CHA Highlights - Karen Burniston

It's time for another CHA recap post! I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to help the wonderfully talented Karen Burniston with her classes this year. Even better, I got to meet and work with Kelly Booth and Fran Sabad, two incredible artists who both are geniuses with Karen's dies.

On Monday, before the show started, we helped Karen during the Sizzix education day. Karen's holding the card she designed using her new 3D House Pop 'n Cuts insert - so cute!

The Sizzix education event is a time when the Sizzix Licensed Designers present their new lines for their sales reps. They also each have a short project for the sales reps and retailers to create It's a very fun, fast-paced day!

It's always fun to see Eileen Hull's smiling face! I also got to help out with her project a bit - her new Cherished collection is adorable. Behind her is the very talented Amy Bowerman of Plucking Daisies. It was nice to finally meet her.

Here's Karen on the first day of the show, demoing in the Sizzix booth. The Stitched Framelits were a huge hit! I can't wait until they're in stores next month.

Here are a few of the cards I created using dies from Karen's new Snippets collection. How cute is the new 3D House Pop 'n Cuts insert?! I love the matching Thinlits die that decorates the pop-up. So many different directions you can take this die. On the front of my card I used her new Label Trellis strip die (the piece at the bottom) and her new Trellis embossing folder.

Here's another Halloween card, this time using the Sassy 3D Label insert, plus coordinating Sassy Labels and Stitched Frames Framelits. You can see how I used the Framelits and combined them with the stitching die in the pop-up and at the bottom of the inside of the card. SO in love with the look of the stitching! I also used them together on the front of the card. At the bottom, you can see one of the new dies from the Banners and Borders set. On the inside, I also used one of my favorite tags from the Gift Card set.

Finally, I made this pretty Christmas card using the new Labels Framelits set. You might recognize the shape - these dies are the companions for the 3D Label Pop 'n Cuts insert that's been released for awhile. After using so many of these Framelits, I'm a little addicted to them!

Tuesday night we celebrated Karen's birthday - margaritas all around! We decided that night we'd do a little exploring down on the Strip. The last time I'd been in Las Vegas was 20 years ago - a lot has changed!

After dinner, Caesars Palace was our first stop. I loved the painted ceiling. And these girls...they're the best!

Next, we enjoyed a very long walk it the heat to see the fountains at Bellagio. I have to say, I was a bit underwhelmed - or maybe it was just the heat exhaustion. Las Vegas is HOT! I did love the little Eiffel Tower that was across the street though. So pretty.

The next day was Karen's Pop 'n Cuts class. She designed three beautiful cards, shown below, using dies from the new release.

I can't even pick a favorite - they are all amazing! I really want to try the offset PNC idea in the first card. I love the look of the flap on that card.

All good things must come to an end! Here's a quick shot of Karen and me in her booth on the last day of the show. The night before I was out very late with my daughter, who just happened to be in LV working on a pilot for a new TV show, and was not looking very photogenic. Of course, that's when everyone says, 'let's take pictures!' I want to add that I'm not that short, Karen is like 6' tall. She used to play for the WNBA and everything. True story.

Ok, I'm lying. I really am that short! Not sure about Karen's basketball career tho. She seems pretty sporty.

I had such a fantastic time at the show with these wonderful, funny, and talented women. Stay tuned for some fun projects and tutorials in the coming weeks, using Karen's awesome new collection!