Convention - Day 4

Day 4 – Saturday

Note:  Pictures of projects from the main stage presentations will be a little yucky as they were never put out for display and it was the end of conventions.  I took these from the big screen video.

Now we come to the last day of convention, SO SAD! I started my day off with a class with Bonnie Thuber called Bloom Where You’re Planted. This class was about Transcending Change. She was an excellent speaker!

She introduced us to the BONNIE way to GROW:

1. Bend with change
2. Open your eyes to potential
3. Nurture yourself
4. Nudge yourself to change
5. Invite positive friends to help
6. Establish a vision

My second class of the day, last class of the conference was Stocking Your Garden Shed with Shannon West! Love her! She talked to us about using the reporting tools to build our business. I learned of reports that I didn’t even know existed! So glad I attended this. Here she is ready to garden!

I then headed to lunch. They had a program this year where, if you attended 5 or more classes, you got a FREE stamp set exclusive to the conference! It is a cool set AND one of the stamps is a LOGO STAMP!

I visited the demo boards one last time to finish my pictures. Wore my camera out! An Kari and I took one more picture together at conference.

The time went quick and found myself at Closing Session way to fast! They had a band of Stampin’ Up! employees playing for us. What was really cool is they were also all family!

Shelli took the stage and announced they were adding smaller events to the Fall regionals so to have more locations! Check out the Demonstrator site for a list if you are a Demo. They also announced that this year they will have all the supplies on hand so we don’t have to bring anything! We then had the Anniversary march. Five ladies have been with the company for 20 years: Lisa Sheperd, Jill Drennan, Sam Slimak, Sherrill Graff, and Kandis Kilgore!

After the march completed, Shannon West took the main stage with Christmas ideas. Did I mention how awesome she is? Here are a couple of tips I learned from her:

1. You can run felt through an embossing folder. First spray with starch and then emboss. The starch will hold the image.
2. How to make your own pom-pom. Using bakers twine, wrap it around a pencil A LOT. The slide it off. Tie the end that is inside into a knot. Cut all the loops apart. Too Cute!

Check out her cute projects.

When she was finished she invited Santa to the stage! And of course, another Prize Patrol!

Our next presentation was by Rich Jutkins, President of Stampin’ Up! His presentation was fabulous, not a dry eye in the house. It is hard to describe his presentation if you were not there but at least you can take this away:

How to find happiness

1. When someone is in need, help
2. Stay in the moment
3. More important to be loving than right
4. Become a spectator to your own thoughts
5. Each morning write down what you are grateful for and read it aloud

He also explained through a personal story how to truely understand the Satement of the Heart.  I have gained a deeper understanding of it for sure.Thank you, Rich, for sharing such a moving personal story with us.

We went from Rich’s amazing story to the Heart of Stampin’ Up! award. It went to Jean Fitch! Well deserved!

We then had our last march, Career Personal Sales march.

For our last presentation Carrie Cudney comes to the stage. Another GREAT presenter! Love her too! She did a candy presentation. Here are a few tips I learned from her:

1. To make a candy wrapper longer, take a piece of DS and cut it at 8” one way. Turn it and score it at 3-1/4” and 5”. You can then cut this in half to make two (at 6”). Fold on the scores accordion style and then lay on the Candy Wrapper Die. Run through the Big Shot. When unfold it will be long enough to put a regular sized candy bar in!
2. ¾” Circle Punch fits perfectly on the bottom of a Hersey Kiss.
3. Build A Blossom makes great turkey feathers.

Check out her projects.

We Carrie was finished she brought out the candy man himself, Willy Wonka!

And of course, this was followed by the final Prize Patrol. And I WON! I got a stamp set from the new Holiday Mini, Cherry Cobbler Scallop Dots Ribbon, a pack of 3” x 5” Cellophane Bags, and a pack of a new Cellophane Bag that will be in the Holiday Mini! Great Prize! Get to check two things off my “to buy from Holiday Mini” list.

As the wrap up talks started all the Demonstrators gave Shelli and Stampin’ Up! a standing ovation for a excellent job done! Convention was truly fantastic. The Shelli turned around and gave every demonstrator another gift, the Hostess Set in the new Holiday Mini! Everyone danced and celebrated.

As it was time to leave Kari, Jan (Kari’s upline) and I hung back for some pictures.

We all then headed out for one last meal in Salt Lake City. My husband did some research and found us a restaurant called the Cooper Pot. The food was absolutely incredible! I will definitely be going back there on my future trips!

Thank you again Stampin’ Up! for an absolutely FABULOUS Convention! Can’t wait for next year’s. Contact me today to learn how you can go with me!

Convention - Day 3

Day 3 – Friday

Kari and I started the day off early to have breakfast with Shelli for all first time convention goers. As I was a first timer since I re-uped I got an invitation. It was a nice get together with 100s of your closest friends! We got a continental breakfast and a chance to get our picture taken with Shelli (if you wanted to wait in line).

Kari and I took the opportunity to get our picture taken with the set decorations.

I then headed off to my first class of the day which was a Garden Tour with Mary Ellen Byler. She demonstrated a workshop for us and she was amazing! I learned a lot of techniques from her, here are a few:

1. When using wood blocks, use StazOn and window sheets with the stamp-a-ma-jig to stamp it permanently then keep in the box with your set.  When you want to stamp with them you already have the first few steps to getting your image perfect already done!
2. Use a clothes pin on a sponge to act as a handle so you don't get your fingers dirty.
3. Clear buttons rubbed on a sanding block give is a frosted look!

Here are the projects she demonstrated for us.

My second class was Bumper Crop with Chad Williams. He taught us how to optimize our use of the DBWS. If you are a demonstrator and have the DBWS you should definitely go through some of the online training they have for it. Especially with the new updates, I just had no idea all the ways to use it. The coolest thing is how the calendar directly links to facebook, twitter, and more! I got picked to volunteer as a “hostess”.

And for it I got Designer Printed Brads!

Here is some tips when creating a Event:

1. Spend time to write a good description that is complete
2. Make it eye catching - "New", "Free"...
3. Have a Call to Action - RSVP, Share with your friends, Join us...

After that it was finally time for Make-n-Takes!  We got all the materials to make 4 make-n-takes which included the new card box!

As we were leaving the make-n-take session, we were given a bag that was called a "workshop in a bag".  I didn't open it until I got home and all this was inside!

There were three projects.  The first project was a gift to give a hostess.  There was enough in the bag to make one ahead of time and one to demonstrate.

The second project was a card to demo.  Again there were enough materials to have one to make ahead and one to demonstrate.

The last project was a make-n-take.  There were enough materials for one to make ahead, one to demo, and 8 make-n-takes for guests!

After fun with Make-n-Takes and lunch we headed in to general session. We had the Yearly Personal Sales March. Incredible! 5 Demonstrators reached over $100,000 in personal sales this year! Then Shelli and her daughter Shalae took the stage.  Here are a few tips I learned from them:

1. Pearls fit perfectly in the middle of the button brads in Vintage Trinkets.
2. You can make paper look leathery but spritzing with water and working it with a bone folder and krinkling over and over
3. Making a French Knot in paper.  Thread needle with linen thread, feed needle up through the paper, wrap the thread around the needle twice, and go back through the same hole.

They were a lot of fun and made so beautiful projects. Check them out!

When they finished there was another Prize Patrol! We then had another march of recruits promoted in the first level. Amy Fish had 81 recruits promoted in her first level downline, incredible!!! One final march for today and that was the leadership march, promotions in first level to supervisor or above. Denise Sullivan had 14 promotions! After the marches Donna Griffith took the stage. Here she is with one of the projects she did.

She had some GREAT ideas for Christmas classes and gifts.  Here are a few thing I learned from her:

1. Attach bells to paper almost the same way you make a French knot, except, instead of wrapping the thread around the needle you thread the bell on.
2. To make a paper medallion you use the new Simply Scoring Tool and score paper every 1/2" and the accordion fold.
3. "framping" - stamping with friends!

When Donna wrapped up she did another prize patrol with items from the Holiday Mini. I didn’t win again.  I had a short down time after Main Stage session and my +fun class, so I headed to dinner. I ended up at J. Wongs and joined three demonstrators there. They were lots of laughs. Afterwards they taught me how to use the non-light crosswalks in SLC.

The +Fun class that I signed up for was Village of Cuteness. The houses were really cute and we got lots of product included! I didn’t finish my houses there as I was afraid I would ruin them in the travel home. These are pictures of the houses they had out to look at.

After my class I got a call from Kari who hadn’t eaten dinner yet so we found a Mexican place to get her food and head back to the room.

After a long day we were both wore out but still talked and played with our stuff until late.

Last day of convention coming tomorrow, stay tuned!