Andrea's Review	Chris' Review	Rebecca's Review	Renee's Review	Heather's Review

Review by Andrea

Working with Three Bugs in a Rug products is always pure FUN! The collections are coordinated so every project comes together easily whether you're using just paper or the paper with stickers, monograms or tags. Once you start working with it all, you realize how addicting it can become!

A "Caboodle Kit" came for the review, all tidy in it's clear cellophane wrapper. The kit is put together by Three Bugs in a Rug for the scrapper that wants to try it all. There are 10 double-sided 12" x 12" heavy-weight papers, die cut tags, cardstock stickers and a 2-page monogram collection. The Collection that I received is "Seeing Stars" which is a bit on the boyish masculine side. I love the bold color combination for this collection: olive green, black, white and periwinkle. Believe me, it works VERY well together.

Starting with the papers, one side is a solid and the other is patterned. For this collection, you can probably guess that stars play a big part. You're right! There are sharp pointed stars and rounded corner stars, lots of circles, stripes and geometric flowers. There is a bit of a "cosmic" feel to the patterns opening all sorts of doors on the design front. You might not think that stars, flowers and stripes work together, but Three Bugs has done a great job at the pattern designs. With the use of color, tone and geometry, the papers can be used in their original size or trimmed into smaller sizes with no loss of pattern. There is no distressing in the patterns making it even more flexible.

The Monograms are made from the same heavy-weight cardstock as the patterned papers. Since they average about 3" in size, they span two 12" x 12" sheets. The letters are a mixed font of lower case and upper case, then also vary from a solid to patterns matching the larger sheets. They are easy to push from the sheet and be used as is or embellished further. There is one of each letter with no punctuation.

The Die Cut Tags number 18 to a 12" x 12" heavy-weight sheet. The patterns extend past the cut edge to make sure there is no white rim or misregistration of the pattern. The tags are all different in shape and content, some are blank and some have a word or short phrase printed on it. They coordinate perfectly with the patterned paper.

ChitChat Stickers are similar to the tags in the sense of content and shape. The sheet is just under 6" x 12" in size, again matching the patterned paper designs. The stickers are cardstock thickness and sticky on the back. The shapes are die cut into ticket, squares, tags or corner shapes. They really add a nice touch to any project you're working on with the patterned paper.

I received these great photos of DB's oldest grandson at his Scout event. The look of intense concentration in the large photo just makes me smile every time I see it! Turning the photos to black and white then colorizing only Tristan with the chalks really made it pop. Painting directly on the paper worked just fine with no bleeding or puckering. The paper performed well while trimming and punching it for the star embellishments. I thought the "Seeing Stars" colors and patterns were ideal to commemmorate this event.

Title: Rain Gutter Regatta
Products used: Patterned Paper (Three Bugs in a Rug Seeing Stars Collection: Star Words, All Star, Twinkle and Brilliant)
Tag (Three Bugs in a Rug Seeing Stars Collection)
Chalk (Craf-T)
Ribbon (Tie One On Ribbon Club)
Mesh (Magic Mesh Dottie Ann, Black)
Poem (Bluegrass Publishing, Pocket Full of Poems: Kids Incorporated)
Ink (Colorbox Fluid Chalk, Charcoal)
Paint (Ranger Dabber, Lettuce)
Stamps (Stampabilities and EK Success)
White Pen (Uni-ball Signo)
Metal Star Embellishment (Old Pet License Tag)
Sketch (www.ScrapFriends.us)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

I went away from the masculine theme on these next pages to a spring theme. The shades of green were a good match for the new life that spring brings and St. Patrick's Day in March! It was remarkable how the Ranger Dabber colors of Lettuce and Cool Peri were practically a perfect match to the tones in the "Seeing Stars" Collection. The monograms and paper were ideal to stamp on using ink since the paper has no texture. The patterns on the patterned paper were a good size to punch out and fit into the calendar grid with no additional trimming. I really loved the solid pattern option on the backs of the sheets - great to use as mini journaling squares.

Title: March 2007-Something Green & Something Spring
Products used: Patterned Paper (Three Bugs in a Rug Seeing Stars Collection: Lucky, Star Burst & Galaxy)
Monograms and ChitChat Stickers (Three Bugs in a Rug Seeing Stars Collection)
Ribbon and Clover Die Cut (Tie One On Ribbon Club)
Ink (Tsukineko Brilliance, Graphite Black)
Paint (Ranger Dabbers, Lettuce and Cool Peri)
Foam Flower Stamp (Making Memories)
Letter Stamps (Autumn Leaves)
Number Stamps (unknown)
"&" (Heidi Swapp Chipboard)
Sketch (www.ScrapFriends.us)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

Three Bugs in a Rug has a great eye for coordination of color and pattern with the "Seeing Stars" Collection. Once you start playing with the Caboodle Kit, it's hard to put down! Don't let the bold patterns scare you. Use pieces of the patterns for accenting or use the whole sheet and accent with the solid colors. It's all so versatile! The ChitChat Stickers and Tags offer simple embellishments to make the pages come together perfectly coordinated. Toss a Monogram on the page and voila'! Complete!

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Review by Chris

Welcome Spring! Finally, and what better way to celebrate than with the new Three Bugs in a Rug Blossom collection! This collection is full of fun colors and patterns and is just the thing to put some funk and frivolity into your layouts and other paper projects.

The Caboodle Kit includes everything you will need to create many layouts and other projects. There are 10 double-sided 12" x 12" papers, a full alphabet of 3 inch tall cardstock monograms in different patterns which coordinate with the papers, a sheet of 18 die cut tags in various shapes and designs, and a sheet of 26 patterned stickers. The double-sided papers are all patterned on one side with a solid, coordinating color on the reverse. Unlike many collections which include only a few design papers and beef up the packet by including doubles, the Three Bugs collection is made up of 10 different patterns backed with 7 different solid colors, giving it depth and variety. Several of the tags include space for journaling, and the stickers vary from designs, words and even photo corners.

The Three Bugs papers are a substantial weight and stand up well to inking, sewing, stamping, sanding and tearing. They have a rich finish and I found myself wanting to touch and rub them while I was creating my projects. They are also heavy enough to stand alone without the need for backing them with cardstock. The designs in this Blossom collection are fun, whimsical and very colorful. The color palette includes yellow, blue, red, pink and green. A nice blending of shades with the different pattern designs makes the papers versatile and well-coordinated.

This collection was the prefect choice to scrap this photo of my dad’s wife and her granddaughter taken during a family Easter brunch. I selected 3 different patterns and one solid, and backed them with a piece of textured cardstock. Although I did say it was not necessary to use the cardstock, I just could not being myself to waste a whole sheet of the pretty patterned paper by using the yellow solid color that comes in the set. The cardstock sticker makes a cute title element.

You Make Me Smile
Products used: Patterned Paper (Three Bugs in a Rug, Blossom Collection, Dot, Stripe, Smile)
Cardstock (Prism Prismatics, frosted yellow)
Stickers (Three Bugs in a Rug, ChitChat stickers)
TOOdles (Tie One On Ribbon Club)
Ribbon (American Crafts)
Rhinestone word (Me and My Big Ideas)
Rhinestones (Westrim)
Brackets (Spellbinders, brackets die)
Brads (Making Memories)
Sketch from 123-Scrap.com
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Tape Runner)

The cheerful spring-like patterns on this paper made it the perfect choice for a Mother’s Day card. The 3 inch monogram is a perfect focal feature. I added small punched red flowers to enhance the design of the circle dots pattern on the monogram.

Mother’s Day card
Products Used: Patterned Paper (Three Bugs in a Rug, Blossom Collection, Tulip, Flowers (solid side), Happy Thoughts (solid side)
Monogram (Three Bugs in a Rug, Blossom Collection)
Postage die cut (Spellbinders, postage stamps die)
Stamp (Stampin' Up!)
Punch (Creative Memories)
Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Tape Runner)

I am never disappointed in the Three Bugs in a Rug paper collections. Their designs are unique and playful, the colors are varied yet well-coordinated, and the variety of the collection is unrivaled. The quality of the product is outstanding and I would whole-heartedly recommend this product line to anyone looking for some fun papers to incorporate into their scrapbooking inventory.

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Review by Rebecca

When Three Bugs in a Rug premiered in the scrapbooking industry I remember purchasing a packet of all of their new lines. I remember scavenging the shelves of the scrapbooking store for the new products but I ended up leaving without some sheets that had sold out. Now, I was able to save time and frustration by purchasing the Three Bugs in a Rug Caboodle Kits.

The Three Bugs in a Rug products that were in the Caboodle Kits include the following items from the Coco line:

• 10 Double Sided 12" x 12" Papers
• Monograms Sheet
• Die Cut Tags
• Chitchat Stickers

The colors of the Coco line are brown, pink, green, red and white. The papers are a cardstock weight patterned paper. The designs of the papers are a nice assortment of stripes, circles and florals. The reverse sides of the papers have a solid color which coordinates with the patterns, of course. Since I scrap in 8.5" x 11", I really appreciate that the designs of the papers are not only for 12" x 12" scrappers. When I trim down the patterned paper I don't have to worry about missing part of the design that might get cut off.

The Tags and Monograms are all die cut so I just had to punch them out to use them. The 18 tags are in a variety of shapes to include circles, squares, rectangles, ovals and other unique shapes. Some of the tags have titles on them, some have lines for journaling while others have a flower printed on them so they can be used as an embellishment on a project. The tags range in size from 1 1/2-inch square to a 4 1/2-inch journaling tag.

With monograms being so popular in scrapbooking it is great to have a sheet that coordinates with everything else. Some of the Monograms on the sheet are solid colored and others are patterned to match the papers, but in a smaller size. The letters are 3 1/2-inch tall and are mixed upper and lower case fonts.

The ChitChat Sticker sheet contains 26 cardstock die cut stickers. The designs of the stickers include photo corners, tags, decorative stickers or title stickers. There are different fonts and designs but the colors and pattern coordinate with the rest of the Coco line.

Dreamin' of Pottery Barn
Products used:
Patterned Paper, Stickers, Monograms and Die Cut Tags (Three Bugs in a Rug Caboodle Kits, Coco)
Ribbon (Tie One On Ribbon Club, February and March)
Ink (Tim Holtz Distress Ink, Brushed Corduroy; Sharpie Poster Paint, White; Zig Writer, Pure Black)
Chipboard Letters (Heidi Swapp, Crimson)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Glue Runner)

Smile Card
Patterned Paper, Stickers(Three Bugs in a Rug Caboodle Kits, Coco)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Glue Runner)

Sweet Thing Card
Patterned Paper, Stickers, Die Cut Tags(Three Bugs in a Rug Caboodle Kits, Coco)
Ribbon (Tie One On Ribbon Club, March)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Glue Runner)

The Caboodle Kits from Three Bugs in a Rug makes scrapbooking and scrapbook shopping a breeze. Now there is no need to search for coordinating products nor do you have to worry about whether or not you picked up all the different patterned papers, with the kit you are sure to get one of each of the patterns. The Coco line is definitely for girl-themed pages with the "My Little Sweet Princess" and "Daddy's Girl" embellishments. So I would recommend this kit to scrappers who have a girl they like to scrap about. The quality of the products are great and the designs and colors are very stylish!

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Review by Renee

Three Bugs in a Rug is a scrapbook company featuring bright, cheerful scrapbook products that are cutting edge in the scrapbook market. Their papers feature designs that are happy and cheerful, and suitable for most themes. The collections also feature coordinating embellishments, that make quick, creative scrapbook pages a snap.

For this review, I received the new Blossom Caboodle Kit. My kit came packaged in a cellophane envelope with a wrapper containing the kit title as well as thumbnail pictures of both sides of the papers contained in the kit. It also included a thumbnail of each of the embellishment sheets contained in the kit. The wrapper also contained several layout ideas for using the papers contained in the kit.

The kit itself was packaged with ten double-sided, cardstock weight scrapbook papers from the blossom collection. The papers included names like circle dots, flowers, lattice, stripe, smile, tulip, laughter, happy thoughts and zig zag. In addition to the papers, I also received a sheet of monogram letters, chit chat stickers and die cut tags. The die cut tags and monogram letters are made from the same heavy weight cardstock as the patterned papers. The chit chat stickers are also cardstock weight and perfectly coordinate with the patterned papers, in some cases replicating the patterns from the papers.

For my first project, I used the stripes and laughter papers to create a background for the page layout. The laughter paper was a series of color stripes separated by flower borders. I elected to cut the stripes out individually to use as borders for my page. Because the papers are of a cardstock weight, they were very easy to manipulate while doing the intricate cutting. I also used two tags from the tag sheet, as well as photo corners from the chitchat sticker sheet. The tags and photo corners contained the same flowers used on the laughter paper. Because all the embellishments coordinated so well, the page was very easy to put together.

Title: so happy
Patterned Paper (3Bugs in a Rug)
Cardstock Stickers and tag (Three Bugs in a Rug)
Felt (Rainbow Felt)
Ribbon (Tie on One Ribbon Club)
Floss (DMC)
Staples (Making Memories)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner, The BORDERLine, Premier Glue Stick)

For my second project, I used the products to alter a notebook. I found the heavyweight papers easy to manipulate around the covers of the notebook. I also used a monogram letter to create the title of the project. The letter actually replicates the pattern on the stripes paper, and perfectly coordinates with the patterns from the lattice patterned paper. Because the papers are double sided, I was also able to simply flip a strip of the lattice paper to obtain a perfect pink slip of cardstock for use on the pen holder.

Title: Diary
Patterned Paper (Three Bugs in a Rug)
Felt (Rainbow Felt)
Button (Bag of Buttons)
Pen (Bic)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

I absolutely love the Three Bugs in a Rug Blossom line. The colors are bright and cheerful. I found that not only do they coordinate easily with the other products from the line, but they also readily coordinate with products that I already had available to me in my scrapbook supplies. In addition, having the products available in a Caboodle kit was even more convenient. Not only was the packaging helpful for determining what was contained in the kit, but the ideas for using the products were helpful as well.

The Blossom Caboodle kit by Three Bugs in a Rug is an exciting, versatile kit. It is easy to use and makes scrapbooking pages a snap. It is a great collection to try for your next project.

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Review by Heather

When I saw Three Bugs in a Rug in the line-up for products I would be able to review this month, I was so excited. Then, when I found out I would be able to play with their new Coco Collection, I was ECSTATIC! This collection is filled with products that make women WANT to have another baby girl....JUST so they can use it! LOL! These patterned papers, ChitChat Stickers and Tags scream Girl Power, Pretty Princess and Daddy's Girl to the MAX! I'm just about ready to take a few of these pieces of paper and frame them all by themselves for MY little princess' room. They are THAT awesome! At first glance, I was definitely drawn to the Bouquet, Amuse and Wireblooms papers. They are feminine, funky, fresh & fabulous!

For this review, I was given the entire set of patterned papers in the Coco Collection, along with a set of ChitChat Stickers, Diecut Monograms and Diecut Tags. I will be honest with you....I am not a diecut fan. I bought a new personal diecut machine when they first came out, thinking that I might get back into it. Um yeah...it's STILL in the box. Three Bugs has brought LIFE back to diecuts for me. Their line of Diecut Monograms and Diecut Tags are so fun!! I love the option that you have to use some of the tags "as is" with adorable girly quotes...and some as journaling blocks. And although I didn't have a chance to use any of the monograms on my specific projects, they are awesome! However, I must say that my favorite part of this entire line is the variety of patterned papers. There are 10 different patterns to choose from WITHIN this one line. Crazy! LOVE IT! In fact, I think if I had to list one complaint, it would be that it was IMPOSSIBLE to try and pick the papers I wanted to use for my projects - they are ALL divine! There are so many flower patterned paper in the industry right now, it's crazy. It takes something really fresh and fun to stand out. Three Bugs hit the mark as far as "standing out" is concerned and I LOVE that they added the lime green to the pink and brown combination - a fantastic way to liven up an old classic!

There was only one thing I noticed while working with the diecuts in this line that I find worthy of mentioning. I noticed when I tried to pop out the diecuts by punching them through the BACK, where the diecut was attached to the sheet, it would tear and pull up part of the front of my diecut and I would have to choose another one, since the one I had been working with was ruined. This only happened a few times and was actually very easily prevented by punching the diecuts UP through the top from the back side...to prevent tearing. Once I figured this out, I didn't have any further problems with tearing. Yay!

The first project that I designed was a 2 page layout of my little girl. I have been hanging on to these pictures, waiting for the PERFECT product. FOUND IT! Seriously...look at how the colors of this product match her outfit. And notice...her shirt says "Daddy's Girl"...and there happened to be a "Daddy's Girl" STICKER on the ChitChatSticker sheet. HAPPY DAY!

Title: Reading With Teddy
ChitChat Sticker Sheets (Three Bugs in a Rug)
Diecut Tags (Three Bugs in a Rug)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Glue Runner)

Like I said, I had a really really hard time choosing which papers to use on my projects, so I threw a TON of them together on these layouts. One thing that I am really big on, is how well the papers in a particular line coordinate. I want to be able to use ANY combination of any of the 10 papers and get GREAT results. This was ABSOLUTELY the case with the Coco Collection. It was fun to get a little crazy with the patterns and mix a bunch of them on one layout. I also decided to make the green Wireblooms paper have a little cameo by actually cutting out one of the green funky flowers and the white daisy sitting on top of it and attached it just over the top left corner of the photo on the first page. I also used one of the Diecut tags as a mini journaling square. This is a big deal for me because I am not one to feature my own handwriting on my pages. However, the "Happiness Is.." tag was TOO PERFECT not too use it and I actually kinda like the personal touch that my handwriting makes on this page. I also cut out the green flower from one of the circle tags for the top of the journaling tag. Because the first page was so busy and fun, I decided to keep the second page a little more simple. I am so happy with how these pages turned out and THRILLED that Three Bugs in a Rug provided the PERFECT product to scrap these pictures of my own little Daddy's Girl. Oh...and her Teddy!

The second project that I designed using this project was a card. In addition to loving the variety of papers in the product line, I was also impressed by the versatility of the quotes and little titles on both the Diecut Tags and the ChitChat stickers. I have a hard time using the same product on a ton of layouts in the same album when it comes to scrapbooking for my kids. But I also don't want to use a little bit of product and have the rest "wasted." I want to be able to get more than just a layout or two out of the product. So the fact that there were many options for fun cards using this product, was a big time selling point for me. How fun is this cute quote! This is a simple card, but the paper patterns are so gorgeous that very little is needed to create a stunning design. Yet again, I cut out a few of the flowers from the Wireblooms paper and used it as a border on the left hand side of this card. With a little trip of pink and some stitching, this card was finished...and turned out so cute.

Title: Thoughts of You
ChitChat Sticker Sheets (Three Bugs in a Rug)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Glue Runner)

This fantastic new product line by Three Bugs in a Rug turned my work into "PLAYTIME" today! I had an absolute blast designing with this product line. The variety of designs is awesome, the diecuts and stickers are fun, versatile and so easy to use and the product line in general is FRESH and FABULOUS! I love it!!!! I would without a doubt give this product my very highest recommendation. Let Three Bugs in a Rug help you remember why you fell in love with scrapbooking in the first place!!

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