We’re happy to once again be spotlighting another design team member and their talent in an effort for you to get to know them a bit better. BasicGrey fans, let me introduce you to digital design team member Jessy Christopher.

“Hello! My name is Jessy Christopher. I am a preschool teacher & an avid scrapbooker in Malaysia. Married to my very supportive sweetheart, Eric for 7 years now & we have 2 beautiful feline fur-babies. I started off with digital & hybrid scrapbooking late 2007 and finally ventured into paper scrapbooking in the early of 2008. What I love the most about scrapbooking is the freedom to express myself.  I am a BIG fan of patterned paper : love fussy cutting. I am versatile in my creations. In my layout, you’ll mostly see balance, 3D, clustering, fussy cutting, & colorful choices.  I am truly honored to be a part of Basic Grey’s team and look forward to challenging myself as well as inspiring you. My creations have been featured in various manufacturers’ websites, e-magazines, e-book & also scrapbook magazines ie; Creating Keepsakes, Paper Crafts, Cards & Scrapbook Trends.”

Now on to a little Q&A :

How do you typically start a new project?

Whenever I am ready to start a new project, firstly I will have to clear my messy table from the previous project. Then I will pick photo(s), choose the papers + embellishments and begin to put them together. Photos play huge role in my projects. I get inspired with the theme, mood & colors that are in the photos.

What do you listen to/watch while scrapbooking?

When I scrapbook, I love listening to K-Love station. It’s a Christian radio station that is based in the USA.

Where do you scrapbook?

I am fortunate to have a scrapbook room a.k.a my creative lab. This is where I spend most of my time whenever I just want to be creative & arty.

What is your favorite theme to scrapbook?

I love to scrap about everyday theme, about my family and friends that are important to us.

What other hobbies do you have besides scrapbooking?

Besides scrapbooking, I really enjoy singing and taking photographs. I am pretty addicted to Instagram.

What are your three favorite BasicGrey products?

1. Plumeria Chip Sticker Shapes
2. Paper Cottage Accordian Stickers
3. Clippings Flags and Banners

And for a bit more inspiration, here’s a new layout from Jessy :

Be Happy | Jessy Christopher

You’re My Cup of Tea | Jessy Christopher

Jessy says, ”When I received Paper Cottage, I couldn’t stop staring at it. The colors in this collection are just so yummy, as if you are in the candy store. The embellishments are just so perfect for any theme. With such cheery colors, I created a layout to remind myself to be always kind and happy. The card was purely fussy cutting. I had so much fun combining all the elements together & it took me a short time to complete both projects with such beautiful collection!”

We hope you’ve enjoyed getting to know Jessy a bit better! We’d love it if you took the time to say hello. Leave a comment for Jessy below and we’ll select one lucky commenter at random to receive her three favorite BasicGrey products! Comment must be posted by 11:59p MST.

If an international winner is selected, he/she will receive a coupon code in the amount of product won to be used at basicgrey.com.

We’re happy to once again be spotlighting another design team member and their talent in an effort for you to get to know them a bit better. BasicGrey fans, let me introduce you to digital design team member Ann Costen.

“My name is Ann Costen and I am from Vietnam. At the age of 6, my family moved to Canada and settled in Montreal which remained my hometown until I went away to university. These days I live in Kitchener, ON with my husband, our two kids (Kael and Kira) and a new puppy named Brady. My life is extremely busy between a full time job as an IT project manager and my more important jobs as mother and wife. We are a decidedly unconventional homeschooling family and we are constantly on the go between kids sports, playdates, and field trips! I love to travel and when I am not scrapbooking I can usually be found planning epic family trips. We recently came back from a 3-week Disney vacation and I in the planning stages for our once in a lifetime trip to Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Our busy lives and travels provide me with endless scrapbooking inspiration. I started scrapping 9 years ago and have loved every minute of it! I am mostly a digital scrapper now but I still love paper supplies and sometimes buy patterned paper just because it is so pretty.”

We’re thrilled to have you as part of the BasicGrey team, Ann!  Now on to a little Q&A :

Why did you start scrapbooking and how did you get started?

Though I had become interested in scrapbooking after I got married, I didn’t actually start scrapbooking until after my son was born in 2003. My husband’s aunt was a Creative Memories consultant so I went to a party at her house and ended up buying a small starter kit. My first scrapbook documented my son’s first year and was done “CM style”, complete with random stickers (frogs on a pregnancy page, what was I thinking?) and shaped pictures. Towards the end of the scrapbook, I started buying other scrapbooking products from Michaels and found different ways of scrapbooking on the internet. The rest, as they say, is history!

What is your favorite theme to scrapbook?

I love to scrapbook all the different places we have visited as a family. Since we homeschool, we do a lot of field trips which provide me with great memories to document!

Where do you scrapbook?

I usually scrapbook in my bedroom while watching TV in bed. One of my favorite things about digital scrapbooking is that it can be done anywhere as long as there is a power outlet for my laptop!

What is your favorite thing about scrapbooking?

Though I do love the process of creating layouts, my favorite thing about scrapbooking is the finished product. There is no better feeling than looking at my scrapbooks and knowing that the stories were captured for my kids and me to reminisce about in the years to come.

How do you typically start a new project?

Almost all my projects start by choosing the pictures I want to scrap. The pictures then dictate the story I want to tell and from there I choose the products that I want to use.

What are your three favorite BasicGrey products?

1. Sultry Starter Kit
2. Konichiwa Collection Pack
3. Out of Print Collection Pack

And for a bit more inspiration, here’s a new layout from Ann :

Love Summer | Ann Costen

Ann explains, ”These days, my scrapping time is few and far between so I have learned to make every layout count. This one basically summarizes our summer so far: lots of swimming and hanging out in the backyard. I chose the Lollipop Shop line for this layout because the colours are just perfect for summer. I used my favourite digital technique once again: masking to turn a black and white digital brush into a coloured rub-on. It’s a great technique when I want to use papers that have busier patterns”

We hope you’ve enjoyed getting to know Ann a bit better! We’d love it if you took the time to say hello. Leave a comment for Ann below and we’ll select one lucky commenter at random to receive her three favorite BasicGrey products! Comment must be posted by 11:59p MST.

As it’s been awhile, we’re happy to once again be spotlighting another design team member and their talent in an effort for you to get to know them a bit better. BasicGrey fans, let me introduce you to Nancy Burke.

“My name is Nancy Burke and I live in the beautiful desert foothills of the Owyhee Mountains in Idaho with my amazingly patient husband of 18 years and our two busy and beautiful teenage daughters.  I am also animal wrangler to three ornery cats, three (yes three) rambunctious black labs, and a crazy mini Australian shepherd.  My family and I love to travel all over the country to fun and interesting places to see and do new things. We do so as often as possible because we believe that when you work hard, you should play hard!  I have been scrapbooking for 14 years and have worked professionally in the scrapbooking and crafting Industry for over 11 years.  I am proud to be a Designer Member of CHA and have been on numerous design teams for manufacturers, retailers and magazine publications as well as been a contributing designer to several books.  I just recently had my own book published- “CardMaker’s Hand Lettering Workbook”. I eat, drink and breathe scrapbooking and I bleed mono adhesive.  Besides scrapbooking and any other crafty venture, I love shopping, gardening, photography, dancing, cooking, hiking, woodworking and Skyping with my crafty friends!”

We’re thrilled to have you as part of the BasicGrey team, Nancy!  Now on to a little Q&A :

Where do you scrapbook?

When we built our house, I designed a scrapbook room/office with lots of built-ins and file drawers made for 12×12 paper, as well as a counter-height work desk, so that is where I do all of my scrapbooking.

What do you listen to/watch while scrapbooking?

I listen to a wide variety of music really loud! As long as it is upbeat and makes me want to sing and dance, I will listen to it.

What is your favorite theme to scrapbook?

My favorite theme to scrapbook has got to be our many trips to Walt Disney World and other family trips. Those are our favorite times spent as a family and I want to document every minute of it.

What is your favorite thing about scrapbooking?

Patterned paper, and lots of it! I love the endless possibilities of what can be created with just a few sheets of paper.

Do you have a scrapbooking goal?

To simply never stop scrapbooking!

What are your three favorite BasicGrey products?

1. Bloomers
2. Pins and Tags
3. Alphabet Stickers

Nancy says, “For this page, I knew I just had to use this favorite photo of my daughters from a recent vacation. I used a variety of lettering stickers to create the simple sentiment Oh, the places you’ll go! This phrase holds a double meaning to it. Not only does it express how much I hope they continue their love of travel as they get older, but it also expresses that I know they will continue to be successful in all they do. I wanted to have the embellishments trailing up the page to help convey the upward movement I hope they have throughout their lives as they set goals and reach them. This page is now framed and hanging on the wall outside their bedrooms so they see it daily. It serves as a positive reminder for them to not lose sight of their dreams of one day traveling the world and being successful women. For a few of my embellishments, I disassembled some left over bloomers from older Basic Grey collections and added embellishments from the new “What’s Up” line to coordinate with the papers.”

We hope you’ve enjoyed getting to know Nancy a bit better! We’d love it if you took the time to welcome her to the BG team. Leave a comment for Nancy below and we’ll select one lucky commenter at random to receive her three favorite BasicGrey products! Comment must be posted by 11:59p MST.