Deb's Inspiration

Shrink plastic bunnies

2012-01-18T16:39:00.000-05:00

So I fell in love with the new Bunny die from Sizzix that Tim holtz designed and immediately thought, " how cute would that be shrunk down for a charm?" So today I took out my Shrink Plastic, Alcohol Inks and UTEE.

After cutting the bunny out of clear shrink plastic twice, I used the Ranger Alcohol Ink applicator to color them with Espresso ink and Gold Mixative.
If you plan to use them as charms you have to punch a hole before you shrink them. One my first one I used a standard 1/4" punch but found the hole to be too big so instead I used a 1/8" punch for these guys.

I used a wooden skewer through the punched hole to keep the piece from blowing away while I heated it with my heat gun. That part always freaks me out because it twists and turns and folds up on itself. But when it is done it will flatten out more or less. I used an acrylic stamp block to flatten it completely before it cooled.

Here you can see the difference before and after shrinking it. The bow was also cut out of shrink plastic. I used my Copic markers to color it before shrinking since it was such a small piece I didn't feel like getting out more felt for the applicator! On my finished ones I also used a tiny Hero Arts stamp of stars to stamp with Archival Ink.

I used Glossy Accents to attach bows, but before I did, I decided I liked the shiny side of the bunny (the un-inked side) better so I decided to dip the bunnies into my melting pot with Clear UTEE. However, I must confess, I did a very bad thing... After I started heating the UTEE in the pot I got distracted...Can you imagine? Me? Distracted?
Anyway, I kinda forgot it was heating so when I got back to it it had started to turn brown. The color was like a light amber maple syrup so I figured, why waste it. I dipped the bunnies and they looked awesome! Once they cooled I glued the bows on and attached an Idea-ology Swivel Clasp. Pretty cute huh?

2012- Celebrating 10 years at The Inspiration Station

2012-01-15T09:18:00.000-05:00

Yes. Ten years. Seriously. I have been doing this for ten years. Who would have thought? Never, in my wildest dreams, did I think that I would stick with this for ten years when I had the crazy idea to open a store post 9-11.

The store has taken on a life of it's own and is nothing like I envisioned when I started; but that's a good thing! Some of you have been with me for the entire ride and for that I THANK YOU. I am amazed, almost daily, by how things have grown and changed. I was talking to someone the other day trying to explain what the initial concept of The Inspiration Station was. Do you remember? I was fully immersed in the world of seed beads and peyote stitch jewelry. I was selling my creations at craft fairs and wanted a more permanent place to display them. I wanted to INSPIRE people to make their own beautiful creations. So they could come to the store and purchase my stuff or buy the supplies to make their own. It was all about inspiring creativity.

Right about now some of you who are newer patrons of the store may be saying "beads? jewelry? What on earth is she talking about?" Yes, The Inspiration Station began as a bead store. I actually considered having the music in the store be Native American flute music to create atmosphere (can you imagine?). Scrapbooking as an industry was just beginning to take off and I brought a few things in just to have some diversity, read: pay the bills. I knew absolutely NOTHING about rubberstamps and had no plans to go in that direction.

Opening day was a complete shock. We actually had crowds of people! Of course, I think many of them just came for the free food, but still... I had a slight panic attack wondering what I had just gotten myself into. This was going to be my little happy place where people would buy stuff to support my habit and I could sit in the classroom and work on my creative pursuits! How many people think that is what it's all about? The snowball had started to roll down hill and I had to choose whether to get serious about running a business or a very expensive hobby.

I learned very quickly that I really enjoyed inspiring people and talking to them and seeing their projects. I met some of the greatest people. My greatest feeling of satisfaction comes when someone walks through the door and their eyes light up with delight, like a kid in a candy store, and they say "Oh my goodness, look at this place!" - Like walking into Disney World. Ok, so maybe it's not Disney World; but seriously, when someone comes in for the first time who has never been to an independent scrapbook/papercrafts store it is something magical. That is what keeps me going even when the roof leaks, the toilet backs up or I get the bill for the latest oil delivery.

So what I am trying to say in this long and rambling post is THANK YOU. Thank you for feeding my creative spirit. Thank you for supporting this crazy idea for all of these years. Thank you for your friendship. Thank you for the inspiration I need to continue on this journey.

Cheryl Mezzetti - Special Guest Instructor

2011-12-29T08:38:00.000-05:00

Join us in welcoming Cheryl Mezzetti to the Inspiration Station on Saturday, January 14th. This is the first time Cheryl has been to visit and we plan to have a fabulous time.

Cheryl will teach two classes, How to build a Snowman from 10am-12:30pm

And Luminarte Devotion Journal from 1pm-3:30pm

Each class is $35 and will have loads of techniques to inspire you. There is a required materials list available for each class and we will have some of those items packaged as Student kits for those of you who may not already have them. Student kits must be ordered at the time of sign up to be sure we have enough on hand.

CHERYL MEZZETTI'S BIO

Cheryl Mezzetti is an accomplished designer and artist who has been working in the paper arts industry for several years. She is the current Education Director and Design Team Coordinator for Creative Imaginations and a product designer for Accucut Craft. Cheryl is currently working on a book showcasing her artwork that is scheduled to release in 2012. She has shared her talents at many stores and venues across the United States, as well as Canada and Europe.

Cheryl's creations have been published in several scrapbooking and paper crafting publications, including Scrapbook Trends, Scrapbooking & Beyond, Paper Trends, Correspondence Art, Paper Creations, Paper Works, Better Homes & Gardens and Paper Art. Her designs have also been featured in idea books from Making Memories to Paperhouse Productions.

Tim Holtz Tags - Day 7

2011-12-14T09:27:00.001-05:00

So I missed a few days- more like a week - but hey, I'm still working on it!

This tag is based on Tim Holtz day 7. I love his tag and mine's not bad. I had to make a few substitutions and I will probably go back and add a few more Holly leaves, it just doesn't look as full as his, but overall I'm happy to have gotten another done.
Here's Tim's:

Tim Tag Day 2

2011-12-04T09:01:00.001-05:00

When I first saw Tim's tag on day 2, I thought it would be relatively simple. That was until I discovered that I had absolutely NONE of the items he used at home except the Picket Fence Distress stain. So what should have been a simple re-creation turned into a long night as I tried to find substitutions. I didn't even have a small strip of burlap, which I still think it needs- so I may continue to make a few adjustments. Here's what I came up with:

I substituted Tim's "everyday" Kraft resist paper for the holiday one. I used a Lifestyle Crafts
reindeer die because I didn't have Tim's. I used white sticky back canvas stained with Antique Linen stain in place of the natural canvas. I put holly on the deer instead of a wreath because my attempt at making a wreath with what I had was pathetic. No on the edge border die so I improvised with the Vintage lace and some chipboard. I did have twine, but no burlap or suitable charms, so I found some green twill and a piece of an earring. What do you think?

Here is Tim's tag:

Inspired by day 3

2011-12-03T20:16:00.001-05:00

Yes, I know I skipped day 2...don't worry - it's coming! But Day 3 was very similar to a card I made just the other day so I wanted to post this in the meantime. Now I'm heading off to work on day 2.

Tim Tags Day One

2011-12-01T19:22:00.001-05:00

I'm going to try to keep up but there are no guarantees!

Tim Holtz posted the first tag of twelve for 2011 this morning and thankfully, between me and Donna we had almost all the right supplies to re-create it. The only thing I changed was the addition of the vintage lace die cut along the bottom because I placed my "cluster" of greenery too high and it looked like too much space at the bottom. I also used wide Score-tape to adhere the vintage glass glitter instead of the liquid adhesive...much less mess!

Time for Tim's 12 Tags of Christmas

2011-11-30T09:46:00.001-05:00

Yes, it's the "Most wonderful time of the year"... Time for Tim Holtz to start of the holiday season by creating a crafting frenzy around the world with his 12 Tags of Christmas. And of course, his assistant/business manager Mario will be tweeting his BTS (Behind the Scenes) photos once again. I have been following along with time since he started in 2007 and I think Mario started the BTS tweets about 2 years ago. I remember he actually crashed Twitter that first year because there was so much activity!

If you are new to crafting, you may be wondering what all the fuss is about. Well, for many, myself included, Tim Holtz is the Crafting King - the God of Grunge - and the Titan of Tags. Back in 2007, he started creating a tag each day in December as an inspiration to his fans. The series was so successful that he continued it the next year. Each year the number of people following and commenting on the posts has grown exponentially! Where he may have gotten a few hundred comments per post the first year, now he literally gets THOUSANDS of posts. He creates each tag from scratch each day with a deadline to post on his blog by Midnight PST. He says he does his best work under pressure and I agree! I used to wake up each morning and make a cup of tea before logging on to see what he created, but since Mario began the whole BTS thing it is so much fun to follow along that I end up staying up way too late every night to get a glimpse of the magic.

To get an idea of the type of magic he creates watch this video:

If you would like to play along (and I HIGHLY recommend that you do!) here are some basic supplies you should plan to have on hand:

#8 Manila Tags (or other surface)
Ranger non-stick Craft Sheet
Ink Blending Tool & extra Foam Applicators
Various colors of Distress Ink (there is a new Limted Edition Holiday set I am sure he will be using)
Stickles - plan on Icicle or Crystal, Rock Candy, Christmas Red, Gold, & Silver to make an appearance.
Glossy Accents & Studio Matte Medium
Wonder Tape
Archival Ink (Black and maybe Sepia or Coffee)

I'm sure MANY other Ranger and Sizzix & Ideology products will be used as well and I will do my best to keep them all in stock throughout the 12 Days. You are welcome to call The Inspiration Station (860-684-2641) to have us pull any of the items you may need so you can pick them up. Because of the demand we will only HOLD products until the following day so be sure to stock up. You don't want to be out of anything when the MAGIC happens!

Hero Arts Catalog Debut & Holiday Extravaganza

2011-11-20T11:46:00.001-05:00

Have you heard? This year we are combine the Hero Arts Catalog Debut with our Luminarte demonstration and Make & Takes. This means one big 'ole party on December 17th at The Inspiration Station!

Our friend Karyn, will be showing you some great tips for using Luminarte products (Twinkling H2Os, Radiant Rain and more) with your stamps to make some amazing projects. Since the new Hero Arts catalog will be here along with an assortment of their new stamps, you will also get to see how these two products can work together while doing a FREE make & take tag. As a bonus, you will be able to pre-order any stamp from the 2012 Hero Arts catalog before it is released to the public! If you pre-order and pre-pay for your stamps that day we will take 10% off of your order.

Join us Saturday, Dec17th for a full day of fun and festivities. We'll have cookies & hot cocoa along with holiday music to really make it a party. Oh, and prizes- we can't forget prizes! Don't miss it.

Sale- Today only!

2011-11-06T08:53:00.000-05:00

We all need a little retail therapy to cheer us once in a while and after the week we've had, today seems like a great day for it! Come in today and take 25% off your entire purchase!

If you are still without power, as many of our Stafford and Vernon customers are, feel free to bring your phones and laptops in for charging and as a bonus we have FREE Wi-Fihere.

Power is back!

2011-11-04T09:52:00.001-05:00

The power is back at The Inspiration Station after 7 days of cold, darkness. None of us have power at home yet, but downtown Stafford is back among the living. If you need a place to warm up or charge your cell phones or laptops come on in. We have hot cocoa too (sorry no coffee because we had to throw out all the milk).

The Christmas Card Class for Sunday has been rescheduled to Sunday Nov. 13th since Donna still does not have power and is not able to prepare for the class.

The Scrapping for Scouting Crop will still be held tomorrow (Nov 5th) at ECSU in the Betty Tipton room of the Student Center. Door open at 8:00am. Walk in are welcome. Cost is $55 and includes a $10 food voucher.

There is still time to register for next weekend'swith Special Guest Instructor:

Sally Lynn MacDonald.

Sally Lynn is nationally known for her work with Copic Markers, Tattered Angels, Art-C, and more. The list of credits to her name is never-ending. She travels and teaches all over the country and has been seen on HGTV. We are fortunate to have her visit us on occasion to share her love of all things colorful and inky. Join us for the following classes.

NEW ARRIVALS:

The latest Magnolia Ink magazine has arrived and we just received the most adorable MINI Magnolias too!

Tim Holtz Limited Edition Holiday Ink sets are here, if you missed the Fall set we have a few of those available too.

Black Friday is almost here. Instead of fighting the crowds at the mall, why not come in to The Inspiration Station and have a relaxing day of crafting fun?

Join us from 10am-6pm to work on whatever crafty projects you need to get done before the holidays; stamp out your Christmas cards, make up some gift albums or recipe books, create personalized gift tags or just catch up of your scrapping. We'll even provide lunch so you can just relax and create. Space is limited so register today. $25.00
Sign Up before November 7th and only pay $22

Special Guest Instructor

2011-10-14T07:31:00.002-05:00

Classes with Special Guest Instructor:

Sally Lynn Mac Donald

November 12, 2011 10:00am - noon

Mixed-Media “She Art” on a 9”x12” Canvas Board $35.00

In this workshop we will use Art-C mixed-media products for a lovely ‘She Art’ project. We will develop our project using the brand new ‘Let’s Face It! Stencils, layered collage elements, canvas colorables’ images with mixed-media coloring and dimensional techniques. Learn color tinting and washes with acrylic paint, Copic Markers, graphite and using modeling paste with stencils. Students will receive a handout with full instructions and tips for developing their own mixed-media creations. This workshop was taught at the Summer CHA trade show in Chicago!

Please bring: Scissors, Wet Adhesive (Beacon 3-in-1 highly recommended)

November 12, 2011 12:30pm - 2:30pm

Botanical Mixed-Media Exploration Art Journal $45.00

Finish off the day with a mixed-media exploration. You will learn how to use layers of texture, color and collage in creating an art journal. We’ll spend our time creating a technique-a-palooza of backgrounds with color washes of acrylic paint and mica sprays, drawing, painting, resist, composition and design with stencils. We’ll create texture with modeling paste and other mediums. You will leave class with backgrounds for a multi-page art journal that you will love!

Please bring: Scissors, White gel pen, White or kneaded eraser, Wet Adhesive (Beacon 3-in-1 highly recommended), a large acrylic block (at least 4” wide and tall). Optional: Tweezers.

Please note: seats are limited and classes with guest instructors are non-refundable.

So many ideas- so little time!

2011-10-05T07:21:00.003-05:00

There are so many great ideas for projects floating around, and even more stuck in my head. I have a ton of things I want to make, just for myself, and a few things I would love to teach classes for but I just can't seem to fit the time into my schedule.

I did finally make an ATC Tray for Christmas that I have wanted to do ever since I saw the Simple Stories 25 Days of Christmas line at CHA in Chicago.

I really love the lines from Simple Stories and they have just released a new line called Year-o-logy that will be shipping very shortly. I would like to teach a class using it called "Scrapbooking Simplified" where we create an album for the new year all in one day and then you can add you photos each month as you take them. I have tentatively scheduled it for Saturday, January 21, 2012. If you are interested in it please let me know either via email or in the comments section so I can judge the interest. I need to work up the supply list to see how much the materials cost before I can tell you a price.

The next crop will be an All-Day crop on Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving) - Call to register now so you are sure to have a seat.

The other big idea I had was to have a Christmas Cookie Swap & Crop. The idea is to have everyone print 12 copies of your favorite Holiday cookie recipe onto white or cream cardstock so they can be cut to 3x5 size. I will create a template for that. Each participant will bring a plate of cookies using that recipe to share. At the crop we will create a cute recipe book using the Unibind system. I'm not sure whether I should offer this on an evening during the week or on a Saturday afternoon- It will be in December and that is such a hard time to work around holiday activities. Again, if you are interested, let me know which would be best for you. I will go with the majority on this one.

Send your email comments to Inspirationsta@aol.com and let me know what you think.

Fun weekend

2011-10-04T17:52:00.003-05:00

A great big thank you to everyone who came out on Sunday for our Unibind Event; and a very special Thank You to Ken Oliver for sharing all of his ideas for making these awesome little books. A few people brought their own paper to make some special books. Just look at the cute Football book our friend Cody made.

His Mom, Patty, came totally prepared and made this gorgeous album.

Play time!

2011-09-16T13:50:00.005-05:00

Every now and then I get trapped in my house because one of my kids needs my car...today was one of those days. The good news is that I had a chance to play with my inks and stains and mists. For the record, I love watercolor paper. Ever since Dave Brethauer was here and showed us how to use watercolors and twinkling H2O's I have been experimenting with the paper and different mediums. I have also fallen madly in love with the Unibind for making books. So last night I decided to create an Art Journal with the Unibind and watercolor paper. I decided to title it "My Mind's Playground" since it will become the place for me to "play" with my favorite stuff.
On the title page, I printed some of my favorite fun "pins" from Pinterest. Then I layered Distress Ink, Radiant Rain, and white acrylic paint. Love the way it looks like a graffiti covered wall.

When I created the journal I had a bunch of half inch strips of watercolor paper left over because the cover is 8.5" x 11" and watercolor paper is 9x12. One of the things that I learned while playing is that watercolor paper takes the Distress Stains beautifully. The colors are bright and vibrant and well, gorgeous. I colored each half inch strip with a different color (Barn Door, Wild Honey, Peeled Paint, Broken China and Dusty Concord). Once they dried I used a 4.5" piece of Sookwang tape (Score Tape) to piece them all together into a rainbow stripe. I used to do quilting and the first real quilt I made was a pattern called "Trip around the world" using a strip piecing method. So I did the same thing with the paper.

Once the paper quilt was complete I covered the entire piece with Versamark Ink and embossed it with two layers of UTEE. I cannot even tell you how beautiful this is in real life. The photos do not do it justice. I put in it a cute white frame I picked up at Ikea and it will eventually hang in my craft room. That is IF our house ever gets built...

Want to see whats new?

2011-09-14T09:09:00.004-05:00

I think one of each of these is coming home with me!

Benefit crop for Boy Scouts

2011-09-13T21:05:00.003-05:00

Scrapping for Scouting
Saturday, Nov 5, 2011
8am-8pm
at Eastern CT University, Willimantic, CT

An all-day Scrapbook event to benefit The CT Rivers Council of the Boy Scouts at Eastern CT State University.

Raffles, Door Prizes, Vendors, Make & Takes, snacks & refreshments. Food Court available and admission includes a $10 food voucher.

Sponsorships and vendor space available.

Visit the website to register for this all day crop.
Advertising opportunities are available as well.

Remodelling- day one

2011-08-28T12:55:00.001-05:00

The plan was simple enough. Close the store from Sunday to Wednesday to re-arrange all of the fuxtures. We would have all the men come on Sunday to do the heavy lifting and finish everything else over the next three days.

Unfortunatley, Irene had other plans. Hurricane Irene, that is. forecasters predicted a direct hit on us for Sunday so plans had to change. Saturday night would be the time to start. We began moving things into the classroom and emptying fixtures during the afternoon hours and by the time the store closed at five O'clock the guys were taking things apart.

By the time we left later that night the major pieces were in place but every thing else was shoved to the center of the store creating a chaotic mess. We will be back first thing Monday morning- if we have power to start re-building the store. Hopefully I will get a few pictures up to show you then.

Memory Box Classes

2011-08-16T08:53:00.005-05:00

It was a dreary, rainy day outside but inside we were enjoying the talents of Dave Brethauer from Memory Box Stamps.

Dave came all the way from Seattle (I think the rain followed him) and brought loads of fun stamps & dies and showed a very full classroom of ladies how to use colored pencils and watercolors. There was no room in the class for me, but I enjoyed listening to his soothing voice and fun stories from the road while working behind the counter. He was sweet, gracious and very well organized even after being on the road with two teenagers and two dogs for the past eight weeks! As I told him, I would not have lasted eight hours on the road with my crew!

I look forward to having him visit again, perhaps next summer.

Fall Classes

2011-08-07T09:26:00.004-05:00

Just a quick post to show off some class samples:

Christmas cards: Aug 25thCard Club August 23rdAugust Layout Club - Aug. 17th
Christmas Configurations- October

Dog Days of Summer

2011-08-07T09:04:00.002-05:00

It's been a hot one this year and August is traditionally known as the "Dog Days of Summer"; so we'd like to play with that idea.

DOG DAY OF SUMMER CONTEST!!!
Go to our Facebook Page and post your favorite photo of your canine companion. Make it cute, funny, charming - whatever- just get it up there. Then share the link with your family and friends and ask them to "like" it. The photo with the most "likes" will be our winner and the person who posted it will win a great prize basket from the Inspiration Station!

Details: Post your photo on OUR Facebook page by August 20th- voting will begin from the time you post and be open until August 27th. The photo with the most "Likes" at 9:00pm on August 27th will be the winner. If there is a tie- we will post the pics with the most votes and have a tie breaker round on Saturday, August 28th for 12 hours.

Only "likes" that appear on OUR page will be counted.

The winner will be announced on Sunday, August 28th at 9:00pm. Prize basket will be available for pick up when we re-open on Thursday, Sept 1st following our remodel.

Good Luck!

Rolling along

2011-08-02T18:52:00.002-05:00

We are inching closer to our planned renovation of the store and many of my CHA purchases are starting to arrive. It really has us itching to start moving things NOW! So forgive us if we are rearranging things on any given day, we are just so impatient.

Lots going on at The Inspiration Station

2011-07-30T10:28:00.004-05:00

Hi Everybody!

Just a quick update to let you all know about all of the great things going on here at the store.

As most of you know that Copic is increasing the MSRP of their Sketch Markers to $6.99 as of August 1. We have stocked up and are going to HOLD our price at $6.49 until September 1st to give you a chance to stock up.

If you read our CHA recap you know that I went a bit overboard in the ordering dept again. I can't help myself! There was so much good stuff I could pass things up. Many of the things I ordered have started to mak their way into the store, which was poor planning on my part since I was trying to clear things out so we could remodel...

A new company for us is Authentique. They have unbelievably beautiful papers and we just received their Halloween line, Glowing, and their Christmas line, Wonder. Gorgeous stuff and selling fast.

I have received shipping notices from Impression Obsession and Heartfelt Creations so those will be in by next week. Some very cute new Honey Pop stamps came in from Inky Antics already along with new colors of Honeycomb paper.

I am working on the September calendar and hope tho have it printed Monday or Tuesday. People are asking me to add in a Melt Art class and I need to see how I can fit it in if I also do a Zentangle class and a Coloring with Copics... Just not enough hours in a day!

Don't forget: We will be closing from Sunday, August 28- Wednesday, August 31 for renovations. I am very excited for some of the changes.

We're back from CHA in Chicago

2011-07-23T14:00:00.004-05:00

When we left we thought 6 days was going to be plenty of time to see everything. Wrong! We were so busy the whole time we felt like we were rushed on the last day to try and get things done.

Our adventure began on Saturday morning as we flew out of Hartford at 7 am. We did some Zentangles on the plane and the flight went by quickly. After some initial confusion at the airport looking for the shuttle, we made it to our hotel and thankfully we were able to check in early. Only one problem, I had booked a room with 2 full sized beds but all they had was rooms with a single King sized bed. Now I love Donna; but I don't want to sleep with her! They did bring up a roll away bed but still; I was not pleased. Why bother making a reservation months in advance if you are not going to get what you reserved? Well, at least we didn't have the Godzilla Festival at our hotel like someone I know did.

Saturday afternoon was spent at a training session with Spellbinders where we learned all about the company and new products, got to dance a bit and even got samples of some new dies!

Sunday we attended Craft Mania which is an exclusive presentation for Crafter's Home member stores. From 8am to 5:30pm we saw vendor after vendor... I was a very long day, but still awesome. I learned about several new companies, got catalogs from everyone, and lots of free samples of product. I even one a drawing for some Graphic 45 Christmas stuff!. We only had half an hour for dinner (had pizza delivered to our room) and then headed back for a vendor faire, where we were able to do some make & takes and talk personally with the vendors. Until about 9pm. We placed a few orders for stamps; Heartfelt Creations and Penny Black, and then walked back to our hotel and crashed for the night. Thankfully, there was an enclosed walkway from our hotel to the convention center so we never had to leave the air conditioning. Temps hovered around 100 degrees the whole time we were there.

Monday was classes all day for both of us. The Melt Art class with Tim Holtz was excellent. We made a bunch of projects and Ranger generously gave us all Melting Pots and several bottles of UTEE. My favorite part was playing with the Mold & Pour. Mold & Pour allows you to make a mold from anything you can squish into it in about five minutes. For the class we molded a Tim Holtz accoutrement button (so we can now make lots more from the mold with UTEE), but I also molded a Vintaj pendant. I am now scouting around looking to see what else I can make molds of!

I also had a Hero Arts workshop with Jennifer McGuire and Sheri Carroll. They are both such wonderfully talented ladies and a lot of fun too. We made 4 holiday cards and Hero Arts generously provided us with several clear stamps and some shadow inks.

We managed to eat enough sampled food from the Taste of Rosemont event that we didn't need to get dinner that night. Donna found cherry mojitos, lobster and crab dip while I stuck to deep-dish pizza, sloppy joes, and mini meatball subs.

Tuesday was the start of the Trade Show. We waited for the crowds to go in and then headed in and went nuts taking pictures of displays. We also had some classes on Tuesday but I actually missed one of the business classes because I was so wrapped up in a demonstration. We chose not do do many make & takes at the show since already we were concerned about how to fit all we had into our suitcases. We did get a couple of very cool Tim Holtz Aprons which he autographed for us though. I also ran into Suzanne Dean and was able to chat with her for a few minutes.

By evening we were tired and hungry so we grabbed a cab with a few friends and headed to a Mexican restaurant for dinner & drinks. I think all of the CHA vendors did the same thing because the place was packed! Lucky for us we had called ahead. Luckier for us it was $20 pitcher Margaritas! Just the thing we needed. We ate drank and laughed (oh, how we laughed).

Donna cursed me Wednesday morning since I had signed her up for a 7am class with Cheryl Mezzetti; she loved the class - hated the wake up call. My first class was at 9am then we had a quick run through the show floor before a mixed media class with Mou Saha at noon. We grabbed a late lunch at the hotel then ran back to the show. CHA sponsored a buffet dinner and music show in the evening and had a photographer there so we could dress up as Divas. What a sight we were!
Thursday was the final day of the show. I met with my sales rep to put in my orders first thing in the morning and then Donna & I packed up a bunch of boxes to ship home and jammed our luggage so full we could barely lift it. We dropped our luggage off with the bellman and went back to the show to take pictures of anything we might have missed. The show closed at 4pm so we headed to the airport to avoid the rush as everyone else checked out. The only problem was that our flight didn't leave until 10pm. We went into Chili's for dinner and the fish bowl sized Margarita just about did me in. It was a very long night. Thankfully, Donna's wonderful husband, Paul, came to pick us up at the airport at 1am.

Yes, it was fun. Yes, I bought a lot of new stuff - maybe too much. And Yes, I am exhausted. Next week we will be marking down more paper and such to make room for the incoming. Please come in and get what you want before it is all gone. We still have a few seats in the Memory Box classes on August 15th with Special Guest, Dave Brethauer; if you are interested please call the store to register. We will be closed the last week of August (from Sunday to Wednesday) to rearrange the store.

Happy Fourth of July

2011-07-04T12:03:00.003-05:00

Wishing you all a wonderful Independence Day!

Tomorrow we will be back at work - I have extended the Backroom Blowout Sale through Tuesday since there is still so much stuff left! Come in and pick up some bargains and help us move stuff out to prepare for the new.

The Memory Box - "What's in the Box" shipment arrived and we will be putting it all out. There are some amazing stamps and dies in the collection and you know Dave B will be using them in his classes when he come on August 15th. There are still a few seats available if you would like to join him.

Coming up this week is the Zentangle Basics class on Thursday night and the Fun Friday Crop on Friday night. There are 2 seats available in each if you call tomorrow you can join me.

Back Room Blowout Sale

2011-06-29T07:31:00.002-05:00

We are overwhelmed with how much "stuff" we have in this store! We are desperate to move some of it out so we can remodel in August. Will you help us?

Starting Friday (July 1) and for 3 days only we will have a ton of "stuff" in the classroom priced to SELL. Yes, much of it we will be taking a loss on; but we really need to free up space! You know, paper is really heavy when you try to move displays.

Don't miss this opportunity to stock up. It's a great way to get supplies for your kids summer activities too. 10am Friday through 4 pm Sunday ONLY.

Sad news

2011-06-21T07:13:00.003-05:00

We have recently learned that two scrapbook stores in Massachusetts will be closing their doors at the end of summer. It is sad to know that the economy has taken its toll on two more independent retailers.

We are still here, fighting the poor economy with everything we have! Please tell all of your friends in MA that we are open and can provide them with all of the products they need once their local stores are gone. We are just over the MA line and worth a road trip.

Hot Summer Sale

2011-06-17T08:58:00.002-05:00

Yes, We are OPEN on Sunday (Father's Day).

In case you missed our newsletter this week:
***Sale Alert***

As we get ready to head off to Chicago next month for the Craft & Hobby Association Summer trade show, our minds are swirling with ideas for what we will do with all of the new stuff we will be bringing back. When our minds start swirling - look out! One thing usually leads to another and soon we are off on some new project. This time I'm thinking store remodel.

Have you ever thought about rearranging your craft room and then gotten totally overwhelmed thinking about all of the stuff you have to purge and reorganize? Well, that's the point we are at. Overwhelmed.

So, as any good designer will tell you, the first step is to purge; get rid of things you don't want anymore. Enter-the Hot Summer Sale!

Are you ready to save?
We need to move out as much as possible to we can rearrange our fixtures and freshen the place up. So here we go!

HOT SUMMER SALE
Part one: June 15th - June 22

• All single sheet 12 x 12 Cardstock - 3/ $1.00
• ALL remaining Christmas & Halloween stock - 50% Off
• ALL Hero Arts Stamps (wood, cling, or clear) 35% Off
• All Fiskars products - 30% Off
• All We R Memory Keepers Scrapbook Pads - 50% Off
• Special Pricing on Cardstock multi-packs from Core'dinations and American Crafts.
Discounts are taken off the original sale price and apply to in-stock merchandise only; while supplies last. No special orders. Discounts cannot be combined.

*We also have moved an enormous amount of product to our Clearance area and will continue to do so every day so make sure you stop in and take a look. This week, we have added lots of clear stamps, pens, and of course, paper to the hall.

2011-06-05T06:40:00.002-05:00

I am thinking that Blogging just isn't my strong suit. I never seem to have enough time in the week to get all of the stuff done that needs to get done. I want to be able to communicate with everyone but between newsletters, Facebook, email and blogging I never seem to be off this darned laptop! I find it easiest to update the Facebook page because it is so quick, so if you are looking for more timely information please go there to follow me.

We made it through our spring Tag Sale and now Donna & I are preparing to go to CHA in Chicago next month. Just to let you know, all of the stores have agreed not to do the Summer Passport this year. Instead, we will be doing something in the fall.

We do have a number of things planned over the summer like Christmas in July classes (cards & a configuration box), Zentangle classes, a special guest instructor (Dave Brethauer from Memory Box) and more so be sure to watch for the newletter and check out our Facebook page.

New stamps in stock

2011-04-30T20:14:00.002-05:00

I Love, love, love these new stamps & card samples from Darcie's!

Classes with Suzanne Dean

2011-04-19T11:22:00.006-05:00

This past weekend we had the pleasure of welcoming Suzanne Dean to the Inspiration Station for 2 jam-packed days of classes. Suzanne is a lovely lady with a great sense of humor and not only taught us a ton about Copic Markers but also had us laughing at her travel adventures. I highly recommend if you ever get a chance to take classes with her in the future that you do it. She's a very busy lady with all of the enterprises she runs so it may be a while before we can get her back here, but rest assured, if the opportunity arises, we'll have her back in a heartbeat!

Catching up with Spring!

2011-04-19T10:53:00.009-05:00

So much has been happening that I just haven't been able to keep up with my blog. I do manage to update the Facebook page often since that is so much easier to do; so if you haven't signed up as a friend, please do. I'd hate to have you miss out on any of the fun.
Since my last post Donna & I attended a retailer training event in Framingham, MA where we took loads of classes from Tim Holtz/Ranger, Jen McGuire/Hero Arts, Mitra Friant/Impression Obsession, Melissa Frances, My Favorite Things, Sizzix, and more. Below are some of the photos from the weekend.
The following weekend we had our Spring Bus Tour! It was a sold-out event with over 200 ladies and it was a great success. Our only glitch this time around was a toilet that decided to act up just as the day got started-thankfully an emergency call got the line cleared by late morning and we were back in business. Check out some of our Grand Prize Winners:

The Cutting Club

2011-03-23T18:47:00.003-05:00

Introducing The Inspiration Station Cutting Club!

All papercrafters can benefit from joining our new Cutting Club.

Members receive a FREE 2x2 QuicKutz die every month that is only available to Club members.
Choose a FREE QuicKutz die from our selected list when you register.
Enjoy a FREE workshop every month just for Cutting Club members.
Club Members receive a 20% discount on ALL QuicKutz & Sizzix products for as long as they are a member.

Membership is just $30 for six months.

QuicKutz dies are compatible with Sizzix Big Shot, Vagabond, & Cuttlebug.

A chance to play

2011-03-09T14:08:00.005-05:00

I love Wednesdays. It's my day off and sometimes I get the chance to play. After spending a good portion of the other day watching videos of Tim Holtz demonstrating the new Distress Stains; I had to get one of every color to play with!

My first attempt was not impressive. I tried to improvise by using a file folder to cut a tag and found that didn't work so well. The Ranger Tags have a much smoother surface. The file folders sucked up the stain so quick I got a very streaky look. When I tried to wet it to blend the paper just soaked up the water- no blending. So I grabbed my Ranger Tags and tried again. The results were much better.
So for those of you who want to know how I made this tag, here's the scoop:
I stamped the Hero Arts Butterfly (F5158) on to the blank tag using Matte Multi Medium - Another tip I learned from Tim; it acts as a resist. Then I used the Distress Stains in Antique Linen, Wild Honey, Fired Brick, and Broken China and sprayed it with water. I used a heat tool to dry it then I ran it through the Brick Wall Texture Fade. I stamped Hero Arts Friendship Definition stamp with Walnut Stain Distress ink. I used the blending tool to add Wild Honey and Walnut Stain Distress ink to the edges. The sentiment is from JustRite Stamps and is cut with a Spellbinders Die that is made for JustRite.

Now for my favorite part - The flower. It started as three layers of Color Me Crazy flowers from Petaloo. The bottom layer I colored with Spun Sugar Stain, touched the edges with Fired Brick Stain and sprayed with water. The top Layer I colored with Wild Honey Distress ink then sprayed it with water to blend it. While it was wet I lightly touched the center with the Wild Honey Stain. The leaves are actually two petals cut from a large Petaloo flower that I colored with Peeled Paint and Forest Moss stain.

Please note: The Petaloo flowers are paper and they lose their shape and texture when you wet them. I found best results by drying them using and iron and putting them between to paper towels. Make sure you use the paper towels because the stain did transfer when I ironed them. Once they were dry I just scrunched them up to shape them. I put a small pearl and some Scattered Straw Distress Stickles in the center. The ribbon is just a piece of seam binding I colored with Spun Sugar and Fired Brick Stains.

Spring is on it's way

2011-03-04T06:28:00.003-05:00

Wow! Can it really be March already? I can't say I'm going to miss the winter when it's gone-I have definitely had enough. Now that spring is almost here, the new batch of scrapbook products that were introduced at CHA Winter show are starting to pour in. I am so excited to see all of the fun, bright colors and great new embellishments. I am looking forward to having some time to play with all of it.

Our next crop is Friday, March 11 from 5pm-10pm, be sure to join us for the fun.

In case you missed it on Facebook here is a partial list of some of the things we've received over the past few weeks:

Tim Holtz Ideology & Stampers Anonymous
Twinkling H20's & Radiant Rain
Justrite stamps & dies
Magnolia stamps
Glitter papers from Best Creations
Easter "Peeps"
Leblanche Stamps from Germany
12 New Copic Colors and the new swatch book
Family & Pet themed papers
and lots more!

Just an update on our April 3rd Bus Tour - Our Bus is now completely SOLD OUT! We are looking forward to a fabulous day!

Don't forget we have Suzanne Dean coming in April to teach some amazing Copic Marker classes. Sign up today at her website CMCRoad.com

Don't forget about the awesome classes we offer here at The Inspiration Station. You can find our calendar here and a description of classes here.

Coloring with Copics - March 21st

2011-02-22T08:34:00.002-05:00

Here are 2 of the 3 cards we will be doing in class on March 21st.
I will email the list of marker colors to those who sign up.

New products on their way to The Inspiration Station

2011-02-16T10:17:00.009-05:00

I have spent a considerable amount of time in the past two weeks meeting with company sales reps and ordering new products for the store. For those who don't know, the craft industry has two major trade shows a year where manufacturer's introduce new products and compete for our dollars. The winter show was held in California at the end of January and included stuff that will be in stores now through June.

Crate Paper Toy Box

Crate Paper Portrait
Crate Paper Emma

So what are some of the things you will be seeing at The Inspiration Station this spring? Well, I can tell you I won't be getting anything snow related!!! I don't want to see anymore snow or ice! I am definitely all over the spring and summer colors.
Fancy Pants Beach Bum
How about some new Stampavie stamps?

And then, of course, there's all things Tim Holtz. You KNOW I couldn't pass up anything with his name on it!
Some of the things I'm looking forward to from him included new Paper Stacks, Distress Stains, Alterations Dies, Texture Fades & Texture Trades.
Donna & I will be taking some classes with Tim Holtz himself at the end of March so look for some new ideas to be incorporated into classes.

Snow Day Fun on Facebook

2011-02-02T09:49:00.002-05:00

Come over to Facebook and join us for some Snow Day fun! I'll be posting challenges every hour and a day long Photo Scavenger Hunt.

Spring 2011 Bus Tour

2011-01-26T11:36:00.001-05:00

The Top Scrapbook & Paper craft stores in Connecticut have joined together to bring you the ultimate shopping experience.

The 2011 Scrapbook Store Bus Tour

Call your friends and get on board for this all-day scrapbook shopping extravaganza. This is one event you do not want to miss!

New England Scrapbook Co., Canton

Papercraft Clubhouse, Westbrook

The Inspiration Station, Stafford Springs

Wiggles & Giggles, Wethersfield

An entire day of Shopping, Laughing and Learning

Sunday, April 3^rd

The fun begins at your host store where you’ll receive a delicious breakfast to get you ready to start your adventure then it’s off to the next store.

At each store you’ll receive a free gift and discounted shopping while you discover the unique characteristics of each shop.

Your ticket includes:

Round trip transportation to all four stores on the tour

Breakfast, lunch, and snacks

Special promotions at each store

A limited number of seats are available at each location. Tickets must be purchased in advance from your host store and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Cost is $65 per person due at registration.

Fee is non-refundable unless we can fill your seat.

Registration begins: February 5th at 10am

To register call or visit your host store.

The Inspiration Station – (860) 684-2641

New England Scrapbook Co.- (860) 693-9197

Wiggles & Giggles – (860) 529-5899

Papercraft Clubhouse – (860) 399-4443

2011-01-16T13:53:00.001-05:00

Win some Core'dinations cardstock

2011-01-14T10:18:00.003-05:00

http://pages.email.darice.com/coredinations/p?eKey=F4R2F1luFg4Ruldlg0XSgE

Click above to enter to win a new, unreleased Core'dinations assorted pack.

http://pages.email.darice.com/coredinations/p?eKey=F4R2F1luFg4Ruldlg0XSgE

Valentine's Exchange

2011-01-12T08:38:00.003-05:00

And now for something a little different...

Donna is hosting a Valentine Exchange on Friday, Feb 11th from 7pm-9pm

This will be limited to 12 participants. Each person is asked to make 13 Valentine cards and come to a party at The Inspiration Station the night of the exchange. We'll have cheese and crackers, some sparkling wine (non-alcoholic), some chocolate and other treats.

There will be a $5 registration fee to reserve your spot but that will be refunded to you if you choose to make any purchases that evening. We just need to be sure we know who's coming!
Cards should be handmade, A2 sized (4.25" x 5.5") with envelopes.

How fun!

Upcoming class samples

2011-01-08T13:45:00.003-05:00

Coloring With Copic - Jan 24th 10am -noon or 6pm 8pm

Valentine Cards - Tues., Feb 1st 10am-noon or 6pm-8pm

Merry January Layout - Friday Jan. 14 6pm-8pm

Cupcake Love Layouts - Saturday, Feb 12th - you will make 4 pages in the class (only 2 are shown below.

Welcome to 2011

2011-01-02T13:14:00.003-05:00

It doesn't seem possible that we are in 2011; but it's true. This month marks our 9th year at The Inspiration Station - 9 years!! It has certainly flown by. But that's what happens when you're having fun! And boy, do we have fun here.

So, in the spirit of the new year, I've been thinking about what I want to focus on for the coming year. I decided to go back to what made me want to open the store in the first place and how I came up with the store name. Inspiration. It's all about Inspiration.

I am inspired by all of the creativity in this industry. I am inspired by all of the talented people I meet every day; and the best part of my day is when I can inspire someone to create something new. Enthusiasm is contagious and I love to spread it around!

My plan is to work more classes and demos into the schedule. If you have some thought on what you'd like to see and learn about, shoot me an email (inspirationsta@aol.com). Don't forget to check out our website for classes and make sure that you follow us on Facebook for up to the minute information.

2010-12-26T08:01:00.001-05:00

***Weather Alert*** Store closed today (Sunday, Dec 26th) due to expected Winter Storm. Please stay home and stay safe!

Class information

2010-12-12T11:57:00.000-05:00

Our 2010 classes are coming to a close this week with the final Card Club class on Tuesday and the final Layout Class with Terry on Wednesday. On behalf of all of the teachers at The Inspiration Station I want to thank you all for making our education program such a success. I believe we have some of the most talented and creative instructors anywhere- and it's wonderful to know that you agree!

Coming up in the New Year you can count on more fabulous inspiration for your cards, scrapbooks, mini albums and more. Our January calendar is already available at the store and online; February is in progress. We are looking forward to offering more great classes and ideas. Treat yourself to any one of our classes and you will be coming back for more!

A sample of what you can look forward to in the new year:
Card Club students will be getting a fabulous cutting die in the January Class! Remember that the morning Card Club will be moving to the 2nd Tuesday of the month. The evening classes will remain on the 2nd & 3rd Tuesday of the month.

Scrap More Layouts classes with Dawn will be held on the first Wednesday of the month.

Monthly Layout Club with Terry will be held on the 3rd Wednesday of each month.

Additional classes for Cricut, Coloring with Copic, Valentine Cards and Printer's Tray and a Taste of Winter mini book will also be offered.

Wanted to share.

2010-12-12T10:21:00.002-05:00

For everyone who loved Tim's tags but didn't have time to play along- Donna will be teaching a class based on them on Thursday, January 27th in the morning and evening. Space is limited so plan to sign up soon.

Magnolia Ink is in

2010-11-26T20:50:00.003-05:00

The Christmas Edition of Magnolia Ink has finally arrived; along with a restock of some of the stamps. Here's a card I made last weekend using the Tilda with Fir stamp again but in a different color palette.

get ready!

2010-11-25T07:37:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving to all

2010-11-25T07:33:00.001-05:00

May you all be blessed with lots to be Thankful for this Holiday season.

I am thankful for all of you who have supported me throughout the year. Thank you.

Suzanne Dean Classes - Registration Now Open

2010-11-23T07:55:00.000-05:00

Want to get in on the Copic Marker Craze!

Want to learn how to master these markers?

**Take a Class from Instructor Suzanne J Dean**

Suzanne has been using and teaching about Copics for 3 years

and runs a successful Online Copic Classroom and is taking her classes on the road!

She is also a freelance designer for many craft companies around the world!

Check out her online classroom and blog to find out more info about her and see her work:

Color Me Creative Classroom: www.scrapbitzcopics.ning.com

ScrapBitz Blog: www.scrapbitz.blogspot.com

*************************************************************************

Two Classes Offered:

Beginner/Intermediate Class

You will learn how to get comfortable with the markers, learn light sourcing, shading

and highlighting along with other practical techniques to bring your coloring to life!

5 hours for $90 (35 min. break)

Advanced Class

We go over a lot of fun but more difficult techniques—you MUST have experience using your markers and be ready for advanced techniques. If you take the Basic/Interm. Class you WILL be ready for this class. You must know the BASICS because I will not repeat those lessons in the Advanced Class!

We will learn all about advanced shading and coloring techniques and fun ways to use your Copics. Both classes are HANDS ON INSTRUCTION!!

4 hours for $80 (35 min break)

*Copics and images/paper provided

(a supply list will be emailed to students so you can bring your own copics if you like)

*All students receive a packet of information pertaining to each class

*All students receive a goody bag from the Color Me Creative Classroom with sample products

*Students need to bring their own drinks and snacks (and/or lunch)

**15 people minimum in each class with a maximum of 24 students

Class Information Sheet
ALL CLASSES are HANDs-On Instruction

Beginner/Intermediate Class Skills:

(5 hours with 35 min. break--$90)

This is not a Certification Class—this is to learn coloring techniques!

*briefly learn about the basics of Copics and how they work/tips & tricks

*get comfortable with the markers and laying down color lightly

**Learn how to "f-l-i-c-k" layer/blend colors
*choosing successful color combos and layer colors

*learn about light sources and how to create dimension in your coloring

*shading and highlighting techniques (light & shadow)

*creating good skin tone and hair colors

*shading round objects

*coloring white

*Bridging Colors

*multi-liner pens & Spica pens

*Colorless Blender Techniques/Review

*Blues, Pinks, Browns, Yellows

************************************************************

Advanced Class Skills:

(4 hours with 35 min. break--$80)

This class features harder techniques and colors! You need to know the basics before you take this class as I do not repeat that information. If you take the Beg/Interm. Class YOU WILL be ready for this class!

*coloring with reds and black (the most difficult to blend)

*advanced hair coloring

*glassy objects, round objects
*feathering and background techniques

*coloring landscape

*coloring textured items

*metallics

*coloring folds, pleats, ruffles with light sourcing

*flowers/leaves

*high contrast coloring

*intro to airbrushing

Each Student receives a goody bag of sample products from the Color Me Creative Clasroom

Each student receives a take-home manual filled with tutorials and information

Copics, Paper & Images provided

(supply lists will be emailed to students if they want to bring their own Copics)

*******************************************

April 16th & 17th, 2011

Classes will be held at

Inspiration Station

13 Furnace Ave
Stafford Springs, CT

(860) 684-2641

Beg/Intermediate Class TOTAL is $90

Advanced Class TOTAL is $80

(the pre-fees below are just to hold your spot, balance due 3 weeks before)

April 16th, 2011--Stafford Springs, CT

Beg/Intermediate Class starts at 9 am thru 2:30 pm
Advanced Class starts at 3:10 pm thru 7:30 pm

Top of Form

Bottom of Form

April 17th, 2011--Stafford Springs, CT

Beg/Intermediate Class starts at 9 am thru 2:30 pm
Advanced Class starts at 3:10 pm thru 7:30 pm

Top of Form

Bottom of Form

2010-11-10T07:35:00.004-05:00

Hi Everyone!

I wanted to post a very overdue update so let's get started. First of all, our classes are ROCKIN' at The Inspiration Station! We have all been cranking out the class samples and the class wall looks great. The classes are filling up very quickly, in fact, the Sunday class for the Christmas Printer's Tray and the morning Copic Christmas Class are both SOLD OUT. Time is just flying by and we only have a few more Christmas card classes before the big holiday.

Terry & I are also packing up to go to our annual Scrapbook Weekend at Ridin' Hy Ranch in Warrensburg, NY the weekend before Thanksgiving. It is a business trip but we enjoy it so much its almost like a mini vacation. This year we will be teaching classes at the ranch in addition to setting up a marketplace for the other croppers. We each have a layout class planned and I was also nominated to teach a Cricut class. This year there are over 90 croppers signed up for the weekend.

We have started our annual Wish List sign up. Come in and fill up yours before Thanksgiving and we'll give you a FREE gift! We'll keep the list on file to help your family and friends shop for you this season. Be sure to add a good variety of items both large and small; sometimes gifter's want to splurge and other times they are just looking for stocking stuffers; the more choices they have the better. Also, if there is an item that you REALLY want make sure we know. Items can sell out quickly this time of year and we don't always have time to reorder- if we know in advance, we can be sure to hold it for you.

The holidays are fast approaching

2010-11-04T18:36:00.006-05:00

The holidays are fast approaching and we are running out of days to put things onto the calendar. Our November calendar is jam-packed with classes and December has been filled up to the week before Christmas. From then until New Year's our teachers are taking a break and then we will start all over again.

Here's a look at some of what they are doing.
November Card Club: Nov. 8th 10am, Nov 9th 6pm, Nov 16th 6pm.

Christmas Cards Nov. 18th 10am & 6pm

Copic Christmas Cards Nov 22nd 10am & 6pm.Terry & Dawn also have their Layout Classes planned for November & December.

Donna will have a Christmas Printer's Tray on Friday, Dec 3rd at 10am

Our crop schedule is as follows:

Friday, Nov. 5th 5Pm-10pm
Friday, Nov. 12th 5pm-10pm
Friday, Nov. 26th 10am-6pm (includes lunch)

New Magnolia stamps & more

2010-10-22T14:36:00.003-05:00

Hi everybody,
To say I've been busy is an understatement so rather than bore you with details let's get straight to looking at new stuff! First up - Magnolia Stamps has 36 new stamps in their Christmas collection and we have them all! Well, as of this writing anyway; the way things have been flying out of here you just never know. The two Stampavie stamps I featured on the facebook page were gone the next day!

There are also new Magenta Cats, but since my computer is being difficult and I am working off of a backup Netbook I can't scan them at the moment.

We have new paper lines from just about all of the major companies; BoBunny, Little Yellow Bicycle, Cosmo Cricket, Pine Cone Press, Pebbles, Inc. and more.

Classes are filling up faster than we can schedule them and our schedules for November and December are packed. We will not schedule any classes after the first week of December until January because non of our teachers have time available. You know, family always comes first!

Fall is a time for change

2010-09-20T14:30:00.003-05:00

Fall is a time for change and we are making some noticeable changes in the store. We always like to shake things up and try to find better ways of displaying all the fabulous products we have. Last week, we decided it was time to move some areas around. We had created a special Tim Holtz section in the stamp department along side Ranger products and we liked it. Unfortunately it was not nearly big enough! That boy just keeps coming out with more awesome stuff!

In order to give him more room we needed to move all of his stuff to the front of the store. The problem is (you can probably guess) all of the space up front was already taken. Not to be deterred, we made a map of the store and started moving stuff. This morning we started tearing things apart and as usual one thing led to another, and another, and another. By afternoon we had made some progress but lots of stuff is still in baskets awaiting its fate. Will it find a home, or will we put in in clearance? I can tell you that a lot of stuff was moved to clearance and I'm sure a lot more will too.

So be prepared the next time you come in to really look around! You never know where stuff is going to end up...

By the way, only SOME of the Tim Holtz stuff has moved at this point; we are having trouble deciding where to draw the line. We did move all of the Sizzix, Cuttlebug and Spellbinders products up front so they are all together. All of the pens and markers are now back in the stamp area, although not in their final resting place yet. The wedding section is now closer to the bathroom and its former spot has been changed to Travel. More to follow....

So many classes, so little time...

2010-09-12T09:44:00.003-05:00

We have so many classes on the calendar now and it seems more get added every day! I have not been able to keep up with them on the website, but I'm trying! Here's a few photos to whet your appetite:

I am also in the process of creating a Family Recipe Book class. This class will include an 8x8 American Crafts album and we will do a recipe exchange as well. I am waiting on the papers to arrive so I can make up my sample and know the exact cost. If you are interested in the class, email me so I can get you the form that we will use for the recipes. I want every student to send me via email 2 recipes so I can have them printed for the class.

Coming in March 2011

2010-09-09T15:06:00.003-05:00

Want to get in on the Copic Marker Craze!

Want to learn how to master these markers?

**Take a Class from Instructor Suzanne J Dean**

Suzanne has been using and teaching about Copics for 3 years

and runs a successful Online Copic Classroom and is taking her classes on the road!

She is also a freelance designer for many craft companies around the world!

Check out her online classroom and blog to find out more info about her and see her work:

Color Me Creative Classroom: www.scrapbitzcopics.ning.com

ScrapBitz Blog: www.scrapbitz.blogspot.com

*************************************************************************

Two Classes Offered:

Beginner/Intermediate Class

You will learn how to get comfortable with the markers, learn light sourcing, shading

and highlighting along with other practical techniques to bring your coloring to life!

5 hours for $85 (30 min. break)

Advanced Class

This is a tough class—you MUST have experience using your markers and be ready for advanced techniques.

We will learn all about advanced shading and coloring techniques and fun ways to use your Copics. Both classes are HANDS ON INSTRUCTION!!

4 hours for $75 (30 min break)

*Copics and images/paper provided

(a supply list will be emailed to students so you can bring your own copics if you like)

*All students receive a packet of information pertaining to each class

*All students receive a goody bag from the Color Me Creative Classroom with sample products

*Students need to bring their own drinks and snacks (and/or lunch)

**15 people minimum in each class with a maximum of 20 students

Dates soon to be announced!!

Now Available

2010-09-05T15:32:00.002-05:00

Labor Day Weekend

2010-09-04T15:06:00.002-05:00

I hope you are all enjoying this fabulous Labor Day weekend. Cooler air has finally arrived and we dodged Hurricane Earl!

Just a reminder that we are OPEN all weekend - regular hours on Saturday & Sunday and 10am-2pm on Monday. If you still need to finish up your Summer Passport, you have until Monday. Check your email for a coupon on Spellbinder's Dies this weekend only.
A ton of new product arrived this week including new Tim Holtz stamps, Crate Paper Back to School, and lots of Laser cut titles. I even custom ordered titles for some of the area high schools.

Have you missed me?

2010-08-30T07:14:00.002-05:00

It seems as though I have taken the summer off from blogging! Well, like everyone else I have way too much on my plate pretty much every day, and one day runs into the next. So in case you're interested, here is a run down of the last 3 months in my life (the good, the bad and the ugly):
In June, My daughter graduated from high school. The next day (Father's Day) my 19 year old niece was killed in a car accident in Vermont. Terry went on vacation and my son started camp. I don't even remember much of July other than Donna went on vacation and my oldest son moved into his own apartment. August has been a whirlwind as well. We had to put down our beloved yellow lab, Molly. Her buddy Reese, our chocolate lab has been moping around ever since. Camp ended for my son and then the whole back to school process began- My daughter will be a college freshman and my son will be a high school junior. Throw in the parking lot sale, a wedding and a 50th birthday for my neighbor and I'm spent. I never did get to take any vacation time but I did manage to go see Cirque Dreams at Foxwoods and Tom Petty in Hartford.

So what's on tap for September? Hmmm...at the store there's classes, crops, and a customer tag sale along with preparing for the Fall Bus Tour. My to-do list is currently 3 pages long! I desperately need the routine of the school year to get back on track!

Bus Tour Registration

2010-08-28T06:29:00.002-05:00

Today is the day. Bus Tour Registration begins at 10am. You must register in person or over the phone and arrange payment. No registrations will be accepted via voicemail or email. Cost is $65 and is non-refundable unless we can fill your seat from the waiting list.

Inky Antics Penguins

2010-08-24T16:18:00.002-05:00

These cute little fellas are due to arrive on Thursday!

Upcoming Classes

2010-08-22T13:19:00.005-05:00

Beach Layout Augt 25, 2010
Scrap More Layouts September 1, 2010

Crafter's Home Project Saturday, September 18, 2010
Quick & Easy Halloween Cards September 28, 2010

Family Nest Accordion Book September 29, 2010

Christmas Cards Set 1 September 30, 2010

Christmas Cards Set 2 October 7, 2010

Upcoming Events

2010-08-17T23:15:00.004-05:00

Just a quick update to let you know about a few things coming up. On Sunday, Sept. 26 we will have our Customer Tag Sale. We are accepting registrations now for your space. Cost is $5 to participate and you earn store credit for whatever you sell.

We will begin registering for our Fall Bus Tour on Saturday, August 28th at 10am. Lots of people requested that we run this event in the fall. The date of the tour is Sunday, October 3rd. Cost is $65 and must be paid at the time of registration.

Fall 2010 Bus Tour

2010-08-06T12:31:00.001-05:00

Get ready for the Fall 2010 Bus Tour!! Join us on Sunday
October 3rd for a day of fun. Registration starts August 28th at 10am
in person or via phone. Cost is $65 and includes breakfast and lunch, as well as a whole lotta fun!

New Inky Antics

2010-07-26T08:57:00.004-05:00

Aren't these adorable? There is one template stamp to make the triangle box and then all sorts of "character" stamps to make different faces for different occasions. We have the directions for all of these. If you buy the stamps, send me your email and I'll send you the complete instructions in pdf form.

Zentangle Inspired

2010-07-13T20:07:00.005-05:00

My oldest son (21) recently moved into a new apartment with a friend. It's a very nice place, but like all rentals the walls are painted stark white. When I visited the first time they complained that they needed some artwork for the walls. Have you ever thought about decorating an apartment for 2 young men? It's not easy. Everything out there is so ... girly.

We they both seemed interested in my Zentangles so I decided to go big. Really big. I created a Zentangle inspired piece on a poster size (22" x 28") sheet of paper. It was hard to get started adapting the tangles to such a large scale, but once I got going it went rather quickly. I worked on it all weekend and spent about 22 hours total. My son thought it was "awesome", so I guess it was a good idea. Pretty cool, huh?

to learn more about Zentangle, please visit www.zentangle.com

Did you hear?

2010-07-09T13:05:00.003-05:00

We have a HOT sale going on now through Sunday, July 11th on COPIC MARKERS! Right now- Buy 3 get your fourth one FREE! And the best part- There no limit to the number of FREE pens you can earn. Now is the time to stock up.

Also, I'll give you a quick heads up. Since we have a lot of people coming in on Sunday for the Christmas in July classes we will be having a special "One Day Sale" on all in stock clear stamps. Buy 2 get the third FREE.

My goodness, free Copics, free stamps what else could you ask for?

Class samples from Donna

2010-07-06T11:07:00.003-05:00

Christmas in July

Card Club for July featuring Stampendous Fun Food set:

Special Guest Instructor - Jen Starr

2010-06-22T09:50:00.004-05:00

COMPLETELY DISTRESSED – LAYOUT MASTERCLASS

Saturday, July 17th noon - 4pm

$60

Whether you prefer a vintage style or bright happy colors, Tim Holtz’s Line of Distress products can customize any paper crafting project to the look and color scheme YOU want to achieve.

In this workshop you will create 6 unique 8x8” layouts focusing heavily on technique…you can follow the color selections I’ve used in my samples or use the same techniques in colors of your choice! You will learn how to use Tim Holtz Stamps in artful and unusual ways to create beautiful backgrounds, borders, titles, embellishments and even tint photos. We will use the complete line of Distress Products including inks, re-inkers, crackle paints, stickles, embossing powders with a few of my other favorite goodies mixed in. The goal of this workshop is to teach you all that this line is capable of beyond just inking the edges!

Sale!

2010-06-20T15:01:00.000-05:00

Sale

All Clear Stamps

Buy 1 Get 2^nd ½ Price!

Discount taken on lower priced item. No additional discounts apply.

Sale ends Saturday, June 26, 2010

2010-06-17T15:13:00.001-05:00

Coming Soon...

2010-06-06T21:15:00.003-05:00

Details are being finalized for our Summer 2010 Passport Program, "Cruisin' Connecticut". Watch for more info.

Participating Stores:

Beautiful Impressions - Westbrook, CT

Great American Stamp Store - Westport, CT

Memory Lane - Marlborough, CT

New England Scrapbook Co. - Canton, CT

Papercraft Clubhouse - Westbrook, CT

Stamp & Scrap Nest - Simsbury, CT

The Inspiration Station - Stafford Springs, CT

Wiggles & Giggles - Rocky Hill, CT

New Hero Arts

2010-06-04T07:59:00.003-05:00

The new summer stamps from Hero Arts have arrived! Love the new images. This is one of my favorite sets.

Memorial Day

2010-05-30T08:42:00.002-05:00

Come downtown Monday morning for the Memorial Day Parade - 11am. Afterwards come shop at The Inspiration Station - We're OPEN from 10am - 2pm. Come in wearing Red, White and Blue or with a flag and you'll get 25% off your entire purchase!

Thank you to all who have served our country whether at home or overseas-We owe our freedom to you!

And to my favorite service person: Daddy I miss you!

New arrivals from Inky Antics

2010-05-27T21:43:00.003-05:00

Flat Bunny is Welcome Here

2010-05-21T07:58:00.002-05:00

Flat Bunny is anxious to get acquainted with true BoBunny fans (come be her friend on facebook, just search for Flat BoBunny) at a BoBunny sponsored crop. When Flat Bunny comes to visit, she will bring materials for a BoBunny crop! If you coordinate with a BoBunny retail store, Flat Bunny will bring materials so you can invite 9 of your friends to the crop for a total of 10. If there is not a retail store within a 50 mile radius, Flat Bunny will come with material for you and 4 friends to enjoy!

What you need to do-
1. Create an invitation featuring BoBunny products and send a digital image to flatbunny@bobunny.com along with signed business card from your favorite BoBunny retail store.*

2. Flat Bunny will post the card images she receives on the BoBunny blog
(you will be famous!).

3. On the 10th of each month, she will choose her favorite invitation and
schedule her travel to meet the winning designer.

4. Flat Bunny likes to be fussed over so you must take lots of pictures
during the Crop and send them to flatbunny@bobunny.com. This
way all her BoBunny friends will be able to follow
the adventures of Flat Bunny on the blog.

5. Flat Bunny will be traveling to a new location every month so she must be on
her way home no later than the last day of the month. Also, Flat Bunny has her
passport so she can travel far and wide.

New company

2010-05-20T19:17:00.002-05:00

There is a brand new company in the Papercraft world named Echo Park; and their first product release arrived at our store today! Here's a sneak peek:

2010-05-19T06:49:00.004-05:00

Hi Everybody,
I'm working at home today trying to get caught up on a million and one things- not making a lot of progress I might add. Anyway, I need to get the newsletter out and figured I'd better update the blog first so you'd have something to read if you clicked on the link!

Our spring Tag Sale was a big success. Many people earned well over $100 in store credit, with several people earning over $200! Our only mishap of the day was that the Post Office had decided to have their parking lot swept that day (without notifying us) and we had to quickly tear down the tents and bring everything inside before they kicked up a sandstorm! Fun! It all worked out though; thankfully we are used to "winging it".
We are working on our summer schedule and have added a couple of classes to the June Calender. Special Guest, Mitra Friant, the owner of Impression Obsession rubber stamps will be here on Thursday morning, June 3rd, to teach a class. We do not have samples but Mitra has told us that she will be using many of her new Cover a Card stamp background with the Mega Mount handle as well as the EXTREMELY popular shaker windows.

A shipment of brand new stamps from Memory Box arrived on Friday and Donna was so excited she added a SUNDAY class to the June calendar to be able to use them! The class is called Card Jubilee and will be June 27th at 11 am. A pack of Jubilee paper will be included in the cost of the class. To see some beautiful card ideas click HERE (Image from Dave Brethauer )

Stampavie stamps also arrived this week, although we are still waiting on a few more- They ship them as they arrive in the US.

Tag Sale Tomorrow

2010-05-15T09:24:00.002-05:00

Tomorrow (Sunday, May 16) is our spring Customer Tag Sale and the stuff is rolling in by the truckload! There is so much stuff! And Rubber Stamps.... Cases full! definitely no shortage of them.

Basic Grey "Max & Whiskers"

2010-05-12T18:29:00.001-05:00

A quick look at a page I made with some of the new papers from Basic Grey.

Quick Update

2010-05-11T06:40:00.002-05:00

So much new product has been rolling in I can barely keep up.
We finally got the Stamper's Anonymous stamps that Tim Holtz released at CHA in January along with 4 of his Texture Fades, although the Bingo Card set has already sold out.

The Pebbles and American Crafts lines have been flying out the door and the new Basic Grey, Max and Whiskers line has been right behind them.

Those of you who love My Favorite Things stamps need to get in and pick up the Pure Innocence and Jolinne stamps before those are gone.

REMINDER: Our spring Customer Tag Sale is this Sunday, May 16th. If you signed up as a vendor you must get your marked item in to us on Friday or Saturday. The Tag Sale starts at 11am. Please pray for good weather so we can put stuff outside!

May Card Club featuring Magenta stamps

2010-04-30T15:43:00.003-05:00

Donna finally got the sample in for the May classes. Isn't he adorable? His name is Benjamin.

National Scrapbook Week Sales Event

2010-04-25T20:39:00.000-05:00

Bus Tour Photos

2010-04-24T08:28:00.005-05:00

It only took a week, but I finally have some photos from the bus tour to share; Thanks to my mom (aka Grammy or Lu). She was able to get some great shots. Which is wonderful since I was so busy doing other things I never thought about it.
First up is our Driver Phil, What a great guy. We ask for him every year.

Next are our Raffle Prize winners:

Christine

Pat

Dawn

and Meghan

Congratulations, Ladies! And thank you everyone for a great day!

Wonderful day

2010-04-11T07:07:00.004-05:00

We had a wonderful day on Saturday with Kelly Jo and the lovely Fiskateers. We spent the whole day crafting and laughing. We even had an unexpected visitor. Loralie Harris, the designer of Loralie stamps was in the area for a quilting show and stopped by to see if I would be interested in seeing her new stamp designs. As soon as I saw her AMAZING purse made with scrapbook papers, tulle netting and her fabulous, "Lovely Ladies" stamp design I knew I had to introduced her to the Fiskateers. They went crazy for her stamp designs! Well, of course, I had to order them. So we sent Loralie upstairs with my mom to have lunch while we put together an order! Loralie graciously left us some sample stamps so we could start to play with them. Donna scooped up two of them already and I was able to hang on to one. I hope to get some pictures up soon. I'm sure you'll love them as much as we do.

Another Magenta Cat image

2010-04-06T09:04:00.003-05:00

This stamp is now officially retired. It was released in March of 2009 and was limited for one year. We still have 1 or 2 in stock if you want to get it before it's gone.

Upcoming Event at The Inspiration Station

2010-04-03T15:15:00.002-05:00

What a crazy week. It went by so fast. I am still trying to pull it all together, but we have added a number of things to our calendar and I want to get as much info out as possible so you can make plans.

First off, Dawn still has spots in Wednesday's Scrap More Cards & Layouts class. Please call Monday to sign up.

Donna's Card Club classes for April feature a beautiful cling stamp from Stampendous that is a trio of bird cages. Very pretty. The Card Club classes are a fantastic value- you create 4 stunning, detailed cards and you get to take home the featured stamp to create even more at home. This class is extremely popular so we offer it five times a month- 2 morning classes and 3 evening classes. Everyone loves it because nobody makes cards like Donna!

We've had a lot of interest in the canvases that we made in our Tim Holtz/Jennifer McGuire workshop, so Donna & I are going run our own Tag Team Chaos class inspired by them. It will be a jam-packed class with lots of techniques. Because there is so much to learn, we are offering the class on a Sunday afternoon - May 30 - from noon to 4 pm. Yes! Four hours of inspiring chaos taught tag-team style. This is going to be so much fun. Space is limited to the first 10 people to register. Price is still to be determined based on the cost of the canvases but we expect it to be in the $55-$60 range which is an amazing deal for a four hour class. Be prepared to be inspired!

Our Fiskateer Crop with Kelly Jo next Saturday is SOLD OUT, but you can sign up now for a 12 hour crop on National Scrapbook Day (May 1st). Many places are offering an entire weekend to crop but we feel realistically, most of us can't get away from our family responsibilities for that long so we are offered a lower cost (in terms of price and guilt) option. Come and crop from 10am-10pm for only $25 per person and we'll provide lunch and dinner!

If you are still anxious to create the next day, I will be teaching Scraplifting 101 on Sunday, May 2 from 1pm - 3pm. In this class, we will complete 2 single page layouts in class and you will have left over materials to create matching second pages using the techniques you’ve learned in class.

Also coming up in May is our Customer Tag Sale. Mark you calendars for Sunday, May 16th.

But wait... there's more! There are a bunch more classes available and we have the Bus Tour happening April 18th. Yikes! I better get busy, I have a lot to do to get ready!

Wanna see what Creative Chaos looks like?

2010-03-30T09:02:00.004-05:00

Lots to share!

2010-03-28T18:21:00.006-05:00

What a crazy weekend. But good - crazy.

Donna & I went to a trade event in Framingham, MA and took a ton of classes and workshops. We each took separate Hero Arts classes. Donna took two classes with Tim Holtz, one using Idea-ology products and one using Claudine Helmuth's products. I took a class with Tim using his Distress inks and grunge paper and learned to make the grunge paper roses.
Below is Tim's Sample from the class:

Donna also took classes with Cheryl Mezzetti of Creative Imaginations, The Cat's Pajamas, Melissa Frances, We R Memory Keepers, Heart of Texas and Copic Markers.

Other classes that I took included Impression Obsession, The Paper Cut, My Favorite Things, Magenta and a very intriguing form of artful meditation called Zentangle.

If you've never heard of Zentangle you may look at it and think one of two things; either it is much too difficult to learn to do or that it is simply "doodling". Neither assumption is correct.Done the way the it's creators, Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts intended- it is simple, deliberate and exquisitely beautiful. Please click on the link to learn more detailed information, but to explain the experience briefly, everyone at the presentation was given a pen, a pencil and a "tile" of fine art paper. Rick & Maria then guided us through the steps to create our first Zentangle. When we all finished, we placed them together into a single mosaic. It was amazing how beautiful it was both as a whole and each individual part. We all were given the exact same instructions and materials and yet each tile is completely unique.
We made a ton of sample cards in the different classes and I hope to get a few pictures up eventually. We also did a lot of buying for the store! Below is a sample of some of the stamps we ordered from My Favorite Things:

We are headed back to Framingham tomorrow for an all-day workshop with Tim Holtz of Ranger and Jennifer McGuire of Hero Arts. The workshop is called "Creative Chaos" so it should be quite exciting. Of course, every day is creative chaos when Donna & I are together...

Class Samples

2010-03-20T09:50:00.002-05:00

Here we go! Lots of great classes are on our schedule and here are a few samples for you:

Get Well Cards with Donna, April 1, 2010

Scrapbook Layout Class with Terry, April 21st

Scraplifting 101- Sunday May 2nd
with Debby
Scrapbook Layout Class with Terry, May 19th.

New Bo Bunny is here

2010-03-19T06:34:00.004-05:00

Yes, those 3 lines I posted pictures of way back in January from the CHA show; Paradise, Jazmyne, and Mam-razzi are here! They are all awesome! We made a whole display of nothing but new Bo Bunny and it looks fabulous.

Donna brought in a sample of her upcoming Get Well Cards class and I'm going to try to get a picture up later today along with a page I made using the new Basic Grey "Green at Heart" line.

New Basic Grey

2010-03-16T08:20:00.002-05:00

Just a quick note to let you know that Basic Grey Green at Heart & Kioshi are now in stock. The Epsilon series of stamps is so cute, you're gonna want them all!

2010-03-13T00:16:00.001-05:00

Pick up all your supplies at The Inspiration Station and list us as your sponsor when you enter!

Great News from Our Companions

2010-03-12T07:46:00.003-05:00

Our Companions has received a grant to sterilize and vaccinate feral and free roaming cats in Ashford. The grant will run for the next two years and people who live in Ashford will be eligible for low cost or even no cost assistance. I need to get the word out within Ashford. I am wondering if you could help by distributing handouts and displaying flyers? Also, please tell all your neighbors or anyone in town that you know of that has feral or even barn cats.

They're here!

2010-03-11T15:40:00.003-05:00

The Alteratiuons Dies from Tim Holtz are here- Texture folders are on their way (in fact, we think they are still on the Fed Ex truck and the driver just didn't look hard enough)! The designs are awesome; definitely must haves.

Help!

2010-03-01T07:59:00.001-05:00

I have been in spring cleaning/organizing mode all weekend and come to the realization that - We have way too much.... umm, stuff. So we need to have a rummage sale. Nothing as big as the Parking Lot Sale since we are limited to what we can fit in the classroom; but still a good old-fashioned, dump things into bins,... rummage sale. So what are you doing Sunday, March 21? Care to join us?

Busy, Busy, Busy.

2010-02-28T09:01:00.002-05:00

Yes, spring is on it's way. How do I know? Certainly not by looking at the weather... However, When all of the great new products start roling in from CHA winter, I know spring can't be far away.

I've shared some quick tidbits of things that have come in in past blog posts, but really- you have to come in to really appreciate how much new stuff is here. Here is a quick rundown of a few of the things I can remember in the last week or two.

Stampavie clear stamps
Tim Holtz' NEW distress ink colors
"A Compendium of Curiosities" book by Tim Holtz (already limited supply)
Graphic 45 - 3 new paper lines
Layers of Color clear stamps
Several Easter themed paper lines
2010 Graduation paper from The Paper Company
Queen & Co Disney themed Papers & embellishments

I'm sure there is more, but that is about all my poor brain can remember at this time!

Plan to come in soon to check it all out- in fact, we have a crop scheduled for Friday, March 12th- that would be a great time to explore!

Queen & Company Disney Theme paper & embellishments

They're Here!

2010-02-26T13:33:00.000-05:00

THEY'RE HERE!!!! The new Tim Holtz Distress ink Colors have arrived! We also got a limited number of his book in, with more on order. If you want a copy call the store and put your name on the list to reserve it.

How I spent a rainy day

2010-02-25T08:02:00.003-05:00

Yes, I really did open one bottle of EVERY Distress Stickles to make up sample cards! Well, all but Black Soot because we only had one of those in stock and I didn't want to take it in case someone else needed it. So as soon as our Ranger order arrives... (waiting, waiting, waiting) I can finish these.

I also started cards for regular Stickles but there were just so many I couldn't afford them all at once ;)