On Good Friday my Friend Pamela's new Shop THE PAPER COLLAGE had it's Grand Opening!
Pamela with her Lovely Daughter Casey.
Talented Artistic Friends came to help, assist Customers and to Celebrate... Maggie...
And Deborah...
And Friends came by to Shop too!!! Kathy and Hubby... who are fellow Dealers at THE BRASS ARMADILLO WEST... and just expanded and opened their own New Showroom there recently...
And Christina, Owner of another Creative Shop SCRAPS OF LOVE in Peoria.
I know I rushed right over when I arrived to 'Score' some of these Wooden Letter Blocks...
Source: Pamela's Facebook Page
Caught in the act of 'Scoring' said Wooden Letter Blocks. Ahem... Dawn... shouldn't you be PHOTOGRAPHING something?!? *Winks* Sorry, got so caught up in 'Scoring' some of my own Treasures right away and Scouting the Wonderful Selection of Inventory I hadn't seen yet, that I almost forgot what my Primary Mission shouldda been!!! *LOL*
After all... when you have so many Letters to spell out what you want... you can't malinger, especially when you need lotsa vowels... and all I'm missing is one 'A'... darn... so the next 'A' coming into Inventory is MINE Pamela! So okay... I cheated for the Photo Op and Shameless Plug... and tossed in a Scrabble Tile... *Smiles* I felt like a Contestant on Wheel Of Fortune... Vanna... I'll take an 'A'!
Pamela has plenty of those Scrabble Tiles to spell out darn near anything you might desire!
And there's just something about large colorful rolls of Tickets that always make you feel like a Winner or a Festive Day at the Carnival or Fair!
And every Festive Event must have Treats right? And there were plenty of Sweet Treats at the Shop to munch on as you Shopped and mingled...
And there was lots of Shopping and mingling going on all day... it was a great turnout and very well received. Everyone in the Far West Valley who Enjoys Artistic outlets, Scrapbooking and Crafting now has a Shop close by to obtain their supplies and attend Workshops, plus you can place orders Online.
I know there's lots I'd like to be Taught and learn more about... and aren't Workshops so much Fun!?
And Pamela has the Shop so Skillfully and Beautifully Styled that you're sure to feel a Warm Welcome, Enjoy the Friendly Ambiance, the Creative Energy and Vibe, plus come away with tons of Inspiration.
I'm a big Fan of Old Photos and Vintage Ephemera... and figuring out how to utilize my extensive Collections of them in Interesting Vignettes rather than stashed away in Storage can sometimes leave me with Styling Block unless I soak in how other Creative people and Talented Stylists use similar Collections.
And Naturally... being an Incurable Collector of such things means that I always want MORE, right? And so I picked up this packet of Awesome Old Sears and Roebuck Catalog Pages with Cool Graphics... LOVING the page that had these Mandolins... I think the Average Price of a Mandolin back then was about Three Dollars!!! AND they threw in a bunch of Free Stuff with each Purchase!
But hey, I paid less than that all these Years later for these Great Pages of Vintage Ephemera and Pamela threw in Free Stuff with each Purchase too during the Grand Opening Celebration! You're giving Sears a run for their money my Friend! *Winks*
And for the Francophiles... there is a whole section dedicated to the Love of all things French!
In fact, my Fav Scrapbook Pages I bought this day were these with the Eiffel Tower on them... Pamela has Scrapbook supplies that you can't get at the Crafting Chain Stores... along with her own Line of Scrapbook and Stamping Supplies.
Are you a Lover of Vintage Photos too?
How about Millinery?
Paper products, Ink, Paints, Stamps of every imaginable kind?
And if you were totally Lusting after my Old Sears and Roebuck Catalog Pages, there's more where those came from!!! So you can get yours too...
And if you have your own Small Business she has some great Packaging for your own Shop Inventory and the Purchases your Customers make. Presentation is after all... so Important and leaves a Favorable lasting Impression. I know the Indie Shops I frequent have a way of making every Customer feel so Valued and Special in the way they Package your Purchases and add those Special Details and Personal Touches that make it a Unique Shopping Experience. You won't get that level of Personal Attention and Attention to Detail in the Mega Chain Stores.
And after all, this is why we LOVE the Indie Shops isn't it? The Uniqueness... the Personalization of the Shopping Experience and the Creative Touches that Mega Corporations simply cannot provide. So I do Hope you will continue to Support your Local Small Businesses and Artists... and those around the Country that offer Online Services!?!
Those of us who are Artists, Stylists, Small Biz Owners and do the Show and Event Circuits and Host Workshops pour our Heart and Souls into what we do and it's very Personal to us... and we want to extend that Personal Heartfelt Experience to you, our Friends and Loyal Customers. And Truly the Customers of Indie Shops often become Friends... how often can you say that about a Mega Store you've ever frequented and see the Staff of on a regular basis? Yeah, I thought so...
In fact, with possibly a limited few exceptions, like say an Anthro Shop, it is unlikely that Chain Stores allow their Staff, no matter how Talented, to have Unlimited Freedom of Artistic Expression in the Styling and Decor. If you've walked into one Chain Store of a particular Corporation you've seen them all really because they'll be mirror images and not have a lot of Individuality or Uniqueness or a wide array of different Inventory than all their other Stores and very few, if any, OOAK pieces. Even if they have a Line of a Brand by a particular Artist or Stylist they will have been mass produced overseas and imported in bulk shipments.
That's Okay if you're buying, say, your Groceries and everyday Household Items... but if you want something truly Fashion Forward, Unique, Artistic, Stylishly Created, made with Love and the Essence of the Creator or is OOAK... better to Shop Indie IMO.
And I suspect I'm not alone in those Sentiments judging by the steady stream of Customers that filed through the doors of Pamela's New Shop from the moment she Opened until the close of the Business Day.
And I Hope you'll stop by for a Visit to the New Shop too my Friends and show your Support of a Great New Indie Business in the Far West Valley! And Thank You Pamela for Including me in your New Venture and the Grand Opening, it was such Fun and I'm so Happy for you!!!
Blessings from the Arizona Desert... Dawn... The Bohemian