Leadership Swap Cards

Another great thing about Stampin' Up! Events is the SWAPPING! You make as many card fronts as you want to swap - then you come home with tons of other ideas. So fun!

Here are a few that I love!

This is the set Bold Blossom from the Occasions Mini Catalog. I love the cheery bright colors on this card! Who wouldn't love to receive this in the mail? It would totally make my day!

This valentine has lot of fun shapes and element on it. It is the set Be My Valentine from the Mini Catalog, with a little help from the XOXO set. This one is made my my good friend Kimberly VanDiepen. :)

Ok, can I just say that I LOVE how the tulip embossing folder was not only used on the card base but also around the focal point? Very clever! Love the clean lines and simplicity of the White, Black and Real Red heart. This awesome card was made by my pal Tracy Altemose.

Make sure to comeback tomorrow for more samples! And don't forget that with your $50 purchase you will earn FREE SALE-A-BRATION rewards! Click the link in my signature line for details!

Pictures from Leadership

I wanted to share a couple pictures of my trip to Tennessee. The best part of any trip is being with these amazing women. I only wish that we could see more of each other.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures:

One of my favorite people in the world, and Stampin' Up! ROCK STAR, Kimberly VanDiepen. You have to be patient when you are with her....because every 10 feet someone stops her to tell her how much they love her (can't blame them, really). So, it takes forever to reach your destination. LOL. Now we just leave her behind and she eventually catches up (tee-hee).

Love ya, sister.

This is Katherine Allen, my fabu roomie. Even if she does get up at 6 AM to go running, I still adore her. We haven't roomed together in quite awhile, so it was fun to hang with her again. She is my partner in crime when it came to the $72 manicure. ;0) Good times!

These gals just make me happy! Jenny on the left, and Max with her silliness in the middle. I met Jenny through Kimberly, and I am so glad I did. She is a super person and a very talented stamper. Now Max is wild woman (can you tell?). She makes me laugh whenever we are together. Not only is she a Stampin Up! Super-Star, she also works in the Home Office at SU as a Service Account Manager. So glad to have her as a friend!

This is a group of AMAZING LADIES - most of them from Arizona. You may recognize the famous Diana Gibbs next to me on the left. She is an amazing stamper (her watercoloring techniques are phenominal). Starting from the left is Tracy, Marlene, Diana, Me, Rhonda and Katherine. So fun to see these ladies and get lots of hugs! I met Diana years ago when we were both waiting for our passport for the Panama Canal Cruise....we were so stressed out! LOL. They came in the nick of time and we had a great trip!

This gal is like my soul mate. God I LOVE HER. This is Sharon Armstrong. She is one amazing lady who has been through so much in her life. And she keeps fighting and keeps smiling.

We get along like peas and carrots. I light up when I see her. She is just such an inspirational person and this year she is serving on the Stampin' Up! Advisory Board. I think they made a great choice selecting Sharon!

As you can see, it's so much more than rubberstamps and ink.. It's relationships and friendships that have enriched my life more than I could have ever imagined. These ladies are such a blessing to me and I am so thankful for every single one of them!

Thanks for letting me share,

Simply Adorned is Simply Gorgeous!

One of the (many) great thing about Stampin' Up! Events is the Make and Takes.

At every event, Demonstrators get Free Stamps and material to make projects. Typically, the make and takes are to give us ideas for classes and workshops. And certainly any project could be adaptable to a class or workshop...

But I have to say, that Stampin' Up! spoiled us ROTTEN on the Make and Takes this year...

as they were designed for us personally to just sit back, stamp with friends, eat some OVER THE TOP chocolate (trying to track down where they got it from) and create for ourselves. It was BLISS.

One of the Make and Takes was the Simply Adorned Charm necklaces. We got the largest one (which I was delighted at...we called it the "Mr. T" Charm) and we made 3 beautiful inserts. We received the Clearly For You Stamp Set in the new Occasions Mini Catalog which is perfect for this project.

The first insert we made was the AMORE insert. I love it! We took the chain off and replaced it with Black Satin Ribbon. The new glitter red paper in the mini is perfect for the heart on this, and added just the right amount of bling. I love the key trinket on here...such a subtle little detail...but just beautiful. The designer paper is the First Edition paper from the Occasions Mini. No more ripping pages from old books for your projects.

The beveled window pops open on the charm, and you can swap out the insert. The next one we made is the Monogram insert. I love everything about this one! I love the different textures, the fabric, the ribbon, the pearl bauble, and the crown charm. The colors are so soft and pretty...rose red and baja breeze. I love the look of the Baja Breeze ribbon threaded through the chain. Lots of fun elements on this one.

The final insert we made is the birds/friends insert. Such pretty colors and the lace ribbon in place of the chain is beautiful. I don't know if you can see it, but we painted some shimmer paint over the birds. It gives it such a pretty sparkle.

So I really loved making these and I will definitely wear them, as charms are so popular now. You see them everywhere you go. And I love that you can just POP the charm open and swap out the insert. You can create a gazillion inserts to match any outfit And let me tell you, the quality is super...no cheap chains or flimsy beveled glass. GOOD STUFF!

I will be back tomorrow with more to share from Leadership. It was truly AWESOME. Stampin' Up! really takes care of us and shows us the love. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Home Again, Home Again...

Hello Stampers -

I have just returned from a GREAT few days in Nashville for Stampin' Up!'s Leadership Conference. I ended up going a day early (Tuesday) to avoid the snow storm. Am I ever glad I did! Many of my SU friends from the area had cancelled flights and didn't make it at all. :0(

The first day we were there my friend Katherine and I went to the Relache Day Spa at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel (this is where the convention center is). We wanted to get a manicure.

Well, let's just say that this is a top notch, upscale spa. We looked at the "menu" - we both wanted the shellac manicure - at home it's about $30. At this spa it was $60. We were a little surprised but we ended up deciding to splurge.

Next this nice gentlemen comes up and asks us if we would like to visit the Relaxation Room while we were waiting..to which we replied "Of course!".

Let me just say that the R.R. (relaxation room) was one of the highlights of the trip. :0)

Comfy chairs, subtle lighting, relaxing music, complimentary herbal tea, coffee, fruit, trailmix...you get the idea.

I don't think I have never seen strawberries this HUGE.

So, I am not proud, but I will admit, we really pigged out. It's wasn't just a snack, we made it into LUNCH. We ate enough trail mix to sink a ship, and they had to replenish the strawberries because we ate so many!

This trail mix has chocolate, marshmellows, cranberries, banana chips, lots of nuts....actually, not a very healthy selection of things when you think about it...but it was damn good!

So, then they called us for our manicures, and they did a great job. This girl I had was AWESOME. And our nails look GREAT. The warm neck wrap and arm exfoliation and massage was part of the deal.... pure bliss.

When we checked out, we discovered that they automatically added 20% to the bill....so the manicure ended up being $72.00. Isn't that unbelievable? That is the MOST I have ever paid (and will ever pay again) for manicure. The facials and massages stared around $140...

I really wanted a massage but decided not to push my luck. I figured the $72 was going to be enough for Ed to stomach. ;0)

The Opryland Hotel is simply stunning and amazing. It is a city unto itself. We were lost a lot of the time. It's just AMAZING what is in this hotel. Restaurants, shopping, convention center, spa...even boats, waterfalls and palm trees. The decor was just gorgeous. Here are a few pictures to give you an idea.

Yes, those are hot air balloons that move across the roof. If you've been here, you know what I mean. If you haven't, I am not sure I could ever really describe it.

I had a great week with great people and a great company - but there truly is no place like home. It was great to get off the plane and have my kids and hubby waiting with hugs and kisses. And Bella, well she was so excited that I was home she kinda flipped out and jumped on me a bazillion times. It was wonderful!

Well, I will share more tomorrow. It's been a long day and we didn't get in until very late last night (no we were not partying...we were waiting for a cab for almost 2 hours...that is another story for another day....LOL). So, I am dragging my tired self to my own warm bed. :)

Thanks for stopping by and have a great Sunday -