Check Out Laura Machado’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Machado. 

Laura, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Several years ago, I was a full-time mom of 2 young boys. In my spare time, I crafted – scrapbooked, made cards, tried all kinds of crafts. With a collection of materials and a serious need to make stuff, creating an Etsy shop seemed like a good idea. It was a helpful challenge to take on and grow my skills in a new direction, but maintaining the shop took away a lot of time from actually making. I went back to just crafting gifts and things for us and thinking about how to create a more successful business. I followed a new, local store on Instagram, Screws & Sparkles in Buckeye. During my first visit, I noticed that the shop didn’t have cards. After a serious pep talk (in my own head) and a nervous stroll around the shop, I spoke to the owner and shared some photos. She needed handmade cards so that customers could leave with everything they needed for a gift. It’s been 2 years and my range of products has grown quite a bit. Greeting cards are still my best sellers. Currently, I make gift bags, banners, and bookmarks among other things. My most recent crafted offerings are paper rosette ornaments and junk journals. I also sell vintage items like dishes, art, linens, and jewelry. My cards can be found in an online store as well. 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
There have been challenges along the way. Some are now behind me and some are still hanging around. Learning to price and market my items has become easier with time and good advice. Thank goodness for other crafters who are generous about sharing their Instagram knowledge! I’ve tried my items in another shop but learned that it’s important to find a good fit for the things that I offer. That was humbling but important. COVID certainly provided difficulty and disappointments but did allow some surprising benefits. Over the last couple of years, as we all became homebound, I found more time to develop new projects and consider my place in a lively world of makers. 

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Cards are probably my hallmark items. I see inspiration for cards all over and love to work out new designs and try new materials. Reproductions of or materials inspired by vintage images frequently show up in my projects. The 50s-70s are my go-to eras for inspiration. Gorgeous papers, mixing patterns, sparkly details, working with vibrant palettes, incorporating images from the past…these get me fired up. I think my materials and are often what set me apart. While thrifting for items to sell, I find craft supplies, many of them old. Vintage ribbons, trims, lace, and magazines regularly appear in my cards. Now that I’m making paper rosettes and junk journals, even more, old pieces are making their way into my projects. Clip-on earrings, old sewing patterns, well-worn books, and aged ledgers have all become precious commodities in my workroom. Whenever possible I use secondhand materials to create new items. I hunt down paper supplies at yard sales and Facebook Marketplace. Fellow crafters with big hearts have given me the things they no longer use and I am so grateful. This allows me to offer more affordable items AND means that my products have less of an environmental impact. Win-win! I am determined to create things that can’t be found anywhere else. Incorporating all of these features helps me to do that. 

Any big plans?
These questions are perfectly timed. I’m in the middle of defining my niche. I’d like to streamline the variety of things that I offer and focus on the ones that I can’t wait to work on at the beginning of each day. Journals, rosettes, and cards occupy the crafty part of my mind, a lot. Developing these things in ways that inspire nostalgia, personal connections, and exclamations of “Pretty!” are what I’m aiming for. Next fall I’d like to take part in a couple of makers’ markets and have a hearty inventory to offer. Growing into another shop or two is also on my list of goals. 

Pricing:

• Greeting Cards $6
• Rosette Ornaments $9-18
• Junk Journals $20-65

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @thepapertarian