When I asked Melissa if she’d be interested in joining us as our Guest Designer in October, I knew she’d do a bang up job with the kit, Aspen Grove. She’s fabulous with bright happy colors and I love how she uses patterned papers so adeptly. What I didn’t know is just how fast her turn around time would be. She is absolutely amazing! Not only does she do gorgeous things with patterned paper and embellishments, but she can do it FAST! I’d love to be a fly on her wall and learn a few of her secrets. She didn’t disappoint this month and she has been delightful to work with, two things that make a guest designer tops in my book. Here’s a little about Melissa in her own words:

Hey there! My name is Melissa Mann and I live on the beautiful Gulf Coast in Pensacola, FL. I am married to a great guy named Troy and we have two dogs and one cat. My day job is being team lead for the reservation desk at a condo in Perdido Key, FL – definitely not a boring job by any stretch of the imagination! I started scrapbooking in 2005 and have come to love this hobby. I am currently on the design teams for American Crafts, Lily Bee Design, Lawn Fawn, & The Green Frog Studio. I have been privileged to be published in Scrapbook Trends, Create, & Cards magazines. Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of the team for the month of October here at Cocoa Daisy!

Well Melissa, we are happy to have you as part of our team this month too! Thanks for all you have done to make Aspen Grove sparkle!

I always ask our Guest Designers to fill out a questionnaire, here’s Melissa’s answers:

1. What is your most creative time? My most creative time is usually on one of my days off while the hubby is working a day shift. I have the house to myself and usually put on a season of “Friends” or “Dexter” and get a good 5-6 hours of scrapping done at a time. I can usually pump out about 5 layouts and a couple of cards during that time.
2. What is on your top 5 playlist right now? Don’t judge  ”Another Brick in the Wall”, “Sweet Dreams”, “Don’t Stop Believin’”, “Love is a Battlefield”, & “Livin’ on a Prayer”.
3. What’s next on your scrappy life list? I would love to learn how to actually use Photoshop and I would love to take a photography class! I really need to understand how to use more manual settings on my camera
4. What is your favorite retreat? Either playing the piano or reading – and if it’s possible – head out to the beach and just listen to the pounding waves on the sand.

5. If your life was a movie, what actress would play you? Ha! I have no idea! I’m a very shy person but have learned how to be a “fake” extrovert with my current job. I am NOT a risk taker in the least and I usually lay awake at night for at least an hour going through different things in my head. It’s just hard for me to turn the brain off and sleep

6. Who are the important people in your life? My family, hands down! My husband, parents, siblings, grandparents, and my puppies

7.  What are you known for on your pages? I guess how colorful they tend to be! I love bright colors and love to incorporate that into my projects.

8. What’s your favorite inspiration site? Pinterest, magazines, scrapbook galleries

9. What food would describe your style? Mexican!

10. What is “dressed up” for you?  I abhor dressing up. I work in an environment that requires business casual. If I had to define “dressed up”, my answer would be a nice pair of jeans, a top, and a pair of strappy sandals!

Check out Melissa’s blog I [heart] Penguins and her guest designer gallery here at Cocoa Daisy.