Kids Kamp with Kristen

Summer Stroll 2012

Please join us this year for our Summer Stroll 2012.  We promise you a summer full of fun as you visit all of the Crafter's Home stores in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Stop in to the Station beginning June 15th and before July 15th, and purchase a Summer Stroll Passport for $10.00.  Our summer stroll passports will be valid July 1 through September 8th, 2012.  In addition to your passport you'll also be receiving a fabulous shopping bag from us in July.  This bag will be perfect to bring with you on your stroll and elsewhere.

What do you get with your summer stroll Passport-You will get to visit each of the participating stores and receive a one-time 20% discount off your product purchase (some exclusions may apply, please check with each store).  That store will then validate that you have visited them, and then you'll be off to your next store.  This is such a great way to visit all your favorites and even check out a few you have always wanted to see. 

All completed passports should be returned to your home store (the one you purchased the passport from) by the week of September 8th, so that you will be entered into the drawing.   We will be having a drawing for a prize valued at $100.00 - That's right you just might win $100.00 worth of goodies.  There will be a winner announced at each store the week of September 10th. 

Passports are available for purchase from June 15th through July 15th, after July 15th they will no longer be available. 

 Here's a list of the fabulous participating Summer Stroll 2012 stores:

Absolutely Everything

Ink About It

New England Scrapbook Company

Papercraft Clubhouse
Right at Home Scrapbooking

The Crop Shop

The Inspiration Station

Wiggles & Giggles

Please check with each store’s website for their summer hours.

For links to all participating stores websites please visit:

http://www.rightathome.typepad.com/summer_stroll_2012/

We look forward to strolling with you this Summer!

Something NEW!

Open Crop Days
Sundays this summer
June 3, 17, & 24
July 1, 8, 22, & 29
August 5, 12, 19, & 26

Bring everything you need to crop/craft in our classroom
Noon - 4pm
$5 registration fee payable at sign up will be applied to your $20 purchase during the crop. So it’s like cropping for FREE!
Please pre-register to reserve your seat.

Long time, no see...

Yes, I have been MIA from the Blog-o-sphere.
Life is just so busy and there is so much time involved in keeping up with all the different media outlets; website, blog, newsletter, Facebook, etc.  I really need to clone myself so I can keep up with everything!

As most of you know, I am in the process of building a new home so that is where the majority of my attention has been for the past two months.  The process is going along quite quickly (now that we have a reliable contractor) and there are decisions that have to be made everyday.  You could say I'm a bit overwhelmed by it all. The plan is to be moved in by Labor Day but really it looks like we may get in earlier.  The bigger issue is selling our current house. This is a very spacious house with a lot of unique features that make it impossible to compare to other properties in the area, so the real estate agents are at a loss of how to price it. It is going to be a great value to the right buyer, but finding that right person could be another story. 
Here's the situation:
The house itself is nothing special; just a 4 bedroom ranch with a finished basement.  However, it sits on 14 acres of land with a 6,000 square foot heated Garage/Barn.  It also has an enclosed in-ground swimming pool just off the master bedroom.  In reality, it should be valued at about $500,000.  The problem is, in this rural town, nothing has sold above $300,000 for several years.  There are two lakes in town and the majority of houses that have sold are lake cottages well under the $200,000 mark.  Bottom line- people who can afford this house are not looking to move into this town.  It's a shame really because it's a great little town.  We need to find someone who has horses or lots of equipment (like a landscaper) who wants to buy the property for the massive barn.  If you know anybody let me know!

In other news:  Next weekend we will welcome Marah Johnson to The Inspiration Station for her first visit.  She will be teaching three classes here on Friday, May 25th.  The ATC class in the morning is almost full but there is room in the Whimsical Drawing and Doodling class and the Altered Niche Book class so call us to sign up.

Loads of new goodies have arrived in the past week too including the Mixaparts necklaces and Simple Stories Summer Fresh line.

A fun and fabulous weekend

This past weekend was a blur of activity, but we also had a ton of fun.

On Saturday, we had the always entertaining, Ken Oliver from Unibind in to teach his Steampunk style mini book.  I have heard nothing but rave reviews of his class and everyone left smiling. On Sunday, he came back bright and early to help us set up for the bus tour. He was so sweet and even helped the girls carry tables out to the back lot to set up for lunch.  I bet he didn't know we were going to put him to work! At the end of the day he was even breaking down boxes and taking out the trash.  I can't even get my husband to do that! 

The Bus Tour was a great success once again.  This time, all of our mishaps occurred prior to the day of the trip, so we were in pretty good shape.  No snow, no plumbing issues, no stuck or broken down buses; just a minor glitch with a receipt printer-which seems to happen on a regular basis.  The refrigerator died on Thursday night but we were able to get someone in to fix it immediately so no harm done.

Our favorite bus Driver, Phil, came back again this year- I think he likes us as much as we like him.  The ladies even got him to do a couple of make & takes at the other stores!  He's such a good guy; we ask for him every year.



So what's next on the agenda?  Well... On Friday, May 25th Marah Johnson from Creative Imaginations and Luminarte is coming in to teach THREE classes at The Inspiration Station!  In June, we have the amazing, Suzanne Dean, returning to share her Copic magic.  To register for Suzanne's classes please visit her website at www.cmcroad.com- These classes fill quickly so don't wait!

Here is the class info:
June 9th & 10th

Stafford Springs, CT

at 
Inspiration Station

13 Furnace Ave.
Stafford Springs, CT 06076
(860) 684-2641

 

Saturday Classes:
Beg/Intermediate Class starts at 9 am - 2:30 pm $90
Advanced Class starts 3:10 pm - 6:50 pm $80


Sunday Class:

All About Hair (3 hours) starts at 10 am - 1:15 pm $60
(covering all kinds of hair styles & colors)
**if Beg Class fills up may add 2nd class to Sunday**

New Low Everyday Prices on Sizzix

New Lower Pricing
We have been working with Sizzix to get a better deal on their popular machines and are now pleased to announce new lower everyday prices on the Sizzix Big Shot and Vagabond machines!  Effective immediately the  Big Shot will now sell for $69.99 and the Vagabond for $199.99.  These are super low prices so no other discounts or sales apply. If you've been on the fence about either of these machines, now is a great time to grab them. Don't worry if they sell out; we'll order more!

A little March Madness

The month of March has flown by at supersonic speed; I have not had a chance to catch my breath.  I really think I need a few more days in each week because I just can't seem to get everything done that I want to.
Things are only going to get more hectic from here on out since my husband and I signed a contract with a builder to get started on our new house!  Thankfully, I have great staff at the store who can pretty much run the show when I am not around.


It's hard to believe that the 2012 Bus Tour is only 2 weeks away! I have been so busy planning guest instructors, taking classes, planning classes, updating inventory, trying to keep up with posting new product, and on and on and on; I haven't even had time to think about the bus tour.  Fortunately, I had ordered the page kits weeks ago and they are already here so that's one thing down.  My mom is taking charge of ordering the food for lunch, Donna and Terry are working on name tags and prize baskets so that leaves me with shopping for all of the breakfast and snack foods along with paper goods and such.

This past week we have seen a lot of new merchandise arriving including....Ta Da!!!  The Distress Markers!  We also got in the amazing Dylusions spray inks, however, we have already sold out of several colors.  Reorders have already been placed.  The new 6 x 8 Documented line from Simple Stories has arrived and is also flying out the door.  New stamps from Penny Black arrived today, although I haven't seen them yet.  Two new board programs from Inky Antics and Darcie's came in on Tuesday too so there are plenty of new stamps to choose from.
Special Guests:


I spoke with Ken Oliver this morning to finalize the plans for his visit on April 14th & 15th.  I am so excited to have him back.  Last weekend I also touched based with Marah Johnson from Creative Imaginations who will be visiting us in May.  Suzanne Dean is planning to come back to teach the weekend of June 9th.  Cheryl Mezzetti is going to come back during the summer although we haven't set a firm date yet, it will be shortly after CHA Summer.  (And I am supposed to be building a house during all this??)  Oh, and I almost forgot; my youngest son will be graduating from high school!  So needless to say, folks probably won't be seeing much of me over the next few months.  But don't worry.  You're in good hands with the girls.

Special Events Reminder

Just a quick reminder of our special events this week.
Tomorrow Nathalie from Magenta Rubber Stamps will be here to teach two classes. 

Even if you are not able to come to class, you can still come by between classes to meet Nathalie and see her beautiful artwork.  She will be bringing a "Trunk Show" of stamps with her that will be available for purchase and will also have a catalog available to allow you to special order anything that she does not have on hand. Nathalie is charming woman I think you will enjoy meeting her and learning more about Magenta.

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Are you interested in learning more about the Sizzix eClips machine?  Cheri and Jill from Sizzix will be here on Tuesday, March 27th at 11:00am for a FREE demonstration of the eClips, eCal software and the Stamp And Cut Software from Tim Holtz. I've also heard they may be bringing some prizes...

Upcoming steampunk album class

Crazy busy, new products, bus tour etc.

This has been a crazy, busy week here at The Inspiration Station!
Remember all of that stuff I said I bought at the CHA Winter show?  Well, I think all of the vendors decided to send it this week!  We have been getting shipments in everyday loaded with papercraft goodness. I think just about every display in the scrapbook section of the store has been changed out this week and a whole mess of papers have been moved to clearance. *Hint* Today would be a great day to shop!

In addition, we have completely filled our bus for the bus tour and I have been working with Ken Oliver of Unibind to plan for his upcoming visit. He is coming up to demo for the bus tour but will be coming a day early to teach a class. Did you know Ken is also a member of the Spellbinders design team?  Of course, that means he will be using the dies in his class as well.

Ken Oliver coming back to The Inspiration Station

He's coming back! Mr. Ken Oliver will be returning to The Inspiration Station for the weekend of April 14 & 15. Still working out class details but you can expect a class on Saturday and demos all day Sunday during our Bus Tour! If you are not able to attend the bus tour but want to see Ken and his Unibind Photobook Creator in action on Sunday call us and we can tell you when the best time will be to come in (in between the buses).

 

Follow us on Pinterest

The Inspiration Station is now on Pinterest!  You can follow us by clicking the link in the sidebar or by clicking this Link.

I will be pinning ideas I find around the web as well as uploading photos (as time permits) from the past, like photos of The Inspiration Station over the years. Make sure to follow us if you are on Pinterest!

All Aboard....

Last call for our Spring Bus Tour.  As of Sunday morning we had only 5 seats left open on our bus.  We can't wait; it's always such a fun time.  It is a ton of work but it goes by so fast.  It is amazing to me how well we all work together that day moving things along.  After five years of bus tours we all seem to have found our niche and can run the event like clockwork - provided the toilet doesn't back up and the computer doesn't crash...  Anyway, if you have never been, you really need to go.  Donna is the tour guide on the bus and everyone raves about the fun they have.

In other news, we received some absolutely gorgeous new lines from My Mind's Eye yesterday:  Follow your Heart and Miss Caroline. Everything about these lines are beautiful, you are going to love them.  We also got in the This to That Charming line from Echo Park and it is a wonderful line for boys and men, but the shades of teal and brown will work for a lot more too.

















Here is a look a a page I made using the new LYB Saturdays line to show off my cousin's Baby boy.  Isn't he adorable?

Next up is an overdue layout from my daughter's graduation.  Other than the photos all I used on it were a few rhinestones and the new quote stickers from Reminisce that should be arriving soon.  I am so proud that I was able to get NINE photos on one layout and not have it look crowded!

2012 Bus Tour.

The buses for the Scrapbook Bus Tour are filling up fast. Wiggles & Giggles bus is already SOLD OUT and there are a limited number of seats left on ours, Papercraft Clubhouse and New England Scrapbook Co's. This will be the only bus tour this year so don't miss your chance to see what's new at all of the stores and leave the driving to Peter Pan.

Get on board on Sunday, April 15th for an entire day of shopping, learning and fun at the best scrapbooking stores around!  The fun begins at your host store at 8:00am with a delicious breakfast as well as time for a little learning and shopping.  At each store you’ll receive a free gift and discounted shopping while you discover the unique characteristics of the shops. There will be demonstrations and learning opportunities at each store. Breakfast, lunch and snacks are included.

• The Inspiration Station  (860) 684-2641
• Papercraft Clubhouse  (860) 339-4443
• Wiggles & Giggles (Sold Out)
• New England Scrapbook Co. (860) 693-9197

Tickets must be purchased in advance from your host store (this is the store you start at and return to at the end of the day).  The cost for all this fun, food and learning is only $69 per person.  The fee is due at registration and is non-refundable unless we can fill your seat from a wait list

 

Magenta Classes with Nathalie Metivier

Join us as we welcome Nathalie Metivier from Magenta Rubber Stamps to The Inspiration Station for her first visit.  Nathalie has prepared two different classes with fabulous techniques using some of the newest stamps from Magenta.

3 Techniques... Magenta Style

Monday, March 26  10am-1pm

Cost $35

Materials needed:

• Various colors of Adirondack Alcohol Ink

*since some persons need to copy as precisely as possible, the ones used on the tile were: Meadow, Terra Cotta and Wild Plum.
*of course colors can be different and it will be as nice! Dark ones better than light ones.

• Handle and Felt. Blending Solution and craft sheet are convenient too.
• Colored Pencils (ideally the Prismacolor Artist ones - not the Scholar ones which are too dry) -
• Pencil sharpener
• White pigment ink pad (like Frost White ColorBox)
• Few colors waterbased markers (like Tombow or Marvy)
• Small paintbrush and cup of water (or waterbrush)
• Small precise scissors
• Glossy Accents or similar
• Adhesive

Watercolor and more... Magenta Style

Monday, March 26^th    6pm-8pm

$35

Learn two unusual ways to create watercolor effect – without watercolor. Discover one of Magenta’s favorite, the Colored Pencils on black cardstock.

Material needed:

• Colored Pencils (ideally the Prismacolor Artist ones - not the Scholar ones which are too dry)
• Pencil sharpener
• Few colors of Distress ink pads: purple, blue, green, brown tones
• Small paintbrush and cup of water (or waterbrush)
• Craft sheet is always convenient
• Small precise scissors
• Adhesive

Classes must be pre-paid at the time of registration and are not refundable.  Space is limited, so sign up early.