Exciting News

Where to start with this blog entry???? Grab a cuppa i think as its going to be a bit of a long one in an attempt to fill you in on all the exciting things that have been happening and about to.
Things have been a little crazy as per normal and though it may appear as if I have been MIA in reality its quite the opposite.
Work as usual has been crazy and we're busy working on the new Q2 ranges. Can you believe that we are thinking Christmas yet tomorrow is only the official release day of Q1. i really hope you like the new ranges and all the little bits that go with them. I know Al and I have had lots of fun creating with the new products. Its been great being able to do a whole layout solely with Kaisercraft products now and not have to dive into our stashes of other things to find something to match. As much as i love to mix and match its great to now have whole ranges that coordinate with each other. Its a little exciting for me personally to see how far we have come in the last few years.
Anongst all the work for Kaisercraft, i have been up to my eyeballs at home in sequin. Geez i hate that stuff. It appears all i seem to be doing at the moment in whatever spare time i have is sequinning sequinning sequinning costumes for my girls as calesthenics competitions are about to begin. Can you believe the first one is on the day AFTER i leave to go over to Florida for the next CHA show in a couple of weeks. Bittersweet. Exited to be going again with many of the same team members as earlier in the year but disappointed I miss a competition. Thankfully Caitlin has her older sister to look after her. And trust me there will be plenty more comps that will need to be sat through.... As for CHA's, as much as they are hard work its going to be totally exciting to be there as we release the new Q1 ranges to the US. I so hope they are excited about them as the responses we have had so far from everyone here.
Over the weekend , I did however get a moment to myself amonsth the madness to whip up a layout and that is literally how it went together. I had a bag of purchases from the recent Brisbane Expo on my desk (along with pile of stuff that hasn't found a home for quiet awhile)and whilst cleaning up pulled them out to look at and before i knew it a layout was forming in front of me. Why this doesn't happen when i need it to I'll never know. Anyway as you do when you go to expos you spend way to much money and me, well most of mine is spent at Memories 2 Remember. You gotta love those girls - well I do.... It is always great to catch up with them whenever we are at the same show. This photo was taken in Brisbane when we all went out for dinner after the first day (which was totally crazy busy) of the Brisbane Scrapbook Expo.

Jo, Katja and Annette

As you can see not much to it but i really liked how it turned out. I seriously think i need to NOT think so much when doing a layout. You may not be able to tell from the photo but I used the new Prima background made from cardboard, believe it or not, and their new flowers. They are just gorgeous. The grid stamp behind the photo was one from the new Glitz Distressing stamps that i brought as well as i just had to have them - as you do. The rest are bits and pieces that were floating around on my desk

Ok so i can hear you asking - so what is the exciting news????

Well I have been wanting to share this with you for awhile but just waiting I guess to make sure its all true, and yes i have pinched myself a dozen times and it appears that this is real and Im not dreaming; I am heading over to South Africa in September. Not only am i getting the opportunity to visit a country that has long been on my dream destinations list but have been given the opportunity to teach at the upcoming SA International Scrapbook Convention. Woo Hoo. Can you hear a little scream of excitement and me jumping up and down. Daunting: To be honest YES at first. When the opportunity first arose, I looked at the lineup of past teachers and wondered is I could do this. It was one of those moments where my heart and head were having a battle. From the minute i heard i wanted to then started self doubting, but apparently the organiser, Glenda, said that they have had constant requests that Kaisercraft be a part of the convention and so its all now going to happen. And now that everything has been approved I can share it with you. Keeping secrets is soooo hard for me. I admit my hands shook at first when i read out the number of people I would be teaching in Johannesburg and Cape Town and considering the max I have ever had at workshops here is 100 I had a few concerns. But so far I have felt so at ease talking to Glenda and she has helped out so much already with the organisation that it is all falling into place. Plus having a boss that believes in me more than i do myself at times (Thanks Tim) is awesome, I know now its going to be such an amazing experience and opportunity and can't wait.

If you are wondering what is all about check out Tim Holtz blog and what he got up to at the last one recently.

http://timholtz.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/05/south-africa-the-video-blog.html

http://timholtz.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/05/greetings-from-south-africa.html