"Getting to know you" bloghop

Hello, everyone!  A couple of weeks ago, I received an email from one of my team mates at A Blog Named Hero, Sarah Gray. She asked if I'd like to take part in a blog hop that is all about getting to know people out there in blogland, so I said yes! Please go and check out Sarah's blog - I love her CAS style, I adore the name of her blog (Funky Fossil Designs) and she's only been blogging since March this year, but she's already such a pro!

So the idea with this blog hop is to get to know fellow crafters by their answers to a few questions - so here goes!

1. What creative projects are you currently working on?
I am on three challenge blog design teams - A Blog Named Hero, Fusion, and Addicted to CAS.  I always try to have my DT projects done at least a few weeks in advance, and so I need to catch up on a few of them! I also usually try to have some ideas for Christmas cards I can make in bulk each year by August, and I have NO IDEAS yet, so will have to get my thinking cap on in the next couple of weeks :)

Recently, I've been having great fun with stencils, Wendy Vecchi embossing paste (having been inspired by Debby Hughes, Joy Taylor and Christine Drogt), as well as with Faber Castell Gelatos (having been hooked since Joy Taylor and Lyndal Higgins gave me some!) 

2. What inspires your designs?
All sorts of things inspire me, but mainly my blogging friends. I am full of admiration for so many of my card-making buddies (you can see a list of my favourite blogs in the sidebar on the right -->>>). I keep a Pinterest board of cards that made me gasp (you can see it HERE), and I try to take inspiration from them, without copying them directly. I just love finding cards from fellow card-makers that make me say to myself, "I wish I'd thought of that!"
Also, I really enjoy taking part in challenges, and some of my favourite ones are when I can CASE a fabulous card maker, or use a photo or a word as inspiration. I particularly like CASE study, Muse, Lawnscaping, CASual Fridays and Keep it Simple.  Here are some recent cards I've made for challenges:

I also love participating in the Online Card Classes (run by Jennifer McGuire, Kristina Werner, along with Debby Hughes and Julie Ebersole, four of my all time top cardmaking inspirations). Some of my favourite cards I've made have come from Online Card Classes.

3. What method / process (if applicable) do you apply to each of your creative projects, and how long does each project take to complete?
95% of my cards start out as a sheet of white cardstock. I usually have something in mind - a colour or colour scheme, a product (be it a stamp, a stencil, embossing paste, a die), or a technique I want to try out.  I used to keep a book of card sketches that I'd always pull out when I was stuck for inspiration, but I find I reach for that less and less nowadays. I also have an enormous stash of patterned papers, and coloured cardstock, but that is gathering dust a bit - I'm happier using stamps and inks! 
Most of my cards take less than 30 minutes to complete - some are slower, some are quicker. But I like to start and finish a card in one sitting - I very rarely leave and come back to it later (unless, of course, I'm making a heap of the same thing, like invitations, in which case I do a production line kind of thing).

4. If you had to describe your 'signature' style, what would it be?
Probably Clean and Simple, but that's not a hard and fast rule.  I like to try different things, and if a particular technique does not lend itself to a CAS style, then so be it! 

5. What three crafting tools/products can you not live without?  
Only three?!?! ( I assume that stamps, inks and cardstock are a given?)  Well, a paper trimmer (I have 3, but I use my Fiskars trimmer the most), my Stampin' Up Stampin' Scrub, and the last is a toss-up between my heat tool and my Stampin' Up scissors. Pretty much the basics. However, there are so many cool tools out there that I have and love, or don't have and covet!

Now, I'd like to nominate 2 fellow crafters to keep this blog hop going - these are ladies whose cardmaking style I admire, but who I also consider to be friends (and because of their awesomeness!).  

Kelly Latevola of "You and Your Big Dreams" - other than the fact that Kelly and I both have a "thing" for rainbows, I think she and I have very similar taste in cards. She does CAS so very, very well, and her designs are always clever. Her cards make my jaw drop on a regular basis.

Linda Trace of "Linda Trace Designs" - Linda does it all - scrapbooking, card-making, mixed media, Copics, you name it!  And she is just the most generous person - she's the best! 

If you've made it all the way through this very wordy post, well done, and thank you! And make sure you remember to drop in to Kelly and Linda's blogs next Monday :)

Thanks so much for visiting! :)