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A post in another thread got me curiosu how we all got introduced to this craft. For me, if it hadn't been for my SU demo I woul dhave never picked up a stamp. How about you?
I started off as a scrapbooker and spent a lot of time on a scrapbook site. Occasionally, someone would post a card in the gallery, and I thought they looked really neat.
Then one day I was watching an all day event on papercrafting on QVC. Impulsively I ordered a set of Anna Griffin clear stamps because I thought the examples they were showing were so pretty.
The stamps came, I stamped with them and was immediately hooked on stamping. I haven't touched my scrapbooks in over a year, lol.
__________________ Bugga in OK
"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." Dalai Lama
I voted Demo for Direct Sales Co. (SU!), but I was invited by a friend who had previously told me how much fun she was having w/ rubber stamps. I really didn't want to go to the workshop, I had a mega ear infection, couldn't hear out of one ear, and was on day 3 of a 10 day antibiotic regimen for strep, BUT I had a blast, made a really cute card (still have it), and here I am 10 years later still loving it. I've even been an SU! demo.
OK...I'm stamping tonight! It's been several weeks, and I NEED it!
The demo who first introduced me is (was; is no longer a demo) my niece. My SIL called me to invite me to a SU workshop, I had never heard ofit and frankly, had no interest in going. But not wanting to discourage my SIL, and to support my niece, I went. A friend came with me and between us, we spent less than 70$. My order came and I quickly discovered who little one could do with a roller, handle and one ink cartridge....
I picked other...I started stamping 13 years ago as a "cheap" way to make place cards, invites, thank you notes, and programs for my wedding. I fell in love with embossing and kept stamping. After I had my twins 10 years ago, I let stamping go, but I started back up 3 years ago and that's when I 1st heard of SU. Now I'm a demo, a hobby one, but I love to stamp and can't get enough of it.
Location: Somewhere in the middle...closer to there, nearer to here...
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I picked demo because if it wasn't for my amazing SU demo...I would have never started stamping although a friend invited me to a party...that I really did not want to go to nor did I want to buy anything at that first party. After the demo called me and asked me to have a party and I had one....I've been completely and totally obsessed. I think it was having the catalog which I spent hours and hours and hours looking at every day (I think they put some sort of addictive phermone in there that hooks you). It's been a great hobby or should I say addiction?
My neighbor invited me to a party 12 years ago. She had been buying some stamps with a company called Dots (now CTMH) and thought I might like it. I did! It was an SU party, and bought my precious Button Bear! I loved how he came in a set with all the accessories. You could pick at the time between wood and foam mounted. I splurged on the wood mount bc I thought it would last longer. (He's still stamps great!)
Then I had a party for the demo when I moved to my new house so I could get something free. Come to find out my DH became the principal of her kids' school where she was the PTA pres. She was a fabulous demo and really did phenominal Stamp Camps. It all ended when my DH hired her as a full time teacher and she left demo-ing! Now I am way more into it than her. Funny isn't it! (I think it may have been a clever plot on DHs part to keep me from stamping but AH HA it hasn't worked!)
I was always into scrapbooking and got invited to a SU party thru a CM consultant. Actually, she invited my friend, not me, so I invited myself. The catalog blew me away. I try to incorporate the stamping into my scrapbooks but I also make cards. Now, I'm totally addicted.
Location: My wife is a secret sister..I can not divulge that imformation.
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My wife introduced me to stamping by accident that is, she asked me to cut out parts of coldplay and it gave me an idea for a card, and the rest is history
My sister invited me to a D.O.T.S. party, what was it, 9 years ago? I loved the whole idea and I bought some stamps but didn't really do much with them for years.
Other - my boss invited me to a party she was invited to since she knew I was into scrapbooking. It was my first party and I was hooked. The hostess was soon after my upline - shout out to you rainbowgirl! Yup, hooked.
The CTMH area director for the Orlando area used to host a stamp class that was free for residents in my old neighborhood. She did that once a month for about 4 years.
My daughter is to blame for this. Three years ago she asked if I would be interested in making Christmas cards. She had been stamping for several years by that time. I told her "why not", so I ordered a set out of her catalog. Later that spring she asked if I wanted to join her stamp group, so once again I said "yes". So once a month we meet at our demo's house, where she teaches us a new technique, and we make cards, eat, talk, and have a great time. I had no idea at the time, of course, how expensive and time-consuming this hobby would be, but it's fun, and I'm enjoying it a lot. Of course I probably won't be able to ever retire now, as I wouldn't be able to afford this hobby (along with a couple others), but what the hey? I enjoy working, too, so I figure I'm in a win-win situation here. What more can I ask?
The IT person at work, his wife is a SU demostrator....he brought in all the cards she made over the years one day and 3 of us ladies got hooked so she came down to the place of work and did a stamp party in the kitchen. That was 6yrs ago, I'm still hooked and the one other lady is still stamping. I pretty much
thank for the SU demo's husband for showing off her stuff.
There wasn't an option that quite fit me...so I chose "other". I was introduced to stamping by a very good friend, who at the time was a Demo for D.O.T.S. (now CTMH). That was over 10 years ago.
I chose other because I used to stamp years ago when the pickings were slim and the thought of layering paper was never and option. But about four (five?) years ago my SIL hosted a SU! workshop and I was back in the game. After two years of giving my demo money thru my workshops I signed up for myself and have been going strong ever since.
__________________ Victoria
~Made of awesome
~My 6th Avon 39
I was forced to go to an SU party with a friend. (It was her neighbor and she really didn't want to go, so she made me come along). I thought it was fun but too expensive. A year later I decided making cards sounded neat and looked up a SU demo online.
We used to have a really neat store in town where you could go along and "rent" all kinds of crafting equipment by the hour. One night (6 years ago - wow!) I went along for a scrapbooking class and knew I was hooked.
I had previously been involved with direct selling through DK Family Learning so I did some research and found SU, joined up and spent 5 happy years as a demo until I found unmounted stamps and moved to TAC.
My sil got me started. She wanted to host an SU workshop so she could get some new stuff. That was over 3 years ago. We switched demos shortly after that first workshop and have had the same people in our stamp club for nearly 3 years.
I, like many others, originally started out as a scrapbooker. While frequently perusing the popular scrapping sites, I noticed making cards was often mentioned as a way to tackle the accumulation of scraps... and one option when making cards is of course to use stamps. At first I was quite resistant to the whole idea... I had absolutely NO desire to invest even more money into yet ANOTHER hobby and swore I would NOT get hooked! LOL But I figured just a FEW stamps wouldn't kill me. :rolleyes: So somewhat hesitantly, I bought a couple sentiment stamps at my local Mike's and started using them on my cards.
Never say never, 'cause I was hooked. LOL :mrgreen: I'm not too sure as to the exact moment I realized that stamping was for me, I just knew there'd be no turning back. I LOVED stamping and everything that went along with it. A month or so later, I discovered SU while watching a TV show and had my first workshop soon after, during Sell-A-Bration. It's been a slippery slope of addiction ever since, shows no sign of slowing down, and my scrapping has definitely taken a backseat. ;) I find stamping gives me that feeling of instant gratification that's offten difficult to come by when I scrap.
My best friend started attending an SU! stamp camp where she lives and when I visited her, she hosted one so I could see what it was about. I told her I was not ready to jump into a new hobby until I knew I had money to spend. The next Christmas, my DH got a $200 gift certificate for me to "shop" with a SU demo who was a customer of mine. Oh the poor dear ... he had no idea what he was getting me into, LOL!
I also wanted to comment that CM recently (within last 2 years) did some market research about how people were introduced to scrapbooking. They asked this in many different types of questions, and the conclusion was that the majority of people were drawn to scrapbooking because a friend introduced them and a consultant was there to help them ... not because of an ad in a magazine, a direct mail flyer, or a store display. I'm glad that there seems to be a steady flow of people who enjoy the personal touch a good rep/demo/consultant brings to the table, but I'm also relieved that CM finally gave us personal websites with online shopping convenience for that segment of the population (mostly younger) who are too busy or just not interested in having contact with us. I hope SU is able to offer something similar for y'all soon!
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My dear friend became a demo, and it took her a couple of years, but she finally got me hooked. She came for a visit, and brought her box of SU toys, and I was a goner. She just *knew* I'd love stampin'.....! Thanks, Judy! ;)
My friend who was a SU demo. Her husband was the leader of cub scouts and I was hooked I knew him for 8 years before ever meeting his wife. One day at a meeting she brought me a book. Needless to say I was hooked. I signed up immediately to become a demo. I did that for 1 year and decided it was too costly for me to be a demo but, I still order often. She was a great upline. We would meet once a week for her to "teach" me. I'm now starting to get back into scrapbooking.
p.s. just placed my first order from the new catty.
This is a mixed bag for me. My mom actually had a few random stamps/pads around when I was a kid. I got them out and played a bit in high school, but nothing to speak of. About 7 years ago, my MIL called up and pretty much forced me to host a workshop for my SIL who had just started selling CTMH. It was a fun party, got some great stuff, but really didn't do anything with them.
THEN....a different SIL was invited to an SU! workshop by her neighbor who was (still is!) a demo (became my upline not much later). She invited me to go, but I couldn't make it. She brought the catalog over (I can still see myself sitting downstairs flipping thru that beautiful 2002-2003 catty!!!) and that was it... I was a goner!!!! Been an SU die-hard ever since....
a friend/other crafter not affiliated with any company or store she had a SU workshop in her home and invited me and oh well my addiction started and it hasn't stopped.... OH!!! Debbie what have you done to me...
I got hooked, errrr, introduced, at a friend's SU party. We had a great demo. I had attended a DOTS/CTMH party a few years before, but it didn't excite me the same way. I learned lots of techniques through attending workshops and parties, then I found SCS and learned more and more, plus a few classes in other papercrafts at local shops. I'm grateful to SU for introducing me to my "art therapy". SU's demo program is absolutely great for stampers just starting or still learning. When you buy SU, the cost includes a personal assistant (demo) to help you learn what to buy and how to use those things. Now I enjoy experimenting and sharing what I have learned with other people.
Kathy
__________________ I love talking about nothing. It's the only thing I know anything about. ~ Oscar Wilde
i was a scrapbooker, and while i was in my LSS i looked at the stamps and thought "that looks easy, and what a cheap way to make cards for people.."
yah right... so anyway, i bought some stamps (hero arts) and started to go online for inspiration.. that was about a year or so ago.. soon after that i went to a SU! workshop, got introduced to SCS and now i'm hopelessly addicted to stamping.
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My neighbor at our summer cottage introduced me to stamping. She made the most beautiful cards for a silent auction we were having. She had all this SU stuff. From her introduction I started buying stuff at Joann's/Michaels, it became a hobby but nothing serious. Then a few ago she really pushed me to find a demo and now I have a room full of stuff, I have given up all other hobbies and I will probably stamp for the rest of my life. As payback, I introduced her to SCS a few years ago. I figured if she got me hooked on stamping then I could get her hooked on SCS.
__________________ Martha
"When you recover or discover something that nourishes your soul and brings joy, care enough about yourself to make room for it in your life." Jean Shinoda Bolen
One of my friends got me hooked, I used to go to her house weekends and stay til 1 in the morning talking and making cards. Now she is a customer of mine!
My friend & neighbor had a workshop ( DOTS ) and I went to please her. I thought it was a total waste of time & money. The demo handed us paper, stamps & ink and turned us loose. Most of us had no clue what to do with it. I was not impressed at all. Then another neighbor that I'd only met once or twice invited me to a SU workshop. I was not going to go, but the stamping DOTS friend saw the invite & said we were going. It ended up that the demo was totally new, but she did an excellent job and I've been hooked ever since and that was about 9 yrs. ago. I still remember telling her I did not have the time, money or interest to get involved. Didn't convince her or myself. When a friend of mine retired I got her involved & for the longest time she referred to stamping as a 'cult'!! LOL I'm with the same demo, she does a monthly card club with us and has become a great friend. It's a win win situation except for my checkbook. My DH loves that I make cards, but he also does not have a clue as to how much this hobby costs. LOL I think it's a given with stampers that we keep the costs a secret!! It's part of the 'cult'! LOL Also like many others I was a scrapbooker first & now hardly ever scrap.
I feel like I've been stamping forever in one way or another, but what got me really started on my present collection was teaching. No -- not teaching stamping or being a demo or anything -- it was teaching second grade. I think I must have been channelling my own grade school teachers who stamped a simple red star on the top of papers done correctly, and who put those lick-em solid circle stickers on top of big jobs done very well. I remembered how I always wished for the sticker instead of the star, so when I started teaching, I decided that I needed to collect both stickers and stamps to use as feedback/rewards. (I'm also a sticker fiend. ;) ) I was never satisfied with one star stamp for my feedback stamp, though. I wanted stamps (and stickers!) that went with my themes. That's when I found a local store who made their own stamps. They were so much cheaper than anything with the same quality that I ever saw anywhere else, so I was sad when they closed the store where I originally found them. (Any Winnipeggers out there know if Prairie Rubber Stamp still has a retail store somewhere???)
As serious as I was about stamps then, I didn't get truly psychotic about stamping until after I got burnout, stopped teaching grade school, and a year later, started working at Michaels. It's been a gradual progression since then, both in the number of stamps (and stamping toys) I own, and in the sophistication of my cards. I just gave away my latest "work of art" today, and this one was a request for a person's own birthday.
To date, I have never been to any kind of stamping workshop/party/demonstration.
I do have some SU, though -- mostly through a lovely enabling friend who was part of a monthly SU Stamping Club. They are starting up again on Sep. 14, and this year, I'll be part of the group.
I said other so I must elaborate. I have been actually stamping for at least 11 years. My first stamp was purchase with my mother at a stamp store in St. Augustine, FL. This was when you just stamped it on paper, maybe tried to put more than one color on the stamp. Little by little we attended workshop at the stamp store, then faded off for a while. Boy has stamping come a long ways since then!! Yahooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
I got into stamping after I moved to Arkansas and didn't know a soul. I went to the library to maybe meet new people and then it happened. A lady was having a workshop at the library. I asked some questions and then attended my 1st workshop. That was in the year 2000. I was a customer for 5 years and then took the plunge and am now a SU demonstrator and loving it. I hope I can get others excited about this awesome hobby like she did for me!
Who introduced you to stamping?
