Studying industry trends can help you make informed choices for your business and improve your product offerings. Explore where our industry is headed, and dive into the trends for 2020 that are shaping the craft industry.
From records to skateboards, glass bottles to guitar strings, here’s a look at a handful of upcycling artisans who see function and beauty in recycled discards.
In the wake of h + h 2019, the biggest trade craft fair for the German market, the German industry association, Initiative Handarbeiten, has published a review of the German craft market over the last 5 years.
Motivated by the desire to make their own costumes, cosplayers are buying sewing machines, patterns, fabrics and supplies and they’re taking classes to develop their sewing skills. The sewing industry is taking note, especially since cosplayers are typically between 18-39 years old, a market that retailers are desperate to reach.
The creative market in the European Union is nearly as big as the United States’, but with some very curious differences.
Glowforge, the home laser cutter, is about to become available to many more crafters, including those who can’t afford the hefty price tag (the retail price is $4,000, twice what it was during the crowdfunding campaign) and don’t have a dedicated space to house it. At the end of December the nation’s largest fabric and craft retailer, JOANN, announced a significant investment in Glowforge. Here’s how some crafters are reacting to the news.
Creative businesses benefit from keeping tabs on trends — it’s one way to stay ahead of the curve with your marketing efforts. Here’s what’s on deck in 2019.
Bestselling patterns frequently have elements in common. Working to include some, or all, of these in a pattern, can help it have a better shot at rising to top seller status.
Each year, the Pantone Color Institute looks at the film and entertainment industry, art collections and new artists, fashion, design, travel, new technologies, and materials, as well as socio-economic conditions to establish the Color of the Year. 2019’s Living Coral is a lively orange hue with a strong pink undertone; the warmth of Living Coral speaks to a yearning to connect socially in meaningful ways but through digital tools.
Weaving rarely surfaces to the level of popular culture, but in the aughts it has fared well. Here are some of the trends that are bringing weaving to the fore.
Nancy Nally is the owner of Nally Studios and the publisher and editor of Scrapbook Update and Craft Critique, two websites focused on the scrapbooking industry. And avid scrapbooker for more than 20 years, Nancy has a keen interest in news and trends that affect the industry. This year she’s been bringing us quarterly reports on the scrapbooking industry. Check out her first one here. Today Nancy is back with her second update.
Craft Industry Alliance is excited to have Darice join us as a corporate member. Darice is a premier manufacturer and wholesale distributor to the crafts industry that carries more than 45,000 products.
Reuse, repurpose, and recycle is more than a slogan at SCRAP USA — it’s a business model that aims to make creative reuse stores a sustainable endeavor applicable to any community.
Jody Rice is the face behind Satsuma Street, a cross stitch design company that offers both digital PDFs and printed cross stitch patterns, as well as complete cross stitch kits. Rice’s tag line is “changing people’s minds about cross stitch since 2013,” and if you take a look at her modern colorful designs, you’ll see why!
JOANN is hoping their new concept store in Columbus, Ohio will leave guest inspired to tackle their crafty vision boards one project at a time. The grand opening unveiled their new store, with a Creator’s Studio inside, which signals a new direction for the company, one of the largest craft retail chains in the nation.
Punch needle crafting is seeing a surge of interest in 2018, fueled perhaps by the recent revival of macrame and loom weaving.
Nancy Nally is the owner of Nally Studios and the publisher and editor of Scrapbook Update and Craft Critique, two websites focused on the scrapbooking industry. And avid scrapbooker for more than 20 years, Nancy has a keen interest in news and trends that affect the industry. This year she will be bringing us quarterly reports on the scrapbooking industry and we’re excited to publish this first installment.
Mood boards are a wonderful tool to get un-stuck, organized, or inspired. Use a mood board to tighten your vision for a project and refine the aesthetic.
Many people take up hand lettering as a way to de-stress, but figuring out where to start can be an overwhelming task.
Crafters spent about $36.2 billion dollars on creative products in 2017, mostly at physical stores but also on the internet and through catalogs, according to a study commissioned by the Association For Creative Industries (AFCI). Learn more of the results from this study, plus get a glimpse into trends and new products spotted at Creativation 2018 in Phoenix.