Creative Team Spotlight: Jennifer Evans + Wonderful Wednesday and One Buck Wednesday! September 26, 2012!

This month we are spotlighting Creative Team Member, Jennifer Evans!

1. What is your favorite Technique?

I love to layer on my layouts. The more the happier I am.

2. Where did you learn to design?

As an artist for the last fifteen years, I believe that if my hands aren’t stained from paint then I wasn’t having fun enough! My twin sister introduced me into scrapbooking and stamping twelve years ago. I kept my feet grounded and refused to take the plunge that she had. I held tight onto my canvas, paint brushes, and acrylics and watched as she continued to write and tell me about her new passion.
A year later I walked into a scrapbook store, fell in love with paper, and I dropped my art supplies thinking that I was to never to look at them again. It wasn’t until altered books and mixed media came into the Northwest that I began to realize that my first love for paint and canvas could be used with scrapbooking! Scrapbooking then became more of an artistic way for me to tell my story than just photos on a page to document an event.

3. What influences your design choices?

I love color. I flip through home decor magazines and catalogues like Pottery Barn or Anthropologie to get color combinations to work with.

4. Who are your artsy inspirations?

The more I work in the scrapbooking community online, the more I am inspired by my fellow team members. Then, I get to craft with my sister, Rebecca Grinder, and she reminds me why I love this so much. She rocks! ;)

5. What do you enjoy doing besides crafting?

If I could spend the day out in my garden I would be content. My husband and I also enjoy photography together while spending quality family time. Our favorite place to go is the Oregon Coast.

I wanted to share with you some random acts of kindness gifts I created for my son's teachers. I love Samantha Walker's new Paris Girl line with Carta Bella. The stickers are perfect for an easy and quick gift or gift tag!

I also used Samantha Walker's Spellbinders set that goes with this line to cut the heart out and thread some ribbon misted with Heidi Swapp's Color Shine in Primrose and Tinsel which matches this beautiful line perfectly!

To see more of Jennifer's work visit her blog, Create Often

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Creative Team Spotlight with AJ + Wonderful Wednesday! April 25, 2012

AJ Otto is our spotlight this month!  I'm thrilled to feature AJ as a two term member of our team. AJ has a way of making crafting appeal to all skill levels. Her little twists of ingenuity in her designs give people fresh ideas for their projects. I know you'll enjoy what AJ has to share with us today!

 For my first card, I am using a mix of Samantha's products-her line of Spellbinders dies, Creative Imaginations Big Top Birthday line of paper, and her rub on's also from the same CI line.  The two dies cuts are from the Ornate Artisan Tags and Accents set. 

 Again using a mix of her lines, this card features Spellbinders dies from the Ornate Artisan Tags and Accents and the Cuckoo Clock sets, and her Creative Imaginations paper.  The larger die cut is from the Ornate Artisan Tags and accents and the bird is from the Cuckoo Clock set.  The sentiment is the coordinating stamp set from Unity, Ornate Artisan Stackers.  The green patterned paper is the Kokeshi Lanterns paper.

The last card uses just patterned paper.  Some times just playing with paper is fun! ;)  I covered my card front with the orange circular patterns (from CI), and then trimmed a small strip from the backside of the same piece to break it up.  The butterflies are fussy cut from her Blossom Flutter paper.

Q: What is your favorite technique?
A: I'm not a techniquey type person.  (Is that a word?!;)  I started out as a stamper back when I first started making cards, so I tend to lean towards working with paper and stamps still today even in this era of digital designs!  I love to paper piece, I'm not a big colorer, and I just love playing with patterned paper.
 

Q: Where did you learn how to design?
A:  I just like to play with patterns and color.  Checking out magazines, blogs, and online galleries, figuring out what styles appealed to me and just jumping in head first!

Q: What influences your design choices?
A:Clean lines, graphic images, and pops of color.  I am a less is more type of gal, and lean towards cleaner designs and open space. Occasionally I step out of my comfort zone and am pleasantly surprised by playing with other styles. 

Q: Who are your artsy inspirations...
A: My friends.  I don't have specific people, although I have a long list of people I find inspiring, not just necessarily in the crafting world.  I love to peruse magazines and clothing ads as well.

Q: What do you enjoy doing besides crafting and designing…
A: Besides crafting...I am a mom!  That's a full time job as you all know.  My kids are active in sports and clubs at school and I have become taxi this year! If I am not hustling them around town watching their games, I love to cook from scratch, bake, and photography.  I am also hoping to learn how to use more of the amazing digital lines this year.  

Be sure to visit AJ's blog to see more of her fabulous work!

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Creative Team Spotlight with Eva + Wonderful Wednesday! March 28, 2012!

So thrilled to be spotlighting  Eva Dobilas this month!  Eva is extremely talented!  She loves to add her brand of detail to whatever she creates. Her designs gush happiness in craft form. Her use of color is phenomenal and perfect to share this time of year, as we turn to Spring. I know you will enjoy this spotlight on Eva. 

Today Eva is sharing two very different cards!  The first one's card base is cut out with  Silhouette.  The shape is called 3 artisan nesting shapes.  Papers are from Samantha's Creative Imaginations paper line called Heidi. Eva also incorporated plain old dictionary paper, which she die cut with Samantha's Spellbinders Ornate Artisan Tags and Accents dies.  The beautiful frame is from Samantha's brand new CHA released Spellbinders Antique Frame and Accents die.  The pretty sentiment is once again Samantha's Unity Stamps called Encompassed Grace.

On her second card she used Samantha's adorable Creative Imaginations Kokeshi paper line, using again the Spellbinders Ornate Artisan Tags and Accents dies.

 

Let's get to know Eva a little more...
Q: What is your favorite technique?
A: I don’t have a favorite technique per se, I simply like to try new things that attract me. Sometimes, it’s an old technique, that is was just rediscovered strikes me and gets me inspired to create. One thing I love is using my Silhouette, so if that can be called a technique, than that would be it.

Q: Where did you learn how to design?
A: I have been creating for 13 years or so, and throughout these years I learned a lot from my peers, just perusing magazines, online galleries, and I have been fortunate to take classes from well known artists and you could say I picked up a lot of things from them. But I always say, if one has the passion for something, they will learn everything that helps them to achieve their goal and my heart is in designing, so you could say I have done a lot of “homework” and practiced a lot. It’s been a fun journey and it’s something that I am still on as I continue to grow.

Q: What influences your design choices?
A: I lot of things can influence my design choices, not all at once, of course, but here are a few to mention.  Shapes, colors, textures, papers, fabrics, stamps, coloring mediums, just to name a few.

Q: Who are your artsy inspirations...
A: Throughout my years of drooling over gorgeous creations done by other designers, I have collected a lot that inspire me and that I just adore. Here are a few, but really there are so many designers that I just love, so it’s hard to narrow them down to just a few: Amy Sheffer, Betsy Veldman, Jennifer McGuire, Tim Holtz, Christine Middlecamp. 

Q: What do you enjoy doing besides crafting and designing…
A: Last year I made a lifestyle change about the way I eat, and currently obsessed with collecting and trying new low carb recipes.  Huge Pinterest addict, I have to say!  Cooking and baking is always something I love to do. Since I am a Life Coach, my other favorite thing to do is reading anything spiritual and learning new healing modalities, so this year I am in a lot of trainings that help me grow, which I pass down to my clients, so they can achieve healing of childhood issues and by doing that flourish in life.  

To see more of Eva's work, be sure to stop by her blog For the Love of Life 

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Blog Spotlights of New Creative Team Members!

This year in addition to the wonderful ladies that are staying on my creative team, I am thrilled to have added three new members (Joscelyne Cutchens, Jennifer Evans, and Angi Barrs) and one other member who is also fairly ne, she was added in October (Jamie Cripps). I am so excited to introduce my whole team to you this year...we will start with our newest members in a quadruple Spotlight this month, then I'll feature one of my team members during each of the consecutive months.

Get to Know Jamie Cripps!

When talking about creating, Jamie says, 

"If I had to choose a favorite technique, "I would have to go with "inking". I love the look it gives to all my projects!"
In reference to her design background, Jamie quips,  

"No professional training here...! :) I guess I would say I learned to design by finding inspiration through others (from their websites and blogs)!"

When asked how she makes her design choices, Jamie says,  

"I use the products I am working with to find inspiration within the colors, patterns, and embellishments!"

Here's what Jamie has to say about her design inspirations, 

"Ohh, there are so many! Danielle Flanders (http://www.danielleflanders.blogspot.com/), Laurie Wilson (http://soapboxcreations.blogspot.com/), Amy Heller (http://www.amyheller.typepad.com/) and of course, my sister J.M. Rush (http://jm-rush.blogspot.com/)"

Besides crafting, Jamie says, 

"I love hanging out with my kiddos, going on road trips, going to book stores, getting lost (yes, I love getting lost and finding new places), bike riding, blogging, pinning, and face booking!"

Something you might not know about Jamie, 

"I use to have a career managing a Healthcare Operations Outsourcing department in multiple States for a very large company. I left that career (and salary!) a couple years ago to follow my dreams of crafting and I couldn't be happier!"

Here are some incredibly beautiful projects by Jamie:

Jamie used paper and elements from my Orchard Harvest collection 

Get to know Joscelyne Cutchens!
Here's what she has to say about her love of crafting: 
"I love to add machine or handstitching to my projects, it just offers a little extra detail that makes me happy."

"I have always loved art and photography. In High School I took classes in video production and was on the school newspaper staff. I learned how to frame my subjects in my photos and some basics of graphic design. I've read many books and taken classes to learn how to do what I want with the tools I have."

"I love color, especially happy color. I love aqua, orange, yellow. I love monochromatic and two color palettes. I love regular patterns. I also consider the photographs and the story I want to tell or feeling I want to convey."

When talking about her artsy inspirations she says,   

"I find that many people have something inspirational about their art. In scrapbooking I have always loved Ali Edwards sense of style and real life storytelling. I love children's books and illustration. I love movies animated and real. I love photographers like Marina Miller, Tara Whitney and Candice Stringham. I love the work of my fellow scrapbookers."

In addition to crafting, Joscie says,
"I love to bake desserts, drink coffee, read books, watch movies, go on adventures. I love antique stores, museums and bakeries. I love to ride my bicycle."

Here is a fun story about Joscie's crafty past:
"in august 2008, I entered the Memory Makers Masters 2009 contest. It was on a whim and I didn't tell too many people about it, just in case I didn't hear the news I wanted... On the day of the big announcement, I was thrilled to hear I was named one of the 10 runner ups. Shortly after the announcement I read something online that made me think I may have made a mistake on my entry. I didn't know that I was supposed to only use pictures that had never appeared online. It was my first year of a picture a day project and I had been taking my pictures and posting them to my blog. I also used some of these photos in my entry. I contacted Memory Makers and it was determined I would be removed from the list of runner ups. I was sad, but knew I had done the right thing. On that very day, while getting ready to take my boys to school, we had an accident that required a cleanup in the bathroom. As I stood in the doorway to the bathroom, I glanced at the floor and spotted my gold chain and diamond cross necklace that I had misplaced about a year earlier. I was so thrilled to have found it and right after having made a tough choice, I was overjoyed. I felt it was a reward for making a good choice."

Here are some of Joscie's newest creations...which I think are simply gorgeous!

Joscelyne's first spotlight project uses my foundations baby gray digital papers, printed on textured white cardstock and the twisted metal and blossom spellbinder dies.

Joscie's second project uses my Decadence fabrics for Riley Blake 
along with some white muslin to make this two tiered ruffled apron.

Get to know Angi Barrs!
Here's what Angi has to say about her designs,
"I really don't have a fave technique, but I do love to layer paper and embellishements to add depth to the design. I also love altered and hybrid projects. It's fun to mix digital with traditional elements."

"A friend introduced me to scrapbooking 10 years ago and I have gone to crafty classes & watched many Youtube videos to learn new skills. I am also obsessed with digital lately and am taking classes online this year."

"Color and texture influence my design choices. I love to add bright and whimsical elements to things that I make. I also like to use material such as fabric, canvas, burlap, and other natural elements."

"HGTV gives me loads of inspiration. I am addicted to all of their shows. A lot of interior design elements spark plenty of crafty ideas in my head. A pillow, a vase, a window treatment, and even a rug have prompted me to make certain crafty projects."
In addition to crafting, Angi says,
"My daughters and I are addicted to movies. I've seen every movie there is to see. We even have a "dinner & a movie" club with our friends. This is our fave time of year because it's the Academy Awards season. One day we hope to attend the Sundance Film Festival. I'd love to meet George Clooney and Julia Roberts."

Here's something fun that you probably didn't know about Angi...
"I proudly served in the U.S. Marine Corps. I was a journalist/photographer and got to meet many brave men and women from all over the country. I love to show support to our troops!"

Here are a few fantastic projects by Angi!

Angi used paper and stickers from my Orchard Harvest collection for Creative Imaginations.

Get to know Jennifer Evans!

"As an artist for the last eighteen years, I believe that if my hands aren’t stained from paint then I wasn’t having fun enough! I share my artistic passion with my husband and five year old son. We make our home in Oregon where we love the outdoors (when it isn't raining!), photography, cooking a good meal, then eating it, and reading beside a warm fire."

"My twin sister, Rebecca, introduced me into scrapbooking and stamping twelve years ago. I kept my feet grounded and refused to take the plunge that she had. I held tight onto my canvas, paint brushes, and acrylics and watched as she continued to write and tell me about her new passion."

"She even went as far as to send me an instructional video of her using eyelets to entice me. You know, when they first came out and you had to use a hammer? When I played the VHS (remember those?), all I saw was the top of her head and loud banging. I couldn't even hear what she was saying over the noise. (She hates when I tell that story, but, man, it's so funny!)"

"A year later I walked into a scrapbook store, fell in love with paper, and I dropped my art supplies thinking that I was to never to look at them again. It wasn’t until altered books and mixed media came into the Northwest that I began to realize that my first love for paint and canvas could be used with scrapbooking! Scrapbooking then became more of an artistic way for me to tell my story than just photos on a page to document an event."

"As a free-spirited Craft-Media artist, I have a passion for color; reduce, reusing, and recycling items to make them new again; and ultimately having fun and making a mess doing it! I am right brained and love using untraditional items to create meaningful pieces of art, while also trying to balance myself occasionally with a surprisingly clean and organized layout."

"I get my color inspiration from God’s beautiful creation, online like at Pinterest, or in home decor and fashion magazines. I always create a sketch before beginning unless I am working in my journal and then I just go with it!. I don’t always follow the sketch perfectly but it helps me get going creatively."

"Once my little one is down for the night, I unpack my things in my art space. I create such a mess that I have at one time realized that I was working out into the hallway! I continue the piece until it is finished even if it is well past midnight. If there is chocolate in the house, I have already eaten it before the project is done. When I have the piece finished, I sigh with delight, look at the mess, and shake my head. How did it get that bad? I clean it up before crawling into bed exhaustively happy. If I have an itch to get the paint out but don’t want to clean the mess, I get on the laptop and do a digital layout to make up for it."

"I love photography. My husband and I also have a photography business where we are able to capture memories for others. I love to garden and will spend several hours in boots playing in my perennial garden, even if it is raining. Before I stayed at home with my son, I was a preschool teacher. So, I have a soft spot in my heart for children's literature. My home is filled with bookshelves and I love to snuggle with picture books and my little man reading."

Something you might not know about Jennifer,
"I have a sweet addiction to chocolate, my favorite being Britain’s Cadbury Crunchie. Since I am unable to get the chocolate covered honeycomb locally anymore, any chocolate is its substitute. I also love Jane Austen, a warm blanket, and a hot cup of coffee."

Here's a couple lovely projects from Jennifer:

I feel very fortunate to have all the members who are on my team...every one of them offers something unique to our team, and I hope you will join us each month as we share projects and ideas to inspire your crafty projects.