Update | Michaels Stores, Lia Griffith, May Flaum, Bella Crafts and more!
Wow, the news has been coming like crazy, and we are overdue for an Update column! Here's what you might have missed!
In case you missed it last month, Stampin' Up! has discontinued their Blendabilities line of pens. The alcohol markers suffered from quality issues with the attaching of the tip during manufacturing that could lead to the marker drying out. For information on receiving a refund if your markers are defective, visit the Blendabilities FAQ.
Bella Crafts Publishing, publisher of Bella Crafts Quarterly, has made several big announcements in recent months. They have rebranded, announced a new publication (Craft Techniques) and also a new event!
The event, called Bella Crafts Connections, will take place September 24th-27th at the Mall of America. This is a similar time frame as was previously occupied by the Archiver's Scrapfest at the Mall of America, before the Archiver's bankruptcy and store closures. The Bella Crafts event is planned to be huge, and not just for scrapbooking. The company is promising 60-70 craft workshops in areas like mixed media, jewelry making, ice resin, needle arts, as well as more. Over 20 teachers, including Lisa Pavelka, Seth Apter, Gina K, and Eileen Hull, are planned for the event.
Samantha Walker's digital products are no longer available at Snap Click Supply Company. The products were removed from the store after the retirement sale ended on the 23rd.
Samantha wrote on her blog about her retirement sale that, "This is bittersweet for me. While I will miss working with Snap Click, I look forward to being able to spend some time on other projects that I have in my future. "
May Flaum has a new Instagram account. This account replaces her previous account, so if you want to keep up with all the crafty happenings in May's studio - and the adventures of Scrappy the dog - make sure you follow Craft with May on Instagram!
Designer Lia Griffith has been on a run lately! First she partnered with Michaels & Cricut to create exclusive content for the roll-out of the Cricut Explore Air machine at Michaels Stores last month.
Now, another big new product partnership is launching for Lia - a signature stamp line with Hero Arts. The collection includes flower dies, sentiments, 6x6 background stamps, and paper dolls, among other designs.
The U.S. Department of Justice and the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced on April 21st that a lawsuit has been filed by the DOJ against Michaels Stores over allegations that they violated their legal obligations under the Consumer Product Safety Act to report in a timely manner to the CPSC an unsafe product. The suit seeks civil damages and an injunction against the company.
The lawsuit alleges that Michaels was aware as early as November 2007 that the glass on a 20" vase the company was selling was too thin, resulting in it fracturing easily under normal handling. The complaint also alleges that when Michaels Stores eventually did recall the vases, in September 2010, that the company filed misleading paperwork making it look like the company was not the importer for the item, and therefore not responsible for costs associated with the recall.
Michaels Stores' lawyers have been busy the last few months. In January, a class action lawsuit was filed over allegations that the company failed to properly disclose and secure permission for background checks on prospective and current employees. The company could be liable for $100-$1000 per violation, and the class action could cover tens of thousands of prospective and current employees over the past two years.
Bo Bunny has a new collection out, just in time for spring and summer vacations at the beach! Boardwalk is an eclectic mix of handdrawn, watercolor, brights, pastels and graphic patterns that has a decidedly retro feel.
Bella Blvd has three new mini collections coming! Two of them, Riley and Rover, are pet themed collections, which have become quite trendy lately. Riley is for anyone owned by a cat, and Rover (of course) is for dog lovers who scrapbook.
The third collection, Just Add Color, takes on another trend: adult coloring books. These mostly black & white page designs are intended to have the consumer use their own color media on them to create one-of-a-kind looks.
The company is also releasing a collection of 4x6 "Little Bits" stickers in the company's signature colors that contain word and phrase stickers.
