Today...is a great day!

Today...I explain the answers to the Memory Trends questions and announce the winners of the first RAK Attack!

1) What are the three new lines from this cosmopolitan company? Bonus point: Name the girly in the center.

Flirtini, Pink Squirrel and Orange Dreamsicle are the three new lines from Pink Martini. Suzy West, Scrapbooking on the Wall phenom, is in the middle. That's Amy Goldstein (Ames), owner of Pink Martini, on the right.

2) The guy in the crazy pants is marketing director for what sticky supplier?

Richard of GlueArts makes a statement that sticks with the outfits he wears on the show floor. He tricked me into believing he was wearing Jim's pants (Jim Rudolph, GlueArts' sales director, didn't come to MT, so he got to be the butt of Richard's jokes). I admitted to Richard that I packed the wrong pants, so I had to borrow a pair from Fiona. To mark the silliness, we took a picture of us wearing other people's pants. Thing is, Richard IS wearing his own pants. I'm so gullible!

3) This Scrapbooker of the Year Finalist has two scrapbook-related businesses. What are they?

Holly Van Dyne runs Scrapbook Insights and Scrapbook Resumes. I forgot she used to collect and sell snowglobes! You still doing that, Holly?

4) These ladies are the force behind what fabulous company, and what is the tag line of that company?

Dina Quondamatteo and Janene Jaeger are the owners of Zsiage, the Essence of Fabulous. Their new India-inspired papers are beautiful!

5) This is the tallest couple in scrapbooking. Who are they? and how did they name their newest company?

Eric & Julie Comstock have four kids, five if you count their new company, Cosmo Cricket, which is an anagram of Eric's name.

And with that, Kathleen gets the Cosmo Cricket Jitterbug Paper Pack, a sample of GlueArts new total coverage vellum adhesive (works great on transparencies, too!), and several yards of beautiful ribbon from MayArts. I'm sending Trish some ribbon, too, for getting the bonus question right! Enjoy ladies!ETP!

Check back later for five more questions and another chance for a RAK!

ETP!

Here are five photos from Memory Trends. Can you answer the questions that relate to them?? Killer RAK to the first person who does and gets all of them right!

1) What are the three new lines from this cosmopolitan company? Bonus point: Name the girly in the center.

2) The guy in the crazy pants is marketing director for what sticky supplier?

3) This Scrapbooker of the Year Finalist has two scrapbook-related businesses. What are they?

4) These ladies are the force behind what fabulous company, and what is the tag line of that company?

5) This is the tallest couple in scrapbooking. Who are they? and how did they name their newest company?

Check back tomorrow for another five questions and another chance for a RAK!

ETP!

You've seen her creations all over the internet-- web sites and logos for scrapbooking enterprises in all segments of the industry. This is Michelle Williams (right) of Treasured Pages, and Cory (left), her new right hand! Spend just a few minutes browsing scrapbooking web sites and you'll see Michelle's work, including the Harvesting Memories logo and web site. I finally got to meet Michelle and Cory in person -- definitely a highlight! Michelle donated her time and talent to develop the Harvesting Memories web site site, and since then the three of us have been IMing each other on a regular basis! Thanks so much, Michelle!!

There are so many nice people in the scrapbooking industry, and at the top of the list is Leah Fung. She is genuine, and sweet, and so willing to help. We saw each other at the BHG Scrapbooks, etc. booth, and she is one of the hosts of their webTV show, Scrapbook Lifestyles. As full as her life is right now, she eagerly offered to help an any way possible with the Harvesting Memories events. Thanks, Leah!

Here I am with Tracy White, editor of Creating Keepsakes. Tracy really is a phenomenal woman and the perfect person to lead the leading scrapbooking publication. We ran into each other in the speakers' lounge, where she was waiting to start a meeting with Lisa Bearnson and others from CK. She showed me how she uses her Memory Dock system, and we talked a bit about how to better intersect scrapbooking and lifestyles. Tracy is big on journaling (well, she is an editor!) and is an "in the moment" type of person. I'm honored to know her and share our passion of scrapbooking.

Today...I'm back from Las Vegas where I attended the 7th annual Memory Trends Conference & Expo. Since it was the fourth trade show I attended this year, I'll only point out the highlights that made this show stand out from the others. Later I'll post photo highlights!

Speakers Badge - This was the first time I attended as a Speaker and got to don the coveted blue badge! Over 58 people signed up for my seminar, "Creating the Scrapbooker for Life," and hopefully the class offered a different yet positive perspective to the retailers who attended. I captured everyone's email address and hope to continue to communicate with them on a regular basis.

Diva Craft Lounge Live! - I was on assignment for the Diva Craft Lounge! It was fun -- and challenging -- reviewing as many exhibitors as possible looking for the latest and greatest products. Debbie Hodge did this for the NSA at the Chicago CHA show, and my stint made me appreciate her efforts all the more! Thanks, Debbie, for offering to come to CHA Anaheim to do it again! Anyway, Wednesday's DCL show was LIVE! with the recently-name Scrapbooker of the Year, C.D. Muckosky, Jan Mollet Evans, Thena Smith, and many more. It was a whirlwind show! And I got to meet Tom, Diva Danielle's husband, who helps considerably with DCL and other behind the Diva scenes.

My wonderful hosts! - I can't tell you how wonderful it is to travel to a strange city (and Vegas is different!) and be welcomed by friendly faces. In this case it was NSA member Fiona and her husband Ed, delightful daughter Dakota, and their new puppy, Bailey! Thank you, Nottoli Family, for your hospitality! Fiona and I did a fairly good job of keeping on track with the task at hand. We only went to In and Out Burger once, visited only one scrapbooking store, and made it to sleep before one a.m. most nights! It's always a highlight to stay and spend time with fellow scrapbookers!

More later...

ETP!

Today...Scrapbook Answers announced that November 2006 would be the last issue for the scrapbooking consumer magazine, which hit the scene October 2005.

Scrapbook Answers took the scrapbooking community by storm with it's fresh, fun and realistic approach to scrapbooking. Each issue included a CD jam-packed with additional features, how-to videos, fonts, and ideas. The product review section was appriciated by discriminating scrapbookers, plus the magazine was widely available in stores. It had a main-stream feel with content to inspire all scrapbooking levels.

Additionally, Scrapbook Answers was a sponsor of the NSA. We distributed the magazine in Sponsor Kits, and they offered NSA members a $5.00 discount on subscriptions. I had the pleasure a meeting the editorial staff and working with the associate publisher. These are dedicated, hard-working, driven, approachable, passionate women. I wish them well with their new challenges and hope to work with them again very soon.

ETP!