Gearing Up For Our Winter Online Crop!

Mark Your Calendars for our next online Scrapbooking Crop and join us for fun, games, challenges, classes and prizes, all weekend long!

February 25 • February 26 • February 27

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The weekend will be full of challenges, fast scraps, BINGO, classes and games. There will be plenty of action, both for the paper ladies and for the digital crowd. 

Make sure you clear your calendar and check back here as we update this article with information as it becomes available. We will add classes, challenge and fast scrap times, as well as links to BINGO games. Can't wait to see you there!

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Crop Schedule

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Online Crop FAQ

What is an Online Crop? An online crop is a huge event hosted by our Creative Team members incorporating scrapbooking, classes, games, challenges, classes, PRIZES, chatting with other members and all around FUN!  For more information read this article.
 

When is ACOT's Online Crop?
Our crop begins Friday, February 25th and ends at Sunday, February 27, 2010. Specific times to be announced soon. 
 

Where is ACOT's Online Crop?
It's right here in a special Crop Forum on our Message Board created just for this event. All activities, schedules, classes and events will be taking place in this Forum. Sign Up.
 

How do I sign up for ACOT's Crop?
That's easy! Simply post to this Message Board thread stating that you'll be participating in our crop.


How can I participate in ACOT's Online Crop?
Simply show up in our February Crop Forum (coming soon) during our crop and join the many other croppers at one of our events. You may come and go throughout the weekend, participating in one or more crop events of our choosing. We suggest you review our crop schedule before our crop starts so that you won't miss a thing! Our schedule of events will be posted prior to the crop in our Crop Forum.


What types of events will be going on at the ACOT Online Crop?
Challenges. Bingo. Contest. Sales. Classes. Chats. Games. Prizes. Special Give-Aways. Fun. 


What should I do to get ready for the Crop?
Read what these tried and true ACOT croppers have to say about our online crops, they have some real life experiences.

What if I sign up but can't actually make it to the Crop?
That's ok. We understand. Be sure to check in after the Crop to browse the Gallery; hundreds of new layouts will be posted there. Also, be sure to check out our Resources section to view all the new Class Instruction articles.

Why should I join ACOT's Online Crop?
Because you will have so much fun, meet other croppers, perhaps win a few prizes, get motivated and inspired to get some scrapping done!! Just ask the hundreds of croppers who have attended our Online crops in the past.

How can I be notified of updates to the Online Crop as well as other interesting happenings and events at ACOT?
Susbcribe to our FREE weekly Newsletter for weekly information in your email box from ACOT.

Save Big $ At Our Local Warehouse Sale This Saturday!

Our next warehouse sale:
February 26, 2011
9-5PM

You'll find incredible deals on all sorts of scrapbooking, stamping and paper crafting supplies. 

Visit our warehouse, take a tour, meet Kristin and some of the ACOT crew; enjoy refreshments, and best of all, SAVE A TON OF MONEY (half off or more) on some great products.  

Be sure to sign up for our LOCAL Warehouse Sale Newsletter to receive important details and last minute sale information! 

Unfortunately, we cannot accept credit cards, debit cards or personal checks at the warehouse sale.

We are located in Saginaw Township, Michigan. Our warehouse is located at 2216 Midland Road, Saginaw, MI  48603

Visit our site for more warehouse sale details!  We hope to see you there!

How To Create A Template From An 'Old' Layout

Posted by Art_Teacher

Sometimes when you are stuck for inspiration, you only need look as far as your own scrapbook albums!  For this reveal, the Digi CT team of Laura, Egle, and Cassandra each chose an old layout and created a template to use for a new layout.  We each scrapped a layout using our own template and the other gals' templates, as well. 

Enjoy our new takes on our old layouts and also the freebie templates, which we are sharing with you! You can download them here!

Cassandra's template:

Cassandra used her old layout, "Sous Chef" to inspire this template.

Cassandra's new layout, called "Like Father, Like Son" uses the same subjects in a new way!

Cassandra explains, "I didn't significantly alter the template, but because of the subject matter and the choice of colors and materials, it looks completely different from the original page. And if you have a page design you like, why not use it again?"

Below is Egle's layout inspired by Cassandra's template, "Jamocha Shake."

Doesn't this look delicious?

Laura's design using Cassandra's template, "Sweet Girl, " showcases her favorite scrappy subject, Paisley!

Laura tells us why she likes Cassandra's template saying, "I love the clean lines and the large photos! She also left space to add embellishments to personalize the layout. This is a feature I look for in a template!"

Digi Guest Sus's layout, "Shoot" uses Cassandra's template to its best advantage.

Finally, Jennifer also uses Cassandra's template in her layout, "Catching Air."

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We hope these layouts have inspired you to take a look at your old layouts.  A great design can always be used more than once!

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Art_Teacher (aka: Laura) likes spending time with her husband of 2o years and their Golden Doodle, Paisley.  Besides paper and digital scrapbooking, Laura enjoys traveling, boating and going to the symphony.

Fun With PageMags Sketches - Day 3

Posted by JanetM

It's our third day of sketch reveals and this was the one I thought would be great to work with.  I chose a Page Maps sketch from the December ones on line. I have both of the PageMaps books and they are always one of the first places I go to to look for ideas and inspiration.

 

Here's the one I did turning the sketch sideways.  I used the Sweet Shop line from Creative Imaginations.

 

 

Sarah did the sweetest page in the world and turned the sketch also.

This is what  Sarah said about her  sketch: I used pieces from both the Lullaby Girl and Lullaby Boy lines from IOD to go with this great Page Maps sketch!
I also used Silver Plated Maya Mist to add some shimmer to the page, and while it's hard to photograph, the shimmer is really gorgeous! Pearls are from Prima.
 

 

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We are proud to have JanetM on our scrapbooking Creative Team!  You can view Janet's Gallery at ACherryOnTop.com.

Fun With PageMaps Sketches - Day 2

Posted by ScrapGoo

Welcome to day two of our mixed up sketch reveals!  Like yesterday, today's article will feature one sketch interpreted four different ways by four different CT members.  I chose today's sketch from the fabulous PageMaps.com for its interesting rows of squares and clean lines.  I am usually ALL about layering and piling on the goods so this was a nice change for me!

The sketch:

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The Professor 

I used the Family Keepsake line from We R Memory Keepers on this page.  My little guy is posing in his nerdy bookwork outfit and it reminded me of his nickname, The Professor!  We call him this because he is always investigating, taking things apart, and trying to figure out how stuff works.  He is such a smartypants!

I used the sketch pretty traditionally.  My page is a mirror image of the sketch and I left the major design elements alone, choosing to cut squares of patterned paper and use the pre-printed border.  I decided to use kraft cardstock to let the muted colors of the pattened paper take center stage.  Instead of flowers (on the sketch) I used coordinating chipboard elements.  I also let my title overlap the photo because it tied the design areas together and, well, because it fit better!

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Love

This is Janet's layout using this sketch.  See how she perfectly changed the design from a 12" x 12" to an 8 1/2" x 11"?  She used the adorable Cupcake Love line from Little Yellow Bicycle and it compliments this sweet photo so well!  She used stitching for the border and heart elements from the LYB line where the flowers are on the sketch.  I love how girly this is! Janet also eliminated the journaling lines from her layout and let the photo and simple title do the all the talking. 

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Happy Valentine's Day

Sarah brings us back to 12" x 12" with this gorgeousness from the My Mind's Eye State of the Heart collection.  She decided to use the same paper for her squares, but varied the direction of the pattern.  And instead of a row under her photos (two this time!) she used strips of paper!  She also chose to move the placement of the embellishments to the center of some of the squares rather than scattered around the page.  I really love the simple drawn line border and the splatters of pink all over the page! 

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She's 8!

Diane mixed things up by using products from Best Creation and matting the entire square design onto a background... pretty! And she used a pre-punched border to frame the layout.  She also moved the journaling to a strip at the top and let the embellishments and title stand alone on the verticle strip.  It is amazing to me how a different color scheme and slight changes in design make all our layouts look so different!

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I hope you have been able to see the possibilities you can have from just one sketch!  We all interpreted the design in different ways but the end results are all fabulous in their own ways as well.  My advice when working with sketches is to not get too bogged down with making the your papers and elements work with the sketch but instead let the sketch change to what works for YOU.  

If you don't like a particular area or need to use a different amount of space or a different shape... go for it!  Sketches are great starting points to get your mojo flowing but ultimately it is still your page to design and play with.  Working with sketches should be fun... I know working with this one was!!!

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ScrapGoo (aka: Jess) resides in Framingham, MA with her husband, one year old son and three spoiled cats.  Besides paper crafting, Jess enjoys entertaining friends, traveling and costume designing.

Fun With PageMaps Sketches!

Posted by SarahA

Today starts off our sketch reveals! Jess, Diane, Janet and I all chose a different sketch and then did layouts for all 4 sketches. This is the sketch I chose:

  

Jess used 3 Bugs in a Rug's Dawson Line for this super cute layout:

 

 

Diane used the Jubilee line by Best Creation for her fun layout:

 

I used the Glitz Love Nest Line for my layout:

 

 

And if you like the PageMaps sketches we used, you can get more of them right in the ACOT shoppe!

 

   

 

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SarahA started scrapping in June of 2007, found ACOT in 2008 and was invited to join the Creative Team in September 2009. She loves scrapbooking pictures of her daughter, her family and her every day activities.

The ACOT Crew's Limo Lunch!

Brandon, Michelle, Cathy, Candice, Deb & Clint

Clint has to be one of the luckiest guys I know!  He won a limo lunch for the ACOT office staff through a local radio station promotion.  I was listening in to his phone conversation as the station rep gave Clint the details.  He couldn't believe it.  

Clint & Ray (the limo driver)

It was a nice way to break up a cold winter day of scrapbooking business!  The crew was treated to a couple of hours of pampering and good food.  It was great of Clint to share his prize with all of us!  

  Deb, Candice, Michelle & Brandon

The crew came back stuffed!  Pretty sure I caught a couple of them napping in various corners of the warehouse!  Ok - maybe not. :)  The staff enjoyed their time together.  Thanks again to Clint, WIOG and Harvey's!

February Scrapbooking and Paper Crafting Challenges!

Posted by ScrapGoo

We've made it to February!  Spring is right around the corner, right!?  This month is chock full of hearts and pink and lovey dovey stuff and we here at ACOT can't think of a better way to express how much you love someone than by creating something homemade for them!  Journal your sweet nothings, memorialize their beautiful faces, and craft something sweet for all the Valentine's in your life!

Remember:

- only one LO per challenge will enter you into the points drawing

- LOs cannot be entered into more than one challenge category

- *please* only enter LOs that meet the specific challenge instructions 

Digi Do-Able Challenge - By Smiley-Scrap8 (Ronny) 

Digital Scrapbooking

Welcome to another edition of Digi Do-Ables!

This month's template was drawn from a layout originally by GlitterQueen99! Download the February template in the freebie section and use it to make a layout.

Here is my example:

And the template:

 

Card Challenge - By bluejeans7 (Angela)

Paper or Digital Scrapbooking

Create a Valentine's Day card without using any hearts! Remember no hearts allowed! LOL!

Trends & Techniques Challenge - By Megamay (Meg)

Paper Scrapbooking

While we are waiting for all the new CHA trends which will be coming out in the coming weeks, lets look at a trend that has been around for a while, and, I think, is here to stay. Tiny Alphas! This month I want you to use tiny alphas on your project. Doesn't matter what brand, just some of these uber useful little letters.

Here is my example with some My Little Shoebox alphas - love all the colors that they have!

Grab more scrapbooking inspiration by viewing this month's complete Challenge List!  

2011 Craft and Hobby Association ( CHA ) Winter Conference

CHA - Winter 2011

The Winter conference for the Craft and Hobby Association amounts to thousands of square feet of crafter's heaven!  Kristin and I always enjoy seeing the latest and greatest in paper crafting, meeting with the manufacturers and crafty 'celebs'! 

Tim Holtz and Heidi (ACOT)

Instead of splitting up, we decided to tackle the show together this time!  We saw some great innovations in tools and gadgets and cannot wait to get them into the shoppe.  It always amazes us how show after show - year after year - how the manufacturers are able to keep products fresh and relevant!  

Graphic45 - Once Upon A Springtime

 We had the chance to meet with our Digital Designer Coordinator, Kristianne.  Kristi handles all things digi for ACOT and she does an amazing job!

Kristin and Kristianne

My daughter thinks I'm famous because of this next one:

We're already making plans for the next conference!  Be sure to visit our CHA Winter 2011 forum on our Message Board to view all of the Sneak Peeks for the new products!