New Magnolia stamps & more

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

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...

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

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

Labor Day Weekend

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?

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

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

These cute little fellas are due to arrive on Thursday!

Upcoming Classes

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

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

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

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

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?

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?