"MY" STORY

Welcome!  For my first post I would like to tell you "my" story:  Once upon a time.....My Aunt Pam got my interest in scrapbooking started about 6 years ago.  She would send beautiful handmade cards a few times a year and show me scrapbook pages she had made for her grandson's album.  I was very intrigued and wanted to learn more!  I picked up some stamps and some "cheap" ink pads and dabbled a little bit making cards for special occasions and my daughters school class functions.  Then I was invited to a Stampin Up party, I loved it!  I loved the projects that you could make and the card ideas were endless.  I began ordering Stampin Up paper, ink pads and stamps and shopping at Joann Fabrics, AC Moore and Michaels.  I wanted to get more stuff, I needed to earn free products, so I booked a Stampin Up party off one of my girlfriends and the addiction began.  I was inspired by my friend Diana who made my husband & I a wedding scrapbook, it was the most beautiful scapbook  album I had ever seen!  I started making more cards and it was so fun, my husband bought me a cricut machine and I vowed never to buy another greeting card again, I was going to make my own!  I was invited to my first scrapbook retreat with my girlfriend Candi.  I was so nervous and thought, would I have enough stuff to bring, did I know what I was doing, what would I make for 3 days?  Once I got there and set up my area I was amazed at how much stuff these woman had (bags and totes and more bags and totes)!  I made new friends, reunited with old friends and hung out with two of my Aunts!  Everyone made me feel right at home, they gave me advice, lent me supplies and I was able to finish almost all of my Christmas Cards using my cricut!  I was introduced to Close To My Heart shortly after the retreat and I must say I was a little skeptical at first about the acrylic stamps but it didn't take me long to figure out these stamps are amazing!  They are so easy to use, you can see exactly what your doing, they are easy to store and take up a lot less space.  It was at my third retreat when it occurred to me that I should become a consultant.  I wanted so many things from Stampin Up & Close To My Heart there was no way I could afford everything without some help.  I did my research on both companies and made a decision based on my personal needs and wants and became a Close To My Heart Consultant.  In my first three months I reached my goal of $1,200 in sales and made the Straight To The Top Reward of $100 in free product credit in addition to my consultant commissions.  It was easy to achieve and helped me build my business by getting products I love to use.  I meet so many new friends and I have so much fun showing them the products and cool techniques they can use to make great creations.  I'm so excited about my new adventures with Close to my Heart and I can't wait to share it all with you!  Thank you for checking out my blog and I hope you enjoyed "my" story!