Did you ever wonder how this all started? According to Bloomberg Pursuits, Birchbox started shipping tiny beauty samples in 2010. Since then the concept has exploded with Inc. reporting over 2,000 choices as of March of 2016. But we all know there were other monthly “clubs” because we saw the “Jelly of the Month Club” given to Clark Griswold in the 1989 National Lampoon’s movie Christmas Vacation. Fruit of the month, wine of the month and many other products can be purchased via a club. Somehow, in my mind, subscription seems to be a better term for what we see today. But I must admit the various food and wine clubs made great gifts for that hard to buy for person on your list.
A general consensus from my research is the product offered by subscription must be used to be successful. My personal opinion is that is why so many paper craft related subscription services have been launched. As paper crafters I am sure we could all easily name over 20 different companies. Some of these companies provide previews of what will be sent in a particular month. Stampin’ Up!® began a paper crafting subscription box for North America over 5 years ago and is still going strong. Paper Pumpkin® is designed to be a surprise each month. They arrive around the middle of each month and include at least one Classic Stampin’ Spot®, photopolymer stamps along with all paper products and embellishments to create a number of cards. Occasionally the kit may be a 3D project. While you may need your own scissors and adhesives, very often glue dots and Stampin’ Dimensionals are included. Everything is precut and ready to go so you can skip to the fun part of crafting!
Stampin’ Up!® provides complete instructions in each kit and also posts video tutorials for each kit. You can read more about and subscribe to Paper Pumpkin (with me as your Demonstrator) here. You will also find information on Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube. Remember above when I spoke of the perfect gift for the hard to buy for person on your list? Paper Pumpkin is an excellent choice for your crafting friends and family or folks you know would like to get started. The Prepaid options are perfect for gift giving. If you have any questions about Paper Pumpkin or Stampin’ Up! I hope you will reach out to me; I would enjoy chatting with you.
