Today’s Designer Spotlight is on Jennifer Ellefson an admitted paper addict living in Northern Virginia!

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Did you go to school for art or design?
In fact, it’s just the opposite! I went to school for International Economics – but my mom is an artist, and my dad an engineer, so I like to think that I have some strange DNA.

Tell us about your favorite die template, technique and Preferred Product
My favorite die template – boy, that’s like asking about my favorite child! I can’t create anything without my Nestabilities, if that helps narrow it down. I love making foam stamps with my Spellbinders die templates. You can make the coolest stamps that way! My favorite Preferred Product would be Lockhart Stamps. There is always the perfect image for any card I want to make. Plus, they’re so much fun to color!

What type of projects do you prefer to make?
I love it all, but find cards are easiest for me.

Tell us about your family.
I’ve been Married for 15 years now! My husband, two sons and I recently moved to Northern Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C.

About how much time do you spend crafting?
I think pleading the 5^th Amendment might be wise here…

When do you find the time to craft?
My sons are school-age, so I love creating while they’re in school. I pop in my iPod and spend the day creating!

What do you use most - paper, hybrid or digital?
Paper – love the tactile portion.

Where do you shop for supplies?
A little bit of both - local and online stores; I am really fortunate to have found a great stamp shop about 3 miles from my house, so they’re my first choice. If there is something that they don’t stock, though, I usually will order online.

How would you describe your style?
I’m very linear in my thinking, and I think my creations reflect that.

Other than paper, what other materials have you used?
I have a lot of fun experimenting with clay, and of course, the fun foam that I mentioned already.

Where do you look for inspiration?
It varies, sometimes magazines, sometimes stationery shops, sometimes online galleries.

What kind of workspace do you have?
I’m very fortunate to have an office on my first floor. I have white furniture and storage pieces, so it has a clean, cohesive look that I love. Since I’m in a house full of boys, there are frilly touches here and there – a girl has to have her space!

Jennifer chose these projects to highlight, I hope you find them as inspiring as I do!

Jennifer used S4-192 Blossom, S4-200 Flower Bouquet Miniabilities, S4-189 Labels 3, and S7-013 Grand 12″ Heirloom Scroll Border on her Cute Boy Layout.

This beautiful card uses S4-138 Petite Ovals, Large, S3-150 Ribbon Tags Trio, S3-004 Symbology and she used S4-142 Long Rectangles, Large to emboss.

This fun wreath is made from S4-192 Stars 5 and the (retired) Indulgence Font.

Thank you so much Jennifer!  Find out more about Jennifer on her bio, and visit her personal blog, Created From Paper.

Grab your winter weather gear and head up to Minnesota to visit with Heidi Blankenship today. Heidi has been a member of the 2008-2009 Design Team, and will be continuing on with our creative journey as a member of the 2009-2010 Spellbinders’ Design Team. Congratulations Heidi! I can’t wait to see what else you create.

How did you start crafting?
I have been doing some type of crafting ever since I was a little girl. My grandma was very crafty and I can remember she was always trying out new crafts and she would let me try them along with her. I received my first rubber stamps as a Christmas gift when I was seventeen and I have been stamping ever since.

What inspires you?
I can be inspired by everything around me, from my family to my supplies. But I would say most of my inspiration comes when I am listening to my favorite music.

What do you like to make?
I really enjoy making cards, but over the last year I have also found a love for altered projects. I love the challenge of being able to take something and completely change it up.

Tell us about your family.
I am married and my husband, Eric is wonderful and very supportive of my crafting. We have two boys, Dusty who is 15 and Evan who is 6. We live in Albert Lea, a small town in south central Minnesota.

How much time do you spend crafting?
That would depend on what kind of projects I am working on and any deadlines I have to meet and if I am teaching any classes. On the average I would say a minimum of 30 hours a week and sometimes more.

When do you usually craft?
I craft whenever I can! Once the kids are off to school and I have had a couple of cups of coffee I start in on my work for the day. I will work on my projects throughout the day in between all of the other not so fun stuff (cleaning, cooking and laundry—LOL!) until the kids come home. I also work on my crafting projects after the kids are in bed for the night.

Do you shop for supplies locally or online?
Both, I do try to shop locally whenever I can to support the local stamping/scraping shop but I also purchase several supplies online.

Please describe your style?
I think I have a very broad range of style, I can do the simple quick 5 minute cards to very detailed. I appreciate many different styles but I would have to say the style I am most drawn to would be vintage or artsy.

What has been the hardest thing to learn?
I think the most difficult thing is trying to keep everything organized. With paper crafting there are so many supplies from the very tiny to the larger items and all of the tools. I think this is something that most paper crafters are always looking for, new and different ways to store and organize our supplies. Please tell me I’m not alone in this! *wink* Being on several design teams, including JustRite Stampers has been a wonderful and challenging opportunity to stretch my creativity.

Do you teach classes?
Yes, I have been teaching classes for several years. I teach classes in my home twice a month and I have also taught classes at several stores and for community education. Currently I am also teaching classes at our local stamping/scrapbooking store, Scrapping on the Go.

What kind of craft space do you have?
I have a craft room down in our basement. Well, if truth be told I have taken over most of the basement except for the laundry area. The only problem with being in the basement in MN is that it gets really cold in the winter so I tend to move upstairs into the kitchen which is OK, but not ideal. So I am currently in the process of creating an additional space on the main level of our home that will be out of the way and not in the kitchen.

What else do you like to do?
I enjoy spending time with family and friends. I have enjoyed trying several different crafts over the years and painting is another favorite of mine. My mom and I took some painting classes together when I was younger I have been painting ever since. I also enjoy doing floral design, jewelry making, photography, listening to music and being outside gardening in the summer time. Since I like doing several types of crafts I also like to combine them with each other whenever I can.

Heidi wants to highlight these projects:

Heaven’s Flowers

I made three dimensional flowers using a paintbrush to curl the petals and foam tape. I also added some glitter and a little bit of bling to the Fancy Pants large flourish, as well as rub-ons from Fancy Pants.  I used S4-109 Flower Creations Three,  S4-121Doodle Parts,  S4-110 Classic Ovals Large,  S4-111 Classic Scalloped Ovals Large, and the Mystic font on this layout.

Rose Blossom Bird Feeder

I altered the bird feeder using a crafting foil and filled in the back to keep the rose shape from the die and then painted a base coat and colored with Copic markers. I  used S4-044 Rose Blossoms Edgeabilities,  S4-121Doodle Parts and S4-123 Flying Beauties die templates on this bird feeder.

Sweet Cupcake
Using the polka-dot die template from the S4-174 Deckle Scalloped Edge Petite Borderabilities I made a polka-dot background for the card. For the S3-156 Cupcake I used a mirror cardstock on the foil part and a combination of liquid applique’, brown ink refill and clear dimensional glaze for the frosting and added some beads for sprinkles. The mat for the cupcake is the S4-161 Labels One die template.

Thank you Heidi, we look forward to seeing more of your designs! To keep up with Heidi, you can see her bio and read her personal blog, Embellished Dreams.

Reverse Stenciling.  We’ve been tossing these words around like you all know what we mean.  Today’s Savvy Saturday is a tutorial on Reverse Stenciling, so you really will know what we mean.  I hope you try it and like it, because it’s really fun and easy, yet impressive and allows you to take your Spellbinders’ Die Templates to another level.

First, to use your Spellbinders’ Die Templates as a stencil, you would apply chalk, ink, paint or your favorite embellishing product to the paper from the back side of the die, the side with the openings.  The openings are what allow for embossing.  By applying ink to the back side, you are coloring the embossed area of the die cut.

For reverse stenciling, we will be coloring the debossed area of the die cut.  To do that, we need to apply ink to the inside of the die, from the cutting side, and apply it before we feed the die into the Wizard.  When using the geometrically shaped die templates such as the Nestabilities, reverse stenciling makes a beautiful crisp edge around the die cut.

Design Team Member Holly Craft provided us with some step photos. Holly used an ink brayer to ink the cut side of the S4-044 Rose Blossom Edgeabities with a darker green ink. You could also apply the ink pad directly to the die template.

Holly cut and embossed the papers.  The debossed area is colored with ink.

She can then apply a different color of ink to the embossed area, using the die as a stencil and applying through the opening on the back side of the die template, or directly to the die cut as shown.

Now Holly has a multi-toned die cut.  These pieces were done for Holly’s daughter’s wedding.

Here are a few more examples of how our Design Team Members have created amazing artwork using the reverse stenciling technique.

Wendy Weixler’s Flower Wreath using the S4-200 Flower Bouquet Miniabilities is just gorgeous!

Heidi Blankenship’s layouts utilize reverse stenciling on some of the flowers and the moth, and the suitcases.  Isn’t her son adorable!

Thank you ladies! To see the detail even closer, you can click on the pictures. Have a wonderful Saturday!!
Beth

The great state of Utah is home to today’s spotlight Design Team Member and bundle of energy, Wendy Weixler!

When did you start crafting?
I’ve been crafting, in one form or another, since I was a little girl (mudpies and Mod Podge come to mind!) A friend of mine introduced me to scrapbooking over 10 years ago, and I made the transition to add cardmaking and other papercrafting about 6 years ago.  I learn from a variety of sources, but mostly from the cool people around me (friends, family and online communities).  I’m always open to something new!

Did you go to school for art or design?
Never did go to school for art… just the school of life!

What inspires you?
I can be inspired by a number of things… a beautiful sunset, some lovely music or something I see in an online gallery.  I like to try new things, so if I see something interesting that I haven’t done before, I jump right in!

What are your favorites?
I have a fondness for ALL of the Spellbinders’ Nestablities, but a special place in my favorites list for the butterfly from S4-008 Bugs. It looks especially gorgeous when you use the reverse stenciling technique, which happens to be my favorite. I LOVE how the details just fly right out at you when using it!  I am also a Glue Dot junkie . . . the pop-up ones find their way into about every project I ever make!

Do you prefer to make cards or scrapbooks or altered?
It depends on what kind of mood I am in.  I primarily make cards, but there is NOTHING in my house that is safe from alteration!

Tell us about your family.
I have been married to my best friend, Ron, for nearly 24 years (this is the part where you look at my picture and say, “How can she be THAT old???”).  We have three great kids… Devan age 20, Garrett age 17, and Amelia age 14.  We live in Salt Lake City, where I have lived since 1980 when my parents moved here from the San Francisco area.  We are also the happy owners of the sweetest little toy poodle named Daisy!

Do you work outside the home?
I have kind of been a “Jane of All Trades” for many years.  I keep the books for our family owned business (my father-in-law, husband and two brothers-in-law custom build furniture).  In addition, I have done many different part-time jobs for the past several years which include teaching beading and fitness (spinning) classes.  I also spend a TON of time volunteering in the schools that my kids attend.

How much time do you spend crafting?
Depending on the week, I can spend anywhere from 2-10 hours a week!

What time of day do you like to craft?
I usually try to craft early in the morning or late at night when my family is busy doing something else (like, perhaps, sleeping!!).

Do you work alone or with a group?
BOTH!  I teach classes to friends and craft just for the fun of it by myself.  I enjoy making things with my daughter the most, though.

What do you use most - paper, hybrid or digital?
I am very tactile, so I am a paper girl all the way!!

Do you shop for supplies locally or online?
BOTH to this question, too!  Wherever I can get the best deal (since I live in the Craft Mecca of the Universe, aka Salt Lake City, it’s easy to find good deals at local stores here)!

Can you describe your style?
I would have to say clean and classic.

What have you been working on this week?
Just a few cards.  I have a few I need to get in the mail this week!  Oh!  And some cards for a group of teenage girls I have coming over tonight!

Besides paper, what other materials have you used?
What HAVEN’T I used would be an easier questions.  Chipboard, flashing, soda pop cans, cereal boxes… if I can get it through my Wizard, I like to try it!!

Where do you find inspiration?
I usually look on blogs and websites/forums of many people whose work I admire.

What has been the most difficult aspect to learn?
To expect “perfect” every time.  Sometimes the best ideas come from “failed” projects!

What do you enjoy most about crafting?
I love the creative outlet it gives me.  It is such a stress reliever.  And to be able to create something I am happy with in an hour or two gives me a lot of satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.  I love to give away the things I make and see the reactions that they elicit from the recipients!

Do you ever teach classes?
Yes, at least once a month, but sometimes more often!

What else do you like to do aside from scrapbooking? I love to spend time with my family and do ANY activity that allows me to be outdoors (camping, biking, hiking, swimming, fishing, canoeing… you get the idea!).  I am also a fitness nut and LOVE Disneyland!!

What kind of workspace do you have?
The BEST!! After 20 years of crafting on my dining room table, I was finally able to put together a craft space in my basement that it fabulous!!  I am even jealous of my own self sometimes!!  I went to Home Depot and designed the space based on the dimensions of the room (with a bit of help from one of the guys that worked there).  I am proud to admit that I assembled every single piece of cabinetry in my craft room myself (although, I do have to admit that my husband hung and mounted everything!).

What are two craft tools that you could not live without (aside from Spellbinders’ products)? I am really partial to rubber stamps (of all kinds) and embossing folders.  But now that Spellbinders has Impressabilities, they may be moving their way to the top!  Oh!  And RIBBON!!

Wendy has chosen the projects as her favorites to share with us:

Whew, I’m tired already! Flutter on over to Wendy’s bio, and then to Wendy’s blog, Wickedly Wonderful Creations, I dare you to just try to keep up with her!

Thank you Wendy!

This week we have the pleasure of spending a little time with Holly Craft (and yes, that is her real last name!).  Holly is a two time Design Team Member, she was on the very first team in 2005 and came back in 2008.

What led you to crafting?
I have always enjoyed drawing and sewing and photography and making cards. As a five year old, I would draw the comics and I would sew clothes for my Barbie doll. My father was a painter and photographer, my mother a seamstress and wonderful cook and my grandmother did needlework. I learned from all of them. I began scrapbooking in the early 90’s for the PTA at my children’s elementary school before there were any decorative papers even available. I would make cards as a child with pieces of plastic flowers….hmm; maybe someone should put flowers in a bottle and sell them?

Do you have a background in art or design?
Yes, my Associates Degree is in art and I also did studies in Graphic Design as an adult.

Tell us about your family.
My two children are both married. My daughter lives in Memphis, TN and is a high school history teacher. My son lives in Tuscaloosa, AL while his wife finishes law school and he works at a bank. My husband and I live in the metro area of Atlanta, GA where we have lived since we moved “north” from Florida in 1986.

Do you ever teach classes?
I always wanted to be a teacher as a child, so I really enjoy teaching classes. It takes a lot of time and work to prepare a class. I have taught throughout the southeastern US, but have not had the time lately, unfortunately.

Do you prefer to make cards or scrapbooks or altered art?
I enjoy all three equally….just depends what the die tells me when it “talks to me”.

Do you work outside of the home?
Crafting is full time for me. I do work for several companies and would like to get back to teaching classes when I have the time. The last full time job I had was doing artwork, displays and floral in a major supermarket. I enjoyed doing that, but once I discovered stamping, it took over my life….and house!

What kind of workspace do you have?
My workspace is cluttered with an appearance of being unorganized. I have an organized mind however, so I know where most everything is located. Perhaps I will make it a goal this year to become more organized, but I will never have one of those neat freak white studios like you see online. It just isn’t me. I am, however, always on time with deadlines.

Besides paper, what other materials do you use in your art?
I have been called the Queen of Road Trash as I am always finding things to put through the Wizard or to use as found objects. I love using metal, leather, coffee filters, etc. I have a collection of different gutter guards that I use to emboss a quilting pattern on my cards.

How would you describe your style?
I think my style would be called classic and eclectic. I don’t usually do real funky stuff or cutesy, but I feel that I can do whatever style is called for with given materials. I do like the vintage look.

Besides paper crafting, watercolor, calligraphy and photography are some of my favorite things. Luckily I can use them all together in my crafts. The examples below show my love for watercolor and nature (on the card with flower and butterfly), my love for calligraphy and photography and fonts and travel (on the layout) and my love to experiment with many materials like handmade paper and metals (the Mr. Fix It pencil box). I have been designing with the Wizard since 2004 and the ranges of things I can do with it (such as flower pounding, something I figured out in 2004) still amaze me.

To see more of  Holly’s handiwork, you can visit her Blog Frenzy Introduction, her Savvy Saturday on Impressabilities, and her personal blog, Today’s Creations.

Thank you Holly!

Beth

Whew, we’re back to normal around here, if there is such a thing.  Lets resume the indepth interviews we started in December, so you can get to know the current Design Team!

Today’s featured Design Team Member is Jeni Calkins.  You got a quick glimpse of her on Day 9 of the Frenzy, and now we get to sit her down and pick her creative brain.

Tell us how you got started crafting.
For me, the need to create stuff is a compulsion that started when I was a little girl. As a child, I would take discarded things and make something new out of them. At that time I didn’t know that it was called altered arts.

Do you have an art or design background?
I studied studio art in High School and College, although I received my degrees in other area.

What inspires you?
Trash. I love making trash into more trash (I mean treasures), just to save it from the land fill.

What is your favorite die template?
My favorite dies are the flowers, I love the Sunflowers, the detail is amazing, and I also love the Flower Creations and the Flying Beauties, the uses are unlimited.

What is your favorite Preferred Product?
Prism cardstock –first thing I reach for each project.

Do you have a favorite technique?
I love to layer up die cuts to create flowers. That’s what’s so great about Spellbinders’ Die Templates is you get so many size choices with each set.

Do you make cards or scrapbooks or altered?
Altered because it goes back to my obsession with recycling and re-using things, but I have three of the cutest kids and I also love to make scrapbook pages for them.

Tell us about your family.
I’m married to a wonderful man who is very supportive and a great father to our three kids. I live in Arizona. I find the Sonoran desert to be a huge inspiration in my art work. I feel blessed to live in such a beautiful area.

When do you get time to craft?
I like to get up early and do my art before the kids get up, but I’ll fit it in anytime I can.

Do you craft alone or with a group?
I love to work in groups, but mostly just when playing around or learning/teaching. To get serious work done I get into a zone where I’m anti-social.

Where do you shop?
My fine art supplies I get on line. I shop at my local scrapbooking store for scrapbooking/stamping and garage sales and thrift stores for the unusual stuff.

How would you describe your style?
Textured.

What have you been working on this week?
I have some new Spellbinders’ Die Templates, your going to love these!

Besides paper, what other materials have you used?
Acrylic Paint, watercolors, polymer clay, metals, fused glass, fabric, silver clay, assemblage.

Where do you look for inspiration when you are about to start something new?
I’m a task oriented person so I like to have an assignment or project that needs to get done by a deadline.

What has been the most difficult thing for you to learn?
How to keep it all organized. I am typing this with my keyboard in my lap because I have run out of desk space. (Psst Jeni, I think we were separated at birth! LOL Beth)

What do you find most  enjoyable about crafting?
The act of making it. It turns the buzzing in my head down to a nice calm hum.

Do you ever teach classes?
I love to teach, I get so excited about all this and it is so much fun to pass that joy on to others.

What else do you like to do aside from artwork?
Play with my kids. We love to go boating, hiking, to the beach, the Water Park, or museums.

What kind of workspace do you have?
10 x10 room with shelves from floor to ceiling filled with drawers of stuff.

Regarding a favorite piece: Can you outline the typical process behind making something like this? How long do you think it took to finish that?

This card was very quick, about ½ hour. I was ask to make something using “green supplies” I make altered books and have lots of pages that I have removed from the books. I stacked up a bunch of pages then laid out all the flower creation dies on the magnets. I was able to cut all the pages need for the flowers in one pass. I stacked them, mist them with water and crumpled them up. The Copic airbrush system made quick work out of add the color.

Here are 2 more samples of Jeni’s art:

One more thing to add to Jeni’s resume, at last month’s Craft and Hobby Association Trade Show, she won an award for her jewelry design at the Amaco booth, with donations and jewelry creations going to woman’s charities in Southern California.  I ran over and took this picture of Jeni’s pieces.  Congratulations Jeni!

To see more of Jeni’s work, please visit her blog, Studio Jeni.

We can’t believe it’s already time to award the die templates to the winner of Day 10. Time flies when you are having fun. Yes, we are having fun and hope you are too. We are so glad that our visitors continue to enter in numbers over 2,000. So, let’s get to it and see what is being given away today:

Our winner today, comes to us through Random.com’s choice of number:

Here are your random numbers:
914
Timestamp: 2009-01-17 04:19:41 UTC

From that number, we contacted our new friend:

Georgette of Glen Mills, Pennsylvania

Who Said:

Wow. It doesn’t get much better than that (Well, at least only for a few more days.) Thanks again to everyone who is joining us for our Fifth Anniversary Celebration. Good luck over the last few days of contests.

Lets go to sunny California to visit with Linda Duke today.

As a child, Linda always had a pencil and paper in her hands and she doodled whenever possible. Her father was a very talented artist and was her first teacher. “I would sit and watch him make beautiful creations of landscapes, objects around the house, or anything that caught his eye,” she says. “I would then try to duplicate what he created”.  In school, art was her favorite subject and she decided at a young age she wanted to study animation. Fourteen years ago, Linda attended a stamping party and has been stamping ever since. This medium now trumps all her other art interests. She is a several year member of Splitcoaststampers.com and feels that her stamping abilities have improved tremendously through the talented artists that share their work there.  In April 2007, Linda became part of the Splitcoaststampers Design team, a.k.a the Dirty Dozen. For six months, she truly loved being a part of this elite team. Currently, she is a Redevelopment Specialist in California’s Central San Joaquin Valley. She can’t wait to retire and concentrate on full-time paper crafting.

You can still win today’s die template, along with all the previous reveals, by visiting Linda Duke’s blog Linda’s Works of Heart and sending in your entry.

Wow, can you believe we’ve been going strong for 14 days and we are not done yet?  Keep your gloves and hat on, its still cold in the Midwest, and we’re going to Iowa to visit Donya Shroeder.

Donya has loved paper arts since she first realized what paper was. “As a kid I collected stickers (remember scratch and sniff?) and still do. Now I try to actually use them instead of just owning them,” she says. In kindergarten, she wanted to learn how to write in cursive because it looked so cool (She is still fond of the cursive e). In high school, she started a stationery and card company, designing event invitations and gift certificates for her family’s bed and breakfast and the local arts council.  Currently she is purveyor and instructor for her paper and glue habit, a.k.a. co-owner of a paper arts store. She loves getting to play all day in the paper, paint, and glue, demonstrating to customers, and getting them as excited about the new tools as she is. She says, “I have a really broad range of tastes and that shows up in my work, from clean and simple to wouldn’t that look better if I drove my car over it distressed. I’ve had a fantastic time with the Wizard dies. They are some of the coolest and most versatile dies on the market.”

Well Donya, I wouldn’t drive my car over these, they look great just the way they are!

So drive, walk, or bike…or in today’s case hop on a snowmobile and head over to Donya’s blog, Puckish.  And you better bring a trailor, that prize package is getting pretty big!  Be sure to enter the contest when you get there!

today’s Sneak Peek is from Sally Lynn MacDonald.  She lives in Connecticut with her husband of 21 years, Neil, her daughter, Brianna and the “Twinkies,” Cameron and Courtney.

Sally Lynn has been an avid scrapbooker, stamper, paper and altered artist since 1998, when her first child was born.  Subsequently, after the birth of twins, she quit her high-tech career at IBM to be home with her growing family. “This is when creativity became a survival skill!” she says. Her style is eclectic and she loves to make each project unique, interactive and indulge her creative side.  She is a certified and/or endorsed instructor for several companies, including Copic Markers, and she travels around the country teaching classes that focus on technique and tools. Her work has been published in Paper Crafts, Rubber Stamper and Stamper’s Sampler Take Ten. Her personal design challenge is to take products or techniques that would have her students saying “Huh?” and bring them to “Aha!” .

Be sure to enter to win today’s prize package, can you believe how many awesome die templates are being given away?  I’ll race you to Sally Lynn MacDonald’s blog, InkyHeart.