$20 Tuesday – straight from the Stampin Up! Blog

Join us every Tuesday for the month of August for our $20 Tuesdays. We will explore some great options that you can create for $20 or Under! These prices are based on the US prive value and do not include shipping and handling or tax.

If there is one trait I know that my son got from me when he was born it was the gift of gab. I will never forget the moment when I realized that this was one of his talents. He was about four years old and we were vacationing in San Diego. We had just finished a harbor cruise and were heading back to the motor home to eat some lunch. We started eating and my son suddenly started talking. He was chatty, so I didn’t think much of it at the time, but as I tuned in to see what he was talking about, I realized he was speaking out the window to the cute old couple who were parked next to us. I still smile about that  incident to this very day (seriously . . . I am smiling as I type it)!

So it was natural as I was flipping through the catalog to land on the Talking Tags ($7.95 US/$9.95 CAN—way under $20). Now, one thing I love about the Talking Tags is their versatility. I know . . .  immediately you think of stamping a card, adding a Talking Tag message inside, and sending it off to a loved one.  But I have found a few more uses that will make this a must-have for nearly everyone.

With back to school right around the corner, the first thing I thought of was attaching it to the first day of school photo. You can record your child telling you how excited they are, what they hope to learn, and what their favorite thing about school is. To be a little more discrete about this one, I attached mine to the back of the photo.

I then thought of the obvious: I attached it to the bottom of a scrapbook page. This page in particular is pretty fun;  it has a five-generation picture of my son and daughter, my wife, her dad, his dad, and his mom. So for my kids that would be their great- great-grandma. I thought my wife could take the opportunity to leave a brief message about her so that our kids would know a little bit about her—perhaps a favorite story, or something she liked to do.

In the same vein, I also attached a Talking Tag to our wedding album, so I could share with my kids how we felt on this particular day!

I also love the idea of using the Talking Tag to help your children read, or be read to. I asked my daughter to grab her favorite book and I attached a Talking Tag to the bottom of each page. I plan to record myself reading so she can follow along. Or—this would make a great gift coming from Grandma and Grandpa. Record them reading a book and give it as a gift to a little one. To make these a little less obvious on each page I attached the sticker with the instructions on the main page and then cut it down to just the QR code on every other page.

You can add Talking Tags to souvenirs, too! For example, we want our kids to experience all that this country has to offer so we have made it a goal to visit all 50 states before our children turn 18 (we have been to 11 so far). Each time we go somewhere, we let them choose a souvenir, and I choose some sort of decorative shot glass so that we can remember each state we have been to. If I attach a Talking Tag to the bottom of each one of these, I can tell a brief message about my favorite part of the trip.

You can also add it to family keepsakes, antiques (be careful not to ruin anything valuable as they will stick) or souvenirs given to you by other friends or family members. My brother brought me a hand- carved water buffalo from the Philippines, but my kids have no idea what it is. Since it was special to me, I wanted to share it with my kids. Side note, I put the Talking Tag there just for picture purposes. I would put this on the bottom so as not to distract from the gift.

Last but not least, have you ever wondered how to work your TV/DVD/DVR, etc.? Well, wonder no more! Leave yourself a recorded note, or have one of your more tech savvy children leave you some recorded instructions!

These are just a few ways you can use the Talking Tags; let us know in the comments below how you have been using them—or plan to use them!

Casey G.
Sr. Web Properties Specialist

P.S. You will always want to test these on a discrete surface spot in case it leaves residue or alters your item. Stampin' Up! cannot be held responsible for any damage done by using the Talking Tags on anything other than its designed purpose