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Tell us about the day you woke up and said “I want to be a digital scrapbook designer!”
When I started digital scrapbooking in 2005 there wasn’t much product to choose from. I remember getting frustrated that I couldn’t find what I needed. So I started figuring out how to create my own items. Becoming a designer was a slow process, I never woke up one morning and decided I wanted to do it.
Inspiration is everywhere, but what are the things that catch your eye?
Anything random and interesting can easily catch my eye. A christmas decoration, a piece of vintage jewellery, a tshirt slogan, little nick knacks in a homewares store, an interesting shell on the beach, a lollypop in a candy store or a piece of junk in the gutter of the road.
Out of all the products that you have created, which one is your favorite?
Goodness! That is like asking a mother to pick which child she loves more. Do I really have to pick just one favourite? If I have to pick just one it would probably by “Oh Nostalgia” which is a little mini kit, but it has so many gorgeous elements in it and I adore the colours. I’ve actually designed and ordered a personalised bucket handbag using this kit and I can’t wait to see how it turns out.
Which one is most popular?
The most popular kit would be “Always and Ever” a wedding/love themed kit that I created in 2007, then updated and re-released in 2009. It seems to be an enduring classic. I created it for my sister’s wedding album and it just has so many uses with all the different elements in it..
Describe your style.
I definitely trend towards the real/realistic elements these days and love texture/depth in my papers. So you will almost always see a crinkle or a fold and loads of texture in my paper designs. As far as colours/theme/inspiration goes, I am eclectic and try a bit of everything.
What is one thing about digital scrapbooking that you couldn’t live without? i.e. Undo, templates, color changing, fonts
My wacom tablet. I don’t draw, but I do find it invaluable for doing fiddly extraction work. I also love my scanner, my DSLR and am a font junkie.
What colors do you find yourself drawn to with designs, i.e. bright, funky, soft, earthy etc…
It really depends on my mood. Some days I love it brighter/bolder, others I prefer softer/earthy.
Tell us (or show us) what your work area looks like.
I have a big L shaped desk with a hutch. To my right there is my printer and my Canon 8800F scanner. Underneath is my pc tower with inbuilt card reader. In front of me is my wacom graphire tablet, my LCD screen, my headphones and my pink speakers. In the corner of my desk my Canon DSLR lives. I use a gaming grade mouse because it is light and resposive for my work. To my left there are boxes and tubs full of craft supplies and found bits and pieces. My desk lives in the living room where I can keep a close eye on my son when he is not at school.
What does your family think about you being a digital scrapbook designer?
My son thinks it’s great and tries to name my kits sometimes. The rest of my family don’t seem to see it as a serious profession.
What is one thing about yourself that others might not know.
I do not drive a car. I walk or take buses/trains and used to ride a bike everywhere. Well meaning family and friends have tried and failed to get me to drive enough to even think of taking my driver’s test. Being a passenger in a car accident 7 years ago pretty much cemented my dislike of cars entirely. My car was a complete write-off.
What other hobbies do you have?
Believe it or not I love getting messy with glue occasionally. I’m just too scissors challenged to paper scrapbook. I love doing crafts and my most recent effort was making a 3D pinata car for my son’s birthday. I also love to bake and my son usually gets messy in the kitchen helping me. Our last baking attempt was making chocolate balls for christmas.
Tell us about you, what you love, what you hate, your family, your friends.
I am 33, live on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia and am a single mum living with my son. My friends will tell you that I am very down to earth and what you see is what you get. I really dislike people who pretend to be who they are not. We have beautiful beaches where I live so I love going to the beach and feeling the sand between my toes. My favourite time of year is definitely Chirstmas time. I love all the colour, sparkle and lights. I am a self confessed facebook addict and have my own fan page there. I love the Twilight series, but am not a fan of the movies. I am a book lover, but older books make me sneeze (allergies). I love listening to music while I’m busy doing things at home, as it helps me focus. I am a little too into GLEE (I used to be in the school choir in highschool) so I find myself relating to it a lot as a lot of the popular kids did choir and musicals. I am very passionate about digital scrapbooking, so much that I have actually introduced and taught friends and family this wonderful hobby. I hope someday soon to teach digital scrapbooking in addition to my designing.
