Improving the blog

I'm not much for resolutions but I have really been wanting to make my blog look cooler. You know, put more pics, have cool looking handmade headers, take pics of my projects from the side so you can see how thick the glitter is...those kinds of blogs are pretty darn pretty. So I'm gonna try to make it more yum but still keep the content. Wish me luck!!! lol (note, there are no pics in today's posts. I'm not getting off to a very good start now, am I?)

ScrapFest or Bust!!

I just got back from a long long drive--but it was actually worth it! Today (and tomorrow) is ScrapFest San Diego at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. The entire Scrapbook Royalty court was there with our wonderful booth, chatting about crops, and raising money for the Fire Victims. We also had a silent auction going and were making picture frames as a make n take for children with cancer who attend an annual prom night sponsored by Friends of Scott.

I taught two classes there: "Our Little Sweetheart" mini book and " A Joyful Life" layouts class. I have extra kits available!! Just check in my Etsy store at http://jenniferpriest.etsy.com. I did pretty well and sold some kits too.

Now about the crop: Everyone there was so nice. The vendors, the organizers (Tracy and her sisters are just the sweetest ladies ever!), the croppers, and all the friendly faces (WhoGAS was represented!!). There was good lighting, lots of bathrooms, and tons of space in the aisles to walk around. There were quite a few make n takes going on. Some that I saw were Jessica Guthrie of Kits2Remember was doing a minibook, Scrapbook Royalty doing a make one take one frame (one for Friends of Scott and one for you to keep), Michelle Hill was doing a CUTE mini book for $1, The Art In You was doing a bottlecap necklace for $3, and Vicky from Cut It Up was doing a couple of cool altered art projects. there were more but I can't remember them all! There were alot of vendors to choose from, lots of games going on, drawings and giveaways, and tons of classes to choose from. Something for everyone really!

You know me, I have to tell the whole story. EVERYTHING was not perfect but I won't go into details--there is no need because the biggest problem really was the Mapquest directions I got that put me on the scenic route! LOL Overall the experience was good and I think the ScrapFest organizers did a PHENOMENAL job in making sure things ran smoothly. Now that I know how to get there and not take the scenic route, I am already planning to attend (and hopefully teach) again next time!

I don't have pics because I did not take my camera. But I have to say that I will try my best to make it to their next crop. I was reminded of Elisa Greiner's LA Scrapbook Marathon (anyone remember that crop??) LA Scrapbook Marathon was fun (complete with Sonny and Cher impersonators!! LOL) and there were alot of games but the space was cramped. Well, at ScrapFest it was not cramped and the atmosphere was just as fun. So I think this crop is the next big crop out here--pretty cool!!! So don't miss it next time!

If I can get my hands on some pics I will post them for ya...off to spend time with the family.

A Whole Lotta Scrap Sale!!

This is my living room and dining room. Full of stuff. And what you can't see in the pic are bags of more things I have yet to put out. I had a bunch of great people come today and shop--they got some good deals!! So if you have not yet made it up, then you should. I will be here all night tonight and then again on Monday morning. See you then!!

Email me for my address if you wanna come--or post your email addy as a comment and I will send the info.

Jennifer

A Jolly Holiday

Tomorrow night at 6pm I'm teaching "A Jolly Holiday" at the Scraping Lounge!! I still have a couple of spots left--so don't miss out! If you want a kit, just sign up for the class , and I'll leave the kit there for you to pick up. I've prepped extra kits just for you! Call the Lounge at 909-626-7767 to sign up.

It's super cute, filled with the glittery and festive Reminisce papers. Here's another sneak peek of some of the details in the book...

A Big Thank You

...to everyone who took my classes at the retreat, Laura for having me teach, and to all the great friends, new and old, I had a blast with! I love teaching and this retreat was a great way to start off the year. Thanks again Laura for inviting me. Also, thanks for supporting Scrapbook Royalty and the charities we are working with--you've been so generous with your donations and by raising money with a raffle basket at each of your retreats. Thanks again!!

Whew what a weekend!!

Last night, I came home from a 3 day long retreat at Desert Scrappers Retreats in Palm Desert, CA. I am sooo tired! That is because I was having so much fun and did not want to miss anything so I went to bed at 3am on Friday and Saturday. The food was yummy too. Gotta talk about that because I am supposed to be dieting. On Friday we went to Chicago Freddies, a restaurant in walking distance of the hotel--oh the food was scrumptious! And the breakfast at the hotel was made to order each day--for FREE! I know I am going to be craving those heuvos rancheros here again pretty soon--they were pretty darn remarkable!

I got 24 pages done, had a blast with all of my Who Gives A Scrap friends, and taught 2 classes--a great weekend all the way around!! I made page kits and I still have a whole tub full. I would have liked to get more done but I had fun and now I am ready for the next crop.

Here are a couple of the pages I did:


The big parenthese on the right is made from Grungeboard. It did not take paint as well as I would have liked--I wanted a solid color. But it was fun playing with it again--trial #2 with the stuff!


I got some pages of Matthew done for his baby book!! I love all this Heidi Grace paper. I'm so pleased with how it is coming together. This is one of several pages I did at the retreat for Matt's book.


And last but not least, is the page I won the layout contest at the retreat with. The girls gave me a mega hard time because I honestly thought I did not have a chance. While at the iced tea table getting some tea I was trying to eavesdrop on the ladies looking at the LOs to see what they were saying and how they would vote--no one said anything about my layout so I figured I wasn't going to place. Man, I got all kinds of flack from the girls!! Next time I am going to have an oscar-worthy speech ready in my bag...

Anyways I used the KI lace paper, stickled it, made some rings stamps by painting on both ends of a plastic cup and stamping with it--it was just a fun crazy page to go with Katie's crazy hair in the pics. I even used the actual Katie had in her hair that day on the page! I am pretty proud of it if I do say so myself! ;) LOL

Hope you had a scrappy weekend too! Don' t forget--this week is my yard sale and I am teaching "A Jolly Holiday" mini book class at the Lounge in Montclair! Hope I see you this week.

:)