Creative Blog Hop

Soooo…. last weekend, I woke up one morning to find I had a message from the fabulous Amy Rohl!  If you don’t know Amy, you should!  She has one of the most creative minds in the stamping community… it never ceases to amaze me how she comes up with the neatest ideas for using stamps and dies in ways they weren’t intended!  This cloud-shaped card of hers is one of the reasons why I bought the Jumbo Cloud Die-Namics (and have yet to CASE the card!)  And have you SEEN the Angry Birds she made from balloon dies?  It’s so awesome!  And of course, I’m partial to Hello Kitty, so I just loved how she made this card!  But, I digress… anyway, she wanted to know if I would be a part of this Creative Blog Hop that’s going around because (in her words!) I “inspire” her!  :)  What a thrill, and an honor!

Let me tell you a bit about the Creative Blog Hop: it is an ongoing blog hop design that works on a nominating system, where I nominate three other designers who I admire and who inspire me. The idea is to learn a bit about other creative bloggers by answering four questions.

Question 1: What am I working on right now?
Right now a whole lot of nothing!  I’ve been quite lazy lately (when it comes to stamping!)  I think it’s just the summer time, and the desire to spend time outdoors or going places, or just watching a movie with my hubs.  I’ve been suffering from a great lack of creative mojo, and even a lack of desire to get in my room and stamp.  Even new stuff hasn’t helped (but I’ll keep shopping anyway!)  I do however have a little something in the works, because in a few weeks I’ll be rejoining a design team that I had previously had to step down from.  :)  So I hope you’ll stay tuned!

Question 2: How does my work differ from others in my genre?
I honestly don’t feel like my work is much different from a lot of what’s already out there.  I wish it did, but I’m very much a follow-the-trends kind of girl.

Question 3: Why do I create what I do?
I create what I do simply for the love of crafting, stamping and bringing joy to others with a handmade card.  I’ve always been crafty… sewing, needlework, crocheting, knitting, etc.  Even around the time I got pregnant with my oldest daughter I had decided to learn to quilt.  But impending motherhood put a huge stop to that!  The thing I’ve always loved the most about stamping is that it’s one craft where you can actually get something done.  I can see a card through from concept to completion.  Unlike all the unfinished cross-stitch projects I have stashed away!

Question 4: How does my creative process work?
My creative process works in several different ways.  First of all, I have to be well-organized especially with design team commitments.  So I keep everything written down on the calendar I carry in my purse.  After that, I very often turn to card sketches for inspiration, and many times print them out so I can make notes about ideas (sometimes I even do this while I’m at work!)  I used to use my designer papers to inspire my colors choices, but I don’t use them that much anymore, so the next place I turn to is Pinterest for color combos.  And when I’m really into creative mode, I have had many times where a design idea keeps me awake at night, or I wake up with an idea!  I love those times!

And now for my nominations!  These three ladies are all uber-inspiring to me in their work and I was thrilled that they all said yes when I asked them to participate!

Arielle Gordon – Snappy Stampin’
Arielle’s card-making style has long been one I have admired and wished that I could duplicate.  I just love her bright, bold use of colors and the seemingly simple design elements that she puts together to make a masterpiece.  I also love that all of her cards are darling little squares!  A few of my favorites include this Thanks card (that I’m currently trying to CASE!), this FANTASTIC Thanks a Bunch card (LOVE the multi-colored dots around the carrots!), and this sweet Fly card made with a paint sample card.

Monika Davis – M.A.D. Stamper
My fellow Color Throwdown team member has got it goin’ on!  I’ve always loved Monika’s scrappy style and great layouts.  She combines stamps, washi tape, vellum, flowers, and much more to create great collage-style designs on her cards that knock my socks off.  And she is the QUEEN of those fabulous little bundles of thread that you see on so many cards lately!  Only difference is, no one makes them look as great as Monika!  A few of my very favorites include this card with gorgeous roses, (I had to cave and buy that stamp set because of Monika!), this fantastic butterfly card, and finally this darling Orange You Glad card (which uses another stamp set I HAD to buy because of Monika!)

Wida Miller – Beachorado
Wida just recently went from being a Colorado stamper to an Ohio stamper, and I got to meet her just a few weeks ago and found her to be as fabulous as her creations!  She’s a ton of fun, full of great advice, and wonderfully sweet!  The fact that her creations are top-notch is just icing on the cake.  She also recently was asked to join the Hero Arts design team!  Yes, I rub elbows with some pretty top-notch stampers, let me tell you!  I love that Wida’s style is just uniquely her own…there’s no predicting what her designs are going to look like, but you can be sure they’re always going to be fabulous, with some great unexpected design element that puts them over-the-top.  Here are a few of my Wida favorites… these cute apple cards (Who would think to simply use a circle for the apple?  I’d be saying “no apple die, no card!”), this rosy beauty (love the gorgeous roses, paired with the simple grid paper), and this fantastic collage of flowers, butterflies and die-cut words.

I hereby pass the baton to these three inspirational ladies who I admire and adore! I can't wait to see what they have to tell us next Monday, September 8th. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and I hope you've enjoyed getting to know more about me.