Stamping Friends Regional Gathering

Lorinda, Cindy, Marsha, Erin, and Holly

I had a really fun outing with friends yesterday at Rose Ellen's Stamping Friends Regional Gathering.  We watched some informative and inspiring presentations, swapped cards (well, only Cindy made card swaps so the rest of us just enjoyed looking at hers), ate lunch, did make & takes, and overall had an enjoyable time getting ideas and stamping together.

My team leader, Michelle Suit, gave a presentation on Project Life and I felt inspired to give it a try, even though I gave up on scrapbooking years ago. This seems really doable and something I can just do here and there without feeling the pressure to scrapbook my whole life.  I try to keep a record of our family on my family blog that I print out, so I'm just planning to do some "highlight" project life books here and there.

Michelle Suit--awesome team leader!

One of the presenters, Cathy Williams, showed us how we can make our cards unique with fancy folds.  The card shown below was one of my favorites.  When you first open the card, you see the curtains covering the bear, as you pull it open, the curtains slide to the side and you see the bear peeking through.  So cute!

These are some of the make & takes we did.  I didn't end up finishing all of them:

This next project was one of my favorites, maybe because it was so simple and something I could easily reproduce and mass produce for a variety of occasions.  It uses a craft bag, folded to make a pocket for a gift card.  You slip a small card in the opening of the bag, and the gift card in the pouch in front.  Simple and cute!

Here's a few more pictures from the event.  Looking forward to the next stamping day!

Confessions of a Christmas Stamper

Just one Christmas stamp set.  That was all I was going to buy this year.  I already owned retired Christmas stamps sets, not to mention the fact that I generally send Costco photo cards because Costco cards include a photo, they are inexpensive, and I send out over 100 cards.  Therefore, I was only going to treat myself to ONE new stamp set and that would be it.  (Insert non-stop laughing here!)

My one stamp set was going to be Among the Branches because I could use it for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.  Perfect! What more would I need? So, I bought the bundle that included the embossing folder and had fun making cards which you can see HERE.

Well...I decided that wasn't just a Christmas stamp set, so I could get one more.  I fell in love with the the Cozy Christmas set and vintage Home for Christmas paper and HAD to get those items too.  I made loads of cards with that set and paper which you can see HERE.

So...then there was this awesome Christmas shaker card kit, and Christmas tag kit, and Wondrous Wreath bundle, and....you can probably see where this is going.  In the end, I bought Christmas set after Christmas set and have loved using every last one of them!

My Holiday stamp sets plus a few accessories

Some of what I made, already gave some away.

So with at least fifty handmade cards under my belt, what did I end up sending to all my family and friends this season?  

Here comes the ultimate confession:  I sent Costco photo cards!

Say what?!

Yes.  I went with the streamlined, fast, photo-included experience that I know so well.  I was going to send my handmade cards with a photo included, but Costco doesn't even have a 3 x 5 printing option anymore and I wasn't going to trim down 150 4 x 6 prints. So, what happened to all the cards I made?  They didn't go to waste.  I gave them with teacher gifts; I gave them with homemade goodies; I gave them to friends, and I'm giving most of them to the residents of a nursing home when I take my piano students to perform there in a couple of days.  There are a few favorites that I just can't part with yet, so I'm keeping them in my box to look at, and smile at, until I'm ready to part with them next year!

This leads me to something I think about quite often.  Why do I stamp?  Why do I go through the trouble of making handmade cards and gifts when I could buy some pretty cute cards at the store and it would cost me significantly less?  Well, I stamp because it makes me happy.  I stamp because I love it and I get a thrill from the creative process.  I stamp because it gives me a chance to get together with friends and make beautiful things.  I have made some of my closest friends through stamping.  I often say, "It's my golf."  Some people go golfing for thrills; some people visit antique stores; some people collect bears; some people write; I stamp.  Even if everything I make ends up in the trash (it is paper-crafting so I realize that is most likely it's inevitable end), I will still keep doing it because it brings me joy and I love it!.

At OnStage with my good friend, Lorinda.