2018 Scrapbook Trend Forecasting

So you may have noticed, I posted yesterday on the blog sharing the January & February 2018 Scrapbook Collection Releases. While I was looking over the post today and thinking about all of the different collections that are coming out. I thought it would be kinda fun to share what I noticed about the collections and just some general thoughts on everything. Here are the top 15 trends I noticed. 

1. The first thing I noticed was that there are a TON of florals and flowers. Now don't get me wrong, I love florals - but there were a lot of them. I think just about every single collection contained a flower or florals or leaves of some kind. Except maybe the boy specific lines by Echo Park (Imagine That Boy! and Sweet Baby Boy), Pebbles (Night Night), and the Wizard World collection by PhotoPlay everything else had foliage. Some florals were hand-drawn, some were cutesy, some were graphic, some detailed and some were simple. If you love flowers as much as I do, you'll have a lot to choose from. 

2. What's up with the moths? I didn't just moths in one collection - they actually popped up in a number of them. And I had no idea moths were trendy or even stylish enough to stick on my layouts but I probably will end up getting a few to incorporate. You can find Moth's in the Twilight collection by 1canoe2 and the Pick-Me-Up collection by Paige Evans. 

3. Llama's and pineapples may be on their way out - but they're not gone yet. Last season I felt like I couldn't escape the llama's and pineapples - they were EVERYWHERE - but you'll be pleasantly surprised to know they only popped up a few times. I actually only noticed llama's in the Paprika collection by Becky Fleck for Photoplay.  Pineapples can be found in the Mom Life collection by Bella Blvd, Island Escape by Bella Blvd and the Fruit of the Spirit collection by Illustrated Faith for Bella Blvd. On the other hand, I did notice a ton of other birds and fruit. Peacocks might be replacing the llamas and tropical fruits like lemons might be replacing the pineapples. 

4. Is everyone having a baby? There were so many baby collections and baby inspired icons and themes - it was everywhere! Bella Blvd had a baby themed set of pennants. And Pepples (Night Night) and Echo Park (Sweet Baby Girl and Sweet Baby Boy) had dedicated boy/girl collections that were baby themed. I also kinda felt like Easter Blessings for Photoplay had a cutesy, pastel, babyish vibe which would work well for documenting baby. 

5. Butterflies are flying into this winter release. You can find butterflies of some sort in tons of the collections. Apparently Dear Lizzy (Stay Colorful), Amy Tangerine (Sunshine & Good Times), Maggie Holmes (Flourish), Cocoa Vanilla (More Than Words), Prima (Cherry Blossom, Lavender and Amelia Rose), KaiserCraft (Fairy Garden), Photoplay (Mad 4 Plaid Happy, Spring in My Garden, and Gypsy Rose), and Echo Park (Hello Spring) all got the memo. 

6. Spring and Easter themes kept popping up but that's not unusual considering what season is right around the corner. Bunnies are hopping up everywhere! If you like spring and Easter collections you should check out Hello Spring (by Echo Park), Spring Market (by Echo Park), Cherry Blossom (by Prima), Spring in My Garden (by Becky Fleck for Photoplay), Easter Blessings (by Mari Koegleenberg for Photoplay), and Hello Easter (by Echo Park). My favourite bunny this season though... absolutely goes to Spring in My Garden's adorable bunny.

7. Where did all the emoji's go? I'm not sure if I just missed them or something, but I only saw emojis in the Pick-Me-Up collection by Paige Evans. Here I was just getting use to using them and they disappeared. #sadface

8. Fantastical magical make-believe creatures are making their debut - can anyone say cat mermaids? Stay Colorful by Dear Lizzy included mermaids, cat mermaids (not sure what those are) and unicorns. KaiserCraft has their Fairy Garden collection. Seriously though, I think Echo Park's Imagine That boy and girl collections are hands down the winners of fantasy and make-believe. The boy collection included pirate sharks and pirate octopus, superhero dogs and bears, while the girl collection included unicorns, mermaids, and cat unicorns. Can I call wizards magical creatures? If so, I'll add Wizard World by Becky Fleck for PhotoPlay to this trend. Oh also, am I the only one who noticed a dog with antlers in the Gypsy Rose collection... I mean it's probably a deer (and when I SAY PROBABLY, I really mean it is) but it really looks like a dog. - I don't hate it though... its kinda cute.

9. Boy/Girl collections aren't going anywhere. Personally, I'm not a huge fan of boy/girl collections - simply because I feel like why can't people use the colours they want to.. but I do understand why companies do it. I bet the boy/girl collections sell better in stores. This season you'll find dedicated boy/girl collections from Echo Park (Imagine That Boy! and Imagine That Girl!),  Echo Park (Sweet Baby Girl and Sweet Baby Boy) and Pebbles (Night Night). It's pretty distinctive which collection is which. 

10. Watercolour is making a comeback - which I for one am all in favour of. Bring on the soft and airy watercolour! Thank you, Amy Tangerine (Sunshine & Good Times), 1canoe2 (Twilight), Cocoa Vanilla (More Than Words), Illustrated Faith (All People All Nations) and Photoplay (Spring in My Garden). 

11. Purple is popping up pleasantly. When I saw the Pantone colour of the year for 2018 was Ultra Violet, I wondered if it (and other purple tones) would pop up in any of the collections - and it did. You can find it in Sunshine & Good Times by Amy Tangerine, Imagine That Girl! by Echo Park,  Misty Mountains by KaiserCraft, Easter Blessings by Photoplay, and Lavender by Prima.

12. Buckle up and get ready for the cultural icons and travel themes this year. First up, Paris. I actually noticed Parisian inspired icons in three different collections - notably the Love Story collection by Frank Garcia for Prima, the Dame collection by Authentique and Here + There by Crate Paper. You can also find Asian inspiration in Paper Crane by PhotoPlay and a Mediterranean colours and vibe in Paprika by PhotoPlay. Not to mention, Here + There by Crate Paper will take you a wild ride by train, plane, bicycle and car all over the entire world.

13. Wondering what's unique? A Case of the Blahs by PinkFresh's focus on the real-life, not-so-great moments of life really stood out as a unique take on scrapbooking. Wizard World by PhotoPlay (a Harry Potter themed collection), So Punny by Doodlebug (a Puntastic Kawaii themed collection), Practically Perfect by Echo Park (a Mary-Poppinsesk tea party and adventures in the park themed collection), Paprika by PhotoPlay (a Mediterranian-inspired themed collection), Paper Crane by PhotoPlay (an Asian themed collection), and Gypsy Rose by Traci Smith (a free-spirited bohemian themed collection) are also super unique. Often I hear people say "there's nothing new under the sun" but I'm not sure that's true. Check out the uniqueness of these collections for something new AND different. 

14. There are also a bunch of stand-out products you may want to keep your eye out for. I actually am quite impressed by Amy Tangerine who has a tiny-one-symbol rotary stamp, wire word clips (are these paper clips?), and pom-pom tassels.  You can also find wooden clothes pins (from 1canoe2 and Dear Lizzy).  I've also never seen layered tassels like the Here + There collection by Crate Paper - and you might have missed it but apparently, the puffy stickers are EMBOSSED! And my absolute favourite stand-out product, the embroidered birdy in the Flourish collection by Maggie Holmes. 

15. Last but not least - Charcoal. Am I the only one who noticed, charcoal popping-up in lieu of black?  Not sure what charcoal is?  Don't worry if you're not sure what the difference between charcoal and black is, I googled it - black is black-black while charcoal is grey-black.  Charcoal is the super soft grey-black which is the perfect compliment for most colours and creates a really dreamy look. Check out the Flourish collection by Maggie Homes to see how she's using charcoal instead of a strong black to create a super dreamy vibe.  I actually really love the charcoal this year, also found in More Than Words collection by Coca Vanilla, Spring Market by Carta Bella, Amelia Rose by Prima, Little Women by Graphic 45 and definitely Gypsy Rose by PhotoPlay. 

Well, there ya have it - the top 15 stand out trends and things I noticed in the January/February releases.  While I'm a teeny bit cautious about calling these trends since 2018 just started they are the top 15 things I noticed. I guess we'll see if these trends continue.

What do you think? Which of these trends are you lovin' or leavin'? Did anything else stand out to you? Let me know in the comments. 

xoxo 

Tori