12/30/2025
by Victoria Ritter
Papercrafting runs deep in Christina Widemark’s veins. After attending a Close to My Heart party, she started selling its supplies online and hosted classes in 1997 and stayed with the company for 12 years. She also worked at Recollections, a paper store owned by Michaels, until it closed.
Through it all, she had a dream of opening her own store.
“Both of my parents have been business owners, so it’s a family thing,” Widemark stated. “I found out that my mom’s grandfather was in the printing business back in Latvia. So, I think that ink and paper is in my blood.”
While Peoria, AZ isn’t known for its art scene, it’s a suburb of Phoenix, which has a robust appreciation for the arts. Once Recollections shut its doors, there were a couple papercraft stores on the east side of the valley, about an hour away. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to open a craft business.
Widemark opened Scraps of Love in Peoria in 2009 as a co-op. She and her business partners would bring in their own products to sell. Three years later, Widemark became the sole owner of the store. She is joined by eight staff members; her daughter is the full-time inventory specialist and designer, and the rest of the team are part-time.
Scraps of Love has become a destination for papercrafters across the area, offering an ever-evolving inventory and chances to engage with the creative community.
The focal points
Scraps of Love’s main store is just under 5,000 square feet. Its array of stamps, dies, albums, papers and more is organized by theme. Areas are dedicated to birthday, Christmas and holidays, Arizona/local interests and solid cardstock. Widemark believes this layout, as opposed to being sorted by brand or product type, makes it easier for customers to navigate the store and find what they need.
“If I came in looking for birthday or for Christmas items, I’d like to be able to see all my possibilities right there without running around the store,” Widemark said.
New products are located at the front of the store. They are on display for a brief time before they are relocated to their respective section. “It’s fun, and my girls love building displays,” Widemark said. “If there’s a new stamp set, they’ll grab some inks to match so they’ll cross-promote products.”
Next door is a 1,800-square-foot outlet that displays sale products. Widemark employs a dot system, with discounts ranging from 10 to 70 percent off. “The products in the outlet are older, but they’re still good – they’re just not the latest and the greatest,” Widemark explained. “I like to say that nothing in in the main store celebrates a birthday. If it’s getting close to a year old, then it’s going over to the outlet so it can be discounted and move on.”
From papercraft to mixed media
Scraps of Love’s inventory has evolved over the decades. Its initial focus was on scrapbooking tools including pattern paper, stickers and adhesives but expanded to include stamping and card making materials. Currently, mixed media arts items share shelf space. Stamps and dies are currently among the top sellers. “Customers can use the product over and over again and in different ways, versus a sticker you use once and you’re done,” Widemark said.
Customers can also find a few gift items among the shelves including Chala purses, The Naked Bee lotion and lip balms, Lady Jayne stationary and FreshCut Paper flower bouquets.
The store has more than 12,000 SKUs, reported Widemark. Available brands include 49 and Market, Ranger Ink, Mintay Papers, Graphic 45 Papers, Echo Park and Simple Stories. Widemark makes a point to support local and smaller companies such as Spellbinders Paper Arts, Newton’s Nook, Waffle Flower Crafts and Matty’s Crafting Joy Scrapbooking Supplies.
Widemark keeps an ongoing list of companies that customers ask for, and then decides whether they’re a good fit for the store. She regularly attends Creativation by Namta, Craft-Utopia Expo produced by TheCollinsGroup for paper crafting stores and Las Vegas Gift Mart. “There we see a lot of trends that help us,” Widemark said.
When considering a new product or brand partner, Widemark first looks at the minimum order amounts and the style of the products; she hones in on designs that aren’t yet featured in Scraps of Love and won’t be found at big box retailers. “We don’t like to just be focused on just cutesy or vintage styles,” Widemark stated. “We like to have customers come in and know that they’re going to find a good variety.”
A select few products are posted on Scraps of Love’s website, scrapsoflove.com, along with class and event schedules. The store can ship orders across the U.S. “One of my goals for next year is to update the website and provide more online sales,” Widemark said. “I really prefer customers coming in and chatting.”
Blending online and in-person experiences
Widemark has come to appreciate the benefits of posting online and social media content. She posts live videos twice a week. At 12:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, she hosts “Lunch with Chris” where she shares how to use a product or demonstrates simple crafts. Friday live videos focus on what’s new in the store. “We have a lot of customers who are not close and watch our Friday lives,” Widemark explained. “They will then message us what they would like us to order and ship to them.”
In-person events have always been an important facet to Widemark’s business. When she started Scraps of Love, she would set up a couple of tables at the front of the store. Now she has a dedicated classroom space that can accommodate up to 24 people for classes or private parties.
The weekly calendar is always busy. Monday is designated for open cropping. Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday are class days. Thursday is “make-and-take” day, sometimes with an introduction class afterwards. Widemark contracts one instructor to teach about 10 classes a month, and the other sessions are led by store employees.
As journaling has become a popular trend, Widemark teaches a folio class on how to make your own journals on the second Friday of each month. It has continued for a year, with each month focusing on a new technique. “I really enjoy making my own journal,” Widemark said. “I can scrapbook for somebody else, but I can’t scrapbook for myself because it’s too hard to make the decisions on which paper to use. I love to make the base of the journal and then give to somebody else to decorate.”
The classes and online videos have made their mark. While many of the class attendees are regulars, Widemark has noticed a few sessions mainly comprised of newcomers to the store.
Archival material
Widemark has faced her share of challenges with the store; recent hurdles have been trying to keep prices affordable and attracting new customers. The classes and online videos have been a great help offering transparency and acting as a friendly introduction to newcomers. “If you share techniques and ideas, they’re more likely to say, ‘Hey, I remember watching that video and I need to go and check them out,’” Widemark observed.
Widemark is proud to celebrate 17 years of being in business, especially making it through the COVID pandemic without closing her doors or laying off staff. For her, the key to success is being willing to change. For example, she added Sunday hours a couple years ago to accommodate customers’ schedules and began posted live videos even before it became a popular marketing technique.
“Follow your dream and be persistent,” she stated. “It’s not easy, but it’s rewarding.”
