Looking Back on 2021: A Year in Review
Wow I cant’ believe a year has passed already !
Our kids are growing so fast and we have been in this pandemy for almost 2 years now !
How times have changed…
I am so grateful for an amazing year here at Petit Architect. When I started this journey, 4+ years ago, it was a side passion and honestly I didn't have a big vision for it. Slowly and steadily it grew, one step at a time, and I can now proudly say that this is my full occupation and I am able to make a living out of it, as well as bringing in some wonderful people to join our team!
I want to thank everyone who has participated in making this year a success starting with my husband Paul, my friends, and my mentor Claudia, for their ongoing support in my journey.
I also want to thank my team: Chelsea, who does all the social media, digital marketing, and graphic design. She is a true gem and I am so lucky to have her on board.
The wonderful teachers who have taught with me this year: Avin, Nour, Krystle, Evvie and Corey. We were able to bring you more after-school classes then ever, in more areas, and to more kids because of their help.
All the volunteers who spent one or several days with us: Iman, Nina, Nayan, Sophia. It was amazing to work with them all!
I also want to thank the community centers and all their staff. Vittoria, Mathew, Ny, Ashley and everyone working at Hillcrest, Mount Pleasant and Marpole, who helped us pull off a successful season.
So now for a year in review. What happened exactly?
AFTERSCHOOL CLASSES AND CAMPS
We were able to restart in person camps during Spring Break. It was amazing to see the kids in person again after such a long time! We really love our online classes, but there is nothing like teaching and making together in a room with all the kid’s energy and creativity. I really love our Pro D Days and camps when kids get to experience working on one project for a longer period of time. There is always a point where they all get in the « creative zone » and it’s a wonderful thing to watch and be a part of. Nowadays, everyone is busy doing a million things, kids are no exception, but I truly see the value of longer periods of work where they get to focus, do things at their own pace, and enjoy the creative process, rather than jumping from one activity to another like they do most of the time, even in school.
It was the first time we offered 8 weeks of summer camps and they were a great success! I could not have done it without our wonderful team and volunteers, and I am so grateful I even got to go away and visit my dear friends and family in France.
We started offering in person after-school classes in the fall at five locations in Vancouver. Nine classes per week, over 100 students! These classes are shorter and focus on drawing and model making, while learning about architects and buildings around the world. Seeing kids so engaged and interested in learning about architecture, architects, buildings, and construction is amazing! I was impressed by everyone’s work and engagement, and how kids would even remember the names of the architects or buildings we studied. I think this will open their creative minds and help them grow their design thinking capabilities in a meaningful way. We look forward to seeing some of you again in January! All our classes will be different so never hesitate to sign up again.
During Covid, we started online classes. These were super popular last winter and we still offer a wonderful class with Krystle, who teaches from Victoria. It’s so nice to see people sign up from everywhere in Canada or even the USA. We are very happy to be able to open up to more territories, to people who are remote learners and perhaps don’t have access to in person classes near them. Take a look at our online curriculum here and join Krystle in our next term, starting January.
IN SCHOOL WORKSHOPS
In School Workshops came to a stop when Covid hit and schools closed to the public. However, they started to pick up again in the spring of 2021 and I am so grateful to the teachers and principals who trusted me and invited me into their classrooms, whether online or in person, when it was safe to do so. I experienced new ways of teaching (online classes, outdoor sessions, sending boxes of materials across the province, etc). Many thanks to the teachers for their patience and flexibility while we adjusted to new times.
I am very proud to be in the top 3 activities chosen by the Francophone Schoolboards’ schools this year! I will be traveling across the province in 2022, sometimes in person, to meet so many new communities!
I look forward to working with new schools and teachers in 2022! My calendar is nearly all booked up for this year, so if you want to reserve a workshop, please contact us asap!
As I am finishing writing this, B.C. has just announced that the schools will remain closed until January 10th. This is obviously a huge burden for parents, especially working moms, and I am sure that you are all having feelings about this, as I do. I really hope that our schools remain open in 2022, so we can all live our lives as normal as possible. I really hope we can keep visiting classrooms this year! Crossing fingers really hard!!!
I was also invited to be a guest blogger at a couple of blogs this year! At Babyccino I wrote about how to introduce your kids to architecture and gave you some tips on how to approach that and at Yoyo Mama I wrote about my journey being a mom.
Trial and Error
Now, let’s talk about what didn’t work, as we have to celebrate the trials and errors of running a business...
The online store was a new adventure for me which I started last year. It has its ups and downs but overall is not something I am going to pursue. Shipping is too expensive, marketing and selling products is tough, and it’s a whole other job that takes up a lot of time. I wanted to try it, and I am happy I did, but will be closing the store sometime this year and try to sell my inventory as my storage room is very limited at my house.
Another struggle is probably having a clear vision for Petit Architect and being able to project in 2 to 5 years. This one is partly cultural too as I think as a french person I am not used to doing goals and visions as much as North Americans.
For example, I have been contemplating having a space as one option, but prices in Vancouver are outrageous and I am not sure I am ready to commit to that. During our pop’up in early December, I realized the work added with having a brick and mortar location and it kind of scared me a little! With the ongoing uncertain times, I think I will wait for now… unless an amazing opportunity happens to comes my way.
I am always thinking about the next step and wondering which path to take, but maybe it’s ok to enjoy where we are NOW. Always growing can be tiring and I keep reminding myself that having a good balance in my life is my goal, and not to overwork myself. I want to spend time with my children and my husband, and have some time for myself too! Being an entrepreneur, you never stop working in your mind, and that can be exhausting at times. Being present and enjoying the moment is definitely something I struggle with and want to be better at.
When Covid happened and everything stopped, it was super scary for me, as I was without a job all of a sudden. So in 2021, when work came back, I said yes to everything, not knowing if or when it would stop again. I definitely overworked myself last spring and summer…, but hey, it was a great feeling to have momentum again and I am so grateful for everything I was able to achieve .
This year, I have a great team in place to support me, and I will be more careful, probably say no more, and leave more empty space in my calendar!
So cheers to a mindfully successful year at Petit Architect! I hope you come join us at a class, camp, birthday party or any other event you would like to do! We are always open for suggestions and love hearing your feedback. Tell us what you would like to see more of in the comments!
Thank you again for supporting us and being part of the Petit Architect community !
I wish you a wonderful healthy new year, filled with creativity, laughter, giggles and love,