Tag Archives: Retrospect

Apr 16

An inspiring collaboration has been born.

Ever since my mom retired last year, she has been letting her creativity flow. She now has more time to do the things she used to be too tired or busy to do, and quite frankly, I couldn’t be happier for her. She has always been very talented when it comes to using her hands to make, do and create beautiful things; I remember as a child, when we didn’t have much, my mom would sew clothes for my brothers and me; she would paint and wallpaper various rooms; she could decorate with panache even before Martha came along. Actually, to me, she was the original Martha Stewart, making everything she touched special and fabulous. Since I started scrapbooking a few years ago, my mom has taken an interest in whatever I create, and now that she has more time to indulge in her creativity, she has caught the scrapbook bug as well. She’s not exactly putting together 12×12 layouts, but she has a fancy for mini-albums…she has made quite a few nice ones which overflow a lovely basket sitting on her gorgeous fireplace hearth. She enjoys making small journals (or what I call mini-albums) so much, that she can make them faster than she can fill them up, and actually has more fun creating the books than using them for herself. This is where a brilliant idea was born for us to collaborate and sell the journals and books in my Etsy shop, Retrospect

The Everyday Bingo journal

The Everyday Art journal (also known as our version of a Smash book)

The Travel journal

When my mom showed me these journals she made for the first time, I’ll be honest, I thought to myself, “This is something I should have in the shop…” No kidding. They are really cute, and something I would definitely buy from her, if she had a shop. Luckily for me, she’s content with being a “member of my shop”, which pleases me to no end since I just have not had much time lately to create much. It’s a bit difficult, sometimes, working full-time, being a wife and mother, going to church, volunteering, and running a business (now you know why I have not blogged in a long time). I’m waiting for 36-hour days to be invented…but until that time comes, I am grateful for the extra help to keep Retrospect going. It’s nice that the shop has a few more items to sell, and as soon as I can, I will be adding more journals and mini-albums in order to fill up the shop more. I am sure looking forward to seeing what my mom and I can come up with next; with her talent and ideas, I’m sure not to lose my inspiration or motivation any time soon, thank goodness. So be sure to come take a look around the shop sometime in the near future; hopefully you’ll see something that sparks your interest! Thanks for stopping by!

 

Mar 6

I’m back in business!

After a long and much-needed hiatus, I’ve reopened my Etsy shop. At the moment I mostly have a few supplies and one hand-crafted village…

Order one cottage, or the whole village!

…and some hand-crafted clipboard displays:

Plexiglass, 6x8"

wood clipboard display, 5x6"

I plan on making some more scrapbooking embellishments soon (hopefully!), but life has been so busy and hectic, I’m lucky to get my shop open at all!

I also need to get caught up on my Project Life; I have yet to start adding my photos and notes from March….I know that the more I get behind, the more difficult it is to get caught up. Here are the latest pages:

Thanks for stopping by, I hope to be back a little sooner next time!

Nov 19

Thinking of the past, and taking a break for today.

My mom recently gave me a real gem of a gift. She had found my great-grandfather’s medical dictionary which he had used while training in medical school to become an Internist. Knowing that using vintage book pages is a really cool thing in scrapbooking, she tore out a small section of this old book to give to me. The book is beyond repair and literally falling apart, so what she did was not as shocking as I originally thought, and once I got over that initial “OMG, what did you just do?!” moment, I thought about adding the pages to a mini album, using them as a photo mat, making cards, or selling some in my shop on Etsy. But then I took a really close look at them, through the macro lens of my camera, and saw how special they are, at least to me. You see, I am a Cardiology technician at a large hospital, and Cardiology is my thing. It’s not only my bread and butter, but it’s what I do that I love during the day (until I put my ‘super scrapbooker’ cape on at night). While I was an EMT student eons ago, I had to study medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, CPR, how to set a broken arm as well as how to deliver a baby, etc., etc., and when it came time to study the heart and cardiac rhythms, the instructor went through the basics quickly (we were behind in the lesson schedule) things just clicked for me. So while every other student in the class was scratching their heads saying, “Huh?”, I was looking around at them saying, “You don’t get this? This is so cool!!”. Thus, a position in a Cardiology department at a local hospital a few years later was written in the stars.

So, that’s why this little piece of my history is such a gem to me. My mother intentionally chose this section for me (aaaw!), and now I can’t part with it! It’s not just that this pertains to a subject near and dear to my heart (pun intended), but this book is from my great-grandfather and dates from 1839. I am such a sentimental nerd, I know, and I just wanted to share. Don’t you have something passed down to you that is sentimental because it seems meant just for you? Share it with me, I’d love to know about it!

I also want to extend a huge Thank You to everyone who has been visiting my shop, Retrospect. I have been utterly overwhelmed with the wonderful response I have gotten to the Christmas items I have created!! I am so amazed and flattered and pleased, but each item I create is done by hand and is very time-consuming, and sometimes expensive. I work full-time during the day, and I simply have not had enough time during the evenings to keep up with the demand, so I have therefore stopped production for now to take a needed break. I do apologize, but I have recently made myself sick trying to keep up with a minimum amount of sleep, and that’s not good. So, for my sanity, and for the sake of my family, I need to take a little time to take care of myself and them, so I can be back in December for a lovely, happy, healthy season. See you then!

Nov 12

A new trend: white on kraft

I am loving a look I came up with while creating Christmas cards and tags: white ink (with snowflakes or stars) on kraft paper. I stamp images onto a kraft tag or card and emboss with Stampendous detail white embossing powder. The look, to me, is very Nordic, simple, earthy, and classic. I can’t get enough of it right now. I am hoping you like it as well, too, because I have some items for sale on Etsy that are created with this beautiful style in mind.

White Noel Christmas cards

Snowflake stickers

small white star tags

medium snowflake tags

scrap paper chain

There’s no end to what you can do with these items. I will be starting my December Daily in a couple of weeks, and I intend to use these tags and stickers to embellish my album; the cards I’ve made (not showing are the red star and green tree cards) are meant to be simple in order to let your words and sentiments shine. Let your Christmas be merry and bright with white-on-kraft by Retrospect!

Nov 10

Saturday Morning Vintage: good stuff!

Today I got my package in the mail from Saturday Morning Vintage. Somehow I discovered this treasure on Etsy, and fell in love with the vintage findings. This gifted and talented owner is a

  • frequent visitor of our local farmer’s market and flea market.
  • collector of old things with a soft spot for vintage paper and buttons.

quote, unquote.

Love her. I think I get this from my mother; we used to ‘garage sale’ as a kid, and go to ‘flea markets’ as well, which I hated because I did not fully appreciate it. I do now. While I’m not particularly interested in waking up at 5 am to find the best garage or estate sales, and no flea market in my area could ever conduce me to leave my house,  (lazy?) I am still quite interested in what others come up with. It’s the nostalgia, perhaps; or genetics (my grandmothers were both famous for their hoarding of family treasures), but I find something comforting and lovely about looking at authentic, retro, vintage things. And paper is something I especially love. After all, that’s the basis of Retrospect. An appreciation for documenting stories, memories and mementos of our lives- past and present- with photos, written words, ephemera and souvenirs. I can’t help but sit and think about what these items represent; the photos of the men (who are they? what are the stories behind the photos?); the stamps (I remember collecting some as a child); the flash card; the airmail envelopes…each item carries value and a piece of history.  

I was so excited, I just ripped open the package, but this was what was inside.

Cool cards. But, I can't imagine what the one on the right is all about.

I love opening packages. It's my birthday and Christmas all over again.

Looks identical to what I saw in the Etsy shop. Can't wait to break this baby open!!

“]

This is an important element here: I'm crazy about washi tape!! [Where'd she get this one...I want it...

Good stuff.

Someone's handwriting in pencil. I'd love to know the story. Who is George Smith?

...the rest...

No, okay, this really is the rest. I have never seen a "circular" playing card. Wow.

"But wait, there's more!

This add-on package has a really cool vintage photo booth strip on the front of a postcard, as well as some really neat graph papers, and patterned papers. I really wanted this too, and there was a discount coupon code for this which could have been added to the original order. Unfortunately, I only found this discount after I put in my order. So, I quickly went back to the shop and added and email with the coupon code ….and soon after found out that the offer had expired….What a dork you are, Jennifer!  I left it alone knowing she would figure out exactly how much of a dork I am.

But it came. The girl is awesome, I’m telling you. She must have somehow sensed how dorky I felt and sent a left-over, anyway. Too cool for school. I can’t wait to use this stuff! I am inspired by what she’s done in her mini-albums, and that’s what I aspire to. I just need to get past Christmas and all that entails, and I will do some serious scrappin’! I’ve even pinned her on Pinterest. I’m so excited; I have to pass on to you this blog/Etsy shop one more time: Saturday Morning Vintage.  Love to scrap? Into Mini albums? Vintage/Retro junkie? Flea market enthusiast? You won’t be sorry!

Nov 9

Using scraps to make a paper chain.

I’m working hard this evening in my ‘workshop’ (just like Santa’s…) creating Christmas cards and tags for my shop, Retrospect, on Etsy. When I ran out of 8.5×11 kraft sheets, I got out my 12×12 stash, and started cutting away, to get more of the necessary size. I don’t like wasting things, especially scraps, and while tossing some 1×8.5″ strips into the trash, I came up with an idea to use them instead of throwing them away: make a paper chain! I grabbed those babies out (no worries; my trash bin is entirely paper and bits of ribbon) and went to work.

I have some snowflake stamps from Stampin’ Up! that I had been using, and noticed that the smallest stamp would fit the 1″ size of the strips. I thought it would be nice to stamp an image onto the strip to make a design; right now, I’m working with kraft paper for my projects, and I am really into white-on-kraft with snowflakes or stars…kind of a Nordic look which I am loving. I used a white ink pad to stamp the images, then I sprinkled Stampendous! “Stamp-n-Stuff” in an opaque white embossing powder over the stamped images, and then heated each strip so the white would stand out a little more. The fun thing about this is that it’s easy enough for the kids to do while you’re making your own things!

I can easily see my 11-year-old stamping paper strips (but if we want them embossed, I would do the heating) to her heart’s content. I chose the white, but of course it would also look pretty with red or green, (or any combination) and any of your smaller size Christmas stamps. I only had about 14 scraps, but of course the more you have the longer the chain.

I stapled each strip into a ring, just like I remember doing back in Kindergarten…and yes, it was just as much fun doing it again today!

My daughter didn’t get to make this one (homework to do…) but I’ll be sure and have her help with more of these in the future that we can add to this one. I have no idea how long it will end up being, or where we’ll put it, but that’s the easy part, and we’ll love having it be a part of our holiday festivities. What a cheap decoration, too! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go find my shop vac (powder everywhere, what a mess…). Come on back in the next few days when I show you my Christmas holiday cards that I’ll be selling at Retrospect! Thanks for stopping by!

Sep 17

Day 17: You Send Me!

Being that it’s Saturday, our prompt for today at The Mother LOAD was to do whatever we want! It’s a free-for-all! Yippee; I’ve been wanting to use my October Afternoon Rocket Age supplies. But since I don’t have a son to scrap, I borrowed my nephew (he’s so photogenic!) to use with the male-oriented product. Here’s my layout:

All supplies by October Afternoon.

And some more news: more items are now available in my Etsy shop, Retrospect! See you tomorrow!

Apr 3

Busy little bee

Another day of almost missing my post due to busy-ness. I’m getting ready to take some of my crafts to a little shop in the Tower District called “Art By Hand”; they have asked hubby and I to have some of our work on display for the month. ABH is a not-for-profit that supports and encourages local artisans. Its a cute little place with friendly, enthusiastic volunteers, and they have the most beautiful clay bird feeders I’ve ever seen! Anyway, hubby is a photographer and will have some of his favorite images hung near a table with Retrospect products on display for sale. Very exciting to me! And although there is so much more to blog about, that will have to wait for tomorrow’s post.

P.S.: Proactive is great stuff!

Sweet dreams!

Mar 6

Finding the elusive groove…

I’ve been trying to lift my spirits, lift my co-workers’ spirits, my moody preteen’s spirits, and keep my dear husband’s afloat. Work has been chaotic, my husband has his issues, and my child’s selective hearing makes me want to pull out my hair. Ugh. Life has not been exactly conducive to creativity…until now. This evening, I saw an image on Ali Edwards’ blog that suddenly gave me a push. She does artistic journaling, and looking through past blogs that showed different pieces she’s created really motivated and inspired me. I needed that. Etsy and ArtFire have not been exactly good to me, lately, but I can hardly blame them. My art, my projects and my craftsmanship have not been exactly inspiring, as Ali’s are. I think they rather produce yawns instead of comments, let alone profits. What’s a girl to do? Get inspired, and get down to business. How, I am not quite certain of…I feel inspired as of this evening, but any other ideas as to how to get those ideas to inspire others is another matter altogether. I am hoping to do some different kinds of projects, and I am hoping that more scrapbookers stumble upon me in the future. That will mean more work, and dear God, more patience on my poor family’s part. Wish me luck!

¶ As an aside, here is my retrospective on the month of February.

page 1

page 2

 

Feb 10

Giving a gift of love…give handmade (sorry, Hallmark)

Sabrina's birthday card

My daughter’s best friend has a birthday coming up this Saturday. As we looked around a local store for something to give as a gift, I completely bypassed the greeting card aisle. On purpose. My thinking: why give Hallmark my money, when I can make one myself? I can choose the colors, the theme, the styling, even customize it with Sabrina’s name (the birthday girl)…and it still won’t cost me as much as that cookie-cutter card you find on aisle 3a. Of course, it does help that being an avid scrapbooker, I have loads of colorful papers, stickers, shape punchers, rubber stamps, etc. It’s not just saving money (um…I did have to buy those papers, stickers and such at one time or other…), but it’s the love of crafting something by hand. It’s a stress-reliever, an energizer, a creative outlet, a mental “upper”, if you will. It is impossible for me to feel anything but peace, happiness and contentment when I scrapbook a page, make a card, or create any other craft project. That’s one of the reasons I started my own little enterprise I call Retrospect; I like to make things, and I love even more to share them. Business may not be booming at the moment, but I’m not in it to be the next Martha Stewart. It can be expensive, and I want to have fun. So I will hopefully make a little money while doing what I love. Having a shop in Etsy has made me feel like part of a community, as well. Most everything on the site is hand-crafted, and I have come to really appreciate this, versus buying something from a chain store: it’s personal, it’s unique, it’s always made with love… and that makes it special. Since not everyone has the time or inclination to make something by hand (although I highly condone trying, you can’t go wrong!), I feel compelled to suggest visiting the Etsy site for anything you might be needing, whether it’s for yourself, or for someone else (you know, Valentines Day is coming): www.etsy.com. Feel free to visit my shop there (http://www.etsy.com/shop/simplyretrospect), or my website (http://www.simplyretrospective.com/). Happy crafting!