1. When did you join the Ellison team?
I actually worked for the distributor of Ellison products prior to the launch of Sizzix , so I have been working with die-cutting for over 20 years.
2. What does your role entail?
Wow! Where do I start… My role as a designer is to create inspirational makes using all our dies and folders. I create makes for magazine projects, blogs and vlogs, live and pre-recorded videos, trade shows and television. I also attend trade and retail shows demonstrating Sizzix products, as well as teaching the occasional workshop! Appearing on various shopping channels as a guest is also a lot of fun, where I demonstrate our dies and machines. I also still design dies and die sets on occasions.
3. Have you always been creative?
My earliest memory is sitting in my Grandparent’s house with a sketch pad in front of me. I almost took an academic route after leaving school and I’m so glad that I chose to play to my strengths. After leaving college I worked as a freelance illustrator/cartoonist specialising in caricature.
4. What is your favourite making trend at the moment?
I love the fact that embossing is seeing a revival thanks to 3D embossing technology. I’ve always loved embossing folders and I still get a buzz from seeing the results after they pass through the Big Shot. I love the way that scrapbooking techniques have bled into general papercrafts down the years, journaling is a good example of this. Die-cutting is like a blank canvas where the possibilities are almost endless, this is what keeps me inspired and curious even after 20 plus years.
5. What are your 3 ‘must have’ tools for making?
Great question! Outside of the obvious Big Shot and dies, for me personally I would have to say, a good pair of scissors, a craft mat for the messy makes and my beloved brayer!
6. What is your favourite Sizzix die from Chapter 4 and why?
The Bigz XL Travellers Notebook Cover and the Travellers Notebook Pages & Pockets dies (you can’t have one without the other as the song goes!) are so much fun because of the range of funky materials you can use for the notebook covers and they look GREAT!
7. If you could spend one day working in another part of the business, which department would you choose and why?
Product Development would be a cool place to work, specifically with the engineers. In school I was a bit of a science geek, so I would like to see how products are designed and developed from start to finish. The Big Shot is one of those rare products which has remained unchanged since it’s launch, and I would love to know how they got it so right!
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