Have y’all met our featured designer for July yet? She’s the incomparable CathyK!  If you’re collecting her Daily Download Back to Nature you’re not going to be disappointed. I can’t wait to get busy with it.

I asked Cathy to tell us a little about herself.

1…How long have you been designing?

I opened my first digi shop in 2008, so about 9 years.

2…What is your design process?

My design process varies a little, depending on how I get started. Sometimes, the color palette comes first, then I pick a theme that goes with it. Sometimes, I have a theme in mind, then work up a color palette to go with the theme. Once I have a color and theme, I always do papers first, then elements, then alphas and any other add-ons.

3…What do you use to create your designs? (software, hardware, etc)

I use Photoshop CS4 for the majority of my design work and Inkscape for any illustrations I need to do.

4…Describe your design workspace.

I have a computer desk with a large display in our family room. I’ve tried working on a laptop, but the tiny screen size just doesn’t work for me.

5…What motivates and inspires you as a designer?

I like seeing an idea come to fruition and then seeing how scrappers use that kit to scrap their precious memories. I get inspiration and ideas from color, everyday life, my sons’ activities and interests, magazines, Pinterest, textures, a song, a good quote. Really, anything can be the inspiration for a product!

6…What kit currently available in your GingerScraps store is your favourite? Why?

Oh gosh, it’s usually the latest kit I’ve created! My favorite now is Back to Nature (this month’s Daily Download), because I LOVE the colors! But, since it’s not technically in my store yet, I’d say my Are We There Yet Buffet collection. I especially love how the enamel pins turned out. [I can’t wait to see it. The Buffet is the BEST!]

7…Do you craft outside the digital world?

Not as much as I used to. Sometimes I do still make things to use in my kits.

8…What is the last book you read?

I can’t remember when I last sat down to read an entire book! Mostly I’m reading online articles and magazines.

9…Tea or coffee?

Coffee, for sure. I’ve been making cold brew coffee lately and using it to make iced coffee with Chocolate Stevia.

10…Do you have a guilty pleasure?

Starbucks Coffee Frappucino. The sugar content (even in the light version) makes it just an occasional treat. 

11…If time travel were possible, where would you go and why?

I’d love to go back and talk to my grandparents and great-grandparents when they were younger and meet my parents as kids. 

12…What’s your favourite thing about GingerScraps?

My favorite thing about GingerScraps is the friendly, helpful people that make up this wonderful community and the amazing designers and site staff that I work with!

I can’t argue with that! GingerScraps is a true community, in all the best senses of the word. Thank you Cathy, for letting us have a peek into your life.