On Saturday I travelled up from my son's coastal home where I had been caring for his three children while he and his wife had a well-deserved break. Hubby had arrived down after work Friday, asssuring me that he would cope. (He did)
Stampin' Up!® were holding OnStage, an event in Melbourne (and many other locations worldwide). It was a first for this format, but as the Occasions 2016 Catalogue would be launched on this day, I wanted to be there to check it out. I also love a chance to meet up with my demonstrator friends, have a chat, a laugh, stamp a bit, and get the lowdown on what is coming in the Stampin' Up! world for the next 6 months.
As I'd had quite a long drive, leaving at 7 am, I was glad that a seat had been saved for me with some of the Think Ink team. Tracey and Sue are standing, while June and I are in front. OnStage was a mix of business talk, recognition of achievements, stamping and Prize Patrol. What's Prize Patrol, you might ask. Well, when we pick up our goodie bag on checking in, we received a badge in one of 6 colours, and when that colour is shown on the screen, everyone with that colour wins the prize for that draw. Pacific Point came out in the very first draw and I had a new stamp set from the upcoming catalogue!!! By the end of the day, I walked away with a bag stuffed full: - three new stamp sets a paper stack of designer series paper, and four projects made with new products. Sorry, but I can't show you any of this, it's top secret until nearer launch date (5 January, 2016). Sale-A-Bration starts at the same time, and I think it's okay if I tell you, it's a compact 20-page catalogue with a great mix of stamps and paper, one choice for every $90 you order from the Occasions or Annual Catalogue.
Another thing we do at these events, is swap card fronts, using current products, but because I was away from home, and my craft supplies I struggled a little with this task. I needed to pre-plan and work on it when I could find a moment to do one or two steps of the project. Originally, I had made a birthday card using a retired Lost Lagoon button, then decided the design was perfect for a swap.
I spent an evening after work stamping out the three different leaves in Mint Macaron, Pool Party and Lost Lagoon and die cut them. By the way, the stamp set
Vintage Leaves is at 20% off until Friday 20th November. Another evening was spent cutting the Soft Sky, Lost Lagoon and Crumb Cake rectangles.
I took them away to our holiday house another weekend, and glued the leaves into place, with the third leaf on Dimensionals. The sentiment was stamped, using four of the stamps from the
Watercolor Wishes Kit,
As there wasn't going to be enough of the white bakers twine, I changed to Linen thread. I had several packets on hand and you can probably see that I used metal buttons to tie it all together. The one other thing I had to do before leaving home, was to type out a 'recipe' along with my name and location to adhere to the back, and pack all the glues, ribbon and such I needed to finish them off after a tough day wrangling small people. They're fun to make, and its a good way to meet other demonstrators, and bring home a card front that you can share with customers, to show other ways people are using the same products.
To finish, here is a picture of a silver necklace that I received earlier in the month, from Stampin' Up!®. I'm grateful to my team and customers, who have all helped me reach Silver level.
Being a Stampin' Up!® demonstrator is very rewarding. As a way to buy your craft supplies at a discount, all the way through to earning an income, it depends on your commitment to your business. There is no pressure on you to hold parties, classes or workshops, you only need to meet a quarterly spend of $440. It can build your confidence too, as it has for me, with support from team members and the company.
Q..What happens if you don't meet your quarterly minimum?
A..There's a month grace to try to meet your target, and if you don't, you drop from being a demonstrator, with no penalty. You don't have to return anything, and you can rejoin at a future date, if you choose to.
If you would like to buy $235 worth of products, and pay only $169, this might be something to consider. You can email me -rpalmieri5@bigpond.com - if you have questions. My team are the South'n Stampers, or you can click on the
"Join Now" button and read the terms and conditions, without any obligation.
Maybe I'll see you at the next OnStage in Sydney, next 16th April as part of my team?
Cheers,
Rachel
All the Hostess stamp sets are fabulous, but I picked Pun Intended to CASE this week. I can hardly wait to do the Blog Hop to see what the other Crew members have made this week. We're CASE-ing ANY Hostess set, from the Annual or Holiday Catalogues. I love beeing on the CASE-ing The Catty Crew, because the other members inspire me so much! I'm following the special K's - Kathryn and Krissy and you can pop back to Krissy's blog here.
