WE KNOW HOW TO PARTY!

Every year, things just get better!  I was very impressed this year with the After Party that Stampin' Up! threw for all us wonderful demonstrators!  This year the theme was "County Fair."  I would have love it if they would have shared that with us before I packed and left....I had the perfect dress and boots I would have worn.  But none the less, we had a GREAT TIME!!!

Of course you have to get a picture in front of the sign.  Everyone thinks I'm crazy....but how often do you get the stand behind a huge lit up arrow?!!?

 My first adventure once inside turned out to be the BULL!  At first when I heard there would be a mechanical bull I thought, "No way am I going to do that!"  But once I got there and saw how "kind" the operator was being, I jumped right in.  And it was so much fun!    Not sure if you can tell that by my picture or not!

 

Next it was off to get my face painted.  This line took forever!  But it was well worth the wait.

Below you'll see a picture of the supplies!  She was quite the artist and did a great job.  Holly asked her what her favorite thing to do was and she said a dragon.  So Holly got a dragon.  I got a butterfly.  You'll also see our other two room mates below- Stacey and Valerie.  What a great experience that I haven't done since I was a kid!

 And of course it wouldn't be a party without music!  This year I was pleasantly surprised with the band.  Of course you can tell it was mostly country.  One great thing was that they had country line dancers to show us the way and get the party started.  Of course, they were very nice on the eyes as well :)

We were there until the end!  I got a great picture of the whole venue.  Isn't it beautiful?!?  The table decorations were just wonderfully themed as well.

And of course it wouldn't be complete without a picture with cowboy hats!

Opening Day of Convention!

All ready for the first official day of Convention! All dressed up and ready to go!  I just love Salt Lake City....the mornings are so warm and crisp.  Even though it got to 100degrees every day it didn't seem like it.  There's no humidity so it's like our 80 degrees in Wisconsin :)

Here's just a "few" of the crazy stampers!  It's so awesome that we have such a connection to get together through Stampin' Up! to share and create together!

This is a view from our seats.  We usually sit in the same spot every year and it's great!  This year the stage was EXTRA AWESOME!  It showcased our colors, special designs and had an interchanging screen (2 panels just outside the center panel) that showcased photos that the great Stampin' Up! photographers took through out the event. 

Here's my picture up on the interchanging screen!  This picture was taken at the Paper Pumkpin Open House the night before.   I think it was when I was looking at the flip books we made during the open house.

 And....now presenting SHELLI GARDENER!!!  I just love love love it when Shelli presents.  Her passion and creativity is overwhelming.    I'll have more to share about presentations in a few later blogs.

Here's a sign outside a restaurant on our walk home.   It seems all fun until you get closer.  

  HAVE A GREAT DAY!

Pre-Convention Paper Pumpkin Gathering

Look at this cute bag!   I just love the surprise of what the cool bag will be from Stampin' Up!  I love that they're always in our exclusive colors....This one is REAL RED!

At first I didn't like the bag.  I mean, I couldn't put my stamp sets in there or my swaps.  I was a little disappointed.  BUT THEN for awards night, when I didn't want to have a big bag, this was PERFECT.  I was able to put my catalog, agenda, and my camera in my bag.  And the outside zippered pocket was great to put my phone in.  It's amazing how your perception changes when you look at things in a different angle.

Here are some creative little escapes that Stampin' Up! had on display.  They're displaying how easy it is to have a great little get together with your monthly paper pumpkin kits.  Isn't this cute?!?!

I just love this home decor here as well.  Here's another setting that you could do with your monthly paper pumpkin kits.

Here are some lovely samples of cards that were made using elements from past paper pumpkin kits and mashed with current items in our catalog.  Are they so stinkin' cute?!?!  

If you're interested in Paper Pumpkin, click here for half off deals!  You can start with this deal and if you love it you can purchase a subscription.  If you're interested in a subscription, please let me know and we can enter it as a show and you'll get FREE product as well!

Finishing up SWAPS as usual (July 16th)

It wouldn't be CONVENTION if you didn't still have swaps to do once you got to your hotel!!!  I was quietly working on my swaps for a 3x3 Love Notes Swap while my roommate slept her morning away.

You have to get crafty when doing swaps in bed!  I used the lid from my 12x12 keeper to tape together the pieces so they wouldn't get lost.

Next it was time to color.  I used one blendability marker at a time and just went through all the flowers.  I had my sample there all nice and ready to check the details.  I JUST LOVE THESE MARKERS!!!

After my swaps were finished and my other two roommates were back from shopping, we went to get MANIS and PEDIS!!!   OH MY GOODNESS....these chairs were awesome!  My back was massaged and I also did the deluxe mani and pedi so I got a nice rub down too!

My color choices were almost a nuetral BLING....OF COURSE it NEEDS TO BE BLINGY!!!    So I wanted colors that would match other outfits I was wearing.  I just loved the glittery mauve color and then the shimmery golden brown hues.  I did the STYLISH thing (or at least what I was told was stylish) and had the one finger and one toe painted a different color.  I REALLY LOVED the way they turned out.  And I never pamper my feet this way!

After our Pedicure and Manicures we were off to supper with a group of friends I met last year.  Barbara Welch....SHE'S AWESOME!!...and her group of girls and some others have been meeting at the Blue Iguana for 7 years now on the night before convention.  I was awesome enough to get asked to the gathering and I invited my roommates.  This drink (unfortunately) was the only alcoholic beverage I had.  But LOOK below at the awesome glass!  MMMM....strawberry daiquiri with whipped cream and a cherry :)

OH and of course treats!   Barbara makes the neatest little treats!  Holly got a pillow box owl....ISN"T IT SO STINKIN' CUTE?!?!  I just love the versatility of the Stampin' Up! products!

Here I am outside of the Blue Iguana....alright everybody now "Strike A Pose!"  I know....I'm sexy and I know it :)

You could share in this fun with me too!  I will be attending convention next year to celebrate my 10 year anniversary with Stampin' Up!   I hopefully will also have my first milestone of selling $100,000 during my career.   I know that doesn't seem like much but the first few years of me selling, I was the only one buying :)  I started out as a hobby demonstrator which means I signed up to get the discount.  Eventually I found people who loved to stamp and scrap and loved my books so I started promoting my business even more.  Currently I have a 12 month rolling sales of over $10,000 and hope to increase that this year.

Check out some of the benefits by being a DEMONSTRATOR!!!

Salt Lake City So FAR :)

I'm going to be blogging about my adventures in Salt Lake City at the Stampin' Up! Convention.  Well my story is going to go a little backwards at first, but you can handle that....right?!?!

I love FLYING to Salt Lake City.  The views from the sky are amazing!  The city seems to be situated right in the middle of the mountains.  It's like a nice little area just for us to be crazy stampin' fools!  Everywhere you look you see peaks and sunshine!  The only hard thing about flying in is when you get over the mountains at first.  You always have turbulence.  It doesn't matter how clear the sky is or isn't.  The air just has to move somewhere and when you're caught in the middle...you go too.  But no worries...I didn't get sick :)

This view is at the airport.  We arrived early so we had to wait for another plane to leave before we could get to our gate.  What a gorgeous view?!?

This is a view when we started making our descent into Salt Lake.  I'm like a little kid sometimes watching all the things move and then feeling how it affects the plane.  These small panels that are raised start making the plane reduce speed for landing.

I'm not sure when I took this picture but I just love how you see several sets of peaks off in the distance (towards the left side of the picture).  It just shows how large these mountain chains really are.

And of course, at the MSP airport....AND I WAS TOO EARLY FOR A&W :(   Maybe when I get back!!

If you're interested in being a demonstrator and going to convention and all these other fun places I get to go, check out my website for more information and give me a call!!

STAMPIN' UP DEMO INFO HERE!!!