I needn't have worried as you can see from my haul below:
I had a couple of objectives for the day:
- Chipboard
- The label shape (see striped paper in the lower left corner of the photo)
- Arrows & brackets
- Kraft colored cardstock
I specifically told Amy and Tina that I did NOT need patterned paper since I've got patterned paper coming out of my ears at home. Which is funny, because both of them were on patterned paper missions. Let me just tell ya, scrappers are drawn to patterned paper like moths to a flame, like rubberneckers to a bad accident, like Bella to Edward. It's such a strong attraction that it takes an enormous amount of restraint not to go hogwild on patterned paper. And besides the few sheets of label shaped and scallop shaped papers, I did not get any! I mean, I looked and fondled and drooled over TONS of it, but I did not BUY any. That, people, is uh-MAY-zing!
So, with our missions in mind, we set out on the hunt.
Of course I bought something from the VERY first booth that we went to, even though we said that we wouldn't do that. I'd dare say it was one of my best value purchases of the day. It was a sheet of license-plate looking alpha stickers. 50 cents per sheet...I got two sheets (they vary slightly). You can NEVER have enough Alphas, imo.
I think my next purchases were at the Heidi Swapp booth. OK, let me just tell you, I think I could have spent my ENTIRE budget at Heidi Swapp. The deals were SCRAPTABULOUS! One of the best was the pink storage box with TEN sheets of silhouette stickers in it for $5!! FIVE BUCKS! What a bargain. Seriously, if my budget would have been bigger, I would have bought 10 of those boxes as gifts. The other great deal in her booth was the ghost alphas! I got 6 packages of ghost alphas. Like I said, you can never have enough alphas. Next year, I think I'll get one of her mystery bags - I've got to imagine that everything in them is stellar!
The next item on my list of "best value of the day" were the 12x12 chipboard packs for $6. We saw these EXACT chipboard sets the following day at Archivers for $15!! Again, I should have scooped up a bunch more, but funds were ltd.
It took a while but I eventually found my label shaped paper. Ideally, I would have liked a template, but getting the paper was OK, too. Even though I was not on a paper mission, I heard afterwards that there was a booth with 10 cent 12x12 sheets and I kicked myself for missing it. That's just a steal!!
Other fun finds were the felt fusion borders for a buck a piece. These were at the Mega Meet's dollar booth. Because everything in there was a dollar! Go figure!
One of the best parts of the day was show and tell back at the hotel room. Our scrap stuff, people! ***geesh*** Get your minds out of the gutter.
I won't list every.single.item that I purchased, but trust me ... it was all GREAT stuff.
I can not WAIT until next year. However, I'm going to use these lessons learned:
- You absolutely have to bring a tote bag and 12x12 plastic envelope/protector. (Thanks Amy & Kendrea for the tip!)
- Bringing your own snacks (granola bars, apple, v-8) is a great idea (thanks Heather for the tip!) Spending less money on food means that there's more cash for my scrap stash.
- Apparently there were some deals we missed on Thursday. Consider going on Thursday instead of Friday next year.
- Also, consider getting a two day pass next year. During show and tell we realized that were items some of us got that others missed out on. And there was a bit of realizing we should have gotten more of this or more of that. So, a two day pass would let you go back and get all of things you missed out on the first day.
- Bring pre-printed labels to make entering contests easier. I think I only entered 2 contests because I didn't want to take the time to fill out my information. a.k.a. I'm lazy.
- Bigger budget next year. MUCH bigger.
What more can I say? It was a b-l-a-s-t!!
1 comment:
Woo Hoo!! I had a blast, too! Love the ideas for next year:)
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