Fall 2009 Retreat Updates

It's hard to believe we are just 18 DAYS away from the Fall 2009 Croppin' Train retreat! We've had a few questions that have come up, so we thought we'd share them with everyone, just in case you had the same, or similar, question.

--The Retreat itself begins at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, November 13. In the past, we've allowed people to come in early, but we're going to keep the doors closed this time, and really stick to the 3:00 p.m. start time. You can 'park' your Retreat supplies outside the door, and be ready for that 3:00 p.m. opening.

--For the most part, we are not assigning crop areas; you may pick your own. With that said, however, there are a few crop areas that will be assigned, due to accessibility needs, group size, etc.

--Gary Roark, Provo Craft representative, will be at the Retreat on Friday and will be demoing the Cricut Expression and the Gypsy. He will be on hand to answer any of your specific quesion as well.

--We will be implementing a new check-out system for the Cricut cartridges. They will be kept near the check-out area in the Boxcar store. As always, we will have a Cricut Expression available for your use along with the Cricut cartridges. There is no additional charge for using any of these items.

--We have had LOTS of requests for power outlet availability for Cricuts, Slices, etc., and will do our best to accommodate everyone. We do ask that you bring an extension cord and a power strip, as there is no guarantee a power outlet will be adjacent to your cropping area. We will have plenty of duct tape on hand to tape down those errant power cords, etc.

--We have acquired several new cartridges recently, so will be updating the Cricut list during the next week.

--We will be sending out an email update to all registered attendees on or about November 1, so please be watching for that email.

Hope you're as excited as we are about this Retreat! We're trying to make this 10th Retreat a little extra special for everyone!

Thanks very much - we look forward to seeing everyone very soon!

Windy Day

The first day of soccer season this past spring was terribly cold and windy. Grand-daughter Maebre was being held by Mom, trying to shield her from the wind. I was trying to get a good clear picture of Maebre's face, and, at first, was disappointed with this picture. However, after looking at it further, I really liked the picture, and wanted to feature it on a page.



I used papers from Close to My Heart (Blush collection) to double-mat the photo and as the background paper also. The ribbon at the bottom is also CTMH. I used the Swirly border die-cut from Sizzix to cut the two borders on the left. The flowers are from Oriental Trading Company, and their centers are from KaiserCraft. I left the top open for a title, but now don't know that I want to clutter up the page with anything else.

Soccer - Sports Mania Cricut Cartridge

Our grandson tried Soccer this spring - it was not a good fit for him, but it made for some excellent photos for Grandma! :)

I finally got to use the Sports Mania Cricut Cartridge. I had a lot of trouble cutting the soccer ball itself. First, I couldn't seem to cut all the way through the cardstock. I changed my settings and then the cutting itself went fine. I set the pressure to max and slowed down the speed, and then also increased my blade setting to 4 (it used to be on 3). The next problem I encountered was that the blade starts and stops at a really narrow spot on the soccer ball itself. I had a terrible time trying to get a decent soccer ball off the mat. In fact, I never did get a really good one. The one I finally used, I wound up putting a glue dot underneath the weakened area.

I had no trouble with the "Kick this" cut on the second page. I did wind up buying a single soccer ball stamp from Hobby Lobby, and used that to stamp a background on the second page.



For the "Coach" cut on the third page, I used a standard image from the cartridge, which included a whistle. I didn't want the whistle, so I just trimmed it off. Since I wanted to include the girls' pictures on this page, I also wanted to add some pink to the page, so I used a background corner cut from Sports Mania to cut the pink. I added the large green brads (from Oriental Trading Company). I just repeated that same layout on the fourth page. The little girl on the fourth page was so not interested in playing soccer - she just wanted to try and sit or lay on her soccer ball. She was so funny to watch!





For the last photo, I used two soccer ball brads (from Hobby Lobby). At the top of the page, I stamped and embossed my soccer ball stamp, cut it out, mounted it on a black circle, and used Stampin' Dimensionals to raise it up a bit.

Digital Scrapbooking

I've been wanting to try digital scrapbooking for quite a while, and made several feeble attempts, but gave it up pretty quickly. I bought several magazines and books, signed up for internet classes, and downloaded tutorials. Nothing ever jelled for me. Recently I decided to give it another try, and my mind must have been in just the right place because something seemed to actually 'click' for me this time. :)

I downloaded a tutorial and a free kit from http://www.scrapgirls.com/ to create the following layout. It took me a couple hours to do, so the next night I tried it again with a different kit (another free kit, this one from http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/), and it was much easier and a whole lot quicker. Here's my first effort:



For "the rest of the story" ... this is my 5 year old grandson. This was the first time I got to pick him up from Kindergarten, and we went for an ice cream afterwards. It was a beautiful day, so we got out of the car and sat down outside to visit while we ate our ice cream. He wound up with chocolate ice cream ALL OVER his face - he even had it in his ears! It was so funny! As I was wiping off some of the ice cream, he says "I yike ice kean Gamma". What a surprise! LOL! It was a precious couple of hours with him, and I'm glad I was able to capture it with this layout!

I don't think I would ever switch to total digital, but I can see where some digital and maybe some hybrid pages would be nice once in a while.



If you're doing any digital work, we hope you'll bring some to share at the Retreat.

Teaching!

Hello Attendees,

I am finally teaching! Well kinda. I am in graduate school now, working towards a Master in the Arts of Teaching (MAT). With this I attend classes at the university all day (9-6) on Monday, and then intern at McNair Middle School Tuesday thru Friday. This year is going to fly by as I am so busy I don't know which way is up! The school is AWESOME and the teachers in my pod could not be more supportive. I am excited about this year, but also nervous. I want to do a good job AND give plenty of attention to Croppin' Train.

I have been working hard to design a two page layout for the fall retreat. I have had trouble getting one aspect of it (no hints!), but Dora is working diligently to help me find what I need (thank you Dora). We attended classes at CKC and learned all kinds of new and exciting stuff to show you. This weekend (HAPPY BIRTHDAY DORA!) we went to a cabin and worked on more ideas to demonstrate for you in classes during retreat. It is amazing what creativity comes out in a cabin with other crafters. So while I am very busy with school, family, and more, I am still finding time to assist in planning a great retreat in November.

I look forward to seeing everyone and visiting with you all. I also look forward to sharing what I have learned and the ideas we have developed. See you soon,

Melissa

CKC Tulsa

We have just returned from CKC in Tulsa where I took four Tattered Angels classes. They are the makers of Glimmer Mist. I am so full of new techniques for Glimmer Mist that my head is spinning. I am looking forward to sharing it all with you at the Fall retreat. I hope I can wait that long :) I just cannot express how excited I am. There are things that I have never thought about doing. I know this is such a tease - but you have to come to retreat to hear about all the things I learned. You won't be disappointed.
Dora

Scrapbooking in a Cabin

At the end of May, five of us rented a cabin for the weekend to scrapbook. It was so much fun. We all got a lot done and relaxed. The lake view was so nice (picture above). I love combining nature and scrapbooking. I felt no stress that weekend. We may have to make this an annual tradition (or maybe more often).

This is the cabin we stayed in. We cropped on the bottom floor to ease the unpacking from the vehicles. :) Yeah, I think we are going again. I wish I could buy it. My goal the next time is to work on the Navy scrapbook for my husband. I think he would really like that. (see the Something to Think About post)

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