P. Kelly Smith

Welcome to Freebie Friday! We were blown away by all of the amazing comments we got from Brandy’s blog yesterday. We love that you, our loyal readers, are just as passionate about what goes into the pages of Paper Crafts magazine as we are! We will definitely take your suggestions to heart when we come together at next week’s Editorial Board meeting. After all, this hobby is all about creative expression, sharing your time and talents and giving back to a community that’s always ready to rally.

Which is why I was thrilled when Paper Crafts designer Becky Olsen asked me and Creating Keepsakes’ Megan Hoeppner to join her last Saturday for a fundraising crop benefitting cystic fibrosis. Becky’s friend Brenda Hurd has a six-year-old son afflicted with this fatal disease, so every year Brenda hosts a crop to raise money towards finding a cure. I’m happy to report she made almost $4000 at this year’s event!

Here's Roxanne (Becky's sister), myself, Megan, Brenda and Becky.

In addition to the goodie bags of product for each guest, Brenda also held hourly drawings and gave away a ton of raffle prizes. As a special treat, Paper Crafts and Creating Keepsakes designer Wendy Sue Anderson was also on hand to teach a fun class featuring a layout she designed. And we each got to take home a kit to recreate this autumn layout!

Here's a cute photo of Wendy Sue and Megan. Isn't Wendy Sue's layout adorable?

I first got into scrapbooking 11 years ago, so it was fun to spend a day in the world of layouts (even though I spent most of my time making a card!). I had a birthday party that night for Paper Crafts’ former art director Stace Hasegawa. I wanted to give her the perfect card to sum up her love of Johnny Depp. So I searched our photo archives for a picture of Johnny that she had Photoshopped long ago. She had added that perfect touch to his already perfect body. Knowing she would appreciate the walk down memory lane, I printed out the picture and made this birthday card:

Who knew Johnny was such a fan of Paper Crafts?

Needless to say, Stace loved her card! And I loved completing a project (even if it was a very small one!). But the real thrill of the day was spending time with crafty friends and knowing that our combined efforts were going towards a very good cause. If you would like to help Brenda reach her crop goal, you can purchase one of Wendy Sue’s layout kits for $10 (includes shipping). Click HERE for more information. All proceeds will go towards cystic fibrosis research.

For today’s giveaway, one random winner will take home one of these very special kits. Leave a comment telling me a foundation/charity/cause that’s near and dear to you. All comments must be received by midnight (MST) on Sunday, Sept. 20.

Happy Friday!
Kelly

P.S. It’s time to announce the winner of Teri Anderson’s Eyelet Hoarder post!

Congrats to Cynthia B (Sept. 16, 4:23 p.m.)!

Cynthia, you’ve won both of Teri’s eyelet cards! I’ll be contacting you shortly to get your mailing address. Thanks to all who left comments!