Today was the day that I was able to attend Great American Scrapbook Convention in Arlington, Texas. I have been attending this convention off and on for the past 10 years. A lot of things have changed during that time (and most for the better).
Parking– Always has been an issue. We got a decent spot in the first row of the back parking lot. Thankfully it is okay that you come in the back door of the convention center because that was less walking in the heat. Cost was only $5 and always has been. Thank goodness they haven’t raised their rates over the years.
Cost to attend– I purchased my ticket ahead of time online for the $10 price. Tickets were $12 at the door but you could easily get a $2 off coupon. Not too bad in my opinion.
Classes and Crops– I did not attend any classes or crops this year. I did hear a lot of good buzz about them as I was walking around and for the most part it seemed that people were happy when they were leaving their classes.
Shopping– There were a lot of booths this year that I have seen year after year which I see as a good thing (and sometimes bad). The same booths year after year mean that they are at least getting their money’s worth and think that things are beneficial for them to be back. The negative to that is that a lot of them have the same stuff year after year. I did see a surplus of $1 Scrapbook booths and those were PACKED! I stocked up on a little bit of paper for some upcoming kits that I can’t wait to get started on!
There were a few companies that had their own booths this year (Technique Tuesday, Stampers Anonymous, and Prima Marketing). I see this as a promising sign as they were really educating the market that is out there of scrapbookers.
In a major metropolitan area, I have seen scrapbook stores come and go as fast as their doors open. It is sad that the metroplex has a hard time supporting them but with “big box” stores and online sales as their competition, it does make sense. Many of the people who attend GASC only have those “big box” stores to shop at and seeing much of the product at the convention is a first time for them if they are not able to venture out to the few scrapbook stores within 100 mile distance.
Overall, I had a great time and will continue to go off and on as the years continue. I loved spending time with three of my friends and we had some amazing laughs. I was also able to meet some GREAT people while I was out there including the very face you see below!
If you can guess who that is, you will win a very special prize straight from me! Your very own bottle of Distress Stain by Tim Holtz! You can choose the color!
Leave your guess in the comments below! I will leave the comments open until Monday at noon CST! Then I will select the winner via Random.org! 🙂
