Wednesday, October 14, 2009

The Girls travel to Heirloom's York, PA Show.






We got A-44 and A-45 boarding passes for our South West 737. So we weren’t at the back of the bus, yea! We waited patiently for the pilot to announce we had reached our cruising altitude so we could begin crafting. And we crafted in a really BIG way.


As we set our trays in the work mode, Nikki pulled out the Christmas cards she had prepped in our hotel room the night before we flew out. She used Heat-N- Bond on the backside of the fabric which makes the fabric like paper to cut. Then she cut out the cute mittens and hats from the fabric. By peeling off the paper backing she was able to iron the cut-outs onto the paper cut for her card front. It’s a pretty cool system if you want to use fabric scraps, match a scrapbook page to a child’s outfit, or whatever you can dream up. As you can see from the picture, the card is a pretty blue with an embossed snowflake white paper on top. Nikki used her embossing pad to make a random swipe on the edges of the white card and then embossed with silver powder. It looks like a frosty winter window pane. She used blue floss to string the mittens and hats and a pewter finish snowflake brad to attach the wintry embellishments to the cardstock.







Nikki kept me busy by passing the white snowflake embossed cardstock so I could add a flash of glitter to some of the snowflakes. I used the Quickie Glue Pen and some iridescent glitter. Now here’s what you need to factor in when working with glitter on a plane. There are some small, yet powerful air vents overhead…yea, you got the picture. Even though I had carefully placed a piece of paper on the tray to collect the glitter and replace it in the jar, some of it blew around. I ended up wearing some major sparkle. I could hear Stacy and Clinton from What Not To Wear saying, “Glitter is not age appropriate for me.” I’m so glad we had already passed through airport security.

Sometimes we get folks peaking over our seats and then the discussions begin. What are you doing? Did they let you on the plane with those scissors? Do you knit, also? Is this your job? Sometimes we hear about their hobbies. But this time…folks stayed away! Not a word from flight attendants or fellow passengers. Humm! Maybe it was the GLITTER!

Well, it’s a great way to entertain ourselves for four hour flights when no movies are offered.


Oh, now here’s the funny part of the glitter for me. I did not realize the volume of glitter I was wearing. I got up to use the lavatory and there was a gentleman ahead of me. We started talking about the need to stretch as we were both twisting in the small waiting area. I looked down at my shoes and glitter was actually falling all around me. I took hold of the hem of my shirt and shook it…a sprinkling of glitter covered the floor. When I got into the lavatory and looked in the mirror it looked like Tinker Bell had just prepared me for a trip to Neverland. I found myself wondering what the gentleman ahead of me was thinking about my appearance. Probably the same thing Stacy and Clinton would think, glitter is not age appropriate. Or maybe he wondered what I did for a living. Either way, we had fun and we stayed in our seats most of the time.


Food that satisfies!


Nikki and her family found Five Guys while on vacation. So last year she took me to the Five Guys in York. What a treat! Lively servers, newspaper and magazine articles on the walls proclaiming their goodness, as well as letters from satisfied customers, peanuts in the shell, yummy burgers, and the best part…freshly made French fries where small orders are actually super-sized.


Friday night after set-up and the Design & Treasure Class we met Greg from Marco’s to please our taste buds and fill our tummies. Isn’t this great looking food? We loved it.







Our Friend Janie


Janie, the founder of Stamp-ede, in York, passed away this year. We miss her, as do so many. Deb and her crew put together a picture board to remember her at the show this year. Many people still were not aware of her death and took time to share their memories of her.









Nikki and I loved to visit with Janie on Saturday night after the show. She would keep the store open and have guests do make & takes or teach classes. Janie would keep us in stitches as she shared stories from her life. She knew how to keep the humor in tough situations. A survivor of breast cancer, battled many other health issues, and with limited sight Janie still lived life with joy. One day she

told of getting her eyes tattooed so she did not need to think about putting make-up on. Too difficult to see if the eye liner is straight. It’s all about a girls priorities.


We would tease Janie and tell her that you had to do aerobic shopping in her store because the aisles were small and the product went from the floor to nearly the ceiling. If the customer made a request she would do her best to get the merchandise.


Janie did a great job in supporting the exhibitors, shows and customers. She had a good grasp of the big picture and often made others the most important perspective. We miss her but know she has blessed us all with good memories because she invested in the lives of all she knew.


Stamp-ede is still going strong due to the great crew Janie hired. They would love to see you and hear your stories of the Queen of Stamps.


Nikki Takes A Class


Nikki signed up for Beth from Endless Creations class. She had fun visiting with Beth and making 5 cards with unusual folds. They used the Cuttlebug folders and many punches, as well as stamps from Beth’s line.


Fun At The Show


We had a good time at the show. So many first time attendees. They needed all the stuff and the exhibitors were glad to help them make selections. The demos and make & takes were heavily attended. Many came back on Sunday to get a closer view of the demos because of the crowds on Saturday.


As the fall season is beginning we couldn’t help but notice all the customers wearing beautiful embroidered shirts with autumn designs. We don’t have so many pretty deciduous trees on the coast of Oregon, mostly firs. It’s a delight to see the fall colors of the eastern states.


Here’s a shot from the middle seat in our row as we flew over Mount Hood. We know we’re almost ready to land when the snow capped mountains appear. Isn’t it beautiful? We live in a wonderful country.





Here’s a picture of the Pacific Ocean from our town of Newport, OR.







These are highlights from our trip to York, PA. We’ll see you next year October 9 & 10.


It won’t be long before we begin our Stamping Shenanigans in Fort Wayne, IN.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

It's Time To Fly The Friendly Skies

Our next show is in York, PA.  We will fly with South West so it's quarenteed to have moments of humor from the flight attendents and the BIG plus is our bags fly for FREE.  Yea!  We love that.  The only thing about South West that adds the crazy factor is the need to check in exactly 24 hours ahead to get in the "A" seating group.  Being in the "A" group gets better seats, as well as storage overhead.  And we travel with a boat load of stuff!

Nikki found this great burger joint we love to go to.  Five Guys!  Major yum and WOW, are the portions BIG!  A small fry order (made from fresh spuds) will serve a family of 4.  We'll work super hard on Friday setting up the show, so we figure we can splurg a bit.  

We have a great line-up of exhibitors and look forward to seeing our Pennsylvania friends.  Don't forget to sign-up for the Friday night Design & Treasure Class from 6-8 pm.  It's only $20.00 and includes the show admission.  Four great teachers and projects.   Check the website http://www.heirloompro.com/ for more information.  Nikki and I will be teaching one of the Design & Treasure projects and it's a vibrant and fun fold-out Christmas card using the DeNami Design stamps, Fun Flock, 3-D Crystal Lacquer, Quickie Glue Pen and the glitter.  Please join us.

Heirloom Productions ATC Contests for 2010

Nikki and I have been working on contracts for the 2010 shows.  In the midst of all the administrative functions it's fun to take a breather and plan the themes for the ATC Contests next year.  So for all the ATC fans here's the list of themes.

January 9 & 10 Grapevine, TX ~ Architectural Features

January 16 & 17 Riverside, CA ~ Chocolate Makes the World Go Round

February 6 & 7 Lawrenceville, GA ~ Gone Fishin'

February 20 & 21 Vallejo, CA ~ Fashionable Flip-Flops

March 6 & 7 Indianapolis, IN ~ Once Upon A Time

March 13 & 14 St. Charles, IL ~ Man's Best Friend

March 20 & 21 Portland, OR ~ Let Them Eat Cake

April 10 & 11 Allentown, PA ~ There's No Place Like Home

May 15 & 16 Puyallup, WA ~ Bundle of Joy

June 5 & 6 West Springfield, MA ~ Strawberry Fields Forever

July 17 & 18 Grapevine, TX ~ Kitchen Queen

August 7 & 8 Novi, MI ~ The Cat's Pajamas

September 11 & 12 Costa Mesa, CA ~ Brilliant Sunset

September 25 & 26 Anderson, SC ~ Campfire Fun

October 2 & 3 Fort Wayne, IN ~ Think Pink

October 9 & 10 York, PA ~ Christmas Tree

This will give you time to prepare two entries for each day of the show.  The themes help the vendors choose the winning ATC.

We also have folks that like to trade the ATC's at the show, so make some extra cards to share with others.  It's a fun way to enjoy these small pieces of art.  The cards used for trading do not have to fit the theme of the contest.  Be sure to include your information on the back of each ATC; name, contact information, theme, and limited edition.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Just Back From Greenville


We’re back from Greenville, SC. We had a great time with all the folks from the area. So here are some moments we want to share about our trip. Nikki and I started setting up the floor at 7:30 a.m. Friday. The temperature was perfect. By 8:30 a.m. Events Rental had delivered the tables and chairs and the electricity was dropped for the booths. At 9:15 a.m. our first exhibitor rolled in the parking lot ready to empty their trailer. Knowing it was going to get warmer we called several exhibitors to come early to keep the loading dock from becoming a bottle-neck in the heat of the day. Our scheduled time for exhibitors to start set-up is 11:00 a.m. You can see by the picture it’s one vehicle at a time and the steep ramp makes for a real work-out for those that used hand trucks to move their product. Our exhibitors work hard to make the show happen.


We also had classes Friday. The students had a difficult time fighting the desire to shop between classes. They really enjoyed the teachers and created some beautiful projects. Linda Beyer taught two classes, the Thomas Kincaid card class and the Snow Globe shaker card. Darlene of Stampland wowed her class with color dusters and her new templates for shadowing.


We enjoyed our Design & Treasure (make & take) Friday night. Amy McGrew with Close To My Heart, JoLayne of Stamps On Fire, Margaret of Sparkle N Sprinkle and Beth of Endless Creations were our teachers for the evening. Each project was very different and the students received some fun tips.

Nikki and I had a very full day, it was 8:30 p.m. and we were pretty hungry. We made a quick trip to Jack In The Box. Wow! Then we headed back to the hotel to catch a few winks before the big show day.

We had a good crowd to open the show with on Saturday morning. We were truly blessed with a surprise visit by Bonnie and Eddie. They used to be in our shows as KT Designs and retired last year. Some of the sweetest people we know.

Fun and interesting comments always occur at the shows. This statement was our favorite for Greenville. “My electric bill is down as a result of the insulation factor from my craft supplies.” Now that’s a new perspective.

Here's a fun picture of a group of gals resting during the show. They were pulling their new purchases out for a moment of show and tell. We just love to see folks having a good time. After letting me take their picture, they pulled out their cameras so I could get pictures for them. 

 
Our Saturday ATC winner was Kim Sottung. The theme was Ice Cream Sundae. We had several 3-D cards and the colors were tasty. 

Sunday our winner was Maryella Wilson.

 
Stampendous donated mouse pads to give away. We kept filling the table and the stacks of pink mouse pads quickly disappeared. Lots of prizes and winners were matched up during the show. Here is a list of winners: Amanda Ramsey, Sue Doehne, Denise Neely, Bettie Shother, Judy Bliss, Teresa Wagner, Jan Hay, Kim Rowe, Kayla Whitmire, Mary Rozell, Tracy Wood, Pam Holcombe, Sandra Albright, Kathy Riley, J Davenport, Brenda Ivester, Beverly Jennings, Sue Winter, Tricia Hulehan, Jane Jackson, and Darlene Clark. 

  Most of the booths featured demos or make & takes. Great opportunities to learn from talented people. Workshops were also happening during the festival. Rave reviews came for our teachers, Sondra and Kim with Two Girls and Beverly Terry with Terryfic Times. The shows are such a great time for shopping and learning.  

We want to thank these companies for donating prizes to be given away during the show: JudiKins, ClearSnap, Stampendous, Another Stamp Company, Close To My Heart, Crafty Secrets, DeNami Design, DRS Designs, Endless Creations, Gary M Burlin & Co., Marco’s Paper, Scrapbook Creations, SAR (some assembly required), Sparkle N Sprinkle, Stamping Fools, Stamps On Fire, The Paper Cut, and The Stamping Studio.
 
Thank you Greenville patrons for joining us this weekend. As always, you were most hospitable.

Nikki and Sheila

Friday, September 4, 2009

It's Labor Day Weekend, the time most of us get our last fun trip in before school. So I would like to share a fond memory of a Labor Day event. It was 21 years ago, just 10 days before my scheduled C-Section. It had been an unusually hot summer in Eugene, OR and Dave and I thought an ice cream treat was in order. We headed over to our favorite downtown, Italian restaurant for some of their delicious, freshly made Spumoni. Dave went inside to order ice cream and I waddled over to a table for two on the sidewalk. As he returned with our treats the man and woman at the next table began to sing a little song. Dave was so enthralled with the song he asked the man to sing it again and again, until he had it down. It was two or three rounds, which was a delight to the small crowd. No one gave money however. But no one threw tomatoes either.

So...every Labor Day we sing the song and it takes us back to the time we enjoyed as a couple, the anticipation of our new baby and the tasty goodness of freshly made Spumoni. Here are the words to the song that is sung to the tune of Auld Lang Syne.

Oh, Labor Day, you day of days,
how dear you are to me.
We'll load the family in the car
and camp out by the sea.
In gray and stormy weather,
or sunny, bright and gay,
I know that you will always be
my favorite holiday.
Whatever you do this Labor Day, take time to make a memory. Sing this little song, you never know who will hear and you may make a new friend.

Friday, August 28, 2009

Sign Up Now For Greenville Classes

We have some incredible teachers for our Greenville, SC show.

Starting on Friday, September 11th, from 11:00 - 1:00 Linda Beyer is teaching The World of Thomas Kincade. She's using acetate transparencies with the Kincade stamps and enhancing the brilliant coloring with a layered technique. You'll complete four cards. The cost is $30.00 and the class level is moderate.

The next class is from 1:30 - 3:30 with Darlene of Stampland. She will show the endless possibilities of adding color to your art with duster brushes and stamp pads. She'll show you how to add depth with her new templates. Cost is $35.00 and this class is for every level.

Linda Beyer is also teaching a second class from 2:00 - 4:00 called "Let It Snow" Shaker Card. You'll use a sno-globe stamp to build a shaker card with clear, glass microbeads. Each student will receive a foam mount and a pre-printed CD that can be attached inside the card and used for photos, music, or home videos of the kids. The cost is $25.00 and the class level is moderate.

Friday night from 6:00 - 8:00 we host our Design & Treasure (Make & Take Class) with four instructors. We have JoLayne of Stamps On Fire, Beth with Endless Creations, Margaret of Sparkle N Sprinkle and Amy with Close To My Heart, bringing you fun activities and a wealth of experience. You will enjoy 30 minutes with each teacher and then we will have some prize drawings before moving to the next project. The cost is $20.00 which includes show admission. If you want to sit at the same table with your friends, please call the office to sigh-up and request the specific seating arrangements. Hurry...the class is filling up!

There are also great workshops happening during the Festival. Here are the scheduled workshops for Saturday:

12:00 - 2:00 ~ 12 Days of Christmas Star Book with Beverly of Terrific Times, the cost is $25.00 and the class level is for everyone. You'll use Penny Black stamps and learn how to use a personal die-cutting machine to enhance your star book.

2:00 - 4:00 ~ Card Fest with Two Girls, the cost is $30.00 and all supplies are provided. You'll create up to 12 quick and easy cards for an afternoon of fun.

3:00 - 4:00 ~ Flip Flop Cards with Beverly of Terrific Times, the cost is $25.00 and the class level is for everyone. You'll receive your own flip flop template and the materials to make several cards.

Sunday Workshops:

12:00 - 2:00 ~ Terryfic Beaded Cards with Beverly of Terryfic Times, the cost is $20.00 and the class level is for everyone. You'll learn the basic beading process that will prepare you to make a hand-embroidered work of art.

1:00 - 3:00 ~ Page Fest with Two Girls. The class cost is $40.00 and the class level is for everyone. You'll work at your own pace to prepare up to 4 double page spreads with Sondra and Kimberly. If you're just getting started in scrapbooking this is a great way to build your confidence.

You can go to www.heirloompro.com to get more details for the classes and workshops. Some pictures are posted to help you make selections, as well as any needed supplies to bring to class.

The teachers will inspire you and the holidays are coming, we all need a little inspiration! So call or go online while there's still room.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Heirloom's 2010 Rubber Stamp & Paper Arts Festivals

Here’s the tour we’ve got planned for our

2010 Festival schedule.

We’ll start out heading south to Grapevine, TX, January 9 & 10. A quick dart west will take us to Riverside, CA on the 16th & 17th. This is Auntie Amy’s home town!

Moving into the month of February we’ll enjoy the southern hospitality of Lawrenceville, GA on the 6th & 7th. A new bay area location is scheduled on the 20th & 21st in Vallejo, CA.

As we’re anticipating the beginning of spring, we feature three shows for March. The first will happen in Indianapolis, IN on the 6th & 7th. We have a new location in the Chicago area, it’s in St. Charles, IL on the 13th & 14th. We wrap up the month in our home state of Oregon, in the wonderful city of Portland on the 20th & 21st.

With great anticipation of the yummy Farmer’s Market in Allentown, PA we will host our show at the Allentown Fairgrounds, April 10th & 11th.

May 15th & 16th we head to Puyallup, WA for our 17th year there.

Another great show of many years is West Springfield, MA and it will be on the first weekend of June as usual, which is the 5th & 6th.

We love Texas so much that we’re making a repeat appearance in July on the 17th & 18th. Yea-hoo!

August brings the Novi, MI show on the 7th & 8th at the Rock Financial Showplace.

We are hoping to do a show in Costa Mesa, CA, on the 11th & 12th of September, so stay tuned. As the leaves begin to turn, we make our way to a new location in Anderson, SC, September 25th & 26th.

We will conclude our travels for the year at Fort Wayne, IN October 2nd & 3rd and York, PA, October 9th & 10th.

We’re very excited about visiting all these areas and seeing the familiar faces of our friends. We look forward to getting acquainted with the folks and experiencing the local flavors of the new locations.

Check the website www.heirloompro.com for specific info as it gets closer to the show dates.