New technique photos and fun in Pine City

Hey...I've posted the pics from the next 2 techniques in the 52 pick up class. This is really a lot of fun. Some of the techniques aren't all that new to me, but it is great to play and have them all in one chunky book for reference later. I can see going to this little deck whenever I need a creative spark. I have Friday's project to do so I'll post it later.
Speaking of creative sparks, I had so much fun yesterday. My good friend Julie had to drive her daughter down to Pine City which is about an hour and a half away. Pine City is the location of our most-favoritest scrapbooking store, the Pine City Scrapbooking Co. Of course I jumped at the chance to tag along...especially when Julie had the idea of us staying and scrapping at the store. It was awesome...we got there and asked if it was okay if we used the tables...but they had set up for a garage sale they were having today (note: it's killing me that I can't go!)...anyway, the owner, Marni (who is totally awesome!) offered to let us use the retreat center which is attached to the store. Wow, we had the whole place to ourselves! She has it stocked with all kinds of cool tools, great tables with ott-lites, cutting mats, and drink holders, and flat screen tvs with a library of chick flicks! We had a blast and I got a ton done! I am almost completely finished with a mini-book about our Crop for a Cure 2007. I'll post pics when I have it done! Of course while we were there we had to shop...Marni had gotten in a ton of new stuff. She always has a lot of samples and creative inspiration around the place, plus she mixes in a bunch of cool vintage things to get your creative juices going. (I loved the mini-bar with vintage buttons, serve yourself mini brads, etc.! What a great idea!!!) It stormed while we were there so we got to listen to the sound of thunder and rain hitting the roof as we worked. It was so great! It was hard to leave and we are definitely going to go back and do it again sometime. I am looking forward to Marni's hosted weekend in August. For Mother's Day Brad got me a spot for the weekend which includes two nights in the retreat, food, and three Tim Holtz inspired classes with all of the supplies. Woohoo! I can't wait...especially since I had this little taste of Pine City goodness!