Helping Haiti

I don’t know if you’ve heard or not, but we’re involved in some promotions to help the Haitians who have been devastated by the earthquake last week. In addition to donating portions of the proceeds from the sale of a certain stamp set depending on each market, Stampin’ Up! bought some supplies for 5,000 hygiene kits. A few of our vendors also donated supplies for the kits as well.

We invited our employees to help assemble the kits over the next few days, and apparently the response was so enthusiastic that they got all the kits assembled in one day! I felt badly when I found out—I was working from home today and planned on helping assemble the kits later this week.

But when I opened the pictures they sent me from the home office, I admit that I teared up a bit and my heart almost burst. My disappointment at not being able to work side by side with others in this good cause was offset by the tremendous sense of pride I felt to be associated with people who are so willing to help out in any way possible.

It’s only fitting that one of these pictures shows our own Stampin’ Up! president Dale Fillmore, because the idea for the kits was his. Like so many of our Stampin’ Up! employees, demonstrators, and customers, he was looking for a way to help that would truly be beneficial.

We are excited to get these kits shipped off as quickly as possible; we are working through an organization that is already recognized and involved in the relief efforts. And our thoughts and prayers are with the innocent people who have been so devastated by this terrible event.

A Breath of Fresh Air

Today I received a beautiful bouquet of flowers from our employees in the Distribution Center—the people who are on the front lines so to speak, doing the work that gets our products out the door and into the hands of our demonstrators and customers. They are some of our hardest-working employees, and they do such a great job!

They wanted to give me the flowers as an expression of thanks and gratitude for the opportunity to work at Stampin’ Up! I was touched when I heard that, because I am just as thankful for them! They have been trying for several weeks to catch me at a time when I was in the office—and at home—long enough to enjoy the flowers. And that finally happened today. 

I walked into the Distribution Center and wasn’t really sure where to go, but then I saw a head peek around a tall pile of boxes and heard a crowd of employees start to clap, so I headed in that direction.  I was touched when I walked around the corner and saw a large group of people gathered to present the flowers—and a darling journal with handwritten thanks!

I teared up a bit as I looked around at this wonderful group of people who do so much for me. They are good people, and I care a lot about them. I thanked them, of course, and I hope they do know how much their thoughtfulness meant to me.

And in addition to the flowers, I also got a lot of hugs, which I love!

As you can see the flowers are beautiful—and they smell fabulous! And since our air outside has been less than clear, I will enjoy these flowers--and their smell—even more. As one employee noted, “These can be your breath of fresh air for the next few days!”

A Thing of Beauty

Sterling and I spent a few days in Kanab this last week. Sterling worked on stables for his and his friends’ horses when they go to southern Utah to ride horses, and I visited with family and coworkers and hid away to stamp and quietly work.

The days were clear and crisp (a welcome sight compared to the smog they call an inversion in northern Utah), and each evening, Sterling and I snuggled together and watched a movie—a rare but wonderful occasion. Kanab is slower paced, and it was the perfect place to work and relax after a hectic few weeks.

One day while I was working away, Paul (Mom Heather’s husband) showed up at the door for a visit. Before I could welcome him in, he motioned for me to come with him for a ride in his 1950 Ford truck. Everyone in my family had been on a ride in Paul’s truck except me—it just never seemed to be a convenient time or there wasn’t enough room inside the cab. So when he invited me to join him, I jumped at the chance!

First, you must know that Paul’s hobby and passion is restoring older vehicles. He will tinker on an engine for months to get it just right, and when you pop the hood, it’s a beautiful sight!

Second, I love loud engines (listening to a Harley as it passes me on the freeway is a happy sound and makes my ears perk up), and I love speed (a fast boat or car makes me giggle). I grew up on a race track. My dad and his friends raced cars and motorcycles around the track while we slept among the roar of the engines.

Anyway, all I can say is that Paul’s truck (technically you’d call it a hot rod because restoring an older vehicle doesn’t usually give it the speed this truck has) is a beauty. I couldn’t stop talking about it. It’s obvious he loves what he does!

As we pulled out of the drive, Paul stomped on the pedal and we took off. Of course, I giggled! After the initial “rush,” he commented, “That was payback.”

Then he reminded me of a time years ago when I was driving him and my mom in Sterling’s new truck (a diesel with lots of power), and without notice, I stomped on the pedal and nearly scared them half to death (or at least caught their attention). Paul remembers me saying something like, “Don’t you just love the sound and power of that engine?”

I begged Paul for a photo so I could brag about him and his hot rod. I hope you’ll appreciate a thing of beauty like Paul’s Ford and smile the next time you step on the pedal of a powerful machine.

Well, Paul, you got me back, and I loved it!  

Leadership Leftovers

At leadership, I showed several projects that weren’t put online for Leadership attendees, and during my presentation, I promised I’d post them on my blog—so here they are!

There are three cards, all made with our newest stencils (Elegant Trio and Folk Flowers). Two (Thanks for Being You and Thanks So Much) use the emboss resist technique; the third one (R card) uses pastels and the stencil.

I love stencils! Stencil images can be the focal point or create a fabulous background—on cards, scrapbook pages, or any other crafting project. And don’t forget that our stencils can be used on walls too. Did I mention that I love stencils?

The last one (Life card) I showed at the very end of Leadership, and it features the surprise sneak peek set that we gave away. This set (Elements of Style—I think) isn’t available until our next mini catalog, but I wanted to show at least one project you could make with it. I’m sure our lucky leadership attendees will be coming up with many of their own ideas in the weeks to come!

Leadership attendees loved our quilt block giveaway as well. We gave every demonstrator a quilt block; each block featured the same basic pattern and one of four different color palettes.These were made from our Big Shot dies, and highlight one of the many ways you can use the dies, in addition to papercrafting.

 

 

I showed three products that were made from the quilt blocks—the apron, pillow, and hot pad. (If you’re interested in the apron pattern, I picked it up at a local quilting store called The Material Girls Quilts. The store’s website is www.thematerialgirlsquilting.com, although I didn’t see the pattern online. It must be a newer pattern.)

Whether you attended leadership or not, hopefully these projects spark a little creativity!

Thinking of You at Sale-A-Bration

This Thinking of You card is the first of several Sale-A-Bration projects I plan on posting throughout the Sale-A-Bration period. This is our most exciting promotion at Stampin’ Up! People love it because they can get free product—and who doesn’t love free stuff!

This card features one of the frame images from the Vintage Labels set, my favorite Sale-A-Bration stamp offering (although I'll certainly use them all!).

Notice that I’ve used it in several different ways: first, as a frame, like it was intended, behind the “Thinking of You” accent; next, as a larger frame background image behind the accent (you’ll need to stamp it four different ways from four different angles to get this look—sounds complicated but it’s quite easy to figure out); and finally as an added texture image on the Bella Toile stamped background.

I like this card so much that I’m actually planning on making a dozen or more in the next day or so, with a Rich Razzleberry and Crushed Curry color palette. It’s actually quite quick and easy to make, but it’s beautiful. I know several people right now who are going through a difficult time, and I want them to know I’m thinking of them. This card is a great way to do that!