Pink Awareness for Stamp Out Breast Cancer FUNdraiser Retreat
October 17, 2019
October is recognized as National Breast Cancer Awareness month, and I'm a Breast Cancer Survivor going on 10 years now! **squeal** So, each year, I invite many friends, customers, and their friends and family to join me in a fundraising 2-day weekend retreat to "Stamp Out Breast Cancer". This event is super important to me because at the time I joined the Stampin' Up! family 11 years ago this month, I was diagnosed 4-1/2 months later. I tell you what...I buried myself in my stamps, paper and ink and crafted like no tomorrow. It's what kept me sane and my mind off of the ugly I was going through. So, to offer a retreat for others who have gone through what I experienced, or knows of someone (family, friends, co-workers, etc.) that battled Breast Cancer means the world to me. It's designed for us to have lots fun; and a fulfilling way to support a loved one battling breast cancer, to raise money for further research and increase awareness of the disease.
We collectively gathered our favorite crafting supplies and converged for two full days of mental therapy (aka FUN), whether it be stamping, scrapbooking, making jewelry, painting, quilting, knitting/crocheting, making cards...whatever it was, we brought it all with us (by the wagon loads) to relax and melt the worries away.
One of the things I love to do for each event is to search for fun bags and gift items for each registered crafter. This year, I found these super cute thermal lunch bags, which made it a fun way to house all the Stampin' Up! product goodies they received. Don't they look so pretty all lined up? Like a small field of flowers in my kitchen!
I'm sooo thankful that Stampin' Up! continued to carry the Support Ribbon Dies (Item #143749) in the Annual catalog! If it ever retires, this is one set of dies that I can NEVER let go of. A definite must-have to create for all kinds of color recognition. The Stitched Nested Labels Dies have gotten a lot of use with my crafting. It was the perfect background layer for the tag. The Designer Series paper is from the Bird Ballad pack, but the cardstock for the Ribbon die cut and ruffled ribbon bow are retired.
Typically, I create a tag with each registrants name and tie it to the bag. But this year, these coordinating notebooks with the lunch bags were the winner to making the retreat extra special and personal for each crafter. Again, the Stitched Nested Labels Dies set the background stage to their name printed on Whisper White cardstock and punched out with the Pretty Label Punch.
Each year, I'm on the lookout for any candies and snacks wrapped/adorned in any shade of Pink! Snacks of all kinds...salty and sweet...are needed to encourage the creativity of our craft we bring with us to work on. I also hunt for special items to raffle off — all proceeds from the sale of raffle tickets are donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. I didn't quite meet my fundraising goal of $500, but we made a dent (raised $320)! I'm happy to host the event and have sooo many wonderful friends (new and old) join me in the fight to find a cure for Breast Cancer.
I love the strong commitment to Pink Awareness demonstrated by Panera Bread. They create "Pink Ribbon Bagels" during the entire month of October. I was a lucky recipient of a donated supply of these wonderful, delicious, and fresh out of the oven baked goodness! This is the 2nd box, so you can see, these were a huge hit of yummy-ness!
Special THANKS to Sam's Club for their donation and creation of this ginormous Chocolate Chip cookie cake featuring my Stamp Out Breast Cancer event logo. YUM's for the sweet tooth!
And here you have it...the wonderful group of ladies (missing a couple) who joined with me to fight and Stamp Out Breast Cancer. We had an awesome TWO days to do what we love to do — make greeting cards, preserve pictures in newly created scrapbook pages, play with string and create Dreamcatchers, or create fun little gifts and treat packages for friends and co-workers. Whatever you love to do to keep your hearts happy, mindsets relaxed, and our crafty fingers crafting beautiful things...that's why we joined together, to do what we love and share with others.
My heart is full and overflowing when some of my friends and members of my Lori's Dream Team join with me for this retreat. I don't get to see a large number of my team very often (we are spreading wide across the states), so we make the best of the two days to chat about our daily lives and families, stamp and papercraft, and talk about Stampin' Up! news and bounce stamping techniques and ideas off of each other. We definitely have an amazing time — LOVE them all!
I don't know about you, but my least favorite part of any travels or events is the unpacking! One positive, though, it was a lot easier to get everything to fit into my vehicle for the ride home than it was to stuff everything in on Day 1. Oh, there is a 2nd positive...NO LAUNDRY! haha!!
Thank you for Shopping with Lori
- SHOP | VIEW: Stampin' Up! Annual 2019-20 Catalog online
- SHOP | VIEW: Stampin' Up! 2019 Holiday Catalog
- Clearance Rack -- Select products up to 60% off!
- SHOP & Save 10% on a large selection of Stampin' Up! Product Bundles
- Subscribe to your creative escape with Paper Pumpkin
- Orders of $30 or more receive Dreamers Loyalty Rewards Points, accumulate and redeem for free stamps...print your copy!
- STAMPIN' REWARDS: Orders over $150 receive $15+ additional free product (you do not want to use the Hostess Code noted above...this is so YOU receive the Hostess benefits)
