September's Kool Krafter!!!

One of the most exciting things to me about this little addiction....hehem..I mean, hobby of mine...is all the amazing friends that I have made!! I mean, we've never met or even talked on the phone, but I feel like I know you all!! Do you know what I mean??

I first met this Krafty lady over on Splitcoaststampers....you may know her as 'jacksonbelle'!! YES!! Her name is Lindsey Botkin and she is a FANTABULOUS stamper!!! If you haven't visited her blog yet....my goodness, you are missin' out!! She has such a unique style and all her creations have so much gorgeous texture, I just wanna reach out and touch 'em!!

She is also my 'dealer' for all my Lizzie Anne and Basic Grey fixes!! Heh, heh!! Her blog has a link straight to her online store called Jacksonbelle Embellishments. I know first hand that she is amazing to deal with. So without further ado, here is a little bit about Lindsey!!!



Hello! I am so super excited to be Kimmie's September Kool Krafter!! It means alot to me that she'd pick me! I just admire her work so much and am a faithful blog stalker of hers! ;) So thank you Kimmie!!! :)

I am a stamp at home mom with two adorable little boys, 4 and 16 months and have been married for 6 1/2 years! WOW how time flies! I was introduced to stamping about 4 years ago. It took me about 6 months to really get into it. But when I got into it I went crazy! I signed up to be a Stampin' Up! demo and saw my little hobby turning into a way of life! ;)



These days I am SO lucky and honored to be a Freelance Designer for Inkadinkado and Hampton Art, and am on the ever so talented Lizzie Anne Designs Design Team! This past year I've also added Store Owner to my title when I opened my Ebay store! Gosh...can you say OBSESSED! :) I feel like a lucky lady at this stage in life having met so many wonderful people and lifelong friends. Feel free to drop by and say hello anytime! :)



Well, I am working all day today (Saturday), so no crafting for me....booooo! But you all have a great day!! And don't forget to join in this week's Sketch Challenge...you have until Sunday at noon to share it and get in on the random drawing!!! Toodles!!

August's Kool Krafter!!!

Sorry my post is late this morning, but we had some visitors from my old hometown! It was nice to sit and visit with them, but now I'm in a rush to post and get ready for work!!

Anyway, on to today's fun!! This month I am featuring a wonderfully talented lady who I'm sure you ALL know........and if you don't, you will now!!! She truly inspires me and she is one of the few blogs that I visit EVERY morning!!! Please welcome...........Julee Tilman!!!!! **insert applause here**



I was so excited when Kimmie asked me to be her August Kool Krafter. Little ole’ me? Who would have thought this is where I’d be? Would you believe that when I was in 3rd grade I was working on a school project and the teacher brought in a 1st grader to collaborate with me because I didn’t have any “artistic ability”! That tiny little comment so many years ago steered me clear of art classes and the failure I knew I would find behind those doors.

Well, thankfully a good friend in college convinced me to go to a stamping party about 13 years ago, and I was instantly hooked. I was immediately drawn in by the fact that I could create beautiful things and express my creativity without having to put my artistic chops on the line. That coupled with the fact that I could surround myself by beautiful colors, ribbons and sparkles drew me head first into the world of stamping.



Through the years, the success and joy I’ve had creating cards and scrapbooks eventually lured me into the world of graphic design. I figured if I could design layouts for cards, isn’t it the same concept for a brochure, website, etc.? So my darling and ever-supportive hubby signed me up for some computer day classes to learn how to build websites. One of the classes was a class in Adobe Illustrator where in one day we learned how to use the program and created the most adorable elephant just by using shapes. There was no drawing involved! I think that’s the day I became an artist. From that moment on, my life changed. Shortly thereafter I switched careers and began life as a web and graphic designer in the corporate world. And after several years of giving my heart and soul there, I decided to take a wild plunge for myself. Just this month, I launched Verve Visual, my own online craft boutique, and am slowly designing my very own line of rubber stamps. Not bad for a girl with no artistic ability, huh? :)

Well, that’s the scoop on me. My crafting style has a little bit of everything rolled into it. I think the details are what make a card unique, so I spend lots of time on the little things – paper piercing, doodles, sparkles and embellishments. My favorite cards have a clean, well layered look with lots of mats and oodles of sparkle. If I had to pick one thing I couldn’t craft without it would be glitter – you can almost always find something sparkly or shimmery on my cards – and everywhere else in my house! LOL




Yay!!! Isn't she awesome?? Julee has released a new stamp set today which you can preorder at a discount, so head on over to Verve Visual and order yours!! She also has an awesome sentiment set that is not only versatile, but SO reasonably priced!! Be sure to order yourself one of those too!!!

Two Winners....and July's Kool Krafter!!!

There were some wonderful cards made using the sketch I challenged you with! Thanks to everyone for joining in the fun!! And...........the two randomly chosen winners of the newly released High Hopes Rubber Stamps are.........Alison and Jane!!! Yaaaaay!! Please email me with your address and I will send them out to you this week!!!

NOW...on to this month's Kool Krafter!! You may already know this talented lady but in case you don't, I'd love to introduce you to her. She is not only a wonderful paper crafter but a totally lovely person!! I'm also extremely jealous of her wonderful organizational skills!!! If you want to be inspired, see THIS posting on her blog, Distinctive Touches!!! Please help me welcome, Colleen Schaan!!!! *cheers and applause*

Wow…when Kimmie asked me to be her next “Kool Krafter” I was shocked…
and then VERY excited! I mean, Kimmie is one of my all-time favorite
stampers…and she has one of the “Koolest” blogs on the block.

My name is Colleen Schaan and I am an avid papercrafter. I LOVE
paper…cardstock, shimmery, patterned, glossy...it doesn’t matter; I
love it all. I am also a big fan of stamping. I started
scrapbooking about 10 years ago but quickly realized I didn’t have
the patience for it. Then I got sucked into the stamping craze and
have been inkin’ it up like a crazy gal ever since.



My style is constantly changing. When I first started stamping, I
was CASING everything I could get my hands on. Eventually I started
feeling comfortable creating my own layouts and designing my own
cards. Now, I may use a sketch to get me started, but I rarely CASE
anymore…with the exception of this card! I was so inspired recently
by a layout I saw on Amy’s blog that I just HAD to use it to create
this card. I love the way the patterned paper is so bold while the
sentiment and leaves are a bit more delicate.



If I had to pick one word to describe the style I am into right now,
it would be cutesy-humor. (Okay, I know that is two words, but I
hyphenated it to make it a one word adjective! – oh yeah…I was an
English teacher for 12 years too!) I am on the design teams for
Hambo Stamps and Eat Cake Graphics, and both of these companies have
adorable images and hysterical sentiments. Gramma Gertz is one of my
favorite stamps at the moment. She is crabby, mean, and cranky…and
sooooo funny! On this card, she offers a bit of advice to us all…and
isn’t she right?



When I am not stamping or papercrafting, I am usually writing about
it. I am the managing editor and lead reporter at Craft Critique, a
collective blog where we share product reviews and our experiences
with anything crafty. I also publish a blog each morning where I can
babble on about myself and my creations. I try to share my love of
papercrafting by posting tutorials for different techniques and
projects like this altered journal. While there is very little
stamping involved in this, it is still a way to express my creativity…
and a great way to make some wonderful gifts for the special people
in my life.

Thanks Kimmie for giving me this opportunity to share a little about
myself. YOU are one of those special people in my life and I am
thankful our paths have crossed. Stamp On Girls!!!

Thanks Colleen for sharing about yourself with us!! You're an amazing artist and inspire me whenever I visit your blog! So everyone, be sure to hop on over to Distinctive Touches and prepare to be inspired!!!!

June's Kool Krafter!!

One of the most wonderful things to me about this craft, is meeting new and special people!! And each of us has our own unique style and artful abilities! Obviously, you know that I have a 'cutesie' style that often features lined images, lotsa layers and embellishments. Others prefer elegant or contemporary or simple styles. Well this lady I'm going to introduce you to has a style all her own!!



Heather Robinson is not only a sweet person, but also an amazing artist! I asked her to be my first 'Kool Krafter' to showcase her collage-y style which is so very different from my own. She does some amazing ATCs and altered items as well as oh so creative cards!! Be sure to stop by her very new blog, Creative Solace, and check out her amazing artwork!!



My name is Heather Robinson and I confess that I was a complete failure at
art in school. In fact, I "did my time" in obligatory art classes in
elementary school and gave it up as a lost cause. I was, however, always
interested in design and colour and took courses in home decorating, art
history and clothing design in high school and university. Then 15 years
ago I discovered rubber stamping and I thought I was in heaven. I collected
them with fervour, took classes wherever and whenever I could and actively
participated in online swaps and exchanges. About 3 years ago I first
attempted collage and it felt like coming home to me. Most recently I have
begun to dabble in mixed media and altered art. My recent obsessions
include altering board books, round robin altered journal projects and
beeswax collage. I certainly have no shortage of books that are crying to
be altered as I am a librarian by profession. Art truly is a solace for me.
Thank you, Kim, for the honour of being a guest artist on your incredible
blog.



Each month I will feature a new artist or 'Kool Krafter'!! You may already know them......you may not!! It will be a surprise!! Hope you enjoy this new addition to Kraftin' Kimmie's Korner!! Have a wonderfully krafty day!!!