HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Here is hoping that I can post more often in 2008 than I did in 2007. OK, don't hold your breath. I'd like to say I am so busy I can't find time to post, but that would probably be a bold face lie. Possibly and exaggeration or two. I'm really too busy because I spend too much time watching my cats sleep. It's hard to be motivated when everyone around you is sleeping, and in some cases snoring and even growling in their sleep. I don't know what cats dream about, but Mr. Sniffy growls in his sleep. The rest just plain snore. Maki is the loudest, probably because of her shmushed in nose. I know that's not a word, but it fits!

So, I'm off to watch more sleeping and some HGTV. Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares is over and it would last longer if he would quit cursing all the time. The guy needs to get a vocabulary as the word he overuses isn't really a conversing type of word. I'm tired of bleeping the whole show. Oh well. I don't cook anyway! He'd have a cow in my house! Or at least tell me how to carve it...

ADVENT CALENDAR PICTURES & SCHEDULE

Here are the pictures of the Advent Calendar. These pictures do not do this project justice. Right now the sample is on display at Carol Jones at 3524 Culpepper Circle Suite E. Just ask for the Hubby, Cliff. Cost is $25. Bring pop dots, Terrifically Tacky tape, a glue pen or Scotch Quick Drying Glue with the small applicator tip, a glue stick or tape runner/double stick tape and a pair of scissors to cut ribbon. A brown chalk ink pad and a brayer if you have one would be handy too.

I'll be teaching it tonight at the Carol Jones training center at 3524 Culpepper Circle, Suite B starting at 5:30p. Friday I will teach it from 1p till they run us out (3p to 4p) at Hobby Lobby south, but you HAVE to CALL to sign up. No calls and I won't be there! Friday night at my studio from 6p till we get done (again, call to register), Saturday any time, but officially I'll be at NorthBridge church from 3p to 7p doing a craft event. You can come and craft with us! Finally, Sunday afternoon from 2p to 5p at the Carol Jones training facility on south side (it's down by Cox Hospital just off of National). You have to CALL ME to come to any of these classes. I have limited number of seats. If you want to come tonight, you need to call me by 2p TODAY! Short notice but sometimes people do... The number is 350-4569 or 833-8760. Email is vconquest@conquestkeepsakes.com. I can do times next week if I have materials left and you don't mind missing a day or three...

NEW ADVENT CALENDAR CLASS

Boy, we're gonna have to get on it! I've got a week and a great project for everyone! A count-down advent calendar that is SURE to be a hit. It's a 16 x 20 canvas board with 24 boxes where you can put little goodies and notes as you count down the days to Christmas. Each day comes off the board and goes into a case for safe keeping until next year. That is, after you pull out your goodies! This project is easy and lots of fun, but I only have enough materials for 8 people! The cost for the class is going to be between $25 and $30. I'll finalize it over the weekend--I'm still making my sample!!! I'll get pictures up ASAP. I'm going to be holding the class Tuesday night 6p-8:30p, Thursday 1-3p at Hobby Lobby North and Thursday evening from 6p-8:30p. Tuesday night's class will be on the south side of town just off of National behind Carol Jones. Call me for directions. Thursday night's class will be at north side at my home studio. If none of those times work, and you really, really want to do this project, give me a call and I'll see what we can arrange! I've already got 3, possibly four seats full, so CALL ME! 350-4569!

New Kits

Just in time for the Holidays I have two kits ready for you to put together! Each kit sells for $12 and I have just a few left of each. Now's the time to get in and grab one!

They are both "explosion" boxes, also known as "fall down" boxes. The first one is for Thanksgiving called Thanksgiving Blessings. With this box you can record the blessings from this year and the family gathering at this year's Thanksgiving dinner. You can write down all the things you are thankful for and put in your pictures and have a treasured keepsake for years to come. The kit includes everything you need to make the box including detailed directions and pictures. The directions include a complete list of supplies and tools you will need to complete the project.


The second box is What Christmas Means to Me. In this box you can put pictures of your family members and have them write on the tags what Christmas means to them. You can put the pictures on the envelopes or the tags, the box is so versatile, you can use it any way you like. Again, everything is included along with complete instructions and a list of supplies and tools needed.

GETTING EXCITED...!

It's getting close to the time of the NCA GIRLFRIENDS IN PARIS crop! If you have not signed up yet to go to this crop, get crackin' and click the link to the right and get registered! You can also find info at both Hobby Lobby stores. You won't want to miss the biggest megacrop in the Springfield area. Your entry fee goes to helping the school fund their new projects and it is tax deductible! There are several new vendors this year, me for one as Conquest Keepsakes, my friend Lori McCroskey and her Clear Dollar Stamps (clear acrylic stamps, affordable and awesome), and the Boutique store stocked full of goodies from your local Hobby Lobby. I never thought I could ever possibly say these words, but here they are, I am sick of shopping! I've set world records in Hobby Lobby. The cashiers have started writing my time in and time out on pieces of paper and David, the North Side store manager told me last week that pay days are on Fridays! Obviously, my accountant hubby has long since expired from sticker shock. He's getting the double-whammy as I am also purchasing product for my booth as well and for fall/holiday classes. I am SO absolutely excited about classes this fall and they will be on display at the crop. You can sign up early, and if you pay the day you sign up, we have a free gift for you! As usual, classes will be held at both Hobby Lobby's, another south side location I am working on right now so we can do evening classes, and an additional north side location we can use for evening classes. So much to tell you, so little time, so come and get the dirt at the crop.

Just so you know, the Boutique store has been working closely with the other vendors so that we don't duplicate product. So, you won't see a mini Hobby Lobby, but we will have a lot of embellishments: flowers, brads, buttons, stickers, Cuttlebug embossing folders, Bazzill cardstock, papers, paper pads, tools, chipboard, tins, storage, adhesives and other products.

To tell you a little more about the Conquest Keepsakes booth, we will be having Make-It-Take-Its throughout the event, we'll have a fish bowl to put your name in for free drawings, and I'll be selling kits to past classes and new kits too. I'll also be carrying some unique products, such as the Princess Mirah line of Batikit fabric "papers" that are adhesive and beautiful and can be used so many ways! We have a Make-It-Take-It using this product and a gift box kit that uses this product. This product can be used with a Cricut and any die cutting machine. You will love it! I'll also have a selection of the Daisey D Autumn papers, and a stunning set of papers from Creative Imaginations that are based on the hot new trend of tattoo art type papers and rubon's. These papers are great for teenagers, girls and boys, and lend themselves to extreme sports pages—they are just awesome. I've been doing some test marketing with them among teenagers and other scrapper friends and the response has been "Can I buy some now?" These papers were featured in the October PaperCrafts magazine where they discuss the new trend towards tattoo art with a flourish. Obviously there will be a paper purse on display with these papers! ;-) I am also featuring the Tonic Guillotine 12" paper cutter. What makes this cutter special? It cuts straight, and it cuts CHIPBOARD! I'll be demoing it and the Cuttlebug at our booth, as well as some other nifty tools you didn't know you couldn't live without! I'll also be carrying raw chipboard for sale in 12 x 12 packs.

You won't want to miss our Make-It-Take-Its, they are going to be extra special and a lot of fun. Some will feature stamps from Clear Dollar Stamps, so when you are done, just step over one booth to see Lori and purchase a set for yourself!

I'll have my computer gear there, and I'll be announcing specific feature demos of Photoshop 5 throughout the day. I'll also have my PictureMate Deluxe and Canon XTi digital camera in case you want a picture of yourself and friends to scrap while you are there! Cost per picture is 25 cents! We are also planning a Photoshop Elements 5 retreat, so if you are interested, let me know. Drop me an email at vickiconquest@fixthatpicture.com or give me a call at 417.350.4569. We don't have a date set yet as we would like to gauge interest first, but probably after the first of the year.

This is going to be an Ahh-mazing fall and winter season! Don't miss out!

A GOOD AUTHORITY HAS IT...

That my new favorite tool, the Cuttlebug, which you can purchase at Hobby Lobby, is eligible to be purchased with a coupon! If I'm wrong, I'm sure the manager will beat me within a pulpy inch of my life, but I think my source was a very knowledgeable source. Now girls, you KNOW what this means, don't you? Don't let me call you a fool for not getting one of these nifty gadgets this week! I just LOVE those coupons that Hobby Lobby puts out. They make it so EASY to liquidate my expendable income. Quickly. Too quickly. Sigh. No fights in the aisles, please. I will be demoing this nifty little gadget this month, so watch the blog for the date (we do know it is NOT the 25th of August--I'll be at the Children's Miracle Network Crop). My guess would be the 18th at the north side store. Hint, hint, wink, wink. :-D

Along the lines of the Cuttlebug, I tried a new type of paper with it, Princess Mirah's new BatiKit fabric sheets with a versatile adhesive backing for "peel-and-stick" ease-of-use. This stuff is cotton and is 100% Acid Free and perfect for scrapbooking and crafting. I saw that they had tested it with the Cricut, Ellison Big Shot, Pazzle Creative Cutter, and Accucut, but the Cuttlebug wasn't mentioned, so I thought I would do a little experimentation myself. I used a Cuttlebug die and cut a leaf. A perfect cut, all the way through the backing, it fell right out of the material. Then I went all out--I made a cut with the ripple square provided with the Cuttlebug (it sort of looks like a postage stamp) and then put it in one of the embossing folders that also came with the Cuttlebug (the Love one) and embossed the BatiKit fabric piece I had just cut. Wow! It took the embossing! Waaaaay coooool! I peeled off the backing and stuck it on a piece of card stock and it looks as good today as it did two days ago when I did it! I am amazed! You are going to LOVE this new kind of "paper" and all the ways you can use it! They have another finish that is velvety and the colors are beautiful. They come in 12 x 12 sheets and 6 x 6 sheets. Hopefully I will have them in stock for the October 6 crop. Two new cool things in less than a week! I think I'm going to faint. But that's not all...

Hobby Lobby just got in their own brand of silk and felt flowers and shapes, along with new brads in sports themes, volleyball, baseball, football, soccer, tennis, golf and basketball. They also have paisley's, some gorgeous new copper leaf brads, felt, crystal, pearl, felt flower, hollow stars, and hollow hearts brads and others too numerous to mention. They also now have their own chipboard shapes. All of these things are under their Spare Parts Embellishments, which you know are cheaper than their name brand counterparts. If you are reading this on August 5th, you will know they are half off this week! Go get'em girls! Stickers too (and lots of new ones there as well!). So you have no excuse to not go blow the budget at Hobby Lobby this week. I give you permission. Don't blame me though, if you have to sleep in the cat house (we don't have dogs here, but we do have a cat house where we put the naughty kittties for a time out).

I've added links to the right for the New Covenant Crop, Hobby Lobby, and Princess Mirah. Print that Hobby Lobby coupon as many times as you like. But try to follow the rules. One per day, per customer. And although you can use it on the Cuttlebug, you cannot use it on either of the Cricuts. Bummer.

A PURSE REFRESHER

As I scrolled through my site, it became apparent that there were no pictures on this blog of my paper purses. I believe they are probably back on my personal blog so I'll post them here. I did spend today with my good friend Kerry Welch and we did some heavy shopping at the FM Store checking out it's FINE selection of beads and trim. Don't, and may I repeat, DON'T go in there thinking you're only going to buy a yard or two of beads/trim after you have made your first purse. That place can suck your bank account dry! I LoVe that store! Those ladies that work there are lots of fun, too, but don't listen to them. They can sell an Eskimo a snowball. Even if I weren't shopping for "sac a main" accessories, I could spend all day just looking at fabrics. I love to sew (I'm not saying I am doing any sewing), and looking at all those fabrics just gives me so many ideas! If I could only follow through on those ideas... I could go on about the days where I had to make my clothes because I was too skinny to buy them off the rack in high school, but I know someone would start throwing virtual tomatoes at me. You can read about that on my macsncats blog.

So, without further adieu, here are two of my paper purses:

GEARING UP FOR FALL

Summer is nearly gone and it is time to start thinking about fall; pretty leaves, cool evenings, pumpkins and mums, cornstalks and horns-a-plenty. Speaking of plenty, we have plenty of things happening this fall that I should take a moment to mention.

First, the Children's Miracle Network "Scrapbooking for Kids" event takes place at the Wesley United Methodist Church on August 25th. The fee for this 9a to 7p event is $35 which includes breakfast, lunch and a couple of drinks, drawings, raffles and goodie bags. There will be vendors on site, and you can get a vendors-only pass for $5 if you just feel like shopping. All the proceeds from this crop, which is co-sponsored by the Scrapbooking Momeez, Cox Health Nursing and Cox Health North Outpatient Therapy Services, go to the Children's Miracle Network. Check out the Scrapbooking Momeez website for more info about this crop [www.scrapbookingmomeez.com]. It sounds like fun to me!

Coming up October 6 is the New Covenant Academy crop "Girlfriends in Paris." I will have a booth at this event and will also be teaching three classes, a Photoshop Elements 5 seminar, the funky Fantasy Box class, and the ever popular purse class. This class is high-style beads and trims, the creme de la creme of sacs a main—purses in French (don't say you didn't learn anything here). Everything is prepared for you, you'll have lots of choices, and we'll have lots of fun! I'm also going to be helping with the trés bien Girlfriends In Paris Boutique, complete with cardstock, paper, supplies, embellishments, tools, ribbons, and more. This year the store will be accepting credit cards. So, if after you've taken the Cricut class and you think you can't live without one, we'll have one waiting for you at the store, and the wide-format one too! And the Cuttlebug, and... well, better not list it all. Suffice it to say, with all the wonderful vendors that are going to be there, you will not want for anything! We're all working together to bring you unique products without too much duplication so you'll have a wonderful range of products to "augment" your scrapbook! Inside joke there. I know we "embellish" but every once in a while I just feel the need to shake it up, so I pulled out a new word. A friend hastened to point out to me that you "augment" your anatomy, not your scrapbook. After I snapped my mouth shut, I had to agree. :-) I tried to explain it away as too much HGTV but they weren't buying... too smart for my own good!

Things to look for in my booth will be new class projects for fall and holiday classes so you can sign up early and save your spot, some exclusive products from some very cool vendors (I'll blog more on that later), and the Conquest Keepsakes canvas bags! Carry your goodies home in limited edition canvas tote on sale at the Conquest Keepsakes booth!

The NCA crop is $40 and includes breakfast and lunch and you can purchase an optional dinner. The crop starts at 9a and runs until Midnight! Hopefully they won't have to run you out like they did last year to me. Too much of a good thing! This is a fund raising event for the new fine arts building, so come out and support this crop. There are several classes available besides the ones I am doing. I'll be passing along more information in later posts. Trust me, you won't want to miss this crop. Especially if you would like to win a Cricut that is being given away...

LADIES, START YOUR FAVORITE SCRAP TOOL!

I couldn't think of a tool that would be everyone's favorite, although my personal favorite continues to be the Crop-a-dile. But, hold on to your seats, I just played with a new Cuttlebug and I may have just been bitten. It did indeed use all my old dies (Sizzix, Sizzlets); and the new dies they have are affordable, but what makes this tool ROCK is the embossing folders. Small ones and LARGE ones. CHEAP! Did I say cheap? Let me say it again, CHEAP! Five bucks-ola for a large pattern embossing folder and they make nice, deep impressions. Even my husband (I would say even a caveman...) said it was cool. Can I get an Amen ladies? When the hubby says it's cool, there is nothing stopping you from robbing your bank account blind and buying out the store! And the folders are cool, and even better, they are matched to some of the dies. Even the dies are reasonable, five dollars for a single die and $12 to $13 for set of four small dies. There are several alphabets for sale around $75, which is much more reasonable compared to past die-cut alphabet dies. I like the crank handle, better than the push handle of the old Sizzix and more durable than the Sidekick and takes the extra wide dies too, from just about any brand of dies. The width of the carriage area is 5 7/8' wide, and it has a nifty handle and sides that fold up which makes it pretty portable. Overall, I give this tool ten thumbs up (since I'm all thumbs most of the time, I'll let you figure that out...). You can come and see this 'bug at the New Covenant Academy Girlfriends In Paris Crop October 6! I'm doing lots of posting tonight, so hang tight, lots of news...

MOTHER'S DAY MAKE-N-TAKES

Well, we couldn't just do something at north side Hobby Lobby and not do something at south side Hobby Lobby, could we? Noooo, so this Saturday we will be at the south side Hobby Lobby from 11a to 3p working on some more make-n-takes perfect for a last minute Mother's Day gift! We will also have the Greatest Mom Mother's Day 6x6 mini-album project available as a kit. It includes everything you need plus the instructions to put it together in about an hour and a half. It's a great gift for Mother's Day, but can be a great gift anytime. All it needs are your pictures! And if you are wondering how to spiff up those old pictures, visit our sister site, fixthatpicture.blogspot.com for classes on using Photoshop Elements to fix your pictures!

Here are pictures of our Saturday make-n-takes and the album project.
Our first make-n-take is a Matchbook Album made using the new Bazzill Bling Cardstock, the Pocket-Full-of-Posies glitter pad, Paper Studio Pastel Flower brads, a Sizzix bookplate die and some garden department butterflies! We'll use the Crop-a-dile with this project, so if you haven't had a chance to get your hands on one, now is the time to see how easy it is to use! Cost for this project is $3.




The second make-n-take is the Initial Flower Accordian Album using the Old World paper pad and matching self-adhesive ribbon, a bit of chipboard for the covers, a chipboard flower, Paper Studio letters and some inking techniques. Just add pictures! Several different colors available. This project costs $2.



The third make-n-take is the BFF booklet (Best Friends Forever). This is for the girls! It has a crystal flower and lots of fibers and some more of that sparkly Pocket-Full-of Posies paper and some Bling Card Stock. This book is perfect for putting all those small pictures in from school! Your girls will love it! Cost for this project is $1.


The forth make-n-take is a Mother's Day card. This is a quick project and free, and the card will fit in a standard invitation envelope.

Supplies for all of the projects are limited and the first project will start at 11:30a. We also have a limited number of the Mother's Day Mini Albums, so get there early!

Mother's Day Mini Album Kit—$14
This 6x6 mini album features the My Minds Eye papers, Prima paper flowers, Swarovski Crystals, some glitter glue, and quotes about mothers with corresponding Bible verses. There are four spreads for you to put pictures of your mom to make it special. A little aging around the papers and loads of ribbons and fibers on the binder rings make this a beautiful, finished project. Complete instructions come with the kit. All you need is adhesive, silver glitter glue, copper glitter glue and a brown chalk pad for inking edges.

NATIONAL SCRAPBOOKING DAY AT HOBBY LOBBY

We're going to be celebrating National Scrapbooking Day at Hobby Lobby north side this Saturday from 11am to 4pm. We will have a table set up to demonstrate some of the cool new tools they have just received as well as showing off some of the other new products they are carrying. They now have the Phoebe line of Basic Grey papers, the Bazzill Bling and Cardstock with an Edge cardstock packages (on sale this week half off—a steal compared to the local scrapbook store prices!), along with Glitter Pads, the new Ribbon Iron and other new products.

We will also be doing Make-N-Takes during this time. We have some cute stuff lined up, some with a Mother's Day theme, a MBFF mini book (your daughters will know what this means)—so something for the girls, and other items. You know me, no telling what I'll use. Some of the projects are free and others run $1 to $3. There will be a sign up sheet at the tables. We will be situated back by the scrapbooking aisles, so come find us. If I have time, I'll post the make-n-take projects, but no promises! Time is of the essence...

APRIL CLASSES ARE HERE

April is here and so are the April classes. We're on a bit of short notice for the Beady Easter Basket, but I enjoyed making it just the same. My cat Pewter REALLY liked it—he tried to make off with the Butterfly and ended up with a face full of glitter. He truly is the glamour kitty of the house now! I'll be posting some alternative dates and locations for these classes shortly (except the Beady Easter Basket—time has run out for him). :-( The samples for these classes are on display at the Hobby Lobby southside store, pictures only at the northside store. I found out it takes too much time to make two samples. I'd rather have that time to teach more classes! On to the classes...

HOBBY LOBBY CLASSES



BEADY EASTER BASKET—$6
A cute little Easter basket with glitter and beaded wooden eggs in a small painted pail, with a butterfly to watch over the eggs—all glammed up for the Easter!
CLASS DATES: Northside—Thursday, April 5, 1p - 3p; Southside—Friday, April 6 1p-3p
TOOLS & SUPPLIES TO BRING: paint brush (not a sponge brush), liquid glue (glitter glue or other clear-drying glue), glue dots, and scissors.


BUTTERFLY CLOCK—$12
Back by popular demand! Spring is here and this 8" x 8" Butterfly Clock is sure to bring some spring into your home. You can display it on your desk or table or hang it on the wall (wall hanger included)
CLASS DATES: Northside—Thursday, April 12, 1p-3p; Southside—Friday, April 13, 1p-3p
TOOLS & SUPPLIES TO BRING: Terrifically Tacky Tape 1/2" (red line tape) or tape runner, pop dots, glue dots, brown chalk ink pad or tear drop (Colorbox has one), paper trimmer and scissors.



DAYS TO CELEBRATE—$12
This gorgeous little accordion tag book made with beautiful Daisy D papers and watermark embossed stamping will help you keep track of birthdays and anniversaries of friends and family. It's just the right size to keep with you all the time. Don't miss another important date! You have to see this project in person to appreciate just how cute it is, so take a drive to the southside.
CLASS DATES: Northside—Thursday, April 19 & 26, 1p-3p; Southside—April 20, 1p-3p
TOOLS & SUPPLIES TO BRING: Scissors, corner rounder, glue dots (regular & mini), adhesive runner or glue stick, Terrifically Tacky tape 1/2", brown chalk ink pad, and folding bone.

LOVABLE YOU JOURNAL—$12 (Picture Coming Soon)
Another project you will have to see and touch. This cute envelope journal spells out how lovable your family and friends are to you. Its cute design includes a pull-out tag with word hint to write about the person who is the object of this journal. This would be a great Mother's Day or Father's Day gift, or a gift for any special occasion!
CLASS DATES: Northside—Thursday, May 3, 1p-3p; Southside, Friday, April 27, 1p-3p
TOOLS & SUPPLIES TO BRING: Scissors, glue dots, glue stick or adhesive of your choice, brown chalk ink pad, and folding bone.

THANKS FOR BEING A MOM—$14 (Picture Coming Soon)
This chipboard mini-album is all about mothers! On each spread is a quote about mothers and a corresponding Bible verse. You'll have room to put pictures of your mom along with embellishments, glitter and bling! A must-have gift for your mom! You might have to make one for yourself too! Again, drive to southside and check it out to fully appreciate this project.
CLASS DATES: Northside—Thursday, May 10, 1p-3p; Southside—Friday, May 4 & 11, 1p-3p
TOOLS & SUPPLIES TO BRING: Scissors, paper trimmer, glue dots, adhesive of your choice, brown chalk ink pad, folding bone and brayer (if you have one).