Spotlight on Rebecca!

Hi everyone! Kiki here, and this week I'm throwing the spotlight on Kristin's newest member of the team, Rebecca. You probably know her as MamaBee over as Sweet Shoppe Designs. I sent her some questions that I thought would help us get to know her a bit better. Very insightful... :)

How long have you been digi-scrapping? And how did you get into it?
I've been digi-scrapping since 2007 or so... I was a huge paper scrapper and never thought I would ever do digi!! Then the summer before I purchased a copy of Memory Mixer for my mom for her birthday... after six months of it sitting on the shelve, I decided to install and see what all the fuss was about. I wondered what else was out there for elements and paper and that is when I stumbled upon SSD and the rest, as they say... is history.

What program you use? and what camera?
I currently use PSElements 7... however I do have a copy of CS4 loaded on my laptop. I've been meaning to give it a go... however I always come back to Elements because I'm impatient and need to get my layouts done. I'm a Canon Girl... I have a Rebel DSLR and a Canon PowerShot that is my purse camera.

Do you print out your layouts? Have you made any photobooks?
I do print out my layouts in 8x8 format and they are put into D-ring binders. For special projects, such as Project 365, December Daily, and In the Week of; those are printed into hardcover photobooks.

What are your favourite layouts and why?
Oh my gosh... this is always the hardest question...This hybrid art just makes me happy every time I look at it. I had this pictured in my head for weeks before I sat down with put it all together... also my sweet 3 year old punched all those hearts for me.


My son simply adores this album about the little train ride we took at the zoo this past summer. Every time someone comes over, he has to bring out this book for them to "read" it with him.

This layout makes me a bit sad to see how my son has changed in the last 3 going on 4 years... but it also reconfirms why I scrapbook... it is my way to stop time because in a blink of an eye he will be out of the house with a family of his own...


What are your favourite KCB products?
Okay, I take back what I said earlier... this is the hardest question! Is there a link all button? Okay... I have to say that I love, LOVE, when KCB does a theme kit... those really are my favorites..

All Aboard - with a train obsessed little boy in the house, this kit has been used MANY times!!


Artist Canvas - hands down this has to be one of my top 5 favorite of any designer!

Bookworm - every time I look at this kit, I just want to curl up with a good book and become lost in it's pages!


What's your favourite type of picture to scrap?
Everyday photos... as much as my life seems to be the same day to day... they are the days I want to remember forever.

What inspires you?
My son inspires me... especially in hybrid... he has such a thirst to learn that I'm constantly thinking of ways that I can make learning fun... my list is getting longer and longer... now if I can just find those extra hours in a day...

Do you have any digital scrapbooking tips and tricks you want to share?
Think about why you partaken in this hobby (or in my case, obsession)... do you do it as a creative release or as a way to capture your family's story? Once you have the answer, always keep that on the forefront in your mind. Hopefully then you will continue to enjoy scrapping and avoid that dreaded runaway mojo!

CT Spotlight on Kjersti!

Good morning everyone. Here's a spotlight on Kjersti. You are going to love getting to know her better. I just call her the Queen of Dropshadows, clusters and all things wonderful, but that's just me. You'll see from her layouts though that she is just an amazing scrapper, especially when it comes to working with Kristin's products.

How long have you been digi-scrapping? And how did you get into it?
I heard the term "digi-scrap" one day so I googled it. I started clicking on sites and a whole new world opened up to me!! I uploaded my first layout to the Sweetshoppe in July 2009 and I've been hooked ever since.

What program you use? and what camera?
I have the Nikon D3 which I absolutely love and my favorite lens is the Nikkor 24-70. I just got Lightroom 3 a couple of weeks ago but I'm still trying to figure out how to import and export my photos!! I use CS4 to create my layouts.

Do you print out your layouts? Have you made any photobooks?
I've made several photobooks and my girls just love laying in bed at night looking at them. It's really hard for me to journal but I'm realizing how important it is to tell the story that goes with the photographs.

What are your favourite layouts and why?
I love this layout because my daughter was spinning, and spinning, and spinning while I was trying to take her photo! I think I captured her personality and was able to have it really shine in the layout.

I was really sad when my daughter started first grade and I didn't have my buddy around anymore. I made this layout so I could remember how much I missed her while she was at school!


What are your favourite KCB products? My favorite kit is Daydream Believer.

What's your favourite type of picture to scrap?
I love scrapping simple photos with not to much going on in the background. I've noticed I tend to crop in pretty tight on the faces!

What inspires you?
My girls inspire me. Life goes by pretty quickly. My daughters are already ten and six and I want to capture every moment and cherish it forever. I never want it to end. I want to scrap it all!

Do you have any digital scrapbooking tips and tricks you want to share?
I finally learned that you have to design pages for YOURSELF. Pages that YOU actually love and that bring a smile to your face when you look at them.

CT Spotlight on Laura!

Hi everyone. It's Kiki here with today's CT Spotlight. I get to spotlight Laura today who is a genuine sweetheart with some real talent:

How long have you been digi-scrapping? And how did you get into it?
I've been digiscrapping for about 5 years. I started when my oldest daughter was about 3 months old. I was visiting an online parenting board and everyone had these cool siggies. I got curious and wanted to make my own, so i bought PSP 8 and away i went. It slowly evolved into digital scrapbooking and i've been hooked ever since!

What program you use? and what camera? I use Photoshop Elements 6.0 now. I just got my 'baby' earlier this year. I have a Canon EOS Rebel XS. I love my camera LOL

Do you print out your layouts? Have you made any photobooks?
I don't print near as often as I should, BUT, I do print. I have a couple photobooks and I have a slew of minibooks and hybrid albums.

What are your favourite layouts and why?

oh man! that's no fair! I really love all my layouts but i'd have to say this one is one of my favorites.


What are your favourite KCB products?
all of them? lol my favorites are usually the 'generic' ones that i can use over and over again. currently it's her latest scoop with Miss Meg. i LOVE how happy and bright it is.

What's your favourite type of picture to scrap?
I love to scrap the candid, silly shots that just capture my children's (or husband's) moods. The moments that I won't remember 10 years from now.

What inspires you?
Everything. Lately I've been scouring the paper galleries that are online. It amazes me that they can make their layouts look that...and I love all the shapes and paper layers.

Do you have any digital scrapbooking tips and tricks you want to share?
hmmm, I'd say if you're looking to be a layering 'queen,' don't look at a flower or a journaling mat as what it is specified for. Look at it as a shape and utilitze that shape. I can't tell you how many times I've used a journaling mat as something VERY different than a journaling mat!

Customer/Winner spotlight!!

 I want to congratulate Rebecca aka mamabee for submitting her awesome layout-

into our journaling challenge last month! As part of her prize, I am going to do a Spotlight on her. She has a truely unique and beautiful scrapping style and I am sure you have seen her layouts around!

Here is a brief bio on Rebecca!
I'm Rebecca and I'm a 34 year old SAHM to one very well photographed 3 year old, Jacob. I'm also wife of 5 years to David, who is very supportive even though he doesn't totally understand how I can spend so much time and money on digital bytes of data. LOL! We live  in Wisconsin... smack dab in Packer Country! I started traditional scrapbooking in 2000 after a 13 week business trip to England. My step-dad lent me his brand new camera that took digital photos and saved them on 3.25 disks!!!! I had over 500 photos at the end of the trip and tons of brochures on places we saw and I wanted a creative way to display those... that is when I took my first trip to Hobby Lobby. I didn't get into Digital until 2008, when I purchased Memory Maker for my mom... I wanted more selection in kits... and that is when I found SSD and I was officially hooked on Digi. Once in awhile I do make pre-made traditional paper albums for family and friends as gifts.



What program you use? and what camera?


Photoshop Elements 7.0... I do have CS4 but haven't taken the leap to switch over yet. I shoot with Canon Rebel and just got a Canon Powershot 1300 as my "purse camera"... love it!



Must have items on your pages?

Buttons are a must... a page isn't complete unless there is at least one button on a page.



Your favorite KCB layouts (that you have made) & your favorite kits!
Two of my most favorite layouts happen to use the same kit... and it's one of my favorite kits... Artist's canvas

fav color is...color

scribbles and dribbles

What inspires you? Everyday events... I scrap the moment, little things that my son says or does... even packaging designs of things like laundry detergent... Things that I don't remember from my childhood, much less a year ago!

how long have you been digicrapping? I've been digi for 2 years.

any advice or secrets tips to share?? The only advice I have is to scrap for yourself and not worry about why you aren't on gallery standouts or get a lot of comments... if you scarp for yourself, your true style will come through and you will like your pages more and more people will like your pages. :)

Here is a link to Rebeccas gallery, take a look at all her beautiful layouts!! Thanks for playing along Rebecca!

CT Spotlight

Hi everyone. Kiki here. Before I get into today's main subject, I have a winner to announce from last week's Vacation Challenge: The winner, as chosen by Random.org is #2, julie! Julie, I'll be contacting you by PM at Sweet Shoppe Designs for your prize.


Today I'm going to be doing a CT spotlight on Kirsty!

Thats so exciting! I've never been spotlighted before! Here are my answers:


How long have you been digi-scrapping? And how did you get into it?
I've been digi-scrapping for nearly 5 years now, I originally stumbled across it when I was looking for cool things to do for my baby shower when I was pregnant with my oldest son. I stumbled on the HP website and something about digi-scrapping which took me to Shabby Princess website and I downloaded my first kit! And I've been scrapping ever since!

What program you use? and what camera?
I currently scrap use Photoshop CS4 on my MAC and I have CS3 on my laptop. I have two cameras, my main camera a Nikon D300 and I also have a little point and shoot Olympus which is always in my handbag, but doesn't get used as often as my D300.

Do you print out your layouts? Have you made any photobooks? I normally print my layouts at 8x8 to go into my kids albums, but have had a couple printed at 12x12 which are hanging in my children's rooms.

What are your favourite layouts and why?

Normally I'm behind the camera, but this past Mothers Day I was able to get some new photos with my kids, and I really treasure this layout. All their different personalities shine through the photos.


I always want my layouts to have meaning and my photos to be able to tell the story even without reading the journalling, and this one of my twins just really shows the bond that they have together.

What are your favourite KCB products?
There are so many! I love Kristin's kits, they are always so full of elements and papers to play with and as soon as I open up her kit, I can just feel the layout creating itself, everything always comes together perfectly!

I'm torn between two though - Tropical Hideaway and A Mothers Love collab with Scrapkitchen.

What's your favourite type of picture to scrap?
Nearly 100% of my layouts involve pictures of my kids and I love preserving their moments in time, so when they get older they look back and see what a fun childhood they had and how their mum spent so much time preserving it for them.

What inspires you?
Lots of things my family and friends, other scrappers, fellow photographers even pictures I see in the magazines have inspired me to scrap a layout.

Do you have any digital scrapbooking tips and tricks you want to share?
Enjoy what you do! Scrapping is so much fun so get creative and experiment with styles you might not normally try, you never know how much you will love the finished layout!

Thank for the tip Kirsty!

Double Spotlight once again!!

Happy Tuesday everyone! Hope you had a great Long weekend! Shannon here bringing you another fabulous double spotlight! Today we are spotlighting Sheana and eranslow! Let's start with Sheana!

What program you use? Photoshop CS3 and what camera? Canon Rebel XTi

Must have items on your pages? Flowers, ribbons or strings, layers



Your favorite KCB layouts (that you have made) & your favorite kits!

tropical beauty

beginning reader

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE every single KCB kit! If I have to pick my absolute favorite kits though, they would definitely be Artists's Canvas, Bookworm and Good Morning Sunshine

What inspires you? Totally random things- things my kids do or say, a picture I've taken, a kit that I love, a scene in a movie, a song on the radio, the weather, etc.

how long have you been digicrapping? Since early 2005


any advice or secrets tips to share?? Don't be afraid of using patterned papers! ) I hardly ever scrap a layout without using at least one, but it took me a long time to figure out my love of them.

Here is a link to Sheana's gallery at the sweet shoppe! Please take a look thru all her inspiring layouts and leave Sheana some love!


Next is eranslow:

Brief Bio: My name is Erin and I am a 30 yr old part-time SAHM! I work in the evenings for a bank doing clerical stuff but during the day I stay home with my 2.5 yr old son. (which I love to do and can't wait until I don't have to work anymore!) I have been married to my dh for nearly 8 yrs and we live in the midwest.

What program you use? and what camera? I use CS5 - just switched over from CS2. And I use a point & shoot camera - A Sony Cyber-shot 12.1 megapixels. I dream of the day when I'll get a DSLR!


Must have items on your pages?
string and lots of paper. I'm a sucker for awesome background papers.


Your favorite KCB layouts (that you have made) & your favorite kits!

Love this layout using Good Morning Sunshine:

sunshine

also love this layout using KCB's collab with Shawna - Beep Chugga Zoom

my little pilot

I LOVE all of Kristin's kits - but I think my favorites are Oh Snap!, Snowy Sidekick (I teach skating and my son is obsessed with hockey) and Bookworm. But truly - picking a favorite is hard because Kristin has so many awesome kits!

What inspires you? My son.

how long have you been digicrapping? A year this month! And I am totally hooked! I love digicrapping - so much cleaner then traditional!


any advice or secrets tips to share?? Scrap for you and only you. Also I have learned so much from all the tutorials out there. So check them out! They really help

Here is Erin's link to her gallery at the sweet shoppe, it is full of beautiful, inspiring layouts! Take a peek and leave some love!

Double the fun with the KCB creative team!

Since we have a new team I thought it would be fun to do a double Spotlight today to get to know our girls a little better...and to show off how wonderful scrappers they are! So onto the spotlight!!

First up:

Irish_eyes22 aka JEN!

What program do you use?


I recently gave up my resistance to Photoshop and jumped in head first with CS4. It took me a few months to really feel comfortable with it, but now I can't imagine ever using anything else.



and what camera?

My camera is a Sony A100. It's a wonderful camera, and I do love it. But I'm ready to go with something else (I'm still not sure what yet, but I'm still saving money - so I have some time)



Must have items on your pages?

I love strings and ribbons and other swirly, layer-able items. They're so much fun to intertwine with each other and shadow - I always try and add them to my layouts. And if there's room, I must add journaling!



Your favorite KCB layouts (that you have made) & your favorite kits!

My favorite layout right now is my most recent one. I just LOVE how it turned out. I was having a really hard weekend, and this layout ended up being a little therapy session for me. I felt wonderful after finishing it up

Sunshine

your favorite kits!

You're really gonna make me choose! Can I just say "All of the Above" and call it good!?!

What inspires you?

Pages that tell a story. Tells it with photos, or with the kit, or with journaling - or a bit of everything. I'm so inspired by someone sharing a little bit of themselves for all to see. I've looked at 1000s of layouts - and it's the ones with stories that stayed with me the longest. So now, I do my best to tell a story with every layout I make.


how long have you been digicrapping?

I've dabbled with it (off an on) for around 4 years. But I didn't get serious (as in, I'm ready to see these printed, and maybe get good enough to be on a CT or two) until almost a year ago. And I never looked back

any advice or secrets tips to share??

I often still feel like I have so much more to learn myself, so if I can offer any advice - it's to do what I do -- constantly push yourself to try new things, and learn all that you can. Don't be afraid to try something new - and don't be discouraged if it doesn't turn out the way you hoped. But mostly - to never forget why you started scrapbooking in the first place: because you enjoy it

Here is a link to her gallery, Please take a look, Jen has done many beautiful, inspiring layouts! And don't forget to leave her some love!

Next we have:

Pomi aka MAJDA!

Brief Bio:
I live with my husband, our two daughters (3 and 1 yo) and our dog near Prague in Czech Republic. I'm a SAHM. I love my family, my garden, running, dancing, yoga, walking in the mountains, photography and digi scrapbooking.
What program and camera do you use?


I use Photoshop CS and Nikon D40.


Must have items on your pages?

Must have items - I'd say stitching and/or flowers. But there are pages where there isn't any of them.


Your favorite KCB layouts (that you have made) & your favorite kits!


My favorite layouts with Kristin's kits:

Beauty

Four

My favorite kits are the ones used in them - Natural Beauty (retired) and Cherry Blossoms. I also love the newest one - A Mother's Love - and Good Morning Sunshine.



What inspires you?

I have - like everyone else, I think - various sources of inspiration: sometimes it's a photo, sometimes a certain kit, a song, an artwork, an advertisement and of course the gallery and the challenges at SSD.


how long have you been digicrapping?

I started digiscrapping in 2007 when my older daughter was born.

any advice or secrets tips to share??

I am not good at Photoshop techniques and have a lot to learn yet, so no technical tips from me. So I'd just say when creating a page (or anything else), enjoy the journey, not just the destination (I'm in philosophical mood today ).

Here is a link to Pomi's gallery, absolutely stunning! Please take a gander and leave her some love!

Well, there you have it! A little info about some of the new ladies that have just recently joined the team, and very obvious as to why Kristin choose these 2 amazing scrappers! Have a great Thursday!

Wednesday's Spotlight!!

Good morning everyone! I hope spring has sprung for you all...i know that snow is in our near future...crossing my fingers that is SO wrong, LOL! Today I am here to bring you wednesdays spotlight which is on Rochelle789! AKA Rochelle McDonald! Rochelle gallery is absolutely amazing, have you taken a look?? Please do! You will find loads of inspiration! Here is the link to her gallery

Brief Bio: I'm the mommy to 2 little girls, ages 6 and 2, and I work full-time as a Psychology professor at one of our state universities here. Between my career and my girls, there isn't time for much else, so I don't have a whole lot of exciting things to say about myself. I began digital scrapping sometime in 2007.




What program you use? and what camera? I use CS2 for scrapping. I've thought about upgrading, but CS2 does everything I'd ever need to do. I have 2 cameras. I primarily use my Canon XTi, but I also have a Canon Powershot that I keep in my purse. I'll be upgrading that one soon.

Must have items on your pages? Buttons! I love buttons! If a kit doesn't have a button in it, I feel like I'm lost.

Your favorite KCB layouts (that you have made) & your favorite kits! I love all of the layouts I've made with Kristin's kits, but here are two of my favorites:

sweet moments using K's newest kit: These Days

Just us girls: using Falling leaves

 My favorite kits are her newest one, These Days, and Falling Leaves.




What inspires you? I use templates almost exclusively, so that inspires my page design, although I frequently modify them quite a bit. Other than that, I'm inspired by my girls - what they say, what they do, what they like, what they wear, etc... I also frequently ask myself what I would have liked to have known about my life and childhood, then I tend to scrap those things for myself and for my girls.

 Besides SSD where to you spend your time digi scrappin lurkin!? I primiarly hang at SSD, and always have.

How long have you been with K?? This is my first 6-month term on Kristin's team, and I hope she'll have me longer! :o)


and some of Rochelle's most recent layouts!

18 months using: Blossom

Spider park using: Brotherly Love by Kristin CB and Meg Mullens

Sisters using: Sisterly Love by Kristin CB and Meg Mullens

Six: using Dear Diary

my everything: using my everything

Thanks for joining me today for wednesday's spotlight! If you get a chance take a gander thru Rochelles gallery, you will surely be inspired!

Team Member Spotlight-Monique (mpatry)

So sorry I'm late getting this up today. I've been getting ready for a big vacation to Florida on Friday.

Today we're spotlighting Monique.

Ct Spotlight!

Welcome to Wednedsay spotlight for Wednesday February 17th! Hope you are all enjoying watching the Olypmics! I know we are trying to watch as much as possible with our 3 year old completely addicted to her cartoons, LOL, although I must say, she really enjoyed watching the ladies snowboard cross racing yesterday and after 'our girl' won the gold, we had the rest of the afternoon to re-enact it out! With her being the 'skiboarder' LOL! Lets get on with the spotlight! Stephanie or aka nanienamou!

I'm Stephanie, mother to three little boys, living right next to Ottawa, Canada with my honey. We've been together since 1998. I also work from home. I've been scrapping since 2006, but in a more 'serious' fashion since November 2008. Other hobbies include reading and cooking.

2 What program you use? and what camera?

To scrap, I've just updated myself to Photoshop CS4. I was using Photoshop CS3 until a month ago.

3 Must have items on your pages?

Lots of patterned paper, buttons, flowers, ribbons... My pages are always loaded, lol!

4 Your favorite KCB layouts (that you have made) & your favorite kits!

12 years together

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Nice Hat
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Celestin's 1st Christmas
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
My favorite kits:


Happy Go Lucky

Holiday Classics Collection

Sweet Caroline

5 What inspires you?

Browsing through the galleries usually does the job.

6. Besides SSD where to you spend your time digi scrappin lurkin!?

SSD is my digiscrap home. I sometimes go read on Digishoptalk or My Scrapbook Art, but I'm mainly in the forums at SSD. I also follow three scrap blogs: Daily Digi, Simple Scrapper and Log Your Memory.

Stephanies gallery is plump full of wonderful goodies, so take a peek and leave her some love!

Merci Beaucoup Stephanie!

CT Spotlight-Nesser1981!

Happy Wednesday everyone! Todays spotlight is on our very talented Nesser1981!
Vanessa has an amazing style and uniqueness to her layouts
I asked Vanessa to answer a few questions for me, and here is what she had to say!
I'm Vanessa, almost 29. Married to Sean, 2 great kids, Keira (almost 5) and Cooper (almost 2). We moved to Michigan in June after I seperated from the Air Force. I've been digi scrapping since August 2006 and I'm currently going to school for photography.

2 What program you use? and what camera?
I used CS3 and a Rebel XSi with a Sigma 30mm 1.4

3 Must have items on your pages?
I love stitches, buttons, and a patterned background paper with usually a solid forground paper.


4 Your favorite KCB layouts (that you have made) & your favorite kits!
fav layouts
10 moments I'll never forget


Happiness Is





And some of my favorite KCB kits are
Family Ties


Happy Go Lucky


Falling Leaves



5 What inspires you? My kids, I don't really know what else to say, they're the reason I scrap.

6. Besides SSD where to you spend your time digi scrappin lurkin!?
Well, lately I've started hanging out a little at I Love Photography.com and I signed up for ClickinMoms today.

Here is a link to Vanessa's gallery, please take a minute to browse thru her amazing gallery!