Scrapbook Update CHA Summer 2010 Top 10 Hot Picks
It's that time once again...time to run down the list of ten items that Scrapbook Update thinks will be sure-fire winners from the CHA trade show introductions! Not all of them are groundbreaking, or even a departure for the company making them, but we think they are guaranteed to be bestsellers for the companies that make them and the stores that sell them!
(You'll note there aren't any holiday items on the list. Due to the relatively short shelf life of seasonal items compared to tools and non-seasonal items, we are doing separate themed lists to make seasonal picks.)
So, in no particular order...
1. Pink Paislee Parisian Anthology by House of Three
Shortly before CHA Summer 2010, Pink Paislee announced they would be releasing a collection of signature designs by the House of Three. House of Three is made up of designers Rhonna Farrer, Heidi Swapp, and Janet Hopkins, and their designs had previously only been available in digital form.
Parisian Anthology's papers are double-sided, white tone-on-tone papers featuring very trendy text and journal styled designs. Rhonna Farrer's signature swirl elements are present as well. Part of the designs are printed in resist ink, providing a beautiful background for using all the spray inks and other inking techniques that are so popular right now. Photos simply cannot do these papers justice to how they look in person. The image above shows the paper in its original unaltered form, and then the darker circle is what it would look like with ink on it, revealing the resist design.
An interesting background note: some of Heidi Swapp's last products with her signature line with Advantus were papers using a similar resist ink design technique. They debuted at CHA Winter 2009, but for that product the resist ink was printed on a plain white background, not layered on top of a print.
2. Jillibean Soup: Alphabets & Pasta Fagioli collection
To put it simply, Jill Yegerlehner just knows alphabets. Her company's previous release of corrugated alphabets made our CHA Summer 2009 Hot Picks list, and Jillibean has done it again with their CHA Summer 2010 alphabets. The font is an excellently usable choice for coordinating with both vintage and graphic layouts, and the prints are perfect for the small form factor of an alphabet.
The letter size is perfect for everything from medium-sized tags to large layouts, and the colors are great basics.
Another offering from Jillibean that beautifully straddles the line between graphic and vintage (thus reaching a wider market of customers) is their new Pasta Fagioli collection.
Several of the prints are extremely graphic in style, but many of them (such as the small flowers, the script text, and the toile) will appeal to fans of vintage. This collection's wide appeal - from scrapbookers to cardmakers, and vintage to graphic fans - should help make it a bestseller.
3. BasicGrey Curio collection
Once again, BasicGrey proved they have thrown off the aura of mustiness that had settled around them and returned to the excellence that scrapbookers have expected from them for so long. According to staff in the BasicGrey booth, Curio was their most popular new collection, and it is easy to see why. The embellishments are absolutely gorgeous vintage and incorporate several trendy design elements such as birds, butterflies, and antique labels.
This collection achieves something very difficult - both the papers and the embellishments are absolutely exquisite. In most collections, one element or the other is stronger. This collection is the rare "must buy" in both areas.
4. Tim Holtz Vagabond by Sizzix
Yes, the MSRP is $250. (As with most things, street price will likely be lower shortly after its release.) But once you get past the sticker shock, the marketing power of the Tim Holtz name can't be argued with. He's arguably made manual die-cutting cool again at a time when scrapbookers were becoming obsessed with electronic die cutting machines. Several of his Sizzix Alterations dies that were introduced at CHA Winter 2010, eons ago in scrapbook product time, are still on the bestseller list at Scrapbook.com as of today (July 31st). And this machine has an innovative marketing program attached to it.
See those stickers all over the outside of the case? Owners of the Vagabond are supposed to collect them at various different events and then decorate the case themselves with their personalized sticker record of their scrapbook travels. This makes the Vagabond not just a tool but a participatory program that gets its users interacting with the company on an ongoing basis to collect more stickers.
The Vagabond has more going for it than marketing and Tim's name, however. It excels in several key areas that are very likely to appeal to modern crafters.
First, there are the Vagabond's looks. While looks are only skin deep, many crafters are obsessive about the appearance of their work spaces. (Reference the recent marketing of the Cricut Cake first in "kitchen" red to match Kitchen Aid appliances, and then by Martha Stewart in neutral creme "to match any decor".) The Vagabond is by far the prettiest die cutter in its category, and to a certain market segment that counts for a lot.
Then there's the fact that it has an electric motor. That's very appealing to two important market segments - aging crafters who may be losing hand strength & dexterity, and professional crafters cutting large quantities of items.
Last but not least, the strength of the electric motor is an important factor in the machine's potential success. Sizzix does already make a die cutter with an electric motor (Big Shot Express, $108.95 at Amazon.com), but Tim greatly increased the size and power of the motor in the specs for the Vagabond machine, as seen below:
The Vagabond motor is on the left, with the Big Shot Express motor on the right. More power, a full horsepower, means the Vagabond can cut a wider range of materials, such as cork and fabric, that appeal not only to scrapbookers but also to general crafters. Given that Tim's work is more in the general crafts arena than scrapbooking (although his products are loved by scrapbookers), this will give the machine a very wide market appeal.
5. Teresa Collins Stampmaker
This machine, which lets crafters make their own clear stamps, has actually been on the market from British company Photocentric for several years, but didn't generate much buzz until Teresa Collins put her name on it for a relaunch at this show. It was runner-up in the Innovations award at the show, and the demo area was packed. It consistently was mentioned by attendees as a show "must-see".
The machine, actually a light oven, uses a multi-step process involving (among other things) packets of photopolymer. The process really has to be seen to be understood, so check out the launch video below.
Even at a price point of $160, I predict papercrafters will snap this up. Participants in the Scrapbook Update live blog who were polled seem to think the price was about right for the product, and buzz at CHA seemed to contain no concern about the price.
6. Core-dinations Core Impressions Stacy Julian Happy Colors collection
It seems like everything that Core-dinations does these days is a winner, with all the licensed Core Impressions collections that they've introduced at the past few shows from names like Cosmo Cricket and Jenni Bowlin. (For those who don't know, the Core-dinations cardstocks have a contrasting inner core color so when they are sanded, the distressed area is very visible.) This time around, they introduced collections by Graphic 45 (which is gorgeous and deserves honorable mention in this Hot Pick) and Stacy Julian.
Stacy's collection is called Happy Colors and contains papers in bright colors that are embossed with "happy" words (a different assortment on each color sheet), or an all-over dot design.
The word papers are available by the sheet as well as in the stack. Some of the word papers have the words embossed in rows, while on some the arrangement is more criss-crossed and random looking.
These papers play into several current trends. The bright colors go with the current trend away from muted and dark colors into a brighter palette. The use of text as an all-over design is a massive trend right now. Core Impressions lend themselves very well to using techniques on, a style that is rising in popularity. And finally, the papers are excellent for card making, which is also gaining in popularity.
Some of the booth samples showed the versatility of these papers, and how they can be used to create very affordable word embellishments by snipping out pieces of them:
7. We R Memory Keepers Sew Easy tool
Hand stitching has been gaining in popularity as an embellishment. Bazzill tried to capitalize on this with their stitching templates, but it looks like We R Memory Keepers has really come up with the killer app: the Sew Easy tool.
The tool is a simple roller with a handle that pokes a pattern of holes in paper when it is rolled across the paper.
The roller has interchangeable heads that can make different patterns of holes for different types of stitching. Each head's pattern can be used to make at least three different stitching styles. With an MSRP of only $7.99 for the tool and $2.99 for the extra heads, it is a very affordable way to quickly make perfect stitching! The tool needs to be used on a foam mat to work correctly. A 7 x 12 mat has an MSRP of $7.99.
We R Memory Keepers is also offering extra-think skeins of floss and needles with extra large openings.
The floss and tool together looks to be very popular with both card makers and scrapbookers. The show floor was buzzing about the tool's possibilities and affordable price point - a big selling point in the current economy.
8. Crate Paper Restoration collection
After a couple of only so-so collections, Crate Paper is back in the form that long-time fans expect from them with their CHA Summer 2010 release. Especially hitting the mark is the Restoration collection, a warm and welcoming collection of vintage patterns and embellishments.
Restoration is a vintage collection in a slightly unusual color scheme, and the patterns and embellishments are not only beautiful but usable. With borders, banners, and text & journaling elemets, it hits all the notes that scrapbookers want in embellishments. Overall, it will definitely stand out from the crowd of vintage that is available right now: part of the trend but with its own distinctive style.
9. My Minds Eye Lost & Found collection
This collection was huge at CHA. And I don't just mean the buzz about it. I mean the collection, especially by the standards of recent releases in the industry, was actually massive. It's really four collections in one, containing four sub collections called Portobello Road, Market Street, Madison Avenue and Union Square.
The collection is elegant, usable vintage with all the embellishments that typical scrapbookers love. It hits on several trendy designs of the moment: the Eiffel Tower, banners, birds, text and sewing. This collection will move fast when it hits stores, and will find its way into lots of layouts and projects once it moves out of stores into scrapbookers' hands.
10. Echo Park Paper
For a company that was only formed several months ago, Echo Park Paper is sure making a splash! Many items from their first three collections are currently on Two Peas In A Bucket's "What's Hot" section, a big accomplishment for a brand new company. Their small booth was heavily trafficked and they were much buzzed-about on the CHA Summer 2010 show floor.
Their latest collection of licensed designs, Life is Good, is already shipping to stores. To see Echo Park Paper in action, check out May's review of their first collection. Echo Park's impressive debut sets high expectations for the larger CHA Winter 2011 show for the company.
