my favorite brands: Basic Grey and Simple Stories, and lots of others, too. But the best thing they have are packs of Bazzill cardstock with colors selected to match specific scrapbook product lines. It’s pretty dang cool, especially for Bazzill snob like myself :P
For instance, THIS pack of Bazill . . .
. . . coordinates with THIS line, Carta Bella “Hello Again”
So, I’m on the mailing list for Embellish It and have heard about their “Play All Day” events for years – always wanted to go. I decided to finally pull the trigger when I saw an event that was only 3 hours from me (yes, I live in the boonies; NOTHING is held close by) and it was close to my mom’s birthday. She’s also a scrapbooker so I thought it would be a fun way to celebrate.
Wait! Was this one of those “Oh, look what I got you (for me)!” type of gifts? Hmmm… Anyhoo, we signed up with an Early Bird coupon code that saved us $9 off the $79 price, made our hotel reservation with a special rate at the event hotel ($99 at a Sheraton), . . . and had to wait for several months, LOL. But, yes, the day finally did arrive!
THE PLAN
A few days prior to the event, we got an e-mail detailing the day:
*9am – midnight*
This will be a FUN day of scrapbooking & we will keep things low key.
* The event will officially end at 9pm BUT we have the room reserved until
midnight. Those who wish to continue scrapping are welcome to do so at *no
additional cost**The schedule for the day will be:*
*9am- Doors open *(i always try to open the door a little early but it is
all dependent on the hotel)
*11-1: Class #1 Layouts* – 2 double-page layouts
*1pm: Italian Buffet Lunch*
*3-5pm: Class #2 Cards* – 8 cards w/embellishments
I was excited about the layout class since scrappin’ is what I do (as opposed to project classes like banners, home dec, etc. that I’m not as interested in). I’m not a cardmaker so that was ‘meh’ but I figured I could make my mom’s birthday card, LOL!
THE BIG DAY
On the day of the event, I woke up at 4:45am (so excited! couldn’t sleep!), left the house at 6:30 in pouring rain, got there around 9:30am, got unloaded and unpacked, changed into dry clothes, and met my mom in the event room by 10:30. So I was bummed to miss out on that 1 1/2 to 2 hours of scrapping time before the first class but oh well. My mom had already met and been chatting with the nice ladies at our table for 4 and the ones at the next table, who were all friends.
Okay, I’m going to confess right now that I don’t have any photos to share of the day. I did have my phone aka my BFF. I guess I just felt awkward taking pics in that close of an environment with a roomful of people I didn’t know. Sorry! I’ll do such a good job of providing vivid descriptions with my words that you won’t miss the photos, LOL.
Back to the event . . .
CROP SPACE
It was basically a ballroom or huge conference room and it was pretty full. Regarding the tables, I don’t know the measurements but there was plenty of room to scrap for the day, complete the class layouts, etc. If I were at a retreat, I’d probably want a little more room but it was fine for Play All Day.
SHOPPING AT THE EVENT
At the front of the event room, there were tables with lots of collection kits, Bazzill packs (!), page kits, mini album kits, card kits, etc. I didn’t have time to shop before the first class began at 11:00 but was able to later. That was actually by design because I didn’t bring any paper to scrap with, knowing that Shelby would have plenty of paper for sale. I bought 2 collection kits and a Bazzill kit.
WHAT I PACKED
This was the lightest I’d traveled to a scrapbooking event in quite a while! Only 2 bags and here is what I brought:
– Tool kit in flat pack with adhesives, photo cleaning cloth, erasers, Undu, etc.
– Tool tote with pens, scissors, stapler, and other tools
– Photos, about 15 from 3 events. I had just printed them the morning of the event, of course, ha!
– Paper trimmer, my trusty old Cutterpede that I’ve had for years (that’s why she’s not that pretty but I love her!).
Things I always keep in my crop bag:
– Ott lite & extension cord
– Extra blade and cutting pad for Cutterpede
THE FOOD
The Italian buffet lunch was delish. Iced tea and coffee were provided throughout the event (although the hot coffee ran out and wasn’t replaced in the evening, when I really needed it, lol). We just ate snacks the rest of the time. I was there to scrap, baby!
SHOPPING NOT AT THE EVENT
I wrote a post about my little shopping adventure HERE.
CLASSES & PRODUCT
Remember how I said I was kinda’ ‘meh’ about doing the card class? Well, I lucked out. Majorly. It turned out that Shelby had just received new kits to do a Simple Stories “Life Documented” mini album or planner. So she offered us the option to do that instead of the card kit and most of us took her up on that. Duh. The value was crazy. The entire event cost $70 and that Simple Stories kit had probably $50 worth of product in it.
There was also the layout class and I enjoyed both of them. Shelby walked around the room, gave instructions and encouragement, but it was pretty relaxed. There were great instructions you could follow at your own pace, too. I’ve been to some classes that are so stressful that they’re not even fun but this wasn’t like that.
THE HOSTESS
Shelby is a dynamo. She had the loud voice needed to keep us rowdy scrappers in line (ha), was very upbeat and fun over the course of a long day, was organized, and what I loved most – very open and flexible. She asked several times what WE wanted to do (when to eat, the room temp, okay to substitute the planner project for the cards, etc.). I also chatted with her one-on-one and found her lovely. We had some “mom talk” and it was nice. Speaking of which, she had the cutest helper EVER, her little blondie cutie pie son. What a great sport he was!
SUMMARY
I’d give it 10/10 stars. I can’t think of anything that went wrong or that I didn’t like. I mean it was over a month ago and I’m old so there’s a possibility I forgot something but, no, I don’t think so. I’m not THAT old! If you get the chance to attend a Play All Day event, I recommend it!
ETA 04-12-15: Miss Shelby stopped by to say hi. Check out the Comments!
Sorry to be so “Simple Stories-Centric” lately but I wanted to make sure you saw this deal :)
This is a VERY new release and it’s already being sold for 20% off – woot!
You can find it at SCRAPBOOK STEALS.COM. It looks like they have all if not the majority of the new line and it’s all 20% off retail. There are 12×12 paper kits, card sets, enamel dots, photo overlays, etc.
I love deals like this because the discount basically covers the shipping (or even more). So cost-wise it’s almost like shopping at a local scrapbook store – which I don’t have access to anymore, boo hoo.
*Image via the Simple Stories blog
If you remember, Simple Stories “Life Documented” is the line that got delayed for so long because of a union dispute at the LA docks. I feel so badly for Simple Stories because the focus of this line is the new year and I’m sure they lost a lot of sales because it wasn’t available at the end of 2014 as intended.
Instead, they couldn’t provide it to vendors until 2015 had already begun and I’m sure lots of scrappers and planner junkies who PLANNED (see what I did there? eh? eh?) to use this line for their 2015 scrapping and planning had to buy another line so they could get started.
Here’s a cool video by Simple Stories showing the planner in action and a quick glimpse at the end of using it for pocket page scrapping.
I wish Simple Stories well and hope they’re able to sell a buncha’ Life Documented via SCRAPBOOK STEALS.COM and other vendors!
PS: Remember that SS just released an e-book for inspiration in using this fun line!
I know it’s Super Bowl Sunday* but what I’ve got for you is scrapbooking-related, LOL. Speaking of which, I hope all you football wives and moms are taking lots of pics and making some rad scrapbooks after this! Super Bowl times make for some great memories.
Here are some fun finds and bits of news from around the scrappy interwebs this week . . .
– I know a lot of overseas folks will be so happy to hear that BeckyHiggins.com NOW SHIPS INTERNATIONALLY!! Although in reading the comments on the blog post, it seems that many aren’t happy with the cost. I personally agree with the comments that point out Becky doesn’t set the shipping costs. She was asked to make international shipping available and she did. She doesn’t control the price and can’t take a loss on each order by lowering that. What do you think?
– One of these is gone but there are still three left . . .
– Simple Stories has another Simple Inspiration ebook out, this one for their new “Life Documented” line. It’s free and you can see it HERE.
– I absolutely love this page, both the idea and the execution!
BY SASHA FARINA for October Afternoon
– I’ll close with a little blog milestone: This weekend, I reached 700 subscribers to my blog posts! I’m so excited and grateful! I appreciate each and every one of you for taking the time to read and to support my blog. It truly means the world to me :) If you would like to subscribe, just enter your email address in the box at the top right of this site. You will ONLY receive an email when a new post is published. Promise. I do plan to start another mailing list but it will be separate from this one which is basically an RSS feed.
* Whoops! I had a busy weekend and thought I’d scheduled this post to go up late Sunday night but apparently not, LOL. Sorry ’bout that. To further apologize, I’ll add 2 more tidbits you might like:
Crafty Steals has a bundle today of October Afternoon Mini Market alpha stickers – only $12.99 for 18 packs! If you’ve never used these alphas, I highly recommend them. The rectangle ones especially are the perfect size for so many projects.
And Simple Stories released some free printables to go with their new “Life Documented” line!
They are made to be used with their planner line specifically but you can use them in your own planner, pocket page scrapping, or regular scrapbooking. Enjoy!
Here’s a round-up of some cool scrappy things I saw this week and want to share with you!
– If you’re thinking about downsizing your scrapbooking in 2015 – like, literally, to 6×8 or 8×8 – check out Blackbird Darlin’s POST. She does a great job of explaining how she’ll be doing it this year and what she learned from last year.
– I got to meet Nancy Nalley last year at CHA. She’s super nice and wicked smart, just like you’d expect. Anyhow, she goes to every CHA then writes great recaps. You can check them out on SCRAPBOOK UPDATE, including her Top 10 Picks from CHA.
– If you’ve been one of the many waiting for the Simple Stories “Life Documented” line to finally clear customs, you’re in luck!
From Simple Stories:
After 7 weeks sitting on the dock in Southern California due to union/labor issues, we are SO EXCITED to announce that the container carrying our Life Documented Planner & Scrapbook collections has arrived in our warehouse! We are working as quickly as possible to ship product to our distributors and retailers. Watch for the Life Documented Planner & Scrapbook collections to hit your favorite retailer soon!
Phew!
– Remember when I talked about Create and Craft USA? I was watching Bravo this weekend and on comes a Create and Craft commercial! It was so cool. It was a cute, crafty bit and at the end it advertised how they’re live online 24/7 and on DISH Channel 221 11-5 ET. (We have DISH so that’s what it mentioned, but they’re also on DirecTV at the same time, Channel 85/222). I think I have yet to catch any presentations that are specifically scrapbooking but I keep holding out hope :)
I think C and C were very smart to advertise on Bravo network, don’t you? There’s a lot of overlap between “Scrapbookers” and “Real Housewives Fans”, LOL. Count me in! Every city, every season . . .
– Yeah, I’m mostly into pocket page scrapbooking these days but when time allows, I still bust out some 2-pagers. I’m always on the hunt for inspiration, especially layouts that use a lot of photos. Check out this BEAUTIFUL layout from the EVALICIOUS BLOG:
Layout by RONA THOMPSON
Isn’t it lovely? I’m on a scrapbooking forum with the lovely Rona who created this layout. She recently became the Design Team Coordinator for Evalicious and just prior to that, she’d organized an Evalicous puffy sticker group buy for us. Which reminds me . . . I still need to post my pics from that. You can see lots more pics and some close-ups of Rona’s layout at the link above.
And how was your week???
In case you missed THE FIRST ROUND, Lain Ehmann has put her popular “True Scrap 6” classes on sale again.
In short, the classes are $9.99 each on sale versus their regular price of $14.99, saving you 5 bucks per class. You can see all the classes available HERE.
From Lain:
Now through the end of January, you can save BIG on a huge
assortment of visual delights and inspiration from all NINE classes
from True Scrap 6.If you aren’t sure what to start with, may I suggest these classes, for
only $9.99 each:“Layering: Punch It, Roll It, Make It Yours” from Tracy Banks. The
inimitable Mercy Tiara, as she’s known to her legions of fans,
breaks down the layering process using die-cut and punched shapes.
Not only will she teach you the basics of creating lovely layers,
she’ll also have you breaking out those scores of punches and dies
you’ve been squirreling away!“Saw This, Made That” from Kelli Crowe. Need someone to help
justify your Pinterest addiction? Kelli’s your gal! In this class,
she shares how she turns her tens of thousands (yeah, you read that
right) of pins into usable inspiration for her crafting.“Capture Your Celebrations: Photographing Food, Family, and Fun”
from Katrina Kennedy. True Scrap mainstay KK is back with the
perfect photography class to aid your holiday photo-taking. In
easy-to-understand language, she’ll teach you the skills you need
to capture your holiday festivities.Don’t forget to check out the other classes from instructors like
Noell Hyman, Donna Salazar, Nichol Magouirk, Layle Koncar, and more!
The sale goes through 01-31-15 but go shop right now before you forget :)
I haven’t been able to take any of the True Scrap classes this time around but I would always recommend anything by Layle Koncar. She’s with SIMPLE STORIES and her POCKET SCRAPPING 101 was my favorite class from another True Scrap I attended. I got to meet her at CHA last year and she’s SUPER nice and funny (in class, too!). You know me, I like a little humor mixed in with my scrapbooking, hollah!
You can check out the $9.99 classes HERE!
PS: I just got back from a 4-day scrapbooking retreat and will tell you about it in an upcoming post!
So I was on Amazon yesterday looking at one of THESE
Project Life Hashtag Themed Cards
They’re a little “creamy” for my style but I do love the sayings and designs otherwise. I wish they had a white background instead of cream.
My Minds Eye Market Street Paper and Accessories Kit, 12 by 12-Inch, Ashbury Heights
Wowza! What a pretty line! I hadn’t seen this before so I’m glad I browsed around a little bit. MME puts out so many lines, they can start to look same-same to me – but this one is unique and I love it!
Project Life Desktop Edition Paper Pad, 6 x 6-Inch
Love the bright colors and office supply theme that’s done in such a cute way.
me & my BIG ideas Pocket Pages Journaling Cards, Story of Me
There are other sets for the $2.20 price as well – if you ordered some other stuff, you could get all 4 sets for under $9 with free shipping:
I love the MAMBI cards for pocket page scrapping. They use such fun colors and fonts, all their stuff looks great together, and I can always find a saying that works with my photos.
Simple Stories I Am… Scrapbook Collection Kit
If you don’t have this line yet, I recommend it. It has such a unique and pretty look to it, and it kinda’ forces you to do pages about YOU – something scrapbookers need to do more of :)
Happy Scrappy Shopping!
The next Craft and Hobby Association 2015 Mega Show is coming up soon: January 9-13, 2015 in Anaheim, CA! The sneak peeks are out there if you’re interested.
Nancy at SCRAPBOOK UPDATE has a great list of new releases. I love that her list is sortable by date or by manufacturer; just click the arrow at the top of the column you want to put in order. She also has a great “what trends to expect” article HERE.
YOURSCRAPBOOKSUPPLY.COM has lots of sneaks on her store blog. She consistently posts sneaks throughout the year and is a great resource.
You can also go straight to the blogs of your favorite manufacturers to see what they’re coming out with. For instance, SIMPLE STORIES is starting their full reveal on Monday morning 8am MST 01-05-14. Here is a sneak peek:
I’ve seen the whole catalog of new Simple Stories and can tell you that “I Am” is absolutely amazing. I’ll have to own it all! So pretty and unique. Lots of other winners there, too.
Hope you’re getting caught up in the CHA excitement! We need to support this industry – did you know 2 more online shops that sell scrapbook supplies closed recently? Yep, ToAdorn.com and FlowerstoFlourishes.com. Buy more supplies and do your part!! heeeee heeeeee . . .
Happy Monday after the 4-day weekend! If you’re in a shopping mood today, many of the deals I posted HERE are still going strong. With today being Cyber Monday (I just love me an internet holiday, don’t you?), I thought I’d do another post since there are so many new deals to be found!
For Cyber Monday, they’re having a HUGE archive sale. The archive has been marked down by an additional percentage sitewide. The ScrapbookSteals.com archive is made up of previous steals that haven’t sold out yet and you can get up to 80% off previous steals. WOWZA! I’m headed over there to see if there’s any OCTOBER AFTERNOON or anything else I might’ve missed ;)
Click HERE
to check it out. I mean, if your will is weak and your wallet is strong enough, LOL!
This sale ends Tuesday 12-02-14 at 8am PST so get to steppin’!
{I learned that on The Real Housewives of Atlanta, heh}
Okay, I peeked over there and already have a few things on my wish list:
Echo Park “Through the Year” 4×6 cards – Retail $4.99, Steals price $3.75, plus 20% off for Cyber Monday
Simple Stories paper packs – MSRP $20.97, Steals price $8.99 each, plus 20% off for Cyber Monday
WRMK shutter/memo board – MSRP $29.99, Steals price $19.99, plus 20% off for Cyber Monday
BECKY HIGGINS.COM
Get your holiday shopping done and save 30% during our 2-day sale! Everything* in our physical shop AND our digital shop is marked down, so don’t miss this rare chance to save BIG – on EVERYTHING* at BeckyHiggins.com!
*excluding gift cards
LAIN EHMANN / LAYOUT A DAY.COM
Lain has a a few exciting things on offer right now.
1. Her FREE December scrapinar happening 12-09-14 which you can sign up for right here. As with all of her free scrapinars, if you’re not available to watch it live, you get a free replay – but you MUST sign up ahead of time. Later, she sells these for cash-money so it really doesn’t make sense to NOT sign up. Know what I mean, Vern? And Layle Koncar from SIMPLE STORIES is always a hoot!
2. Every year, Lain has the “12 Deals of Christmas” which she posts/sends out once per day December 1-12 at noon EST. If you’re impatient like me, you can view the entire list HERE and maybe jot down on your calendar which deal(s) you’re doing to jump on. There are a limited number of each thing so you have to be quick or miss out. I like to support this event of Lain’s specifically because of this:
10 percent of your purchase price goes to the Aasha Foundation. The Aasha Foundation provides comprehensive social, recreational and educational enrichment support for 35 girls residing at a shelter home for girls in Mumbai, India.
3. And finally – TRUTH SCRAP
You can sign up or just get more info HERE.
For years, I’ve wanted to incorporate my faith more into my scrapbooking but have never followed through. I just feel like our faith, whatever form it takes, is SO important to who we are and what we should document about ourselves. I’m very excited about this and will definitely be signing up!
MY SCRAPS AND MORE.COM
1 day left!
Gosh, where should I start? The only scrappy shopping I did for the “Black Friday weekend” was at Michaels and it was mostly for necessities like albums to hold pocket pages and storage items. Now it’s time to have some fun! Let me know how you make out and if you need someone to talk you down from a purchase . . . erm . . . don’t call me! Hee heeeeeeee!!!
TRUE SCRAP 6 opens for general registration today: 09-09-14!
I’ve attended several True Scrap events in the past and swear by them, fo’ sho’. If you want to read some of my reviews, you can see past blog entries HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE. My favorite online scrapbook class EVER was from True Scrap 3 – read that review HERE.
There are 2 changes this time I wanted to tell you about – as requested by past attendees: A shorter event and a smaller price!
This year’s event has been reduced to 1 day instead of 2 (all day Saturday 10-18-14) with a virtual PJ party the night before where you just hang out online and chat with other attendees from around the world. It’s a smaller event (8 classes and 3 virtual make-and-takes), with a correspondingly smaller price point that many asked for.
On top of THAT, I have a discount code for you that’s good from 09-09 through 10-10-14: Type HERO in the box and save $20. Woot! I’m ALL about saving money where we can . . . ‘cuz that means we can spend the savings on scrapbook supplies, right?
Using the discount code takes the price from $99 down to $79 – or from $12 to under $10 per class. As I always say about Lain’s classes, that’s a real bargain compared to in-person classes at your LSS (do you even have one anymore? I don’t.) or other online classes.
If you’re waffling a bit about registering, please keep in mind that the webroom only holds 500 people. A bunch of seats have already been sold because they’re first offered to members of ScrapHappy (Lain’s membership site), and then she did Early Bird Sign-ups for those on her mailing list.
Oh jeez, I haven’t even said what True Scrap 6 *is* yet, have I?
Well, it’s an online scrapbook event put on by Lain Ehmann – she’s done 8 or 10 of these now and has it down to a science. TS6 ncludes the following classes:
Tracy Banks: Layering: Punch It, Roll It, Make It Yours
Kelli Crowe – Saw This, Made That: Bringing Ideas to Life
Jennifer Gallacher – Mood-Based Scrapbooking: An Inspirational Guide
Noell Hyman – Small Details, Big Picture
Katrina Kennedy: Capture Your Celebrations – Photographing Food, Family, And Fun
Layle Koncar – Flip It, Score It, Make It, Shake It!: Innovative, Interactive Mini Book Techniques
Nichol Magouirk – From Pocket to Page: Pocket Cards for 12×12 Layouts
Donna Salazar – Mixed Media Masterpieces Using Crafty Supplies
For more detail on the classes, you can click HERE and scroll down.
As always, each class sounds so interesting. I’m especially looking forward to those by Noell Hyman (going through a month of photos and deciding which to do layouts with and which to use Project Life, essentially) and Katrina Kennedy (photographing celebrations and other things I find challenging due to low-light, etc. – and I have a new camera!). Nichol Magouirk’s sounds good, too – Lordy knows I have a gatrillion PROJECT LIFE CARDS to use! {It’s been over a year since that entry and it’s gotten well and truly worse, ack!}
While their topics don’t super-intrigue me, I may take Kelly Crowe and Layle Koncar’s classes just because they’re both such a hoot! If you guys attended True Scrap Pocket Pages, you remember how fun Layle was from Simple Stories (and she gave away a Simple Stories prize, which I’m hoping she does again!). What I have found from taking entire True Scrap events is that classes that don’t interest me at all ‘on paper’ end up being some of my favorites. “True Scrap is like a box of chocolates. You just never know what you’re going to get.” Hee.
I’m still deciding if I’ll sign up or not. I didn’t get on the Early Bird mailing list in time, therefore no 30% discount on the price. And I’m not a ScrapHappy member anymore either so I don’t get that discount. I’ve really had to cut my scrappy spending lately :(
A month or so after Lain’s events, she usually puts the classes for sale “a la carte” so I may just wait for that and buy the specific classes I want. But if they end up being $10-12 each x the number of classes I want, it might add up to $79-ish anyway . . . bah! If I DO end up doing the entire TS6 event, I’ll make sure to post some reviews of the classes to help you decide which ones you may want to buy. We shall see . . .
Are you going to attend “True Scrap 6” or perhaps buy some a la carte classes later? If you do sign up now, don’t forget to use the code HERO to save $20. You can register (or just check out all the info) RIGHT HERE.
Have a great rest of your week . . . :)
I hope you’re enjoying a fabulous and relaxing Labor Day Weekend, if you’re in the States. If you haven’t done any shopping yet, make sure to check out my post with a bunch of scrapbook-related sales and discounts RIGHT HERE.
I’m going to try something new here @ Scrapbook Obsession Blog – a weekly round-up post of cool things I saw online this week that I think will be right up your alley. And away we go!
– Sounds like the first CHA PAPER ARTS SHOW was a success. Do you think they’ll keep doing them?
– ECHO PARK has posted some videos showing how to use their new “Designer Dies and Stamps.”
– This COOL ITEM is supposed to be for party tabletops but I’m picturing it being very useful on my scrapbook desk!
– I keep hearing THIS NEW COMPANY‘s name mentioned lately.
– Simple Stories has been putting out some great “Inspiration E-Books” for each of their new lines. Check out the latest one HERE.
– Don’t forget to use these GREAT COUPONS by tomorrow, Monday 09-01-14!
– BIG NEWS from October Afternoon, one of my favorite lines in the whole scrappy world. {There was some message board speculation that they were closing or selling to another company because of their, um, business practices? But, no, that’s not it . . . Phew!}
– Lisa at “Blackbird Darlin'” blog is making a Project Life album in 6×8. Check out her progress HERE.
Did you enjoy the “Scrapbook Obsession Weekly Roundup” post? Please let me know in Comments below. Based on your feedback and traffic, I’ll most likely continue doing these. They’re fun, don’t you think?!?!
