Words by Nicole Teng
Social media has allowed us to send messages so quickly to one another that receiving messages has become so fast, so impersonal, and sometimes the sincerity of the feeling has been lost. People are starting to crave more of this lost feeling. This trend of going back to the old times has come back as “vintage” and it’s been extremely popular recently–perhaps due to its aesthetics.
If you want vintage done right, look no further! @Putitinpaper, handled by Ms. Gem Zapanta, writes love letters, creates stickers, and designs invitations for your events! Aside from that, they also customize those wax seals–fitting for you and your event or personal letter!
https://www.instagram.com/p/B2u4iECJxcq/
When in Manila had the chance to interview Gem Zapanta regarding her process on creating these beautiful artworks, where she gets her inspiration from, what it’s like having this type of job, and lastly, her advice to people who want to start this hobby or want to pursue a career in the arts but are unsure how to do so.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B3tD_TnJJIX/
Gem started her Instagram page last June 2017 and started posting her work in August of the same year. She started because she “loved stationeries since time immemorial.” Gem remembers having a transparent pocket planner when she was in third grade and used it up until her first year in high school. Her planner’s binder had a blue liquid inside it with glitters, a tiny unicorn, and star flakes so that when you’d shake it, Gem says, “the blue would mix with the silver glitters and pinks stars and purple unicorns and you’d look at it and feel the magic of what planning could do to your life.”
Gem always loved stationery as a child and it held all her life stories within it including letters, love notes, stickers, photos, and information including birthdays, special occasions, and even the phone numbers and addresses of her classmates and relatives. Her monthlies had due dates of her occasions and projects, her weeklies had her homework and her notes on things she needed to complete, and her dailies, her favorite, “had ‘dear diaries’ all over them!”
What’s cute about all of this is what inspired Gem the most was meeting the love of her life and letting that be her inspiration in creating her art. #SanaAll
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bz4grFboLTW/
This isn’t just your normal planner blog or stationery addict. It’s a page dedicated to my love for paper and memory keeping. It’s a page to remind me to never forget who I am and what I love to do. Because at the end of the day doing what you like is freedom and having someone love you because of what you are is happiness.
We also asked her about the process of creating the wax seals. She replies with, “I source them abroad. I have templates for monograms to choose from or I can design monograms if a client requests. Most of my clients already have their logos or monograms and they just send me a clear photo of the file. The whole process takes 3-5 weeks from the date of payment and approval of the design since I import my seals by batch every month. I also make wax seal “stickies” these are ready to use a wax seal that are like stickers. You just peel them off my packaging and stick it to your gift wrapper, journal, scrapbook, letters, or even postcards.”
Gem also advises that for anyone wanting to try this out, sourcing from second-hand would be a good idea.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B3wBvHAJuR2/
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While this seems like a rather expensive hobby it’s really a fun and fulfilling job. She says that for the people who are willing to go for it, the first step is to remember to “Never doubt your ability to create something,” and “to never forget who you are and what you love to do.”
Thinking of asking Gem to do your invitations for your events or sending love letters to your significant other from far away, or maybe just wanting some inspiration to create art from her aesthetic feed? Check out her Instagram page @Putitinpaper!
