The annual Stampin’ Up! Incentive Trip is an amazing combination of: 

fun, friendship and family;

stamping, product reveals and inspiration;

pampering, ‘insta-worthy’ treats and sightseeing.

This year was so special, with 315 demonstrators and their guests plus corporate staff and Board members all meeting in Phuket, Thailand for a week of all that and more.

I updated my Stamping With Simone Facebook page while we were there, but a few blog readers who aren’t on Facebook have asked about the trip, so here it is! Most of the images will enlarge if you click on them.

Enjoy, and if you make it to the end of this long post, I hope you’ll say hello in the comments below. xxxx

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Getting There

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One of the most exciting moments in the lead up to an Incentive Trip, is the moment the courier arrives with our travel documents. But this time I did not open it! Somehow I contained my excitement long enough for hubby to get home and gave it to him to open, yes still in his work clothes. lol. After all, if it wasn’t for his support and encouragement we wouldn’t have gone on any of these trips over the past 8 years.

Earning the incentive trip means you earn flights and accommodation for two people, from wherever you are in the world, to the trip destination. Many meals are also included, and for those that are not included, Stampin’ Up! provides us with an ample ‘per diem’ meal allowance. My goodness, they are so generous.

[Note: Less than 1% of all demonstrators earn the incentive trip each year]

The day finally arrived and we set off from Melbourne Airport. Can you believe it was raining?

Goodbye rainy Melbourne, hello hot Phuket.

At the airport we met up with team members Nicole and Tracy, and shared some celebratory refreshments. 😉

So proud of these demonstrators for qualifying for the trip – through loving what they do and sharing what they love.

In fact, I just worked out that over the past 10 years my team and I have qualified for a combined total of 22 tickets-for-two to these incentive trips. How blessed are we! It’s so much fun to go on these trips but even more when you can share it with people you’ve worked with and cheered along. I love all the Eurekastampers, regardless of their goals in running a business or enjoying a fun hobby, because our team is such a lovely group and are a joy to work with. But to see such success and reward for effort, well, it’s the icing on the cake.

-> Don’t forget the awesome joining special on this month <-

Flying from Australia, it was only about a 9 hour flight before we landed in Phuket. A direct flight for the win!

We were greeted at the airport by a representative from Stampin’ Up! and were ushered to an awesome mini van with party lights and blaring music. Ok, we definitely scored big time with our driver. The drive to the resort got us in party mode for sure!

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The Resort

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Our accommodation for the week was the stunning Angsana Laguna Phuket.

Even though it was late when we arrived, we eagerly explored and took a few happy snaps of our gorgeous room.

They think of everything…

This delicious fruit basket was waiting for us in our room.

It wasn’t until the next morning that we fully appreciated our little patch of paradise and the view we were to enjoy every day.

We had a lovely big lounge area and huge balcony – so spoilt! It was such a delight to sit out there and watch the ferry go by although somehow we never managed to actually go on it!

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Official Welcome Session

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Next morning was the first official function, which was held at a marquee located about 10 minutes offsite. We travelled in style, in fun ‘tuk tuks’.

We heard from Sara (CEO Stampin’ Up!) who welcomed us and gave us lots of gifts, Rich (President) who spoke about the state of Stampin’ Up! in the world and all the good things that are happening, and Paula and Shelli (Co-Founder and Board Member) who shared some great product reveals with us.

Jason and all the other ‘first guests’ received a gorgeous Stampin’ Up! logo shirt.

And of course plenty of yummy treats to enjoy!

I got stacks of stamps and framelits and all kinds of fun craft stuff. Andddddd (drum roll please) the upcoming Holiday Catalogue! Oh my goodness. It’s amazing. 55 pages of stamps, embellishments, new punches, framelits and of course fabulous ideas too.

As if we weren’t excited enough already, we learned that the 2019 Incentive Trip destination is a cruise around the Greek Isles!

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Sightseeing & Official Group Activity

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There was a variety of optional tours we could choose to go on at our own cost, so Jason and I signed up for a couple of them. We’d never been to Thailand before and were keen to see some sights, and it was great that Stampin’ Up! did all the organising for us. Others chose to relax by the pool. These trips are really whatever you want them to be!

We went on a shopping trip to Patong, spent a day on the water and visiting Phi Phi island with a bit of snorkelling thrown in. I LOVE snorkelling,  it’s my favourite thing to do in the water. It was a fabulous way to meet other demonstrators from around the world and make new friends.

As an extra gift, Stampin’ Up! paid for every demonstrator and their first guest to join in the group activity on the Wednesday – a tour of Phang Nga Bay and BBQ lunch. This was such a fabulous day, probably my favourite activity of the whole week.

They took us canoeing in the underground caves, which was very special.

We visited a floating village, where all the shops and houses – and even the school – is built on a floating platform.

And we finished the afternoon with a BBQ and swimming on Rang Yai island.

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Pillow Gifts

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Even after going on 8 Incentive Trips with Stampin’ Up!, the daily pillow gifts never cease to amaze me.

After a fun day of activities we return to our room to find adorably packaged gifts waiting on our pillow or on the end of our bed. This year we were treated to so many fabulous products from the upcoming Holiday Catalogue! We calculated it to be $600+ worth of products! I can’t share those with you just yet because the catalogue hasn’t been released yet, but I can share some of the other gifts.

On one evening our gift was a waterproof pouch for our phones and cameras, and a voucher for the full-day tour to Phang Nga bay…

Another was this gorgeous travel bag…

…which did not come empty, of course! Inside we found a couple of packets of 12×12 patterned papers, ready for Christmas crafting.

And how about this detailed Benjarong hand-painted porcelain covered bowl in its own lined box? Gorgeous!

And everything is wrapped and so beautifully presented.

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Swaps & Stamping

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Did we do any stamping in Thailand? Yes! 

Three make & takes were available in the inspiration room. You can read more about them HERE [link coming!].

We also participated in a full-card swap with other trip achievers, and participated in a mini themed swap with other achievers from the South Pacific.

We gave a copy of each of these South Pacific swaps as a gift to the Australian head office, and one to the New Zealand office.

On the Thursday afternoon we had a 2 hour Share Fair, which included 6 trip achievers who shared some tips and ideas featuring new products from the upcoming Holiday Catalogue.

And guess what? I was one of them!

You can see the first of my projects shared HERE.

The Hospitality Desk

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One of our fave places to visit each day was the Hospitality Desk. Here we could always find some yummy snacks, a cool drink in the fridge, and always friendly Stampin’ Up! demonstrators and staff to say g’day to. 

There were daily prize give-aways to earn by playing the bean bag toss game. I actually got pretty good at that game by the end of it!

We could also organise some excursions and tours here if we wanted.

Farewell Party

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We finished the week with a bang at the Final Event – a very special evening at the Blue Elephant which is a former Governor’s mansion turned restaurant and cooking school in Phuket.

We enjoyed a delicious buffet dinner, explored the mansion and watched local handicrafts being made including flower garlands and soap carving. Live music was playing too.

The huge tent looked absolutely stunning with the mansion as the perfect backdrop.

What a treat to visit such a special place.

And when the night was over, we each received a lovely memento of our time in Thailand, a sweet elephant necklace.

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You’re still with me?! Thanks for reading my epic summary of our trip.

Honestly, I tried to make it shorter and there is sooooo much I cut out. Next time you’ll just have to come along too and see how amazing these trips really are!

I’m grateful to so many people, including my customers and team, and of course family. Without you none of this would be possible. I’ll continue to work hard to be your demonstrator and your team leader, and to provide you service beyond your expectation.

Stay tuned for next year’s instalment which will be all about Alaska! I don’t think I’ll be needing the swimmers and sunscreen for this one…

Leave a comment to let me know you got to the end – thanks so much xxx

Simone xxx

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It still feels like a dream that only last month we were cruising in the Caribbean, visiting exotic destinations and hanging out with Stampin’ Up! friends from around the world. We’ve been so busy since then that it kinda feels like months ago!

Thank heavens for photos that allow us to relive these incredible experiences.

I invite you to come along for the ride via this snippet of the AMAZING trip to Florida and the Caribbean cruise. A huge and heartfelt thanks to Stampin’ Up! for giving Jason and I this incredible experience and of course my wonderful customers and team who I absolutely adore.

I really did intend to keep this post short, as we’ve got so much going on that I can’t wait to share with you (including an awesome new JOIN FOR $85 special!), but… well… as you can see there are lots of photos… so you might want to grab a cuppa.

It always feels more real when the bag tags arrive in the mail.

We added a couple of extra days at the start of the trip to help deal with jetlag.  Miami was awesome and we sure crammed a lot into those two days! Yep, being tourists.

We then spent a couple of days in Fort Lauderdale including a day out at a huge outlet mall where we bumped into a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator from Germany – hello Maxie!. We saw Maxie most days on the ship so it was a lot of fun chatting and getting to know her on the bus ride.

Embarkation day arrived. I even managed to be up at 5am to see the amazing Allure of the Seas arrive in port.

Wow. I knew she was the biggest cruise liner in the world – but I was still blown away by her sheer size. You can fit 3 times as many people on this ship as the population of my home town!

Hmmm, that was a little mind-boggling.

One of the fun things on every Incentive Trip (aka Grand Vacation) is the Hospitality Suite provided by Stampin’ Up!. It’s a meeting area where we can catch up with other demonstrators, learn a little about the activities on offer, and try our hand at games to win free products. This year it was a Ring Toss game. And I must say I got pretty good at it by the end of the trip (shhh – yes, I was standing RIGHT OVER the bottles but hey, it counts. Doesn’t it?).

We’ve been very blessed to have earned five Stampin’ Up! incentive trips over the past five years, and I have to say this was one of the most relaxed trips ever. There were just a couple of group functions – social events really – and the rest was purely free time. On the first night we booked out the entire Boardwalk area and had a meet & greet, followed by a private showing of the amazing OceanAria acrobatics-over-water show. We even had a group photo which was an impressive effort as our group was over 700 people in size – that’s demonstrators, their partners and other guests.

Later in the cruise we joined in a Walk-a-thon to raise money to build homes in Haiti. We also had a get-together for South Pacific demonstrators and staff, so it was fun to say g’day to the other Aussies and Kiwis on board.

We also had an inspirational Share Affair afternoon, which I’ll chat about in a separate post.

Our ship docked at 3 ports during the week: Labadee, which is a little portion of private land on Haiti; Falmouth (and we went to Montego Bay) in Jamaica; and Cozumel which is an island off the coast of Mexico. It was fun seeing a different part of the world, a long way from our small country town in Australia.

One of the very special treats on a Stampin’ Up! incentive trip is the pillow gifts. These are fun gifts that ‘magically’ appear in our rooms when we return in the evening.We are always so touched at the thoughtfulness that goes into these treats, and this year was no exception.

Gifts included logo drink bottles, his & hers luxurious lounge covers embroidered with the words ‘Stampin’ Up!’,  snacks and lollies, on board credit, his & hers jackets, a handbag and new Stampin’ Up! products from our yet-to-be-released catalogue.

Alright, hopefully you’re still with me. I’ll finish off this long post with some other random shots that make me smile. Beautiful scenery, new friends, fun and laughter.

Thanks again for all your support over the years.  I look forward to serving you and hopefully inspiring you a little more over the coming years. Due to family commitments in May 2015 it may not be possible for us to attend the next Stampin’ Up! trip, even if we qualify, but you never know what lies ahead. One thing I do know is that we have a beautiful catalogue to look forward to, lots of crafts to make, and memories to make and record.  Bring it on!

Don’t forget to stop and say hello – just click on the ‘comment’ link below.

Happy stamping,

Stampin’ Up! Grand Vacation/Incentive Trip to Utah, USA

 

What a huge month it’s been!

It may look as though we’ve been quiet here on the blog but as you can see we’ve been hard at work behind the scenes.

 

Welcome to the new look website! What do you think?

 

We are also back from our amazing trip to the US for the 2013 South Pacific Stampin’ Up! Incentive Trip. We joined forces with the Europe achievers too, so it was double the fun.

We travelled on planes, trams, buses, a funicular, helicopter, and more. We saw the amazing contrast between Utah, California, Nevada and Arizona. We laughed and cried and giggled and shopped (a lot!!) and yes – it really was the ‘trip of a lifetime’.

 

I know many of you followed my updates over on the Stamping With Simone Facebook page, but here is a summary of our trip in photo form. After this, I promise we’ll be back to our regular programming 😉

 

First, the US 25th Anniversary Convention.

We were given the option to add a few extra days onto the trip so we could join in this great celebration. They didn’t have to ask me twice!

 The samples, presentations and inspiration boards were a feast for the eyes.

 

 

Next came the amazing St Regis resort in Deer Valley, the official part of the Grand Vacation. An incredibly beautiful part of the world.

 

We spent a day at the Home Office in Utah. This was a highlight of the trip for many of us. Crafting with friends at Stampin’ Up! headquarters? Priceless.

Next was a full day in Kanab, home of the manufacturing plant where stamps, ink pads and more are created and packaged just for us to enjoy! The trip here was complete with private charter to St George Airport (read about the interest it generated in the media HERE)

 

On the way back we called into Jacob Hamblin Park, which is a kids’ playground in Kanab. Stampin’ Up! donates waste rubber offcuts as soft fall under the play equipment. I’d heard about this playground over the years, so it was a thrill to be there in person. Looking closely we even recognised some of the images from old stamp sets.

 

Our final evening was at a genuine ridgy-didge Utah ranch. Country music, dancing and we made S’mores!! (First time ever about the s’mores, so that was a bit exciting!). If I hadn’t already fallen in love with Utah, then I would have that night!

 

Jason and I added a few extra days in Las Vegas, but I’ll spare you those happy snaps! lol. It was the perfect way to wrap up an amazing trip though.

And for those who asked: Yes. We saw Elvis.

He was playing Candy Crush.

 

For those of you who’ve followed my blog for a while, you know I’ve been so incredibly grateful for every one of the four Incentive Trips Jason and I have been on with Stampin’ Up!. But this one…. well it completely took my breath away.

Stampin’ Up! has been a part of our lives for nearly 6 years now, so it was a dream come true to visit the Home Office in Salt Lake City, and the manufacturing plant in Kanab, meeting face-to-face some of the fabulous people who have inspired me, as well as making some gorgeous new friends.

Thank you so much to those who supported and encouraged me over the years. I still love what I do (I get asked that a lot), love teaching, love being associated with Stampin’ Up! and love the products. But above all that, what I love is the friendships I’ve developed along the way with customers, demonstrators and team members.

 

 

** If you have a spare minute, let me know what you think of the new-look website by leaving a comment.  Any thoughts/suggestions appreciated. Thanks! xxx

 

Happy stamping,

 

 

Just a quick note to let you know the highlights page from our recent Incentive Trip is ready (finally!). Lots of photos and a pretty long post, so if you are interested and have a little spare time, just click this link. 

Have a great weekend,

 

Edited: Here's the link to the full highlights page

  Well, the Stampin' Up! Incentive Trip to Broome, Western Australia, is over and I honestly can't believe how quickly that week went! We had a great time, and I'm looking forward to sharing a recap of events on a separate page for those who are interested. I'll post the link soon. (Edited: Here's that link).

But for today I'm excited to share a beautiful card… one I will treasure always.

Shelli's card features the sentiment from Seasonal Sayings (p34 Holiday catalogue) and the Pool Party image is from Affection Collection (p35 Holiday Catalogue).

 

  This card accompanied our final gift, and inside is a beautiful message by Shelli Gardner, CEO and co-founder of Stampin'Up! [And speaking of gifts…. oh my goodness… we were totally spoilt this trip!!] This is such a gorgeous and sparkly card in real life, and in true Shelli style. Love the stitching, love the layering, love the sanding on the Core-dinations cardstock, love the heat embossed sentiment. Stunning! And the envelope was just as special…

 And now it's back to reality! We have a busy month planned full of workshops, classes and other events in the lead up to Christmas. (Yes, it really is less than 2 months until Christmas!!! Eeeek)

Have a fabulous day and happy stamping,

     

Bula!

We're back from our fabulous time away in Fiji on the Stampin' Up! Incentive Trip.

As promised, I kept a journal of our adventures. It's on a separate page (link below) so you can skip it if you want, or feel free to grab a cuppa and join me in re-living the amazing experience.

 

CLICK HERE to read my
2011 INCENTIVE TRIP JOURNAL

 

Today I'm sharing the swap I made to give to all the other achieving demonstrators.

Click to enlarge

 

It's a disc holder, complete with blank DVD to store photos of the Fiji trip. It's a fun idea for workshop make & takes or a class project too.

Textured Early Espresso cardstock, Versamark & clear embossing powder, Word Play stamp set, Posy Punch hostess set, Little Leaves embosslit, Berry Blossoms DSP, Wisteria Wonder/Calypso Coral cardstock and ruffled ribbon, Fancy Flower punch 

 

I hope you enjoy reading about our adventures in Fiji.

Stay tuned for some exciting announcements about new services I'll be offering in the coming months. I'm excited that I'll have more to offer my valued customers and stamping friends, so stayed tuned!

Cheers,