Meet Our April 2012 Featured Designer: Chelle’s Creations

Chelle’s Creations

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I’d heard the phrases “toadally in love” and “don’t worry be hoppy” somewhere last fall, but when I saw a fun frog/toad pillow in greens, pinks, aqua and teal, then I had a vision for the kit.

What is your favorite part or element of the kit?

Love those happy little toads!

Tell us about your family:

My DH (married 19 years) and I own a financial services company (think insurance and investments).  We have seven children:  a stepson who is 24 and a stepdaughter who is 22, a daughter (deceased at age three and a half), two daughters (17 and 15), a special-needs son who is ten and another son who is two. We have a two-month-old grandson.

How long have you been designing?

I stumbled onto digital scrapbooking as we know it nearly four years ago.  I was looking for some images to use in a photobook for my daughter.  I never did find what I was looking for, so I started tweaking some digital papers and elements to create my own kit…before I scrapped my first digi layout.   I opened my first store three years ago.

What program(s) do you use?

I have PSE for tutorials, but I do all my designing and scrapping in PSCS4 and Illustrator 4.

What part of designing comes easiest to you (themes, colors, papers, elements)?

I don’t know how to design without a theme.  They can be rather generic, but I need that vision in my head.  But my favorite part is the specialty elements [like] my felties.

What part of designing is most challenging to you?   Patterned papers…especially thematic ones.  I have a hard time using bold patterned papers, so I stress about designing them.  I’m always looking at the papers in my scrapbooking magazines for inspiration.

If you’re running low on design mojo, where do you go to kick-start your creativity?

I scrap my own photos.  Sometimes, I need a template or a scraplift to get going, but that gets me excited about designing again.

What is the latest you’ve ever stayed up to finish a design or scrap? 

All night long.  Seriously.  Happens about once every three months.  About once a month, I go to bed around five or six a.m. and sleep as long as my two year old will let me (two to three hours)  VERY often I design until two a.m.

What’s your favorite snack to have handy while you design? 

A tall glass of water.  I LOVE to snack, but snacks love my waistline too much.

What magazines do you subscribe to (scrap and non-scrap related)? 

I sometimes steal borrow my fifteen-year-old daughter’s  Reader’s Digest, but otherwise it’s all scrapbooking:  Creating Keepsakes, Scrapbooking Trends, Scrapbooks and Beyond and any other scrapping magazine I can find.

Slippers or barefoot?

Slippers.  I always seem to be cold.

Favorite TV show? 

White Collar.  It’s become a regular family activity.  We DVR the show, then gather together and watch.  Between seasons we play the games on the website.  I think we might be addicted.

Where is the farthest you have been from home? Rome, Italy.  My husband earned a business trip there.  I was three-months pregnant:  a little sick and very tired.

What is your favorite quote?

Real faith in God includes faith in his timing.  (It helps me keep things in perspective…and be patient)

If you could have one super power, what would it be?   The Photoshop Touch.  It’s similar to the Midas touch, except instead of turning into gold, real life can be modified using Photoshop tools:  Not happy with your waistline?  Just do a little warping.  Can’t find a sweater in the right color?  Try the Hue/Saturation slider.  Car accident?  Try the spot healing brush…or the clone tool.  Make a mistake?  CTRL-Z!

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you make your home?

Right where it is.  We built our dream home right next to my parents.  My kids get to spend lots of time with their grandparents and cousins.   But, I love to visit warm, sandy beaches.

Which would you pick…more money or more time?

Time.