Scrapbooking Ideas From The Memory Zone Scrapbook Store

Lost at CHA by Heather Pickens

   Poor Rhonda! She was totally not prepared for CHA. Let’s start with our drive over there. We left Thursday morning. Heather and I followed behind Rhonda which was really fun because she had an I-Pass and we didn’t, but we were able to keep up with her most of the time. After what seemed like hours we got off the highway hoping we were at our destination, but we had actually arrived early for the Olympics in Beijing. I’m just kidding! We were only in Chinatown. It was soooo funny!! We were trying to communicate with each other via cellphone, but all we could do was laugh! Especially since it’s illegal to talk and drive at the same time in Chicago! We eventually contacted our own personal On-Star adviser, aka Amy. Somehow we got it straightened out and made it to the hotel after a few more wrong turns. Like I said, Rhonda wasn’t prepared. Just when she thought the fun(the drive there) was over, surprise! Now she gets to spend two days alone with Heather1 and Heather2. She didn’t know what hit her!  No wonder she forgot her rolling cart and business cards.
   After we settled our stuff at the hotel we went to the convention center and got our badges. That evening we had three private parties to attend, Making Memories, Sei and Creative Imaginations. Bring on the food! Every party had so much food, from cheese and crackers, desserts, to a whole buffet with a chocolate fountain. All we did was eat! I can’t believe we didn’t get sick. Another bonus was free stuff, especially at Sei. They gave us a kit of stuff from their Poppy line and an album kit. Wow! We didn’t win any of the give-aways, but we had a lot of fun and met some funny people!
   On Friday we were at the show all day. Heather and I made some really cute make-n-takes. We also got some great freebies and bags of course. We love the bags! Spencer showed us all the new Quickutz stuff, which we love! We also seen a lot of famous crafters, Tim Holtz, Kelly Panacci, Heidi Grace, Teresa Collins, Anna Griffin, our favorite Ali Edwards and our second favorite Elmo! It was another great show. I feel so lucky to be a part of this industry, but most of all to be a part of The Memory Zone family. Thank you so much Rhonda and Marlene!!!

   Heather Pickens

Sketches…Week 26

Thanks you everyone for checking out the sketches and wanting more.

It is Monday again and as I promised I have posted a new sketch and layout. But wait we have a Guest Designer…Barb Craft…This is her sketch and layout.

I can’t wait to do a sketch myself and see you post your layout in the gallery at The Memory Zone. Let’s see what you ladies can do… So Let’s Get Scrappin’… Please tell your friends and family about the fun we are having with the sketches. They might want to be included in the fun…

This is week twenty-six sketch… And you will soon see this layout hanging in our favorite scrapbooking store: The Memory Zone.

Great thanks to our guest designer…..Thanks Barb.

CHA Review 2008 - by Kelly Crowl

My feet are throbbing, my legs aching, but would I do it again? Heck yes! Saturday Rhonda & Marlene treated several of the Memory Zone Design Team members to our second trip to check out all of the latest and greatest at the Craft and Hobby Association Summer Show in Chicago, Illinois. Like last year, this years’ event was held at the Donald Stephens Convention Center, formerly the Rosemont Convention Center.

This convention offers the excitement of connecting with other people who have the same passion and desire for the hobbies we all enjoy, scrap booking and paper crafting. The energy of introducing brand new product lines and new companies into the industry adds fuel to the fire. At every turn you never know who might be demonstrating, introducing products or walking the very same aisles. The opportunity presents a peak into this thriving industry not everyone gets a chance to do. So a quick THANK YOU to Rhonda & Marlene for letting the Design Team be a part of the action and now…my review.

The three booths that earned the most attention were definitely Provo Craft (maker of the Cricut), Making Memories and QuicKutz. The common factors of great products, awesome displays, and a motivated demonstrating/sales team with give-a-ways were the key elements in their winning some major attention of show goers.

The new releases for the Cricut are making it as popular as ever and their make-n-takes were over the top adorable. Fellow design team member Jen, made the time to do EVERY ONE of them. And Rebecca managed to convince all of us to get in line and wait for 53 minutes (yes, that’s seven minutes shy of 1 whole hour!) to win a really awesome Provo Craft bag which ultimately led her onto winning a T-shirt and limited edition Daisy Chain Letter cartridge. She was elated to say the least!

Making Memories new products alone were enough to get attention, but they also reeled in the crowds by handing out aprons and other freebies for show goers to wear and if they spotted you at the right time you would win a whole tote packed full of their products. Jen, a frequent message board poster, was at the show and landed herself one, lucky girl! Keep an eye on the message board and I’ll bet she tells us all about it…

QuicKutz new product rollouts were exciting too. Lots of great alphabet sets in a new size format of 4×8 dies, I think these will be a strong addition to their line. And a brand new storage system caught my attention too. It will be able to hold ALL their die sizes in one nicely designed book/box type holder.( I even got to sneak a peek at their prototype motorized cutter…oooooo, can’t wait until this one comes out.) Oh, one more thing about the QK Booth, they have the best looking and nicest dudes at the show!

There is so much to see and we did try to see it all. One of the new companies getting a lot of attention was called “My Little Shoebox.”  We all agreed, this company blew our doors off with cute, colorful and different! Exciting layouts were featured in their tiny booth. You know how when you see something and it just calls you in…this is it!

Another head turner at the show was Bo-Bunny. They have the COOLEST new shape mini book coming out. It’s has different arrows as the pages. The sample at the show was great, but I see so many possibilities with it: graduation, bridal shower, toddler, school, and life’s turning points in general…very excited about this one. Oh, and the new lines of paper are just as grand as ever.

Theresa Collins is really making a name for herself in the industry. Her line is really expanding, it’s so adaptable and flexible, something I think today’s scrappers are looking for.

Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist is smoking hot stuff right now and stopping at their booth was definitely another highlight of mine. I got to spend some time with one of their top designers sharing some tips and tricks I’ll be sure to pass on, on a later blog.

Fancy Pants, Basic Grey, Cosmo Cricket, Best Creations, Rusty Pickle, Doodlebug, October Afternoon, S.E.I., Tim Holtz, Creative Imaginations, EK Success, Piggy Tales, Sandy Lion, Pebbles, Inc., Reminisce, Heidi Swapp, We R Memory Keepers, Cloud 9, Prima Products, Heidi Grace, Pink Paislee, Jenni Bowlin, Stamping Station, Inque Boutique,  Queen & Company, all had some great new stuff, too much to mention actually.   

I almost forgot to tell you about the newest KI Memories offerings…wait until The Memory Zone gets this stuff in…it will go fast. You are probably already on owner or user of the laser cut paper from this company but wait it’s gotten one step better!  Believe it or not, they’ve got a snowflake laser cut design coming out with glitter on it! It is a unique product I didn’t see anywhere else in the show! Oh, and a couple of other cool winter-Christmas designs too! Their next new product is hard to describe…it is basically a transparency in several different designs, patterns and colors but wait it gets better too. They cut the edges in different shapes and some are slightly textured or slightly opaque.  It is amazing and again unique to the industry. Totally can’t wait for this stuff!

I really enjoy meeting the people who have made it big in the scrap booking industry. This year I was fortunate enough to meet quite a few, starting with Ali Edwards. She is simply charming, down to earth and so friendly. Stacy Julian, one of the founding mothers of the industry, was there I actually got to meet her too. Sweet and charismatic, she was kind enough to let me get a picture too! Heidi Swapp and I talked about her living in China and how the people over there make her & her family make them feel so welcome.  I got to meet Sesame Street’s very own Elmo. He gave me the biggest hug of the day! Beth Opel, Leah Fung, Tim Holtz, Renae Lindgren, Theresa Collins, Norma Kennedy, Greta Hammond, Vicki Boutin, Heidi Grace, Jenni Bowlin and many more I can’t even remember right now were all there. It’s just amazing to me!

Trends I brought home from the show would include, botanicals, birds, and butterflies, are still as hot as ever. I noticed the same emphasis on double sided papers. Office type, ledger, folders, journal papers were throughout many companies. Stamping is a vital portion of scrap booking and paper crafting with acrylic stamps getting a lot of attention. Cricut and its’ cartridges are captivating many people’s attention. The laser cut papers are in and transparencies are too. In the various booths they post designers layouts and after studying many of them I see a mammoth amount of layering elements such as chipboard, buttons, flowers, tags, ribbons….all types of layers. I find the trend appealing and the layouts were beautiful! I noticed bling is changing too, companies are starting make more colors and sizes. Pearl-like bling was prevalent. Another trend I was well-aware of is that companies are realizing they need to lower pricing. With our economy in its current state with gas and grocery prices climbing, more affordable supplies must be available and have good quality. Companies know this and are effectively introducing more economically priced items. Queen & Company and Zva were two that stood out in this area.

 My review did not start out to be this long and I surely hope I haven’t bored you with my ramblings.  CHA Summer 2008 was awe-inspiring and remarkable. I am so glad I got to experience it first hand and hopefully now you’re “in the know” a little more than before. So much to look forward too!

Happy Scrapping!

Be Sure to visit the EVENTS - CHA SUMMER 2008 for more fun pictures!

~Kelly Crowl

CHA sneak peek - Bo Bunny Press

Check out what Bo Bunny has in store for us this CHA!

Beautiful Life has six new double sided papers with the most beautiful floral and leaf patterns and prints and a brand new double sided Journaling cut-out sheet.

Beau Jardin has six new double sided papers with stylish floral patterns and prints and a brand new double sided Journaling cut-out sheet.

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Holiday Cheer has six new double sided papers with the most beautiful swirly patterns and prints! Along with those are two new coordinating cardstock sticker sheets!

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My Darling has six new double sided papers with stylish floral patterns and prints and a brand new double sided Journaling cut-out sheet.

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Spooktastic has 6 new spooky papers..just look at the bat paper!!! A brand new double sided Journaling cut-out sheet

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Believe has 6 new beautiful double sided papers, a brand new double sided Journaling cut-out sheet

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Eight new rubons..one prettier than the next! And for something truly unique… these new designs feature bronze and silver images and designs. Plus we’ve combined these new colors with the traditional black to add style and contrast to your projects. Elegance has never been easier!

CHA SUMMER SNEAK PEEKS…Rusty Pickle

Well here it is our first Sneak peek from CHA SUMMER 2008 stay tuned for more through out the weekend. Remember these items are things released not all will be ordered. Be sure to leave comments they may be a decision breaker for us.

Latest goodies to enter the Rusty Pickle family: Candy Land, Costume Party, Brass Knuckles, White Christmas and Chocolate Covered Cherries!

Check back often we will be adding each night!!!

Cricut~ Painting with your Bug

I have to tell you …it’s been a while since we’ve played with paint! Can you say March? My how time flies…..

So here we are again and I’ve pulled out my tried but true staple….Paint! And why don’t you save a few of those negative spaces the next time you cut shapes out with your Cricut machine. You’ll find out they can be recycled by using your paint.

So…here’s what you’ll need:

* paint
* paint brush
*negative space from your Cricut cutouts
* the project you want to paint on

I had cut out some clouds for an earlier project. And found the negative space of the Cricut cuts to be very inspiring. So I pulled out my paint and decided I would use the negative space as a template on my next project.

I laid the template from the Cricut cut-out on my project and gently filled in the space with paint. If you’re afraid of getting under the template, just use a temporary adhesive {like Herma Dots repositionable adhesive} on the under side of the template and wipe it off when the paint dries.

It’s fast…it’s fun…..and darn it, some people just like PAINT! You can even use this technique on cards. And with all the shapes and alphabets that you can get on one Cricut cart….your paint template options are almost endless!

Don’t forget to show me what you’ve come up with. I’d love to see your version in the gallery!
Cheers!
charity

Sketches…Week 25

Thanks you everyone for checking out the sketches and wanting more.

It is Monday again and as I promised I have posted a new sketch and layout. Can’t wait to see you post your layout in the gallery at The Memory Zone. Let’s see what you ladies can do… So Let’s Get Scrappin’… Please tell your friends and family about the fun we are having with the sketches. They might want to be included in the fun…

This is week twenty-five sketch… And you will soon see this layout hanging in our favorite scrapbooking store: The Memory Zone.

I used Reminisce-Signature Series-Softball & Batter-Up Paper & Stickers.

Pop Dots-Let’s Pop it Up

Do you like the 3-D look that you get with your scrapbook layouts when you use Jolee Boutiques or Jolee’s by You? Do you wish you could get that same look when working with sticker sheets or cardstock stickers? If so, then I have just the technique for you. All you need is some pop dots (available in 1/16″ and 1/8″ and the new powder dispenser by EK Success. In just four easy steps you will have created your own 3-D embellishments.

Step 1: Select your sticker and remove it from the sticker sheet

Step 2: Punch or peel a pop dot from the pop dot sheet. Leave the protective covering on one side of the pop dot. Adhere the other side to the backside of your sticker.

Step 3: Take the powder dispenser and lightly brush the remainder of the sticker with powder. This keeps the sticker from sticking to your page where you don’t want it to.

Step 4: Remove protective covering from the pop dot and adhere your sticker to your page.

Whoa-la, you have just created your own 3-D embellishment. So let’s get popping!!

Barb Craft

Sketches….Week 24

Thanks you everyone for checking out the sketches and wanting more.

It is Monday again and as I promised I have posted a new sketch and layout. Can’t wait to see you post your layout in the gallery at The Memory Zone. Let’s see what you ladies can do… So Let’s Get Scrappin’… Please tell your friends and family about the fun we are having with the sketches. They might want to be included in the fun…

This is week twenty-four sketch… And you will soon see this layout hanging in our favorite scrapbooking store: The Memory Zone.

I used Making Memories product in this layout…

Phrase Maker Tool~ Wanna Price Your Projects?

Continue reading Phrase Maker Tool~ Wanna Price Your Projects?…