News Roundup from the Scrapbook Industry: Winter 2019

Events

SNAP Conference, a popular event with DIY bloggers, is undergoing major changes in 2020. The event has been acquired again (read about the first acquisition here), this time by Everything Food Conference founded by CEO Kami Kilgore. With the new ownership is coming other changes as well. The conference is moving from its traditional spring date to Oct. 5^th-7^th, 2020. It is also moving venues to Layton, Utah from its previous home in Salt Lake City.

Returns

Basic Grey has indicated in the past few months that it may be considering returning to the paper market. The company, which has an avid following for its unique designs, discontinued making scrapbooking products nearly four years ago but continues to produce quilting fabric. Facebook fans began commenting requesting a return to the company producing paper after seeing the company’s recent “Stiletto” quilt fabric release. In response, Basic Grey has indicated that the company is considering producing periodic limited edition paper lines if they determine there is enough interest.

“Since we are creating content for the quilt market we have considered offering paper products again, but in most likely a much smaller way than the past. It might look something like a periodic release with a single ship. So if you want it buy it it won’t be reprinted. It will most likely be a one and done deal with each release.” (Basic Grey in response to former designer Kelly Goree on October 7^th)

Basic Grey is collecting email addresses via direct message on their Facebook page from those requesting a return to paper products to gauge interest in the concept.

Litigation

There’s been a flurry of pivotal action the past two weeks in the patent infringement litigation that Ellison (known to most scrapbookers for its Sizzix brand of die cutting products) has been pursuing against several companies. Ellison’s cases against Prima Marketing and Avery Elle ended in confidential settlements earlier this year, leaving Hero Arts, Heartfelt Creations and Stephanie Barnard Designs as remaining targets.

Recent action in the final case Ellison filed, against Heartfelt Creations, has been relatively routine. The parties held a joint scheduling conference for the case on December 10^th that will dictate deadlines for various steps as the case proceeds towards trial in 2020.

On November 27^th, Hero Arts and Ellison filed a stipulation with the court ending that case due to a settlement between the parties. The stipulation indicated that the companies will pay their own legal fees but no other details have been released.

Stephanie Barnard Designs filed with the court in their case with Ellison on December 11^th requesting that the judge order a temporary halt to proceedings. The stay request is asking to keep the case on hold until the USPTO (U.S. Patent & Trademark Office) rules on whether it will conduct a full review of the challenges that Stephanie Barnard Designs has filed questioning the validity of Ellison’s patent. If the patent is invalidated by a USPTO review, Ellison’s cases against both Stephanie Barnard Designs and Heartfelt Creations would be over.

The USPTO has also become involved in another high-profile piece of litigation in the papercrafts segment. This case, between My Sweet Petunia and Stampin’ Up, is over the stamp platform patents currently held by MSP. The USPTO has agreed to conduct a review of the two patents at issue in that case.  The case is currently stayed, with all court proceedings halted, until those reviews are completed by USPTO.

People

Industry veteran Mike Hartnett, known to many as the former owner/author of online trade journal Creative Leisure News, has recently published a memoir. Called “And I Cried Too: Confronting Evil In A Small Town”, the book covers a period in the 1970’s when a series of murders struck the small Illinois college where Mike and his wife worked.

New

Graphic 45, which already had a kit club called Club G45, announced that it is launching a second one. The new G45 Card Club will be a monthly kit club that will ship its first kit in January 2020. The retail price of $30 per kit includes shipping in the continental U.S.

Tammy Tutterow, known for her previous work with Ranger and Spellbinders, has launched collections with two new companies in the past month. In November, Tutterow launched a collection of thin metal die designs that cut fabric with Crafter’s Edge, along with some metal embellishments. Designs in the collection include succulents, foliage and flowers. Then last week, Tutterow also premiered a new line of stamps and dies with Maker’s Movement. This latest collection includes tag dies and planner stamps, among other designs.

Going green

A movement pushed by environmental organizations to ban glitter has been gaining more momentum recently. Like the microbeads that were banned from cosmetics in the U.S. in 2017, glitter is a microplastic that damages the environment (particularly marine environments). But glitter, despite its environmental impact, remains very popular as an embellishment with crafters. Hero Arts appears to be the first major papercrafting company to embrace an environmentally friendly alternative to microplastic glitter with its December 2019 “My Monthly Hero” kit. The monthly stamping kit is themed to celebrate the beauty and diversity of the world. In keeping with the kit’s theme, it features a green half-ounce packet of a biodegradable product called Ecoglitter.