I just got an email from Jill Davis, the founder of Scrapbook.com. They have a completely new site design and it is, in a word, awesome! They have a new home page, a completely new gallery, and several more upgrades. It is so easy to find your way around now at scrapbook.com. Well worth a visit.

They even have a $15 rebate going right now. You can get it with a $30 purchase. That sounds like a half-off sale to me =:)

Another feature they have (which is not new, but is really cool) is a place where you can create your own web page. It is like MySpace but for scrapbookers. Find it by clicking on the My Place house icon.

Jill, great redesign. Love it!

As for you, I’ll see you at Scrapbook.com…

Just had to share this from my email in box this morning…

Joanne’s is having a big summer sale! Lots of discounts with some scrapbooking items at 50% off. Albums are 30% off and they have a great selection. Plus they have free shipping on orders of $25 or more. I have spotted a couple things I think I just may not be able to live without =:)

This Heart and Soul album, for instance, could just be what I’ve been searching for to make into my Friends album. It has that depth of color that reminds me of my friends. And this Hot Pink scrapbook album looks perfect for my daughter. It seems that pink is the new purple and all things hot pink are to be desired. I have to say that I agree, hot pink is pretty cool.

Gotta run. I’m off to virtual shop at Joanne’s. And since I’m saving so much on gas because I’m shopping online, that means I get to buy more, right?

In my email inbox this morning I came across a couple of money saving tidbits on scrapbooking supplies.

First, from an article by Linda Fantin of The Salt Lake Tribune:

The rapid growth of scrapbooking also has created tons of discontinued and overstocked merchandise. Big Lots! recently bought $6 million in such materials, which it has been selling for 60 to 80 percent off retail, according to TDMonthly, an online trade magazine for the toy, hobby and game industry.

I never would have thought to go to Big Lots! for scrapbooking supplies. But 60-80% off sounds like it is worth the trip.

Linda’s complete article is:
The Resolution? Get to scrapbooking now!
Popularity has made the hobby affordable and easy to learn

Next, Joann.com is having a 30% off sale on scrapbooking supplies. It is an online only offer. To get the 30% off savings code, just subscribe to their newsletter and the sale code will be emailed to you.

I’ve been on their mailing list for a few months and they send a lot of online offers out. They also send out printable coupons for store shopping.

Sign up for the Joann.com newsletter here.

This weekend a friend of mine asked for some help getting started with scrapbooking. She wanted to do a complete album for her brother as a Christmas gift. I figured this was worth the half-hour drive up to Archivers. Although I had never been there before I have been wanting to go. She picked me up at 10 AM.

When we walked in the door I gave a little gasp out loud. My heart lept. Oh my. It was just like walking into Disneyland. Clean. Friendly. And oh the fun to be had.

The photo of the store on their website is very accurate. All the stores must be built the same because it looks just like this:

They had a great selection of albums in all sizes, colors, patterns and album type. Their stock of paper was beyond amazing. They had three huge side rooms of paper. Embellishments. Kits. Eyelets. Brads. Stamps. Tools. It was simply breathtaking.

Not just a place for scrapbooking supplies, they also have a terrific class line up. After the holidays it will be on my list to do. (I have a feeling Santa is bringing me an eyelet setter that I won’t know what to do with.)

Bottom line, if you live where there is an Archivers store (see the location map here) - GO! It is worth the drive even if it is a bit of a road trip.

Have fun and send me a “wish you were here postcard” in your head!

Oh baby. Setting eyelets is so much fun. At that stamping party the other day Phoebe, the demonstrator, passed out the cutest little tags which we stamped, colored and matted with another larger tag. Then she got out the eyelet hammer. (I’m sure there is an official name for it, but in my head it will always be known as the eyelet hammer.)

As soon as we started doing eyelets the squeals of delight filled the room:

“I will never buy another pre-done tag again!”
“Oh this is SO cool.”
“Can I do another one?”

Frankly, the excitement in the room was similar to my childhood Kindergarten class on the day my teacher let us finger paint with chocolate pudding. Except this past weekend we weren’t licking the table … but that’s another story.

So, I did a quick investigaton and the eyelet hammer is actualy an eyelet setter - and evidentally there are at least three different sizes of eyelets. Isn’t it so fun to learn about new stuff like this? I’m gonna have to get me one of these:

Making Memories - Universal Eyelet Setter - $ 9.00 Set four different sizes of eyelets with this Making Memories Universal Eyelet Setter. With interchangeable tips you have the flexibility of choosing from 1/16?, 1/8? and 3/16? and a special cone tip.

Yesterday my friend Reni invited me to a Stampin Up party. Up until now I have been able to resist the temptation to give stamping a try. Well, I caved in and my worst fears about stamping were realized - I LOVED it!

The stamps are so cute and the colors of the stamps are simply amazing. Oh how fun. I could think of a thousand things to do with stamps on my layouts. Naturally, since I haven’t announced here on the blog that I’ve recently won the lottery (which I haven’t) I had to decide which few stamps and supplies I would get.

Now that was hard. Their catalog is HUGE and full of page after page of awesome stamps, papers and cards. Thank goodness the prices are very reasonable. [Their acid-free, lignin-free paper prices are frankly amazing!] I decided to get some pre-cut cards, tags and pockets, four different colored stamp pads and a set of 4 border stamps, pictured here:

I figured I could use these for a wide variety of uses and figured they would be a good foundation set of stamps.

I guess it is safe to say that I am now officially a stamper too =:) Thanks, Reni! See ya at the next crop.

Just got an email from Jo-Ann stores announcing Creating Keepsakes products are now exclusively available in their store. It says they have scrap totes, albums, storage units, kits and CKOK-Scrappin’ Creations embellishments. So I popped online to see what I could find.

While it appears that their online selection is still limited, there is one item in particular that caught my eye. It is the Creating Keepsakes Basic Essential Tote that is not just an empty tote, but comes stuffed with scrapping stuff from Creating Keepsakes. (I tried to grab the photo to paste in here, but it is not grabbable.) Here is what is included in this cool looking bag:

Kit Includes:
* Fabric Tote
* Trimmer
* 12″ deckled edge ruler
* Set of 3 pens
* 25 sheets of cardstock
* Scissors
* 4″x6″ photo organizer
* 12″x12″ paper holder
* Sketch book
* Tool guide

It is $99.99 but this week at their online store, they have a 50% off coupon which does appear to apply to Creating Keepsakes products. That is a pretty good value!

Just thought I would share this. I am going to take a minute to stop my local JoAnn store too to see what the offline selection is too. Could be fun. (Or dangerous…you know, to the pocketbook =:)

Oh, I just found the cutest site for getting ribbon. The Ribbon Jar was created by Amber Lee after searching for ribbon she saw in magazines and not being able to find it anywhere by the yard. Frustrated she decided to take matters into her own hands, and began The Ribbon Jar.

What I love about this site is the page where you can Shop by Color. Not so much THAT you can shop by color, but by HOW she has it set up. You should take a peek at it, it is just so cute.

Do you use a lot of ribbon in your layouts?

My mom and I recently discovered the pleasure in owning a nice selection of die cuts. It all started out innocently enough (don’t all these scrapbook supply needs?) by me asking for a Sizzix alphabet as my Christmas present. My very first die cut alphabet was under the tree this past year. And by the 4th of July, together we have 8 (or is it 9) alphabets and tons of shapes. It almost feels like we’ve headed out to one of those weekend hotel crops when we get together.

My friend Carolyn posted a really great article about her adventures with die cut systems at her blog, Crop Chic. I love how she put pictures of the die cuts in the article. Although I did spot a couple new shapes I need. (That little denim pocket, for instance.)

You can find some great deals on die cut systems here:

Scrapbook.com
Look in Die Cuts and Cut Outs.

Like a step back in time to the “5 and dime” days - both in visual appeal and the great prices. Create for Less is a totally cool site to get discount scrapbook supplies.

Is it just me or is that retro feel of the site design just the best?

Save on scrapbooking supplies at www.CreateForLess.com.