Marah Johnson Workshop / Crop Celebration Event

What can I say except, "OMG!!!" We had a most spectacular workshop today, taught by Marah Johnson herself...here...live...in person... You get the idea! She walked us through putting together the most adorable Safari Peek-A-Book (Creative Imaginations Bare Elements line--it has alternating pages with pullouts) using one of the many fantastic lines of paper that she designed herself. And, this lady is an absolute dynamo; she did a workshop earlier today at another store in Louisiana, and then came and did a fabulous workshop here, and was so chock-full of tips and tricks and hints and ideas. Everybody who participated absolutely loved it, and she let it slip that she'll be returning again in a few months. Again, "OMG!!!"

Marah is a most wonderful person, with a really great personality, so totally not pretentious like you may think some big-name designers would be. A very real, down-to-earth person that has the greatest stories that she tells while teaching the class. She and I agree that life is always an adventure, and you just never know what's going to happen or come along. Her story-telling is so enthusiastic that you feel like you were there when it happened, and that enthusiasm is just as evident in her teaching. She truly has a passion for papercrafting, and if I understood her correctly, her joy is in the teaching and showing people how to be creative. Her designs are funky and on-the-edge (an understatement, some say!) and so totally what I absolutely love. To my customers who know me well and have taken workshops with me and cropped with me, you KNOW I don't like to stay within the confines... Normal is boring! I love to take it over the edge, and Marah's lines do just that. We did have a huge display of her products, but many are already sold out, even before she gave the workshop! Awww, poor me, guess I'll have to order MORE!!! LOL

Anyway, I'm kinda punch drunk at this hour. I've crammed lots into the past week and today, especially. Emery laughed at me running around today trying to get everything straight in the store, and he said "Mama, you'd swear the President was coming! Calm down!" I guess I just wanted to make a nice impression for Marah. It's not every day that somebody famous that you absolutely adore actually walks into your store and does a workshop for you! So I wanted things to be "perfect", which of course things never are. But I think it was okay. She did compliment the store, and I laughed when she was "wowed" to see that we sell brads and eyelets individually instead of in packs. I told her not to go giving away my trade secrets, and to make people come here to Louisiana to purchase them from us!

In all, everybody had a wonderful time and Marah was so kind and gracious and put up with my yapping nonstop on the way back to the hotel. Hopefully she'll recover. I was just so excited to have her here!

Tomorrow at Noon we will have the second workshop taught by Marah, and we are really looking forward to that one too. Unfortunately she won't be able to hang out afterwards because her flight out is later in the day, but we are so excited and already planning on her return.

Also, on another note, tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday is the Crop Celebration Event in Hammond, Louisiana. Felix will be working the event until the store closes, and then I'll be joining him. Saturday I will be there, and have two classes scheduled. Please come out and join us for this most worthy cause. This is strictly a charity event with all proceeds from the crop going to the Restoration House Pregnancy Resource Center. Plus, it's just plain FUN! Lots of prizes, goodie bags, silent auctions, and the food there is unbelievable. Cropping for one day is only $25. Check out their website at www.CropCelebration.com.

I hope your day was as absolutely awesome as mine was.

Until next time, happy stamping and scrapping!

Dee