30 January 2017

Creativation 2017 and new Journal Die!

Hi everyone and welcome! The wanderer returns... back from the US and a fabulous five days at the annual Craft and Hobbies trade show that is now known as Creativation. This year we made our way to Phoenix, Arizona, and for my first time in the States it was an amazing adventure (though as someone who's scared of flying a 10.5 hour flight required wine, movies and a soundtrack to drown out engine noise!)


It was a huge privilege to spend lots of time with Linda Coughlin, the incredibly hard working owner of The Funkie Junkie Boutique for those four days; to finally get to meet this wonderful lady in person after so many years made the trip so special for me from the outset and I am eternally grateful to her. Here we are alongside the amazing Marjie Kemper, another of my creative heroines, attending the education sessions;

(Marjie Kemper, me and Linda Coughlin)

The business sessions were a wealth of information - such a huge opportunity - and I also got the chance to play during a workshop session with the one and only Seth Apter! He's as amazing in person as he is online and if you ever get the chance to take one of his courses grab it with both hands - you won't regret it. Even more wonderful was the fact that I got to share the experience with Linda and two of my AVJ sisters, Deb Riddell and Sandy Diller!!! We just had to capture that moment for posterity - us, trouble? never!;

(Deb Riddell, Seth Apter, Sandy Diller and me)

On Saturday the show floor opened and retailers/designers/buyers from across the globe piled in to see what's gonna be hot in 2017, with many of the top names in the industry sharing their latest releases. Here's my 'imposter' shot stood alongside three legends of the business;

(Marjie Kemper, Rachel Greig, Eileen Hull and lil' ole me!)

I was incredibly fortunate to have been invited to demo myself at the Sizzix booth for the one and only Eileen Hull - she has a brand new Journal die coming out this Spring and I have to say it got me more than a little over-excited when I received some cuts to prep prior to arriving in Phoenix!!! Here is the official Journal photo (I got to see this for real and it's even better in the flesh!!!);


And here's the Sizzix Bigz XL die that makes it;


In a nutshell it will cut you scored, hole-punched, corner-rounded covers for traveler's notebooks, Midoris, planners and mini journals. Want to see how it works? Here's a video taken by Marjie Kemper sharing my demo at the Sizzix booth - thank you so much to her for capturing me and so many of the other designers 'in action' at the show - check out her YouTube channel to subscribe and see more;


Having worked at trade shows in the past I was fully prepared for the fact that as a demonstrator you don't get to complete a great deal what with constantly stopping to run through the product details, answering any questions that the audience may have. So a fair amount of prep had been done before I flew (guess what my carry on bag contained - wasn't losing any of that!) By the end of three days (12 hours) of show and tell I had completed a grand total of three journals. These have now joined all the other gorgeous samples created in advance by Eileen's brilliant Design Team on the road with her as part of the Paper Trail Hopefully she'll get chance to share photos of them all with you when time allows. Before they disappeared I managed to grab some photos of my completed journals (apologies for the quality but the make n take tables weren't designed for this sort of thing!!!)

The 'Alphabet Journal' with some of Eileen's fabulous new flowers;

with inserts including some yummy Tim Holtz papers inserts;

The 'Junk Journal' with a Wendy Vecchi flower cover;

Tags, tuck spots and pockets galore including a new design from Eileen Hull;

Eileen has designed dies to cut words that can be stitched;

Love that Eileen's pocket doubles as a cute little house;

And finally this one's all Wendy Vecchi with stencilling and texture galore;

and more coordinating design paper inserts inside;

Can you see now why I'm so ridiculously excited about the potential for using this die?! I'm thrilled to confirm that my friends in the US can pre-order Eileen's Journal Die at The Funkie Junkie Boutique HERE. For those in the UK the campaign has now begun on Facebook to see how many of us also want to buy this die, as without demand these things don't always reach our shores. So if you, like me, would love the opportunity to place an order with a UK retailer please leave a comment at the end of this post so we can inform them ahead of the UK trade show in February.

With that it's time for me to return to the craft room and get some projects made/deadlines met.
I'm also planning on making a new video with a complete walkthrough of the journal design so if you have any questions please let me know.
Thanks for joining me today - have a great week, take care of yourselves and have fun! Jenny xxx

58 comments:

  1. This is such a great post Jenny! How wonderful that your first trip to the US should be such a special one and so pleased you got to meet so many of the Royalty of the Craft World too! Your journals are absolutely gorgeous, each one is so special in it's own way - those visiting the stand must have been in total awe.... I know I am! From this DT member of Eileen's team I can only thank you from the bottom of my heart for doing such a brilliant job demoing Eileen's amazing new journal die - and you already know that I definitely want to see the die reach the UK shores!! Anne xx

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    1. Thank you so much Anne for all you did in joining the dots and for being such a wonderful friend. It was a real honour to work with Eileen and the other designers in the US and it made this trip even more special. Anne, you need to come with me next time! Meantime we will get that wonderful Journal die to the UK. Sending the hugest of hugs xxx

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  2. P.S. after 32 trips across the pond, I can tell you that the flights do get a bit easier with time!! xx

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    1. Phew! Glad to hear that! The turbulence on the way back wasn't fun ;) xx

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  3. what a wonderful post , full of gorgeous inspiration.!! the sky is the limit for you jenny ...and so well deserved xx

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  4. A great snapshot of your amazing trip Jenny - lovely to see all the photos. Your demos were fab! Slightly jealous of course - but your trip is a result of all your hard work and inspirational creativity! Nxxx

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    1. Thank you Nikki! I would have been jealous too so all I could do for everyone back home was share - glad you enjoyed it. Next year there needs to be a UK invasion xxx

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  5. Excellent write up Jenny! Your journals were so stunning!!

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    1. Thank you so much Cathy! Wonderful to get to meet you xxx

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  6. PHWOAR..................one word says it all :) The journals are amazing Eileen is a clever lady and on to a sure winner with that one! Have loved seeing all your photo's, films and demo's from the trade show, so proud of you Jenny Marples you rock oxoxo

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    1. Bless you Elizabeth! Eileen is a creative genius you're right. So glad you've enjoyed the photos and videos. You're coming too next time! xxx

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  7. These journals look stunning .... would love to get my hands on the die so I definitely hope it makes it to the UK x

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    1. Thank you so much Linda! You'll love this die when it gets here xxx

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  8. Wonderful post Jenny, loved the fact you told us some of the things you got up to and of course sharing your stunning Journals! I would love to get my hands on one of these does! Xx

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    1. Thank you so much Sue! So glad you enjoyed seeing it all. You will have a ball with that die when it gets here xxx

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  9. Stunning samples Jenny! Thanks for sharing your journey with us, it sounds like you had a blast xx hope you've settled back into the swing of things xxx p.s I need that die!

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    1. Thank you so much Kaz! It was awesome to see your beautiful creations in person and I'm glad you've enjoyed what I've shared with you. Looking forward to seeing what you make with that die when it hits these shores! xxx

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  10. So pleased and happy Jenny to see the wonderful video from Marjie and your samples of the journal die, they are magnificent. What a wonderful trip and opportunity to see the masters and the new products. Thanks so much for sharing xxx

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    1. Thank you so much Brenda! So glad you enjoyed everything that was shared xxx

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  11. If I couldn't be there in person, following along with the photos and videos you shared was the next best thing. Your samples and the die are fabulous and I am sure you were a big hit as you did the demos.
    Hugs!
    Cec

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    1. Thank you so much Cec! So glad you enjoyed seeing what was shared - you'd have loved the show xxx

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  12. Wonderful post and loving the photographs. I am so looking forward to being able to buy this die and just loved watching you at Creativition. Thank you so much for sharing.
    Hugs
    Linda xxx

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    1. Thank you so much Linda! So glad you enjoyed it all. You'll absolutely love this die xxx

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  13. Jenny I am so very grateful to you for your awesome demos of the dies, your beautiful samples, informative videos, and determination in making it available to all. I loved getting to know you- what an honor for me as one of your fans 😘. Such a fun show!

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    1. Thank you beyond words for that awesome opportunity Eileen! It was an absolute joy to spend time in your company and work with your wonderful dies. You're right - it really was such a fun show and all the better for having met you at last xxx

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  14. What a pleasure it was to meet you, Jenny, and to see you in action. You're a true pro and you handled the crowds and the questions with ease. Fingers crossed to see you again next year!

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    1. Thank you so much! The pleasure was all mine Marjie and it was amazing to see you in action flying round the show in a whirl of social media sharing with everyone. I would love to be back there next year xxx

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  15. Fabulous, Jenny! Loved seeing the video from the show, and thanks for re-posting as your demo is absolutely chalk full of ideas! I hope you all successfully lobby Sizzix to make this die available in the UK - you and your colleagues are so clever with books and such that I cannot wait to see what awaits! And a new video from you - over the moon! What a great addition to the show you were!! xxx Lynn

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    1. Thank you so much Lyn! I'm so glad you enjoyed seeing it all and knowing your talents feel sure you'd create magic yourself with this die xxx

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  16. Wow, not one but 3 journals, all wonderfully embellished. Great to see all the demos from Creativation Jenny. You did an amazing job! Ruth x

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    1. Thank you so much Ruth! So glad you enjoyed it all xxx

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  17. Wonderful journals and it looks like you met some fantastic people as well

    Love Chrissie xx

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    1. Thank you so much Chrissie! I certainly did meet some amazing people xxx

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  18. Jenny, your journals are fabulous!! Just like the super star who made them!! You're so amazing talented! I'm so grateful to have had the pleasure of meeting you in person!! Hugs my friend... And keep wow-ing us with your creativity!!❤

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    1. Thank you so much Mitsyana! It was a joy to meet you and learn from you too. Sending hugs and thanks for your part in making the trip so special for me xxx

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  19. Wow Jenny, what a fabulous post. I followed you on the journey and really enjoyed it too, but seeing your work and those wonderful journals makes it even more special. Time for yourself now I guess. Thank you for sharing your exciting experience too. Hugs Rita xxx

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    1. Thank you so much Rita! So glad you enjoyed it all xxx

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  20. Such great meetings and a fabulous stay there! These journals are wonderful!

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    1. Thank you so much Lys! It was indeed fabulous xxx

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  21. what fabulous journals!! glad you had such a wonderful time

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    1. Thank you so much Helen! It was an amazing show xxx

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  22. Lovely to see your recap! It was so wonderful to meet you, and get to know you a little bit, and I loved watching you demo!!!

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    1. Thank you so much Anita! It was wonderful to meet you at last too and I really enjoyed watching you demo and your recap posts too xxx

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  23. So excited to see you in action Jenny! I am particularly excited about the new dies from Eileen Hull.
    Thanks for the demo!
    sandy xx

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    1. Thank you so much Sandy! I'm sure you'll love the new dies from Eileen even more when you get chance to create with them xxx

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  24. Thanks for sharing photos Jenny and congrats on being such a hit. The journals looks fabulous! Nicola x

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    1. Thank you so much Nicola! The journal die does the hard work so it was a pleasure to then decorate them. My goodness you'd work wonders with one! xxx

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  25. These are just amazing, what an inspiration! Hugs, Autumn

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    1. Thank you so much Autumn! And how cool that I got to see your fabulous creations for Sizzix in person too! You really created some magic with those - genuinely one of my favourite booths xxx

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  26. So wonderful to meet you at CHA Jenny and get to take Seth's class with you and Sandy, too much fun! Congratulations on your wonderful success, by all accounts you are the Demo Queen! Deb xo

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    1. Amazing to finally meet up with you too Deb! Love that we got to see each other even if all too briefly. Not sure I'm the demo queen but it's lovely of you to say :) Just wanted to do Eileen's incredible die proud xx

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  27. Thanks Jenny for sharing your amazing experience . So wonderful to see you flying high with your creativity and talent - you so deserve every ounce of it as you are a lovely person who works so hard at sharing , educating and inspiring. Loved watching you demo and its been an absolute joy reading this post, seeing your gorgeous samples up close and seeing the fabulous photos of some of the kings and queens of the crafting world . Don that crown my lovley friend and wear it with pride .
    hugs x

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    1. Thank you so much Amanda. I feel very humble to have been welcomed in so warmly out there by people who I have admired for so long. It's also really lovely that you enjoyed this post - didn't want it to sound like boasting or anything. Thank you for your lovely feedback xx

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  28. Wow! These journals do look wonderful! Great to see your photos! Chrisx

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    1. Thank you so much Chris. I'm so pleased you like them and enjoyed the photos xx

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  29. Oh Jenny....I am so excited with this post x How fabulous to meet up with Debs and Sandy as well as Marjie Kemper etc. Love your journals xx The journal die looks amazing and hopefully it will be available here soon xx Looks like you had lots of fun and created wonderful memories.

    Sending huge hugs
    Annie xx

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    1. Thank you so much for your lovely feedback Annie and for your email before I left. Time is never on my side for getting back to people these days but your wishes were very much appreciated. We will be working hard to get that die to these shores as I'm sure you'd have a lot of fun with it xx

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Thank you for stopping by and leaving your comments - they are really appreciated and will be published when moderated. Jenny xxx

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