Greetings from Chicago!!!!

Well we made it to Chicago (safely I might add..)! And what a BUSY first day we had.....We got into Chicago around 1:00 and our 1st stop was Fiskars for their preview party at 2:15...Yes we basically were flying by the seat of our pants....then it was off to Tim Holtz's class at 3:00 - which needless to say we were the LAST ones to walk in....PS...the class rocked! Then from there we went downstairs in the convention center for a great spread...Every local restaurant was there serving food - Gibson's Steakhouse, Girodanos, Gino's East and about 20 more...It was ALL good. From there we raced out to the Creative Imaginations Preview Party - again...super cool stuff. We ordered a TON of stuff fromthem - I've posted some product pics on the forums for you guys to check out. So needless to say we still were not done...we then ran to another hotel for the SEI Preview party....all I can say is WOW! There stuff is beautiful! Unfortunately alot of the product was is prototype form and we didn't get to see alot of the actual product - but it STILL looked amazing!

So that was our 1st day here....Busy, Busy, Busy!!!!! So keep checking back we will have loads of new pics for you guys everyday...here are a few random shots from today!

Me, teach a Class? lol

Ok you can all stop laughing now. I took today off and am cleaning house and doing laundryso I can go to girls night out and not feel guilty. We are going to see Sex and the City after the store closes. Beyond that I woke up this mornign and suddenly had a thought. I seem to always get one project a year done and it always seems to be a swatch for some line of product we carry. I have gotten really good at them. I decided that would be the one thing I could facilitate and not have people leave screaming. lol I got the computer going and filled out the form needed to teach a class at the store. Yes I know, I own the place but owner or employee there are guidelines to be followed and people to be accountable to. After speaking with Andrea(the Education Director for those that do not know) I put together the form and description and off it went in an email. I have decided to start a series of classes called Swatch Mania. What this means is that in each class we will create swatch tags for a particular product. Maybe you have 3 crackle paints but you woudl get if you knew the dried color actually matched your project. Whether you have all of them and do not want to open till you need it or are looking at getting some but want to make sure you truly like the color then these classes are perfect. In the case of Crackle Paint you will leave the class with 24 tags showcasing all the colors fo crackle paint on a ring. We will repeat this same concept for Tim Holtz Distress Ink, Dabber Paint, Cats Eyes, Dew Drops, Brilliance, Ranger Pigment Ink, Adirondack Pads and more. No more buying a product only to get home and find it truly does not match. The first class will be offered July 12th. So watch the event page of the website for further details. Also, if there is a particular swatch you are looking at creating email me. I will do it by popular vote.
That was my bright idea for the weekend. I am off to feed my crew and finish with the chores.

Happy Scrapping
Michelle

Greetings from Arlington Texas

Hi All,

Andrea and I are in Arlington, Texas. We just completed are last day of the Great American Scrapbook Convention. It was a HUGE consumer show. There were tons of people. Our booth was filled to the max with Inque Boutique. They have the most amazing products at such a reasonable cost. With the help of Chris and Tammy we got through the show and are now officially exhausted. A HUGE Thank You goes out to Monica of Stamp Asylum in Texas. Her and her crew were the most amazing people. They were such a blessing to deal with. First, Monica agreed to take our gridwall and then her and her crew helped break down our booth and pack it up. The people in Texas were amazing and we look forward to coming back again next year.

Now we are done and everything is packed up to go home. We head back tomorrow night and then jump right into the next event. We have decided to attend CKC Ft Lauderdale the 20-21st of June. We will take Inque Boutique, Stampers Anonymous and Ranger. I just cannot seem to sit still and keep filling our plate with more events and functions. For now we are exhausted and sleeping in tomorrow before we have to check out of the hotel.

Our Weekend with Tim!

Well the weekend has come to an end and to say the least I have never been so tired in my life. My goal of the weekend was to make Tim feel welcomed to Scrapbook Central and South Florida. We wanted to treat him to a style that is only fitting of a man of his calliber, talent and graciousness. I was also honored to meet Mario. What a down to earth guy. He was an absolute pleasure to spend time with during the trip.

We started his trip by picking him up from the airport in a stretch limo and returned to the store. The plane was a little early so we arrived at the store and began setting the room for the next days classes while we waited to begin the Meet n Greet at 6. The store was hustling with people anxious to meet the man himself. The man most of us were dying to meet and just be in the prescence of someone with such an amazing personality, creativeness and overall amazing human being. We had some T-shirts made up and Tim was signing away and chatting wth everyone throughout our time together. We still have some shirts if anyone is interested.
The limo picked us up and we went to the most amazing restaurant to eat call Chima in Ft Lauderdale. It is a Brazilian steakhouse on Las Olas. The food and atmosphere was so great. We probably all ate way to much.

I will update on the rest of the weekend later. I have had such little sleep and we leave for Texas Wed am for a show.

Night for now.
Michelle

Ranger on the Road-Tim Holtz

Well ladies,
The time is almost here Tim and Mario arrive on Friday. I will pick them up and come straight to the store for our Meet N Greet. Tim is the most amazing, humble individual I have ever known. We are feverishly preparing for the visit trying to make sure we have the store set up and product all neat and tidy. On Tuesday we have 119 boxes comign from Ranger. This does not include the boxes from, Prima, Tonic and more arriving with Tims products. A newsletter went out the other day with class times and info pertaining the the store and visit. The store will open for class attendees at 8:45 so they can get seated for their 9am class. The store will open it regular time at 10am as well as 10 on Sunday. Please be patient as we only have 2 registers and will have 100's of people in the store throughout the weekend. We are going to have so much fun!

Once we get through that whirlwind weekend Andrea and I catch a plane on Wednesday for Texas and the Great American Scrapbook Convention where we have a booth filled to the brim with Inque Boutique product. Anyone who knows me I do not know how to stop or slow down. I add as much as I can to my plate. In the end it is always worth it.

On the home front I have to tell you it has been a journey of challenges lately. Most of you know my 3 children. Well Lexi the oldest was asking why we moved from our old home when she was born. We talked and I explained we wanted to have more children etc. She asked why we did Not just have 2 children. I replied because then we would not have Kennedy. She politely and straight faced replied why can't we just get rid of Carrington. Lexi and Carrington although 22 mos apart are like oil and water. Lexi believes she was meant to be an only child. Bless her heart. I am sure it will get better as they get older. It amazes me some of the things the kids say.

Kennedy was picked up from school Friday and was located in of all places the Principals office. My docile sweet little boy who is only 2 and a half and only recently started talking told his teacher to shut up. Now anyone who knows me well knows in our home this is a bad word and is Never spoken. How might you ask did he learn such a word. School. Amazing what comes back to bite them in the butt.

I am off 3 whole days since we are closed Monday for Memorial Day I am relaxing. Kids are all going to visit grandma tomorrow and Steve and I are spending the afternoon and evening at home relaxing alone. I am so looking forward to that. Well enough on my oh so boring life. Will chat more later in the week.

Michelle

National Scrapbook 3 Day Weekend

All I can say ladies is OMG. We had such a fab time this weekend. We had a second crop room open to accomodate everyone and had 70 ladies milling around and cropping and having a great time over the 3 days.
We also had Find your Groove author Kitty Foster in the house Friday night and Saturday. She is the most awesome person. What a fun time everyone had with her. She taught a really great accordian album class. Everyone that took the class loved the project.
We took some really fun photos we will be posting.
Everyone loved there Welcome Gift which was a We R Memory Keepers Cutting System. The food was catered by The owner of the Coconut Creek Tap house and we had rave reviews.
We received in tons of new product on Thursday and Friday and the say the least it flew right out of the boxes. The new Sandylion products were awesome. Kelly Pannacci, Disney, Baby Girl and Boy and more.
We have more all new Creative Imaginations products arriving today I believe. Yeah for us.
Of course I am fighting a cold and am lacking motivation to even opne boxes. It is like being sick on Xmas.
I am getting Tammy to post the pics later. I just have to email them to her.

Michelle

Ranger Road Trip Winner!!!!

If you have not kept up with the blog or emails Scrapbook Central won the Ranger Roadtrip contest. We won a visit from Tim Holtz. YEAH US!!!!
The classes sold out in record time and we now have a wait list! Please contact the store to go on the wait list for whichever class you would like.
We originally had a meet n greet set up from 5-7 on Friday May 30. This is being modified just a bit to accomodate air travel. Please keep in mind none of us has control over the airlines. Presently the meet n greet will be from 6-8 instead of 5-7 on May 30th.
If you did not receive the email please contact the store if you are interested in ordering a T-shirt. We will have a feminine cut non v neck and a standard t-shirt available. They will be in natural color to accomodate the image we chose.
If you have been dying to get some of Tim's products and they always seem to be sold out when you visit. Please send us your wish list. We will have every available in stock item in the store that weekend.
Looking forward to seeing you all!

Michelle