Convention 2012 Make & Takes: Affection Collection

This year for our Make & Takes, we received three FREE stamp sets. The supplies for each set's projects came in super cute printed kraft bags, and we got an extra treat for each set in a mini bag. These are the bags for the Affection Collection stamp set projects:

Stay tuned to find out what the treat was in the mini bag!

At Convention, I am usually too excited to sit still and do my Make & Takes, so I check my supplies, stamp or punch anything from the supply tables that I don't have, and then take everything home to complete. Below you can see the sample picture sheets for the projects, and each of my completed projects next to that. One thing I like about doing the projects at home is that I can tweak the projects a little.

You can see for the Friend Card above, I crumpled the white layer after stamping, and added an extra Midnight Muse scrolly stamp near the top left. I also moved my white layer closer to the center of the card instead of lining it up with the top of the card base.

On the Love Always pouch above, I tried stamping some designs on the plain panel behind the flower, but didn't like how they turned out. So, I took a coordinating piece of Primrose Petals patterned paper and covered my experiments. Then I decided I wanted to fold the top over, and scallop punched that edge as well as the pocket edge. My flower looks kind of chubby...but then so do I right now...lol :-)

The Affection Collection stamp set is featured in the upcoming Holiday Catalog, which will be active August 1st, 2012 through January 2nd, 2013. Stay tuned to my blog--the Holiday Catalog is PACKED with fantastic new product, and you'll want to walk through the catalog with me so you don't miss anything!

~Kimberley Morris
Stampin' Up! Independent Demonstrator since 1994
Colorado Springs, CO
procrastistamper@gmail.com
http://kimberley.stampinup.net (SHOP ONLINE)
BECOME A DEMONSTRATOR

The Girl On Fire, Making a Comeback!

No, I was never on fire, per se...just got sidetracked by one. I recently read the book The Hunger Games, and that's why I used the "girl on fire" reference! A little over a month ago, I had put my blog on the back burner for a couple weeks so I could prepare for a Stampin' Up! new catalog Open House on June 23rd. My Open House guests had left, when I suddenly noticed the sunlight outside the house had an orange tint. Turns out, it was smoke in front of the sun, from the Waldo Canyon Fire behind our home. I took a picture out the back upstairs window. It was just so fascinating to watch.

This was Saturday, and we turned on the news and it was not really a big deal for us, where we live. The fire looked close from our upstairs window, but in reality there were several canyons between us and the fire. Unfortunately, the weather and dryness created the perfect storm and suddenly on Tuesday afternoon, the hillside facing our house in that picture was on fire. In fact, the entire hillside for miles was on fire. We had to evacuate, FAST, and for almost a week. But thanks to the most awesome firefighters in the whole world, NONE of the houses in our immediate neighborhood burned. At our house we had a lot of soot to deal with...plus a stray/feral momma cat with two kittens who appeared to have stayed out the fire under our deck. They were all hungry, but finally happy, several plates of chopped up chicken, and several bowls of broth, later.

(These are pictures I had taken before the fire--there is one more orange & vanilla kitten who's too fast for pics! We call that one the "ghost kitten".)

Even though we were safe, including the kids and our own two house kitties, I was a little freaked out for a while after we got back. Then I had some more oral surgery on July 9th that just could not be postponed. And I guess because I was so stressed out, the bacteria in my body took hold and I woke up on July 10th with a horrible, sunburn-like, sandpaper-feeling rash. (after some research, I am now convinced it was scarlet fever) I couldn't sleep later that night, with pains in my left arm, shoulder and neck. All I could think of was stories of people having heart attacks after dental work. And, I was scheduled to leave for the Stampin' Up! Convention in exactly a week, so even if nothing drastic happened, I didn't want to be so sick I'd have to miss that! I am SOOOOO grateful for antibiotics--they did the trick, after several days. I felt better, and made it to, and through, Convention :-)

I had an awesome time, and even though I'm still pretty worn out, I'm working on making my comeback! There's a WHOLE BUNCH of stuff I want to share, which I will do over the next few days and weeks. For today, I'll leave you with a video Lip Dub of our Convention Theme Song "I am...", featuring Stampin' Up! employees--this is my favorite Convention Theme Song EVER! Hope you find it as fun and motivating as I do!

~Kimberley Morris
Stampin' Up! Independent Demonstrator since 1994
Colorado Springs, CO
procrastistamper@gmail.com
http://kimberley.stampinup.net (SHOP ONLINE)
BECOME A DEMONSTRATOR