So Many Samples, So Little Time

We are actively preparing for the Shop Hop which begins in two weeks. It's hard to believe it's finally here after so many months of planning. Fiskars is supporting the event and will be traveling to several of the stores doing make-n-take samples as well as giveaways and lots of tool demos. We are anticipating many new customers through the event, as well as seeing some of you that we don't get to see on a regular basis. We only have a few key chains and passports left to sell, so if you are interested, don't delay in stopping in to get yours today.

I have been playing with the new product that has been arriving. The above layout was made with the new Eskimo Kisses paper from Basic Grey. I'm glad I didn't follow my first instinct when I saw the paper and not get it in. At first I thought it was too kid oriented and cute for the customer base we have here, but I have found that the papers compliment each other wonderfully and there are several really pretty prints outside the couple of whimsical papers. I have also made several cards with the line and have fallen in love with the way Basic Grey has done it again with one of their releases.

Be sure to stop in and see all the new product arriving. This week we also got in some great paper with turtles and frogs from Boxer. We are anticipating receiving another Basic Grey line in the next couple weeks which was also a release at the national trade show. We are also still waiting on new product from Little Yellow Bicycle and Bazzill.

Enjoy your weekend and be sure to stop in and see us soon, and all the samples we've been making.

Stacey

Upcoming Buggies & Bon-Bons Shop Hop

Activities have been moving along rapidly for the planning stages of the Shop Hop we will be having in October with other stores in the area. The passports were finally going to the printer on Friday as well as the key chains. They told us they should have them ready this coming week. The keychains won't be here for a probably another week because they are being shipped. We have created our make and takes for the event and we are so excited about them. Those people participating the in the Shop Hop will be able to choose one of the layouts shown with a fall or winter theme. Some days you will be able to do the Make n Take at the store, other times because of classes, they may need to be taken with you and completed at home. Either way, I'm sure you will love the layouts and hopefully it will get your creative juices flowing.

We have sold over half of our available passports and key chains, so if you are still thinking about the event and trying to work out schedules - don't wait too much longer. they are going fast. between all the stores we have sold about 80 tickets so far to the event from as far south as North Carolina and as far west as Ohio. There will be all kinds of give-aways at the local stores as well as a list of national prizes to enter and try to win. Be sure to stop in the store to find out more about choosing us as your "home store" and how to get started.

As a special bonus, we will have Rebecca from Fiskars in our store on Friday, October 16th. She will be doing her own Make-n-Takes besides the one we are offering. There are also dorr prizes and give aways for this event. Why not take the day off work with your girlfriends and make this place the start of your tour day!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Stacey

Yard Sale Update

We had a huge and overwhelming response to our first yard sale, both from participants and also from you, the shoppers. There was a lot of really great product that was sold over the weekend, quality merchandise, not just old stuff people want to get rid of. The variety of products in the sale met alot of needs from those who came to look for the bargains - both beginners and experienced folks. Also, because there was so much product donated, there was plenty to sell Saturday as well, so those who couldn't make it for the first day still had plenty to choose from.

Thank you so much for everyone who participated in the yard sale - it was successful because of you, and I know everyone was very happy with the amount of money they made. A special thanks to each of you who came to shop, especially all the new people to the store. Hopefully, we will see you again soon. I appreciate everyone getting the word out as well, that helped bring in the crowd.

Many of you have asked and yes, we will be doing another yard sale. It will not be until spring just because of the craziness with the holiday season, but begin thinking about stuff you'd like to bring in and contribute to sell. There will a limited number of spaces available again because of size, but the more product we can get in, the better for all of us at the sale.

In addition to the great sales everyone had, we were able to contribute $40.00 to the local chapter of "Survivors of Suicide - Lancaster Chapter" which I am a part of. In addition, after the sales, many of the participants donated their unsold items to two worthwhile charities: Make A Wish Foundation and also COAR (Comunidad Oscar Arnulfo Romero) orphanage in Zaragosa, El Salvador in memory of Katelyn John, the daughter of one of our customers. The craft items for both locations will be used to work with the children in expressing themselves creatively and in many cases, getting them acclimated to crafting and stamping.

Thanks again for making last weekend a HUGE success!

Convention Highlights

Just getting back from the Creating Keepsakes convention today in Valley Forge. I had so much fun shopping and taking classes and cropping in the evenings. I found many samples and ideas for classes, several new vendors, new product and new paper lines from our old time favorites like Basic Grey, SEI and some others. It's interesting to see the trends changing in the industry and what people are buying and making. I'm anxious to start ordering and getting in the new products and begin making layouts, mini albums and gifts from many of the things that I saw. My thanks goes out to Kelly for helping with some of the decision making this weekend, carrying the inventory from the show room to the hotel and just keeping me on track while I was going in every direction. There were ALOT of people at the convention. Hope you made it out for at least a day.

Chipboard Albums - All the rage

Every day there are more and more people seeing the value of mini albums, making gifts for others and also seeing their own gratification from getting a project done. We love doing them and the ideas just keep coming. There are several in the works as we begin already to think about the holidays and some great gift ideas for those we love or who are friends, coaches, teachers, etc.

We continue to have crops and classes getting filled which a great blessing to us. Today we have a private crop that was organized by one of our customers and 8 friends got together to spend the day together at the store, cropping and catching up.

We hope you'll join us for a class or crop if you haven't already. Keep your eyes out for more mini albums, come chipboard, some other types, but ALL are alot of fun. have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Stacey

Summer is here

Well, we've made it to the longest day of the year and we are now on the down trend with the days already becoming shorter. Where does the time go? I hope that everyone had a nice weekend and Father's Day. It's hard, I know, for those of us without our own dad's, but there are always "spiritual dads" in our lives and in-laws, uncles, and friends that can mean as much to us and fill the gap. Scott & I spent the afternoon with my in-laws just resting on their porch and drinking iced tea - very relaxing on such a bright and sunny afternoon.

It made me anxious for us to get our new Basic Grey line in. Lemonade has shipped and will be here later this week. We are also in the process of ordering the summer travel paper and some additional chipboard books and other items. We have received some of the new Quickutz release dies as well.

We have loaded the photos of our squash book to our calendar and also the beach tin. A photo is also shown here. It's crazy at the shop this week with classes filling quickly and next week's sign-ups continuing to come in as well. There is still space in the upcoming classes shown below. If you are interested, just give us a call or stop into register.

Hope to see you soon!

Stacey

Wed., July 1 - Love Your Home Chipboard Word Album - 6:30pm-8:30pm

Tues., July 7 - Beachin' It Tin - 6:30pm-8:30pm

Wed., July 15 - Children's Prayer Book - 6:30pm-8:30pm

Check our website for more detailed information on classes coming up!

New Products Have Arrived

Well, the new stuff continues to pour in and we are having a ball making samples and finding new things to do with it. Last week we were set up as a vendor for the Central Penn Crop and it was a huge success for us. Thanks to everyone who supported us at the event either during the crop, or who just stopped in to shop.

This past week we received our Maya Road products, Basic Grey Wisteria and Lime Rickey lines. We've made a prayer book using one of the Maya Road books and the Archaic Basic Grey line of paper, our All Occasion Card class has a card made from Lime Rickey and the Faith Scrapbooking class has a sample of the Wisteria line (shown above). The layout was a perfect fit for the Beatitudes we've been studying. One of the layouts for this month's class was for Matthew 5:6 - Blessed are those that hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. I used these photos of my mom when she joined her church on Easter Sunday out near Fort Indiantown Gap several years ago.

Keep stopping in to see all the new samples and products. We'd love to see you this week! Have a blessed and restful week.

Stacey