Saturday 7 September 2013

New Stamps coming to the {JOFY} Xmas Collection

Well you all know how deeply opposed I am to tackling Christmas too early. I regularly tell magazines and others to shut up on twitter when they start going on and on about Xmas releases in August

For me, it is something we don't need to read about in magazines until mid-October at the soonest, and yet I have already had magazines cover to cover full of Christmas projects come across my desk in recent weeks, which actually annoys me beyond belief. Christmas becomes less of a special family time, and more of a commercial head ache. I object!

We have also observed on the TV shopping channels already exploit the theme in recent months to boost up the summer sales which is generally considered to be a slow time in the Northern Hemisphere calendar for our industry. ummm guys....It's SUMMER!


Surely it makes far more sense to come up with summer relevant products that actually fit the weather, time of year and outdoors vibe in May/ June/ July/ August ??? .... but then, as you know... I am one for stating the obvious! And obviously I am reaching that cynical, middle aged, grumpy phase where stating the  obvious is my professional duty and responsibility ! *slaps forehead*


To me Christmas is a special, enjoyable family time. I must say, after years of hot Christmases in New Zealand (which are kind of odd - but have their own magical up-side...boxing day on the beach is never to be scoffed at!) ....but I admit it.... I really love the freeezing cold, dark Christmases of the Northern Hemisphere where we snuggle up, hunker down, jammies-on-all-day in front of the fire with a belly ho amazeballs dinner, a bit of a panto, spot of singing at a carol service, warm, spiced wine, mince pies and I'm happy as larry. That is the essence of Christmas to me.
So I for one do not want to be sucked into its commercialism, spending more than necessary on stuff we don't really need. Yes, give gifts and say hello to friends with simple, cards but we can do all this wisely, and in a considered fashion, and in meaningful ways without having to re-mortgage the house for it.  There can be a real pressure on families to 'keep up with the Jones-es' at Christmas time, and I say lets rebel ! 


Simple, effective Xmas cards by Jo Firth-Young

There are ways to do special Christmas things for special folk without spending a fortune, and without losing a month or two's salary in the process! For example,. look at this fantastic wreath below, made by Jo last year. Its not massive, and a few dies cuts, all painted white, with stars embellished with old buttons, and its gorgeous! I'm sure she picked up the wreath itself for a couple of pounds, and then painted and decorated it.

Elegant wreath by Jo Firth-Young
For me, I would just like families and friends to enjoy each others company. The chance to get together with friends of old, have a lot of good times, plenty of laughs, some good food, and a bit of Christmas tellybox is the magic of Christmas.

Same dies as above, this time with gold accents, and an unusual pennant design By Jo
So as a manufacturer of stamps, we are constantly being asked from June onwards by the shops selling our brand, when are your new Chrtistmas designs coming out? I try not to groan, as I know they are going to need stuff to plan classes, stock levels and so on from early September but in June-August, my grumpy reply, is 'we are not talking about it until  school goes back in the Autumn sometime' ...or... 'when I'm ready' !! LOL



So that time has arrived, where I am slipping in an informational blog post, mainly for our shops, that is Christmas relevant.....

I know many of you adore getting ready early for Chritmas too, and if you are on a budget, then certainly to start some preparation now certainly eases the financial pressure. Take the sample below. The 4x6" canvases are only £2.20 and I bet you have the bits to do the rest and an appropriate Christmas image. As our canvases are chunky, they can stand alone on a mantlepiece, and make a great display to decorate a table, room or hallway. But also these would make great teacher gifts too!

Kraft card, painted, stamped, and simply embellished on a white canvas, By Jo F-Y
I'm thinking our little 4x4" chunky canvases would be perfect decorated this way for table place-name settings too, and the 'people' can take theirs home. You can see all the existing Xmas stamps that Jo released this time last year here, there are 8 large plates (JOFY01-JOFY08), and 8 minis (JM01-JM08).

But of course, the point of this blog post is to announce what is new for 2013 Christmas, so our shops can start ordering, and stock up, and plan their Xmas classes. So I am sure no matter what your opinion of mentioning seasonal 'stuff' at this time of the year, that perhaps you might like a little nosey sneaky peeky of what is coming up??? 

Please note that Jo deliberately designs some images that could be used for other times of the year (presents, hearts, cupcakes etc)

We have 8 new minis (JM25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)

 

 and 4 large A5 plates (JOFY17, 18, 19, 20) 
 


Please, take a moment to leave a comment for Jo, the last 2 days on the blog have been a well deserved tribute to her and her gorgeous unique design-style. She loves to see what you do with her images, and getting all your feedback is also a real buzz.

From Mark and I, a big congratulations with this new release Jo, its our absolute pleasure to work with you and bring your designs to the world. xx

Mark and Leandra


{PS. I know you are all going to immediately ask when, when, when can we get them??? We are commencing manufacture this week. 

As usual, our priority is to supply our trade only customers first over the next few weeks, so please, google for a supplier of JOFY stamps near you.  We ship them all over the world to numerous countries. Ask your local stamp store to contact us, and we will determine if they are eligible to be a JOFY stockist. 

Please note: we only supply VAT/GST registered businesses (or the equivalent of a sales-tax registered company in any given international territory), and we prefer that our stockists have online AND bricks and mortar presence, AND that they teach classes regularly}

31 comments:

Darcy Marshall said...

ohhhhhh! love them! Totally perfect Jo. x

Unknown said...

Cool stamps! x

Helen said...

Totally agree with your feelings about Christmas, Leandra!! However, having said that, WOW to the new designs... well done Jo, you have done it again. Your stamps are so wonderful to work with, and there isn't one I don't want... need... covet!

Steven said...

Totally what I need!! Was thumbing (electronic of course)through last year's collection thinking which one(s) will i buy for this year! ....now stumped, hard to make a decision before January!!
Great stuff

sam21ski said...

Fabulous news for all the JoFY stamp lovers

Sam xx

Kathi said...

The new stamps are fabulous. I especially love those cute birds and the ornament branch!

Dawn Louise said...

Very impressed I love jofy stamps x

Claire said...

More beautiful stamps to perfectly compliment the existing JOFY collection! I'm especially loving JOFY19 although they do all look fab! Claire x

Lucy Edmondson said...

Gorgeous new stamps from the lovely Jo! Totally agree about doing Christmas too early - July is way too soon!

Lucy x

craftimamma said...

I gave in ....... I looked ....... and I neeeeed!!!!! Lovely stamps once again, I gotta have those snowmen, lol! Now is just about the right time to start thinking about Christmas especially if you're a crafter who wants to make special things for your VIPs and I agree wholeheartedly with your sentiments about the ideal Christmas Leandra.

Hugs
Lesley Xx

Nina said...

Whoop whoop! I'm sure we will have them all the Sugar and Spice Crafts!

Anonymous said...

LOVE these!!!!!! Jo mentioned today that she designed new Christmas stamps, but she gave no clue that they would be this fabulous - not that that is a surprise. They're all gorgeous & of course, I especially like the melty snowman.

Trish said...

Oh wonderful stamps JOFY! Merry Christmas... (sorry Leandra!)

Craftyfield said...

I'm with you... Christmas in July is way too early! So much choice in this collection!

Unknown said...

You are so right about Christmas Leandra, I keep trying not to think about it!!
Once my hols are done, I'll get down ordering xx

misteejay said...

I hate the mass commercialism of Christmas but could happily craft for Christmas all year long LOL

Love the new stamps - will have to have words with my local store to ensure they get these to add to their existing JOFYs.

Toni xx

massofhair said...

So pleased Jo has brought more xmas stamps, they are lovely and a great addition to her range.

Think this is the perfect time to release xmas stamps :-)

TAM said...

Now I can see why Jo was having to bite her tongue at a recent demo - these are absolutely gorgeous - thanks for bringing them to us all.

sue :) said...

Love new Christmas stamps, in fact love all PA goodies. unfortunately sunny Wolverhampton doesn't have a PA supplier so will have to be patient. Will be at HSNW at end of September and hoping to bag a load of PA goodies and watch demos. Yes I agree, a bit to early to think about Christmas in August.

Ginger said...

great additions to the range. I look forward to using these at a class I am booked to teach in November. I luvs new rubber to play with.x

Keren Baker said...

Couldn't agree more about making Christmas special for all the right reason. Your comments about too early have made me giggle partic on Twitter. These stamps are gorgeous! The end to a totally brilliant few weeks for PaperArtsy. Happy happy Birthday!!

Rebecca said...

Great Stamps again Jo well done, love them.
Happy Craftin
Rebecca

ionabunny said...

It is so refreshing to hear someone else say that Christmas should be restricted to errrr.. Christmas time!! and is too commercial. A few years ago we agreed as a family to stop giving presents. The kids get things obviously but generally a sigh of relief was heard. OK, I admit if I see something perfect then that person gets a gift, but why save it for dec. 25th?? If you want to give then make it a happy day. To me Christmas is taking time out to visit friends and family, eat good food, catch up, relax. What more could you want. So glad you shared. A breathe of fresh air. The stamps aren't bad either..... Merry Merry.

JoFY said...

Love all your comments! Don't worry I think Christmas should be limited too - but its fun to visit it briefly now to get plans in place... & remind us of the fun to come..
:o)

and to Mr & Mrs PA - thanks so much for the comment, and even more for the opportunity to design stamps for you - the pleasure is all mine!
Jo

Micki said...

wow, you guys outdid yourselfs. LOVED the projects created with these awesome stamps. LOVE !!!

Marion Emberson said...

Love, love, love, I see ANOTHER order going through !!!
Fab projects Jo

yoursartfully said...

Love the new designs Jo, those robins are just too darn cute!!!

Lin x

Hazel Agnew said...

Fabulous additions to last year stamps. Well done Leandra for trying to get Christmas into its rightful place. Will enjoy playing with these new stamps

snazzyoriginal said...

With you on this one for sure! Christmas is so much more special when it's not stretched to cover half the year. Love the new JOFY stamps too xx

Words and Pictures said...

I'm generally another Christmas refusenik - late November at the earliest, for my preference! Having said that, those delicate frosty Christmas makes are just delicious... making those stamps look very tempting!
Alison x

Sarah B said...

What fab new stamps - now the hard decision on which one(s) to buy lol.
I agree with everyone above that Christmas starts far too early. Can't the shops stock what's relevant to the current season ?
Can't wait for the next challenges, there's been so many great projects over the last few weeks, well done everyone who entered. xx