Although I’d been making cards for my family for years it wasn’t until I was introduced to Stampin’ Up in 2002 that my passion for paper really took hold. My addiction to tools and techniques was all encompassing and I just couldn’t learn enough, buy enough or create enough to satiate my soul.

At the time I was a Sales Rep for a kitchen company, and I was travelling all over BC, but sitting alone in my Hotel room just wasn’t for me, so I’d go check out the local Scrapbook store.  I was blown away by all the cool products that were in these small stores outside of Vancouver and would come home and tell my friends about it.  (Well, not just Tell but Show them, actually… I told you I couldn’t BUY enough!)

Eventually, people kept telling me I should open my own shop and showcase all the neat techniques I was learning, but I thought “only Crazy people open Retail stores!” and just continued teaching classes in my Dining Room.

Then Ella was born.  And I didn’t want to travel one week out of every month.  And opening a Scrapbook store didn’t seem all that Crazy, somehow.

But I didn’t want to lose the “feel” of those Dining Room classes, so Andrew and I decided that our shop wouldn’t look like everybody else’s.  We’d style the store to be reminiscent of a home, play some jazzy music, and invite people to chat over a tea or coffee.

Cherish the Thought was created in 2008, and she has all the qualities I hoped for.  A cozy space filled with beautiful projects that allows you to wander through, taking your time, and ultimately enjoy the ”collecting” as much as the creating.

In January 2009, my husband Andrew quit his job and came on as our very own Cherished Chuck.  He brought with him, his own Crafty talents which include Metal Work, Wood Turning, Sculpture and Acrylic Painting.  Paper Crafting may be new to him, but the birthday card he made for me in 2007 was published in the Canadian Scrapbooker Magazine Spring 2009, so he’s already well on his way to mastering this craft.

Cherish has also become a place to help us share our enthusiasm with all of you.   We strive to carry products that you won’t find everywhere and our samples are mainly technique based as we want to show you how easy it is to create your own custom backgrounds, embellishments, and main images.  We also love to show you how to use products you may already have in different ways, as well as introduce you to new products and techniques, so come on by for a visit, and we’ll take a moment to play…

Jessie, Andrew & Ella Hurley