Another Magenta Cat image

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

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?

Lots to share!

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

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

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

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!

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

Great News from Our Companions

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!

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!

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.

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!

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

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 ;)

New Pink Cat Studio Stamps

These are 2 of the new unmounted sets from Pink Cat Studio- Aren't they the cutest? The sample cards were created by their design team.