2012 is a leap year, and with that extra February day behind us it’s time to look ahead, and scope out what’s happening this week. It’s March, also known as National Craft Month, so I advise be keeping an eye out for manufacturers and bloggers to get extra inspiring, and perhaps we’ll see an increase in contests and giveaways as well. I look forward to it. Getting the month off to a strong start, here are this week’s stories:

Ali Edwards released a new self-paced online class on her website this week. “Five” is based off of her workshop from Creative Escape last year and is now formatted as an online self-paced classs.

The cool thing about this workshop is that you can really make your album any theme you want: favorite photos from a specific year, photos of a loved one who has passed on, favorite photos from a travel adventure, a collection of photos that celebrate your life right now, etc.

The class is $14, and available for purchase on Ali’s website.

Claudine Hellmuth released a video on her blog this week, showing a detailed look at a new card kit as well as a video for a new dimensional sticker kit that will be coming to HSN on March 6th. The colors, designs, and useful embellishments look like a lot of fun. She has been creating exclusive paper crafting kits with HSN for awhile, and she is scheduled to be on-air on March 6 with three new kits. She will be updating her Twitter and Facebook with exact times as the date approaches if the times change. If you don’t want to wait - the kits are available (as well as the previously released kits) at www.hsn.com.

It is noteworthy that March 6th is going to be scrapbooking day on HSN, so if interested you may want to check their website for schedules and deals coming for that.

The Jenni Bowlin inspiration blog has a beautiful spring inspired bird project posted this week. Team member Leah Farguharsen shares the how-to as well as images of the finished project.

With March approaching, most people’s thoughts in the United States turn to spring. Wouldn’t it be fun to chase away a friend’s winter blues with these sweet spring wishes?

It’s also worth noting here that Jenni Bowlin’s new products have begun hitting store shelves- I’ve spotted a number of items now at 2peas and other retailers.

Ella Publishing has a new ebook out titled Stamping Secrets: 7 Sensational Stamp Sets Used 21 Ways. This ebook features seven stampers and is offered at an introductory sale price of $8.79 until March 7.

In 28 packed pages, you’ll enjoy 21 gorgeous projects, 35 expert stamping tips, 6 step-by-step written tutorials, and 20 minutes of exclusive video instruction—all for just $10.99.

To learn more about this book or purchase it, visit Ella’s site here.

New product is hitting the shelves, and with so many manufacturers anticipating March release dates for CHA products shown, I can only imagine that soon stores will be flooded. Some much anticipated product lines that have been hitting store shelves lately include Jenni Bowlin, Lawn Fawn’s paper line, Echo Park, Tim Holtz distress markers, and Bazzill’s Wayfarer and Vintage Marketplace lines. Check in often to your favorite scrapbook stores – I’m told most places are getting new things daily!

Finally this week, I’d like to point out some excellent blog posts this week.

Stephanie Howell posted a moving entry about being ok with being herself as a crafter, and giving herself permission to do her own thing.

I am not the worlds most complicated scrapbooker. I am not the world’s most inspirational scrapooker-technique wise.   But I put my heart on every page. And i LOVE this hobby.   And I am more than okay with that.

Julie Balzer did a post titled “So you don’t have a Silhouette” that is a great detailed look at using a craft knife to hand-cut designs. Her photos and tips are fantastic.

What’s a girl to do without a Silhouette?  Well, grab her craft knife and get busy, that’s what!

Davinie Fiero posted about how she adds confetti (a super hot trend at the moment) to her projects.

Confetti is running rampant on the crafty front, so I wanted to take a moment and share some tips/tricks and techniques for adding confetti to your scrapbook pages.

Tim Holtz is back with a new “12 tags of 2012″ installment on his blog. As you would expect, it’s a brilliant idea that has a lot of applications, and puts scraps to use too.

 I’ve been inspired by spring, and i think this mini paper mosaic technique will be useful throughout the year on everything from cards & tags to journal covers and more.

Noteworthy is a weekly column here at Scrapbook Update. Have something new & noteworthy to share? If you have something you would like considered for next week’s column, email may@scrapbookupdate.com with a link or press release.

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For scrapbookers, this new media outlet can be a wonderful place to obtain new content. Digital media doesn’t require physical storage beyond your computer’s (or device’s) drive, is quick to access, and in many cases is portable on certain devices. There is no current industry standard, however, on platforms for delivery and access of digital content, so scrapbookers should educate themselves on the available options before making a purchase. I’ve collected digital publication data for several major scrapbooking magazines and compiled it all into a handy reference that should help when making purchasing decisions.

Creating Keepsakes does not offer a digital subscription to their magazine at this time, though premium members of their Club Creating Keepsakes community (currently $19.95 per year) are granted access to select digital back issues of Creating Keepsakes, Simple Scrapbooks, and Digital Scrapbooking magazines as well as a few special issues and books as one of the perks of membership. [Note: While this article was still in the editing process, Creating Keepsakes announced that they will be discontinuing the premium features of Club Creating Keepsakes as of December 2011 and will immediately stop selling paid memberships. No announcement has been made as to whether another form of online access to any Creating Keepsakes issues will be provided as a replacement. And that, my friends, is how quickly things are changing in this industry!] These issues are presented on the web-based based Issuu platform (using Adobe Flash) and are not downloadable for offline viewing. This also means that they are not viewable on the iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch. Creating Keepsakes also offers all of their 2010 issues for purchase on CD for $14.95.

Papercrafts, a sister magazine of Creating Keepsakes, does not currently offer online access to any of their publications whether by subscription or as a catalog of back issues. Like Creating Keepsakes, though, they do offer their 2010 back issues on CD for $14.95.

Scrapbooks, Etc. recently moved their online publication wing from its previous host at Coverleaf to a new home on Zinio. The Zinio service provides applications for viewing on a number of platforms, including Windows and Macintosh computers and the iPad. A digital subscription to Scrapbooks, Etc. through Zinio is $19.97, which is actually higher than the current print subscription price of $14.95 as offered on the Scrapbooks, Etc. web site. One benefit to subscribers that was lost in the transition from Coverleaf to Zinio is access to digital versions for print subscribers. Under the Coverleaf platform, print subscribers could register to receive digital versions of the same magazine for no additional cost. This option is not available to print subscribers through Zinio.

Northridge Publishing (publisher of Scrapbook Trends magazine) offers digital subscriptions to all of their publications at a deeply discounted rate from both the cover and print subscription prices. A single-title digital subscription is $4.99 per month, and an “All-Access Pass” that provides readers with subscriptions to Scrapbook Trends, Cards, Simply Handmade, Bead Trends, and the Create Idea Book series is $9.99 per month. Subscribers have the option of adding Northridge’s Cricut magazine to the All-Access Pass for an additional $1.50 per month. Special issues and books such as Jessica Sprague’s “Stories In Hand” are also often made available to purchase in digital format, again at rates significantly less than the cover price. Northridge provides access to their digital publications either online as a download for offline viewing through the Yudu platform, which is Flash based and thus not compatible with the iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch.

F+W Media has several digital offerings for scrapbookers. Back issues of Memory Makers magazine (no longer in publication) are available to purchase on CD from their online store. Regular issues from 2006, 2007, and 2008 are all available as well as select special issues. All issues are provided in PDF format, which is viewable on any number of platforms including the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch.

F+W also offers a large number of their idea books- including the popular PageMaps 2 by Becky Fleck – in eBook format on Amazon’s Kindle device. Due to limitations of the Kindle format, however, many of the visual elements that are integral to craft and hobby books such as icons, backgrounds, and complex page designs are lost in the translation to eBook format. The basic content and photos are present, but the experience for the reader is greatly diminished by the platform’s formatting limitations. A few recent F+W titles are also available through Apple’s iBook store, including Page Maps 2, but there again the format has limitations.

Canada-based Scrapbook and Cards Today has perhaps the most interesting digital publishing model of the current crop of available magazines. All issues of their magazine, both current and back catalog, are available to download in PDF format from their web site free of charge. Subscribers also have the option of paying for a traditional print subscription to this quarterly publication. iPad, iPhone, and almost all eReader owners can rejoice that this magazine is freely available in a format that is compatible with their device (though it will of course be best viewed on devices with color screens).

The lack of periodical publications for some of the most popular electronic reading devices can leave scrapbookers starved for fresh content. Several manufacturers have actually stepped in on their own to fill this void by providing free PDF newsletters on a regular (often monthly) basis. These newsletters serve the dual purpose of advertising manufacturers’ products directly to consumers and providing project ideas, page sketches, and editorial content to customers. My Mind’s Eye’s “In the Blink of an Eye,” Basic Grey’s “Just the Basics,” and Pink Paislee’s “Live Pink” are just three examples of this trend.

The portable content vacuum has also opened up a niche for independent publishers. Ella Publishing, founded by Simple Scrapbooks alums Lain Ehmann, Wendy Smedley, and Angie Lucas, sells professionally written, edited, and formatted scrapbooking eBooks through their web site. All eBooks are in PDF format and compatible with a wide array of platforms and devices. Bloggers can leverage Amazon’s Kindle store to provide their feeds as subscriptions that readers can download for later reading offline. Scrapbook Update, along with several other scrapbooking blogs, is available on Kindle.

The current fragmented state of digital publishing can be a confusing place. Scrapbookers have to keep track of which publications offer digital content at all, whether that content is available on a subscription basis or as back issues only, what platform and compatibilities are applicable to that content, and how much the digital content costs. That last one is the stickiest – under many of the offerings outlined here, scrapbookers can be left paying for digital content that they’ve already purchased in paper form, or in some cases paying more for the digital version of content than the printed version. Rules also vary widely on whether current print subscribers can convert their existing subscriptions to a digital format.

Digital publishing as a whole, not just publishing for scrapbookers and papercrafters, is without a doubt experiencing some growing pains as this new market is expanded and tested currently. These are exciting times, even with the frustrations being experienced right now, and as long as scrapbookers remain educated about the available choices and platform compatibilities they can enjoy stress-free access to this new media outlet.

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Today we are excited to bring you a Craft Month Q&A from Tami Morrison! Tami is a member of the Ella Publishing team and an instructor for Big Picture Scrapbooking. Her latest BPS class, Everyday Adventures, begins on April 15. You can also find her at her blog, Noodle Soup.

What was the first craft you ever remember doing? At what age? And what got you started?

Construction paper + paste, in Tiny Tots preschool. I think I must’ve been about 3. To this day, school paste is still one of my favorite smells!

Can you name all the crafts you have tried as hobbies?

It would probably be easier to name the ones I *haven’t* tried, but I’ll give it a go. In loose chronological order: paint by numbers, latch hook rugs (hello, 70s!), collage, Tulip paints on clothing (hello, 80s!), crafting of random objects seen in magazines (Christmas tree watering can, an assortment of wreaths and other holiday decor, embellished sweatshirts…), decoupage, scrapbooking, card making, handmade paper, painting, art journaling, altered items, paper arts, soap making, making hair bows & beaded barrettes, needle felting, sewing, embroidery.

What crafts do you currently do?

Scrapbooking and sewing, mainly…but I’m still a dabbler in many things, depending on my mood. Except for the Tulip paints on clothing and latch-hook rugs!

What other crafts have you incorporated into your scrapbooking?

Sewing, decoupage, collage, painting, felting.

What is your favorite craft & why?

Scrapbooking, all the way! It’s so much more than a single craft – it’s an opportunity to express myself creatively in a lot of different ways, but also a way to live an aware and appreciative life.

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Ehmann is transitioning to the role of an “Ella Friend,” the advisory board that assists Ella, and will no longer hold an ownership stake in the company. Ehmann was previously a Contributing Editor at Simple Scrapbooks magazine and is the author of Snippets: Mostly True Tales from the Lighter Side of Scrapbooking.

Although Ehmann indicated on her blog that she is leaving Ella due to the pressures on her family of working in a start-up company, she told Scrapbook Update that her fans will still see plenty of her. She will continue with Write.Click.Scrapbook, her Layout A Day challenge, her blog, and says she may even revive her podcast. In addition, The Scrap Review announced today that Ehmann has joined their staff of reporters. Scrapbook Update has also extended an open invitiation to Ehmann to repeat her guest appearance from late last year.

Ehmann will also continue as part of the new Paperclipping Roundtable podcast that is in the process of launching, along with Noell Hyman, Angie Lucas, Ana Cabrera, and Scrapbook Update’s editor, Nancy Nally.

To help fill the hole created by Ehmann’s departure, Wendy Smedley is joining Ella Publishing. Smedley was the Creative Editor at Simple Scrapbooks magazine for eight years and is the author of three books: The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Scrapbooking, The Organized & Inspired Scrapbooker, and a title coming in fall 2010.

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One of my favorite year end traditions is to look back and reflect on all that happened this year: what new authors I discovered, life events, changes made, and good things that have happened. This year I thought it would be fun to look over my crafting stash and share some of my new scrapbook discoveries from 2009.

As I sat down to write this I decided that the companies and products I selected must be new to me this year. In other words, they either didn’t exist or I had no knowledge of them or the specific product type prior to January 2009. I also decided they had to be something that I turn to and utilize on a regular basis and consider true additions to my crafting life this year.

In no particular order, here are six things that I consider great finds of the year:

Core’dinations cardstock: I discovered them in the spring, and it was love at first touch. The core is a different color than the cardstock’s front, and this makes for exciting sanding, embossing, tearing, and distressing opportunities.

The Jenni Bowlin Embossed Pack and the White Wash Collection are among my favorites from them – but to be honest I’ve yet to pick up a piece that I don’t love.

Webster’s Pages: This is a company that has been a sleeper for me. You see, I’ve received random single sheets of paper or stickers in kit clubs this year as well as picked a few up in a store but I never really thought about the company. When their latest releases hit the shelves (and I wanted all of it) I realized I’d underestimated the amount of creative love I have for them – and that they’d been flying under the radar for me.

The ribbons, papers, cameos, letter stickers, and everything else they offer is so beautiful – my hands are itching for more already.

The Girl’s Loft: This kit club started this summer and I was intrigued from first sight. The kits always have unique items and unexpected pairings – not to mention I find them very easy to work with. I don’t usually pay much attention to new kit clubs, but this one caught my eye and has held it with interesting kits and a very talented team of designers and great ownership.

Margie and her daughters, the owners, even came out with an e-book for Ella Publishing called Vintage Hip Christmas Crafts that is filled with their brand of crafty inspiration – and I hope we see more from them in future.

Smooch Ink: Clearsnap is one of those companies that has been around but I really don’t know much about or pay much attention to. One day cruising my local on-line store I came across Smooch Ink- and I needed to know more. It resembles closest my liquid eye-liner in consistency and in how the brush works. I use it for edging, doodling, detail work, even to hand-color images to stamp. It is so much easier for me to use than ink or paint in my detail work – and I’m totally addicted!

Taffy and Molasses continue to be my most used colors, and Gold Lame and Nautical Navy top my wish list. There is a whole rainbow of colors and even packaged sets available for purchase. How do you decide which to start with?

Making Memories Vintage Findings - I discovered this first on an end cap at Michael’s, and eventually saw them showing up in my favorite stores as well. I can not get over how happy the little packages of put together vintage inspired bits and pieces make me. It is my most sincere hope that we see a new batch of this product in stores in 2010 because I have yet to get my fill.

My favorite kits from this line include: Love, Girl, Nature, Bienvenue, and Christmas.

Lily Bee: Finally, this company suddenly started showing up all over my radar last summer. They are new this year, though the owner (kit-club owner) has been in the industry a long time. Their rub-ons and the French Couture paper line  caught my attention and they’ve held my rapt attention ever since. The products are great quality and always bring out the best in my photos – what more could a girl ask for?

The new tulle flowers, recurring damask patterns in patterned paper, and beautiful lines overall will keep me checking back in – and hoping for more lines that continue to grow in product types and offerings in the new year.

That wraps up six of my favorite new companies and products of 2009, and now I’m inspired to get out some of my favorites as my husband spends time watching bowl games and more NFL football than I can imagine. I know my list is not a complete one, so tell me: what are some of your picks from this year in crafting? I’d love to hear from you about your favorites from 2009, and about your hopes for what 2010 will bring too!

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