Our Story

It's Scrapicated, LLC got its start in my basement in late 2010.   In the early days, I created cups & t-shirts using adhesive and heat transfer vinyl. The name "Scrapicated" was born from all the gazillion "scraps" of vinyl that I had from creating.  It seemed I was always digging thru my scraps to create something else, thus scraps "in action"; Scrapicated. I eventually gave up the folding tables I worked off of and built a home studio so I would have my very own space.

My home studio:
 
(Please ignore the missing ceiling tile; the water line in upstairs bathroom broke & the tile had not yet been replaced, these pics are from after the clean up #keepingitreal)

In 2011, I met my now business partner who was cutting metal for crafting, so I began expanding my creating to include metal shapes with vinyl lettering, mostly flowers (we now have 100s of shapes).  Crafting was just a hobby in the beginning; it was a creative release from my corporate telecommunications day job.  I spent nearly every evening and most of the weekends in my little home studio creating.  Our DIY workshops began (very much by accident) in late 2011 when another friend simply asked if I could get about 10 shapes and come show her and her friends how to make a sign.  So we did! Their  pictures got posted to social media and I began doing 2-3 DIY workshops a month hauling all of my supplies to local bars or for in-home parties.  So it went for several years, I created things for folks (retail sales) and facilitated DIY workshops around town several times a month for specific shapes (flowers, bunnies, ornaments, etc) for each workshop.

Fast forward to March 2015; my husband saw a little house for rent over on State Street (Springfield, IL) and suggested I check into it so I could use the space to facilitate the workshops vs hauling all of my things around (metal is heavy y'all and I'm no spring chicken....hahahaaha!). So I did, and I signed the rental agreement the next day. The rent was reasonable and I was THRILLED to have a "home base"  to begin doing my DIY workshops.  

2015 was quite a year; in May (like 2 months after signing the lease....) I was advised by my employer (my Corporate Telcom day job) that my job was being relocated to Dallas, Texas.  I could of course move (with full relocation benefits) or in 60 days I would be involuntarily separated from the company I had worked for for 28 years (since I was 17 years old).  Well, my kiddo was just a sophomore in high school at the time, his father and I were divorced and moving to Dallas meant I would leave my kiddo here. Leaving my child was not an option for me. Period! There was a contingency in the severance plan that stated if you were within 24 months of being full retirement eligible (in my case 30 years of service) you could "buy out" all of your benefits for 1/2 of your severance pay.  I made that "cut off" by 2 days - TWO DAYS! #godwink  

So with 28 years of service, 24 months shy of my pension, I walked away. I left AT&T on August 14th, 2015 and opened the shop as my new full time "job" on August 15th, 2015.  In hindsight, I really should have taken some time to "adjust".  AT&T was all I knew.  I had been a really good employee, performance bonuses yearly, there everyday, giving it my all.  It was a painful experience.  One I grew from of course, but it was very difficult to understand after I had given them all I had for basically my whole adult life. It was very much like working thru the entire grieving process. Anywho, God knows what he is doing and though I make much less money now (LOL!) I am exactly where I am supposed to be. 

I am not sure why I have no pictures of the day the shop opened, but here's a picture of what the shop looked like in October of 2015:

In May 2016, Porch Candy® was born.  The creation of Porch Candy® began moving our business towards a retail product sales model  (retail sales of Porch Candy® and Door hangers) in addition to our DIY workshop services.  The expansion of Porch Candy® in the last 5 years has been such an incredible experience.  It got its USPTO registered trademark, the design of the display bases has improved over the years, the product line continues to grow and we are humbled and beyond blessed by how much our customers love this product.

The last 15 months (hello COVID) have been difficult yes, but having spent the time in the years prior building the product side of our business sure helped us weather the storm.  We are very much looking forward to bringing open (public) DIY workshops back beginning July 2021 as we have missed the joy that your creativity brings to the shop.

So many things have changed over the years but one thing remains the same; we will get up everyday to bring our customers quality, handmade  products, create space for you to exercise your creativity and do it all while providing exceptional customer service.  I am forever grateful for this opportunity.  I never take it for granted and while I do not know what the future holds, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for being a part of our story!


xoxo,
-Tammy