Spotlight – All About Ginger

Hey there Gingerscraps friends. I have a treat for you today. I have an interview with our own Ginger (yes, she really does exist). Have you ever wondered how Gingerscraps started? Wondered about Ginger herself? Then keep reading because she has been gracious enough to answer my questions (even the fun quirky ones).

Tell us a little about yourself. Your family, children, etc.

I have 2 amazing kiddos, a 17 year old daughter and 15 year old son. We have a little tiny Maltese named Cooper, he is spoiled rotten 🙂  We have a super close extended family! Once my dad retired, he and my mom wanted to start a great adventure and travel all over the country (and beyond). They needed to make arrangements to rent their house out, and that happened to be right at a time when I needed to move. So my kids and I moved into my childhood home about 3 years ago. My brother also lives with us and my sister and her family live about 5 minutes away. When my folks come home between their travels, it gets a little crowded, but we make it work. I thank God every day that we have all been able to help each other, when there is a need, we all pull together. We are an exceptional family, they are all my greatest blessing!!

What made you decide to start Gingerscraps?

My love for the art of scrapbooking and memory keeping was the reason I started GingerScraps. I wanted to have a site where fellow artiest could gather, share, and encourage each other. Shortly after I opened GS, I found myself a single mom, and needed to support myself and my kids. However I have health issues that prevent me from working full time, in a normal working environment. I have an autoimmune disease called APS, it causes me to have small strokes as well as many other difficult symptoms. I poured all I could into GS, to build it into a business that would work for me and my family. I am very proud of our little piece of the web, and I just adore my GS family!!

I know you help with some of the collabs when needed, but do you miss designing under your own moniker?

Sometimes I miss it, but honestly I really don’t have time to design. When I do have some spare computer time, I really want to scrap more! That is what I miss the most! I think I need to schedule in scrapping time, it is just hard because once I sit at my computer, there is always work that needs to be done, so I feel guilty if I scrap. But I think that needs to end asap, I miss scrapping!

What kind of things do you look for in the designers that are invited to sell at GS?

I look for someone who is passionate about designing, wants a long term home for their work, and has excellent quality and creativity.

Please share a photo of yourself, can be silly or serious but a photo that shows us who YOU are.

I think these two layouts show myself and my kiddos 🙂 From left to right that is Me, my daughter Isabelle, her boyfriend Justin, and my son Chandler. We were sitting, on the 4th of July, waiting for the fireworks to start… so we decided to play a little selfie game. lol!

Best_Selfies_2014_2 Best_Selfies_2014_1

If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

That’s a tough one! I would love to go on a long road trip stopping at places of interest along the way. I would also love to go to Hawaii!

If you had a warning label, what would yours say?

Caution: NOT a morning person! Please bring hot black tea immediately!

What is one thing you will never do again?

Eat chestnuts roasted on an open fire… it sounds magical… but is is nasty to the max!

What’s your favorite movie?

Oh how would I ever pick one!? We love movies (and books) in our house!

Do you love or hate rollercoasters?

I LOVE them, unfortunately I can no longer go on them due to my health issues… boooo!

Do you believe there is intelligent life in outer space?

I believe in the possibility of anything.

What was the last thing you ate?

Chicken and potatoes.

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?

I think blue, I love almost all shades of blue.

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

When people chew on Popsicle sticks or chew on towels, for some reason it totally grosses me out! I might actually dry heave if I see it! I know, I know, I am weird!

Pirates or Ninjas?

Pirates!

Country or City?

COUNTRY!!

Morning or Night?

Night!

Indoors or Outdoors?

Pretty much either one is ok with me, just depends on my mood and the weather.

Chocolate or Vanilla?

Both please 🙂

Cats or Dogs?

I love them both, but I do love my little dog that doesn’t shed the most!

Who did you look up to as a kid?

My parents and my big sister Julie, and I still do to this day.

What is the one thing that makes you happy despite any mood?

Music.

Do you have any tattoos? If yes what and where are they- If no do you want any and what would you get?

I have some flowers on my right ankle.

Name one television character that you simply adore?

Dean (Jensen Ackles) from Supernatural and I LOVED Hershel (Scott Wilson) from The Walking Dead- I actually cried when he “left the show”- that scene was the worst!!

What is the current ringtone on your phone?

Very boring … it is the default iPhone ringtone.

If you were deserted on an island (with all water/food provided), what three things would you want to have with you?

Comfy bedding, a huge tub of coconut oil (good for skin, hair, cooking, and so much more!), and an iPad with games, books, movies and a solar charger.

If you could spend the day with anyone (living or dead) who would it be and why?

I would love to spend one more day with my brother Wade. He passed away about 15 years ago, I would love to have a day with him!

What songs are included on the soundtrack to your life?

That is also really hard to narrow down, but two of my favorite artists are Sara Groves and Imogen Heap. I recently got to meet Sara Groves, it was AWESOME!! I will attach two little colleges I made on my phone of that weekend.

Sara_Groves1Sara_Groves2

What would you sing at Karaoke night?

Something from Pat Benatar for sure 🙂

Any special message to our members?

I want to say a BIG heartfelt thank you to my GS family!! I had this crazy dream to open up a site where crafters could gather and inspire each other, and I am so very proud of what it has grown into. I honestly feel so blessed that we have such a huge family now! GS absolutely would not be the place it is with out ALL of you!!

Thanks so much to Ginger for being so open and fun with my questions.

Did you know that Gingerscraps will be celebrating 7 years in September? Keep your eyes open for announcements coming soon. There will be extra chats, special sales, FB Hop, a Scavenger Hunt and MORE!

And with that, I ask you…. how did YOU find Gingerscraps? Leave a comment and let us know. Personally, Missi (our own missdamsel) introduced me to Gingerscraps back in 2013 when I first started digital scrapbooking.

Have a great day!!

GS_footer_Stephanie

Comments

  1. I think I first found GS through a blog train!!

  2. Thank you for this write up Stephanie! It was an honor to be chosen for your interview 🙂 
    I can’t wait to see where some of our blog readers found GS! 🙂

  3. So great getting to know more about you, Ginger!  Thank you for starting Gingerscraps!! It’s one of the best sites in digi-land!

  4. I think I found GS through a blog train as well.  🙂

  5. Hi Sarah,
        I really enjoyed your interview with Ginger. You came up with some great questions, and Ginger’s answers are thoughtful and heartwarming. I also loved Ginger’s fabulous LOs created with her and her family’s selfies. Both LOs are absolutely delightful!
        Many thanks to Ginger for starting Gingerscraps, the best digital scrapping site on the Internet, IMHO! I don’t remember when or how I encountered GS … I’m just very glad that I did. May you and the site live long and prosper!!!

  6. Carla Jo Peterson says

    I already knew there was really a Ginger who owned the site. I am not sure why I knew that. I love her site and wish her all the luck in the world.

    I was introduced to Gingersnaps by my daughter who also loves to scrapbook and does some fantastic pages. She encouraged me to start doing more and I am very happy about that.

    God bless you Ginger!

  7. Kim Goodman says

    I found GS through one of the digi freebie sites several years ago.

  8. Thanks for such a great interview! It was really fun getting to know Ginger better. I totally LOVE the “selfie” pages…I think I’m going to have to scraplift those sometime soon. 

    I think I found GS through JoyLynn of Blue Heart Scraps – she was guesting at a store where I was on the CT and offered to let me scrap with one of her kits that was at GS. Thanks, JoyLynn! 🙂

  9. What a great interview! It was so neat to learn about the creator of GingerScraps! How fun! I found GingerScraps because of Connie Prince. My sister and I found her through a blog train and when we started following her it lead us to GingerScraps and we LOVE it here! The designers are so amazing! Everyone is so friendly! It is truly a wonderful digital community. Ginger – you should be so proud of all you have created here! And congrats on 7 years!!! Awesome! : )

  10. Well I’ve been here since December 2009 and can’t remember how I found Gingerscraps but I love it here! Loved the interview and the pictures are great! Love all you have done with this site Ginger!! Looking forward to the 7 year celebration!!

  11. Thanks so much for this fun interview! Just loved to learn more about Ginger. I found GingerScraps through Dagi’s Temp-tations and I love love this place! So wonderful and great designer, heartful members and great challenges (something that is really important to me)
    Can’t wait to the 7-year-celebration and I know it will for sure be fun! And I want to say thank you for the wonderful Survivor she did with us! It was so much fun and I just loved the challenges!

  12. Thanks for doing an interview with Ginger, so nice to get to know her more personally!  I found GingerScraps through one of the designers and following up on where she sold her designs.  I love the site and make no secret of the fact that it has become my #1 go-to site for everything; shopping, fun, community!  I agree with MsKinsey that it’s the best on the internet.  I’m so happy it’s grown and doing well and ready to celebrate its 7th birthday.  Hope you are around for 700 more!!  It’s also nice on a personal level to know there are families still so close that they willingly help each other through life’s path.  You have certainly overcome some adversities in your life, and you have “true grit”!  Your story warms me!

  13. LOVE this! I found GS YEARS AND YEARS ago! I lurked around for a while, but officially signed up July 2009, so not quite at the beginning, but I’ve been around quite a while!) LOL I stumbled across it while looking for digital scrapbooking stuff. I got sucked into challenges, and of course then there was Survivor! After my first survivor experience, Statements by Jody asked me to be on her CT, and then May 2010 Ginger & Julie contacted me about being on the store CT! I was beyond thrilled!! Was on the CT for a while, then became lead CT! Then this April my fellow CT Lead and I decided to open up shop here as template designers! Wow! The rest is history! Boy do I love this site! What would I have done the past 5+ years without working for Ginger?!

  14. Just totally loving all these comments <3 <3 <3