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From the Helm
Cap'n Dawn Heath,Publisher
This month we are travelling around the Middle East. We have so many of our troops stationed in this area and this time, I wish were truly there to show our support to them. They are the true heros of our generation and there are many ways we can show our appreciation for their sacrifice. There is so much beauty in these countries and history. I don't know about you but I'm a huge history buff and to see the places that we have read about, walk down the streets smelling the food on the markets...well, this will one day be a reality and not just a virtual dream! S.S. Reflections will be visiting as many countries in the Middle East as we are able to during the month of September. It would be wonderful if for the month of September we do something special for our soldiers. My oldest son just joined the Civil Air Patrol and as a Mom I'm so very proud of him! But, it also makes me think of all the parents who have been left behind as their sons and daughters serve their country (not just the USA but all of our Allies) and I'd like to extend a special hug to them and a salute to our Armed Forces. God Bless you all.
As we were putting the September issue together Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast and now Rita is about to slam into Texas and about 2/3rds of the Gulf Coast and head inland. We have all been glued to the news holding our breath for friends and family who have been and will be effected by these horrific hurricanes. If you are able you can help by donating to the American Red Cross by donating online or you can call 1-800-HELP NOW. I can't even imagine living in such devastation and my prayers are with everyone who has been effected by this unimaginable catastrophe. Please know that the Red Cross website is running slow because of so much activity! It's so nice to know that so many people are helping this way!
Now for some really BIG news! You may have the opportunity to own a design created by one of our very talented crew! Starting with the October issue the option will be given in the pop up windows of any design the crew is willing to sell. The price will be listed there for you and you can just email the designer directly. If you see something in the September issue that you are interested in purchasing please contact the designer directly. Shipping and Handling are not included in the price of the design. Insurance is required on all sales.
Also, we are instituting a brand new program for you! We are launching our brand new store directory with this issue! Of course, it's brand new so there aren't many entries yet, but if you are interested in having your store included (Brick and Mortar stores and Online stores) please contact me at publisher@ssreflections.com as we have a very special introductory rate for one full year we are offering until September 25.
Scrappers ER Update!You've been reading about Scrappers ER on S.S. Reflections for months, it's a long weekend of education & recreation for the Scrapbooker. Just what the doctor ordered ... Two days of intensive care that includes workshops, make 'n takes and cropping events! Dates are November 3-6 at Pheasant Run in St. Charles, Illinois! Well, it's time! Registration opens September 1st! You won't want to miss this awesome event! Class schedule is on the site and the instructors bios are also available! You may actually recognize a few of them!
If you are joining us for the very first time, let me explain what S.S. Reflections is. We are a completely FREE online magazine with a truly unique concept. SSR is a virtual cruise ship from the Golden Era here to entertain you as we visit a new country/port each month. We have an amazing crew who create designs and share ideas with you each month from various areas of the ship. Our fly-out menu bar, to the left, can take you anywhere on the ship that you would like to be. It will guide you through each deck on this magnificent ship! If you'd like to read each and every feature, at the bottom of each page is a blue arrow and a link to click which will take you to the next page to read. We also have Intro Pages for each deck. On these pages are ship's wheels with our crewmember's pictures inside - you can click on the wheel and read a short, fun bio for each designer. You can also click on the name of their room on the ship and it will take you directly to their article, or you can email each crewmember directly by clicking on their name! Please write to us and be sure to tell them what you love about SSR and anything you have read about here!
Thank you to everyone who responded to my question last month about continuing with our monthly contest! As it turns out, your responses were very positive and encouraging! Thank you all for taking the time to write to me, I really appreciate your thoughts on this! We received only one entry for the August contest. I feel that under the circumstances, it would be in our best interest to not continue with the contest as it is. So, we are going to take a short break and revamp the monthly contest idea! In the meantime we have our fun Caption Contest which has been a huge hit and a lot of fun! So, without further adeiu, let's see our caption contest card for September!
The Caption Contest has been so much fun on the Ezine Yahoo! Group! We can hardly wait to see each new entry. The featured stamp used in each month's article is also that months prize. The September caption contest is sponsored by Red Castle!
The card on the right is from the August Caption Contest sponsored by Hearts in Touch. The Ezine Yahoo Group members voted for their favorite caption and the winner is....
"How much you want to bet he is sitting lost somewhere, because he is too stubborn to ask directions?"
by Verna Angerhofer of South Dakota
For detailed instructions and our current contest just click on the card. We are having so much fun with this contest on the Ezine Yahoo! Group, I hope you join us!
Have you signed up for our bi-monthly newsletter yet? Did you know that we send out a newsletter when we change our Reader's Gallery each month? The newsletter is FREE and is full of up-to-date information on what is happening on board the S.S. Reflections! If you would like to receive our newsletter you can sign up for it HERE. If you are a member of the Ezine Yahoo! Group then you are having a wonderful time sharing ideas and tips and techniques. We have weekly challenges for both the stampers and the scrappers and monthly swaps! Our new Communications Officer is Debi Wind and her assistant is Diana Scott. Debi will be managing the Ezine Yahoo! Group and Diana will be organizing some fun on the Ezine Message Board!
Our Celebrity Headliner Judith of Stamps by Judith! Stamps by Judith is a family owned business that has been in existence since 1991. Judith, along with her husband, Larry and daughter, Heather, have always made it their commitment to produce the highest quality rubber stamps possible. All of the artwork in the Stamps By Judith line comes from the talent of either Judith herself, or her daughter, Heather. Currently there are over 1,000 images in this complete line of stamps.
POP-UP cards and scrapbook pages with Jerry Stevens is our guest in the VIP Lounge In 1999, Jerry wanted to make a Thank You card for a real estate client. He wanted it to be different. A pop-up sounded interesting. He found a book that described how to trace letters from the book and cut to make a pop-up. The concept was good, but cutting traced lines was difficult and crude looking when finished. Jerry searched the web and found a company that could make a brass template to assist in the cutting.
Our Designer’s Challenge this month was sponsored by Keepsake Designs a family-owned company by our very own Becky Chabot, located in Sanford, Maine. The company has custom layouts and complete albums, which can be elaborate or simple, whichever you prefer. You can order hand-made greeting cards made with the same high-quality papers. I'm sure you are going to love these papers! This design featured was created by our own Purnima!
Korbyn's Korner - S.S. Reflections Advertiser Spotlight!
korbynmay@ssreflections.com
Director of Sales
As you finish reading this jam packed issue of S.S. Reflections, please make your way to our Making Waves page and visit our advertisers! We have revamped the page to make it more accessible to you and easier for you when you are shopping! Some of our Advertisers have wonderful specials and announcements just for you!
Posh Impressions always has specials that change without notice. If you see it and you like it or want it, order quickly and it is yours. Notice that the page is titled "Items Briefly On Sale" or you can click Special Sale to see what is offered this moment. Don't forget to order Dee's brand new DVD "Simply Posh." What a wonderful opportunity to learn from the master.
Hearts in Touch - Hearts In Touch is happy to announce it is carrying the new Tim Holtz line of wood mounted stamps! Also, Tim’s new Metallic Mixatives and Distress Embossing Powders will be available at HIT as soon as they are available to the public.
Suze’ new book “Instant Art” is now in stock and available for mailing out NOW!
Caputo's Kits Looking for a creative way to store your handmade A2 sized cards? Head over to Caputo's Kits to pick up the brand new Card Keeper Kit! It comes with blank cover boards to decorate, 10 custom made page protectors to hold up to 20 cards, and binding rings. Refills available!"
PaperArtsy: New from PaperArtsy are four quarter plates called 'wings' comprised of angels, butterflies and other winged creatures as unmounted stamps. These new plates are now available. Also new on the website are collage and transparency sheets: great for transfers, collage art or overlays. Be sure to visit the PaperArtsy website!
Memory Villa, is home to scrapbooking supplies from 30 of the best brands. Popular products uploaded weekly... Drawings and layout contests too! Excellent customer service is what Memory Villa is all about! Free USA shipping on orders of $75 or over, and a flat rate of $4.50 on smaller orders. The best part, if you see it on our site - it's in stock!!!
Midwest Scrapbook Association - The Indiana convention is September 9-10, 2005 in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the Memorial Coliseum, 4000 Parnell Ave Fort Wayne, IN 46805. There is still time to register for the Scrapbook Retreat October 21 - 23, 2005 at the Tommy G Thompson Youth Center - Wisconsin State Fair Park - Milwaukee, WI Cost: $145.00 (includes two-nights lodging and 5 meals)! Let us take care of all the hassles -- so you can concentrate on the good stuff - like what color to matt your photo. With just two people per table, you have spacious cropping area to work on your scrapbooks until the wee hours of the morning (the crop room never closes!), make 'n takes, access to our Tools Stations, limited shopping with onsite vendors, games and drawings for fabulous prizes, goodie bags, meeting new people who LOVE to scrapbook like you, and lots of time to work on preserving your family memories. Relax, Have Fun, Get Lots of Scrapbooking Done...Don't Delay...
Two Paper Cranes - Click here for a look at the awesome products that Two Paper Cranes is offering!
*Scrapbooking Business Opportunity* Start your own scrapbooking business for only $30! Enjoy purchasing your own scrapbooking supplies at a discount and reap the benefits of having your own home business. Exclusive products, personal support, and an infinite compensation plan pave your way to a real income. Click here to find out more about this ground floor opportunity!
Now to tell you what is on our Editorial Deck! We have a couple of new additions to the Editorial Deck! Scrapbook Premier is back every month with a special feature from their latest issue! We have yet another new column for you! Dawn Shepherd of Mother Rubber Art Stamps has joined our crew as my assistant and will write a Tidbits Question and Answer column using converstions on the Ezine Yahoo Group! In The Stateroom this month we are featuring Wendy Kerr and the Stampers Mall! Wendy is one of the busiest ladies I know, she is doing so many different projects and she is sharing her vision with us! The The Showcase this month is featuring Angela Moffatt of Epson. Angela is teaching us how to use our scanner to create custom papers and embellishments. Dean is building a lap desk and teaching us how to do our own! Judy our Stamping Deck Librarian has gone outside the box on this DVD review. She has done a fabulour job too!! Judy is reviewing the DVD hosted by Jan Hicks, "Inside Scrapbook". Sharon, our Scrapping Deck Librarian, is reviewing a DVD also! Sharon has also been thinking outside the box and has reviewed "Digital Memories Scrapbooking With Your Computer"
By Carla Rose
On our Digital Deck this month, Ramie is full of advice on how to use the tutorials we have on S.S. Reflections. Dyan is getting messy. We may just have to ban her to the dingy if she doesn't clean up after herself! Bill is guiding us through the process of taking photos of beautiful sunsets! This is Tonya's last feature with S.S. Reflections. We will miss her so much! Tonya's tutorial this month is how to give a high-tech look to your photo without distorting it too much. Tara's tutorial is antiquing your digital scrapbook pages.
Elizabeth has created a birthday album using the Storytellers Digital CD and Tricia is creating a summer themed album and her layouts are outstanding!
Now on to the Stamping Deck! Cindy is creating with molding paste. Debi is brayering backgrounds! Robin and Wendy are aging altered art! Cindy Cade is altering dollar store frames to create works of art! Andi is creating art in the lovely shades of brown. Suzanne is creating works of art using her heat gun and embossing powders! Lori has just returned from a very special vacation in Las Vegas! She not only welcomed her new granddaughter into the world but she also met our very special Joe Nathan! Lori is helping us bridge that gap between stamping and scrapping! Purnima has created her feature this month around a beautiful piece of art! Melissa has created a gorgeous article on the peeling paint technique! A sample of Melissa's article is featured on the right!
Now on to the Scrapping Deck! We have all sorts of exciting changes on the Scrapping Deck! For a start, Jill will have her own regular feature each month starting with September! Sara and Laura will now share a feature and take turns each month and we have a special guest for September! Tracey Olson of Fibers By The Yard has filled in for Diana in the Radio Room for September AND starting with October Tracey will be a regular feature on our Stamping Deck! We're very excited about this! We also have a brand new crewmember, Stacha who will be featured officially in our October issue! Stacha is Jill's partner and they own The Scrapbook Lady Scrapbook store in Hudson, Wisconsin. Stacha will have her own column each month and you're going to love her designs! Jill has new ideas for what to use those Index Prints you get back from the film developer! One of Jill's designs is featured to the right. I couldn't resist the project of Betsy...some of you may remember we lost our Basset Hound Emmy a year ago June and I just can't resist that heartwarming face! Tracey's first feature is on the little details, all those embellishments we love to use! Chrissy is having way too much fun with rub on's but who can blame her, they are my favorite these days too! Stacie is teaching us how to use that color wheel that is at the bottom of one of our draws! (Ok, I confess, I'm one of them!) Marilyn is using her computer to generate titles and her journaling! Cindi is scrapping with handmade paper and you know that what Cindi has created is gorgeous! Becky is using die cut negatives on her layouts! Janet is guiding you as you tell your story and Victoria is taking time to enjoy the flowers!
We have a very special Reader's Gallery to share with you! It's two pages!! Susan Shute has created an altered book and she's sharing all the pages with us! The title is "7 Deadly Sins" and it's just spectacular! You can see the cover to the right! We have just a fantastic gallery for you and we are still accepting designs for the mid-September gallery so if you would like to be featured in our Reader's Gallery, please submit your designs to Robin Willis! If you have something that you'd like to have included in our September 15, gallery please submit your designs to Robin by September 10th at robinwillis@ssreflections.com. We love to showcase all our reader's artwork! Please remember to send us your name and the city/state or country where you live along with a basic list of the products used. We hope to give our advertisers as much exposure with your designs as we can!
If you have read this entire article, THANK YOU! Thank you also for coming on board our virtual ship! Next month we will be cruising to Kenya! We have lots of surprises in store for you but for now, you have the whole month to enjoy this fabulous issue of S.S. Reflections! Remember to count your blessings each day. We hope you will be able to relax and enjoy your favorite online Ezine, S.S. Reflections!
Happy Sailing,
Cap'n Dawn
publisher@ssreflections.com
Publisher
Reflections Publishing Group
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