Its been almost a week since CHA Summer wrapped up, and we want to thank everyone that attended for stopping by to see us and our new releases!  Yes, the show was smaller with fewer in attendance than previous shows, but we were busy.  It was great to see our retailers, distributors and friends!  A big welcome to the new retailers that joined the Spellbinders™ Family!

The highlight of the show was winning a prestigious Craft and Hobby Association award!  We took third place in the Innovations category, which lauds the newest and most creative ideas.  This year we were recognized for our Pendant and Borderabilities® die templates.  The competition was tough, and we are honored to be among the best.

Stacey accepted the award for us! Here’s a close up.

Cathy Chlebana, our Design Team Coordinator, designed the artwork and presentation board for the competition.

Now I hope you will bear with me on these, I didn’t take my best camera with me.  I’m not so good with my son’s point-and-shoot!  I thought I would share a little bit of the set up process.  Its so interesting to enter the convention center on the morning before the show opens.  We must dodge forklifts, step around boxes and avoid large crates to make our way to the booth space.  The slat walls are built, the overhead sign is hung, but there is a lot of work to do.

The inside wall gets filled with product all the way around.  The back wall gets covered with artwork from our talented designers. We always have more than enough artwork to choose from, and its quite a process to sort, categorize and determine what goes where.

Everyone has a job during set up, and this time we were done in record time.  Thank goodness we had air conditioning, it was hot and humid in Florida!

Our fabulous designers outdid themselves yet again. This back wall was full of art work that caused our guests to linger and appreciate what all our products can do. We had two tables set up at the front, one for demonstrating our new die templates, Impressabilities™ and Wizard™, and the other for our Make and Take projects.

By the end of set up day the convention hall magically (with a whole lot of sweat and muscle) turns into a trade show!  Crates, boxes, and trash gets whisked away, floors swept, carpet goes down the aisles, and final details are placed in the booths.  Its amazing to see how much a room can change in a day.  The next morning the show opens with bag pipers parading down the aisles, then the real work begins!

If you couldn’t make it to the show we understand. Our retailer’s show specials will be honored until August 5th.  On this blog we will continue to highlight our designers and their artwork, as well as techniques using Spellbinders™ die templates, Impressabilities™, the Wizard™, as well as the next innovative ideas we bring to the market!

Beth

We hope you enjoyed Debbie Olson’s project that she created with the S5-019 Labels Eight Nestabilties®. If you didn’t get enough of this set, Julie Overby made a cute project on her blog that she is sharing.

Remember in order to enter the Frenzy contest, you will need to send an email (link is in Debbie’s blog) by Friday, July 10th (11:59PM EST).

For Day Two of the CHA Blog Frenzy, we have Michelle Wooderson who will be showing us her creations with the S4-220 Nested Pine Trees. Be sure to visit Michelle’s blog HERE to see what she has in store!

As a life-long crafter, Michelle started out by helping her mom with Bible School crafts. After her daughters were born, she started scrapbooking and now is really into the craft! Michelle gets her inspiration from various sources such as all kinds of magazines, browsing through stores, visiting thrift stores and antique stores to surfing through many web sites and bookmarked blogs. When starting a new project, a simple object like a snippet of ribbon or something purchased from a garage sale can set off an inspiration. What she loves most about crafting is creating something special for someone or to fill her home with homemade items…it’s a good feeling!

We would like to share some of Michelle’s sweet projects!

Greetings!

Today is the start of our CHA Blog Frenzy and it’s a biggie! Not only did we have a Frenzy about our Pendant Collection but now we’ve got 17 more new items to be frenzied about! For details on rules and schedule, please look HERE.

Design Team Member, Debbie Olson, will kick off with her take on our first reveal….S5-019 Labels Eight Nestabilities®!

Debbie has a B.A. in Commercial Art/Graphic Design plus an M.S. in Secondary Education. Much of what Debbie learned in art classes still applies to her today (basic designs, color theory, drawing and coloring skills). A busy mom, she home-schools during the day and creates mostly after 10pm. Debbie describes her style as eclectic - she appreciates so many different styles from clean and fresh to detailed and vintage. We hear she is rarely without a sanding block at her finger tips!

Here a sampling of Debbie’s beautiful work of art!

Yes, that’s right! Spellbinders is doing it again, and it’s bigger and its better than before! You didn’t think we could stop with the new Pendant Collection did you? Oh no! We’ve got 17 more new Spellbinders products to reveal from July 9 – 22, 2009. And we want to share them with you!

Each day we will direct you to one of our talented Designer’s blogs where you will be introduced to our latest and greatest Spellbinders Die Templates. Enter to win by sending an email to the address listed in the blog. Daily winners will be chosen randomly from eligible entries. But wait, there’s more!

This time the prize is progressive! On Day 1, we give away the Day 1 release. On Day 2 we give away the Day 1 and Day 2 releases! The prizes grow each and every day for 14 days!! By entering each day from each blog, you become eligible to win the Grand Prize… COMPLETE set of CHA Summer 2009 Die Templates and Impressabilities releases, a total of 29 products with a retail value of more than $560.00!!

Check out this line up of talented Designers on the dates noted and then enter for your chance to win:

7/9 Debbie Olson

7/10 Michelle Wooderson

7/11 Karen Hunsaker

7//12 Kazan Clark

7/13 Linda Duke

7/14 Heidi Blankenship

7/15 Kimberly Crawford

7/16 Julie Overby

7/17 Sherry Cheever

7/18 Debbie Seyer

7/19 Lesa Rapp

7/20 Becca Feeken

7/21 Jennifer Davis

7/22 Keri Lee Sereika

Remember to stop here each day as we will introduce our featured Designer and provide a link to her blog. Subscribe to the Spellbinders Blog here to get the daily posts emailed to you, and don’t miss out on a single thing!

See the entire line of Spellbinders products on the Spellbinders’ website.

Official Rules

Any participant wishing to be included in the daily drawing for the Spellbinders CHA Blog Frenzy give-away must adhere to all of the following rules. We are happy to welcome US and international blog guests for this Frenzy.

To enter each drawing on sneak peeks between July 9 and July 22, visit the reveal blog and click on the contest link to reveal an e-mail window. In the subject line of the e-mail, enter the die template name being revealed. Each blog reveal will remain open for 48 hours. Only 1 entry per blog is allowed and participant must use the same email address daily to be considered for grand prize entry, no exceptions. Please consider whether you will have access to the same e-mail address from July 9th through July 22nd and plan accordingly.

After the entry deadline is reached, Spellbinders will randomly pick one entry from each Blog Frenzy reveal as stated in the “Rules”. Winner will be contacted by e-mail within 24 hours of the contest deadline. Winner will have 72 hours to reply to that e-mail to claim the prize. If Winner fails to respond within 72 hours, a new name will be drawn for said prize. Winner will receive the new die templates being revealed on the specific daily blog post they are entering.

Entrants visiting all 14 Spellbinders CHA Blog Frenzy Reveals and correctly entering their information into the separate drawings, as described below, will automatically be entered into a GRAND PRIZE give away of a full set of the CHA Summer 2009 die templates and Impressabilities releases, 29 products, with a retail value of $561.71.

Spellbinders Design Team members and employees are not eligible for drawings.

Any participant wishing to be automatically entered into the drawing for the CHA Blog Frenzy Grand Prize must enter all 14 blog reveals and follow all the above rules.
Please note:
*Spellbinders will only use email information to contact the winner.
*Spellbinders will not share this email address with any other parties.
*Spellbinders will not use this email information for advertisements or communications
other than to contact the winner.
*If you wish to be included in further communications from Spellbinders, please go to their homepage SpellbindersPaperArts.com and sign up for their newsletter.

For more Spellbinders new product release information go to New Products
If you have any questions regarding the contest, send an e-mail to ContestQuestions .

Hi Friends, we’re having a great time, we wish you were here! The weather in California is mild, or so they’re telling me. We’ve been inside the convention center and we haven’t been able to enjoy the sun. That’s OK, we’ve been in the company of lots of old long customers and new friends from near and far. Yesterday we had an early morning class. Yawn. Oh sorry, I need more coffee!

We are not forgetting about you. We see your questions about the new Spellbinders’ Impressabilities. I have lots of photos and examples and I’ll write up a few entries on them, the show, the new carrying case and the fun we’ve been having here.

Here is a shot of the new markings on the Spellbinders™ Wizard™. The writing is facing the other way, there is an arrow showing the direction the mats should travel, and the color has been tweaked just so. Also shown is the Impressabilities™ in the package, and the make and take project we’ve been making.

Here we are at the group dinner, its me, Eli, Kim and Stacey at Buco De Beppo, YUM!

So hang in there! We appreciate your interest and Eli and I will be back home and writing all the details soon!

Beth

Spellbinders™ Celebrates 5^th Anniversary with a World Wide Blog Party!

Two-week Anniversary Celebration!

When: January 5 to January 20, 2009

Where: Spellbinders™ Designer Blogs

You, our favorite crafters, do NOT want to miss any of our Bloggers’ new Spellbinders™ Die Template releases during our Fifth Anniversary Blog Party. We are celebrating FIVE incredible years of changing the die cutting industry and YOU get the presents with daily sneak peeks, incredible prizes and amazing projects. Many of the new die templates debut during the Winter Craft and Hobby Association Show (CHA) in Anaheim, California, January 25-28, 2009, at Spellbinders™ booth #4873.

Beginning Monday, January 5^th and continuing through January 20^th, a different Spellbinders™ Designer (schedule below) will preview at least one of more than two dozen new die templates set to debut at Winter CHA. These exclusive sneak peeks will be available ONLY through Spellbinders™ Designers’ Blogs!

In addition to getting the first look at these new die templates, you’ll find innovative project ideas and can sign up during specified times for a chance to win daily prizes, as well as become eligible to win the Grand Prize … a complete set of all new release die templates valued at more than $600!

For more information … and to be sure you don’t miss a minute of Spellbinders’ 5^th Anniversary Celebration … visit these blogs on the following dates!

• JANUARY 5: Thinking Inking by Debbie Olson
• JANUARY 6: Mish Mash by Michelle Wooderson
• JANUARY 7: Today’s Creations by Holly Craft
• JANUARY 8: Walkin’ on the BAD side by Sherry Cheever
• JANUARY 9: Embellished Dreams by Heidi Blankenship
• JANUARY 10: Amazing Paper Grace by Becca Feeken
• JANUARY 11: Created from Paper by Jennifer Ellefson


This Die Template will be revealed in full view... soon.

• JANUARY 12: PaperFection by Sharon Harnist
• JANUARY 13: Mixed Media Madness by Jeni Calkins
• JANUARY 14: Wickedly Wonderful Creations by Wendy Weixler
• JANUARY 15: Cookies for Breakfast by Beth Pingry
• JANUARY 16: Pink Lemonade by Keri Lee Sereika (link is all better now)
• JANUARY 17: Inky Heart by Sally Lynn MacDonald
• JANUARY 18: Donya Schroeder by Donya Schroeder
• JANUARY 19: Linda’s Works of Heart by Linda Duke
• JANUARY 20: Follow Your Bliss by Trudee Sauer

We can’t wait to see you there: Beth and Eli