Robin surrounded by some of her card creations
A bookcase converted to a supply cabinet for paper crafting materials
Jaine Toth
One of the original residents of Robson Ranch, Robin Tisinger dabbled with card making now and then when she lived in Simi Valley, Calif. After getting acquainted with her Robson Ranch neighbor, Pam Costner, a representative for the paper crafting company Close to Your Heart, she began to take it up in earnest. Pam invited Robin and several other women over on occasion where they gathered around the dining room table to scrapbook and/or create handmade cards. Often they worked from card kits. Robin wondered why the others would end up with numerous cards and she’d have a handful. Pam pointed out that the others created identical cards in assembly-line fashion, following the kit design exactly, while Robin endeavored to individualize each one, which takes time, thought, and an eye for balance and design. Robin explained, “Kits give direction, but you’re not limited to doing every one as a copy of the others. It’s OK—in fact, it’s fun and it’s more fulfilling to tweak them and make each one slightly different.”
Robin has created scrapbooks, but there is no comparison in her estimation to the creation of greeting cards. Robin said, “I love being creative, and I love making things for people, brightening their day, and letting them know they’re being thought of.” She doesn’t limit her gifts to greeting cards. She explained, “I sew, quilt, embroider, crochet, and even make dolls and stuffed animals. I also work with stained glass. I just love crafting.” Even though Robin has a dedicated craft room in her house, due to her multiple interests, the material and equipment take up so much space that she ends up making her cards at the dining table.
Robin makes enough cards to always have plenty on hand to choose from, but still takes time now and then to make one designed specifically for a particular individual.
In her efforts to bring smiles and a bit of joy to others, she told me, “My parents are not well—they’re homebound, so I send them cards frequently, and also to some of their friends who are homebound.”
She notes crafting, and most especially card making, was “my saving grace during the COVID lockdown. Since I couldn’t go anywhere or see anyone, I made cards every day.”
COVID also put the kibosh (temporarily) on a project dear to Robin’s heart. She and Pam Costner had just finished compiling materials to take to the Children’s Hospital in Phoenix when the lockdown occurred. Their plan is to take scrapbooks, scrapbooking materials, and card-making supplies “so the kids have something to do while in the hospital. We will set up a table where the kids can do their own artwork while waiting for their appointments. I also have quilts to hand out as well as the kits we’re putting together. We will do this as soon as we’re given the OK by the hospital. We are really looking forward to this!”
It seems by bringing joy to others, Robin creates her own inner happiness.