Hello friends,
September is flying by at warp speed, but we are happy to take a moment to pause and catch up with all of our favorite people. We want to start by saying thank you for being with us this week for everything from our AG Members Only show to our Anna Griffin Elegant Papercrafting shows on HSN. It has been a long but creative week. There are no other crafters that we would rather spend our time with!
Let's catch up! We're also going to do something very special: gift Create 10 from a very special Griffinite!
Our Create events have brought together numerous crafters, and has been the beginning of many beautiful friendships. Clare sent this (not Fan Mail Friday) card and we just had to share the lovely picture of Lynn, Kathleen, Cathy, Clare, Suzanne and Linda. So special!
We loved being able to meet crafter Cathy Crowley at our Create 5 event in person. She understands what a wonderful and joyous occasion our Create events are, and Cathy had a great time being able to be creative and further her crafting skills, even if she had to step outside her comfort zone. Although she is unable to attend this year because she is recovering from a virus (hugs to you Cathy), she wants to sponsor someone for this year's Create 10. Cathy is giving the chance for a lucky crafter to experience the event.
So, if you would love to win a ticket to Create we want you to comment here on the blog and tell us about the power of meeting people, making new friends and putting yourself out there. Share a story where you did just that, and about how you are so glad that you did!
If you would like to gift Create to someone deserving, please contact customer service and let them know that you want to pay it forward. From there we will tell your story and prompt the community. Thank you so much for your love and generosity. It means so much, and is a wonderful thing to see!
We are officially less than 50 days away from the Create 10! We have a special deal on the crafting event of the year for a limited time only. Get your event ticket and over $2000 in crafting supplies and materials for $450!
We look forward to the treat of your cards and letters each week. If you would like to send something to our office, you can mail it to us at 99 Armour Drive NE, Atlanta, GA 30324.
We'll be back next week with more beautiful fan mail, the first of the Griffinites Give winners and another chance for you to win Create 10 from the kind, generous crafters in our community.
Xoxo,
Anna
62 comments
The friends Ive made and the way its always exciting and challenging to our creativity .
When we plant a seed it bears fruit .. and will go on to the next person to enjoy ..
God bless all of Us ..especially looking forward to Holidays and all we will share and learn and most of all pass on ✨
This doesn’t deal with crafting but many years ago my sister took me to a mystery book convention in Washington, D.C. (called Malice Domestic). I didn’t know anything about mystery books or authors, but my sister was good friends with the author that was the guest of honor and also the president of her fan club. She took me along to help out with fan club outings. I became friends with many people and several best selling authors and later went to conferences in St. Louis, Indianapolis, and Maryland. My sister died on July 12, 2024, and I went to a conference in Nashville and met with several dear friends of hers. I, of course, took many AG bookmarks made with the newest dies.
I would love to make some great friends at AG Create as I did at the book conventions. Thank you for the opportunity to share and possibly win a ticket.
I started doing cards and scrapbooks after my mother passed away in 2020. I am a member of an AG group in my state that complied a birthday list. It is so inspiring and sweet receiving cards from the group. I love the feeling of getting mail and opening it to see what beautiful creation is inside. I started sending AG birthday cards to the approximately 60 staff members of our organization. I want everyone to feel the joy of knowing someone is thinking about you and wants to make you feel special. Every year I get emails from my friends and colleagues saying how much they love the cards I send and how special they feel receiving a handmade card in the mail.
I just spoke September 12th at the Gilbert Historical Society on My Incredible Art Journey and how art can be Therapeutic! I am not a public speaker and was invited to speak after the proprietor met me and heard my story, as several friends have spoken there. I have my LLC with Art, a Life Coach Art Therapy certificate, and I am an RN working with the elderly at a top-rated Medical facility, Friendship Village of Tempe, where many of my residents are on Hospice and declining! It was wonderful to be able to share how art has been not only my life’s passion but also how it helped me through the grief of my son’s passing, September 12th was his birthday, so the talk I gave was in honor of him. It was recorded by a dear friend who is an amazing videographer. When I nervously disclosed an experience with abuse and the heartache of losing my handicapped son at 32 from congestive heart failure and how therapeutic creativity was at these times, the audience was so touched and many shared their stories of how art and creativity have helped them during chronic illness, stress, loss, and tragic life circumstances. I brought some of my cards made with Anna’s beautiful products, some small art pieces, and my most recent oil painting! This was far beyond my comfort zone, but it was a very gratifying experience to share my love for creativity and how comforting it can be. I was able to inspire and touch lives, but giving this talk uplifted me as well.
I’m a very introverted person in 90% of my life, but when it comes to helping others, that doesn’t apply. I had the opportunity to bring a Latine development/empowerment conference to my workplace and was asked to kickoff the event and introduce our CEO. There were 400+ attendees who heard a small piece of my story, and who later came up to me to connect. I was given hugs by people who were strangers but who saw me for who I was. It was a moment and two days I will not forget, and my professional network has grown leaps and bounds thanks to it. By helping my community come together, I gained more confidence and new friends.