Creative Blog Hop and my creative process

Looking for inspiration? Me too! I am always browsing the blogs, Instagram, Pinterest, magazines, the Stampin' Up! demo websites and attending events with other stampers to swap ideas and actual cards. Every one of us is out here taking inspiration, CASEing ideas, (copy and share everything), taking classes and buying kits. We want to be "creative" or to be "inspired." And sometimes I think we put so much pressure on ourselves to be unique. There is no question that every one of us is unique and that each card is going to be unique, because it is handmade. So go ahead. Copy. CASE. Steal. And Enjoy!

This card was inspired by Lydia Fiedler. I LOVE her work, and her sense of humor. This post was inspired by Marisa Gunn. She invited me to join the Creative Blog Hop. Marisa is a side-line to me in Stampin' Up! and terrifically talented, having earned a spot on the 2012 Artisan Design Team with Stampin' Up! Here is a link to her post from last Monday on the Creative Blog Hop. Please give her a visit and leave her some love.

I also used some of my fun stamping supplies to create this cute Christmas tree. The frame was stolen from a Paper Pumpkin kit I received. The adhesive is the 12x12" Sizzix sheet adhesive (we no longer carry) but the inspiration came from Instagram by Achristyproduction, a talented demonstrator from Australia.  And believe me, this is as close as I could get to the cute tree she posted! Do you have a jar of buttons from every blouse you have ever purchased, from your Nana, from leftover crafts? Please send the white ones to me, because I am making these until I am completely out of white buttons! LOL

Back to the Creative Blog Hop -- these are the standard questions each blogger answers:

1.  What are you working on?
      It is December, so Christmas cards must be on the list. Hostess gifts (see framed button art above). Life after December --who knew there would be such a thing, but I need to plan a couple classes and fun events for January and February with cute cards and projects or no one will come visit me!

2.  How does your work differ from others in your genre?
      Does it? Does it have to?  My work is probably not the art, my work is teaching. So the way my work differs is that I try to make it fun. And now I'm going to steal from my Scouting experience: Fun Fun Fun (triple the fun). Anyone can go out to Hallmark or Wal-Mart and buy a card, so the hobby of creating our own handmade art needs to be fun. My work is to provide the skills and materials to make that process Fun Fun Fun!

3.  Why do you create what you do?
     Great question. I ask that a lot as I scroll through Instagram. What the heck was she thinking? Why did she make that? I am always trying to make cute cards/scrapbook pages/decor projects that are just technical enough to be fun for my customers to tackle but not too hard; trendy or seasonal; beautiful!
    At the heart of the matter, creative people are creative people. "Why" doesn't even come into the issue, we were born this way and can't imagine life any other way. We are the "glitter girls" and we know it, we find each other in a crowd and start making origami out of gum wrappers. I just happen to love paper crafts and I love teaching it. So being a Stampin' Up! demo is the perfect fit!

4.  How does your creative process work?
     I was "pinning" way before Pinterest, collecting pictures from magazines, then collecting digital images on my computer, now collecting Pins and Instagram "likes" and "favorites" on the Stampin' Up! page. Then I figure out my end goal -- a class project, Christmas card, gift bag -- and the middle part could go any which way. Mostly a mix of papers and stamps and stops and starts. Time is a factor as well. I am NOT a last minute worker, I have to have my plan in place in plenty of time. I want to order my card stock for stamp club as opposed to working with whatever I have because a deadline is upon me!

Creative Blog Hop happens every week and  next Monday will be Cindee Wilkinson of the blog JustSpongeIt.blogspot.com Cindee is one of my favorite bloggers, I've been following her for ages! Be sure to check her out.

 Also blogging this week is Barbara Pisciotto at InkItUp. Please go visit her and leave her some love by commenting!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen