Basic Grey and an RAK ...

If you haven't checked the K2R Krew blog in awhile, you might want to stop on by and have a look-see... you never know what the Krew might be giving away ...

As anyone who knows me knows, I am a big sucker for Basic Grey. I do use it occasionally, but mostly I just collect it... and collect it ... and collect it. I think the newest CHA Summer releases will also soon be added to my collection. You can see it all on the Basic Grey web site, but here is a sampling of Indian Summer, Eerie, Eskimo Kisses and Nook and Pantry:


Fruit Salad from the Nook and Pantry line


Autumn Glaze from the Indian Summer line


Rooftop from the Eskimo Kisses line


Poison from the Eerie line

If you haven't yet participated in the K2R 2nd Anniversary festivities, it's still not too late. We are still looking for Komments, as well as Kontest entries. Here are the details:

Kits2Remember Anniversary Kontest!
We’re looking for a few good scrappers! From now until August 14, we will be accepting emailed entries in to our Kits2Remember Anniversary Kontest. One lucky - and talented - winner will receive a $250 K2R prize package featuring K2R products and more! There are five different categories you can enter your project in to: Acrylic, Metal, Mixed Media, Kits and Rubber Stamps. And the grand prize winner isn’t the only one getting some prizes! One finalist will be chosen from each of the five categories and receive a prize package worth $50. Click here for the Kontest details!

We’re looking for some Komments!
Kits2Remember would love to hear from you! We want some testimonials from real K2R customers who have been inspired by our products, classes and commentary (kommentary?). Comments will attributed to you, with your first name, last initial and home state/country. If you have a comment or two to share, and don’t mind your comment being posted to the Kits2Remember web site, please send them in to: Jessica@ kits2remember.com by August 3, 2009. In the subject line please put: Komments. A random “kommenter” will be chosen to receive an acrylic K2R stadium album and announced by August 7!

Binding away at Scraphappy ...

... Thursday night, 10 ladies gathered at scraphappy here in Pensacola to learn how to use their Bind-it-All machines. Christy, the owner of Scraphappy, really had a great deal: Buy the BiA for $75 (the normal price) and get the class free! So not only did these ladies leave with the machines, but they left knowing how to create four different types of projects with them. Here are two happy ladies - Heather and Natasha, with the projects we made.


We started out with a simple 3 x 4 acrylic album, so the ladies could learn the basics. Then we moved on to an 8 x 8 acrylic and chipboard album, followed by a 4 x 8 gate-fold album, where the book opens in the middle and the bindings are on either side. Last, but not least, was a 3-panel 6 x 6 acrylic wall hanging. This class covers so many techniques and was such a hit with my first 10 "guinea pigs" I am thinking about making this a regular class for local stores and possibly a class online here on K2R....

Week 3 of the K2R Celebration!

It’s Week 3 of the Kits2Remember Anniversary Celebration! Yesterday, K2R celebrated its 2nd Anniversary and I celebrated by messing around in my scrap studio... photos of the finished products to come soon... as soon as I put the finishing touches on them!

Here are some of the fun things coming up this week and beyond:

If you are in or around the Pensacola Area, I am teaching a Bind-it-All class at Scraphappy. Owner Christy loves the tool and has asked me to come and teach her customers the basics... gee, Christy, twist my arm! I'll be sure to take some photos of the stuff we do - we'll be creating four different projects in one evening!

Also, due to a conflicting event in the scrap world here in Western Florida, my stadium album cookbook class at Scraphappy featuring Teresa Collins' Haute Cuisine line has been postponed to August 22. Check out the K2R Calendar for details!




I am also excited that a new scrap store close to me is scheduled to open August 1 - Scrap That here in Pensacola, will be located at the intersection of Sorrento and Blue Angel.

Don't forget to submit your entry in to Kits2Remember Anniversary Kontest! From now until August 14, we will be accepting emailed entries in to our Kits2Remember Anniversary Kontest. One lucky - and talented - winner will receive a $250 K2R prize package featuring K2R products and more! There are five different categories you can enter your project in to: Acrylic, Metal, Mixed Media, Kits and Rubber Stamps. And the grand prize winner isn’t the only one getting some prizes! One finalist will be chosen from each of the five categories and receive a prize package worth $50. Click here for the Kontest details!

We’re also looking for some Komments! Kits2Remember would like some testimonials from real K2R customers who have been inspired by our products, classes and commentary (kommentary?). Comments will attributed to you, with your first name, last initial and home state/country. If you have a comment or two to share, and don’t mind your comment being posted to the Kits2Remember web site, please send them in to: Jessica@ kits2remember.com by July 20, 2009. In the subject line please put: Komments. A random “kommenter” will be chosen to receive an acrylic K2R stadium album and announced by July 23! A huge thanks goes out to those of you have already sent in your Komments!

Find K2R on Facebook! Join the K2R Krew's group and stay on top of the latest and greatest K2R news, events, ideas and more!

My lamp for Creative Escape '09 ...

... I spent a good part of yesterday working on decorating this lamp. The organizers of Creative Escape sent it to me last month to decorate and send back to them. A number of current and former CE instructors have been invited to participate. Why a lamp, you might ask. The theme of this year's event is "Let Your Light Shine!" I decided to incorporate CE's signature colors of pink and green, using My Minds Eye glitter papers, Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist, Heidi Swapp Bling and a collection of flowers and bling brads. I hope I get a chance to see what some of the other instructors have done.




At CE next month, the participants will have an opportunity to bid on their favorite lamps and the proceeds will go to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Association. What a "bright" idea!

Celebrate with the K2R Kontest!

It’s Week 2 of the Kits2Remember Anniversary Celebration! On July 20, K2R will celebrate its 2nd Anniversary and we want to celebrate with YOU! Here are some of the ways you can get in on the fun:

Kits2Remember Anniversary Kontest!
We’re looking for a few good scrappers! From now until August 14, we will be accepting emailed entries in to our Kits2Remember Anniversary Kontest. One lucky - and talented - winner will receive a $250 K2R prize package featuring K2R products and more! There are five different categories you can enter your project in to: Acrylic, Metal, Mixed Media, Kits and Rubber Stamps. And the grand prize winner isn’t the only one getting some prizes! One finalist will be chosen from each of the five categories and receive a prize package worth $50. Click here for the Kontest details!

We’re looking for some Komments!
Kits2Remember would love to hear from you! We want some testimonials from real K2R customers who have been inspired by our products, classes and commentary (kommentary?). Comments will attributed to you, with your first name, last initial and home state/country. If you have a comment or two to share, and don’t mind your comment being posted to the Kits2Remember web site, please send them in to: Jessica@ kits2remember.com by August 3, 2009. In the subject line please put: Komments. A random “kommenter” will be chosen to receive an acrylic K2R stadium album and announced by August 7!

Calling all Calendar girls!
The Kits2Remember Calendar has been updated with new events and classes, so be sure to check it out…

And the discounts continue!
In celebration of K2R’s anniversary, and in appreciation for your patronage, I would like to extend a 15 percent off discount (not good with any other offer besides free shipping) to everyone through 5 p.m. CST July 20, 2009. Just use promo code ann15 and be sure to click through all ordering steps. This discount applies to everything in the store! Also, for every three project kits you purchase, you will receive a surprise project kit FREE! And remember, when you spend $75 or more after discounts and before any taxes, you will get free shipping!

Get inspired!
The K2R Krew is posting away and they have got some great new ideas. Check those out on their blog! You never know when they might be giving away an RAK!

Scraphappy class, Hello Kitty and more ...

... I had a lot of fun tonight teaching a class her at Pensacola's own Scraphappy. It was a basic acrylic class, using Kits2Remember acrylic, of course, so everyone there learned several techniques to use with acrylic: punching holes with the Crop-a-dile, rubber stamping with StazOn ink, foam stamping with acrylic paint and so much more! Here are some photos of the ladies having fun creating:




My next class at Scraphappy is July 23, a Bind-it-All class that includes the Bind-it-All machine with the cost of the class. We'll create four different project configurations with this fabulous tool. This is a class you won't want to miss if the BiA has ever caught your interest!

I just scheduled an August class at Scraphappy: My acrylic cookbook stadium album using the Teresa Collins Haute Cuisine line.


The class will be 1-5 p.m. on Saturday Aug. 8. More details will soon be up on the K2R Calendar.

K2R pal Scrapbook Joe is at it again! He has created some of the most gorgeous acrylic albums I have ever seen over the years. Here is one of his latest: A tribute to Hello Kitty.


Stay tuned to K2R next week, as the 2nd anniversary celebration continues! The Krew and I will be announcing the K2R Kontest, plus there will be some opportunities to randomly win some K2R products and more! An email newsletter will be sent out early next week, plus the news will be here on the blog. If you haven't signed up for the newsletter already, you can do so on the K2R home page.

Anniversary sale, free shipping and Kontest ...

... July is Kits2Remember’s anniversary month! On July 20th two years ago, I purchased the web address for Kits2Remember and began loading merchandise into the online store. Back then, the only products were simply kits I had created that could be used with the Bind-it-All binding machine.

Since then, Kits2Remember has not only added to its collection of project kits (and not just for the Bind-it-All anymore!), but raw products, such as acrylic panels (added in October 2007), chipboard sheets (added in November 2007), metal panels (added in August 2008) and flourish rubber stamps (added in March 2009). And a huge thanks goes out to you, my customers and inspiration … without you Kits2Remember would not be the creative papercrafting and scrapbooking resource it is today!

In celebration of K2R’s anniversary, and in appreciation for your patronage, I would like to extend a 15 percent off discount (not good with any other offer besides free shipping) to everyone through 5 p.m. CST July 20, 2009. Just use promo code ann15 and be sure to click through all ordering steps. This discount applies to everything in the store! Also, for every three project kits you purchase, you will receive a surprise project kit FREE! And remember, when you spend $75 or more after discounts and before any taxes, you will get free shipping!


Next week I will announce the details for the K2R Kontest, where anyone can submit a project they have created with K2R products for the chance to win a prize package worth $250. The K2R Design Krew and I are really excited about the Kontest and can’t wait to see the projects submitted!

In preparation for CHA Summer ...

... The 2009 Craft and Hobby Association summer show is in Orlando at the end of the month, so many of the scrapbook store owners here in the Southeast are planning a pilgrimage to this industry event to see what our favorite manufacturers are coming out with next. As a member of CHA, I have been getting a mailbox full of invitations from the CHA organizers, themeseves, and from some of the manufacturers who plan to exhibit there. The most interesting invitation so far has been a chipboard puzzle from a Canadian company called Harmonie, who, oddly enough, specializes in laser-cut chipboard embellishments. I was so intrigued I thought I should share it here:

Stampin' Up and Kits2Remember ...

... Richard Garay is a Stampin' Up demonstrator in Hesperia, Calif., and he was kind enough to email over a couple of the projects he has created with Kits2Remember acrylic and Srampin' Up product. If you're a fan of rubber stamping, these are some gorgeous project sure to inspire you! Wanna see more of his work? Visit him online at www.thefunstamperscorner.com.

Scrappy stuff this week ...

... sometimes life just gets in the way of good blogging time! With my hubby's birthday this weekend, summer visits from friends and just life in general, I haven't had much time to process photos and post them this week! I promise to do better! But here's what happened in the world of Kits2Remember this week:

Craft night at my house Monday night: Some Pensacola moms got together at my house to create and some of them wanted quick lessons on the K2R metal message boards, Stickles and Ranger paint dabbers. We had a great time!






Thursday night I taught the "Men in My Life" class at Scraphappy here in Pensacola. It's a great 8 x 8 mixed media album that is a companion to last month's "The Women in My Life" 8 x 8 album. Leftover its for both classes are available in the K2R store.




While I was at Scraphappy, owner Christy was busy with some of the K2R acrylic flags. I paused during class to see what she was doing with them and check these cute embellishments out:



If you want to create something cute for the 4th of July next weekend, order these acrylic flags by Sunday and you will have them no later than Thursday!

Need some more inspiration? Don't forget to check out the K2R Design Krew's blog!

Happy 5th Anniversary, Gigi!

Today I had the pleasure of teaching my "Great Times, Good Memories" 8 x 8 acrylic album class at Gigi's Scrapbookin' and More in Foley, Alabama (Orange Beach/Gulfport area). Gigi (also known as Gina) and her staff were celebrating their 5th anniversary with a couple dozen of their customers and she was kind enough to invite me to come and teach the class. It was great to be among my scrappy "peeps" again, and managed to get about 10 layouts done, as well!


Gigi's regular, Lenora, and GiGi, herself, getting ready to punch and bind.


"Start on 'C' ... start on 'C' ..."


Croppers hard at work ...


I love how the store embraces the local beach tourism with seashore decor ... including an umbrella and thatched tables full of new product (have you seen the new Jenni Bowlin and Crate Paper lines? Fun stuff!).

On to Florida ...

Once we left Savannah Thursday morning, we headed toward Jacksonville, Florida, so we could catch I-10 West to Tallahassee, the state capital. In Jacksonville, I only had time to stop at one store, so I went with the one listed first on the Google search I did for the area. The Crop Shoppe is a fabulous scrapbook store, even Rodney was impressed. I could have done some serious damage to my wallet there, but the highway was calling, so I buzzed around the huge store as quickly as possible ...



After my short shopping spree, we headed for Tallahassee, arriving at about supper time. There had been a scrapbook store on my list to visit in that city, Scrapbook Market, but I had found out at the Crop Shoppe that the same owner owned both stores and the Scrapbook Market had recently closed. Unfortunately, store closures seem to be a trend right now, and I often called stores on my Google lists to find the numbers disconnected.

But we did see Rodney's buddy, Rick, and his girlfriend, Michelle while we were there. Rick and Rodney had been stationed at MCAS Yuma when I met Rodney in 1999.


We arrived back in Pensacola Friday at about 4:30 p.m. As it turned out Chris, our friend we visited in North Carolina, was in Biloxi, Mississippi, for his training and drove over to visit us this time. I tortured the men by making them go see "The Proposal" (they both said it wasn't as bad as they feared - we all laughed through it) and then we turned in for the night. I had to wake up at 7:30 a.m. so I could head over to Gigi's Scrapbookin' and More in Foley, Alabama, to teach at her 5th Anniversary crop!

Good-bye South Carolina, hello Savannah!

Wednesday morning dawned and it was time to leave South Carolina. We thought about spending more time with my cousin, Marianne, and her family, and skipping our day in Savannah, but we decided to stay on schedule. Besides, we had been staying in Marianne's oldest daughter's room and I am sure Alyssa was happy to have her room (and bathroom!) back again! So, we loaded our stuff up into the Explorer again, and went out to the stable to pick up the dogs.


Before Rodney would let Marble and Ripley into the car, he insisted they have a bath.


Marianne's 24-year-old Keiger mustang, Neva, appeared to want to help. Then we discovered, once we got out of her direct path, she was just waiting patiently for us to move so she could get to her water barrel - despite the fact she could have gone around us!

After seeing some more of Florence, and having a last lunch with the Ralphs, we jumped on to I-95 for a few hours, hit some traffic after a lumber truck spilled its load on the highway, and got in to Savannah a little later than I had wanted. I had planned to go on a tour of downtown Savannah, but, unfortunatelky for me, there was a huge Girl Scout conference going on and they hapoened to have books every evening tour that day. We walked around Savannah a little bit, but it was 87 degrees, wuth humidity, so after a short while, all we wanted was some air conditioning! But befre we escaped to a bar along River Street, I snapped a few photos of some of the historic buildings:


The Savannah City Hall is at the end of Bull Street, so all the bull leads to city hall...


The Savannah Cotton Exchange used to have a beautiful fountain in front of it, but it was destoryed by a drunk driver last year.


The shops and restaurants along the river is where we sought refuge from the heat and humidity before we decided to take a Ghost Tour of Savannah. We were a bit disappointed in the tour. The guide did not have too many stories to tell, often got the facts wrong and didn't try to make the tour at all scary or spooky. Oh well... Rodney promised me we would go back to Savannah at some point so I could tour the area better.

Thursday morning, we got up, packed up and started to head toward Jacksonville, FL (the second Jacksonville on our trip!), ending up in Tallahassee to visit a friend of Rodney's. Before we left Savannah, there was just one stop we just HAD to make:


I actually made a little album from a Bass Pro Shop Outdoor World gift card tin for Rodney. We have taken a picture of Rodney in front of each of the ones he has been to, and then I add them to the mini album, along with the date he first visited that store. A hunter's shopping history documented!

Fortunately for me, the Outdoor World was attached to a mall that also had an AC Moore craft store inside of it. I had never been to an AC Moore before, so I just had to go in and take a peek.



AC Moore had all the scrapbooking staples, and I love the way they display their paper, but I noticed that the prices seemed to be a little bit higher there than at other craft stores I frequent. Of course, I did not check all of the products, so it may have just been my impression. I still have to say that my favorite of the big box craft stores is Hobby Lobby, ad I am lucky enough to have one in Pensacola. If you haven't been to one and have a chance to go, it's a must-do!

Darling Darlington ...

Being a fellow scrapbooker, my cousin, Marianne, was happy to take me to the local scrapbook store in the larger town of Florence, South Carolina, with our hussbands and her two daughters in tow. Florence is just south of Darlington. Scrapbook Concepts had all the scrapbooking staples, patterned papers and embellishments a scrapbooker could hope for, but with the added bonus of an abundance of racing and NASCAR themed items - appropriate due to the store's proximity to Darlington Speedway, of course.




After touring Florence and eating at the Five Guys restaurant (think California's In N Out in the South - quite tasty!) We headed out in Marianne's husband, John's 1955 Chevy Bel Air for a local museum, produce market and bakery called Mac's.



Inside the museum of sorts was a huge collection of antiques, cars, furniture, collectibles and more.




I just HAD to take this picture of the antique and contemporary phones together ...


We headed back to the Rock-N-Horse Ranch ... it was time to feed the horses! Buttercup, a palomino quarterhorse, came to the ranch pregnant last year and had her filly, Clover, the day after St. Patrick's Day.


And, last but not least, a good steak dinner among family at the end of a busy day!