Want to see a little of the CHA Mega Show?

Well, check out the video below. Sandy and I walked a large portion of this show, too. Can you get a feeling for the excitement of learning all these new things? I just can't wait to get classes together to share them with you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BA9mKyMj35E&feature=youtu.be 

LOTS & LOTS of new items in the 40% Corner

And I mean L-O-T-S!!!! I forgot to mention it before, but as I was just adding more goodies to the corner, I realized I hadn't told you. It's overflowing, so you have to spend time looking through boxes of things plus perusing the shelves. I'm sure there's something there calling your name. Can't you hear it now?

Late Yesterday another order arrived

This order came from Art Gone Wild and Friends, which means Inky Antics, Alias Smith & Rowe, Stampers Anonymous, plus Tim Holtz. I love to order from these companies while at CHA because it makes my ordering so much simpler. I can order from all of these using one minimum limit so I can pick up a lot of various items. Here's what I received from them this year:

There were a couple of Valentine sentiments that I just loved. One said "I Love Us" which could be for a spouse or a special friend. Another said "I never knew how much LOVE my heart could hold until I found YOU". Weren't they just perfect? And I also liked the phrase "Remember the NOW". What a nice sentiment for a "thinking of you" card! 

On either end of the picture you can see two stencils from Tim Holtz. Both of these work great on your backgrounds or particularly on your Gelli Plates. The one on the left is called Bubbles and the other is Dot Fade. Doesn't everyone love circles?

I fell in love with the Clematis Cling Stamp. It is such a simple, beautiful stamp. The Puppies and Kittens set of clear stamps had some lovely animal sentiments for your favorite pet cards. Below is a puppy card made with the set from their catalog.

In the middle are two sets of clear stamps with a specific purpose. They use the HoneyComb paper to make either flowers or borders. I will be having a class in early spring using these. I know I have lots of the HoneyComb paper (and Love it!) but I don't always want to use the stamp sets I have. So these sets give you lots of options for other cards like these two images which were taken directly from the Inky Antics website.

Every Day is like Christmas

It seems as though I've received an order from CHA almost every day. It does seem like Christmas except these "packages" are not all for me. But I do enjoy your love of these gifts, too. This order arrived from Stampendous today. There were so, so many things I would have loved to have purchased for the store, but I had to keep my purchases to a minimum this year. Please check out www.Stampendous.com or ask to see the catalog inthe store. Let me know if you would like something specific on my next order.

Here is one photo of part of my order. All of these stamps are wonderful when using the Gelli Plate which is still the trendiest item this year.

The first and third sets of stamps were designed by one of my favorite stamp designers - Nathalie Kalbach, a Mixed Media Artist. They work wonderfully on the Gelli Plate. See the photos below. 

The second set of stamps was designed by Andy Skinner. These stamps are really great to use both on Gelli Plates, embellishments or basic cardstock. They have the look of Rust, Scratch Marks, and Peeled Paint. It's so easy to get the effect by just adding the right color of paint.

I couldn't find an example of the Vintage Letter stamp, but just trust me when I say the calligraphy on the stamp is amazing. Then below is The Look. I love this stamp! When you use it on a Gelli Print, it is so intriguing, but I love it on this watercolor-look background just as well.

Above is an additional part of this order. The beautiful hummingbird set with matching dies will be a favorite with you hummingbird lovers. And aren't they always hard to cut out? Not with the dies! 

Next to them are 2 greeting stamps. One is used on The Look above, but could also apply to the cute bird stamp next to it. 

I know that I have a lot of heron lovers so I thought this would be a perfect stamp for them, or maybe even for those of you who have never before appreciated the grace of a heron. This doesn't even require a lot of color to make a great card as this sample from Stampendous shows.

Well, I hope yuou enjoyed opening this package with me today. I have some more surprises coming from Elizabeth Crafts, Penny Black and Tsukineko/Imagine Crafts soon so come back to my blog again real soon.

Another CHA order arrived today

Today I received an order from Impression Obsession. They are one of the few companies who continue to make wood-mounted stamps so I always try to support their efforts. They are also very good about coming up with new designs. I hope you enjoy the ones we selected this year. However, please do not hesitate to let me know if you want a stamp ordered from them or from any of the companies. Here's a snap shot of the order:

Then I wanted to show you some of the inspirational cards we saw at the show that just spoke to us as far as which stamps to order. 

  
  
    Did anything speak to you? Give me a call at 931-456-6648 or email me to set your choice aside for you.

Saturday's Play Day

I just wanted to share some photos from Saturday's Play Day at the CATS Gallery. (Thanks to Veronica for taking these pictures!) We had a tremendously fun time! Notice we had a couple of young children in this card-making play day. I have to compliment those children and their parents for raising such polite and well-behaved children. We enjoyed having them play with us. Their cards turned out wonderful, too. What fun! Even those ladies new to stamping did a remarkable job letting their creativity loose. They requested that I have another one of these play days real soon, so I'll be looking at the calendar in early spring. Next time you should come, too. There are plenty of items left for you to use to create your cards.

Another January CHA Order Arrived

This order came from Dreamweaver Stencils. As I mentioned previously, Stampendous has purchased Dreamweaver Stencils since Lynnell has chosen to retire. I'm sorry to see them leave the crafting industry, but I wish them all the best of luck. Hopefully, Stampendous will offer jobs to those who want to stay creative. I know that their booth always inspires me to use my stencils more and in many different ways. So this is my last order directly from Dreamweaver Stencils. I have plenty of Dreamweaver Stencils in stock so I only replenished some of the other items. I have to say the Wisteria stencil just called my name while I was browsing, so I did HAVE to buy it for me and the store. I hope to have a class ready by the middle of March using a couple of the techniques shown at CHA. They turned out very beautiful.

Here's the order with a closeup shot of the stencils:

In this order you will find Translucent Embossing Paste, Pearlescent Embossing Paste, Black Matte and Glossy Embossing Paste, Memories Mist Iridescent Spray and Pine Cones Embossing Folder plus the 2 stencils below. It seems like embossing pastes in general are becoming increasingly popular so I wanted to have several different types in stock. Right now I have others by Prima and by Viva Decor with similar properties.

                                          Wisteria                         Embossing Paste Spreader (my favorite)  

If any of these are calling your name, e-mail me and I will set it aside for you to pick up or for me to ship to you.

CARD-MAKING PLAY DAY

January 24, 2015 from 10:00 a.m. until Noon at the CATS Gallery Classroom in the Crossville Outlet mall

Let's just PLAY! That's right...no learning something new, but just putting things together. Are you free Saturday morning? Then let's have a morning of playing with loads and loads of card-making pieces? I am what is called a true crafter (never throwing away anything in case she might need it someday). Because of this I have boxes and boxes of card-making elements and started, but not-completed, cards. Help me reduce the amount of elements I have so I can make room for more. It’s amazing how stacks of things can unleash your creativity. If you have those winter doldrums, then let's PLAY!

If you bring a basic stamp kit, the cost for the class is ONLY $1.00 which goes directly to the C.A.T.S. Gallery. A stamp kit should contain: Scissors, Pencil, Ruler, Double-stick Tape, Glue stick and/or clear-drying white glue, Cardstock, and Coloring Medium of choice. If you want to just drop in without a kit, that’s no problem at all, but the cost is $5.00 for use of class supplies. There will be plenty of trimmers available for use plus a few more handy tools. You can make as many cards as you can within the 2-hour timeslot. This Play Day can also be a learning experience. You may come across elements that you would like to make on your own. I will gladly explain how you can duplicate the item. Just ask! But let’s make some cards!

First Order from CHA 201

Here is a picture of the first order I've received from CHA. I know, I know. You really want to see the pictures I took while at the show. Well, I haven't loaded them to the desktop yet, but I will get to that soon. Actually, when I looked over the pictures I took, there weren't many of the actual show. I did take quite a few of specific samples in the different booths. I hope you'll be pleased with those when I get them posted. In the meantime part of my Notions order arrived today. Unfortunately there were very few new products in this order, so you'll have to wait for another one to arrive to get the newer items.

   Along the top are the Viva Inca Gold Rubs shown in Copper, Lava Red, Magenta, Silver, Turquoise, Jade and Cobal Blue. My favorite technique using them is to dip a couple of colors out with a spatula onto a craft sheet. Spritz the rubs with water and drag your cardstock through the rubs. What beautiful results! Just try it!
   Next left-to-right as shown Ink Refresher. Not only are these sprays wonderful to restore your dried pads and water-based markers, but you can use it to keep all types of media fluid so you can work with them longer. I know I had a new technique that I wanted to try when I got more in, but of course I cannot find it now. Wait till I start using Evernote better.
   "Today I choose happiness" is a Magenta cling stamp that I just love! It fits into so many spaces and seems to convey the exact thing I wish to say. It's one of the most popular stamps I sell.
   Cell Theory Stencil from The Crafters Workshop has been a very popular stencil, particularly for those of you who love your Gelli Plates.
   The Glitter Hologram Pearl Pen from Viva was a great success at the Christmas Walkabout this past year. It must be popular elsewhere, too, because it has been on backorder since October. Better get it now!
   It seems I'm always running out of Zots for Bling, those tiny glue dots that hold your rhinestones or other small embellishments to your projects. More have arrived.
   Then finally if you have the container from Art Bin that holds your dies onto magnetic sheets, I have a package of those sheets.

There will be lots more CHA orders and pictures in the very near future. Let me know how this method of informing you regarding the arrival of new products works for you.