Paper Crafts & Scrapbooking Special Thanks Blog Hop

Hi everyone! I have a special (but sad) post today.

Today, 200+ people are hopping to say thanks to the staff at Paper Crafts & Scrapbooking Magazine. If you're hopping along, you should be coming from Susie's blog.

For those who don't know, Paper Crafts will have its last issue in February 2015. Since the announcement, I've thought about what to say. Ultimately, it comes down to thank you. Thank you for being such an influence on the papercrafting community. Thank you for your hard work and the love you poured into issues. Thank you for being awesome people who made people smile every day.

Kerri does awesome "What I've learned from..." posts on Paper Crafts Connections. I did a little reflecting on what I've learned from Paper Crafts & Scrapbooking over the past several years:

1. Go for it.  'Nuff said.
2. It's good to try new techniques. It's hard to fall into a rut when you have calls pushing you to try using hardware or string art or acrylics. 
3. What not to wear. I really should say what is "in" to wear. PC&S has always been cutting edge on spotting trends, and reading the issues/calls made me feel almost cool. 
4. Freestyle/collage is a real life style. I want to put seven unrelated embellishments on a card? That's okay! 
5. Barbie shoes don't make great stamps. Yes, I've tried that. And celery. And corn. My husband thought I was completely nuts when I told him I had to go to the grocery store for a call. Believe me, I would never have tried those techniques if it hadn't been for PC&S, but trying something new is good. :)
6. Gallon, quart, and pint is more than just for paint. The Card Design Handbook? Life changing. 
7. It's more than a magazine. The editors and staff, the blogs, the contests, the challenges--it's such a sense of community. These folks are social media gurus!
8. They are teachers. When I had a DT end, Susan and Jennifer took the time to give me some great advice. They taught me a lot about myself. 
9. Rocky Road is good. The PC&S editors were very supportive of different styles, different supplies, and different techniques. I dug that (like I dig Rocky Road ice cream). 
10. Crafty friends are good friends. I've met fabulous friends through PC&S, and I know I'm not the only one. :)

Thank you, Jennifer, Susan, Stacy, Kerri, Holly, Matt, Melinda, and (honorary) Cath for all that you have done.

I also wanted to share a card:

I used the pretty new Amy Tangerine Stitched collection to make a very scrappy card. Here's a close-up:

Lastly, I wanted to link up to the PC&S Farewell Slideshow. (Awww....)

Thanks for stopping by. Next up in the hop is Chaitali!