Paper Crafts Magazine Swan Song Blog Hop

Welcome to your next stop along the Paper Crafts & Scrapbooking Magazine Swan Song Blog Hop! You should have arrived here from Miriam Prantner.

You'd think I would have gotten used to these goodbyes by now. I said goodbye to our Moxie Fab Cath last November and bid farewell to my job at Paper Crafts last August. It's been quite the whirlwind of emotions. And even though I haven't been a part of the magazine for over a year, I still feel very attached to the editors, designers, readers and even the pages of the magazine itself. You spend 7 years at one place and it's bound to leave a lasting impression. And it has.

I have so many stories to tell and pictures to share, but there's no way I could do them all justice here. So I'll share some highlights. I know readers always love seeing what went on behind-the-scenes. Despite popular belief, we did NOT paper craft every day! We were busy publishing magazines each month, writing blog posts (between Paper Crafts Connection and Moxie Fab World), concepting features and columns for future magazines, filming videos and the list goes on and on. But we still managed to sneak a little fun into each day. 

Birthdays were a big deal around the office. Former art director Stace Hasegawa created these Coca-Cola-themed signs for my cubicle.

We loved celebrating holidays, especially the ones where we could dress up!

National Pink Day is a real holiday!

CHA was our favorite event to mingle with our designer friends & readers.

Celebrating Paper Crafts' 5th birthday in 2009.

I always loved walking the CHA floor with my girl, Megan Hoeppner!

Our annual ed board meeting brought the beloved Go-to Gals to Utah.

Love these "gals" and their crazy talent!

"Parties on the Porch" were always a special treat. These ladies and Matt are the real deal. I wish them nothing but luck as they begin a new adventure in their creative lives.

As you can see, we had a lot of fun. Probably more fun than any job should allow. But when you're working in an industry with so many creative people, it comes with the territory. While I'm sad the magazine is ceasing publication, I'm so pleased it had such a great run and impacted so many people. And I'm happy I got to be a part of all the creativity, all that pride and all that love. I still have every one of my Paper Crafts issues. They take up 12 magazine organizers. No lie! They're all my little babies. I'm proud of them and the work they represent. Yours, mine and ours, collectively.

As we officially say goodbye to our dear magazine, I'm reminded of something I posted over on the Paper Crafts Connection blog a few years ago. It was titled Changing it Up as I was transitioning my duties. At the time it gave me comfort writing it, as I hope it does for you now.

"Something this creative industry thrives on is change. Companies come and go, products reinvent themselves and trends burst on the scene and then take their final bow. And while it’s often inconvenient and frustrating at the time, change usually brings out the best in us. We adapt, we grow and we often surprise ourselves with the results."

I have no doubt that creativity will continue to inspire and bring us together, one way or the other. It may not be in the same format, but it will always be there, surprising us all.

One of my favorite cards published in Paper Crafts. I've always been partial to puffy hearts! ;-)

Thanks for the memories, Paper Crafts! 

Your next stop on the blog hop will be Yana Smakula. Enjoy!