Today’s blog post comes from our beloved friend, Stacy Julian! Stacy is a recognized leader in the scrapbooking industry. She is the founding editor of Simple Scrapbooks magazine and the visionary founder of Big Picture Scrapbooking. After getting her initial start into the papercrafting world through Close To My Heart, Stacy is coming “home” to combine her ideas and training into the Story by Stacy™ product line! We could not be more thrilled about this partnership!
For as long as there have been human beings, human beings have been telling stories. Stories are how we connect, celebrate, and remember. Stories organize our thoughts, experiences, and beliefs for sharing. Stories are how we pass down personal histories. Stories teach, motivate, and inspire. We understand who we are and what we are capable of because of the stories we tell ourselves. Storytelling is a powerful force for good. I know you know this, but even as memory keepers we can lose sight of the importance of documenting stories—and sometimes we make it harder than it is.
Hello. I’m Stacy Julian.
I’ve had the pleasure of working in the scrapbooking and paper crafting industry for a very long time and I’m beyond thrilled to be partnering with Close To My Heart on a new line of Story by Stacy™ products designed to help people discover and document their stories. This is my first foray into product design and, while I am having a blast with all of that, what I truly love most about Story by Stacy™ is the education and training that is a part of the products we are developing. I’m so excited to work with Close To My Heart Consultants and to learn from them as we share the joy of preserving personal stories with all of you.
Our very first product and program is called Story Starter. The Story Starter kit is designed to show you how simple it is to access your unique and valuable memories. When we scrapbook, we tend to believe that the story of a relationship, a special place, or a meaningful experience is in the pictures we take, but that’s not entirely true. While pictures are wonderful illustrations, the full story is inside of YOU and it takes just a few minutes to invite it out to play.
As you learn and practice the Story Starter process, you’ll be amazed at what you can remember! AND as specific details surface in your mind you’ll be able to pair them with photographs that you might not otherwise choose to use in an album. When you start with the story, the result will be a more genuine reflection of what matters most to you.
With Story Starter, all of these delicious details are then wrapped up in super CUTE mini books with inside pages that can be personalized with playful stamped images.
The whole process is fun and easy, and the finished project is a 100% valuable, and adorable, keepsake. I do need to warn you that the overall experience is addicting in the best of ways. You won’t be able to stop with just one Story Starter kit!
I cannot wait for you to get your hands on a Story Starter kit and workbook, so that you can start telling and sharing your stories in happy, colorful, and very authentic ways!
We love Stacy for her liberating philosophy and simple step-by-step thematic approach that unlocks a person’s creativity and helps them easily create stories out of life’s special moments. Please show our friend some love and share with us your thoughts about Story Starter in the comments below!
I’m so excited! I love this- our stories are the most important part of our scrapbooks- they give the full “picture”! Can’t wait to see more!!!
Just another word for journaling. Leaving out a lot of older adults who cannot write any longer due to illnesses but still enjoy scrapbooking.
You have so many valuable stories to tell! Is there anyone that can help you write them down?
My first order of them arrives tomorrow! Can’t wait to begin storytelling with them!
This is such a great program. You are going to love it!
Looking forward to being able to but these products in New Zealand (coming soon, I’m told). A question for Stacy though – can her next stamp set have “All about us” and “things we do” phrases to complete the set please?!
Stacy my very best most favorite album ever continues to be the one I made and shared at convention years ago when you spoke. The “story telling” is completely different from my other scrapbooks and that’s what has made this one so unique and cherished. It’s definitely time to create another one…or two…or three…..!!!!
Stacy this is so true! I have happy snap photos of my Nana who passed away in 1993 but I only have one very precious and gorgeous photo of my Nana. She was all dressed up and she had makeup on and it was a portrait style photo. Gorgeous Gorgeous. This photo was given to me and I don’t know where it was taken or anything about it but I don’t need to know these details. What I need to do with this photo is create a Story Start and speak from the heart about this beautiful caring woman that was my Nana. Thank you Stacy and Close To My Heart for giving us the tools to create such heartfelt albums and artwork. This Album dedicated to my Nana may just have that one photo in it with the other pages filled with stories and memories.
For me, telling the story is the most important part of scrapbooking a layout, in fact I don’t consider a layout finished until I’ve journalled! I’ve been a huge fan of yours from when I first discovered your Simple Scapper magazine, through Library of Memories, and Big Picture Classes. I’m thrilled that you’ve chosen to work with Close To My Heart on a new product line and can’t wait to share it with my customers!