I would like for everyone to get to know our fabulous design team a little more, so I thought I would do a little Q and A with each of them.  First up is the fabulous Michelle Whitlow:

How did you get into scrapbooking?
My step-mom  asked me to go  to a beginners scrapbook class when my first child was just 3 weeks old. 7 1/2 yrs later I’m the one that’s addicted to this great hobby!  Back then it was mostly paper, stickers & die-cuts. I’m amazed at how this industry has changed over the years!

What is your favorite thing to scrap?
My kids and their crazy antics!

What is your favorite color combination to scrap with?
Summer colors are so much fun to play with…yellow, turquoise, orange & red. Those colors make me happy. But I also really like Christmas colors, fall colors…ok, I may just like everything!

When you are in a rut, what do you do to get out of it?
I start thumbing through magazines, go back through photos I haven’t looked at in a while. And sometimes you just need to set things down for a day or 2 and come back to it later with a fresh perspective.

Which of the kits from KGK is your favorite?
After looking at the past kids and now having the chance to play with 2 of the kits, I would have to say the September kit is my fave so far. I love every bit of it!! My 2nd fave would have to be the April kit.

Where do you look for inspiration?
Everywhere! From my magazines (scrappy and non-scrappy) to everything around me. Just take a look through a home decorating magazine (love Southern Living!) or walk through the home decorating section of a store.  I always have a notebook in my purse (and usually my camera) to jot down ideas, great color combos, etc. You never know where inspiration is going to strike!

What is your best scrapbooking tip?
Don’t stress about trying to make things “perfect”. It doesn’t matter if your lines are little crooked, or you accidentally put something in the wrong spot. Because 50 years from now that won’t matter. What will matter are the photos and the story you told.

How do you make the most of your kits?
Use every bit of it! I tend to use pieces of paper on a layout instead of the entire sheet which makes the kit last much longer. And I always put the scraps in a pile so that I can use those extra bits for cards.

Tell us 3 things that might surprise us.
1) I wanted to be a marine biologist when I was younger (still do!).  2) I don’t like fruit (except for watermelon). 3) I drink Coke in the morning instead of coffee.

Thanks Michelle, it was fun getting to know you a little better:)

Yay!  I love reveal days:)  This kit was tons of fun to put together and there are lots of things that were JUST released at CHA Summer that are in this kit…I think what I like most about this kit are all the double-sided papers.  They make this kit very versatile and not at all just back-to-school themed.  Some of the design team members didn’t even make any back-to-school themed pages at all!  Without further ado, here is the September Kit:

To purchase this kit, or to sign up for a subscription, please go HERE

The design team did a fabulous job as always, and here are some of the projects that stood out to me in the creative use of the kit contents:

I love how Sarah cut out the pencils and wrapped the twine around them-soooo cute and clever!  Love the pun too:)

I love Kari Ann’s simple clean design with the punches of color on the kraft background!  Love that twine bow-just like a pretty package!!

I just love how Rita used this Jillibean Soup paper…I would’ve never thought of it!  Love this design!!!

I love Paula’s design here, with her signature photo collage…I think that Report Card paper is my favorite thing in the kit:)

I love this layout by Christyn-I think how she made the Case # with the October Afternoon paper is SO clever-great thinking!!

Jenn used the September Sketch for this layout (scroll down to see it), and I LOVE how she interpreted it!  I love that she chopped up the Cosmo Cricket Tube Socks paper and love the addition of the ABC twill ribbon here.

I simply adore this card Michelle made.  I love how she cut the letter from the Jillibean Soup paper, and am loving the twine again:)  This is adorable!

I LOVE this project Rita did to hang her kid’s school projects.  Great use of the chipboard star frames that come in the kit…this was sucha clever, creative, and CUTE idea Rita!!

Be sure to check out the gallery to see all of the awesome creations from the design team!

Speaking of galleries…be sure to check out our Flickr group and upload your KGK projects there, we would love to see them!

That is all for now…if you haven’t become a fan of Kraft Girl Kits on Facebook (do that HERE), please do so…there MAY be a giveaway in a few days (hint hint!!!)…

Hey all- it’s Kari Ann. How do you keep track of your layout and project ideas? Are they floating around in your head or do you write them down? Do you have Post-It notes scattered on your walls and chicken scratched scrap paper to sift through? How do you organize your ideas or is organize not a word in your scrapcabulary?

You might already have a system that works for you. Today I’m going to share my system. Now don’t laugh. It seems really over complicated but it works for me. Trust me- the rest of my life is not this organized.

I have an Excel spreadsheet that I keep updated. I use it daily and it really helps me remember what I want layouts I want to create. Plus- it really comes in handy when preparing for a crop.

These are the following tabs.

Tab 1- PLANNING
Within that tab I have two groups. The TODAY group and the SOMEDAY group. The TODAY tab is for those layouts that I want to create sooner than later. If the TODAY group gets too big I rearrange and move. I have 3 Columns.

• Column 1- WHAT- Lists the photos/event I want to scrap. EX: Bennet’s First Dentist
• Column 2- PHOTOS- I like to resize/edit my photos and then order them out of house so I like to remind myself whether I’ve edited and ordered them yet.  I learned that if I plan out a page a little in advance I’ll get the right size/color of photo. It saves me money!
• Column 3- THE GOODS- I will list a title, sketch I want to use, reference a magazine page, make notes about what paper/embellishment I’m thinking of using on the page.

Tab 2- 2009 BY MONTH
I list what layouts I complete each month. It helps me keep a tally. I try to balance out pages I create for each of my daughters as well as our family book and Book of Me.
This has 4 columns.

• Column 1- LAYOUT
• Column 2- WHO – what album is it for? Family, Bennet, Scout, BOM. This helps me even things out a bit. If I find I’m doing alot of Bennet pages I work on some Scout pages.
• Column 3- FOR- if I did the layout for a challenge or Design Team work.
• Column 4- QTY- 1 or 2 pager

Tab 3- TITLES/PHRASES

• I list titles, phrases and quotes that I think would make great additions to my pages. I also list those funny little things the kids say so I won’t forget.

Tab 4- SUBMIT

I list what layouts I submit to which magazines and the date. 

 
I also have an INSPIRATION folder on my computer. I save sketches/layouts/ideas from all of my fellow scrappers. It is divided into:

• 1 photo LO
• 2 photo LO
• 3 photo LO
• Multiple photos
• Cards/projects

How do you organize? I’d love to hear any tips you have for keeping our scrapbooking To-Do list manageable. If anyone would like to use my system just leave a note in the comment section and I’ll send it over.

from Jenn:

and some sneaks from Paula:

Come back tomorrow for one more day of peeks before the reveal:)