This was such a special trip my friend Linda and I took to see and meet the fabulous owners and designers of all things Papertrey. We started out in Portland, Oregon and flew to Chicago (of course we planned this way back in February when PTI announced they would be at CHA) and we were disappointed that they made a different decision, but it really was the best for all concerned. We were NOT allowed into the actual CHA part of the convention as that was considered a trade show, but we went into the Jewelry part of the show, and there were
two rows of stamping and scrap booking vendors. We made cards with MFT (My Favorite Things) and I must admit to purchasing two of their darling little girls...to practice coloring with copics, of course!! We made a cute card with Taylored Espressions stamps, got a demonstration from Judith of Judith and Heather wood mounted stamps and again, I did buy a couple of those...stump or stick stamps they are called...one has a little bird, one has a heart, one has a lot of little dots that Judith demonstrated dotting around your design...for instance a flower and it softens the whole look...We played with some Smooch and ended up buying a couple of different colors...we made a card from a company that actually "rents" the stamps...you sign up and place an order, they send you the stamps and you play with them for a month, return them and then get new ones! It sounds like a novel idea!
At the Stamp Doctor booth we asked the young lady to demonstrate with colored pencils how to "blend" with this blending solution...it looked so much easier than copics and of course Linda and I both have colored pencils and Prismacolor pencils...so we each bought the blending solution and the blending sticks.
We ended up spending about 6 hours walking up and down and looking and trying different techniques. We bought some Itty bitty by Unity stamps that were on sale...so all in all I would say it was a fun day and we got to go home with a stash of new stuff. At the Split Coast Stampers booth we were given a coupon to attend their "cupcake" refreshment hour at our hotel...so we did that and we received another pink MFT bag filled with more goodies...two more stamp sets, and an assortment of other embellishments. And the high light was meeting and talking to Debbie Olson. This is Debbie and my friend Linda...we talked copics and we talked
PTI...we told her we were heading out in the morning for Cincinnati...she assured us that everything would be a class act...the only way PTI does things!
So Friday morning Dawn (who lives outside Chicago) came by to pick us up, then we went across the street and picked up Amber (known as DukeDiva on the forum...she is from Miami) and then on to another hotel to get Taheerah (known as Little Miss T on the forum...she is from England). By 9:30 am we were on the road and getting acquainted with our new friends...Dawn had googled some "Paper craft" stores so along the way we stopped and did a little browsing and even some shopping..a nice way to break up the five hour drive and to stretch our legs.
Here are our new 'buddies'...Dawn, Amber and Taheerah...and we did not know these lovelies before...I had asked on the forum if anyone from Chicago was going to drive to Cincinnati and could we get a ride and help pay for gas...sweet Dawn saved the day and offered us a ride...she was a fabulous "chauffeur" and a sweetie to boot!! this picture was taken during one of our "lunch breaks"...I believe it was at the "Steak and Shake"...we don't have those in Oregon or Washington (where Linda is from). We always ordered our food and got back in the car to hit the road...no wasting time for us gals...eat on the drive in the car...Dawn is use to that, she has two little boys!!
Here we are all awaiting the opening of the SAF (Stamp A Faire)...anxiously awaiting, I must say...and we were so NOT disappointed...we were expecting a Limited Edition stamp set just for this SAF, but in our bag was two other stamp sets...Forest Friends and Forest Friends sentiments, TWO packages of designer paper...one was Men of Life and the other was First Fruits Collection...here take a look at all the goodies..
First the bag...so cool....
I am sure you have seen all the cool cards from Nichole's blog that we were able to make, so I will not post those here...but I must admit to going around the room and taking pictures of all the cards on display...you know, in case I need to CAS one!! At SAF, Linda and I joined forces to purchase $100 and so we were given a free $5 stamp set called "Summer Sunflower"...it is showcasing at this August release...you all will love it...
These two cards were made at SAF with that cute Summer Sunflower stamp...these are ones I made once I got home.....
You will love this set and it is only $5!! A great buy...I let my friend Linda take it home with her...so I may just have to purchase it myself...
Our pictures with Nichole at the SAF...she is sooo nice...a really lovely lady! Here are more pictures from the SAF...note the two mini tunks on the table...at the dessert function later in the evening, all these trunks (and I am thinking there had to be at least 35 of them in the room) were filled with PTI goodness...during the dinner break Nichole and Julie went to the warehouse and filled them with all things PTI, then there were drawings that night and the winners were able to pick out the trunk of their choice and kept everything that was inside!! Holy Moly, there were some awesome things...
Here, Amber...Dr. Amber or Dukediva on the forum won a trunk and she was soooo excited because it was actually her birthday too! So, how appropriate was that win!!
And here is Taheerah winning a trunk also...and you know what, Dawn won a trunk also...so only Linda and I from our car-pooling group did not win anything...however Dawn and Taheerah shared some treasures with Linda, so that made her feel really great!
On Sunday, we picked up Taheerah and Merry from New Jersey and took them to Archivers...now we do NOT have an Archivers in Oregon or Washington, so it was great fun to shop in that store...we had some 30% off coupons and that was fantastic....Merry was super excited, so I snapped a picture of her...she was totally in her element picking up all sorts of Tim Holtz goodies and 6 x6 pads of designer paper.
After dropping off Merry at the airport, Dawn, Taheerah, Linda and I headed back to Chicago...we all stayed the night at Dawn's house and then she took us around to more craft stores...ones that Taheerah does not have in England...like Hobby Lobby, Michael's and JoAnn's, and then a local scrapbook store near Dawn's house. We all had our last lunch together at a Chicago Pizza place...Gino's deep dish pizza...it was yummy...then Dawn took us to the airport and dropped us off. Taheerah stayed until Saturday night (6 nights at Dawn's house) and then headed home to England. We made some new friends that we will always treasure and we are all planning to go back to the next PTI SAF in Cincinnati next year...at least we are all hoping we can go again...it was a lot of fun!
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