Meet Our July 2012 Featured Designer: Meredith Cardall

Meet Meredith Cardall, the creator of this month’s DST Gold Member Kit: Dream a Little Dream.

Meredith Cardall

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Tell us about your family.
My husband and I have been married for 10 1/2 years and we have two adorable little girls.  Hannah is almost 8 and Ainsley just turned 5. We live in the suburbs of Salt Lake City.

How long have you been designing?
I actually began creating my own embellishments 7 1/2 years ago, and then began creating professionally almost 4 years ago.

What program(s) do you use?
I use Photoshop & Illustrator CS4 and ArtRage occasionally.

What part of designing comes easiest to you (themes, colors, papers, elements)?
Colors and general themes come the most easily to me. I have hundreds of pages of doodles and ideas. Actually executing the creation of the kits is a bit more difficult for me and the kits usually end up looking completely different than I originally thought they would.

If you’re running low on design mojo, where do you go to kickstart your creativity?
I browse home decor blogs a lot, but that usually makes me want to redecorate my house instead of working! I love browsing home decor stores. Pinterest is always great for inspiration. I do my best brainstorming work while sitting at soccer practice or swim lessons.

What project are you working on now (or next)?
I have a project that I have been working on for a very long time and I want it to be just perfect before I release it. It’s all about women and how we need to learn to love ourselves, as we are right now!

How much time do you allocate to designing in a typical week?
Too much! LOL. I work at least 40 hours per week, but most of that time is spent marketing, organizing, brainstorming, blogging, planning, and doing all the administrative work that goes along with designing.

What is your biggest tip for balancing design time with your personal scrapping time?
Well, I am not very good at it, but I try to schedule time for both. Weekdays are for working and weekends are for my personal time, including blogging and scrapping.

What is the latest you’ve ever stayed up to finish a design or scrap?
I have pulled several all-nighters to meet a deadline, whether self-imposed or a project deadline.

What’s your favorite snack to have handy while you design?
A big fat fountain Coke. I have a 64 oz refillable mug that usually sits next to me on my desk. I probably only drink about 16 oz of it, but I love having that big mug of Coke next to me!

What magazines do you subscribe to (scrap and non-scrap related)?
Southern Living, Country Living, Better Homes & Gardens, Taste of Home, as well as my alumni magazines from my university and some church publications.

Slippers or barefoot?
Flip flops. We have contractor grade carpet in our house and I can’t stand the way it feels on my feet, so I always wear flip flops in the house.

Favorite TV show?
Since it is the off-season, my favorite show right now is Drop Dead Diva. Love it! During the regular TV season, I watch Modern Family religiously!

Where is the farthest you have been from home?
Last year I had the remarkable opportunity to travel with my parents to visit my mom’s uncle in Wales. He lives near Swansea, and it was such an amazing trip!

If you could have one super power, what would it be?
To freeze time while I keep doing things. I really need a few extra hours in every day… or the ability to say no!

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you make your home?
The mountains east of Salt Lake City, Utah. There is a little canyon near Oakley that my husband’s family used to own a share of a cabin. It is the most beautiful place in the world and I would love to live there year-round!

Which would you pick…more money or more time?
More money because then we could spend more time with our family instead of working so hard all the time.

Which of your accomplishments would your parents be most proud of?
My parents are always proud of me. They are really amazing. They support me through my successes and failures and I love them dearly. They are always proud of us when we give our best efforts and learn through our mistakes.

What was it about you that first drew your significant other to you?
His shoulders. My husband seriously has the most amazing shoulders. Wow! He is also really funny and a lot of fun to hang out with. We were best buddies for years before we started dating seriously.

At the end of the day, how do you want to be remembered?
I want to be remembered as someone who always tried hard to do her best… at everything. Whether it be cleaning my home, being a mother, being a friend or designing.

Meredith Cardall’s Product Picks

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