Reference: http://www.scraporchard.com/ So far, the only review done for SO was by Simon. Please add any additional reviews down below in the comments.
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY "SIMON" ON July 4, 2011 10:44 PM at http://dsthof.blogspot.com -------------------------------------------- Hi ya'll. Sorry for my delay, but we were out of town on holiday. I will have to check out TLP. I haven't been there in ages. Not usually much that interests me, but who knows!
By request, Scrap Orchard (part 1) AnnaBV Designs- Some of her drawings are really odd looking. Has some truly gross color palettes. Her kits lend to a more simple style of scrapping with a little whimsy. Her papers are very plain and likely would not appeal to traditional scrappers.
Captivated Visions- Does a good mix of doodles and realistic elements. Some of her patterned papers are lacking, but she usually has a handful of nice patterns in each kit. Her paint splatters are nice. I own a good many of her products and they're always great quality. Most of her color palettes are nice. Nothing I would call "gross," but they're not all for me.
Chelle's Creations- Not really my style, but I have a couple of her things and they're always good quality. Most of the time, it's her color palettes that turn me off. I have use for her "Ticket to Ride" kit, but the colors are obnoxious. Her patterns also suck. For $7, her "Make a Splash" kit should have more than just plain old generic solid papers.
Designs by Julie Bullock- Some of her kits are mish-mashy. She does some nice doodles and generally has great patterns. Some of her textures are a little much for me. Most of her color palettes are OK, but some are just wacky. Most of her previews need serious help. I don't have any of her CU, but she has a bunch.
Designs by Kat- Some awful color palettes, some are just fine. She does some cute doodles, but her papers are horrible. Some of her kits can be a little mish-mashy. Her style is a little different from kit to kit, but that doesn't bother me as long as the kit itself is consistent.
EarthArt International- Beautiful stamps. Boring previews. It would be nice to see the stamp larger (like the dragonfly) and it would be great to see an example of one colored in on the preview. The previews also state "personal use" but SO is supposed to be 100% S4H friendly. This is confusing.
Faith True Originals- Generally really cute doodles. Does nice solid papers, but her patterns aren't always great. Most of them are too large. Mostly cohesive kits, but some of her color palettes are gross. Makes some cute word art. I don't have any of her CU, but she also has a bunch for sale. Her kits are good quality.
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY "SIMON" ON July 4, 2011 10:45 PM at http://dsthof.blogspot.com -------------------------------------------- By request, Scrap Orchard (part 2)
Fiddle-Dee-Dee Designs- I'm not really a fan. I find I have to spend a lot of time deleting stuff. I do like the little extra shapes she includes in her templates, though. Her template style isn't consistent from pack to pack, but she does a nice job of keeping them cohesive within a pack.
Irene Alexeeva- I have been a fan and loyal customer of Irene's for years now. I don't like everything she puts out and some of her color palettes are really gross. But, when I need something whimsical, she always has something I want. She doesn't try for patterns, but makes beautiful papers nonetheless. I wish she showcased more non-extracted, non-fantasy CT pages in her listings. Her kits are good for any style of scrapping, but I'm not sure people think so...
Laura Banasiak- Some really gross color palettes. Some kits can border on mish-mashy. I wish she'd get over the emo crap, too. Over it. It is nice to see her doodling more than flowers, hearts, and arrows, though. Very boring word art. Her quality is often questionable at 100% (can be very jagged) and the elements can be very small. Her patterned papers need serious work.
Lyndsay Riches- Her kits have greatly improved over the past year, but her early stuff is beyond gross. Gross is kind. She's still one of my least favorites there. Mostly gross color palettes and mostly boring, simplistic paper patterns will not win me over. Some mish-mashy kits (especially the older ones). I do have her Reach for the Sky kit from when it was at TDD. Quality is OK, but the paper patterns are mostly boring and most I would use as a solid. For this style of kit, paper patterns are important. She has a lot of room for improvement.
mle Card- Her doodles are usually cute and generally consistent and good quality. Her papers usually make me want to cry. She can't even make a decent solid half the time. Her older kits are pretty bad overall, but I see she's retiring most of them. Good move. I don't have any of her CU so I can't speak to the quality.
Nanie's Designs- Those template colors are beyond gross. Her quality is inconsistent, her Tiff files are massive, and she doesn't offer Png files. I think her new stuff has Png (based upon the descriptions), but she should have been advised to start those from the begining. She is not a present person in their forums, either. Templates are easy and they're all she sells. They should be flawless - especially for how much they cost.
PixelGeek Designs- Mostly hybrid templates. I don't do hybrid, but the projects look nice and seem to be priced consistently with other hybrid products I've seen around. She doesn't include cutting files, though.
Scrapping with Liz- I like some of her templates, but some are just pointless. She does seem to do a good job of listening to what customers want, though. She offers more than just page templates, too. I have a few of her freebies and they're good quality templates. They're CU friendly and cheaper than Nanie's.
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY "SIMON" ON July 4, 2011 10:46 PM at http://dsthof.blogspot.com -------------------------------------------- By request, Scrap Orchard (part 3)
SuzyQ Scraps- Her doodles are generally really cute. Her kits are massive and great quality. She makes nice basic patterns and she has great textures. I wish she made more ornate papers for some of her kits (like her Life Expressed kits). Some of her color palettes are off, though. I have many of her products and everything I have is well made. She makes great alphas and I love her doodle stamps (some of the other designers sell them, too). Her kits are generally very cohesive and consistently styled. Her base elements and paper patterns are usually the same from kit to kit, but I couldn't care less if the flower and strings are the same. I do wish she used a little less acrylic.
Tracie Stroud- She was a bit of a wild card for awhile, but I like her newer products. Generally does nice color palettes. I wouldn't call the ones I don't like "gross." They're just not for me. Has a bit of a mish-mashy style. Doesn't release as often as most of the other designers. What I have of hers is good quality.
Ziggle Designs by Kami- Generally decent color palettes. I usually like her doodles, but her patterned papers are lacking. Her solids are always grungy, too, which doesn't always work with the whimsical doodles. Doesn't stay true to the color palette, but doesn't stray enough for it to be incohesive. Almost everything she makes is themed. Would be nice to see some everyday kits and I would also like to see less acrylic from her, too (and I like acrylic!).
Scrap Orchard Designers- I don't usually review the store collabs, but I probably should. I think theirs are usually decent, but sometimes, the designer combination is really off (Irene and Laura in the same collab?). I like all the extras they include like templates and clusters and the occasional CU product. The newer collabs also seem much smaller than the older ones. I love the elements in their Vegas collab, but the papers... How many solids can you put in a collab?
Overall, I rate Scrap Orchard very high. The quality is good and they do offer different style kits. They could use a few more traditional-style designers now that Tracey Howard is gone to keep them competitive with stores like Sweet Shoppe. But, Jady Day and Amanda Heimann didn't go back, so maybe traditional doesn't do well there.
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY "SIMON" ON July 4, 2011 10:44 PM at http://dsthof.blogspot.com
ReplyDelete--------------------------------------------
Hi ya'll. Sorry for my delay, but we were out of town on holiday. I will have to check out TLP. I haven't been there in ages. Not usually much that interests me, but who knows!
By request, Scrap Orchard (part 1)
AnnaBV Designs- Some of her drawings are really odd looking. Has some truly gross color palettes. Her kits lend to a more simple style of scrapping with a little whimsy. Her papers are very plain and likely would not appeal to traditional scrappers.
Captivated Visions- Does a good mix of doodles and realistic elements. Some of her patterned papers are lacking, but she usually has a handful of nice patterns in each kit. Her paint splatters are nice. I own a good many of her products and they're always great quality. Most of her color palettes are nice. Nothing I would call "gross," but they're not all for me.
Chelle's Creations- Not really my style, but I have a couple of her things and they're always good quality. Most of the time, it's her color palettes that turn me off. I have use for her "Ticket to Ride" kit, but the colors are obnoxious. Her patterns also suck. For $7, her "Make a Splash" kit should have more than just plain old generic solid papers.
Designs by Julie Bullock- Some of her kits are mish-mashy. She does some nice doodles and generally has great patterns. Some of her textures are a little much for me. Most of her color palettes are OK, but some are just wacky. Most of her previews need serious help. I don't have any of her CU, but she has a bunch.
Designs by Kat- Some awful color palettes, some are just fine. She does some cute doodles, but her papers are horrible. Some of her kits can be a little mish-mashy. Her style is a little different from kit to kit, but that doesn't bother me as long as the kit itself is consistent.
EarthArt International- Beautiful stamps. Boring previews. It would be nice to see the stamp larger (like the dragonfly) and it would be great to see an example of one colored in on the preview. The previews also state "personal use" but SO is supposed to be 100% S4H friendly. This is confusing.
Faith True Originals- Generally really cute doodles. Does nice solid papers, but her patterns aren't always great. Most of them are too large. Mostly cohesive kits, but some of her color palettes are gross. Makes some cute word art. I don't have any of her CU, but she also has a bunch for sale. Her kits are good quality.
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY "SIMON" ON July 4, 2011 10:45 PM at http://dsthof.blogspot.com
ReplyDelete--------------------------------------------
By request, Scrap Orchard (part 2)
Fiddle-Dee-Dee Designs- I'm not really a fan. I find I have to spend a lot of time deleting stuff. I do like the little extra shapes she includes in her templates, though. Her template style isn't consistent from pack to pack, but she does a nice job of keeping them cohesive within a pack.
Irene Alexeeva- I have been a fan and loyal customer of Irene's for years now. I don't like everything she puts out and some of her color palettes are really gross. But, when I need something whimsical, she always has something I want. She doesn't try for patterns, but makes beautiful papers nonetheless. I wish she showcased more non-extracted, non-fantasy CT pages in her listings. Her kits are good for any style of scrapping, but I'm not sure people think so...
Laura Banasiak- Some really gross color palettes. Some kits can border on mish-mashy. I wish she'd get over the emo crap, too. Over it. It is nice to see her doodling more than flowers, hearts, and arrows, though. Very boring word art. Her quality is often questionable at 100% (can be very jagged) and the elements can be very small. Her patterned papers need serious work.
Lyndsay Riches- Her kits have greatly improved over the past year, but her early stuff is beyond gross. Gross is kind. She's still one of my least favorites there. Mostly gross color palettes and mostly boring, simplistic paper patterns will not win me over. Some mish-mashy kits (especially the older ones). I do have her Reach for the Sky kit from when it was at TDD. Quality is OK, but the paper patterns are mostly boring and most I would use as a solid. For this style of kit, paper patterns are important. She has a lot of room for improvement.
mle Card- Her doodles are usually cute and generally consistent and good quality. Her papers usually make me want to cry. She can't even make a decent solid half the time. Her older kits are pretty bad overall, but I see she's retiring most of them. Good move. I don't have any of her CU so I can't speak to the quality.
Nanie's Designs- Those template colors are beyond gross. Her quality is inconsistent, her Tiff files are massive, and she doesn't offer Png files. I think her new stuff has Png (based upon the descriptions), but she should have been advised to start those from the begining. She is not a present person in their forums, either. Templates are easy and they're all she sells. They should be flawless - especially for how much they cost.
PixelGeek Designs- Mostly hybrid templates. I don't do hybrid, but the projects look nice and seem to be priced consistently with other hybrid products I've seen around. She doesn't include cutting files, though.
Scrapping with Liz- I like some of her templates, but some are just pointless. She does seem to do a good job of listening to what customers want, though. She offers more than just page templates, too. I have a few of her freebies and they're good quality templates. They're CU friendly and cheaper than Nanie's.
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY "SIMON" ON July 4, 2011 10:46 PM at http://dsthof.blogspot.com
ReplyDelete--------------------------------------------
By request, Scrap Orchard (part 3)
SuzyQ Scraps- Her doodles are generally really cute. Her kits are massive and great quality. She makes nice basic patterns and she has great textures. I wish she made more ornate papers for some of her kits (like her Life Expressed kits). Some of her color palettes are off, though. I have many of her products and everything I have is well made. She makes great alphas and I love her doodle stamps (some of the other designers sell them, too). Her kits are generally very cohesive and consistently styled. Her base elements and paper patterns are usually the same from kit to kit, but I couldn't care less if the flower and strings are the same. I do wish she used a little less acrylic.
Tracie Stroud- She was a bit of a wild card for awhile, but I like her newer products. Generally does nice color palettes. I wouldn't call the ones I don't like "gross." They're just not for me. Has a bit of a mish-mashy style. Doesn't release as often as most of the other designers. What I have of hers is good quality.
Ziggle Designs by Kami- Generally decent color palettes. I usually like her doodles, but her patterned papers are lacking. Her solids are always grungy, too, which doesn't always work with the whimsical doodles. Doesn't stay true to the color palette, but doesn't stray enough for it to be incohesive. Almost everything she makes is themed. Would be nice to see some everyday kits and I would also like to see less acrylic from her, too (and I like acrylic!).
Scrap Orchard Designers- I don't usually review the store collabs, but I probably should. I think theirs are usually decent, but sometimes, the designer combination is really off (Irene and Laura in the same collab?). I like all the extras they include like templates and clusters and the occasional CU product. The newer collabs also seem much smaller than the older ones. I love the elements in their Vegas collab, but the papers... How many solids can you put in a collab?
Overall, I rate Scrap Orchard very high. The quality is good and they do offer different style kits. They could use a few more traditional-style designers now that Tracey Howard is gone to keep them competitive with stores like Sweet Shoppe. But, Jady Day and Amanda Heimann didn't go back, so maybe traditional doesn't do well there.