Inside the Designer Studio: Ask the Designers

June 23, 2012 by

Hello friends! I’m here this morning to bring you part two of Inside the Designer Studio for this month. Earlier in the month we met the designers, May of Siamese Studios, Jennifer of Luv Ewe Designs and Amy of Unforgettable Moments.  I put to you, our fabulous community, to ask the designers anything you wanted to know and this is what you’ve come up with:

First, as I sip my breakfast tea, coffee or tea?

May: Both! Normally one coffee to start the day, then hot or iced tea during the day, but sometimes I love to have iced coffee as well.

Jennifer: Neither…Dr. Pepper!

Amy: I really do like both, but I drink coffee every morning. I enjoy fruity/floral herbal teas and black tea with cream. I like going to coffee shops with friends also (hence my Coffee Shop With Friends kit LOL).

Jennifer and Amy, how long have you been with us at GingerScraps?

Jennifer: October of last year (2011)

Amy: I started as a designer at GS 1 year and 9 months ago. However I first started hanging around GS when I registered for Scraping Survivor2 in 2010. I played survivor and learned what a fun, friendly place GS is! I did get 4th place in the contest that year which I was excited about- I couldn’t beat that talented Rachel (Pretty In Green) LOL.

May, Where are you originally from and how did you find yourself in Thailand? 

I am originally from Thailand as I was born here, but our family moved to Singapore, and Malta for several years, then moved back to Thailand since 30 something years ago (no, no, don’t ask how old I am, LOL).

Wouldn’t dream of it! 😉

Jennifer, since you mentioned never wanting to be called Jenny, now we’ve got to ask why. 😉

LOL! It just sounds kiddish to me. A very few call me that like my sister and brother and I don’t even know where it came from but they call me that.

Amy, what do you love most about OR? 

Oregon is a really fantastic place. I can drive two hours west and be at the ocean, Visiting the desert of Eastern Oregon is a day trip also! Mt. Hood is just a short drive away, and not to mention Portland which is a decent sized big city. My favorite is the big evergreen trees. I also love visiting the river beaches. There are so many recreational opportunities here. There is also no state tax, and a lot of out of state people love buying things here because of that. We do have higher property taxes for home owners to make up for that though. Oregon is beautiful, but it does rain a lot which doesn’t bother me at all though. 

That sounds like a dream!

With summer in full swing, what are your favorite warm weather activities?

May: Swimming!!! Our warm weather is normally VERY HOT, so swimming helps a lot.

Jennifer:  Swimming, but prefer swimming indoors than outdoors.

Amy: I really love taking camping trips with my family. We aren’t really “roughing” it kind of campers, but we love being outside, roasting things on the campfire, and playing in nature.

Fun!

Now let’s talk designing!  What do you enjoy most about designing scrap kits?

May: I love it most when the final result is just like what I’ve vision about the kit. Then I love when seeing layouts made from my kits. It’s amazing to see all different layouts from just one kit.

Jennifer: Just being creative. I can let off steam while creating.

Amy: OH! I love so many things about designing. I love designing scrap kits AND templates. Love it! I really love the creative process and watching my ideas go from idea to product. I really love seeing my designs on a scrappers layout!

What is one element you feel you must always include into a kit?

May: Foliage! I love to see some green in my kit.

Jennifer: Buttons and string.

Amy:  I would say fasteners. I know that is kind of generic huh? I’m having a hard time narrowing my answer down to just one element LOL.

 What is your most favorite kit you’ve designed and your best selling?

May: My most favorite kit is usually the latest kit(s) that I’ve designed. For now it would be Cotton Candy and Lemon Drops. My bestselling would have to be Bumble Rumble.

Jennifer: I think it was Miracles Happen. I just really like the color palette and felt it all fell together! My best selling would be In A Boys World.

Amy: I really like the kit I made for the June FWP grab bag. I had my hubby in mind when I made that one. 🙂 Honey Love is my best selling kit, and Something Sweet is my best selling template pack.

From a personal opinion of someone who owns this kit, it’s absolutely awesome! I think it’s my favorite of yours! It’s FREE with a $10 purchase in the GingerScraps store (for the month of June, so you’ve got 7 days left!)!

Those are some GREAT kits!

Just for fun let’s end with what your favorite foods are!

May: All sorts of pasta, but my favorite would be Cabonara. I make yummy Cabonara too! 😉

Jennifer: Oh my too many to name! I love mexican, anything cheesy (the cheesier the better), oh and home made potato soup. I can make myself sick from eating too much of that LOL.

Amy: My favorite “meal” is probably taco salad. We have this a lot in our home. We try to think of new and fun ways to make it lol. My kids love it because we let them crunch up tortilla chips on the top. My favorite bad-for-you food is ice cream.

Now I’m hungry, and I JUST ate breakfast (especially since I, too, am a giant pasta fan!).

A HUGE thank you to the designers for taking time out of their family and designing time to answer these questions! There were so many more I wish I could keep sharing but we don’t want to be here all day, we’ve got scrappin’ to do. 😉  I always have fun finding out these little tidbits about people.

Until next month!

Have a scrap happy weekend!

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: GingerBread Ladies, Product/Designer Spotlight Tagged With: ,

Inside the Designer Studio: Meet the Designers

June 9, 2012 by

It’s Saturday! Happy weekend to you all!

I’m here to introduce you to our three featured designers this month. Our guest designer, May of Siamese Studio. The lovely Jennifer of Luv Ewe Designs has created our Daily Download for the month of June. Last but not least,  Amy of Unforgettable Moments put together a beautiful free-with-purchase kit for us.

Here is a little bit more about each of these fantastic women:

 Hi, my name is May. I live with my hubby of eight years in Bangkok, Thailand. We have one daughter, Janice. I could say that Janice is the one who introduced me to digital scrapbooking. I was pregnant at that time, and was reading other mom’s blog post. Then I saw a layout using some digital scrapbook stuff. It was so pretty! At the same time, I also heard people talking about “scrapbook” and was wondering what is it all about. So I did some search and found lots of digital scrapbook kits. I became a freebie hunter first, then joined a contest at a digital scrapbook store. That was the first time I’ve scrapped so many pages and fell in love with digital scrapbooking since then. After being only a scrapper for almost a year, I started to design and now it is my second love, besides of writing. I’ve been designing for almost four years already. I also love to cook and bake, but I could never get a successful result when baking a sponge cake. My new addiction is Paper Scrapping! I’d never ever did any physical layouts but I would love to try one day.

 

 Hey everybody! This is Luv Ewe Designs! My real name is Jennifer. You can call me Jenn or Jennifer, just not Jenny. I am one of the hundred Jenns among the designers here! lol I live in Missouri. I married my husband on a beach in Jamaica 6 years ago. I have three boys and four step kids. I also have 6 indoor cats. We have a big house with room for everyone! So I have lost track of how long I have been designing. I think it has been about five years now. I actually started designing before I scrapped, which sounds weird. I love looking through galleries at everyone’s craftiness. So much inspiration there!

 

 I am Amy Peck of Unforgettable Moments. My family and I  live in the beautiful Pacific Northwest just south of Portland, Oregon. We have two little boys Nolan who just turned five, and Ian who will soon be three. We are also helping raise our little nephew who we took into our home. He is the same age as our youngest. We have a busy household with three little boys running around. I am in love with photography and enjoy learning my camera and equipment and taking pictures when I can. I am four credits away from earning my masters degree in education.  I worked about 10 years in the early childhood education field before my first child was born, and when I became a mom I became a stay at home mom. [Aside from designing]  My first digi-love is to scrap, and record all of our families unforgettable moments! I love working with my scrap software so much that I was given the privilege of naming my father-in-law’s cat and I named her Adobe!

 

 

Thank you ladies, for taking time of your busy busyness to introduce yourselves! But…that’s not all! We always want to know more- at least I do! 😉 So, I am going to put it to you, our readers, to ask the designers what YOU want to know!  Check out this thread in our forum, and post your question!  Next week Saturday we’ll find out just what we want to know! 🙂

Have a scrap happy Saturday!

 

Filed Under: Product/Designer Spotlight Tagged With: , , ,

Team Spotlight: It’s a BIG one!

May 26, 2012 by

We’re making up lost time in a BIG way!  Today we’re going to talk to not one, not two, but THREE of our incredible designers!

Alright ladies, please introduce yourselves!

 

My name is Jen – I’ve been designing under the name Jen C Designs for 2 years – and loving it! My husband and I will be  celebrating our sixth anniversary this summer and we have two kids: Luke, age 4, and Charlotte, age 2. I started digiscrap    designing when I was creating blogs for friends – I stumbled into DST one day and never looked back again!

I’m JoyLynn, living in Huntsville, Alabama with my amazing husband (seriously, he puts up with me and rarely complains, lol) and the two cutest boys ever (I have pics!).  Tyler’s 6, smart, funny, and just finished Kindergarten.  Hayden is a 4 year old fireball full of awesomeoness (who makes me giggle a bit too much when he calls you a “goose” and completely leaves the ‘silly’ off the front of it) 🙂 I’ve been designing just over a year and a half, having started on a push from a designer friend (*waves at Ryan*), but enjoying the fun of learning more and more as I go along.

Hey I’m Rachel of Pretty in Green Designs, I’m a 27 year old stay at home mom to 2 little kidos Anastasia and Gage, I started designing by just playing around making freebies, but after I won the 2nd season of Ginger Scraps Survivor I was making full sized kits, and the lovely Ginger offered me a spot on the design team! So I’ve been designing now for alittle over 2 years now, and I just love designing even if it is a lot of work, I just itch to get these cute ideas out of my head! My Husband of 7 years works a strange shift, which gives me quite a bit of time to play around , lol.

 

Jen is our Guest Designer this month, JoyLynn of Blue Heart Scraps has provided our Daily Download for May (it’s super cute! don’t skip a single day!) and Rachel of Pretty in Green Designs designed our great Free-with-purchase grab bag!

We opened up the floor to have YOU ask these ladies whatever it is you wanted- here are there answers!

Jen, I’ve been a fan of yours since I started scrapping, even before I discovered GS! How long have you been designing and scrapping in general?

Thank you so much! I’ve been designing and scrapping since April 2010. Though I paper scrapped since I was little  I’ve always been in to creative outlets – but with two small kids, keeping my crafts and hobbies tucked into my computer!

JoyLynn, who is your biggest celebrity crush? 😉 

It changes…often.  Right now? Chris Hemsworth (yummy, yummy Thor — he could [insert racy hammer innuendo! 😉 ] )!

Rachel,  if you had $1,000 to spend ON YOURSELF right now, what would you buy? (Groceries/bills/childrens’ things NOT allowed!)

That’s a hard one, I’m always last on the list, but I did just get my kitchen redone, so lets see….. I guess I’d get some new outfits, I’m a jeans and tee shirt kind of gal, and lately I’ve been feeling like I need a little bit more style lol, so yeah that would be a fun $1000 to spend!

Now for all three of you, if you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

Jen: Great question! Well I’ve already lived there to be honest. I would love to live in Vancouver BC again – I grew up in BC, moved to Ontario when I was 4 and then met my husband when we were going to grad school in Vancouver. It’s a beautiful city – but alas we moved – and until we win the lottery we won’t be heading back. Right now I love living in Belfast – we are so close to so much – and just a short hop on an airplane to all of Europe.

JoyLynn: Right where I am…but maybe in just a little bigger house.  My mommy is close…I can’t leave her  🙂

Rachel: Oh, I wouldn’t move from here, I LOVE my home, the hubby and I have had this discussion before you know the “if we won the lottery” talk, I would just stay right here and fix up the house more and buy the land behind us, LOL.

What is your favorite kit of your own?

Jen:  That is so hard to choose – I think though that based on it’s popularity and that it’s about my little girl AND my team created such gorgeous work, I would have to choose Divalicious!

JoyLynn: Beep Boop! The bright colors, the adorable robots.  It just screams my boys!

Rachel: Oh do I have to pick! Well right now its the soon to be released kits that are in the “Free with $10 Purchase” grab bag, I really like the diversity I put in to those kits.

This kit will be released in June for purchase, but right now you can get it for FREE if you spend $10 in the store!

 Okay, now, what is your favorite kit that YOU didn’t design?

Jen: I love everything on Connie’s – one of my recent faves of her’s is For You.

JoyLynn: That answer changes pretty regularly, too. But, since the boys are just about finished with TBall for this year…I really need to pick up Batter Batter Swing and make some adorable layouts of them! 😀

Rachel: That’s another hard one, geesh! Designing doesn’t give me a whole lot of time for scrapping, although I should make time! I’d have to say my favorite kit Right Now that I didn’t make would have to be Sublime by Sugar Kissed Designs, I just love the colors and the style… of course that super cute puppy of hers gets me every time!

Okay, one last question for each of you!

Jen, What theme/color palette have you never worked with but would love to?

Black, white and red is something I want to work with – I’ve had an idea in my head for a year – but never got around to it! 

Well, hopefully we’ll see something soon then! 😉

JoyLynn, what is one thing you hate to do, when it comes to actual designing?

Always questioning and second guessing myself.  I do it for myself, first and foremost, so I have to like what the finished product is.  But, I’m also designing for others to enjoy and want to create lasting memories with, so I always wonder if anyone else will agree with adding this paper or that element.  It’s scary to put your personal side out there and then have to wait and see if others approve of it.

I think it’s safe to say, we all approve of your totally AWESOME designs!

And finally, Rachel, where DID you come up with your designer name?

Well, when I created my user name for GingerScraps, it was just a silly play on Pretty In Pink, yeah the 80’s Movie…. lol so as I started playing around with designing everyone knew me as pretty in green so I just kept it, and I think it’s has turned out to be an awesome name! I get to call my beautiful CT team Pretty Girls, and it can also stand for digi scrapping being green friendly so, I’m stickin with it!

It’s a perfect fit! Digi scrapping IS totally green friendly, and your kits are certainly pretty!

Alright, that’s it for today friends! I’d like to thank each one of these ladies for taking the time to answer these questions (and more! there were too many to post!), share a little bit more about themselves, personally, silly and about their designing. Make sure to check out these ladies personal favorites, all of which are in the store right now!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

Filed Under: GingerBread Ladies, Product/Designer Spotlight Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Team Spotlight: Terra – Sugar Kissed Designs!

April 14, 2012 by

Good morning GingerScrappers!

Today we get to chatty chat with someone  a lot of you already know, Terra! Designer of Sugar Kissed Designs, host of our Friday Night Owl Scrap&Chats and all around awesome lady!  OH! And she is hosting this months Daily Download! Awesome? Yup.

 

The standard, little bit more about yourself please 🙂

I’m 35 and I was born and raised in Arizona… I took a detour up north and lived in Minneapolis for a few years, and honestly feel like I’m more from Minnesota than here. I have a dog and a cat that sleep on either side of me and take up most of my bed! As far as hobbies, I love gardening and cooking. I’m very into the whole foods movement.

What got you designing? How did you start?

I started as a designer for taggers. And then I participated in a designer contest and was SOOO unprepared! Designing at 300 dpi is much different than designing for web use. However, I think that contest and the encouragement I received from other designers in the community really spurred me on and helped boost my own designing confidence.

Well, I can safely speak  for the general public, that we’re happy you gained that confidence because your designs are lovely!

Speaking of, your kits- Do you still have your first? Your favorite and your bestselling?

Oh this is a hard question. I think my favorite kit is the first one I ever made for Ginger Scraps “Home”.  I Love EVERY layout I see made with it!

My best selling kit is either Photogenic or Fleur de Pêche

I know I’ve said this before, and I mean it each and every time, but I absolutely love ALL three of those kits! I’ve been wondering what to use my March challenge rewards on, and I am really really really eyein’ up that Home kit now. All kits are available still in the store, each image preview is linked.

 In one word how would you describe your design style?

Transitional. (I think I’m a nice cross between contemporary and traditional)

More about your designing Terra, what inspires these beautiful kits?

All kinds of things! Music is a huge inspiration when it comes to ideas though!

 What is the one thing you can’t do without when designing: be it music, coffee, quiet, specific software, any one thing you can’t live without!

 I can’t design without Illustrator and Photoshop! I love illustrator and the freedom it gives me to create items by hand.

What is your advice for aspiring designers?

I had a professor in theatre arts once who said “If you can see yourself doing anything else… don’t act”… I think the same really goes for designing… You have to love it heart and soul and realize that the return is rarely ever going to be what you put into it. Even the top designers probably don’t earn enough to truly compensate for the time, supplies, and talent put into their products. So make sure it’s truly a passion because it is hard work and it’s definitely a business not a hobby! LOL 

Makes perfect sense to me!

Now for some fun!

What is one thing we may not know about you?

I tend to hum and sing a lot.

Your most favorite book turned movie ?

Alice in Wonderland

That response had me jumping out of my seat (almost literally), ME TOO ME TOO ME TOO! I just love all things Alice in Wonderland! I mean looooooooooooove!

If you could vote any FICTIONAL character into Presidency for 2012 who would it be?

Willy Wonka… I think our country would be far more tasty and hopefully we’d all get a personal oompa loompa as part of his campaign promise! 

He would get MY vote!

Lastly, after a long day, what is your favorite drink ( anything from coffee to juice to soda to a glass of wine)?

Water with Lemon.

Yum!

So now you know, Terra likes to hum and sing, drink water with Lemon and every layout made with her Home kit. You know what that means? It’s Saturday morning, you’re probably still in your jammies (I know I am!) so what’s more awesome than putting your feet up and shopping?! Check out that Home kit, and her other great designs at her shop!

Make sure to join our Friday Night Owls Scrap & Chat too! There’s always lots of chatting, fun and even goodies!

Don’t forget to check back every day for the April Daily Download either!

I hope everyone has a terrific weekend!  I hope the Midwest (I, being a resident myself) doesn’t get too slammed with the forecast of storms, just enough to help the grass turn green and the trees to bud and bloom. 🙂

May your coffee be bottomless, and your slippers fuzzy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Digital Scrapbooking, Product/Designer Spotlight Tagged With: ,

Team Spotlight: Jill DZines!

April 7, 2012 by

Good morning scrappers! Rise and shine!

Today we’re talking with Jill, designer of Jill DZines.

She is hosting our store grab bag for the month of April. If you spend $10 in the store (NOT hard to do with all our great designers!) you get the grab bag for FREE! Awesome, I know, right?

 

First a little bit about Jill,

I have 2 kiddos – 20 yo daughter, Eliza, and 15yo son, David… both awesome, fantastic kids that make me proud every day.  I also have a wonderful, supportive husband, Paul, who works hard both at work and home – he is a fantastic gardener and we are lucky to have abundant fresh garden-goodies (especially FABulous tomatoes) from about mid-July through November!  (I often wish we lived a bit further south, as Minnesota has a pretty short growing season!)   We also have one pampered-pooch, Ellie, a cockapoo, age 5 (I think?) and one beautiful Siamese-cross kitty, Jasmine, about 13 years old… I hate to think about how old she is because I don’t know what I’m going to do when she goes…she is my favorite pet, EVER, and is almost always in my lap or laying on my stomach if I’m in bed!   I love my pets almost as much as if they were kids!

Besides digi-design, I LOVE reading – and especially love my Kindle.  Also love listening to audio-books while I’m doing anything else.  I am a multi-instrument musician, and have played in several bands over the years, and been professionally recorded on a couple of CDs (as an instrumentalist, not “my own” CD).  I play piano/keyboard (and taught piano for about 13 years), banjo, multiple percussion instruments (bongos, congas, djembe, and any other fun things I get my hands on), and harmonica – blues style.  I haven’t played my banjo in a few years though, so not sure how nimble I would be at that now!

Now THAT is something! Who knew we had such a musician among us?! I think that’s pretty freaking neat!

Lets talk a little bit about your kits.

My first kit was called “Slightly Shabby” (LONG-ago retired!); best-seller ever was “My Favorite Boy” (also retired); and my favorite is probably “Fresh” – which I don’t have in my GS shop, but you can see what it looks like by visiting my blog, as that is the kit I used for my current blog-wear.

I know that my your Artful Blends Papers are my favorite! They are so beautiful!

How did you get into designing? 

Oh that’s easy… as soon as I finally figured out how to digi-scrap, I started learning to make my own stuff, because I love creating and have always had interest in artsy stuff.  

What inspires your designs?

Usually I am most inspired by color-combos, or by wanting a certain kind of kit to scrap my own family photos. I do really like GingerScraps Buffet, because the “thinking” part is all done already – all I have to do is follow the colors and theme – that makes it much easier, IMO!

I love the Buffet too! It’s so neat to see a combination of so many of our designers come together to create a giant mix-n-max collection! This month we have the Happy Hopscotch collection which is so BRIGHT and fun (check out Jill’s gradient papers!)

In one word, Jill, sum up your style.

One word???  Impossible, I think! LOL!   How about “Eclectic”?  😉

What is the one thing you can’t do without when designing: be it music, coffee, quiet, specific software, any one thing you can’t live without!
Illustrator, definitely!   I don’t do a ton of doodles, but I ALWAYS open a new Illustrator file every time I start a kit, because I always have to make something or another in there!
Do you have some advice for aspiring designers?
Learn absolutely everything you can about using your program (I use, prefer, and recommend Adobe Photoshop  and Illustrator).  Do lots of different kinds of step-by-step tutorials, even if they don’t seem to apply to digi-scrapping, because by doing those, and following the steps and directions, you will learn a lot of things about your software that you might not have ever discovered on your own.  Also, spend time experimenting with the different filters and effects in the software before you decide to purchase any additional filters and/or plug-ins.  Chances are you can do the same thing in Photoshop, maybe with just a bit more time and work.
Excellent advice!
Now for a little bit more fun!
If you could time travel to any time, where would you go?
Oh my, hmmm… I’m not sure I would want to live in any time other than now – I’m too spoiled by modern conveniences!
Last month we read Hunger Games for the GingerScraps Book Club, which most of the world is away was made into a HUGE blockbuster movie. What is your favorite book to movie series?
I think that would have to be Lord of the Rings.  Those movies are some of the best-done book-to-movies that I can think of! 
There you have it! Thank you Jill for letting us get to know you just a bit better!
I’m off to refill my cup of coffee and be super lazy today! Hope everyone has a terrific weekend, a very happy Easter  and lots of pictures taken to scrap! I look forward to seeing all those new Easter Layouts! 😉  (and remember, calories don’t count on holidays, so don’t feel guilty about having an extra Reese’s Peanut Butter Egg -or two.. 😉 )

 

 

Filed Under: Digital Scrapbooking, Product/Designer Spotlight Tagged With: ,

Team Spotlight: GingerScraps!

March 17, 2012 by

Good morning everyone! Happy St. Patty’s Day to you! Are you wearing green today? I am!

This week we’re talking to the one and only, our fearless leader, Ginger!

She has designed for us our March Daily Download. Are you caught up yet? Don’t forget to miss a day! So far I can tell you it’s absolutely fantastic!

I asked Ginger what her inspiration was for this kit.

My inspiration was the men in my family  I have a family full of manly men, they get dirty, build projects, ride off-road, and I needed something to scrap thoese memories. 

What is the one thing you can’t not have while designing?

I must have my Bamboo tablet! I do not know how people do anything in photoshop with a mouse!! And a clean desk. If my desk is a big mess I can not be creative at all, the papers, and clutter distract me. I can turn my back on the rest of the house, lol, but my desk has to be clean. 

What inspired you to start designing in the first place?

I started designing to make freebies. I loved collecting freebies and wanted to learn how to make all the goodies I was getting! I kinda came to a screeching halt once I opened up GS. It takes almost all of my computer time, my design time is very limited now. 

But, let me just say that we are all so thankful for the community you have built! It’s like you plucked up all the lovely people and put them in one place.

What is your go-to scrap subject?

My kiddos of course, oh and my pets are pretty darn cute too. I have two kids, a 14 year old daughter and an 11 year old son. We have a tiny little fur ball Cooper, he is a 4 lb mini Maltese, and two cats Sugar, and Chino (short for cappuccino).

Could you tell us something we might not know about you?

Hmm, shall I go all serious…. or shall I tell you something fun….. How about one of each?
For the serious one, I have a full and nasty list of healthy problems. My main enemy is a blood clotting disorder, it caused me to have a stroke in my 20’s, followed by MANY small strokes the following years. It is a daily battle, and honest to God I don’t know what I would have done without my digi community! I could not drive for over a year, and my digi community was my support system and my creative outlet.
And the fun thing you don’t know about me, I want to be a makeup artist. I have a total obsession with makeup and nails! I paint my nails in fun crazy ways about every 4 days.   There is an old thread at GS with a few photos of my nails, I need to post some more soon. 

What is something new to you that you’ve accomplished recently? A challenge or goal you’ve completed?

Well, inspired by Jill’s monthly Mystery Challenge in Feb, I learned to Zentangle! It is a kind of doodling. I’m totally hooked!! Here is my first ever Zentangle- 

If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?

For me, what I would REALLY love to do is, get a RV and take a long road trip with my kids! It’s more about the journey than the destination for me. My mom had a great quote she says’ “Not all who wander are lost.” I love that!

I can tell you that that is also a dream of mine! Someday I would love to just pack up and drive wherever the road takes us. Great quote!

We have all experienced, in some way or another, this beautiful weather going about the country. Spring is finally here! What is your favorite Springtime activity?

My favorite springtime activity, sitting outside in a comfy chair and breathing in the clean country air. 

What was the last book you read, and would you recommend it?

It was The Hunger Games 😉 And YES I recommend it! I’m now on the 3rd book in the series. Love it!

What is the one song you have on repeat right now (because, you know everyone has that ONE song)?

Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift, and We Are Young by FUN 

Just yesterday, I’m pretty sure I listened to We Are Young half a dozen times, if not more, myself! Awesome song!

And before we go, look to your left, first thing you see… GO!

My dining room table, with Pizza boxes from dinner on it (we have pizza and watch Survivor every Wednesday).

Thank you Ginger, for taking time to answer my few questions, and letting us get to know you just that much more. We all appreciate everything you do for us and totally pink-puffy-heart you! 😀

I hope everyone has a safe and rambunctiously great St. Patty’s Day!

Filed Under: Product/Designer Spotlight Tagged With:

Team Spotlight: March Guest Designer – Erin from Secret Stash!

March 10, 2012 by

Good morning everyone! I admit, I got a late start today. It’s so easy to just ignore getting out of bed when I can make my husband roll out to get our little one up and dressed on Saturday mornings. 😉 I’ve got my coffee now, so let’s roll!

As many of you have seen and heard already, Erin from Secret Stash is our March Guest Gingerbread Lady.

Erin once called GingerScraps her home and was truly honored to be invited back as guest of the month!  I asked Erin a little bit about herself, her family and her designing.

I am a mom of two awesome kids, ages 8 and 4. I love to read books (pretty much non-stop, I always have a book going!) and photography. I am also unnaturally optimistic.

What is one thing we might not (yet) know about you?

That I’m actually answering these from my padded cell? No no wait. Hmmmm. I like to sing.

What is something you’ve done recently that you are proud of accomplishing? Anything that you’ve tried that was new to you?

I recently guest blogged for Modern June, that was really cool. I’ve never guest blogged anywhere so I was flattered to be asked and the subject was all about loving ourselves. It felt really good to put some real honesty about myself out to the universe.

What got you into designing?

I didn’t get how it was done! I just wanted to understand it was all. I was totally loving making layouts but to create the kits, I was at a complete loss as to how they did it. I wanted to be “in the know.”

What inspires your designing?

Everything. I’ve gotten inspiration from my kids, a commercial, a book, my mood, a magazine, a movie, etc. If it’s in front of my face, it’s fair game!

What about your kit, Work of He{ART} ? What was the inspiration, your favorite parts?

In the GS store right now for 25% off!

It was inspired by my little art lovin’ mess makers! Both my kids are seriously into drawing, painting and coloring, they fight over who has the most paper and crayons [ROFL!]. So it seemed necessary that there was a kit just for the messiest of little artists. My favorite part about this kit is the color swatch I used and the slight vintage touches here and there.

In one word, can you describe your design style?

Mine. 😛 

What is the one thing you can’t do without while designing? Anything special?

I have to design in the morning when my mind is fresh and I HAVE to have a bottomless cup of coffee.

What advice would you give to aspiring designers?

Persevere. If you like what you’re doing, then keep at it. Keep growing in your work and keep your mind open to evolving and changing with the times. Don’t get stuck in a slump, and don’t feel defeated if it’s not cracked out to be what you were hoping. If your heart is in it, you can go places with it!

Lastly, if you could travel anywhere or anywhen, where or when would it be and why?

Ireland. Because my name means Ireland, and I just plain old think it would be sweet.

I can’t argue that! Ireland is definitely on my list of places to see. I want to thank Erin for taking time out and telling us a little bit more about herself. Remember you can get Work of He{ART} in the GS shop RIGHT NOW!  So, whatya waiting for? 😉

 

 

 

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Team Spotlight: Craft-tastrophic!

March 3, 2012 by

Happy Saturday everyone! I hope your weekend has started off wonderful. Were you able to sleep in? Have that big cup of coffee in your fuzzy slippers?

This week’s Team Spotlight member is Ivonne from Craft-tastrophic!

She’s our March Grab Bag designer (which you can get for FREE with a $10 purchase in the store!).  Which I can say I actually have already after a teeny little shopping spree last night! It’s a very versatile pack, so I highly advise you to get shoppin’! 😉

Earlier this week I caught up with her and asked her a little bit about herself.

I live in Mexico, married to Jorge, 15 years ago and mother to Keila 6yo, I like spinning and Zumba as well as swimming in the beach… let´s say… Hawaii 😀

How did you begin designing?

I bought my PSP to edit pictures and to create images to make cards, then I discover digital scrapbooking and got involved in a designer contest where I won a spot to sell in one store.

What inspires your designing?

Everyday, everything and love.

What is the one thing you need while designing?

I like to have music while designing.

In one word, how would you describe your design style?

I´ll have to say Craftastrophic-o 🙂

I then asked Ivonne about her kits- her first, best-selling and favorite. 

My very first kit is Family Memories, still available at my store, and still selling 

The very best seller is Neutralized

and my favorite kit at store is Fall-land.

All three are available in the store. I love how deep and rich her color pallets are.  One thing I really love about Craft-tastrophic’s designs are her templates (which I have added several to my wishlist!). Here is one in particular I can’t wait to get my hands on.

Go check ’em out!

I asked Ivonne what her advice is for aspiring designers, she replied with,

I´ll say like in everything, prectice, practice, practice to achieve quality work.

What is one thing we may not know about you, Ivonne?

You may not know I´m a Pediatrician, it took me like 11 years to get there after High school. I also collect embossing templates, ribbons, and punchers.

Finally, I asked her to share the funniest little quip she recently came across, meme, joke, quote, book…

Hope you got a good giggle too, I know I did!

Thank you Ivonne for taking a few moments to tell us a little bit more about you and your designing. We hope to see many more beautiful kits from you!  And don’t forget ladies, to get your March Grab Bag!


 

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Team Spotlight: Luv Ewe Designs

February 25, 2012 by

It’s Saturday, YAY!  My name is April, and I’m quite new to the GingerScraps community but I am so excited to be here!  Today we’re going to take a moment to chat up Jennifer, owner of Luv Ewe designs!

 

She is currently hosting the grab bag this month (FREE when you spend $10 in the store), so get it while you still can!

 

I asked Jennifer a little bit about herself, about her family and some of her other interests:

I am married and had a wonderful wedding on a beach in Jamaica. I have three boys and four step kids. We also have six indoor kitties!  Hmmm we have a boring family life. LOL  I toy around with photography so my kids are getting bored with me taking pictures of them.  But you have to capture these moments because they grow up too fast!  My boys are teenagers now and that is just hard to believe! They were little just yesterday! Besides designing, I enjoy scrapping too. I spend too many hours on Pinterest and playing with my camera.

How did you come to be a designer?

 I started designing before I ever scrapped! I started making siggies in a forum and created some elements that I wanted to use or these, and there started my Photoshop addiction!

What inspires your designing?

What inspires me when designing…I do ask my CT for theme ideas.  That helps me get started so that I can come up with some kits that they are looking for.  Pinterest has a lot of inspiration too!  I am addicted to that site!  I found lots of color palettes on there.  I grab one that I like and it leads from there.  I jot down some ideas of what would be some great elements and such for the theme.  Sometimes I look at kits from my fave designers to get my mind rolling.

I then asked her about her kits, her very first, best selling and her most favorite.

Well I don’t have my first kit that I ever made. It is long gone! LOL It was horrendous! I do remember it was named Blueberry and Bubblegum. It was pink and blue. My fave kit right now is Friends For Life and my best selling is Now Showing.

Both of which are available in the shop (and totally now on my wishlist- look at how awesome they are!)!

In one word how would you describe your design style?

Versatile.  I love seeing my themed kits being used for non-themed layouts.  My kits can be used in so many ways!

I’d love to know what is the one thing you can’t do without when designing?

I design with PS CS4 (Photoshop Creative Suite V.4). I do all my designing while sitting on my couch. I hate sitting at the table! One thing I usually have to have while designing is my Dr. Pepper. I am addicted to that stuff!

Finally, do you have any advice for aspiring designers?

Just keep learning!  There is always something new to learn with your program, networking, marketing, etc.  This will help you grow as a designer! I am learning new things all the time and still have a lot of room to grow!

I want to thank Jennifer (super much!) for taking the time to talk with me, and having the patience to deal with my many emails the past few days!  All while feeling a bit under the weather, sure hope you feel better soon!  We can’t wait to see what you create for us next!

I hope everyone has a spectacular weekend and I can’t wait to for next Saturday when we talk with March’s Grab Bag designer… and no, I can’t tell you who yet! 🙂

 

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