Changes to some products from Stampin' Up!

 We had some big announcements at Stampin' Up! today! Some a bit of a bummer and some really nice! 

I will start with the bummer.  Red Rubber Cling Stamps are being discontinued.  The base materials that Stampin' Up! uses is getting harder and harder to source, and more expensive.  To keep from disruptions to supplies and inventory, as well as to keep costs down, Stampin' Up! has made the difficult decision to transition all their stamps to photopolymer going forward.  I love red rubber and think it gives the best stamped image, but I understand that sometimes things have to change even when we don't really want them to.  I also know that Stampin' Up! cares about how well their stamps work and will keep their photopolymer stamps at a high level of quality.  With this change comes some new packaging.  That is the nice news!  This new packaging is super slim! Since photopolymer stamps are thinner, the larger cases are no longer needed.  New stamp collections will come in the sleeker cases shown below AND new die collections will come in the same cases! The die die cases will also have die images on the front of the cases, just like the stamp images! I love that! 

I loved having the stamp images on the spine of the case, because it was easy to see what the set was, but I will get used to this. I am going to love the space savings because my craft room can get a bit crowded!  Stampin' Up! will continue to sell the old style DVD type cases in the supply area, and evaluate it people still want them.  They may discontinue them depending on sales.  Stampin' Up! will also offer the new stamp sleeves in the supply section for those that want to put their current collection into the new sleeves so that their collection is all the same. 

When will you start seeing this change?  The first new stamp and die cases will roll out with new releases in November with the release of the November Online Exclusives.  Current stamp sets will transition into new cases and inventory levels of older style cases sell out. 

One more change that for some is a bummer and some not.  Stampin' Up! is going to discontinue the Stampin' Write Markers.  The reasons for this are that two fold.  First, sales of the Stampin' Write Marker dropped dramatically with the introduction of the Stampin' Blends marker line.  I have to admit I reach for my Stampin' Blends way more than I reach for my Stampin' Write Markers.  I did love that I had both options, but I used the Blends more and I guess so did a lot of people.  Even with the drop in sales, Stampin' Up! kept the Stampin' Write Markers around because crafters loved using them with the Red Rubber stamps, because you could color directly on the stamps to get multiple colors on one stamp. This doesn't work well on photopolymer, the Stampin' Write Markers and Photopolymer did not play nice together, but it was great on the Red Rubber stamps. Since red rubber is getting discontinued, that reason to keep Stampin' Write markers went away. 

Stampin' Write Markers are being added to the Last Change List TOMORROW, so if you would like to get some before they are gone, now's the time.   

You can watch a video from Stampin' Up! about these changes below.

 

 Change can be hard! I know that.  Chance is sometimes necessary even when we don't want it.  The good news is that I know that Stampin' Up! cares and is looking out for the health of their company, which in turn means that it is looking out for the health of my small business. AND, the new Holiday mini catalog is super cute so I am happy to have the great fun products that Stampin' Up! keeps bringing my way!