I am very excited about the new Hostess Code that Stampin' Up has implemented so you can get orders from your friends who even live in a different state when you host a Stampin' Up workshop. It will help hostesses build their sales totals since their friends from all over can "join" the party and place an order. You can keep your workshop open for several weeks but when a friend places an online order using your hostess code, her order will be shipped right away. She won't have to wait until the workshop order is finalized to get her goodies!
If you have thought about having a workshop but hesitated because you don't know many local people, call me and we will get a date on the calendar for you. We can do cards or a scrapbook page or even a 3-D item at your workshop, whatever you prefer. It is easier than ever to get some great hostess gifts to add to your stampin' supplies.
Several people asked me how I made the Diffuser Necklaces that I posted a month or so ago. They are a fun and unusual project. I started with terracotta clay, the no-bake kind. You just need a small piece for each pendant. I used small circle cutters to cut out my clay. You could also make a small ball and flatten it out and smooth out any rough spots around the edge. Any small stamp will do to put a nice design in the clay. I thought Circle Circus was a great set since the stamps were round.
After stamping the clay circles be sure to make a hole to hang the pendant with. That is pretty much it for the clay part. They will take 24 hours or more to dry. They will dry faster if you put them on a rack of some sort after they have dried a few hours. If you don't have a rack you can just turn them over the next day so the backs can dry. You may find some rough edges as they dry, just use a emery board or fine grit sand paper to sand them down when they are completely dry.
After the pendant is completely dry you can choose your cord and beads and put the necklace together. Then you get the fun of choosing an oil to infuse it with. Different oils last different amounts of time. I tried lemon and it just lasted a day. I used a blend called On Guard and it lasts 5 days strong and a couple of more days after that just not as strong.
I don't know if you picked up on it but I have become a doTERRA Essential Oil distributor. I love how much more safe I feel that I can manage health problems with these oils on hand. There is a wide range of things the oils can do. If you want to have a less stressful day, try some lavender oil on your pendant. If you are hoping to ward off any of the viruses and flu bugs going around try On Guard. I didn't get sick in Jan, Feb or March after I started using the On Guard!
Mental fatigue? Try some Frankincense. Morning sickness or nausea, try Ginger. Are you going to be outside and want to keep the mosquitoes away? Put a drop of Terra Shield on your pendant. There is a long list of oils that can help you with just a drop or 2 rubbed into your necklace. I'd love to hear if any of you try it. Of course, I can supply you with both the stamps and the oils now!
I reckon you might want to see a card while you are here. This is one of the swaps I got at the Spring Retreat. It is from Laura Ballinger. I love how she stamped the swirly stamps from the Everything Eleanor set onto the First Edition paper and then stamped the flowers on Very Vanilla cardstock and cut them out and layered them with Stampin' Dimensionals. It is a great card, one of my favorites. Of course, Everything Eleanor is such a great stamp set you can't go wrong with it!
