Welcome To The Cherry On Top,
I've got a bit of a special blog for you, today. I've done some serious research, asked around and have compiled a fairly comprehensive list of online scrapbooking stores that sell traditional scrapbooking and craft products...get this...from around the world. Hehehe...Since several people were interested in specific areas, I did even more research for those areas requested. I hope this list will be helpful for your future purchases.
I'll admit that I am affiliated with a few of the shops on the list, but it's only because they are, in my opinion some of the very best. I have high expectations of my store visits and I found myself not only enjoying some of my browsing experiences, but learning a whole lot from it.
Personally, I do dig a larger shop with a huge selection and totally kicking clearance. I also really, really want to see a blog or at least a page full of tutorials and projects. I'm a bit of a scatter brain. So, it is really important that the site is easy to manoeuvre. For me, simple is important. Well organised and clear are also very much appreciated.
Let me share with you my findings and hopefully, give you a new, lovely place to shop. These stores are really not in any kind of order, but are divided by world region.
Since most of my readers are from the States and I have the most experience with these shops, I'll start with those. I'll begin with the big ones, that most of you may already know. At least this way, I'll give you links so you can go visit these stores and form your own opinions.
United States:
Michael's and AC Moore were my go to shops when I lived in the States. Though, towards my stay in the States, it seemed the scrapbooking department was shrinking. Yikes. I visited both online stores and Michael's certainly stood out and was a lot more extensive across the board. Though, I had an icon for a buggy/cart at AC Moore, I didn't see anything to buy. They did have some really nifty inspiration though. My mom loves to go to the actual store for the coupons and she often sends me stuff from there.
Michael's had a really nifty site and I would highly recommend it, though I do love touching and going through the aisles in reality. Hehehe...What I wouldn't give to do that, today! I can't even post a nifty craft shop here in Belgium except one shop that is over an hour's ride away. What was I thinking when I moved here?! How on earth did I not do my scrap shop research first?! Hehehe...
A Cherry On Top is another huge, online store with a nifty gallery and they also offer a live chat, which makes them unique. I've ordered from them several times and they shipped all of the way over to Europe for me. Most places do this, but it ain't cheap. Typically, it's around $50 for shipping. You might also want to make sure there are no extra fees if you are shipping internationally, They can be very steep. They have nothing to do with the store, but from whatever country you reside. The ideas board can certainly be more user friendly, but once you find what you're looking for, it's pretty good. I thought the prices here were good, too and the clearance selection not bad either.
JoAnn is another big shop, but the variety is nothing like some of the other big shops. The site is quite nice, clear and easy to use and there is also an inspiration page as well some awesome looking sales with really good discounts. The coupons are killer here! The brands are fairly limited, but man do they have a lot of sweet projects there. Hit them up for inspiration.
Scrapbook.com has the best choice and selection, in my own opinion. Just scroll through the lists of supplies and designers and you'll see what I'm talking about. They have a blog, gallery, tutorials and a lot of social spots that stay current. They are a very prominent scrapbooking store that offers a lot to their customers. I'd even suggest getting the newsletter so you can keep up with their many promotions. This past season, they even had quite some free stuff with purchase.
Creat4Less is a bit more crafty than the others. You can get more hobby stuff there, but I just love the prices. It's not easy finding them cheaper somewhere else. The selection isn't quite the same as the others, but I always go there first to see if they have what I'm looking for because it is often the cheapest. They've got a little bit of bloggish stuff going on, but it's mostly about the store for this one.
Blitsy is totally new to me! I just found them in a search I was doing for this blog and if I may be completely honest, found the site very appealing. So clean and neat and very easy to use. Another huge plus point is FREE WORLD WIDE SHIPPING. Now, you'll have to check out the details for that one, but no one I researched or use has this deal. Their line of designers is quite small, but they are the top lines in the industry. Their clearance boasts over 12,000 items. Hello! There is no gallery. However, their inspiration page is pretty fab. They also have a section for freebies. I didn't see that anywhere else. They are just blog link ups and several lead to dead ends, but still. It's a great idea and I'm wondering why more stores don't do this.
Paper Issues is definitely on a smaller scale. Several people recommended them. They also had a lot of free files and I was digging on their swag bags. The prices for these were really great.
So, that's my list for the U.S. and all of them ship internationally. Many of them have free shipping for U.S. residents over a certain amount starting at $50. Though, I know Scrapbook.com often has coupons for free shipping. Look out for those.
Flanders, Belgium
If you're in the Flemish speaking part of Belgium, consider heading over to Tiny's Hobby in Kortrijk. They've got a pretty darn good selection of scrap stuff and they offer a lot of classes. Though they can definitely amp up the crops. They used to offer several a year. I think they only have one in the summer, now. My gal Vicky and her family run the place and they are very helpful and knowledgable with a lot of hobbies. Here is the link for their page on Facebook, too.
Pipoos, has an every shrinking scrapbooking department and the prices kill me, but it's better than nothing. You can find scrapbooking and paper craft goodies at Action and Boekenvoordeel, though through my experience, the quality is at a minimum. I often have to re adhere my goodies from both of these places. None of these have online shopping, however.
I'll admit, going through the sites from the UK was underwhelming. I'm such a tight wad and the prices just kill me when it comes to currency configuration. Hehehe... I found two that stood out a bit.
United Kingdom
Papermaze had a pretty good selection. Especially, for just papers. There were hardly any kits to be found, though. The clearance section was largish, though the discounts were not deep enough for me. I'm cheap, ok! There was also a lot of out of stock, which is a disappointment for me. All of these lovely things, but ya can't have them. Hehehe...They offer international shipping and promise to ship at impressive dates. I didn't see that everywhere. They also have a blog!
Craftelier had a pretty good selection and the site itself was very nice to zip around. It was appealing and fun to look at it. I thought the shipping prices were really a bargain. They offer free shipping to Europe with 100 Pounds or more and only 6 pounds up to 100 Pounds of purchase. Check out the details on that one.
Canada
I was specifically asked to mention Canada. I have no personal experience when dealing with Canada. Hehehe...Here are a few I found.
Scrapshotz a small, but nice selection, subscription options which I think are pretty nifty and they have a gallery, too. So the site is a bit larger and sometimes that makes it more appealing or professional. I just love seeing products in action. They have a dollar bin, which I love!
Scrapbookcafe has such a pretty site. It's very easy to use. You have to spend over $150 to get free shipping and the design list is fairly long. Right now, it appears only to be a store. There is a blog page, but I couldn't get there through it. I didn't see any product in use, but the overall appearance and feel for the store was very nice.
Australia
If you're living down under I have this link for you.
Craftonline is a larger site with free shipping with $50 purchase or more. Their designer selection is pretty darn sweet and they have weekly specials, too. No blog, no gallery or tutorials, but very easy to use store. Next day postage is also useful when you can't wait to get your hands on your products. They are also linked up pretty well socially speaking.
That's a wrap! I hope these links and descriptions will help you find the right store for your crafting needs. If you've got a great shop you use, link us up. Share your pretty projects, pages, albums and talk craft with us in our group, here.
Happy crafting!
I've got a bit of a special blog for you, today. I've done some serious research, asked around and have compiled a fairly comprehensive list of online scrapbooking stores that sell traditional scrapbooking and craft products...get this...from around the world. Hehehe...Since several people were interested in specific areas, I did even more research for those areas requested. I hope this list will be helpful for your future purchases.
I'll admit that I am affiliated with a few of the shops on the list, but it's only because they are, in my opinion some of the very best. I have high expectations of my store visits and I found myself not only enjoying some of my browsing experiences, but learning a whole lot from it.
Personally, I do dig a larger shop with a huge selection and totally kicking clearance. I also really, really want to see a blog or at least a page full of tutorials and projects. I'm a bit of a scatter brain. So, it is really important that the site is easy to manoeuvre. For me, simple is important. Well organised and clear are also very much appreciated.
Let me share with you my findings and hopefully, give you a new, lovely place to shop. These stores are really not in any kind of order, but are divided by world region.
Since most of my readers are from the States and I have the most experience with these shops, I'll start with those. I'll begin with the big ones, that most of you may already know. At least this way, I'll give you links so you can go visit these stores and form your own opinions.
United States:
Michael's and AC Moore were my go to shops when I lived in the States. Though, towards my stay in the States, it seemed the scrapbooking department was shrinking. Yikes. I visited both online stores and Michael's certainly stood out and was a lot more extensive across the board. Though, I had an icon for a buggy/cart at AC Moore, I didn't see anything to buy. They did have some really nifty inspiration though. My mom loves to go to the actual store for the coupons and she often sends me stuff from there.
Michael's had a really nifty site and I would highly recommend it, though I do love touching and going through the aisles in reality. Hehehe...What I wouldn't give to do that, today! I can't even post a nifty craft shop here in Belgium except one shop that is over an hour's ride away. What was I thinking when I moved here?! How on earth did I not do my scrap shop research first?! Hehehe...
A Cherry On Top is another huge, online store with a nifty gallery and they also offer a live chat, which makes them unique. I've ordered from them several times and they shipped all of the way over to Europe for me. Most places do this, but it ain't cheap. Typically, it's around $50 for shipping. You might also want to make sure there are no extra fees if you are shipping internationally, They can be very steep. They have nothing to do with the store, but from whatever country you reside. The ideas board can certainly be more user friendly, but once you find what you're looking for, it's pretty good. I thought the prices here were good, too and the clearance selection not bad either.
JoAnn is another big shop, but the variety is nothing like some of the other big shops. The site is quite nice, clear and easy to use and there is also an inspiration page as well some awesome looking sales with really good discounts. The coupons are killer here! The brands are fairly limited, but man do they have a lot of sweet projects there. Hit them up for inspiration.
Scrapbook.com has the best choice and selection, in my own opinion. Just scroll through the lists of supplies and designers and you'll see what I'm talking about. They have a blog, gallery, tutorials and a lot of social spots that stay current. They are a very prominent scrapbooking store that offers a lot to their customers. I'd even suggest getting the newsletter so you can keep up with their many promotions. This past season, they even had quite some free stuff with purchase.
Creat4Less is a bit more crafty than the others. You can get more hobby stuff there, but I just love the prices. It's not easy finding them cheaper somewhere else. The selection isn't quite the same as the others, but I always go there first to see if they have what I'm looking for because it is often the cheapest. They've got a little bit of bloggish stuff going on, but it's mostly about the store for this one.
Blitsy is totally new to me! I just found them in a search I was doing for this blog and if I may be completely honest, found the site very appealing. So clean and neat and very easy to use. Another huge plus point is FREE WORLD WIDE SHIPPING. Now, you'll have to check out the details for that one, but no one I researched or use has this deal. Their line of designers is quite small, but they are the top lines in the industry. Their clearance boasts over 12,000 items. Hello! There is no gallery. However, their inspiration page is pretty fab. They also have a section for freebies. I didn't see that anywhere else. They are just blog link ups and several lead to dead ends, but still. It's a great idea and I'm wondering why more stores don't do this.
Paper Issues is definitely on a smaller scale. Several people recommended them. They also had a lot of free files and I was digging on their swag bags. The prices for these were really great.
So, that's my list for the U.S. and all of them ship internationally. Many of them have free shipping for U.S. residents over a certain amount starting at $50. Though, I know Scrapbook.com often has coupons for free shipping. Look out for those.
Flanders, Belgium
If you're in the Flemish speaking part of Belgium, consider heading over to Tiny's Hobby in Kortrijk. They've got a pretty darn good selection of scrap stuff and they offer a lot of classes. Though they can definitely amp up the crops. They used to offer several a year. I think they only have one in the summer, now. My gal Vicky and her family run the place and they are very helpful and knowledgable with a lot of hobbies. Here is the link for their page on Facebook, too.
Pipoos, has an every shrinking scrapbooking department and the prices kill me, but it's better than nothing. You can find scrapbooking and paper craft goodies at Action and Boekenvoordeel, though through my experience, the quality is at a minimum. I often have to re adhere my goodies from both of these places. None of these have online shopping, however.
I'll admit, going through the sites from the UK was underwhelming. I'm such a tight wad and the prices just kill me when it comes to currency configuration. Hehehe... I found two that stood out a bit.
United Kingdom
Papermaze had a pretty good selection. Especially, for just papers. There were hardly any kits to be found, though. The clearance section was largish, though the discounts were not deep enough for me. I'm cheap, ok! There was also a lot of out of stock, which is a disappointment for me. All of these lovely things, but ya can't have them. Hehehe...They offer international shipping and promise to ship at impressive dates. I didn't see that everywhere. They also have a blog!
Craftelier had a pretty good selection and the site itself was very nice to zip around. It was appealing and fun to look at it. I thought the shipping prices were really a bargain. They offer free shipping to Europe with 100 Pounds or more and only 6 pounds up to 100 Pounds of purchase. Check out the details on that one.
Canada
I was specifically asked to mention Canada. I have no personal experience when dealing with Canada. Hehehe...Here are a few I found.
Scrapshotz a small, but nice selection, subscription options which I think are pretty nifty and they have a gallery, too. So the site is a bit larger and sometimes that makes it more appealing or professional. I just love seeing products in action. They have a dollar bin, which I love!
Scrapbookcafe has such a pretty site. It's very easy to use. You have to spend over $150 to get free shipping and the design list is fairly long. Right now, it appears only to be a store. There is a blog page, but I couldn't get there through it. I didn't see any product in use, but the overall appearance and feel for the store was very nice.
Australia
If you're living down under I have this link for you.
Craftonline is a larger site with free shipping with $50 purchase or more. Their designer selection is pretty darn sweet and they have weekly specials, too. No blog, no gallery or tutorials, but very easy to use store. Next day postage is also useful when you can't wait to get your hands on your products. They are also linked up pretty well socially speaking.
That's a wrap! I hope these links and descriptions will help you find the right store for your crafting needs. If you've got a great shop you use, link us up. Share your pretty projects, pages, albums and talk craft with us in our group, here.
Happy crafting!