JOB DESCRIPTION: Spokeswoman of K & Company, a national scrapbook and craft supply design company based in Kansas City, eksuccessbrands.com/kandcompany. Thome is one of the creators of the company’s Smash book, which debuted this year.
Q.Smash books seem to be about on-the-go inspiration. Tell us how they work. A.They have pre-designed pages for sticking those cool designed business cards, clothing tags or tea packaging — things that end up in junk drawers or file folders. It’s a place for magazine and catalog tearsheets and paint chips for inspiring a room makeover or home project. It’s a place to jot ideas and the funny things kids say. And it’s a place to stick ticket stubs. Q.What brought on the concept? A.It’s the un-scrapbook for time-pressed people. There are different kinds of people with different priorities, schedules, abilities, reasons and seasons. They are into life-keeping through personal blogs, smartphone apps, etc. And through social media, especially Pinterest, where users share images that inspire them. We wanted Smash to feel fun, hip and now. Q.What inspires you? A.I hunt blogs, especially Mighty Girl. Etsy for handmade items. Pinterest — I feel like I’d been waiting for it all my life. Thrift stores and flea markets, because they contain designs that have lasted through the decades. My sewing machine inspires me to make things — it’s my grandmother’s (from the 1960s). Other inspirations are old movies, mid-century animation, creative nonfiction, European travel, sequined jumpsuits, typography, conversations overheard in cafés and children. Q.Who are your favorite local artists? A.MJ Rigby, Tuesday Schmidt, Chris Dahlquist and Faye Woods. Q.Do places in Kansas City inspire you? A.The restaurant Unforked (7337 W. 119th St., Overland Park). Letterpress at Hammerpress (110 Southwest Blvd.). Architectural items from Foundation Architectural Reclamation (1221 Union Ave.) and Architectural Salvage (2045 Broadway). Stores, including Webster House (1644 Wyandotte St.), Nell Hill’s (4101 N. Mulberry Drive, Kansas City, North) and Good JuJu (1412 W. 12th St.). And home. Q.On the subject of home, tell us about yours. A.My husband, Chad Eickholt, and I live in a 1970s 1 1/2-story house in Overland Park. We’re tackling each room, making it our own. We were inspired by a trip last year to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, N.C. We loved the classic subway tile in the indoor swimming pool. We put a marble version of the tile in our bathroom earlier this year. Q.Do you have an inspiration board? A.Yes, it’s in my craft room. It has old handkerchiefs, little swatches of fabrics and trims. The pieces help organize projects. I’ll throw in a button from an event as inspiration for a color. Q.How does inspiration turn out in reality for you? A.I try to live up to what I’m inspired by. Sometimes it works out better than the inspiration. Sometimes it doesn’t work, like in the case of the holidays when a dish doesn’t go as planned for a meal. But the feeling you get after tackling that inspiration and just being with your friends and family is perfect. Q.What are you doing this year for Thanksgiving? A.We’re hosting it. A niece, two nephews and my mother-in-law are coming. We’re going to have a meal-prep slumber party before getting up at 5 a.m. In the mid-morning, we’ll escape from the hot kitchen and go on a walk to enjoy the brisk weather and fall scenery. Then mid-day we’ll eat the meal. I’m planning to balance traditional dishes with fresh, new ones. Stacy Downs, sdowns@kcstar.comRead more H+H Q and A
Posted on Fri, Nov. 18, 2011 12:00 AM
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Q & A | K & Company’s notebook is a ‘Smash’ hit
Thanksgiving in action
On a preprinted page of her Smash book, Megan Thome created a locally sourced Thanksgiving menu. She found a Sherwin-Williams “Stone Lion” paint chip, stuck it in her book and painted her dining room that shade of greige (gray-beige). Inspired by images of vintage silver trays and flatware she came across, she plans to hang some pieces on the walls. “Do not polish,” she jotted in her book. The reason: Tarnish creates a desirable patina.
‘Smashing’ invention
What is it? Smash book by K & Company of Kansas City is for time-pressed people who don’t scrapbook but want a place to jot ideas and keep stuff that inspires them. Smash books are not as theme-oriented as many scrapbook products. A collection of accessories such as clips, sticky notes and pockets also debuted this year.
How it works: Each book comes with a “Smash stick” (pen on one end, glue on the other) for affixing finds onto whimsical paper pages. The book’s spine loosely indicates the style of the pages: orange (simple), blue (retro), green (eco), black (mod), pink (pretty), red (doodle) and yellow (international). The book, at 7 3/4 inches wide by 10 1/4 inches tall, easily fits inside a tote bag.
Where to find it: $12.99 at kandcompany.eksuccessbrands.com; Paper Source, 621 W. 48th St.; and Archiver’s, 8618 N. Boardwalk Ave., Kansas City, North, and 7594 W. 119th St., Overland Park.
What’s coming in 2012: Smash wedding and baby books.
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