Cocoa Daisy warmly welcomes Lisa Olsen (Asil) as our guest designer for October.  We spotted Lisa in our design team call and knew we would had to have her for a guest designer.  She has a great simple yet vintage classic  with bits of whimsy style that fit perfectly with this warm kit.  We asked Lisa a few questions to get to know her better:

1.   What is your most creative time?  Inside I’m a night owl desperately trying to get out of the morning-person body my kids are forcing me into, haha. When the house is quiet (or empty), I loose all sense of time and enjoy my papers and glue! So late evening is my prime time!

2.   What is your top 5 playlist?

Gosh, it’s been so long since I had a proper playlist, but favourite songs at the moment are (in no particular order except the top one)…

- I’m not sorry / Morrissey

- Last Christmas / Wham! (it’s almost December after all!)

- Ring meg (Call me) / Gabrielle

- The more you ignore me, the closer I get / Morrissey

- Set fire to the rain / Adele

3.   What’s next on your scrappy life list?  Christmas cards and gift tags – oh, I’m so late!!

4.   What is your favorite retreat?  Send me to a spa and I’m in heaven. Or a beach. Or London. Or let me just sleep late one morning..

5.   If your life was a movie, what actress would play you?  That’s a tricky one. I know who I would like to see play me, but that’s not the question, is it.. boring experience.. Rene Z. as in Bridget Jones – I feel a bit Bridgety sometimes, even though I have hubby & kids.

6.   Who are the most important people in your life?  My family! Without them, I’m lost. And my closest friends!

7.   Where do you start when you scrap?  Usually I start with the paper or the picture(s). Sometimes the paper tells me which photo to use, sometimes it’s the opposite. But I do lay out everything before I glue thing together – adding and taking things away, until I’m satisfied. It takes for ever, I’m such a slow scrapper.

8.   What’s your favorite blog? Hmm..  It’s really hard to choose only one.. I’m loving Mumkaa’s (http://mumkaa.blogspot.com/) style at the moment – a cluster-like style with lots of messy paint on it. The Polish scrappers have an awesome style, misting and using stencils & paint. And then you have the clean & simple scrappers – Maria (http://www.houseofpaper.no/) is a huge inspiration!

9.   What food would describe your style?  I’m going safe on this and say smorgasbord (buffet-like food)! That’s a bit of everything, isn’t it? My style changes constantly, I don’t think I have one particular one..

10.  What is “dressed up” for you?  I hate dressing up, so any skirt/dress-outfit would be a major event!

Here are her stunning creations this month:

Her gallery is being posted soon.  In the meantime, check out her beautiful blog Asil’s Ville Verden.  Thanks Lisa for such wonderful creations.

Cocoa Daisy warmly welcomes Vicki Boutin as our guest designer for November.

Vicki Boutin comes from a background in graphic design and fine arts and she has always been passionate about creating pretty things!  Her love of colour, texture, funky patterns and photography lead her to the discovery of scrapbooking and paper crafting.  She has not looked back since!

In 2006 Vicki became a Creating Keepsakes Hall of Fame winner and went on to be part of Better Homes and Gardens Scrapbooks Etc’s Creative Team.  Her work is currently published in Scrapbooks, Etc and Vicki writes a quarterly article for Scrapbooks and Cards, Today magazine.  She enjoys working closely with a number of the industry’s top manufacturers including 7 Gypsies, Core’dinations, Little Yellow Bicycle and Pink Paislee.  Vicki is also a Ranger Certified instructor.

Vicki is always on a mission to learn something new and then find a way to share it!  That is where teaching comes in.  She has taught workshops in the United States, Canada and Europe and loves to approach art in a fun, fresh and accessible way.  Her motto is “Try anything once.  You won’t know if it’s your style unless you try it!”  Her workshops offer an opportunity to meet new friends, try new things and most of all have FUN!!!

Two crazy kids and a straight laced husband keep things interesting in Vicki’s home in Southern Ontario, Canada.  Vicki is eagerly awaiting the release of her first book, CREATIVE FOUNDATIONS in January 2012!!  It is currently available for pre-order at Amazon.com, Barnes and Nobles.com and Chapters.com.

Here are her stunning creations using November’s Bed & Breakfast.

For more details you can check out her gallery here. You can also find more of Vicki at her blog: vickiboutin.typepad.com.  Thank you Vicki for your beautiful creations.

(Photo Credit: h2ophotography.ca)

Cocoa Daisy warmly welcomes Lisa Kisch as our guest designer for October.  We spotted Lisa in our design team call and knew we would had to have her for a guest designer.  She has a great simple yet elegant style that fit perfectly with this warm kit.  We asked Lisa a few questions to get to know her better:

1.  What is your most creative time? It varies– sometimes it’s in the morning right after breakfast– heading upstairs with the kids, setting them up with some scraps so I can actually get something accomplished! Other times it’s in the evening after the kids go to bed– the house is quiet, and the dog sits at my feet while I work.

2.  What is your top 5 playlist? I almost never scrap to music! I do love “Glee-kast” on Accu-radio, though. It’s a free on-line radio station/app that play only music from “Glee”.

3.  What’s next on your scrappy life list? Getting my scraproom under control. It’s the last place to get tidied, and you can barely walk in there at the moment. I often have scrap nights at my house where I put out product for my friends to use– that helps clear some older stuff out, to make room for the new!

4.  What is your favorite retreat? A long, hot shower. The environmentalist in me is mortified by the hot water wasted, but it feels SO good.

5.  If your life was a movie, what actress would play you? If we’re going by who looks like me, I sometimes get Katie Holmes or Ashley Judd. If we’re going by the actress I admire the most, it would have to be Emma Thompson. She breaks my heart every time I see her on screen1

6.  Who are the most important people in your life? My hubby and my two little girls, Audrey and Lily.

7.  Where do you start when you scrap? I am most successful when I start with the idea for the page– I see a photo that makes me think of a story, then I work from there. I also sometimes start with design inspiration– an image on Pinterent, or an ad in a magazine. The bottom line is that I need the thought first– I can’t just start by staring at a 12X12 piece of cardstock. That’s torture!

8.  What’s your favorite blog? Oooo… that’s tough. Google Reader manages the hundreds of blogs I read on scrapping, sewing, food, design and photography. I honestly couldn’t pick just one!

9.  What food would describe your style? A chocolate croissant– classic, simple, with a little something sweet.

10.  What is “dressed up” for you? I can definitely pull out the heels and a cocktail dress when the event arises. I work as a stage actress, so I’m always playing dress-up!

Here are her gorgeous creations using this month’s kit:

For more details, check out her gallery here.  and be sure to drop by her blog Babies, Paper, and Song.  Thanks Lisa for such beautiful creations for Cocoa Daisy!

Cocoa Daisy welcomes our very special guest designer Gudrun Loennecken.  Gudrun has been a long time subscriber and board member.  Her lively personality  brings so much to the boards and her beautiful designs leave us breathless.  Gudrun created a beautiful gallery using September’s Printer’s Drawer.  Here’s what she had to say about herself:

Busy mom to 4 wonderful kids. married to the most fantastic husband. Live in Oslo, the capital of Norway. Full time Paperlover, freelance designer, scrapbooker, scrapbooking-and-papercraft-teacher, chef, concert violinist, owner and designer at the design-company 3ndyPapir.no!

Here are all of her beautiful creations

Such lovely creations all from one kit!   To learn more about Gudrun & see more of her inspiring work, check out her blog called embrace life.  Thanks Gudrun for Guest Designing with Cocoa Daisy.

Cocoa Daisy welcomes our very special guest designer Donna Jannuzzi.  Donna submission to our design team was so beautiful we just had to have her as a guest designer.   Donna has worked her magic with the August kit called Siren’s Call.   Here’s what she had to say about herself.

The most important roles in my life are those of wife and mother.  My husband and I have been married for six years and we live in beautiful, sunny San Diego County.  I am blessed to stay-at-home with our two boys, Gabriel (age 5) and Nathan (age 2 1/2).  After my first son Gabriel was born I knew I wanted to start recording our family’s memories and it was this desire that lead me to scrapbooking.  I immediately fell in love with this hobby and honestly, I cannot imagine my life without this creative outlet.  I am lucky enough to design for Write.Click.Scrapbook., Scrapbook.com, and I am an Ella Friend.  While I do love scrapbooking, my favorite thing to do is to spend time with my family.  My other interests include learning about my Catholic faith, cooking, photography, and sewing.  I am so happy and honored to be the guest designer for Cocoa Daisy this month!

and here are her beautiful creations!

What beautiful creations.  I love her bold use of color and those photos are just amazing.  To learn more about Donna & see more of her inspiring work, check out her blog called ecclesia domestica.  Thanks Donna for Guest Designing with Cocoa Daisy.

Ronda

Cocoa Daisy welcomes one of our very special message board members, Nicky Childerhouse as our July guest designer.  Nicky brings so much life & fun to our message boards as well as her beautiful creations to our gallery.  We are very pleased to have her as our guest designer this month.   Here’s what Nicky had to say about her self, her family, & cocoa daisy.

I first got into papercrafting by deciding to make all my own wedding stationery 11 years ago, which swiftly led onto cardmaking. But once I discovered scrapbooking in 2006, there was no holding me back! I’ve recently enjoyed designing for UK scrap store Papermaze and for the Sketchabilities challenge blog, but mostly I love designing for my own pleasure, and yes, sanity ;o). I’ve been a (very chatty) member of the Cocoa Daisy community, and also a kit subscriber, for over 3 years, and there’s no better place to share this absorbing hobby – the wealth of creative talent is an inspiration, and the warmth and friendliness of my Daisy friends is second to none.

I live near Norwich in the UK, with my (tolerant) husband Paul, and my two gorgeous boys who are 6 and 9. When I’m not fiddling with paper and glue, I work at the local preschool. Where, come to think of it, I fiddle an awful lot with paper and glue.

I was so honoured and excited to be asked to guest for Cocoa Daisy. I think of it as my second home, and this is the icing on an extremely yummy cake.

and here are her beautiful creations using July’s Urban Loft kit.

What beautiful creations.  Thank you Nicky for bringing so much laughter to our boards & so much inspiration to our galleries.  Make sure you check out her blog Hawthorne Crafts for even more inspiration.

Cocoa Daisy welcomes our very special guest designer Linda Barber.   She is bubbly & fun and very talented.   Linda has worked her magic with June’s Cherry Soda kit.   Here’s what she had to say about herself.

From an early age, I’ve been interested in sticking photos to notebooks and writing little notes next to them. And I’m old, so I’ve been doing it for a while. But in a more modern scrapbooking sense, I’ve been at it for about 6 years. That’s when I figured out that I could translate my graphic design training into scrapbook pages. Eureka!

I mostly scrapbook my family and our daily lives. I have three boys, ages 12, 10, and 5 who dislike having their photos taken. I have to be sneaky. We recently moved back to Los Angeles after living in in the suburbs of Philadelphia for nine years. I really miss large FREE parking lots. Paying for parking stinks. But hey, give me sunny days, beaches, and great Mexican food, and I’m good.

I currently design for Lily Bee, Jillibean Soup, and I’m a member of Creating Keepsakes 2011 Dream Team. I’m so happy to be a guest designer here at Cocoa Daisy! I’m a huge fan of the kits and the design team.

and here are her beautiful creations

What a spectacular gallery!  Her beautiful projects make me want to jump into my kit & create.  Make sure you check out her blog Miles of Paper for even more inspiration from Linda.

Ronda

Hey everyone!  My name is Kinsey (Kins for short) and I’m a stay at home mama to my 9 (going on 16) year old daughter, Brianna.  I’ve been married to a handsome Air Force fella, Sam, for 11 years.  When we’re not packing or unpacking (gotta love the Air Force lifestyle!), we’re busy playing nerdy boardgames (a family favorite!), hanging out and enjoying our time together

I started scrapbooking (like many other scrappin’ mamas) when I was pregnant with Brianna in 2001.  We got stationed in England when ‘Beezy’ was 2 and I took a part time job at the base craft store…that was my ‘aha’ moment.  Shortly after I began working there, I was promoted to a retail purchasing position and attended my first CHA and at that point it was on   I began teaching classes there and designing kits and I loved every minute of it!  We got stationed in Northern California 4 years later and I love scrapbooking now just as much- if not more- than ever.

To see more of Kinsey’s spectacular work, check out her blog Kinseygirl.

Just like the amazing June kit “Cubical“, we can wait for you to see the awesome creations of our June Guest Designer, Danielle Flanders.   So we thought we would tease you a bit with some of her sneaks….

And here are a few sneaks from the Design Team…

I am a scrapper from The Philippines, a wife and a mother to two sweet girls Nicole who is five years old, and Cheska who just turned one. I rarely plan my pages – I let a photo or a patterned paper inspire me and I take it from there. I love the shabby chic and romantic style but I also enjoy working with bold patterns and striking colors. I’m an ink and paint type of person. I just have to get it a little messy to consider my page done. If I don’t have ink and paint on hand, then I just tear little bits of elements and stick it randomly for the sheer fun of it.

I am fortunate to be designing for Prima Marketing, Webster’s Pages, and Lily Bee. I am also part of scrapbook inspiration sites: Pencil Lines, The Color Room, and Creative Therapy. One of the things I consider to be among my accomplishments in the crafting industry is to have been named as one of the 2008 Memory Makers Magazine Masters and I am thankful for the blessings which have come my way as an artist and will continue to be thankful for the happiness and fulfillment that I get from this craft.

I am so happy to be a guest designer at Cocoa Daisy. I enjoyed working with this month’s kit so much! One of my favorite kits ever. Thank you everyone for the warm welcome!

My blog address: http://www.irisbabaouy.typepad.com