Friday's Featured Artist - Memories for Life!

Edi of Memories for Life Scrapbooks is an artist you've seen on my blog before. Why? Well because she's awesome! She's become a good friend and she's been a winner on my blog! This month she's also the Etsy Bloggers Featured artist - so of course I decided I had to interview her :) So with out further ado...let's get to know her! Click on any of the pictures to be taken to it's listing.

1. What type of art work do you do?

Everything paper crafting. I make several different types of scrapbooks, custom layouts, greeting cards, wedding invitations. I even make scrapbooks out of flip flops :)

2. How did you get started doing art work?

I owe my start in crafting to the 4-H Club. My aunt was our leader and she always had a different project for us each month. The month we learned how to make handmade greeting cards with stamps...I was hooked! Then shortly after we had a month learning how to scrapbook...and it was love at first sight :) I've been paper crafting for over 12 years now!

3. Do you do any other crafts?

My paper crafting keeps me pretty busy...I haven't found any time for other crafts yet :)

4. Is there a story behind your shop name?

I wanted to send the message that scrapbooks are a lifelong keepsake. And since what I scrapbook is memories...Memories for Life Scrapbooks was born.

5. What's your favorite piece in your shop right now?

My Custom Name and Word Albums are by far my most popular! I really enjoy making them because each one is unique. I like adding little personal bits here and there in the album to make each one special :) I'm also lovin' my new albums I'm making with my Bind-It-All! These should be in my shop real soon!

6. Where do you sell your work?

Etsy: http://memoriesforlifesb.etsy.com

Artfire: http://www.artfire.com/users/MemoriesForLifeScrapbooks

7. Do you blog?

Of course :) http://memoriesforlifescrapbooks.blogspot.com

8. Are you on any social networks you'd like to share?

I'm on Facebook under Edi Royer.

On Plurk under Memories for Life Scrapbooks

9. Do you watch or listen to anything while you work? If so, what?

A local radio station that plays 70s, 80s, 90s and today's rock. I love 80s hair bands :)

10. Tell us one random fact about your self *wink*

I hated the color pink until I hit my 20s...now it's my favorite color :) I guess I found my girly side!

In another Treasury!

Huge thanks to Edi of MemoriesForLife for featuring me in her treasury!

My Inara's Cuff is in the top right :)

June's Contest WINNERS!!!

Now I have to admit - I'm laughing a little bit! I had a lot of fun with this month's contest, but the results look sorta, eh, familiar?

WINNERS!!!

1. Beaded Tail - 39

2. Memories for Life - 38

3. TiLT Creations - 28

www.beadedtail.etsy.com

www.memoriesforlifeb.etsy.com

www.tiltcreations.etsy.com

Familiar eh? Yes, that's right, that's last month's winners in a different order! So guess what? I love you ladies - but you are ALL disqualified for next month's contest! We're going to give some of my other readers a chance - k? Please keep commenting though - because I love hearing from all three of you!

I'd like to give a special mention to the two people who tied for 4th place this month with 27 comments each. A big thanks go to Splendid Little Stars and Little Studio Photography and Jewelry for your ongoing encouragement and bloggy dialogue!

Now for the round up of numbers :D I goofed up slightly on this >_> When I decided to give double entries for anyone who commented on their favorite items when I do my 9 item spotlights...well I didn't think to keep track of the extra points seperately >_> So that means this month's total comments are artificially inflated. I'll fix that next month! Don't worry!

Top Commentator: This Month - 39. Last Month - 35

Total Commentators: This Month - 68. Last Month - 71

Total Comments: This Month - 374. Last Month - 277

Just a reminder - this is what our winners won - and what you could win next month!

Top 3 Commentators - Write up on this blog :)

1st Place - $20 Gift Certificate to my Shops

2nd Place - $10 Gift Certificate to my Shops

3rd Place - $5 Gift Certificate to my Shops

Have a great day - and don't forget to check out my Artfire Sale!

Awww - I got an award!

This is what I woke up to this morning! 

Isn't it cute???

Gotta send out a huge THANK YOU to Splendid Little Stars

for passing this award on to me :D

Now there are NO rules for this one,

so I'm going to follow in Splendid's footsteps

and pick 5 people to pass this on to 

that make me smile with all their 

comments :D But don't worry, even if your name

isn't on this list - I still love you! I love all of you!

But that would take a LONG time to list ;)

1. Memories for Life

2. Beaded Tail

3. TiLT Creations

4. The Eclectic Element

5. Leather Made Nice

Make sure you check out their great blogs!

CONTEST WINNERS!!!

I'M SO EXCITED!!!

Ok, I'll stop screaming at you. But I AM really excited! Why? Because, this being the first day of June, I get to announce my contest winners! Woohoo! What contest is that you ask? Why who left the most comments on my blog this month! And don't worry if you didn't win, this is going to be a perpetual contest - so there's always this month, and the next, and the next! 

1st Place:

Edi - 35

 comments

2nd Place:

Sharla - 32 comments

3rd Place:

Theresa - 21 comments

Have I mentioned yet that these ladies rock my world? Before I tell you a little bit more about our winners let me tell you what they won :) 1st place - $15 off my shops, 2nd place - $5 off my shops, 3rd place - a write up on this blog! Now for you to meet our wonderful winners :)

EDI is the wonderful artist behind "Memories for Life Scrapbooks." She both creats incredible albums that you can buy to play with, and she also does scrap booking for you! I've seen some of those custom scrap books on her blog, and I can tell you that she does an incredible job, if I had the money I can think of one I'd like her to do! Or to help me with if she lived closer... *sigh* 

Edi is one of my fellow Etsy Bloggers, and I hadn't really gotten to know her very well before this last month. I knew she was cool, but that's about it! Through our comment exchanges this last month or so I feel like I've really made a friend, and I really look forward to her feedback on my newest projects! 

SHARLA is the artist behind Beaded 

Tail. She shares the shop with her Mom, so some of the work is her Mom's, which I think is just a ton of fun! She is, as you can see from the picture, a fellow jewelry artist, and I always have fun seeing her new creations! 

Sharla loves animals - and part of the fun of reading her blog is that you get to follow along on the adventures of her furbabies! Trust me, these babies are CuTE, and you'll have a lot of fun getting to know them!

Sharla is a fellow North Westerner and we actually only live about 2 hours apart! One of these days, if I can get just a wee bit stronger, we plan to actually meet up. I look forward to that day as Sharla has been a very dear and supportive friend to me here on-line! 

THERESA is another dear friend :) She is the artist behind TiLT Creations, and she's having a huge sale right now! So make sure you check her out :)

Theresa and I have had a lot of fun bonding over many different interests. Blogging, crafting in general, Firefly, vampires, geekery in general... Oh yes, we have way too much fun :P

She runs several blogs - because she's crazy like me! 

http://tiltcreations.blogspot.com

http://tilttreasures.blogspot.com
http://tiltcreationstoo.blogspot.com

Now for some geeky fun on my part....

When I first announced the contest on the 13th these were my currents stats:

~ Top Commentator: 9 comments

~ 70 Comments total

~ 35 Different Commentators

I was BLOWN away when I added up the entire month's stats today! Here they are:

~ Top Commentator: 35 comments

~ 277 Comments total

~ 71 Different Commentators

Can I just say you guys ROCK??? I've had a lot of fun tracking this, and getting to know all of you guys better! I know I don't always get a chance to respond to each and every comment, but I try to at least do a blog swing by for all of them, and your comments keep me going both as a blogger and as an artist. Thank you! 

Sweeting the pot: I had so much fun with this that next month's prizes are even better! All winners will receive a write up on this blog like I did this month. BUT the prize monies have gone up! 

June Winners will Receive:

1st Place - $20 Gift Certificate

2nd Place - $10 Gift Certificate

3rd Place - $5 Gift Certificate

Also remember, any posts that are spotlights of my most recent listings are worth TWO comments if you tell me your favorite piece out of that collection and why :)

Talk to you soon!

~ Ruthie ~

Friday's Featured Artist - Memories For Life!

Edi is the artisan behind Memories for Life - and a fellow Etsy Blogger Team Mate! I've always admired her work, so it was a lot of fun getting to interview her :)

1. What type of art work do you do?

I do paper crafting of all kinds. Name and Word Albums are my most popular items, but I also make full-size custom scrapbooks, greeting cards, wedding/graduation invitations, party favors. Pretty much anything made with paper :)

2. How did you get started doing art work?

I started making greeting cards over 12 years ago. We had a presentation in 4-H about stamping and then about scrapbooking...and I've been hooked ever since!

3. Do you do any other crafts?
I pretty much stick with paper crafts. There are so many different things you can do with paper that it keeps me pretty busy learning new things :)

4. What's your favorite piece in your shop right now?

My Custom Name and Word Albums are by far my most popular item! They are also my own favorite because of the personalization I get to put into each piece :) I hate giving generic gifts, so I love that I can add that personal touch to these albums!

5. Where do you sell your work?

Etsy is my main selling venue: http://memoriesforlifesb.etsy.com/
and I also sell on shophandmade.com http://www.shophandmade.com/Store/Memoriesforlife
I also sell at local craft shows throughout the year.

6. Do you blog?

Yup :) You can find me at memoriesforlifescrapbooks.blogspot.com It's a mixture of my crafting, my dog, my life...and anything that falls in between :)

7. Are you on any social networks you'd like to share?

I am on facebook under Edi Royer and I am currently working on getting a Fan Page started as well.

8. Do you watch or listen to anything while you work? If so, what?

I always have the radio on when I scrapbook. I listen to a station that plays 80s hair bands, 70s rock, etc. Oldies but goodies :)

9. Tell us one random fact about your self *wink*

Oooh...toughie! I once gave up chocolate for 4 years! That's pretty random :)

10. Why on earth did you give up chocolate???

It was a New Year's resolution and I just decided to continue it for 4 years! It was sort of a power thing...like proving to myself that I could do it :)

Well more power too you Edi! I don't think I could give up chocolate like that!

I hope you all enjoyed getting to know Edi a little bit better - make sure you follow her blog so you can see more of her incredible work as she does it!