Feature Friday - Tanya

For my second Feature Friday, I'd like to introduce Tanya, owner of CVC Designs. She creates beautiful cards and party invitations.




Tell us a little about yourself.
My name is Tanya. I was born and raised in Vancouver, BC. I have a 2 year old son and I'm a stay at home mom.

How did you get started?
I used to dread going to the greeting card stores to pick out that perfect card for someone's birthday, anniversary etc. I always left with a card I wasn't crazy about but I needed. I started making my own cards to give to friends and family. It wasn't until my Dad gave me the same birthday card twice, that I thought there was a need for handmade cards. With my husband's support, I started CVC Designs. I named the business after my son and husband.

Tanya's workspace:

What is the most exciting thing that has happened since you've started?
The most exciting thing that's happened to me since I've started was receiving birthday party invitation orders. I've wanted to get into party invitations and with help of a close friend of mine, it's happened! My next goal is to design wedding invitations.

Which card is your favourite?

What advice would you give someone new to Etsy?
I have had a few sales on Etsy but I'm relatively new. I think the best advice I could give someone is to not to get discouraged if you are not selling as much as you expected. Keep your shop current with a few product listings everyday. This will keep your shop within the first several pages. Sign up for the Etsy Success Newsletters. They provide a wealth of information.

Contact info: (blog, twitter, website, Facebook, e-mail, Etsy?)
Website
http://www.cvcdesigns.ca/

Etsy
http://www.cvcdesigns.etsy.com/

Blog
http://www.cvcdesigns.blogspot.com/

Twitter
www.twitter.com/cvcdesigns

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Feature Friday - Jolie Papeterie

Today is the first day of my Feature Friday segment! I'm so excited to get started. I'm pleased to introduce Nicola, owner of Jolie Papeterie and Ambient Girl Designs. Nicola makes beautiful custom invitations.


Introduction - Tell us about yourself.
I was born and raised in Johannesburg South Africa. My family and I moved to Canada in 1997 after it became too dangerous to live there. Canada has been great so far although I'm still finding it hard to adjust to the frigid winters!

I live with my wonderful husband and my gorgeous son in a beautiful neighbourhood. I currently own two etsy stores, one doing cards, invitations and gift tags and the other specifically for bridal. I also own and run Indie Junction, a networking site for indie artisans along with my good friend Deb Hall of zurdesigns (http://www.etsy.com/shop/zurdesigns). She is a wonderful woman and has been a huge factor in motivating me to work hard.

How did you get started?
I have loved arts and crafts my entire life and excelled in it in school. In college, I ended up taking a one year course called Art Fundamentals which is a portfolio building course and then went on to get my diploma in Crafts & Design with a major in glassblowing and a minor in ceramics.

After graduating in 2005 I started creating lampworked jewelry from home and selling it. I then decided that I would like to try something different and started working with paper. I made cards, gift tags and invitations and fell in love! I designed my own wedding invitations in 2007 and did a lot of DIY making my own card box, place cards, lanterns etc. I ended up doing the same thing for my sister's wedding. I decided to start Jolie Papeterie Boutique after a bridal store owner told me I should do it professionally. So far it has worked out wonderfully!

Besides crafting, what else do you do? What are your other interests?
I used to be a dancer. I danced for 21 years doing ballet, jazz, tap, latin american, ballroom and finally Irish dance. I ended up having to retire after fracturing my left food seven times and developing arthritis. I continued to teach for a couple of years after retiring until about 2 years ago.

In your opinion, what sets you apart from the rest?
I think what sets me apart the most from the rest is that all of my designs are completely unique. I do NOT use stock images like so many other invitation designers out there. My designs are created from scratch so you will not find them anywhere else.

Describe your creative process. What inspires you?

I have so many things that inspire me. I'm inspired by people I meet, places I've been and things I've seen.

My biggest inspiration comes from my husband and son, they motivate me to work my hardest everyday. My friend Deb is also a huge inspiration and has helped me in so many ways I cannot thank her enough. I usually find my creativity is more alive during the night. I lay in bed for hours thinking about what I'm going to design next or the next project I'm going to be working on. That's not always a good thing as I have to wake up to a toddler each morning!

What is your favorite item in your Etsy shop?
Ooh this is a tough one. I think my favourite item in my etsy shop right now would be my 'carousel invitations'. They are fun and bright and look great with any colour combination! I have to say that my 'corset' invitations are pretty close behind!



What is the most exciting thing that has happened since you've started?
The amount of interest I have been able to generate! I have only been official for a couple of months and I have already had orders and loads of quote requests. I have met with some wonderful clients and have also been able to network with some wonderful professionals!

What are 5 things that you could never do without?
My family, my friends, my computer, my cellphone and coffee!

If you had one wish, what would it be?
To be a millionaire! (Just kidding!) My one wish would to be successful so that my husband could quit his second job and stay home more. If all goes well this may actually come true, fingers crossed!

What advice would you give someone new to Etsy?
Keep chugging along! You NEED to promote your work if you are wanting to sell. I think the common misconception of new sellers is, 'if I upload it, it will automatically sell' NOT TRUE! Random sales do happen but you need to work at it. Sometimes it takes a while for your work to get views don't be discouraged. Keep doing what you love and it will all pay off:)

Contact info: (blog, twitter, website, Facebook, e-mail, Etsy?)
Etsy
http://www.etsy.com/shop/joliepapeterie
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ambientgirldesigns

Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/JoliePapeterieBoutique
http://www.facebook.com/AmbientGirlDesigns

Website
http://www.joliepapeterie.com/

Email
info@joliepapeterie.com

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Choo Choo!

Have you seen the birthday train? This is by far my favourite card I’ve ever made! It’s great for all ages. I used a pink crystal as the cherry on the cupcake, for a little extra detail.



Did you notice the clouds? They were made using liquid appliqué. Liquid appliqué comes in a squeeze pen (similar to glitter pens). What I did was, I made the shape of clouds using the liquid appliqué pen and I waited for it to dry. The package advises 24 hours, but depending on how thick it’s been applied, you can wait as little as a couple hours. You do want it to be completely dry though. After it’s dry, use a heat tool just as you would if you were embossing. The liquid appliqué puff up. Make sure you don’t heat it up too much as the newly formed puff might burn.

Leave a comment below and let me know what you think about my new card!

TGIF!!

It’s been a busy week and I’m so glad it’s Friday! I’ve been working on Mother’s Day cards lately. This card was inspired by the cherry blossoms that line the streets near my house.


The stamp set that I used is called “Eastern Blooms” from Stampin’ Up!. I’m so glad that I invested in the stampin write markers. They were perfect for the cherry blossom branch stamp.

I stamped the flowers in Melon Mambo, Apricot Appeal and Perfect Plum, and then I cut them out individually. I adhered the flowers on the stamped branch with foam dimensionals for a raised look. I also used my fingers to curl the petals of the larger flowers backwards.


I’ve been trying to make the inside of my cards more decorative so I put a little purple flower in the bottom corner. The “Happy Mother’s Day” stamp is from the “Messages for Mom” set that was in the most recent occasions catalog.


I think that this is a great card that captures the feeling of nice weather in the Spring.

This card is also available for purchase in my Etsy shop. You’ll find the link in the sidebar on the right or the in the navigation bar at the top of the screen.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you all have a great day!
-Ashley

Jumbo Paperclip Bookmark

I know that it's been a while since my last post, but better late than never!

It was my birthday in March and as a gift, I received a portable photo studio. I LOVE it! It really helps me improve the photos of my cards. This is my favorite photo that I've taken with it so far.



This is my variation of the jumbo paperclip bookmark. The paperclip itself, is 4" long, and the metal is thick so it cannot be bent out of shape easily.




I used the "beautiful wings" embosslit from Stampin' Up! to make the butterflies. I think the rhiestone crystal gives it the perfect touch of something extra.

Please comment below if you would like a video tutorial! :)

CANADA WINS GOLD!

If any of you follow me on Twitter, you will know that I went downtown yesterday to watch the gold medal hockey game. We lined up at a restaurant on Robson Street at 9 am. The restaurant wasn't going to open until 10:30 am. I thought that we would be the first ones there, but the line was already going down the stairs. By 10 am the line was already down the block and around the corner! By the time the restaurant opened and we got to the door, the only tables available for our group was on the patio! It was packed!

The game was a nail biter and it was awesome! Way to go Crosby!

After the game, the streets of downtown Vancouver were absolutely insane!! Here are some pictures to prove it! There were even people who climbed up into the trees!

The Olympics are here!

Here are some pictures that I took on Thursday afternoon on Granville Street and Robson Street:


A view of the British Columbia Canada Pavillion




The back side of the Art Gallery. They put a large projection screen. I stood there for a few minutes but I couldn't figure out what was playing on the screen.


If you really look, you will see two people on the Zip Trek going between one building to another. They were screaming the whole time.

I must say that I am impressed with the impact that the Olympics have had on the city. I thought that traffic would be insane and living in Vancouver during the 2010 Olympics would barely be manageable; however, yesterday, I was able to go to and from the North Shore 3 times and each trip took me no longer than it would on a typical day. I didn't go through downtown so I can't account for how the traffic was there, but the back route that I took was problem-free.

There were 2 police officers on every second corner along Hastings Street, as well as parked around side random highway exits and parking lots. It definitely feels safe here.

I didn't go out last night durning the opening ceremonies. It was too wet and cold, so I watched it on TV. It was amazing! The effects, the costumes, the atmosphere were all top notch. One of the arms of the Olympic cauldron didn't rise due to a hydrolic problem but other than that, everything turned out great.

After the ceremony, Wayne Gretzky carried the torch from BC Place, down Georgia Street to Stanley Park, while standing on the back of a pickup truck. Many people ran out onto the street to run along side "the Great One". Police officers had to pull up along side the pickup truck as people were getting too close and started to stand in front of the vehicles. The energy and excitment were unbelievable.

Last but not least, I would like to express my deepest sympathy to the Georgian athletes and the family and friends of Nodar Kumaritashvili, who passed away after a training accident on the luge track yesterday morning. RIP Nodar.

Gearing up to the Olympics

Wow, it's been a long time since I last posted. Things with the apartment are just getting organized. We've had our floors replaced but there are still things that need to be dealt with. It's been about a month and a half already!

On a more positive note, my rabbits, Royce and Abby are happy and back living together. It was a lot of work but I'm glad that things worked out in the end.

On my lunch break last Thursday, I went for a walk down Georgia street to get to the mall. I've never seen so many people on Georgia street. There is a definite buzz around town with the Olypmics quickly approaching at the end of next week. I decided to take a detour down Robson street on my way back to the office. I stopped by the Canada Pavillon that was set up at Robson Square. I heard a band playing and decided the head down the stairs to see what was going on. There was a skating rink and a live band. They even had these yellow cushions available to sit on. I've posted some pictures.

It seems like all of the stores have also just put out loads of new Olympic merchandise. I went into Aritzia this afternoon and there were 3 sections of Olympic clothing. London Drugs also had massive amounts of Olympic t-shirts, flags, keychains, pins...you name it, they had it. I've never experienced anything like this. Park Royal shopping mall was decorated with maple leaves and there were many cars in the parking lot with Canadian flags clipped onto the windows.

I can't wait to see what next week brings! I'll be sure to keep you all posted!