My annual Silver Elite Retreat took place last weekend. This is an special event for those in my Stampers With ART group who are at the Silver Elite title or higher. To be Silver Elite, a demonstrator must have at least $7,200 US in rolling 12-month sales and five direct team members with at least one of them holding the title of Silver* or more.
This year instead of going to my parents’ cabin, I hosted it at my house in Andover, MN and my mom came here to help me put it on. My husband and my boys left to enjoy a guys’ weekend away at a hotel in Saint Paul so that us six paper crafters could make use of the entire house. It worked out well. We had space for everyone to sleep, all my tools and extra supplies were on hand, the crafting area was well-lit, and I could even photograph projects afterwards using the space in my studio.
Vy was the only one who lived quite a distance away. She flew in Thursday early afternoon. She’s been to Minnesota before and didn’t desire to shop the Mall of America or anything. So we basically just hung out at the house all day. It was super cold outside anyway.
On Friday we ventured out to a local bakery/sandwich shop called Krown Bakery in Anoka. They have very tasty gluten-free desserts. So we each had a sandwich and a treat.
By about 3:00 PM on Friday Cheryl, Nancy and Kayla had arrived. And my guys (now home from school and done with work) were out the door. It was fun to catch up and we talked for quite some time. I also gave everyone their bag of make-n-take supplies and gifts (see below for what they received).
Everyone settled into and unpacked, we had dinner and then we dove into our projects. It was fun to see the looks on their faces when I informed them we were making 20 cards in one evening. But there was relief when they saw that those cards were quick and easy creations with the Sweet Thoughts Memories & More Cards and Cards/Envelopes. In the end, there were close to 100 completed cards on the kitchen island! I will share my 20 cards (and some of the variations these gals came up with) on my blog sometime next week.
Vy really got creative with her cards (the unicorn pjs helped!) and even used the new Glass Mat Studio and hobby blade to give her butterfly wings a bit of a lift.
I bought and provided TOO much food. We were never without and had lots of leftovers (which my family is still working on). This is a photo of the food we had out for lunch on Saturday.
Crafting was a majority of the retreat weekend. But we also laughed a lot and shared ideas with each other…creative and business. Kayla taught me how to set up break out rooms for Zoom AND she showed me how to create logo wear. You may see some of that appearing on the shop section of my blog soon! Hahaha
Saturday we worked on the more time-consuming cards. Above is Cheryl, Kayla and Nancy. And below is me, my mom and Vy. These photos were taken when we put together Outside-In Fun Fold card with products in the Forever Love Suite. For those of you who catch my weekly free Online Paper Crafting Classes on YouTube or Facebook, these are the cards I’ll be sharing how to make this Wednesday, January 31st. Hope you can tune in!
During this retreat we each made:
- A Star Column Card that we made with the Ice Cream Swirl Bundle and some Perennial Lavender Designer Paper – cards that I shared a few days ago on January 22nd. (Be sure to check them out.)
- 20 cards from the Sweet Thoughts Memories & More Cards and Cards/Envelopes that I plan to share with you on February 5th.
- Two Outside-In Fun Fold cards that I’ll share this week on Wednesday.
- And two other cards with this Forever Love Suite that I’ll share soon after.
Taco night is a tradition now. I think we’ve had tacos at every Silver Elite Retreat since we first started these in February of 2018 (this year is our 7th annual). It’s Cheryl’s favorite meal, she has been at every retreat, and what’s not to love about tacos?!
With the trip my son and I took out to Los Angeles, I didn’t have a lot of time to make a lot of things for the girls’ gifts, but I DID get these stamped invitations out in the mail in late December/early January.
Of course I had to use my favorite stamp set, Layering Leaves for the imagery and front sentiment. I paired this with the new Layered Florals Embossing Folder for the Basic White Cardstock layer, some Vellum Cardstock along the left edge and within the punched leaves, some Gold Foil cut with the Stylish Shapes positioned under the 2″ punched sentiment circle, and some Pretty Peacock/Gold Ribbon and Pretty Peacock Foiled Gems. (See below for a visual list for these supplies linked to my online store.)
Here are the iridescent bags of gifts I gave to each of my achieving demonstrators.
Their make-n-take materials were within. And then of course all the other goodies!…
Cheryl Lee’s bag:
Nancy Forsberg’s (and Kayla Cory’s) bag:
And Vy Tran’s bag:
They each received iridescent embellishments (foiled gems, pearls, rhinestones, and flat backed pearls) individually wrapped in iridescent bags tied with a bit of Glittered Organdy Ribbon, a Clear Block D etched with their name and the event info, a couple sponges, a notebook of black 9×12 sketch paper and a white marker (that can write on smooth surfaces and paper) that I purchased in Norway, a black reflective photo board, a couple of iridescent drinking glasses, Holographic Foil Paper (not pictured), their favorite bag of chips, and a custom made 3D printed business card holder with their business logo design on the front (made by James and Ashley at The Country Hive).
I got one, too!!! Here are the four business card holders up close.
You can visit Cheryl Lee at Stamping Upstairs, Vy Tran at Crafting Daily Dose, and Nancy & Kayla at Stamping BAE.
As always, it was an amazing weekend with amazing people and memories to last a lifetime! I’m already excited for next year and thinking of other ways to spoil my achievers.
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SALE-A-BRATION 2024!
The Sale-a-Bration promotion is here and runs January 4th through February 29th! Click here for all the details. Click here to view the online version of this new publication. Click here to see these new products online.
THE NEW JAN-APRIL 2024 MINI CATALOG!
The new Jan-April 2024 Mini Catalog featuring lots of new products is here! Click here to view the online version of this new publication. Click here to shop these new products online.
KITS COLLECTION: PANDA FRIENDS & ROCK LEGEND KITS ADDED
Two kits have been recently added to the Kits Collection! Click here and scroll down for more details.
STAMP-N-STORAGE JANUARY SALE & CELEBRATION
To celebrate their 15-year anniversary Stamp-n-Storage is offering 15% off storewide* through the month of January 2024!! Visit their site to shop. They are also giving away 15 Golden Tickets at random this month to those that order. So check your shipment box. A Golden Ticket might be yours! *Sale excludes the Craft-n-Go Mini.
ONLINE EXCLUSIVES NEWS
You won’t find Online Exclusives products in any catalog or publication. So be sure to visit this link to shop today. All Online Exclusives products are available while supplies last. New products were added in November.
A PEEK AT FEBRUARY’S PAPER PUMPKIN KIT
Sweet Springtime Kit: Celebrate Easter and Spring with adorable cards and treat boxes! Makes 9 projects: 3 each of 3 designs. Projects include printed cards, coordinating envelopes, and gift boxes. Kit includes precut paper pieces, baker’s twine, and embellishments AND comes in a unique box to match the season. Coordinating colors: Petal Pink, Daffodil Delight, Granny Apple Green, Berry Burst, Early Espresso (Classic Stampin’ Spot), Crumb Cake. Click here for a flyer showing peeks of the Jan-March kits. And don’t miss the special add-on that coordinates with all three months: the Love of Spring Dies Add-On (item 164396) —available beginning 11 December and only while supplies last!
If you are not a Paper Pumpkin subscriber, I invite you to give it a try. CLICK HERE to learn more. CLICK HERE to sign up by February 10th for this next kit.
ALL STAR VIDEO CLASSES
I’m a designer with the All Stars, a group of globally recognized Stampin’ Up! demonstrators. And we are excited to share exclusively with our customers, paper crafting friends & team members our January 2024 Lighter Than Air Suite Video Class Bundle which is now available. CLICK HERE for more information. Click here to get to my Tutorials/Classes for Sale page to see others that have been offered. The next one featuring the Perennial Lavender Suite from the Jan-Apr 2024 Mini Catalog will be available Feb 1st.
*To be Silver, a demonstrator must have at least $3,600 US in rolling 12-month sales and one direct team member.
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What an awesome crafting retreat! I bet it was the best of times 😀
Sure was. Thanks KT!
Rachel, loved seeing your pics of your retreat ,looks like it was a fun time for all. Looks like you are a giving person. I am going to make your card you posted on line with the pretty peacock ribbon and gems.
Thank you Sharon. It really was a very fun and special weekend. Glad you were inspired to make that card.