One of my very favorite reasons to be a demonstrator is the amazing sample swapping that goes on whenever we gather together!
Stampin' Up demonstrators are some of the most creative people in the world, and I benefit greatly from seeing their ideas. I love coming up with a cool card and making a bunch of them so I can trade with others. It's fun to think of the little card I stamped in my craftroom in Wisconsin traveling across the U.S. and sometimes even across oceans, to land in another demonstrator's sample basket.
I'm sharing several favorites from my latest chance to swap, at the OnStage 2016 earlier this month. I made forty swaps, so I can't show all the samples I received here, but these are some of my favorites! I also swap every month with my team, at our local gathering. I think swapping is such an integral part of being a demonstrator, that if any of my non-local team members wants to participate by mail, I pay the shipping back to them after the meeting. It's worth it to spread the love!
One really nice thing about swapping is that I get a variety of stamp sets, paper choices and different embellishments and die-cuts to show my local stamping friends. I don't have to personally own all of Stampin' Up's product lines–thank goodness for that, because there's almost 4,000 products in our catalogs! Even if I could swing it, it wouldn't all fit in here, for sure!
My stampin' friends LOVE to look in my sample basket to see what new delights I've traded for since the last time they attended! It's awesome to have artwork from many different designers that they can look through and learn from. It helps both them and me get out of our little crafty comfort zone and try new layouts, color combos and techniques that we never would have seen otherwise.
I keep the samples protected in our Clear Translucent Envelopes so they don't get fingerprints or smudges on them while we browse the basket. And when the products used on the swaps retire, I have all these cool card fronts that I can turn into full cards and use for all kinds of occasions. Sometimes I turn them into gift tags or use the pieces as elements on scrapbook pages, too. Fun!
I hope you've enjoyed this little sneak peek into the secret world of demonstrator sample swaps… one of the best "hidden" reasons to join Stampin' Up! We should chat about the Starter Kit, the support services and incentives I provide as a member of the Song of My Heart team, and how you could get involved in swap exchanges with demonstrators all over the world.
Join the fun–the world is waiting to see what YOU will create next!
