As many of you may know, I was gone on vacation for two weeks, got home just in time for the countdown to begin, and left immediately afterwards to head to Chicago for CHA! I got home Monday afternoon, and let me just say, it's good to be back!
CHA was fabulous, exhausting and exhilarating; all at the same time! This particular show I was pleased to share the experience with a super special someone, Dawn McVey. It was her first show ever, so everything was so new & exciting to her and it was such a pleasure to see the show myself through her eyes; to appreciate the industry even more than I do already. Dawn played photographer while we were there, so all of the photos below are courtesy of her camera!
..............................................................................................
One of the things I love about attending these types of events is the ability to reconnect with old friends & colleagues. And at the same time getting to make new friends, all of which LOVE this craft as much as I do. Here is a quick run down of my activities!
-I got to Chicago on Wednesday night and my first social appointment was with the stamping queen herself, Debbie Olson. It was a nice quiet dinner, just the two of us. It was so amazing to be able to speak with her one-on-one with no interruptions or schedules to keep. I got to learn a lot more about her and have a few laughs!
..............................................................................................
-I attended a Copic Certification class on Thursday (thank you Marianne!). I had the privilege to be at the same table with Debbie Olson & Mish Wooderson. I was able to *unravel* many of the mysteries surrounding Copic markers and fall in love. Yes, you heard it here first folks! Nichole Heady now loves to color! I was a little apprehensive about the whole thing, and actually a little scared of taking the class since it was such an unknown territory for me. But I am SO glad I did it! I hope over the next few months I can share a bit more about what I have learned!
............................................................................................
-I had a wonderful one-on-one dinner with Ellen Hutson Thursday night. We managed to ONLY stay for three hours! Love this woman and am honored to call her my mentor & friend! It is hard to believe that we have known her for just under two years, yet we identify with each other in such an amazing way. Kindred spirits I tell ya!
...........................................................................................
-Friday I walked the show floor with Heather Nichols & Dawn McVey. I had a *map & a plan* so we managed to see an overview of the entire show in just one day <<insert us patting ourselves on the back here!>> Heather played the role of our human compass (so yeah, I was the one with the carefully highlighted map in hand, but who said I knew how to actually FOLLOW it!) and she did an excellent job of keeping us on track. Dawn was a bit starry eyed since it was her first show, so Heather and I did our best to make sure that she met EVERYONE her heart desired, complete with pictures. Our mission was DEFINITELY accomplished!
............................................................................................
-After the show on Friday, I attended a cupcake reception put on by Splitcoaststampers. I got to hang out with some of my FAVORITE people, like Emily Block, Nicky Manel, Kim van der Sanden and Gina Krupsky. But also got to meet some long admired artists, Jeanne Streiff, Sherry Cheever & Kurtis Amundson. So fun to get to meet (and hug!!!) these wonderful people in person!
...........................................................................................
-Then after the cupcake reception we went to a friendly little dinner out with some Papertrey customers! Kimberly Crawford planned the event and totally rolled with the punches as we continued to increase the number of people attending! I got to meet Debbie Kim, who was SO sweet! I also got to connect with the uber talented Jennifer Buck. I have been a huge fan of her stamping talents for some time and it was so fun to finally have the opportunity to meet that super cutie in person! Lynn Mercurio & her friend Debbie were there along with several other friends! We had a FABULOUS time and had some super yummy margaritas!
...........................................................................................
-After dinner I met up with Megan Hoeppner (Senior Editor, Simple Scrapbooks magazine) & Stef Hamilton (paper crafter extraordinare & frequent contributer to Paper Crafts mag) on Friday night for drinks. LOVE these girls! If you think they are comical individually, just wait until you see them together! They had me laughing the entire night! So much so, that my cheeks hurt by the time I got back to my room!
............................................................................................
-On Saturday, Julie & Jane arrived to walk the show floor with Dawn, Heather and myself. We had several appointments that day and got to order some super fun & AMAZING stuff to bring you for the August 15th release! It is all I can do to keep everything under wraps until then! We went to the CK Media booth so that Heather & Dawn could have the opportunity to meet Ali Edwards. I was their photographer for the moment and enjoyed seeing their reactions at meeting her for the first time! Smiles ear to ear!
........................................................................................
-Saturday night brought our Papertrey Design Team Dinner. Mish Wooderson, Lisa Johnson, Debbie Olson, Jane & Julie, Taylor VanBruggen, Dawn McVey, Heather Nichols, Lynn Mecurrio, and yours truly were all in attendance. I couldn't help but look around the table at one point during the meal and allow the feeling of pure happiness fill me to the core. These women are such an important part of our company and it was so inspiring to have most of them gathered in one place.
........................................................................................
-After dinner, I met with Cath Edvalson & Wendy Johnson to catch up and reminisce about old times. We all worked together at Paper Crafts mag, back in the day, and it was SO amazing to sit with them for a few hours. I love that no matter how long it has been, we always pick up right where we left off.
........................................................................................
Sunday brought our last day at the show. We finished up the last of our business and left the show a bit early for some classic Chicago deep dish pizza. Dawn and I got to chat for a bit after dinner and summarize the weekend before she got ready to fly out. I then met up with Emily, Nicky & Gina K for dinner and meeting to finish planning the last details of the upcoming cruise. The four of us had never been together in person before, so it was an extra special treat. We have SO many amazing things planned for this event, it is sure to be the stamping event of the year, just as promised!!!
........................................................................................
So there is my trip to CHA in a nutshell! I had a wonderful time and can't wait till the next show rolls around!
