Tania Zimelka and the Joy of Handmade Moments

When asked what first inspired her to start ZAZABOOM, Zimelka explains, “There were two reasons: connection and art. We are living in a time where loneliness is growing by the day… I wanted to remind people that fundamentally we are all the same — everyone wants to feel loved, feel needed and feel like they are part of something.” Her solution was the ARTCARD, “a greeting card that can be displayed as art.”

Zimelka’s cards, each painted by hand and paired with a miniature easel, capture the warmth of human touch in a world of instant messages. She was inspired, in part, by her teenagers’ digital lives. “It really saddened me that their world was limited to confessing undying love or good news by text,” she says. “They would never know the joy of the old shoebox under the bed filled with keepsakes, memories, and love letters.” For her, the physical act of writing and receiving a letter is “magic.” She adds, “There is nothing more fabulous than finding a brightly colored envelope amongst all the bills in the mailbox.”

Painting itself became a lifeline. “It is absolute therapy for me,” Zimelka says. “I went through a really dark time a few years ago and it was actually my sister who came to me and said her work needed some posters done and would I be interested in doing it.… I spent day after day with my favourite music playing on my headphones and painting these posters and truly it was complete therapy. No one was more surprised than me as I felt this heaviness that had swamped me lift slowly but surely. So I absolutely believe in the power of creativity.”

Her appreciation for imperfection is part of that healing process. “We’re living in a world of ‘fast everything’… everything looks digitally processed, perfect & exactly the same — and well, to me that becomes very boring.”

That belief in creativity as healing and essential also inspired Zimelka to share it with others. “This is why I was the volunteer art teacher for five years at my kids’ school — because I couldn’t believe that most schools had cut out art, music and woodwork,” she says. “For me it is critical that children experience the feeling of creating something with their own hands. There’s something absolutely magical about it.”

Zimelka’s passion for connection extends to her customers, too. While she first focused on the recipient’s experience, she quickly discovered that the sender feels just as much joy. “I’ve had so many people contact me to tell me about the utter happiness it brought them to sit down and write a letter to someone,” she says. “So truthfully it is the perfect win-win situation!”

The idea of including a mini easel, now a ZAZABOOM signature, came from a friend, adding to the communal feel of Zimelka’s work. “[Zimelka’s friend] wanted to display them as art on her mantelpiece and she said to me — wouldn’t it be great if you could get an easel with the card! I absolutely loved the idea & now we send easels with every card.”

For Zimelka, art is what keeps people connected. “I heard someone say that art is both a mirror and a bridge and I just loved that,” she reflects. “I feel that ZAZABOOM is a mirror that reflects happiness and joy and by sharing this with others it forms a bridge to connect us to each other.”

That spirit of connection thrives in Benicia’s creative community. “We are so lucky in Benicia to have such an incredible art scene,” she says. “Bookshop Benicia were my first stockists and have championed me from the very beginning… Then the fantastic SIPS bottle emporium jumped on board and had me design a custom range just for them… Local support is everything.”

Zimelka’s dream is to see even more collaboration between artists and small businesses: “I absolutely love community projects. They’re a great way to bring everyone together.”

Her mission, at its heart, is simple but powerful: “I want to remind people that we are all the same and that when you do something to make someone else feel good you actually end up making yourself feel wonderful too.”