689 miles = fun & friends @ FKS

I've been thinking about this post ALL day and think I'll just list the FACTS...

1. Nancy & Timi ( see above) and the entire staff @ FKS treated us like royalty. Actually, it was better than royalty...more like FAMILY. From the bottom of my heart...THANK YOU ALL!!!!!!! You guys are WONDERFUL!

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2. Nancy W, store manager is an absolute DOLL and extremely funny! Thanks so much for the invite and for all you did to get ready for our visit. Oh wait...she brought us a St Louis specialty...GOOEY BUTTER CAKE...low cal, I'm sure. NOT!! To die for good...

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3. EVERY person we encountered in the store made sure we had everything we needed for successful classes. They were ALL very kind, sweet & funny. The TEAMwork is very obvious & I'm sure that explains the store's SUCCESS. Special thanks to Alita, Missy & Sue...

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4. Our students were GREAT!!

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5. 27 learned all about distress inks on Saturday.

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6. 25 made Linda's cool framed houses. Each was unique & they all looked GREAT!

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7. Our students were WONDERFUL.

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8. I had my own PERSONAL announcer. THANK YOU Cindy! GREAT JOB!!

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9. 16 made Maya Road's Keepsake cube with a grungeboard butterfly and a glass/grunge bud vase on Sunday. Both projects were a hit. They LOVE the grunge now too!

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10. 17 made adorable fragments books. They ALL got an "A" for ADORABLE.

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11. I had my own personal driver! THANKS to CECILE. She got the award for the longest distance driven to take the classes...500 miles ONE WAY ! WOW!!

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12. Our students were SHOPPERS! The Stampers Anonymous trunk show was a HUGE success. We SOLD out & we had to take special orders!

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13. Our students LOVED Maya Road too! Sold out all the Heart & Home tins & LOTS more! Special orders there too! I noticed when I was leaving that the muffin tin holding the trinkets metal flowers was looking pretty empty.

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14. Ranger's blending tool was the hit of the technique class. That baby makes ALL the difference in blending. I think "spritz & flick" was the favorite technique.

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15. We had a WONDERFUL weekend!

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16. Whenever I ever hear anything about the GRAND CANYON, I will think of you Timi! It still makes me laugh!

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17. Took my camera...you got it...NO photos...but check Sue's photos to see some.

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18. I think they liked us...we're invited back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks again EVERYONE!!

wendy

ps...HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MR. STAMPERS ANONYMOUS...Yep...today is Ted's birthday!

Me...and other random thoughts

Ok, Michelle...this is for you!

Mrs Stampers Anonymous said I NEEDED to post my photo on my blog, since most bloggers do... YUCK...

Random fact #1...


I HATE to have my picture taken. Absolutely HATE it. I'd rather have the flu...


So the above came to be, when this was an assignment for Maya Road. Each design team member HAD to use the canvas we were sent & use our photo. These were on display on the designer wall in our booth @ CHA. Since I don't scrapbook, this was pure torture for me. But, can't tell the boss no.

The fun part was using my favorite scrolls, flowers and chipboard alphabets from MR. Totally addicting...


I've been tagged quite a few times lately & I know I'm behind on answering. Also....I hate to keep tagging & retagging my friends again. But...here's another random fact you probably don't need to know...

Random fact #2...

I won a blackjack tournament in Aruba a few years ago. I LOVE to play blackjack. I love anything with numbers...

So...it was an elimination type thing, with a $10 entry fee. We started out with about 120 players ( most were locals who play @ the casino weekly) and we were each given $500 fake casino chips. The games were in 15 minute sessions. At the end of 3 hours...I won! Some luck, some skill & some good money management. When the end was close...some of the locals were cheering for me, which was really fun.

For my $10 investment, I ended up with $250.00 cash, free entry into another tournament, free dinners and 3 hours of fun. Plus... every day we seemed to see someone in town or on the beach who commented that I beat THE LOCALS and offered congrats. A fun memory... too bad I don't scrapbook!

Random fact #3...

I do my grocery shopping @ HyVee. Every week I take my $2 to the counter & buy a Lotto ticket with the hope of a BIG win... This makes me sick...

ONE person won the Illinois Lotto...3.25 MILLION dollars! Guess where the ticket was sold...YEP...MY STORE.

Was it me????? NOPE...if it was...I'd be in Aruba, not here posting.

That's the update for today. There are about 40 things on the to-do list to make sure that everything is ready for our classes this weekend. This leads to...

Random fact #4...


I'll be checking & rechecking to make sure that we have everything we need for a fun time! I do this about 10 times & drive myself crazy with worry that I may have forgotten something important.

The end!!
wendy

2 in one photo..a project peek & a tip

Here's an idea for your Ranger craft sheet...

I used red liner tape & adhered mine to a self healing cutting mat, that I found in the quilting section @ JoAnn's. It makes the mat more stable...no sliding around & you can actually see the grid lines thru the mat. Mine is out on my work surface & I use it every day for inking & stamping. An added benefit is that nothing penetrates it, so it keeps my workspace nice & neat....no spots or stains!

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I played a bit yesterday (see photo above)...I should have been packing up the supplies for "For Keeps Sake" classes this weekend...but those fragments caught my eye. I couldn't resist... It starts with 2 pages of Maya Road's square banner book for the covers. I add a few fragments...some rub ons... some dots...It's not done...but I sure had fun!!

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Gotta run ...LOTS to get ready for the weekend.

Enjoy your Wednesday!

wendy

grunge flower, metal trinkets blossom & another tool tip

I will NOT use vintage photo...

I will NOT use vintage photo...

I will NOT use vintage photo...

I scored some more stamps from Stampers Anonymous (yippee)...so I needed to get going on more samples for the booth.

My plan was to play with some new Maya Road mini chipboard alphabets, some of their new metal trinkets blossoms, some distress inked grunge, some of Tim's new Stampers Anonymous stamps and this paper from Creative Imaginations...

The base is a 5 x 5 canvas.

You can see that I stamped the metal flowers & curled them again...These guys are addicting!!

And for the tool tip of the day...

This is another tool that I grab frequently. Flat pliers...no teeth to leave marks. It's great to squish brad prongs or to squeeze wire flat. Flat is better for gluing.

ALWAYS check your LSS first to see if they have them available. If not, use your HL or JoAnn's coupon & get them for 40% off.

CHEAP & very useful.

Now remember that OFFER I told you about after CHA???

Hmmmmmm... I still can't spill the beans, but we're working on it & it looks very promising for CHA SUMMER!!!! I am sooooo excited. You'll be the first to know!!

Stay tuned!

wendy

Jennifer McGuire, Stampers Anonymous & More GRUNGE!

I LOVE to read all the comments left here. This one made my day yesterday.

Jennifer McGuire said...
Just found your blog... and it is fabulous!

WOW!! ..It's from THE JENNIFER MCGUIRE! What a talented cutie she is. She is the reason I buy Creating Keepsakes every month...just for her cool tool/technique column. She just started blogging. Check it out here.

Linda Cain & I will be teaching @ For Keeps Sake in St Louis THIS WEEKEND! We are all ready ( kits, door prizes, Maya Road door prizes & chocolate) for 4 fun classes & wanted to add something to make the weekend extra special for all of you.

SO... Stampers Anonymous is doing a rare "trunk show" just for this weekend!! Come check it out & see a bunch of REALLY cool stamps IN PERSON!! It's sooooo much better than just looking @ the catalog. Trust me...you'll LOVE them!

And finally...more grunge. If you have the Bind-It-All, you can use it with grungeboard. FUN stuff, but I think I've said that before.



Happy Monday.
wendy

Must have tools!

When I was making my projects for the Maya Road booth @ CHA, I knew that they would be handled a lot, so they had to be very sturdy. I would have died on the spot if a project fell apart in someones hand. Can you imagine??? HORRORS!!

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This is how I stumbled across these guys. Actually, Rick gave them to me as a gag gift. I used to get jewelry...now it's tools...how times have changed...ha!

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The key to getting good adhesion is to apply pressure after you apply your adhesive. They work especially well when gluing grungeboard to grungeboard...as in layered flowers. Sometimes I use them on chipboard too, if I have a hard time getting something to stay put or if I'm gluing onto a slippery surface. I've been recommending them in my classes and we use them for every grungeboard class.

You can get them @ Home Depot, Lowes, Menards etc...cheap...about $2 or less & they are a great addition to your arting tools. I like all 3 sizes, depending on what the project of the day is. Make sure you pick up one with a long reach. I use that one a lot!

That's the shopping tip for today!

Have a fun Easter!!

wendy

I love this thing!

Yesterday Mr. Fed-Ex delivered my inky/grungy class supplies from Ranger & this little present for me. It's their new craft spinner...blending tool holder. I couldn't wait for this guy to arrive. It's PERFECT! I bought 2 and stacked them, so 16 handles are convenient in a very small space on your work area. This is soooooo much better than digging thru the box where they resided before. You can add a third on top & have the perfect place for all 24 colors. The base was a green when it came out of the box, but thanks to Rick & his trusty can of black spray paint...it's now the right color for my studio.

GEEZ...I'll stop before I sound like an infomercial...

Hello...Ranger? I think I DO NEED the 3rd!

It's Thursday!
ENJOY!
wendy

added..Andi had a question about the blending tool and the cut & dry not sticking to the blending tool. Here's what I told her, incase others need the same info...

What you need to use on the blending tool is the replacement foam pads. They are the same as the 2 that are included in the package with the handle. They come in a package of 10 for $5. The pads have the velcro type blue back that attaches & STAYS on the handle. The foam, in my opinion, is softer than the cut & dri & it's much easier to work with! It makes the blending so easy. They come from Ranger & your LSS should have them or can order them. If not, email me & I'll give you some store ordering info.

Happy blending!