Meet the Team week four - Kim Dellow

We 'meet' Creative Expressions Design Team member Kim Dellow in this week's Meet the Team post to find out what's inspiring her right now, which craft tool she can't do without, what she likes to snack on whilst crafting and more...

1. Introduce yourself briefly...
Hi my name is Kim Dellow and I'm an artist, crafter, blogger living in London, UK. I live with my wonderful partner David in a flat that is fast becoming overrun with arts and craft products! Yikes! I have a paper and fabric fetish but shhh! - It's a secret so don't tell anyone! You can find me on my blog, on Facebook (www.facebook.com/kim.dellow) and on Twitter (@KimDellow).

Design Team member Kim Dellow

2. How did you get into crafting?
At heart I think I've always been a bit arty and crafty. I dabbled as a kid, but didn't pursue it until about five years ago when I started making cards as a way to relax. Then I entered the Papercraft Essentials magazine Papercrafter of the Year Competition in 2008, purely on a whim and never expecting to actually win. I did win and am really lucky to still be regularly published in Papercraft Essentials and Simply Cards & Papercraft  now.

3. How would you describe your style?
Erm...I'm a bit of a Jane of all styles, master of none. I like everything from grungy to cute and try my hand at it all. But I think I'm at my happiest when I'm getting messy with colour; and playing with paper, fabric and stitch too. I love creating with recycled packaging and corrugated card.

4. Where do you draw inspiration from?
Got to say it, but everywhere! Like most arty, crafty folk I draw inspiration from any place it strikes. But I firmly believe that you have to put the hours in to make good use of that inspiration!  

5. What's your favourite technique right now?
Playing with watercolour is making me happy at the moment, I'm learning lots about this medium!

6. What's your favourite colour?
I'm a jewel colour person and teal is one of my faves. But I do try to break out of my comfort zone every once in a while to expand my colour combos.

A beautifully textured Christmas card by Kim: created using the Tim Holtz Christmas Time stamp set

7. What do you like to snack on whilst crafting?
I don't tend to snack. If I do though it would be fruit as we don't really have crisps or biscuits in the flat (they don't last long enough!). 

8. What do you do when you're not crafting?
Exploring my home town of London or trying out different cuisines, and drinking tea with my feet up.

9. Tell us a random fact about yourself...
I can touch my nose with my tongue and pick pencils up with my toes - too much detail?

10. What craft tool could you not live without?
Scissors!

11. If your flat was on fire, what's the first thing you would save from your craft room?
Yikes! Sewing machine? All my colour making materials? Sketchbooks?! Oh boy!


You can take a peek at more of Kim's stunning creations, including all of her Creative Expressions DT projects, on her blog here. 

Next Wednesday (31st Oct), in week five of Meet the Team, we'll be getting to know a little more about another Creative Expressions DT member. So be sure to check back here! 

Meet the Team week three - Gillian Simson

It's Wednesday, which means it's time to meet another member of the Creative Expressions Design Team and find out a little about what makes them tick. This week we would like to introduce DT member Gillian Simson...

1. Introduce yourself briefly...
Hi everyone, I'm Gillian. I live on the North-East coast of Scotland with my husband (the most patient man in the world!), one teenage son and a mad Labrador called Sam (now six!). I'm very fortunate to have a job I love! I work as a manager in an Older Peoples Day Care Resource Centre.

DT Member Gillian Simson

2. How did you get into crafting?
Whilst recovering from illness way back in the late 90's I bought a card making kit from a well known TV shopping channel, I was hooked immediately! The rest, as they say, is history...

3. How would you describe your style?
I love vintage style crafting, absolutely anything distressed or grungy!

4. Where do you draw inspiration from?
I love working with quirky stamp designs. Wendy Vecchi's Studio 490 range always sets my cogs ticking! I also love to include texture within my work... whether that be by layering embellishments or using Gesso through stencils. I love the freedom of working on alterable items such as paper mache, wooden items and lasered chipboard.

5. What's your favourite technique right now?
My fave and most used is the Spritz and Flick technique, closely followed by Riveted Patchwork. 

6. What's your favourite colour?
I always tend to reach for blue and I love turquoise tones. My favourite "go to" Distress Inks to reach for right now are Peacock Feathers and Weathered Wood!

A bright Steampunk Christmas Decoration by Gillian: made using Sam Poole's Steampunk Christmas stamp set

7. What do you like to snack on whilst crafting?
Most of the time I'm way too engrossed in what I'm doing to eat, but if something isn't going to plan I reach for the chocolate...

8. What do you do when you're not crafting?
Spend way too much time on social networking sites! However at the moment I'm studying, so if I'm not crafting I have my head stuck in books!

9. Tell us a random fact about yourself...
I have never tasted coffee!

10. What craft tool couldn't you live without?
My paper trimmer, it's invaluable!

11. If your house was on fire, what's the first thing you would save from your craft room?
Oh now that is a tough question! Just one thing? Really?? It would have to be my collection of stamps!


You can take a look at more fabulous projects from Gillian, including her Creative Expressions DT projects, on her blog here. 

Next Wednesday (24th Oct) we'll be meeting another member of the Creative Expressions DT, so be sure to check back here then!

Christmas Bauble Challenge!

Our Christmas Card Challenge is now open!

This month's Card Challenge theme is Christmas Baubles and we have a prize of over £50.00 of Studio 490 goodies for the winner!

Christmas Baubles Challenge prize stash: including Studio 490 stamps, Art Parts, Stencils and more.

Click here to find out more about the theme and how to enter...

Meet the Team week two - Trish Latimer

It's time for week two of our Meet the Team blog posts, where we get to know the wonderful ladies of the Creative Expressions Design Team a little better! This week we would like to introduce Trish Latimer...

Question 1. Introduce yourself briefly...
I'm Trish Latimer and I'm a full time mixed media designer . I live in sunny(!) Blackpool with my husband and four children. I've been crafting for around 15 years and write for various crafting magazines, I've also recently released a DVD called 'Create with Paint'. 

DT Member Trish Latimer

2. How did you get into crafting?
I saw a TV demo of rubber stamping years and years ago and have been hooked ever since!

3. How would you describe your style?
My style is messy, painty, quirky and very colourful!

4. Where do you draw inspiration from?
I love looking at fabrics and all kinds of textiles to get colour combination inspiration, but you can find great colour combos anywhere if you look hard enough!

5. What's your favourite technique right now?
My favourite technique probably changes every week! Right now I'm very 'into' paint splatters using a bottle brush. Next week? Who knows!

An Icy Santa Christmas themed canvas by Trish: made using  the Tim Holtz Christmas Time stamp set

6. What's your favourite colour?
I like combinations of colour rather than a single shade. Right now I adore lime, black and white together.

7. What do you like to snack on whilst crafting?
Nothing! The crumbs would get everywhere and as I use my fingers to apply most of the mediums I use, eating whilst crafting would probably end up with me eating those too!

8. What do you do when you're not crafting?
Sleep...and even then my brain doesn't switch off. I have my best ideas in those split seconds before sleep happens!

9. Tell us a random fact about yourself...
I used to be a primary school teacher. I haven't taught in schools for 17 years, but I've taught craft workshops for the last ten. 

10. What craft tool couldn't you live without?
My brayer...I love brayering layers of paint all over everything!

11. If your house was on fire, what's the first thing you would save from your craft room?
My jewellery pliers. Everything else is pretty much replaceable but I've spent years getting those pliers worn enough to fit my hands perfectly!

You can see more of Trish's stunning makes, including her Creative Expressions DT projects, on her blog here. Be sure to check back here next Wednesday (17th Oct) to read our next Meet the Team post!

Meet the Team week one - Jean Gursoy

Hello and welcome to the first of our Meet the Team blog posts! 

In these blog posts over the next eight weeks we'll be asking each of the new Creative Expressions Design Team members some questions to find out what techniques they're into right now, what inspires them to create and even what treats they like to snack on whilst getting inky! 

So without further ado, this week we would like to introduce DT member Jean Gursoy...

DT Member Jean Gursoy

Question 1. Introduce yourself briefly...
My name is Jean Gursoy, I live in London and am lucky enough to have a wonderful family who support me in everything I do. I am going through a difficult time in my life right now as my husband passed away in April, and we were together for forty years.  I am privileged to have been chosen as a design team member because it is really helping me to cope and do creative and positive things and learn from other people’s work.  

I have a background in the textile industry, but retrained later on as an ESOL teacher, teaching English to foreign students. Craft is my real passion in life, I don’t see craft as simply a hobby; it is so therapeutic too and I cannot live without it. If I had to describe myself in a nutshell, I'd say I'm a craftaholic!

2. How did you get into crafting?
I have always crafted since I was a small child, being an only child, I spent a lot of time alone so I quickly learnt to amuse myself with an array of pens, paints, paper and anything else I could get my mum to buy for me.  When I was around 14, I unpicked one of my favourite skirts, cut a pattern from it and sewed all the seams by hand with tiny, tiny stitches. My grandmother asked me where I got the sewing machine from and, after I told her I had completed it by hand, a sewing machine arrived that Christmas. Incidentally, I still love sewing by hand believe it or not!

A Christmas themed birthday card by Jean: made using Spellbinders Nestabilities and Bakers Twine. 

3. How would you describe your style?
I can be quite eclectic and get interested in different styles; at the moment I would like to do more Steampunk style projects. On the other hand, I love symmetry and designs that have a Medieval or Arts and Crafts feel to them too.

4. Where do you draw inspiration from?
I draw inspiration from everywhere; magazines, books, the internet and YouTube, other crafters’ blogs, from nature and from my own feelings. I am a fan of Pre-Raphaelite Art, William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement.  I also love Art Deco, Art Nouveau and Impressionist Art. I also really like folkart painting and the intricacy of Ottoman design. 

5. What's your favourite technique right now?
I don’t think I have a favourite technique, although I have to say I enjoy brayering when creating scenes, using distressing techniques and creating my own background papers using inks, misters and embossing folders.  

There's nothing I like better than to get myself really messy (the rebel in me!), but I even shock myself and can never understand how, in the space of five minutes, I can create so much chaos and disorder! There’s such a plethora of stamping techniques, all interesting in their own way, and I love to experiment with bleach on dark card, do a little zentangling (doodling), ripping, tearing and crumpling paper (very therapeutic). 

6. What's your favourite colour?
I love autumn colours; reds, browns and golds. Also, dare I say it, I love PINK! Especially with black; sorry about that.

7. What do you like to snack on whilst crafting?
Well, the thing is that when I get into my craft room I really have a problem getting out again! When I do, I am so hungry that I eat anything available that does not have to be cooked – that’s usually ice cream, cream crackers and Turkish cheese, olives and my favourite chilly peppers that I eat with all savoury food.  I would ideally like to snack on shish kebab, but no chance of that.

8. What do you do when you're not crafting?
Spend time with my lovely family, watch all the wonderful programmes on Turkish Satellite TV (so I don’t forget my Turkish) and play with my sweet little half Bengal cat called Elmaz (Diamond). 

9. Tell us a random fact about yourself...
I love learning languages! I am fluent in Turkish, Modern Greek and also spent two years studying Spanish with the Open University. The problem is that if you don't use it you lose it and although I can read Spanish and understand it; not having the chance to speak it is a huge drawback.

10. What craft tool could you not live without?
My Grand Calibur!!!

11. If your house was on fire, what's the first thing you would save from your craft room?
My Spellbinders dies, as many as possible. If I could carry them that is!

You can see more of Jean's beautiful creations, including her Creative Expressions DT pieces, on her blog here. 

Check back here next Tuesday to read our next Meet the Team post!