wanna take a peek at some projects using some of the BRAND spanking new lines from Daisy Bucket?

well here’s a few!

first up are a card and layout using the new NANTUCKET ISLAND line…

| View Show | Create Your Own

then, here’s another card and layout using the LITTLE BLACK DRESS line…

| View Show | Create Your Own

their other 2 Brand New lines are: POSH POSIES and  MY LITTLE MONSTERS

i also did these projects using the newer, already released IN THE MEADOW line…

| View Show | Create Your Own

and here is a Christmas layout (i’m sure you haven’t scrapped ALL your Christmas pics yet) and a Christmas card (get started early and be ready for next year!) the line used for these projects is called MERRY WISHES and it’s already been released as well. i also made a valentine card – “you make me smile” – using this line. it can be used for MORE than just your holiday photos -  the red, aqua and brown color palette make it suitable for a variety of themes.

| View Show | Create Your Own

and last – but NOT least – is their new Valentine/Love line called LOVES ME-LOVES ME NOT.  This line has also already been released and is in stores NOW! here’s a layout,  a project and 3 valentines  i made using the line:

| View Show | Create Your Own

they also have BRAND new stamps, rub ons and chipboard!!! the BIGGEST – and i do mean BIGGEST news is their new chipboard banners they are GI-NORMOUS! 12 X 23 pieces in 2 different shapes! they also have the same shapes in smaller 5 X 10 pieces – i used the smaller ones in my project. click HERE to see ALL the new DAISY BUCKET stuff!

i know most of the other DT members have already uploaded projects into the 2peas gallery, so you can search there too for MORE great ideas!

if YOU have done a project using one of these lines, or ANY of the Daisy Bucket lines and you want to show it off, please send it my way! i’d love to share it on the blog!

enjoy!

Tengo unas cuantas cosas que contar… pero tendrán que esperar a esta noche o mañana. Hoy estoy EXTREMADAMENTE cansado… vengo de los Channel Awards 2008, en donde participé como jurado junto a más personas del medio tecnológico local. Luego de ver routers, impresoras, discos duros externos, pc´s y demás aparatos compitiendo para ver cual es el mejor… estoy exhausto!

(Y eso, que yo sólo estuve en el último turno)

Mañana les cuento más y les enseño algunas cuantas fotos de mis días recientes, incluyendo una sorpresita para Catarsiando. Nos leemos!

well, i’ve FINALLY finished editing all my photos and have them set up in not ONE but TWO albums! i had too many photos for just one! for the best viewing; click on the gallery link, then select “slideshow” and sit back and watch the show!

I’ve also included links for ALL of the companies – so if you want to view their full collections, just click on a company name!

here are the companies that are included in the galleries:
CHA GALLERY ONE

7 Gypsies
Basic Grey
Bo Bunny
Clearsnap
Cosmo Cricket
Crafty Secrets
Creative Impressions
Daisy D’s
Doodlebug
Fancy Pants
GCD
Graphic 45
Hambly
Heidi Grace
Heidi Swapp
Ideology – Tim Holtz
Imaginisce
Little Yellow Bicycle
Mollie & Mac – NEW!
Moxxie
My Mind’s Eye
Pebbles Inc.
Prima
Ranger
Reminisce
Rusty Pickle
Scenic Route
SEI
Tada – NEW!
Tattered Angels
The Paper Element - NEW!

CHA GALLERY TWO

Crate Paper
Dream Street
Glitz
Jenni Bowlin
KaiserCraft
Luxe
Maya Road
Piggy Tales
Pink Paislee
October Afternoon
Webster’s Pages

and now for my recap:

new companies i liked…

The Paper Element, they had a nice variety of new collections,  and i really liked their Hot Chocolate line – it would be great for “coffee” projects or layouts. their new lines are not posted on the website yet, but some of the older ones are REALLY great so take a look!

Mollie and Mac, they only had ONE collection, but i REALLY liked it! it had a vintage feel in very mixable dark reds and blues.

TaDa, i liked the colors and designs of their collections, and i really liked their diecut papers – they had some really unique styles!

my show favorites…

Prima - they are NOT just a “flower” company any more! this booth had a FABULOUS WOW factor! they had it all – great papers, great embellies, trims, projects, and of course more flowers than you can shake a stick at! LOL! they also have a new hybrid line for those of you who digi! i found a LOT to look at and a LOT to love from Prima!

Graphic 45 - i just can’t say enough good things about this company! i LOVE, LOVE, LOVE their lines! being a vintage fanatic, this company is right up my alley! their booth was decked out to the 9’s with ABSOLUTELY STUNNING vignettes filled with AMAZING projects! their new lines BOTANICABELLA and PLAYTIME PAST are just GORGEOUS! i can’t wait to get my hands on some!

Maya Road - another exciting booth, i asked jessica to show me the new products and she walked me around the ENTIRE booth! there was TONS of new stuff! i really liked their MAYA MISTS, DIECUT SHEER SHEETS and new CLEAR RIBBONS too! The MAYA MISTS come in gorgeous MATTE colors and look amazing on chipboard. there are also some shimmery shades – silver, gold and copper that you can use alone or on top of the other colors. the DIECUT SHEER SHEETS are perfect to use as masks on chipboard or paper when using the MAYA MISTS, or you could cut them apart and use them on a layout! i don’t see all the new things on their website yet, but i’m sure they will be updating soon!

Scenic Route - always one of my favorites – i just LOVE their colors and styles! i particularly like the new SONOMA line. i liked the mix of somewhat contemporary large print papers with small print vintage style papers.

October Afternoon - i didn’t see the new lines on their website yet, but i’m sure they will be updating soon! having 2 BOYS, i’m always on the outlook for BOY lines! i found lines i liked at OA, and a lot of the colors in their collections work for BOY layouts too!

Glitz – i LOVE the pop-graphic vibe going on at glitz! all those fabulous bright colors bouncing off your basic black and white! LOVE IT!

Piggy Tales – i liked a lot of their new lines, especially ITSY BITSY SPIDER, LOVE the color combo of yellow, black, white and lime green! (didn’t see the new lines up yet!)

Jenni Bowlin - i thought her new CREPE PAPER RIBBONS were fun and unique!

Ranger - who can ever have enough STICKLES! i like the new ones that Ranger has introduced in the Distress colors!

Luxe – LOVE the new SIMPLY LUXE line, as the name inplies it is a simple line – but it is SIMPLY FABULOUS! great basic colors in FAB designs to mix and match!

Crate Paper – another one of my must have lines!

Pink Paislee - LOVE the PIXEE STICKS! new glitters!

Webster’s Pages - LOVE their new CALENDAR PAGES, they are gorgeous! they come in 12 X 12 and 6 X 6.

Reminisce - their new ENCHANTED AUTUMN line used HOLOGRAPHIC paper that is TOTALLY unique! i didn’t see anything even close to it at the show. you HAVE to see this line in person, photos don’t do it justice. you can see a little bit of the HOLO effect if you look at my CHA projects, the pics of the party set capture it best. i also love their new school line MAKING THE GRADE, this one has it ALL, papers, embellies, 3D stickers, alpha stickers, 12 X 12 stickers and MORE!

trends i spotted…

MORE BLING! bling is BIG! most of the lines now have some type of specialty papers, glittered, shimmery, embossed, etc. GCD introduced new double sided shimmer papers, Chatterbox had all kinds of BLINGY papers, Reminisce had the new HOLO paper in their Enchanted Autumn line and their FROSTED line is literally dripping with glittery effects!

back to basics – at least color-wise, i spotted several companies who introduced lines with “solid” colors, that isn’t to say they didn’t have patterns to them, just that they were mainly one color with either black and white elements or some type of BLINGY element! look for them with Chatterbox, Doodlebug, Pebbles Inc and Luxe.

i’ve also included a few photos from our outings in Chicago, you can see them HERE!

well, i guess that’s about it, i hope you have enjoyed my views from CHA!!!

—note: because i’ve seen it asked about and commented on in message boards…

i took a LOT of these photos before the show opened each day, so that is why there aren’t crowds or a lot of people in the background. i was also VERY patient; and for those photos taken when the show was open, i waited for “clear shots”!

thanks for the great response to this post!

i’m working on my photo album from cha; i’ve been busy trying to edit my way through almost 700 photos!  i hope to have it up on my blog soon along with my recap!

in the meantime, i want to share the projects that i did for REMINISCE & CLEARSNAP for the show.

first, here are the photos and directions for the 2 make & takes i designed and presented for Clearsnap at CHA…

Funky Flower Bracelet

supplies: (Clearsnap products are in red)

Memory Essentials Terrific Tool with Flower Tip

Ancient Page Full Size Inkpad – Coal Black

Sparkle Fibers - Limesicle and Pink Frost used in sample

Grafix: Computer Grafix transparent films

Pioneer: Photo Mounting Taper (or strong double sided tape)

Creative Impressions: white with black dots & edge ribbon

Deco Art: Triple Thick Glaze

plastic placemat

scissors

heatgun

q-tips 

directions:

1)   Cut 2 – 2” X 7 ½” strips of transparency

2)   Cut 2 – 18” pieces of ribbon

3)   Stamp 5 flowers on the rough side of one transparency strip using ME tool & flower tip with black ink. Heat set with heat gun for 10 -15 seconds.

4)   Use a q-tip to apply a bit of glaze to the centers of 3 flowers (every other one). Sprinkle with choice of sparkle fibers and shake off excess.

5)   Repeat step 2 with other 2 flowers and use a different color of sparkle fiber.

6)   Lay another transparency strip on top of stamped strip, sandwiching the fibers between the two.

7)   With transparency strips laying flat on table, apply pieces of double sided tape half on, half off both long sides of strips; trim any excess tape. Remove backings and adhere an 18” piece of ribbon to tape on each side, centering ribbon at center of strips. Fold ribbon over to other side and press well to adhere.  

hello card

supplies: (Clearsnap products are in red)

Memory Essentials Terrific Tool with Flower Tip & Small Circle Tip
Memory Essentials  Terrific Tool with adhesive Tip & Small Washer
Jumbo Get Rollin’
yellow, green and orange rubber bands from Memory Essentials Bits and Pieces
Vivid Dye Inkpads (fullsize) – Lemon Ice & Black 
ColorBox Fluid Chalk Inkpads (fullsize) – Rouge
ColoBox Pigment Inkpad (fullsize) – Apricot
ColorBox Fluid Chalk Inkpads (cats eye) Rouge and Lime Pastel
Sparkle Fibers – Limesicle 
Reminsice: rub-on letters
Pioneer: Photo Mounting Taper (or strong double sided tape)
black fine tip pen (like Zig Writer) 
adhesive (zip dry or permanent tape runner) 
black and white cardstock

directions:

 1)   Cut the following pieces from white cardstock:

1 – 5” X 10” piece

1 – 4” X 4” piece

1 – ½” X 4 ¾” piece

2)   Cut the following pieces from black cardstock:

1 – 4 ¼” X 4 ¼”

1 – ¾” X 5”

3)   Fold 10” X 5” piece of white cardstock in half to make card; ink edges using Rouge cats eye chalk ink.

4)   Use Get Rolllin’ with rubber bands and Vivid Lemon Ice ink to add pattern to 4” X 4” piece of white cardstock; then ink edges using Lime Pastel cats eye chalk ink.

5)   Use ME Tool & Flower Tip with Rouge chalk ink to stamp flowers.

6)   Use ME Tool & Small Circle Tip with Apricot Pigment ink to stamp flower centers.

7)   Use ME Tool & Adhesive Square Tip with small washer and Black Vivid ink to add accent around flower centers.

8)   Adhere square to 4 ¼” X 4 ¼” piece of black cardstock; then adhere to card.

9)   Ink ½” X 4 ¾” piece of white cardstock using Lime Pastel chalk ink. Then adhere double sided tape down the center. Glue white cardstock strip to ¾” X 5” piece of black cardstock, remove backing from tape and add sparkle fibers. Adhere to card.

10) Add “hello” using rub on letters.

11) Add stems to flowers and stitching lines using black pen.

and here are the projects i designed for Reminise…

first are the projects which used products from the SIGNATURE SERIES lines:

boo-boo-kit

box from home - military goodie box

bon voyage gift - champagne bottle box

sport tags for bags

tailgate kit

and here are the projects using the BRAND NEW CHA releases!

MAKING THE GRADE line…

autograph book

ready for kindergarten? layout

fifth grade frame & chalkboard set

SCARE TACTICS line…

boo layout

decor mask

here’s 2 using the FROSTED line…

let it snow layout

frosted decor trio of frames - front

frosted decor trio of frames - back

and last, but not least (saved my faves for last!) two using the ENCHANTED AUTUMN line…

pumplin patch layout

halloween party set

well, that’s all the projects i have for now… BUT i received some NEW sample products from October Afternoon, My Sentiments Exactly and Clearsnap at the show, and hope to have projects using these new goodies up soon! so check back!

also, all the designers from Reminisce are busy uploading their projects to the gallery on the Remisnice website, so look there for MORE great project and layout ideas!

i got to the show early this morning so i could take pics of some of the BIG booths that i knew would be wall to wall gawkers as soon as the show opened.

i took pics of the new basic grey, heidi swapp, reminisce, bo bunny, glitz, yellow bicycle, prima, graphic 45, tim holtz and a few others.

it seemed like the 2 hour headstart i had ran out REAL fast! i felt like i only got to see one very small corner of the show. i had to deliver a few things and head on over to the clearsnap booth to start the make & takes.

i forgot my cord for my camera, or i WOULD be downloading pics for you to see. i’m hoping that the computer stations they have set up for us to use at the show have slots for media cards – if so, then i can download the 200 + photos i took today!

the make & take went well, the crowd was non-stop and i didn’t take a break all day! my hands are covered in black ink, and so far nothing has taken it all off, so i may have to go to the show with dirty hands tomorrow! we’re using black ink again anyway, so it probably won’t make a difference if i start off with a layer of ink already in place! LOL!

i plan to get to the show early again tomorrow and try to get a some more pics AND maybe do a make & take myself. the project tim holtz did was REALLY cool and i WANT one!

jenny with scrapbook 911 posted some sneak peeks from the show on their blog, so you can check those out if you like.

psst… wanna see the new lines by reminisce? THEN HEAD ON OVER TO THEIR BLOG!!!

in addition to posting projects using the new lines each day this week, you can take also take a look at all the new lines now AND you can enter for a chance to win prize packs of the new lines too! WOW!

the new lines are FANTABULOUS! i love them all!

first up is a school line that everyone with school age kids or pics of school age kiddos should love – it’s called making the grade. there is a double sided paper for each grade, a sticker sheet for each grade AND a 3D embellie for each and every grade! and if that weren’t enough, there are also some additional 12 X 12 sticker sheets with great designs! their are journaling blocks that look like note paper, a sheet with pencils, crayons and more, a sheet for older kiddos with a cell phone, locker, etc, a sheet for preschool with watercolors and paint “splats” and a great note paper style alphabet. there are also some rub ons that coordinate. i REALLY like that they did the high school grades in black, white and grays, that way you can add the school color in cardstock! the line is called MAKING THE GRADE.

next up is a spooky line called SCARE TACTICS! bet you can’t guess what holiday it is for! LOL! it is a great “distressed” halloween line. the colors are classic halloween, orange, yellow, black and red, and the themes are classics too, bats, spiders, witches hats, pumpkins and scary trees, but the designs are anything BUT classic! each paper has a design on the front, then the same color “distressed” solid on the back. great line to mix and match! there are also some great embellies like spiders, bats, haunted houses, pumpkins and more as well as coordinating sticker quote sheets and rub ons.

next up is another halloween line, although not as spooky – it’s more KOOKY! LOL! it features the cutest little owls (yes the 70’s are back, but a bit better than before!) they are cute and blocky! the BEST part about this line though is the PAPER – it’s holographic! you HAVE to see it! i haven’t seen anything like it before! the line is called ENCHANTED AUTUMN, and yes, there are some pretty fall papers too, it isn’t strictly a halloween line! and yes, there are all kinds of cute stickers and rub ons too!

last, but certainly not least, is another one i really like – a close second to enchanted autumn, it’s called FROSTED, and as you may guess, it is a winter themed line. cute little penquins and cuddly polar bears, and TONS of glitter FROST the papers! pretty blues and icy whites dominate, but a little soft lime green and sage sneak in here and there to add some contrast. and of course, lots of coordinating embellies!

i can’t show you my projects until i get back from CHA, reminisce wants to do the unveiling first! but i CAN tell you that i REALLY enjoyed working with these new lines. there is so much to choose from in each line, that coordinating is a breeze!

so be sure to check out the new lines AND remember to enter to win the giveaways!

you can view the 3 new lines by daisy bucket RIGHT NOW on their website!

there is PERFECT HARMONY, a beautiful springy line in soft pastel colors and cute little designs! there are stripes, polka dots and lots of pretty flowers as well as one adorable little birdie!

next up is IN THE MEADOW, in addition for being great for nature photos, this line is also perfect for boys! lime greens, aquas and browns. lots of stripes, dots with just a few flowers sprinkled in.

and then there is PLAYFUL PETALS, i REALLY like this one! pretty, “girly” colors, pinks, lime greens, and aquas mixed with fresh white! those with girls will LOVE this one, but if you stick with the blues and greens, it works for boys too!

a few “special” stores will get to order A WONDROUS WORLD, a fun and unique “green” line! if you like it, tell your lss you want it!

also brand spanking new for daisy bucket is a line of RUB ONS, and BOY did they do it right! you’ll find fresh and fun designs in a multitude of colors that coordinate with their lines, with special quotes and saying that you won’t find anywhere else.

they also have introduced a LOT of new stamps in fabulous designs that again, coordinate with the papers. click HERE to see the stamps and rub ons, just scroll down past the papers.

daisy bucket won’t be at CHA, but they are taking orders NOW for these very soon to be released lines. so if you see something you like, PLEASE TELL YOUR LSS!

if you are unfamiliar with daisy bucket, let me tell you that their papers are FANTASTIC! not only are the designs fresh, bright and unique, but the paper has a wonderful texture and a linen-like feel. it is GREAT to work with. the photos of the papers on the website don’t do them justice, they are MUCH prettier in person!

You know how right before the new fall season of TV shows comes on, and you’re hearing about all the great new shows, and you can’t wait to watch them, and every show you’ve always loved and been watching seems so dull and boring merely because you have had a taste of the new stuff and you want more??? (Phew, that was surely a run on sentence!).

Well, that’s how I’m feeling about scrap products right now. I went scrap shopping today, with my 40% and 50% coupons in hand, and knowing that my local craft store had 25% off the entire store. I was in the mood for some serious swag, I tell ya’. First, to the LSS and my only really good finds were the new issue of CK, and some cute/cheap papers from their Half Off table. Their shelves weren’t empty, per se, but there was nothing “new” like there is every other time I go, about once every month or two. Then to Michaels to use my 2-day only 50% off coupon. Again, I came up pretty empty and had to struggle to find something to use the coupon on. I got a cute MAMBI page kit (all page kits were already 40% off) then walked around that store for 10 minutes trying to find something I wanted that was Coupon Worthy. I finally decided on the Making Memories medium-sized storage jars, which will fit on my MM Embellishment Shelf.

I have no idea what I’ll put in them, but $5 instead of $10 was a transaction I was obligated to make. Heck, I’ll use them in my pantry to store sugar if I have to. Finally, I went to the craft store. The acrylic stamps I went there for were out of stock:

Autumn Leaves Scribbles Alpha – Punctuation

For a gift, I picked up the K&Co. Wild Saffron paper slab, tag set, and photo mat set. This is one of my favorite lines ever and I already have most of it. My friend keeps admiring it, so guess what she’s getting for her birthday?

Everything was 25% off, which was already a good deal, but then the cashier gave me 40% off the paper pad “because there was a coupon this week” (which I had in my purse, but thought I couldn’t use because of the storewide sale). So, that was a good buy…$16 worth of Wild Saffron for $9.50.

Other than the CK, the only find of the day that made me all perky was noticing that the craft store now sells……BAZZILL!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, is that enough exclamation points to communicate to you how stinkin’ happy I am??? I LUVLUVLUV Bazzill cardstock but my LSS was the only place to get it (other than online, which I don’t usually do b/c I like to buy it by the sheet and match it to papers I have). They sell Bazzill Canvas and Bling for 75 cents/sheet, In Stitch’z for $1/sheet. I buy sheets when I’m there to match whatever patterned paper I buy. However, in my world, one can never have enough Bazzill. So I was crazy-excited to see 5 racks of it at the craft store. They sell Canvas and grasscloth for 59 cents/sheet, Bling for 69 cents/sheet, and With an Edge (scalloped, etc) for $1/sheet. So I got about $10 worth of Bazzill which cost me $7.50 with the sale. The only “newer” stuff they had was all the Valentines stuff, most of which I didn’t like this year, like the Daisy D’s and Wild Asparagus stuff.

I spoke with the cashiers at two of the stores, and yes, they are anxiously awaiting new items from CHA. The LSS said she ordered things from 15 different companies, some of whom they’ve never carried in the store before. So, like the store owners, I will patiently wait for all the new goodies to arrive. Amend that: I will WAIT, but not patiently, because I wanna see the new stuff NOW! Just hope the big reveal of all the new scrapbook products from CHA won’t be as disappointing as the new fall TV shows have been in the past few years, LOL!

PS: Have you noticed that I’m getting dangerously close to hitting the 100,000 blog hits mark? Wow, that just kills me!

With CHA-Winter coming up this weekend, everyone is talking about and trying to predict what the new trends in scrapbooking will be for this year. HERE is our discussion on the All Moments Remembered message board. Over on the SCRAP SCENE blog, they are doing a series of articles about Scrapbooking Trends for 2008. Here is PART ONE and PART TWO; will add PART THREE when it’s published.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here are my predictions and musings, as I said over at AMR:

Scallops and pretty edges
Journaling items
Acrylic stamps by every company, not just stamp companies
Distressed or shabby chic look
Glitter and bling
Pre-sewn items and papers, for those of us who don’t sew!

I’m really trying to think what the hot new material will be for letters and such. We’ve already done chipboard, felt, foam, grungeboard…what could be left? Hmmmm….

I saw some new thinner glass/mosaic type squares the other day…I wonder if that material will catch on?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

One thing I left out was: scrapbooking organizational items. I think all the companies have finally caught on that we have loads and loads of STUFF! And we need cute, functional ways to store it all. Personally, I’m tired of all the little org. pieces here and there, or ones sold to store just one type of item. We need more systems on a broader scale, something you could do your entire scrapbook area in that would cover all your bases and give everything a cohesive look. I’m truly surprised that Cropper Hopper hasn’t taken the lead on this. They would make a fortune if they did! At least, that’s my prediction…

What do you predict will be the hot trends for 2008?

I was doing a pretty lame job anyway, so I’m just going to turn over the HUGE task of giving CHA-W previews to this girl Monica @ SCRAP ETC. She is just rocking the previews and there are too many for me to keep up.

I was happy to see some Basic Grey previews over there, as BG is the one I always most anticipate:

BASIC GREY “ARCHAIC”

BASIC GREY “SUGARED”

BASIC GREY “BOXER”

I need to see more of each to say for sure, but so far “Boxer” is the only one I’ll be shopping for. I’m no scrapbooking designer, and I know it must be terribly difficult to keep coming up with fresh designs, but I miss “the old days” of Basic Grey. Not loving their stuff like I used to. I mean, there are elements of each collection that I like but I no longer just drool over the entire collection and have “can’t wait to use it” dance parties around my scrap room (no, there is NO footage of these events so don’t even try searching “Scrapbook Obsession’s solo dance parties” over at YouTube”). Do you think they got new designers along the way, or they’re just trying a little too hard to mix it up? The colors have gotten too muted for one thing. And you know how I feel about that weird flower they keep using. The dinosaurs in “Archaic” look cute, but they’re too specific, i.e. how many dino layouts can one girl do? I was scrapping a birthday party this weekend and really, really tried to use some of my Basic Grey “Sublime,” but it was just too…out there. The colors were off just a shade from matching anything (and you KNOW how many colors there are to choose from in birthday party pix), and the graphics were so weird that I couldn’t relate them to anything. You have to know, I HATE to be saying all this about “my” Basic Grey because they have always been my staple. Ask me any time since I’ve been scrapping what can I not do without, and the answer has always been “Basic Grey and Bazzill.” So I just really, really hope they do not disappoint again at CHA {picture me with fingers crossed}.

Tonight at CKMB during Happy Hour, ERIN LINCOLN (CK Message Board Hostess) posted THIS question re: CHA previews.

So, what are your thoughts? Am I alone on the Basic Grey thing? What are you most anticipating from CHA?

I was at Michaels yesterday and was so happy to finally see something NEW there. I had a 40% off and a 50% off coupon burning a hole in my wallet, so I was doubly, no make that tripley happy. I actually found 3 paper packs that were Must Haves, so I begrudgingly paid full price for one of them.

First, and my favorite of the three, Coastal Culture by Me and My Big Ideas (MAMBI).
Second, Modern Milan by MAMBI.
Third, Chelsea’s Place by Making Memories.

Now, I’m totally confused because I went to search online for pics of these lines so I could share my rockin’ finds with YOU. As for the MAMBI, on THEIR BLOG it says these are new products to be released at CHA in February 2008 and they have only given sneak peeks HERE and HERE. WTF? Why does Michaels have it if it hasn’t been released yet? Gawd, usually a product has to be at least 20 years old for MICHAELS to have it!!! Did I crash land into another universe when I wasn’t looking??

Anyhow, for now, this is the best I can do, layout samples from MAMBI blogs…

Layout made with Coastal Culture, by Stephanie Rahmatulla with MAMBI:

Also by Stephanie, a layout using Modern Milan:

Then I link over to Suzy Plantamura’s blog and in THIS ENTRY dated 1-23-08, she says the same thing about Modern Milan, Coastal Culture, and another line called Renee being released at CHA?? Well, whatever, just glad I got me some already!! Here are some layouts from Suzy and check out that entry above to see more…

By Suzy, using Coastal Culture:

By Suzy, using Modern Milan:

Oh, and here’s Jamie Harper’s BLOG with a mention and some layout/card samples of all 3 lines including Renee. Jamie links to Suzy and also to Angelia Wiggington’s blog with THIS entry. Check it! I swear, sometimes you have to be a friggin’ internet detective to find new scrapbook stuff. Oh well, guess that’s what you guys pay me for…

What I love about both lines are the fresh color combinations, and the different textures with foiling and flocking (wow, sounds kinky, huh?). Seriously, whoever designed these lines should be very proud. Can’t wait to see Renee by MAMBI now too. I do a lot of ocean and coastal layouts, with the usual colors of blue, turquoise and green, but Coastal Culture shakes that up with colors you wouldn’t normally think of as “coastal,” yet they totally evoke that easy, laid back, coastal feeling. I can’t wait to play with it!

As for Chelsea’s Place by Making Memories, I was glad my search for it took me HERE to Christine Middlecamp’s blog because if you haven’t already “met” her, you should. She’s an awesome lady who just went through a horrific loss with an amazing grace you don’t often see. She movingly blogged about her journey and she just amazes me. Please make her a regular read if you can. That said, Miss Christine seemed to share my confusion over Mike’s actually having something NEW and COOL. So click on over there, leave her some blog love, and check out some Chelsea’s Place.

I stole this from a post by TexasPaperArtist on 2peas:
“Yes, Chelsea’s Place is new & it is coming shortly.(your store is probably just a little early getting it). It is exclusive to Michaels, along with 5 other collections by various companies. I know Michaels will have something about it on their website next week.”

The paper pack I got has a bunch of those cool shaped papers, like a circle with scalloped edges, etc.

Am I alone, or do you likey too?