At the Cozy Crop House, in Lititz, a getaway retreat for scrapbookers, croppers like Jennifer Hennessy, of New Freedom, can scrap without interruption.
Scrapbookers gather in the "crop room," which has eight custom-made tables.
Part of a growing trend, the scrapbooking retreat house offers hobbyists a homey, hosted, friendship-friendly overnight getaway.
Call it a scrapbooking sanctuary.
Once croppers enter this domain, they can rub elbows, share secrets — and in off-scrapbooking time, even get a massage.
At the Cozy Crop House, in Lititz, which officially opened this month, scrapbookers can indulge their passion for an entire weekend, without interruption.
Part of a growing trend, the scrapbooking retreat house offers hobbyists a homey, hosted, friendship-friendly overnight getaway.
"They can stay up till 3 in the morning, scrapbooking, if they want," says Kate Rothacker, who runs the house with her business partner, Ellen Zerphey. "They can spread out their supplies and know they won't be disturbed."
No kids. No husbands.
No cleaning. No cooking.
Just unadulterated scrapbooking.
"You can lay your pages out without having to worry about dinner getting spilled on it or your children sneaking away with your supplies," says house attendee Debbie Marvel, Columbia, Md. "It's a place where not only are you working on layouts of memories; but you make new memories by the time the weekend is done."
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Scrapbooking is big — a surging multibillion-dollar industry.
Rothacker has been riding the wave for more than a decade.
The Lititz mother of four grown children created scrapbooks since her kids were small.
"With scrapbooking, you're reliving moments, preserving memories," says Rothacker.
While living in California in the early '90s, Rothacker was introduced to scrapbooking as a business at a party for Creative Memories, one of the first scrapbook businesses to emerge on a national level.
After relocating to Pennsylvania in 1995, she discovered that the scrapbooking trend hadn't arrived in full force on the East Coast.
But gradually, the hobby began to make inroads.
She worked for a while at a scrapbooking store in Brickerville and eventually started Local Memories. Through her business, she created a unique die cut of an Amish horse and buggy, and began offering accents, expertise and consultation to other croppers.
She eventually teamed up with Zerphey and started organizing weekend retreats, or "cozy crops," at various county locations, including Lancaster, attracting scrapbookers from throughout Pennsylvania and neighboring states.
The Lititz Cozy Crop House evolved out of the Lancaster rental retreat location.
Leased by Rothacker and Zerphey, the Lititz house includes a spacious "crop room" with eight custom-made tables, and a fully equipped kitchen. The five-bedroom house can accommodate up to 16 scrappers.
Supplies and tools are on sale from three vendors — Local Memories, the Scrapinators (Cheryl Whitehead) and Scrappin With Rut (Rut Lopez). Instruction and five meals are also provided — and massages are available, for a fee.
Rothacker and Zerphey are working on providing weekday workshops and classes.
The cost for a weekend stay is $235 per person. People can go individually or as part of a group.
"I wanted something that was affordable for a mom like me," Rothacker says. "A lot of hotel settings can be expensive and also overwhelming."
"I really enjoy cropping with a small group and not being in some huge banquet room with 300 other scrappers," says Cozy Crop House attendee Cindy Schwenk, East Greenville. "It is more relaxing, and usually everyone is more than willing to share their supplies and ideas.
"As a working mom, it feels good to go away for the weekend and not have to worry about anything."
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Some might call it an addiction.
Rothacker has a kinder, gentler definition.
"There are a lot of jokes about the scrapbooking 'addiction,' but we call it a 'therapy,' " she says.
Croppers create books dedicated to everything from family celebrations to vacation cruises.
"Disney is very, very big," Rothacker says.
Scrapbooking is a forgiving, flexible hobby.
"There are no rules, no right or wrong," Zerphey says. "People have their own styles."
She says one thing she likes about scrapbooking is that with all the variety of embellishments, a scrapbook makes the humble photo, no matter how good or bad, look better.
The popularity of scrapbooking shows no sign of waning any time soon.
Rothacker and Zerphey have had an overwhelming response and have started booking well into the summer.
"Scrapbooking is huge all over the world," says Zerphey, who has scrapbooking relatives in South Africa.
The future of cropping is bright ... and also digital.
More and more scrapbookers are relying on computers to finish their projects, and the Crop House, which offers wireless access, also has a computer on site.
"Even though it's a down economy, it's still been worthwhile to move ahead with this ..." Rothacker says.
"It's a great way for women to indulge a hobby and recharge their batteries, while still doing something for their families."
SCRAP HAPPY