Starting Your Own 12 Kits Group

Hello!
Hope you're having a great day!
So...have you ever wondered how you could start your own 12 Kits group?
Where to start...how to create kits...cost?
Renee, here today and I wanted to stop by and give some tips and ideas...
maybe answer a few questions you may have had...
about starting your own 12 Kits group.


First...you don't need 12 friends.
You can have any number and then fine tune the details to that number.
Example...you can have a group of 4 friends and if you're wanting to post monthly you would just rotate on a quarterly schedule which means that each member would hostess 3 times over the course of 1 year.
Or you could have 6 friends and each would hostess 2 times a year...
3 friends...4 times...
you get the idea. *wink*
The idea is to work with a number that breaks down evenly for everyone...
so that everyone will hostess...
and receive...
the same number of kits each year.
Maybe you decide you want to be on a bimonthly schedule...or even a quarterly...
whatever works for you because there's really no rules to this...
this is just about friends sharing and crafting together.


The kits.
This is honestly the best part!
When the mailman delivers your kit each month...
and while I love ordering new goodies as much as the next person...
this is THE best kind of happy mail because you have no idea what's inside and it's a total surprise!
I seriously look forward to these monthly kits even more than orders I may have placed and get so excited when I know they're on their way.
Each of us have our own particular style and that's what makes each one so special...
we each put a part of ourselves into them when we're putting them together.
They're a reflection of us.
Some love color...LOTS of color...
some a more neutral...maybe even rustic style...
some love CAS...
some need lots of layers and die cuts...
the point is you can never go wrong when creating a kit.
There's no rules to what needs to be included other than you want to make sure everyone has enough supplies to make at least 1 card.
Our kits will usually contain enough to easily make 5-10...
sometimes there's probably enough for 20 or more...
but the idea is that it's up to each individual hostess as to what she includes in her kit.
Here's a few suggestions to give you a good starting point though...
     * 4-5 stamped images and sentiments. These can be die cut or just stamped so that the recipient can die cut when she receives.  And including that many images and/or sentiments allows the recipient to mix and match.
     * 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 sheets of coordinating cardstock.  The reason for this is in case you're using a particular cardstock that maybe everyone won't have on hand themselves...this makes it easier to coordinate for die cuts or card fronts.  And usually just one of each color...but no more than half a sheet total.  We never include card bases.
     * ribbons, twine, embellishments.  These are completely up to you and whether you send or don't...how much or how little...since everyone can pull from their own stash for any project it's not always necessary to include them but is left up to the hostess.  But if you do send ribbons or twine...you just want to make sure to include enough length so that everyone will have enough to tie at least one bow.
     * die cuts.  Again...this is totally up to the hostess and their individual style.
     * patterned paper.  Each of us do this a little differently and there's no right or wrong way with this because it's all how the hostess prefers but you can buy 6x6 pads of your chosen paper and then just divide them equally between each person.  Some will buy enough pads so that everyone receives 1 sheet of each included paper...some will just evenly divide a selection.  Some will also use 12x12...they will cut and divide 12x12 sheets and include those versus the 6x6. Again...no right or wrong with this...it's up to each hostess as to what she wants to do.
     * themes.  You can have themes with your group...like we have a schedule of holidays/occasions and depending on which month you hostess you will create a kit based on that holiday or occasion...but you don't have to have them.  You can just do general card kits...the hostess gets to decide what she's going to base her kit around.  The nice thing about having themes is you can plan in advance...which I personally like picking up things for my kit over a period time so that it allows me to spread the cost out versus all at one time.  And helps ensure that 2 people maybe won't plan identical kits back to back.


The reveal.
We chose the last day of each month to post our projects to our blogs so that we can all see how we each interpreted the kit ingredients...
but you can choose a day that works best for your group...
and stick to it.
The only variation that we have is if a holiday happens to fall on the last day of the month...
we'll then post the day prior to...
that way we all know when to have projects completed and posts scheduled.
We also try to keep to a schedule as far as getting the kits mailed...
we try for the last week of the month so that everyone will hopefully have about 4 weeks to work with each kit...
but we also all have families and commitments that sometimes will keep us from getting them out on time.
The most important thing is to make sure that everyone will have time to work with the kit once it arrives...
and just like sometimes families and commitments can keep us from getting it out on time...
those same things can also prevent some from being able to work with a kit if it arrives too late so you just want to try and keep as close to a schedule as possible.


Cost.
There's no cost for members other than the supplies they purchase for the month they hostess and then postage for sending out their kits.
That's why it works best to have a number of friends that divides by 12 easily...
that way everyone will hostess and receive equally.
I think I do need to mention the enabling that occurs with the kits though...
I can not tell you how many stamps, papers, dies, etc...have made their way to my stash because someone included it in their kit and I loved it and wanted it for myself...
so I guess you could incur some costs but that's gonna be up to you. *wink*
The bottom line is...
we don't sell the kits to each other...
no one makes money off of them or the projects created.
This is just friends having fun, sharing, crafting and inspiring each other.


And now we hope you'll give it a try too!
If you have any questions...
always feel free to email or ask in the comments below...
we'll get back to you.
And let us know if you start your own group...
we would love to stop by and pay you a visit!
Just remember that this is about having fun and being inspired.
There's really no rules to it and can be adapted to fit your needs at any given time.

And you'll want to stay tuned for a small peek of September's kit soon...
trust me...it's FABULOUS!!
Till next time!

Renee