CHA: Notable New Products

Last Friday, my wonderful husband and I hopped on a plane and headed off to Anaheim, CA for the 2013 CHA Winter Conference and Trade Show.

(In case you don't know what CHA is, it stands for Craft and Hobby Association. The winter show is the big industry event where craft companies debut their newest products.)

My view out the plane window

When we arrived in Anaheim, I had to hit the ground running, as I had a ton of events and meetings to attend!

First on the agenda was the Innovations show. This show, only open to buyers and media, highlights the 20 best new products at CHA. My favorite product of the 20 was the new Tim Holtz Distress Paint.

This new paint from Ranger is a water-based acrylic paint with no fillers. Because it is water-based, it cleans up with just soap and water (or even just a baby wipe!), and since it has no fillers, it doesn't have a weird flaky texture when dry like most acrylic paints. It can be opaque or you can spread it with your fingers to give it a more chalky look.

Tim Holtz demonstrates his new Distress Paint

This new paint can be used on a variety of surfaces, including paper, chipboard, and even metal! The paints come in 24 of Tim's signature colors with more colors to be added in the future. I got a sample of Distress Paint and I can't wait to try it!

Following the Innovations show, I was lucky enough to attend the CHA Designer Sneak Peek. This show allows CHA designer section members a preview of some of the new companies and their products. I saw some awesome new products there, including the Envelop Punch Board from We R Memory Keepers and  CraftAttitude printable craft film.

The Envelop Punch Board is an an awesome new tool from We R Memory Keepers. It helps you make 80 different sized envelopes for your cards! It's so incredibly easy to use. I can see this being a must-have tool for card-makers. It will be available soon and will retail for $19.99.

Another super- innovative new product at CHA was the printable craft film from CraftAttitude. This film can be run through your printer and put on just about any surface you can think of: wood, fabric, metal, even shoes! I can see myself using this... maybe to make some Hello Kitty shoes?!

And thus ended my first day at CHA. Stay tuned for more CHA goodies!