The Maui Stamper

You know that feeling when you’re on information overload and your brain is bouncing ideas and pictures and emotions around the inside of your head like countless superballs ricocheting around?  That’s what my head has been like this week.  It’s an exciting, crazy, even frightening place…but of course the inside of my head is almost always in one of those states.  Having all three co-existing at once is…well…exciting, crazy and even frightening!

Convention was an amazing, inspiring and highly memorable experience on many levels.  Personally, I had a wonderful time meeting so many other talented demonstrators and spending time with my friend Robbie.  You learn a great deal about someone when you travel with her.  We laughed and explored and learned and celebrated and ate and drank and fell into bed exhausted every night, only to jump up early the next day in order to do it all over again.  I took her on some mis-guided adventures – she kindly referred to them as “walkabouts” – and we made the best of a miserable airline delay on the way home.  Better than that, we found our alter-egos.  Yes, we were children of the 70’s and the Stampin’ Up! Flower Power party was one groovy blast from the past.  I even managed to embarass my son from 2,440 miles away.

Every day there was new inspiration.  Our fellow demonstrators submitted astonishing artwork for display, the Stampin’ Up! Creative Genius department had ideas that knocked our socks off, and we swapped with some of the most talented and innovative paper-crafters in the world.  That’s a lot of inspiration!  I’m hoping to share with you some of the incredible swaps I received at convention, but I won’t publish them here until I have the permission of the artist.  In the meantime, I can share with you some of the Make-and-Takes we did at convention.  Our M&T session wasn’t until the morning of the third day of convention, and by then you’d better believe my hands were itchin’ to stamp!

This uses the single stamp So Many Thanks with Marina Mist, Daffodil Delight and Real Red cardstock and ink.  The little package tied with ribbon is an envelop for a 6×6 card folded in half and made into a portfolio for the cards.  Quick and easy and very cute…this is a project I’ll do again with a variety of colors.  Wouldn’t you like to be my hostess and receive a hostess gift like this?  Call me and we can make it happen!