Sweet & Simple Saturday: Guest Artist

I'm excited to introduce my first Sweet & Simple Saturday Guest Artist, Susan Raihala!  When I came across Susan's gallery on Splitcoaststampers, I nearly fell off my chair - seriously.  She has such a great sense of design.

First, here's a little bit about Susan:

1. Where do you live? Southwest Ohio, but we lived in nine states in twenty years because DH was in the Air Force. I've seen a lot of America and love it all. Well, most of it, at least!
2. Who do you live with? My husband, George, and I have been married for almost 23 years and have two sons, Nick (9) and Jack (6). We also have an elderly golden retriever named Hoover, but his real name should be named Tigger because he's much better at bouncing than vacuuming.
3. Do you have a day job when you're not stamping? I never, ever thought I'd be stay-at-home mom, but I am and I love it. Before that, I taught college English classes and worked as a writer/editor in marketing.
4. How long have been stamping? Seven years.  I started papercrafting by making handmade books.  Aren't cards just very short books?
5. What are your favorite stamp companies? Stampin' Up!, Papertrey, Hero Arts...I love others, too, but those three make up about 90% of the stamps I own.  I own a lot of stamps!
6. Who are the stampers that inspire you?  Too many to list, but the three who have had the biggest impact on my style are Julie Ebersole, Krystie Lee Hersch, and Nicole Heady.
7. Do you have any other hobbies? Writing, reading, blogging (I have three blogs), and soaking up the sun...metaphorically speaking, of course, because I live in Ohio and take care of my skin ;-).

Like most CAS (clean and simple) cards, Susan's contain a lot of white space, which draw the viewer's eye to the main focal image.  But one of the things that sets Susan's cards apart are the interesting details she includes, such as the epoxy sticker on the Christmas ornament or the glitter on the Gratitude card.  These details really make your eyes linger on her cards.

Susan's cards are also well balanced - see how the red ornament is balanced by the red bow (above) and the vertical blue ribbon balances out the horizontal branch (below).

Another feature of Susan's cards I like is the movement she creates.  The flowers on the Gratitude card and red butterflies are positioned in such a way that the eye moves easily across her cards.

 

If you love her cards as much as I do, I encourage you to visit her new stamping blog, Simplicity by Lateblossom and leave her a comment on one of her fabulous creations.  And check out her writing blog, Questioning my Intelligence, which is hilarious to read. 

Enjoy your weekend and happy stamping!

 

Comments

[Joan B]

I'm so glad to see you feature Susan, as she is also one of my favorite stampers and writers. It is sooo hard to do "simple" and Susan does it so well.

[Cookie]

Congratulations Susan on being Guest Artist! I love your work! I esp. love the butterfly card you have featured on here today, LOVE how you stamped right on top of the cheesecloth stamp to make a OLC then added some bling! Beautiful! Cookie :)