CHA Summer Trade Show

CHA holds a trade show twice a year; one in winter and one in summer. This is where manufacturers display their lines of products for retailers to buy for their stores - for you..... This show is not open to the public. You have to qualify for admission by being a store owner, member of the press, manufacturer, service supplier or designer and the qualifications are quite strict. I am a designer member of CHA, but qualified initially as a Professional Crafter - a term we don't hear very much any more. I would go to the shows to buy product to make items to sell in craft malls and at craft shows. I went to my first show in 1991 and haven't missed a winter or summer show since. It was always exciting to see the new products, but I really enjoyed seeing all the samples that had been created for display that featured those products. It was amazingly inspirational. The shows have changed a lot over the past 20 years, because the industry has changed, but the common denominator remains - creativity. We love to create!

So, that being said, here are photos from the trade show. Mostly pages and projects for your enjoyment and inspiration, plus news about some of the new tools and products that will be coming your way over the next couple of months or so.

What's New!

1. Provo Craft has updated the Cricut, so now you can both print and cut. You will also have this capability with the Eclips from Sizzix.

2. Spellbinders. The Presto Punch,which is designed for small dies was introduced at the winter show and this summer the Grand Calibur made its début with an assortment of large dies.

3. We R Memory Keepers. The company that brought you the Crop-A-Dile and the Big Bite, now has a third tool in this series - the Main Squeeze, a tool that die-cuts small shapes, embosses, sets corners, flattens squeeze tabs and more.

Also new is the Sew Easy line of products for those of you who love to stitch on your pages, but don't want to pull out the sewing machine. The basic tool is hand held with interchangeable rotary blades which pierce the paper. Another nifty little tool is the Heart Attack, a small sanding/distressing tool in the shape of a heart.

4. Imaginisce. Create dazzling projects by affixing pearls, rhinestones, jewels or mirrors to paper, fabric and even wood with the i-rock, a cordless heat setting applicator. Just place the embellishment where you want it, then press the i-rock tool on top. It's so easy you'll rock too!

5. Vagabond. Tim Holtz is currently designing a signature line of dies for Sizzix which debuted at the winter show. Now there is a coordinating die cutting machine. Here's a sneak peek, but you'll probably find more info on Tim's blog, or on the Sizzix website.

It's a nifty little machine. With the front part folded up, it looks like a small suitcase. Below is a photo of Tim's booth.

6. Epiphany Crafts is a new company which has introduced the EC Shape Studio and EC Button Studio. This is a type of punch. There are 4 shape studio punches (2 sizes of circles and 2 sizes of hearts) and 4 button studio shapes with button holes (two sizes of circles, a heart and a flower). Each shape has a corresponding acrylic dome, or flat acrylic button. Use these punches to punch a paper shape (it could be a small photo printed on paper) then place the corresponding self-adhesive acrylic shape on top.

7. Flip Pal. This is a mobile scanner and it won the CHA Innovations award. It is a small, hand held scanner which runs on AA batteries. Just place it on the top of whatever you want to scan and it works just like the flatbed scanners. The information is stored on a flash card like the ones used for a digital camera. It's great for things that are difficult to place on a regular scanner and even though it's small (about 5" x 7") it has a stitching feature so you can scan larger pieces then "stitch" them seamlessly together.

8. SCAL from Create & Craft. This is software for a Mac (yeh!) or a PC that allows you to create and cut your own designs and fonts already installed on your computer using a Cricut

All the manufacturers in the paper crafts section had new paper designs and coordinating embellishments, so you'll have to check your local and online stores to see what they ordered, there were way too many to feature here.

Halloween is the second largest holiday and craft buying season, so it stands to reason that it would be a popular theme for papers, embellishments, etc., but this year I saw so much more of it than in the past. Maybe because we're not just creating album pages any more. We're making cards and lots of projects for the home using these same supplies.

Cupcakes themes are still hot, both in craft and gift market and flowers are everywhere in paper, fabric, ribbon, felt, metal, button designs and rubber stamps. Not just for scrapbook pages and cards, flowers and images of flowers, were being used to decorate just about everything. Check out the gallery of projects below.

So many flowers, so little time........ Here are some button, felt and metal flower embellishments from Sassafras.

The show is always a good place to see friends. Here I am with Helen Chu from My Little Shoebox and photos of her brightly colored booth.

Here's Marianne Walker from Copic markers. If you haven't tried them yet, these markers are wonderful, especially for coloring rubber stamped images. Both Copic Marker classes at the Super Show sold out within days of being offered.

Here's Suze Weinberg, Kathy Cano Murillo, the Crafty Chica and Katie Hacker. Katie is the new host of Beads, Baubles & Jewels, which airs on PBS stations across the United States.

Just a few more for inspiration........... Enjoy!

Yours truly,
Julie :)

The Rude Awakening and a Super Show!!

Wow what a fantastic road trip! Jean and I left Fort Worth on Sunday morning at the crack of noon (took a while to load all our boxes) and drove 9 hours to Rolla, Missouri where we spent the night. After a good night's sleep the city provided us with a very special wake-up call courtesy of the Fire Dept. Apparently someone had burned a bagel in the toaster................... definitely a "scrapbook moment".

We pulled into our hotel in Rosemont late Monday afternoon. The trade show was held Tuesday thru Thursday and I have lots of photos to share that I took on the trade show floor, but first here's the news from the Super Show (consumer craft show). This was the first time the show had been held in Chicago and the turnout was incredible. It's great to see so many people who love to craft!

The mayor opened the show together with Mike McCooey and Wendy Russel. Wendy is from Canada and hosted a craft show for HGTV there.

So many people and so much to do. I was the first presenter at the Craft Academy at noon on Friday. The Craft Academy is on the show floor and open to anyone on a first come basis. Designers can show techniques, demo products, have a Make It/Take It - anything educational, or informative. I chose to talk about the new products I'd seen at the Trade Show, which will be available in stores over the next few months. I had a few samples to show and talked about many more. Kathy Cano-Murillo, the Crafty Chica was there too to share a project. You could also find her at the "I Love to Create" booth at the Make It/Take It table.

I'll give you information on new products later in Part 2 when I post photos from the trade show.

After appearing at the Craft Academy I judged a craft challenge in the Westcott booth. We had 3 crafters who were challenged to decorate a scissor holster and Eileen Hull, Lorine Mason and I were the judges. Marisa Pawelko was our host. You can see the video on YouTube/America's Top Crafter.

It's hard to judge creativity, because all 3 projects were equally cool in a different way, so we politely passed the buck to Wendy Russell and she chose Isabel, the youngest contestant, as the winner.

Isabel was very creative and had turned her holster into an animal with a pointy nose. I love to see children crafting - "touchy feely" hobbies are important in this hi-tech world we live in. It was fun to see that even the guys in the booth got in on the act. Check out that yellow holster.... very becoming!

The judging was over and I made my way to the Michaels booth to teach a Make It/Take It for Loew-Cornell using Woodsie™ shapes. I love working with these small pieces of wood and used them throughout my class projects, which I'll show you later. We made a note holder and it was non-stop crafting fun for the next 2 hours. My friend, June Beach, took some photos then went on to teach her jewelry project. For those of you who don't know June, she is a jewelry designer at Michaels and also a Swarowski Ambassador. I just LOVE her jewelry pieces. You can see some great samples of her work in the Bella Boho book available in the jewelry department at Michaels.

With commitments fulfilled for the day I headed to the workshop storage room to start putting together "Goodie" bags for our Saturday workshops. Just look at all those boxes!!! They were on the cart, on the table and under the table too. Jean and I unpacked them all and filled bags until 8pm. I still can't believe how generous the manufacturers were. We received product from: Elmer's, I Love to Create, Colorbok, Creative Imaginations, Little Yellow Bicycle, Quick Quotes, SRM Stickers, Mark Richards Crystal Stickers, Loew-Cornell, Nikki Sivils Scrapbooker, Fancy Pants, Bo-Bunny, Deco Art, Plasteel (Smoothfoam), Westcott, Crafty Secrets, Bazzill, Pink Paislee, magazines from All American Crafts and Kanban. Imaginisce, Flower Soft, F&W Publishing, Pine Cone Press and Marvy Uchida also donated product for door prizes and Kathy Cano-Murillo donated an autographed copy of her new book, Waking Up in the Land of Glitter.

Everyone who took our classes came away with a swag bag like no other......... plus all the supplies needed to create the projects and a QuickQuotes bag to put them in. It was definitely Christmas in July! Here are some photos from the Saturday classes.

Everyone just loved Jean's hand painted Holiday Ornament projects.
These were the projects from the Christmas Crafts class:

I was probably a little too ambitious thinking we could accomplish all 6 projects in class, but everyone got to take all the supplies and tools home plus a CD of the project instructions, so I don't think anyone was disappointed. Extra kits of these projects will be available at my Etsy Shop in September, so check back next month for more news about that.

There were lots of vendors on the show floor with great demos. If you want to know "who's got the button" look no further than Blumenthal Lansing. Jane Anne Smith was helping consumers make their very own button rings. Just fabulous dahling!

I also visited the Super Crop hosted by Scrapbook Royalty. This crop is special in that it raises money for charity. I gave away 3 sets of Scrapbook Memories DVDs and donated some of our class "Goodie" bags for later in the evening. The lady standing next to me in the photo won one of the sets for traveling the longest distance to get to the show - she came from Israel!

I had about an hour between classes to check out the show floor and found my friend Melissa from Kaisercraft. We've been meeting at the shows for the past 2 or 3 years. Melissa is from Australia and the first time we met I introduced myself as the Host of Scrapbook Memories and asked if I could feature her products on the show. Since the show doesn't air "down under", she was a little unsure as whether I was on the up and up or not until someone else walked into the booth and asked to take a photo with me - perfect timing. That has happened each time I have been in her booth at the trade shows, so it's become quite a tradition for us to have a photo together at each show. I just love their products and creative ideas.

I also had a few minutes to talk to Deb who owns Pine Cone Press. I'd like to say that Deb is an "old timer" like me, but let's just say we're "seasoned professionals". She has put her years of knowledge into her business and it shows. She has a wide variety of great products and a kit of the month club. I highly recommend you check it out. I saw lots of Halloween papers and embellishments at the trade show and Deb has a great line too, Hocus Pocus, designed by Lindsy Ostrom, one of my favorite designers. Lindsay also designs projects for SRM Press.

Jean and I left Chicago Sunday morning and headed south. We stopped for a day in Iowa to visit Jean's daughter and new baby granddaughter and arrived home late Tuesday night. I'm still digging thru notes, downloading and resizing photos and hugging my grandkids, so it's taken me a while to post. Now I have to get to work on the trade show post...... Once that is uploaded, I'll be working on some "giveaways" - new products from the trade show, so keep checking back. In the meantime, check out Jean's blog "Just Crafty Me" to sign up for her weekly giveaways. Enjoy!

Yours truly,
Julie :)

Chicago or Bust!

Jean and I are heading out for Chicago tomorrow morning. It's about 15 hours on the road, so we'll spend the night somewhere and get there Monday afternoon. The trade show is Tuesday-Thursday and the consumer show is on Friday and Saturday. Our workshops are on Saturday at 12:30 and 5:30pm. You can also find me on Friday at noon at the Craft Academy when I'll be showing samples and telling you about all the new products I saw at the trade show, then at 1pm I'll be at the Westcott booth to judge "America's Top Crafter", which you'll be able to watch later on YouTube. At 2pm I'll be teaching a Make It/Take It at the Michaels booth. After that....... a nice relaxed dinner and getting "goodie" bags ready for the workshops. We've had SO many manufacturers offer to donate product for these, it'll be worth coming to the class just to walk out with a "Little Yellow Bicycle" bag full of goodies. I'll also be at the Super Crop on Saturday afternoon at 3:30pm and have Scrapbook Memories show DVDs to give away!

Gotta run - still working on project sheets to put on a CD for everyone in the Christmas Crafts class. Jean and I will both be in both classes, but Christmas Crafts is "my baby" so to speak. Hope to see you there. BTW: I have a laptop, but it's not set up for the internet, so no blog or FB entries till I get back around August 4th. Sorry, but I'll have LOTS to share then, so check back!

I really, really gotta run - I still have to pack and load the van! Yikes.......! And pick up the dog from the vet.... I have a feeling I'll be up all night....... Have a great weekend!

Yours truly,
Julie :)

Just Crafty Me!

"Just Crafty Me" is the title of my friend's blog. Jean and I have been in business together since July 4th, 1996. Before that we both authored craft books for a local publishing company and worked with manufacturers to develop craft books full of creative ideas using their products.

We've both been crafters all of our lives and before we jumped into the publishing world, which is where we met, we sold our designs at craft shows and in craft malls. Jean is the Queen when it comes to quick and easy crafts. Jean would create 100-500 of the same item to sell, whereas I would only make one and then teach others how to make their own. We were a perfect fit for the business we've built together over the past 14 years. We continue to create and design individually, but also work with manufacturers on product development and as consultants. We are honored to have been recognized individually by the Craft & Hobby Association as "one of the brightest and best" in the industry today and our company, Kievlan-McGuffee Design Svcs, is one of the leading consulting companies in our industry. We are unique in that we're a full service company offering not only product development and consulting, but also design, graphic and publishing services "in house". Visit Jean at: www.justcraftyme.com. Enjoy!

Yours truly,
Julie :)

Empty Nest...

Something odd happened today. We grilled on the porch today and, of course, the little ones wanted to peek at the baby birds. All was well. They still sleep a lot and we hardly see any activity, but they seem to have all their feathers now, at least as far as I can tell. However, early this evening everyone had gone home and we'd finished picking up, etc. I looked in the nest and there they weren't - gone!! All four of them!! Nowhere to be found - and there aren't a lot of places to hide. I must admit I felt a bit let down. I was hoping to capture them perched on the edge of the pot, learning to fly, or whatever it is that little birds do. I certainly never expected them to be huddled together one minute and gone the next. Totally - weird. Oh well.........

Hope you had a great weekend!

Yours truly,
Julie :)

For the Birds!

This blog has definitely become "one for the birds" lately - very boring, unless, of course, you're a closet ornithologist. Life in the craft lane is definitely not boring, but I seem to be stuck in an overlook lately and unfortunately, I've neglected the creative side of my blog. Don't give up on me yet, this just happens to be a very busy time.

This week I've been working on the supplies for my Christmas Crafts workshop at the CHA show in Chicago. It's amazing how time consuming it can be. Not only gathering the supplies, but making sure they're cut to size, drilled, etc. to make it easy to assemble the projects in class. I've also been working on projects for a book, which, together with step by step instructions, also took up much more time than expected.

The CHA trade show is back in Chicago this summer. You may remember photos from last year when we were in Orlando. My friend, Jean and I will be leaving next Sunday and won't be back till around August 4th. I don't usually blog when I'm away from home, but I'll try to post some highlights if possible. There'll be lots to share though when I get back. One will be an important announcement about Scrapbook Memories and I also have something else up my creative sleeve to tell you about........ so stay tuned, it's going to be fun!

In the meantime here are some photos from the Dallas Gift Market. A sneak peak into what the retailers are being offered for their stores for the holidays and beyond.

Snowmen continue to melt our hearts, but penguins have apparently returned to Madagascar.

I love the bright cheery colors on these guys below:

but there are still plenty of choices for the traditional holiday decorator.

I saw more Elves this year than in the past. Relatives of the Garden Gnome they are following in the family tradition, or maybe they're being influenced by sales of the "Elf on the Shelf". A cute story to be sure, but he's quite a scary looking elf in the story. Not sure I'd want him watching me! I think these guys are much sweeter.

Growing up in England, I was inundated with stories about elves and fairies - we even had a fairy on the top of our Christmas tree. Santa Claus, known to us as Father Christmas, always had a fairy as a helper. Fairies were and still are, quite popular in Australia too. Remember the Fairy Tea Parties? Except for Tinkerbell and her friends, I haven't seen too many here, although there were some Spring Fairies hiding amongst the flowers in one of the showrooms. Check out the photos and see if you can spot them too.

There was lots to see and I'll share more photos in Part II. So check back after the weekend! Have a good one!

Yours truly,
Julie :)