Stamp Joy 2020

I can't believe that it's been over a week since I last posted! Sorry for the absence; it's been a little crazy, at least for me. I had some time off work, which was wonderful (had to go back today. Ugh.), participated in the virtual Stamp Joy event with Taylored Expressions (TE), and celebrated my birthday earlier this week. So blog posting wasn't at the top of my list. :) But now I need to get back on track, and I'm going to start by sharing a few photos from the at-home crafty fun of Stamp Joy.

Here are the cards I made during the event. The top four cards are from the Friday night class, which was optional. We used the same main stamp and die set to make four different cards. The rest of the cards are the make-and-take projects from Saturday, which was the main event. I think my favorite card is the blue and yellow "hello" card in the middle. To make that one we embossed the background image on watercolor paper with white embossing powder. Then we used blue and yellow liquid watercolors to create an emboss-resist wash of color.

We got lots of goodies for the event, including a crafting apron. I love the saying: "Crafters unite! Separately. In your own home." That definitely sums up most of 2020.

I wasn't sure I would like wearing an apron while crafting, but it came in handy. Instead of wiping glue, ink, etc. from my hands onto my jeans, I could use the apron. :)

Here is my craft room setup for the event. I had to temporarily rearrange all the stuff on my tables, but this ended up working pretty well. TE sent the pieces we needed for each project in a labeled plastic baggie, and we also had thorough instructions and supply lists. I organized the baggies into two bins -- one for Friday and one for Saturday -- with some of the additional supplies we needed. Then of course I had my paper trimmer, die-cutting machine, stamp positioner, and other basic supplies ready to go.

Action shots! Here are a couple pictures of me hard at work. For the Saturday session, the presentation for each card (via Facebook Live) was about 45 minutes, then we had 15 minutes to take a break before the next project (with a longer break for lunch). It was just the right amount of time to stretch my legs, clean up my workspace, and put away (or at least out of the way) anything I was done using. The Friday class was a little more challenging since we had 30 minutes for each of the four cards, and they were presented back-to-back with no breaks.

The nice thing about crafting at home was that it was easy to make modifications, like changing a sentiment or using different embellishments, if I wanted to. And of course, I didn't have to wait in line to make the projects or worry about rushing to finish so the next person could sit down. If I didn't finish a particular card, I could either use the printed instructions to finish it later or rewatch the video.

There were also a lot of great prize giveaways during both days, including credit to the TE online store, a variety of TE products, and even products from other companies that helped sponsor the event. I wasn't lucky this time, but I know there were a lot of happy winners!

We received lots of great product to make our cards: stamps, dies, stencils, embossing folders, and even envelopes for the make-and-take projects. The stamps in the upper left corner are some of the ones we used on Saturday. Since TE manufactures their stamps, they were able to choose specific images from various sets and produce just those images for all the participants -- sort of like a sampler set. We did use supplies besides these, but for those items we could either order them if we didn't already have them (they sent the supply list out ahead of time), or we could use a similar product that we already owned.

One of the things we received in our supply box was this cute little surprise box. TE sent everyone a stamp personalized with their first initial. This would be so cute stamped on the back of a card or used to make a set of monogram note cards.

The virtual event definitely was different from going to Stamp Joy in person, but it was nice to be able to have some kind of crafty event to look forward to. I learned a lot of new tips and techniques, and I've already used one of the cards I made. I also have four more Christmas cards, and those just might be the only Christmas cards I make this month! :)

Thanks for stopping by today! I'll be back to sharing cards in my next post.