I thought it would be fun to share a “behind the scenes” post today – a post to show (and tell) you a few things that have taken place in my world since returning from Stampin’ Up!’s OnStage convention in March. It’s a unique post since I’m not sharing a specific project this time. But you’ll still see a few photos of paper crafting creativity mixed in. I’ll share a bit about the preparations for my recent Craft Along event, my Paper Pumpkin subscriber gifts, and my May-August 2026 Catalog mailings. I’ll share things about my visit up north to see my family. I’ll show you our new vehicle, and I’ll share details about a major milestone that I just reached. (Yay!)

Many of you participated in my first ever Craft Along event (the Hello Spring Craft Along) by watching the free classes on YouTube that I posted every day between March 30th and April 4th. Some of you even purchased the tutorial or a basic or full kit so you could easily craft along with me. I thought you’d enjoy seeing some of the prep work for these kits, so I took these photos along the way.

This picture shows some of the piles of the die-cuts and punched shapes as I’m stacking them and putting them into cello bags.

This is my table where I gathered exact numbers of everything I needed before hauling it all upstairs to the kitchen island to do all the final packing for the mailers.

This is a glimpse of the island as I’m packaging up the cello bags full of shapes, the special foils and vellum, the designer papers, and the stacks of cardstock.

A fun bag holding the embellishments, ribbon rolls, and some themed treats are included with the kits. This photo shows a glimpse of my work area when I was creating the tags for the bags.

And this is what they look like attached to the bags.

The home stretch was stuffing the bags and then putting the bags, paper packs, and invoices into the mailers.

Here are all the cards/projects we made that March 30th and April 4th week during the Hello Spring Craft Along. There will be another one to participate in this summer. So stay tuned!

I have a new car! Well…it’s new to us. It’s a 2025 Toyota Camry. And it frees me from having to share our van with my husband. We are at that stage in life where our kids need vehicles. We’ve helped them out by allowing them to use what we had… Tim shared his car with our oldest when Nick got his license. Then Luke needed something to drive when he got HIS license. So we purchased another car that Tim’s mom wasn’t using anymore. That car ended up needing more repairs than it was worth, but Luke drove that for a few years. Before Luke moved to California this past October, we traded it in and got him another vehicle. By this time Nick had pretty much taken charge of the one we gave him to use since he was 16. And he’s often gone – working two jobs, going to school, hanging out with friends, etc. So since October, I’ve been “stranded” at home Tuesdays-Thursdays during the day when my husband has to be downtown to work in the office. Almost six months of that has been a little constricting for me. I know people manage, but we had enough in our savings to invest. And I’ve been wanting to be able to visit my parents up north and have flexibility to attend appointments and run errands. So I can not tell you how free I’ve been feeling since we got this beauty on March 28th.

The Craft Along event (as I said) ended on April 4th. April 5th was Easter Day. And then April 6th through the 8th I was back to being busy again. During these three days I prepared gifts for my Paper Pumpkin subscribers that have been with me consistently for their December-March kits.

I put together a bunch of In Color bookmarks. And then with my husband Tim’s help I packaged up and mailed off the May-August 2026 Catalogs that have been requested by my customers…

…and the Paper Pumpkin gifts. They went off in the mail the morning of the 9th.

On the 10th I went up north to the cabin to spend a long weekend with my mom and dad. I drove up (enjoying the music and the smooth ride of my new car!) to get there in time for dinner on Thursday evening. I brought some work along, but how wonderful it was just to be up there with my parents even if I was checking and responding to emails, creating social media posts, or designing alternate cards with a new Kits Collection kit (Painted Skies). We hung out indoors all day Friday (I think it was cold and windy that day), but the skies were clear. We saw swans flying by and colorful birds at the feeder. I also helped my mom construct a card with her Lights of Aurora Designer Paper and coordinating Light & Wonder Dies.

On Saturday morning my parents and I went to spend a couple hours “next door” at my aunt and uncle’s. Then my brother and his daughter arrived in the early afternoon that day. It was so fun to see them. We went on a walk that afternoon. The weather was lovely!

And after dinner that evening, we played several rounds of Uno. I was impressed with how well my first grade niece could play the game.

On Sunday, we woke up to dense fog because the ice was evaporating off the lakes in the surrounding areas. I was actually nervous about driving home, but left at 1 PM and just drove carefully. The fog only lasted for the first 20 minutes of the drive. And once I got closer to Grand Rapids, all was clear the rest of the way home.

The last thing (but probably most exciting thing) to share with you is that on the morning of this past Wednesday, April 15th (the first day of the Double Rewards promotion) I reached my Two Million in Career Sales Milestone! I’m Stampin’ Up!’s 18th Two Million Career-To-Date Sales Achiever!

It’s a little mind-blowing to reach a sales milestone so large. But it’s also a fabulous feeling to know that this journey has allowed me to share my creative ideas, teach paper crafting techniques, and build many connections and friendships with others for more than a quarter-of-a-century! I’m so grateful to all those who have supported me in my Stampin’ Up! business during these past 26+ years. What a blessing it’s been to be able to do what I love each and every day.

Disclaimer: The claims published here are not representative of the typical Stampin’ Up! demonstrator. The level of sales required to achieve this result is accomplished by less than 1% of Stampin’ Up! demonstrators

My husband brought home flowers that day.

And then we went out to my favorite local restaurant that evening, Margie’s.

I even had a glass of Riesling! (Well…a half of a glass. I have a lot of food sensitivities and alcohol is one of them.)

The next day two gifts were delivered. My upline Susan Campfield sent me this beautiful bouquet.

And Stampin’ Up! send me an amazing hand-made card and this Olive and Cocoa arrangement of flowers.

I’m planning to share the card during my April 29th Online Paper Crafting Class on YouTube. You are going to be blown away at the detail.

Thanks for stopping by to see my “behind the scenes” post today. I appreciate you!

PS…I’m sending special celebratory gifts to those who place orders of $200+ this month. Click here for details.

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PRODUCT OF THE MONTH
Introducing Stampin’ Up!’s April 2026 Product of the Month: the Eyelet Blooms Die. Add this to your shopping cart for just $5 when you place a $75+ order during this month of April 2026! Click here for details. Click HERE to shop my online store and place your order online. Because the POM items are some of the best Stampin’ Up! has to offer and because there will be a limited quantity, they are likely to sell out quickly. Once they’re sold out, they’re gone for good! 

(Heads up…The May POM will release May 5.)

LAST CHANCE PRODUCTS
Every two months retiring products get added to the Last Chance Products List in the Online Store. Some are not discounted, but some are and can be up to 60% off. I encourage you to shop today to see what is leaving, because once an item from this section is sold out, it is gone for good. Items were added on April 1st!

ONLINE EXCLUSIVES NEWS
So MANY fantastic products are only available in the Online Exclusives section of the Online Store! You won’t find Online Exclusives products in any catalog. New products release every two months. The next set of products just debuted on March 3.

CATALOG NEWS
We currently have two active catalogs: the 2025-2026 Annual Catalog & the Jan-April 2026 Mini Catalog. The next one coming out will be the May-August 2026 Catalog. Click here to view the current catalogs and to request any current or future catalogs. Right now I’m taking requests for the May-August 2026 Catalog. These will mail out in April.

2026-2028 IN COLOR COLLECTION!
Introducing the new 2026-2028 In Color Collection by Stampin’ Up!® These colors debut May 5, 2026 in the new May-August 2026 Catalog. I shared them Live on YouTube in my color comparison Live video on Tuesday March 17th with a peek at them on Monday’s Box Opening. Click here for a few more details.

NEW KITS FROM THE KITS COLLECTION!
New kits are added to the Kits Collection at the start of each month. Visit the Kits Collection to see the most recent additions.

A PEEK AT MAY’S PAPER PUMPKIN KIT
Sparkling Celebrations: Create bold, celebratory cards perfect for invitations, congratulations, and special occasions. Makes 9 cards: 3 each of 3 designs with 9 coordinating envelopes. The kit also includes printed card bases, precut paper pieces with silver foil, and gem embellishments. Coordinating Colors: Blackberry Bliss, Coastal Cabana, Daffodil Delight, Melon Mambo, Misty Moonlight (Classic Stampin’ Spot), Night of Navy, Pumpkin Pie. Click here for a flyer showing peeks of the Aprl – June kits. And don’t miss the special add-on that coordinates with all three months: the Wonderful Scenes Dies (#168665) — made available March 11th 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 about Paper Pumpkin kits of creativity. CLICK HERE to sign up by May 10th for this next kit.

PAPER PUMPKIN PRICE INCREASE
Paper Pumpkin is increasing its subscription prices to accommodate rising manufacturing costs. The first kit at the new price of $29 per kit, the April Lakeside Retreat Kit, will bill on April 11. The price increase will go toward product value—which means will earn more Stampin’ Rewards when you purchase subscriptions, past kits, and refills.

PAPER PUMPKIN CREATIVES TUTORIAL BUNDLES
Our Paper Pumpkin Creatives Design Team is excited to share that our March 2026 Fluttering Garden Bundle of Tutorials is now available. Visit HERE for more information. Visit HERE to get to my Tutorials/Classes for Sale page to purchase and to see others offered. (The next one featuring the Lakeside Retreat kit will be available May 1st.)

ALL STAR VIDEO CLASS BUNDLES
Our All Star Design Team is excited to share that our April 2026 Homemade Sweetness Video Class Bundle is now available. Visit HERE for more information. Visit HERE to get to my Tutorials/Classes for Sale page to purchase and to see others offered. (The next one featuring the Waterside Retreat Suite will be available May 1st.)

Stampin’ Up!® Products Available to Even More Crafters Throughout the World
Stampin’ Up! products are now available to “Non-Open Stampin’ Up! Countries.” Effective immediately, and under specific conditions, current Stampin’ Up! products can now be purchased by crafters in most countries where we do not currently conduct business. It’s so exciting that we can now make a positive difference in the lives of even more people around the world through creativity and connection.
You can find the full details and conditions here.