FEATURED ETSY SHOP - SHOP REMINISCENCE

Shabby Chic blank card - blue and pink - choose your own sentiment

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With all the lovely original designed handmade cards available, why would anyone want to send or give a store bought card! Cards like these will make someone feel "extra special"!

I'm happy to have Jocelyn and her Etsy shop, SHOP REMINISCENCE, here on DZFANTASY so that you can learn more about her lovely handmade greeting cards. Read below to hear what Jocelyn has to say in her own words, and then be sure to stop by and pay SHOP REMINISCENCE a visit.

What led you to start creating your art/craft?

My aunts actually got me started on scrapbooking when I was about 13 or 14. At the time, it was not nearly as evolved as it is now. My first albums are full of colorful paper and sparkly stickers! I sort of got out of it going through college and started it back up again a couple years ago, and boy did I get a strong feeling of culture shock. No more were the sparkly stickers, the construction-like paper, and outdated patterns. Instead were inking techniques, layering techniques, 3-D embellishments, rhinestones, flowers, oh my! Then I took a greeting card class at my local scrapbooking store and was hooked. I started making them for friends and family and they were such a hit that I decided to take the leap to try to sell them.

How did you decide what medium you wanted to work with?

Scrapbooking wouldn’t be scrapbooking if I didn’t use the one thing that is the foundation of it all, paper. Oh how I love my paper! But there are so many different mediums that can be used in scrapbooking that I could never choose just one of them. I also love working with all the different varieties of embellishments that are available. A scrapbook store is my candy shop!

What aspect of creating your art/craft do you find the most enjoyable?

Once I figure out my layout, be it a scrapbook page or greeting card, I love putting the whole thing together and watching it evolve right in front of me. Sometimes it turns out better than I had imagined…and sometimes not. So I have fun tweaking things to see what different effects I can get.

Custom Cards - Set of 4 - Choose Your Favorite's from Shop Inventory

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If you had to choose a fruit OR a vegetable, to describe your art/craft, what would you choose, and why?

I really have to reach into my imagination for this one! Can I choose a fruit salad?! When I make a fruit salad I like to put in all sorts of different ingredients to create an arrangement of taste and contrast in color. Each piece of fruit adds its own taste to the mix and without it, it just wouldn’t be the same. In my scrapbooking, I like to use all sorts of different ingredients like paper, brads, rhinestones, glitter, ink, flowers (and the list goes on) to create one masterpiece (or so I like to think of it as such – a girl can dream). And I’m always putting different ingredients together to get different “tastes”.

If you had to choose one other medium in which to display your “creativity”, what would that be, and why?I would love to be able to paint.

I have always admired and envied those who have mastered that technique. I think if I took the time to take some classes I could definitely incorporate it into my card making.

What message, if any, do you want to convey with your art/craft?

When someone receives one of my handmade cards, I want it to make them feel special! Too often do we receive birthday cards and thank you cards that we just throw away and never think twice about. I hope my cards are something people will receive and want to put in their own scrapbook or keepsake chest so they can look back on it to cherish and remember the person who gave it to them.

What advice do you have for other artists/crafters?

Do what you love and love what you do. Otherwise, what’s the point? Keep evolving your craft to make it fun and stimulating. And never underestimate the power of a handmade gift.

Thanks, Jocelyn, for a great interview, and for sharing your creativity with everyone.

Be sure to pay a visit to Jocelyn's links below to see what she has to offer.

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FEATURED ETSY SHOP - ACTUALI DESIGN

Sealed With a Kiss Romantic Greeting Card

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WELCOME, Ali and her Etsy shop, ACTUALI DESIGN. When you visit ACTUALI DESIGN, you will find Ali's original designed greeting cards which will let you tell someone that they are "special".

Let's learn a little more about Ali by reading her interview below.

What led you to start creating your art/craft?

A few years back, my mom bought me a book from her crafter's bookclub on cardmaking, as I'd been creating handdrawn cards for friends and family for years. The book really opened my mind to multimedia greeting cards. I'd never thought to take a crafty approach over a fine art one. I went out to Michael's shortly thereafter, and stocked up! I decided I was going to sell cards at the annual craft sale at my cottage, and I did. I've been doing it every year, since.

How did you decide what medium you wanted to work with?

Like I said, that book really opened my eyes to the possibilities. At first, I stuck largely to paper materials and brads. You know, the basic scrapbooking materials. Over the years, I've added to my collection with rubber stamps, die cuts, and other traditional things, but I've also begun using things like buttons, fabrics, and other fun finds. I love experimenting! As far as my small print collection, I really got into digital arts as a result of wanting to be a graphic designer. It led me to experimenting with software like Adobe Illustrator, and I found that I really enjoyed it!

White Tulips Print

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What aspect of creating your art/craft do you find the most enjoyable?

My favourite part is just sitting down in my studio, and sifting through all my supplies, considering all the possibilities. I love trying different combinations, and often do so for almost an hour before I actually settle on one, and make a card!

If you had to choose a fruit OR a vegetable, to describe your art/craft, what would you choose, and why?

Hah, I like this question! I'd have to say an orange. It helps that I love oranges, but they're also a good symbol of freshness, which I equate with modernism. If you know your colour theory, you know that the colour orange signifies happiness and energy, as well as being a great out-of-the-ordinary attention catcher. That has a lot to do with why I chose to use a yellow-orange in Actuali Design's logo!

If you had to choose one other medium in which to display your “creativity”, what would that be, and why?

I would love to try letterpress. It's an obvious extension of my love for digital art. Typography fascinates me, and letterpress would be a great way to play around with that.

What message, if any, do you want to convey with your art/craft?

With my cards in particular, I want to make it feel more personal. I don't like the idea of stocking up with a ton of cheap cards from the dollar store, and working your way through the pile of boringly ambiguous cards as you need them. Cards are supposed to let someone know you're thinking of them, and picking a handmade card just for them contributes to that.

What advice do you have for other artists/crafters?

If you decide to take your hobby from just that to a business, don't get too caught up in the business side of things. Remember that you're doing this because it's what you love. If it's not, you're doing the wrong thing.

Great interview, Ali! I love your thoughts and ideas. Thanks for taking the time to share your creativity with everyone.

To learn more about Ali and see more of her designs, be sure to visit her links below.

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FEATURED ETSY SHOP - FABRIC GREETINGS by ALYCE TEMPLETON

LEARN LIVE HOPE Fabric Postcard

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I'm happy to welcome Alyce and her Etsy shop, FABRIC GREETINGS, as a featured shop here on DZFANTASY. Alyce's shop name says it all.....when you pay a visit to FABRIC GREETINGS, you will find one-of-a-kind, handmade greeting cards, post cards, all created with Alyce's personal touch. I love the quote on the card above!

Let's read Alyce's interview below to get a bit more of an insight into Alyce and her creative fabric greetings.

What led you to start creaating your art/craft?

I think I decided early on that I was going to work with fabric. In the late 40's and 50's, my Mother made dance recital costumes. I was allowed to play with the scraps. That meant my Betsy Wetsy doll had wonderful bright, glittery taffeta diapers and nightgowns. Isn't that a sight to think about! I never lost my fascination with fabric. Through the years, I continued to sew. I sewed for myself, I sewed for others – one semester of college was paid for by making the outfits for a sweet adelines chorus. I made slipcovers, quilted items and then found whimsical cloth dolls.

How did you decide what medium you wanted to work with?

For years I made and taught doll making in this area. I even managed to win some awards for my dolls. Then that thing called arthritis took over. My hands no longer would hold a needle to do the hand work on a doll. So it was off to find another medium using fabric and the sewing machine. I saw some fabric postcards at Quilt Market in Houston several years ago and became interested in them. Over the years, I have altered and changed many of the original things I learned about the cards. When I realized how much people enjoyed getting them, I began making them in earnest. That is how FABRIC GREETINGS came about.

What aspect of creating your art/craft do you find the most enjoyable?

I think the thing I enjoy most about the cards is being able to go “outside the box”. I can incorporate many different media into a card or it can all be fabric. There is a world of wonderful patterns and colors out there just waiting to be found and used. I am doing my best to do just that!

Quilted Fabric Panel Notecard

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If you had to choose a fruit OR a vegetable to describe your art/craft, what would you choose, and why?

I think if I had to choose a fruit or veggie to describe my craft, it would be a grape. A cluster of grapes is a cluster of grapes. They all pretty much look alike until you really look at them. No two grapes are the same size, shape or color. Yet, they are all grapes. And the day after looking at them, they have changed again. That's what is the thing about my cards. A card is a card is a card. Until you really look at each one, you are not aware of the different techniques and fabrics that make up that card. And the card I make tomorrow will be nothing like the card I did today.

If you had to choose one other medium in which to display your creativity, what would that be and why?

If all the fabric suddenly vanished from this earth and I had to select another medium, I think it would probably be paper. I think that paper would probably let me be as creative. I would most likely need to learn new methods of working with it. There are so many card designers on Etsy who do wonderful things with paper. I am sure they feel the same way about it as I feel about fabric. But let's hope I never have to make that change. I probably have enough fabric in my studio to hold me for years.

What message, if any, do you want to convey with your art/craft?

What I want people to know is that there is a way of making someone feel very special without even saying a thing. I think anything hand crafted and given says just that. In an effort to give back for my blessings, I contribute all the proceeds from the sales of the breast cancer awareness cards to my Relay for Life team. It is not a huge amount, but it makes me feel as if my talent is doing something for someone else.

What advice do you have for other artists/crafters?

I am fairly new to Etsy. I have had an off line business for years involving my sewing. I learned long ago to find what I like doing and do it. Don't get discouraged. Look at it as the cup being half full not half empty. My sales have been slow compared to others, but I like what I do and when I least expect it, a sale pops up. Now, I am fortunate in that this is not how I make my living. Age has some benefits.

Alyce, thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts and creativity with everyone! It was a great interview, and it is always fun and interesting to learn what motivates another person to create what they do.

Be sure to pay a visit to FABRIC GREETINGS by clicking on the links below.