Around the Town in Salt Lake City

Day 1 in Salt Lake City:  The Arrival

Despite a 30 minute delay in my flight from Denver to Salt Lake City, the trip to “Convention-land” was delightful! I met up with my good friends Mike Funke and Ginger Toivonen and we took the shuttle to our hotel.
After getting settled into our rooms, it was time for a walking tour around downtown Salt Lake City. 
One view of the Salt Palace…the site of Convention!

A fabulous fountain!
Beautiful wrought iron fencing!
Flowers were everywhere!
Could this little bird have been the model for Nature Walk?
Gorgeous Devereaux Mansion, the first one in the city
The Surrounding Mountains
Mike Funke is in awe of the picture he has taken!
What’s on tomorrow’s agenda?  We will be able to pick up our Convention bags, after which we will peruse the display boards.  At 1:00 I will be taking the VIP Tour of the Riverton Campus, site of the Stampin’ Up! Headquarters.  This will be followed by a VIP Meet and Greet with Shelli herself.  The evening will end with the Kick-Off Party.  As for now, 5:00 AM came quite early, so it is off to bed for me! I can’t wait for the fun to begin! Until next time…

Twin Talk

Brody:  Hey, Muffy!  Why do you look so sad?

Muffy:  Mom left for Convention today.  We won’t get to see her until late next Sunday.
Brody:  What’s “Con-bench-un”?  Is it like a “Bench” show where we have to stay on the show grounds so people can come and see us on display?  I like those.  Especially when the little kids come to see us!
Muffy:  It’s not “Con-bench-un”, it’s C-O-N-V-E-N-T-I-O-N.  It’s when she gets to be with all of her Stampin’ Up! friends and learn new things and see new products!
Brody:  Do little kids come and see her?
Muffy:  No, Brody, little kids do not come and see her.  She sees people like Mary Fish and Mike Funke.
Brody:  That is so cool!  She bought me a fish after I saw the vet the last time.  And remember the monkey we got at the Marshalltown show.  Maybe she will bring us home a fish and a monkey!
Muffy:  For such having such big ears, you only hear what you want to hear.  It is FUN-KEE, not monkey.
Brody:  Oh!  Well, maybe she will bring us back a toy anyway.
Muffy:  I don’t think so.  She said she was going to be bringing back stamp sets and lots of new ideas.  She also talked about visiting the place where they make the stamps and meeting with someone named Shelli. Because Mom recruited Brittney in April, Mom gets to go on a VIP tour and go to a VIP room where they have treats.
Brody: Maybe Mom will bring us home some treats.  That’s almost as good as getting toyz.
Muffy:  She can’t bring us treats.  They are only for the VIP recruiter people.
Brody:  Is VIP like having Champion before your name.  Our furry dad has Champion in front of his name.  Maybe Mom will be in a Parade of Champions, like at the American Boxer Club show.
Muffy:  Well, she will be marching across the Stage at Convention because of her Stampin’ Up! sales.  That is kind of cool.
Brody: Will she get a blue ribbon for that?
Muffy:  No, but she will get another stamp set and she gets to walk with her good friend Ginger from Montana.
Brody:  Wow! Does Ginger know Hannah Montana?  And how do you know so much about Stampin’ Up! and Conbenchun, Muffy?
Muffy:  I want to be a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator when I grow up.  Right now they have a $99 Starter Kit Special.  You can read more about it HERE, Brody.
Brody:  No I can’t…I can’t use the ‘puter very well.  My feet are too big.
Muffy:  Well your brain certainly isn’t.  Are you squinting at me?  Hmmm…Are you squinting at me?
Brody:  MOM! MOM!
Muffy:  Mom can’t protect you now…What?
DAD:  Muffy Lin Schach, quit picking on your brother this minute! And who gave you permission to be on MY computer?  No treats for you!
Muffy:  Gotta run, Mom’s Stamping Friends.  Stayed tuned for reports…maybe! My Mom took her ‘puter with her.

Button Buddies for The Paper Players

From the moment I saw Button Buddies, I knew this was one set I “needed”.   It is definitely not my usual vintage stamp of choice, nor is it one that I would water color or emboss resist.  I just thought it was cute. Period.  I thought the “Flowers” stamp was the perfect choice for today’s Paper Players Color Challenge, as were the Baja Breeze and Poppy Parade patterns from the new Pocketful of Posies Designer Series Paper. I hope you enjoy today’s card!

The Stampin’ Schach Design Tips:

  • Start with a good sketch!  I searched for one which would allow me to showcase the patterns from the Pocketful of Posies Designer Series Paper I selected. I decided on this fabulous one from the Mojo Monday archives.
  • A touch of the unexpected! Stampin’ Up!’s Grid Paper, adhered to Whisper White card stock for strength, makes an adorable background for the Flowers image! The vase was stamped twice, snipped out, and popped up on Stampin’ Dimensionals.  Of course, everything goes better with pearls!

  • Houndstooth! Crumb Cake card stock was zipped through the Big Shot with the Tasteful Trim Bigz XL Die.  The Large Scallop trim was then embossed using the new Houndstooth Textured Impressions Embossing Folder.  Topping it off is a Basic Gray Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border, stitched with White Baker’s Twine and a snippet of Crumb Cake Seam Binding.

  • What a difference three pearls make!  After I photographed my card, I thought the Baja panel looked a little plain.   Three large Basic Pearls were added…
and now it looks “pearl-fect”!
I hope you enjoyed today’s card AND I hope that you learned a little something new from my tips.  I am so looking forward to sharing EVERYTHING I learn at Convention with you.  And you know what…several of you have convinced me to take my laptop with me.  So I am going to give it a try! 
My house looks like a whirlwind has hit as I try to finish up my PPA design team cards before I depart for Convention.  I still have one card to make, posts to write, Twins to bathe, and a house to clean…all before Monday afternoon.  Whew!  I am so looking forward to Convention as a welcome getaway! As always, your comments are important to me. Of course, the teacher in me loves answering your questions about the cards that I create and the techniques that I use…so never hesitate to email me with your questions! Until next time…


Stamp Set:  Button Buddies (W 122735, C 122727);  Stampin’ Write Markers: Poppy Parade (119801…2010 – 2012 In Color Assortment), Old Olive (100079), Baja Breeze (120965);  Designer Series Paper:  Pocketful of Posies (122354), Grid Paper (102787); Card Stock:  Basic Gray (121044), Crumb Cake (120953); Tools:  Big Shot (113439),  Houndstooth Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (123134), Tasteful Trim Bigz XL Die (120893), Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch (119275);  Glitz and Glam:  Basic Pearls (119247), White Baker’s Twine (124262), Crumb Cake Seam Binding (122332)