Yes, I did say upside down Christmas tree!

This tree and the others in the booth were covered in the most gorgeous paper decorations, made from both old and new DCWV lines.

Die Cuts with a View introduced a new line of personal stationery and decorative office items at the CHA Summer 2011 show.

“‘Tis the Season” and “Midnight Spell” (partially cut off in the photo) are two of DCWV’s back-catalog items on display.

My time at Glitz Designs was short, but I found so many lovely things in the short time I was there.

The “Beautiful Dreamer” line is a lovely pink-dominated collection with a sweet floral motif.

I simply adore Glitz’s “Teeny Alpha” stickers!!

These ephemera packs are from the “Vintage Blue” collection, as are the handmade flowers in the photo below them.

Australian company Grant Studios displayed two main product lines at the show – a range of children’s craft projects and some lovely papers by designer Grace Taylor.

Some of the designs in their lines are really lovely, such as this yellow sheet with a white doily print.

Many of Grant Studios’ papers are available individually, but they also produce 100 sheet paper pads with many of the same patterns.

This grey and black print was quite lovely and sophisticated.

Grant Studios offers a range of packaged die cuts, as well.

Shortly before leaving for CHA, I asked Scrapbook Update readers to chime in and let me know what they were most interested in seeing at the show. Several readers specifically requested to see Little Yellow Bicycle’s “Winter Twig” line.

I have to stop here for a moment and give a quick shout-out to Judy at SEI (the next booth on our tour). She gave me a wonderful overview of the new product lines!

SEI’s fall line, “Homestead,” features a rich orange, yellow and brown color scheme with an abundance of foil accents.

SEI’s Valentine’s Day line, “Promise Me”, is set to release in November 2011.

“Holiday Cheer” has one of the brightest color schemes of any of the Christmas releases that I saw at the show and is full of festive fun!

Cool blues and soothing browns are the hallmarks of SEI’s winter themed line, “Silver Valley”.

SEI’s “White Elegance” collection is a back catalog item, but totally worth mentioning here for its unique resist effects. It doesn’t completely resist the ink, but instead the glossy and non-glossy portions of the paper absorb ink at different rates yielding a two-tone effect.

SEI also had their line of wearable art items on display including their “Tumble Dye” mists. Papercrafters may be interested in these for home decor and party projects- just look at those gorgeous misted tissue paper flowers!

There’s just one more post left in Scrapbook Update’s CHA booth coverage! We’ll be back soon to bring you the rest of what we saw at the show.

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Has that changed for me? No way! I still love scrapbooking trips both big and small, and what I really appreciate is how the industry has gone from intensely themed and brightly colored product to more useful product, and to items that can cross over into other pages and subjects as well. While I utilize a great many items in my vacation scrapbooks that are not themed, I also am always on the lookout for the best of travel and vacation products available.

And from cruises to road trips, time at the beach to camping,  and just general travel, journey, and trip products…there is definitely a lot available. Here are six collections I think are fantastically useful, cool, and otherwise great buys:

• Bo Bunny Press “Paradise”  Two Peas | Scrapbook.com
• Creative Imaginations “Oceana”  Two Peas | Scrapbook.com
• Little Yellow Bicycle “Pack your Bags”  Two Peas | Scrapbook.com
• Making Memories “Panorama” Two Peas | Scrapbook.com
• Studio Calico “Documentary”  Two Peas | Scrapbook.com
• The Girls’ Paperie “On Holiday”  Two Peas | Scrapbook.com

I particularly appreciate the value in the Girls’ Paperie sticker book (just $4.99 for seven sheets of stickers!) Scrapbook.com | Two Peas

Looking for a great accent for your next travel or journey page? Try these tags from 7 gypsies.  Two Peas | Scrapbook.com

I also like this transparency from Teresa Collins Travel line. It could be such fun to mark on, paint, spray, and otherwise alter to suit my travels.

One stand out line this season that I mentioned above is Making Memories Panorama line. I love the tropical feel of the product, and that the colors are not too bright, and that any number of layouts could be lovely with the product – not just travel.

I created this layout about a vacation at our home – and I loved how easily it all came together.

Patterned Paper (die cut):  Two Peas | Scrapbook.com
Patterned Paper (background): Two Peas | Scrapbook.com
Making Memories Title Letters  Two Peas | Scrapbook.com
Making Memories Tickets Two Peas
Making Memories Journaling Card  Scrapbook.com
Making Memories die cut shapes Two Peas
Making Memories Wordfetti Two Peas

Evalicious flowers with buttons www.shopevalicious.com
other: white thread, rhinestones, black pen

I like vacation products that put me in a relaxed state of mind. I like products that have a style that I’d normally choose to use, and that can be used for all kinds of subjects. Words like laughter, good times, journey, and so many others that can be found in these products can be creatively put to use for anything! Palm trees and ocean waves don’t have to mean that you’re on a cruise – they can represent a summer’s day, or just a relaxing time.

What adventure will be next in my scrapbooking? I’ve got a few ideas, and you can be sure that I’ll be taking some of these fantastic products along with me to create and enjoy. Before I end this article here are a few more fun items to consider:

Canvas flip flops mini book by Quick Quotes: Scrapbook.com

Martha Stewart Border Punch: Scrapbook.com

Karen Foster metal decorative plates are so fun – perfect if you’re traveling or on a road trip in the USA.  Scrapbook.com

I could go all day! Bella Blvd has a great new camping line. EK Success continues to produce travel-themed Jolee’s Boutique stickers. By getting specific with what kind of vacation you’re having when you use search terms, you can find even more inspiration and fun. I hope you’ve enjoyed my look at some current picks for great vacation products.

[Disclosure: May is a member of the design team at The Girls Paperie, some of whose products appear in this article.]

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As I surf the internet and manufacturer websites I’ve been gathering some of my favorites. I shared an article before the show with some of my sneak peek favorites, and now I’m back with more. It certainly wasn’t easy to narrow down.  There are a lot of great things! A few I’m especially loving are Tattered Angels, Basic Grey, Cosmo Cricket, Bella Blvd, October Afternoon, and Crate Paper. They all have fantastic looking product coming out.

This article contains a few of my top picks. Oh yes – I have a whole new list of must-have items that are soon to be available. (And I hope it’s sooner than later!)

Jenni Bowlin has been a favorite of mine since discovering her years ago. Guess what? This release is no exception. Her products build on past releases and work well together to help breathe new life into older products and inspire with new amazing cuteness. I am smitten with these star stickers!

I have seen samples with these Hambly rub-ons where designers have partially filled the images with buttons and rhinestones, as if the jars are filled with the treats. I love that idea, and I adore this sheet of rub-ons! I think they’ll be a whole lot of fun.

Kaiser Craft has a lot of great stuff coming out, and I especially love their ‘beyond the page’ line of alterable items. This wreath is so lovely – I simply must have it. I have visions of a Christmas wreath for it, and I hope to find one of these in a store soon.

Making Memories, a company I’ve used and enjoyed for years has a bunch of must-haves this go around. Their Paper Reverie line really works for me. It’s got sparkle and vintage charm, and is fairly neutral, so I see it having a long shelf life in my stash. The pieces shown above are my favorites.

The Je t’Adore line from Making Memories has a lot of great stuff. This cute box of creative ‘chocolate’ has some interesting bits and pieces as well as being presented in fun packaging.

Studio Calico continues to grow and delight me. I am currently envisioning misting and enjoying playing with these notions. I wouldn’t have thought flowers would be so exciting, but I can not wait to get my hands on these unique ones. They also have a great paper line, some mists, and wood veneer stuff that I am anxious to get in my eager hands.

I am really excited about the “Freestyle” and “Celebrate” lines from Teresa Collins. I like the infusion of more color into her collections while still maintaining the style and look she’s known for. This argyle patterned paper will be perfect for scrapbooking about my girls.

If I were doing an article entitled “I want everything ___ company put out” then Webster’s Pages would certainly be in it. Their new “Sweet Season” line really captured my attention. I love the fusion of color and sweet treats in a winter line like this.

One more pick from Webster’s – I simply can’t live without these trims. I don’t know how they do it, but they bring out more vintage inspired trims each show and each time they are exquisite!

I must add Pink Paislee to the list of companies who had a “want every piece” release. I am so impressed with all they’ve come out with, from the line with the House of 3 to this line called “Sweetness”. I want every single item! They’ve come out with fresh ideas and new products with their signature flair and sensibility for useful but trendy product.

Before you faint with shock, yes that’s me (the ‘no die cuts’ lady) picking a die as a favorite. I’ll talk about that more some other time. For now, just know that Tim Holtz ROCKED the summer show with die cuts and texture fades and all kinds of other awesome goodies for his Sizzix line.

Tim’s idea-ology line is packed full (as are his stamps, and everything else he came out with) of amazing possibility. These trimmings are a must-have. Ink, spray, or paint them – heck, stamp on them, too! I just love everything about this line. The designs are great and I love them all. Just call me a crazy fan girl – I want it ALL!

[Editor's Note: Crazy Tim Holtz fan girl May became crazy Tim Holtz design team girl last week after she wrote this article but before it was edited & scheduled for publication. Our sincerest congratulations to May on getting her dream gig, and to Tim on getting a talented designer that I know from personal experience is as passionate about his products as he is.]

Cupcake Love is a new collection from Little Yellow Bicycle that is over the top girly, and frosted in pink. I love it! These layered felt ribbon sliders are my favorite piece.

Claudine Hellmuth released some stamps with Ranger that are intriguing. There are both foam and acrylic stamps that can be layered as shown above. She has several sets and I’m really excited about this look. I think it would be great on her canvas paper, with stitching or other elements added, and for all kinds of projects from cards to layouts and so much more. I look forward to seeing more of these.

As you can see my shopping basket is quickly filling, and this has been a fantastic show for new and exciting products. I haven’t gotten into the seasonal releases like the amazing Christmas and Halloween goods coming from the Girls’ Paperie [whose design team May also just joined recently - Editor] I can’t stress it enough – this show was FULL of good stuff!

I can’t wait to stop dreaming and start creating! What are you looking forward to working with? What are your favorites?

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[Visit this post on Scrapbook Update by clicking on its title to listen to the audio]

To listen to this week’s episode, you can use the player embedded above [may not be visible to email subscribers], visit the Paperclipping Roundtable web page or to make things easy, you can use this link:

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Here’s this week’s show notes:

Links from this week’s show:

• Apple Aperture 3
• Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2
• Photoshop World
• Technique Tuesday “Bliss” event

Product Picks:

• Canon EOS 5D Mark II 21.1MP Digital Camera with EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens
• Songbird Avenue
• Cricut Graphically Speaking Cartridge
• Little Yellow Bicycle Clothesline Die Cut Paper Kit
• Jenni Bowlin Butterflies (unpick) and Jenni Bowlin Vintage Decorative Buttons

Here’s video that was taken with the Canon 5D Mark II camera that Izzy talked about:

Here’s the layout that I mentioned that uses the Tim Holtz paper pack and the Graphically Speaking cartridge:

Supply List: Paper – Tim Holtz Vintage Shabby Paper Pack, Marcella by Kay (Sophie); Punch – EK Success (Binding Edge); Ink – Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Pumice Stone); Spray Ink – Clearsnap Smooch Spritz (Vanilla Shimmer); Sticker – Grand Adhesions by K & Co (Hopscotch); Jewel – Prima; Flower – Prima Tea Roses (Peach Frost); Decorative Tape – Making Memories; Ribbon – unknown; Die Cut – Cricut (Graphically Speaking).

What are the scrappy reasons I pull out the clover, shamrocks, and green stuff in general?

• Seasonal. First, the obvious – use them for St. Patrick’s Day festivities and photos.
• Luck. A shamrock symbolizes luck (good luck, my lucky charm, lucky in love, lucky to have you in my life…)
• 4-H. Embrace the green and clover to create 4H themes!
• Versatility. Green is great with most anything.

Armed with these products – and lots of ideas – I’m ready to get creative!

I used products (paper, chipboard, buttons, sticker, rhinestones) from the “Lucky Me” collection by Little Yellow Bicycle for this page. This line is perhaps one of the best I just love the metallic accents and how useful the line is. I had so much fun with this product line I just kept on creating…

I used more of the “Lucky me” papers including pieces of the die cut paper, buttons, and rhinestones on this page, as well as canvas words and ribbons. For the background I placed punched clovers (punch by Fiskars) all around and spritzed with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist. I worked my Catslife Press stamp in as well. For the journaling I simply printed (Mom’s Typewriter) onto green patterned paper and cut out strips.

I love the aqua blues, with the greens and hints of Navy. It’s such a nice color combo! Since I had some ‘good luck’ chipboard stickers left and I don’t envision using them on a layout, I made a quick card:

(supply list: paper, transparency, button, ribbon, rhinestones, stamp)

If digital is more your speed, I have a few suggestions for you too!

Above is Katie Pertiet’s “Lucky Gardner” kit from Designer Digitals. I’ve used this a few times and I love the muted colors and versatility. Below is a new free kit available at Two Peas by Tricia Chapman.

In fact, I used that free kit to pull together a quick little St. Patrick’s day card I’ll e-mail to friends and family on the 17th…

I will be posting another lucky green layout on my personal blog on the 17th as well if you’d like another idea. In the meantime, happy green crafting!