Welcome Lisa Varshine to the Creative Team

We are excited to feature our new members of the Studio Calico Creative Team. We're looking forward to seeing their inspiring projects in the gallery and blog, and hope you are, too! Today, we're getting to know Lisa Varshine! Be sure to follow her here at SC to see more of her work and keep up with her.


Hi, everyone! You can’t imagine how absolutely thrilled I am to be joining the Studio Calico Creative Team. My name is Lisa and I’m a wife and mom of two (Ava, 5; Ben, 22 months), living in Atlanta, GA. Right now, I spend my days trying to keep my youngest from diving head-first off our furniture and my evenings as a freelance writer in the healthcare industry. In my spare time, I’m a political podcast junkie (I’m a former Hill staffer), a lover of 50/60s era classic films and reading (when I can stay awake), and I’m running my second half marathon in September. 

I’ve been a subscriber with Studio Calico since 2015, but I didn’t complete my first spread until October of 2016. We suffered through a three year battle with infertility. Once my son was born in late 2016, I was so filled with gratitude and joy, I wanted to document as much as I could of our little family of four. When I first stumbled upon the hobby of memory keeping, I assumed I didn’t have enough time (or skill) to fill a traditional scrapbook page. But that’s when I found Studio Calico and discovered that this craft comes in all shapes and sizes, and all skill levels! Their kits were so in line with my aesthetic, and the curated pieces meant all I had to do was sit down and play!

Since then, my hobby has become pretty all-consuming. It’s a way I’m able to combine my love for my family, writing, and design. I can’t get enough. In January 2018, I became a creative team member for Ali Edwards Design Inc. and I think I’ve really grown so much in the past year. I’ve learned a tremendous amount from Ali, Katie, and the ladies on my team. I’m also working on a class for Big Picture Classes and recently contributed to Ali’s Travel Product Play class (available now). 

I’m a pocket page documenter and I’ve just fallen in love with traveler's notebooks. Both formats offer great ways to capture the everyday moments in life that I don’t want to forget. I’ve found that in both traveler's notebooks and pocket pages, I can be as elaborate or as streamlined as I care to be. I love that freedom and versatility. After a little more than a year of memory keeping, I have yet to truly define my style. I’d say I lean towards the bold and graphic end of the design spectrum. I love for my photos and stories to take center stage and use product and embellishments to complement and emphasize them (another reason why I love Studio Calico!).

I documented 2017 in 9" x 12" size albums, but I’ve switched to 12" x 12" for 2018 and I’m loving it. I’m excited to share a few of my favorite spreads. The spread above from January is a good example of how photo-heavy and graphic my Documenter spreads typically are. I love color, even black! I’m also fairly conscious of varying the perspectives and subjects in my weekly spreads, both to create interest and give a more balanced representation of our daily life. I use the same “techniques” in this spread from March. 

The TN spread below, featuring my five-year-old daughter, is one of my very favorite spreads. I think it’s a great example of how simple a traveler's notebook spread can be to put together...and yet how impactful it can be. This is essentially two photos, some journaling, a stamp, and a few simple embellishments. There it is, basically my heart on a page. That’s why I love this craft and why I love Studio Calico for helping me to get these stories on a page. 

Ten random things making me happy right now: Alexa, iced green tea, Amazon Prime, the magic eraser, boo boo buddies, lots and lots of concealer, Ziploc bags, chocolate (all the chocolate!), Sesame Street (it’s getting us through a lot of tough times over here ;), and my iPhone.


See more from Lisa:

Gallery

Instagram

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2 comments

  1. iScrap says…
    07/06/2018

    Nice to "meet" you! Love your projects - they're fun and colorful! Looking forward to seeing you use the kits!

    2 Reply 1 Reply
    1. lisavarshine says…
      07/12/2018

      That’s so kind. Thank you so much!! Believe it or not, I’m kind of a neutral girl “in real life” ;) I’m so excited to start with this month’s kit.

      1