Flourishes Newsletter: Where Did The Time Go?

Where Did The Time Go?

Sometimes, I feel like a broken record when I say that; but with Flourishes it is especially true.

When Nancy, Sharon, and I first sat down and talked about beginning a venture together, Flourishes as it exists today was nowhere on the map! It literally took on a life of it's own. The three of us often marvel at that phenomenon! We started with a statement of WHO, WHEN, and WHERE:

"Welcome to the first issue of the Flourishes Newsletter, created to provide the latest happenings at Flourishes, LLC. What is Flourishes?
Flourishes is an existing paper arts studio in Pensacola, Florida. It has been growing for the last seven years and now is expanding into an Internet retail boutique. Our paper arts boutique, Flourishes- will open on July 27 with special discounts available through August 1.Well, It's finally close, tomorrow (Wednesday, 25 July) we are running our first series of banner ads on SCS. What an exhilarating and exhausting time this has been. I'm not sure if I feel more like a new bride with the jitters or an expectant mother getting ready for birth. This has been a long hard labor...but certainly one of love" Flourishes Newsletter Aug 2007

Of course we would have stamps. But what kinds and styles. Our two first stamps were Flourished Words and Cake Decorating. Below is the very first card using Cake Decorating

Set. That would lead to a wonderfully talented artist , Marcella Hawley joining our team and we are still just as pleased as on day one!

Since then we have added Lauren Pope as a young and creative addition to our FLLC Team.

Our Design Team members as well as our Friends of Flourishes keep a professional face of Flourishes. Each and every one of these ladies is so very talented and generous with their time for Flourishes.

In the future, we will grow and change with exciting new programs, stamps and elements for your creation. As we grow we hope you will grow along side of us. The travel thus far has been so very exciting, yes a dream...becoming reality.

Here are each of our own perspectives about where we started and where we are today!

From Sharon

I have known Jan for over 7 years, five of those years was sent in her studio learning the art of stamping. After a number of years Jan mentioned to our group of ladies, her idea of starting a business of making cards to wholesale to shops and boutiques in the area. What a fun way to spend the day, "working" at a business of creating cards. It did not take long for that core group of ladies start production.

After a few weeks we found that we were very limited in the images we could reproduce for sale purposes. After a couple of months it became obvious that what images we found would not suit us at all! That is when "Flourishes took on a life of it own" for me. Who knew that when, by then, the three of us made the decision to produce our own line of stamps Flourishes would grow and expand as fast as it has.

It seems like just a few months ago that we started and here it is our 2nd Birthday!

What keeps us working hard to provide the very best there is to offer to the stamping community, it is our customers who have supported us, have told us how much they like what we have helped to develop in a stamp set. What a thrill is was to see Flourishes designes used by you to create something you send or give to the most important people in your lives. It is our design teams, past and present that have shown us the very best of their creative talents. They have given me so much inspiration. And it is the people that have believed in us enough to give of their time and special talents to assist us in our growth.

From the very first set of stamps to come in the door two years ago to the latest set of proofs that arrived yesterday, the excitement of opening each package grows with each new pasting month. When I look back on how far Jan Marie, Nancy, and I have come in the last two years it shows me we are up to the challenge of providing the stamping community with the best there is to offer!

From Nancy

When we started over two years ago we were told by those in the business that we would not have any time to stamp – and they were so right! Running the day to day business has taken much time away from the pure joy of stamping, but it has been replaced by seeing our own line of stamps come to fruition!

I’ll never forget that day when our first two stamp sets arrived on our doorstep! We’ve since issued over 70 sets and each one has provided that same joy and exuberation as the first two!! It takes many, many months for a set to come together - it starts with a rough concept and sketches with (sometimes) many changes before the final is sent to the manufacturer. We are grateful to our design team who provides important feedback, our artists who are very patient as we work through what our customers would want and our stamp manufacturer who has worked so closely with us to understand how to translate beautiful artwork into a stamp set.
Our customers are the best! When we opened the internet store and received that first order it was official. A big thank you to Rose Ann R. of Michigan for being the first person to purchase our stamps and for her continued support of Flourishes! Since Rose Ann’s order, thousands of you have come to shop with us. We’ve come to know many of you – and we love seeing what you create!

One day a few months after opening, while packing orders, a package arrive containing some of the most stunning holiday cards made with our stamps. They were large cards made with gorgeous metallic papers, glitter and rhinestones and just knocked us out with how beautiful they were. It was the first time a customer had sent us a card made with our stamps – thank you Velta W. for this wonderful gift – we were so very touched by your thoughtfulness. Over the years we’ve received many cards from customers and we treasure each and every one!
As we look to the future we take what we have learned and will continue to provide stampers with timeless and classic stamps, with products that we’ve tested and work well with our images along with our continued emphasis on customer service.

Lastly, I’d like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks to my partners, Jan Marie and Sharon. Running a small business is very hard and these women are two of the most kind and giving people I have ever worked with. Without them Flourishes would not exist and I am grateful to be part of their lives.