Jennifer Schaerer
Blogs, Facebook and Twitter are bursting with squeals and shopping lists after all the new product was revealed last week at CHA, and I’ve been reading every post I can find. It’s always interesting to see what rises to the top of the popularity heap – and why.
Our own Susan R. Opel will be covering the entire floor for you right here in two photo-laden posts next week, and Kerri Miller will be sharing her observations as well. For now, in case you’ve missed it, our Go-to Gals have been sharing their finds over on the Moxie Fab World blog this week. Oh, and don’t forget our photo album on Facebook, either. We zig-zagged our way around the floor to fill it with photos of what you told us you wanted to see most.
Speaking of zig-zag, it was the first thing that struck me as a still-dominant pattern as I worked the floor. And it’s expanding into herringbone and Missoni-inspired treatments as well. We saw it in almost every booth – both on product and in project designs.
Missoni-inspired Chevron Mashup by Hambly Studios
Zig-zag feature pattern - On the Bright Side collection by My Mind's Eye
Three of the four new collections from LilyBee Designs include zig-zags
Herringbone from Hambly Screen Prints - metallic ink on kraft
The Plumeria Collection by BasicGrey includes a herringbone pattern in orange
Herringbone pattern in the Story Teller Collection by Crate Paper
A versatile collection of zig zag patterns from Lawn Fawn to build your own Missoni-inspired pattern
Giving zig-zag a run for its money, I saw a growing focus on the hexagonal shape family – from honeycomb patterns to chicken wire. As a design element that works for vintage, modern and everything in between, it was definitely one of the favorite new patterns at this show.
It's honeycomb within a honeycomb in the Follow Your Heart collection by Rhonna Farrer for My Mind's Eye
Hexagon pattern stamp from Paper Smooches
With the Honeycomb group, Hambly covers several trends in one design - honeycomb, zig-zag, wood grain and more
Nesting hexagon dies by Lifestyle Crafts
Delicate honeycomb background stamp by Market Street Stamps
Chicken wire background stamp by newcomer Gourmet Rubber Stamps
Magpie collection by Jenni Bowlin
I was positively giddy to see that natural fibers and materials were woven into almost every collection – I’m a big fan. Linen, burlap, canvas, hemp, cotton fabric & twine, wood, leather, denim, and cork popped up as accents as well as entire collections. Patterns based on natural materials were used frequently in paper collections, too – from chipped paint and distressed wood to cork and denim.
If you like the chipped paint look, you'll find it in three colors within the On the Bright Side collection by My Mind's Eye. It also includes a stitched denim print!
Cork pattern - Story Teller collection by Crate Paper
Linen fringe ribbon peeking out from among the ruffled tulle in Maya Road's collection
Rosettes in canvas and burlap by Canvas Corp.
Jillibean Soup's wood sentiment flags, packaged in multiples - especially for card makers!
Denim projects using the Genuine collection by Authentique Papers
Cotton twine by Lawn Fawn - in a pretty innovative package, too!
Pleated canvas trim by Maya Road
Leading the way on the natural side and proving that it’s here to stay, kraft’s popularity is not waning either. Manufacturers are showing its versatility in all style categories from fun and cute to shabby chic and elegant. It’s found everywhere – patterned paper, embellishments, chipboard, tags, stickers and more.
French Home Sampler - from the White on Kraft collection by Canvas Corp
A wide assortment of kraft shapes from Maya Road
Graphic45 introduced Kraft Reflections, a collection inspired by elements of designs previously released
Lawn Fawn introduced a paper collection for the first time, and two designs in the collection were white on kraft prints
Maya Road's kraft mini pennant pins
A prevailing color palette isn’t always easy to spot because the CHA Show floor is a spectrum feast for the eyes, but there were a number of color stories featuring blues and yellows accented with gray. Windy Robinson noted the frequent appearance of navy blue in her Moxie Fab World post, and the blue/yellow combos I saw ranged from turquoise and lemon to steel and citron.
The Every Day Moments Collection by Teresa Collins
Follow Your Heart (blue) collection by Rhonna Farrer for My Mind's Eye
Buttercup collection by LilyBee Designs
The Indigo Bleu collection by Pink Paislee
The Genuine collection by Authentique Papers
Washi tape seems to be a must for every new collection. Decorative tape in general has been up and coming for the past few shows (fabric tape, lace tape, patterned packaging tape) and it’s safe to say this falls into the paper crafting essentials category now.
Lace and fabric tapes by Love My Tapes
Fun and cute designer tapes by Bella Blvd.
Tissue Tapes by Tim Holtz for Idea-ology
A fraction of the tapes available from Trendy Tapes
Personal die-cut machines continue to evolve, and partnerships abound with stamps being paired with matching dies or electronic cutting patterns. Spellbinders continues to partner with a number of companies (including Unity Stamp Co.), and Sizzix is working with Hero Arts on a combined collection of Framelits. Sizzix also debuted its new Stamp 2 Cut series with Tim Holtz – a set of electronic die-cutting patterns for the eClips machine featuring matching stamps.
Framelits - Pairing stamps by Hero Arts and dies by Sizzix
Designed for the eClips machine by Sizzix, these digital shapes pair with stamps by Tim Holtz
And finally, a thought about what I saw in small glimpses that might blossom into a new design element at CHA Summer: subway art. I’m going out on a limb, powered by hope because I love anything typographical, and saying it will get traction in the next few months and we’ll be seeing more really soon.
7Gypsies introduced this vintage book stand at the show, and made a custom subway art piece for it (which may be available on their website soon!)
If you look closely, you'll see hints of subway art in the shapes on this Life Documented page by Simple Stories
Stay tuned next week, because Susan has literally HUNDREDS of photos gathered to share with you. There’s so much more to come in showcasing the fun new products we look forward to seeing in your upcoming creations!
