{JCSBOT SUBSCRIPTION=10,13,16,21,22,23}An Interview with Joli Kirk and Kelli Vander Veen...

(Video Preview from Joli - Organization Series at end of article.)

How did the two of you meet and become business partners?

Joli: I met Kelli (Tallula Moon Designs) online in early 2007 when I started ScrapProfessor.com. She answered a call for a team designer position and she was the first person I ‘hired’. We immediately had a connection and talked constantly (we still do!!). She is one of the best friends I’ve ever met online and I put a high value on our relationship. We think so much alike it’s scary at times but I wouldn’t have it any other way. We started a new website together, YourDigitalDesigners.com, in 2008 and it wasn’t long after that when I asked her to be co-owner of ScrapProfessor.com. Our personalities complement each other very well and we truly have a fantastic time working and designing together. There isn’t anyone else I’d rather be partners with.

Kelli: I actually applied for a designer position at ScrapProfessor. Joli was having a call for Designers, Creative Team Members and several other positions. I had just started out and was working in one other store. I sent in all of my designs and a little about myself. When the call closed, Joli sent me an acceptance letter. We hit it off right off the bat. Joli always made me feel from the very beginning that I wasn’t just part of a team - that she truly valued my opinion. Our friendship grew quickly once we started working together and, in April of 2008, Joli and I started discussing the idea of starting a commercial use store together. We were both incredibly excited and we ran with the idea. The store was up and running within a week and it’s been going strong ever since. In May of 2008, Joli asked me if I would like to partner with her at ScrapProfessor and I happily accepted. It’s been wonderful working with her. We always seem to be on the same page with ideas and designs. I don’t think we have ever disagreed on anything.

Where do you live?

Joli: I live in Oregon in the country with my husband and our four animals – three dogs and one cat. We have a beautiful house on some acreage and have a year-round spring fed creek that goes through one edge of the property. I love it here… even if it rains all the time!

Kelli: I live in Citrus Heights, CA, which is a portion of Sacramento.

What is your educational background?

Joli: I went to college for three years. I was studying business management, accounting and bookkeeping, and office administration. I was going for two degrees but ended up getting a great job offer at a local company where I was doing co-op experience for college. I was only 5 classes away from getting the two degrees I was seeking and I might actually go back and get those babies one of these days, although I doubt it as my interests are no longer in the accounting field. I do have to say, though, the business management and office administration skills I learned still benefit me today!

Kelli: I am a high school graduate and completely self taught with all of my computer skills. I started playing with a computer when I was a stay-at-home mom with my kids. I was kind of bored so I would work with WORD and EXCEL to make budget sheets and stuff. By the time I was ready to work, I knew all the in's and out's of the programs and didn’t have any trouble getting a job.

Tell us how you got interested in digital scrapbooking. Did you start out as a paper scrapper?

Joli: I am completely and whole-heartedly addicted to scrapbooking… but who isn’t! LOL! I got into scrapbooking when I happened across my first issue of Creating Keepsakes magazine while standing in line at a local craft store. I fell in love with the concept and headed to Michaels later that week where I began buying stuff. I literally have close to 25,000 pieces of paper and cardstock in my arsenal of supplies and have spent THOUSANDS of dollars on everything and anything scrapbooking related that I can get my hands on. (But don’t tell my husband! Hee hee!) I stumbled upon a digital scrapbooking website early in 2003 and immediately got hooked on that as well. I’ve been using graphics programs for over 12 years and instantly took to the idea of digital scrapbooking. But I love traditional scrapbooking and will never give that up - ever. It only came natural to me to blend the two worlds together and go hybrid. That’s where my passion lies.

Kelli: I have always been a really crafty person. My Grandmother started teaching me how to sew when I was about 7 years old. My mother worked in a fabric store and one summer brought me home a pattern for Candle Wicking when I was about 14. When I turned 16 I started working in the same fabric store she had worked in and discovered cross stitch and loved it. I did that for a really long time, learned to crochet, could never get the hang of knitting, and eventually started painting. When scrapbooking started to become really popular, I wasn’t very interested. In the beginning all of the options for scrapbooking were pretty elementary looking and it was difficult for me to get interested in. Then about 4 years ago, I decided to make scrapbooks for my family for Christmas. I had no idea what a huge job this would be. I spent a mint on supplies and tools and fun stuff for the books and got completely hooked. Before I knew it, I had dedicated an entire room in my house to my projects because they had started taking over the dining room table and half the living room. I was working on the computer one day looking for scrapbooking supplies when I ran across a site that said “Digital Scrapbooking” and, being a computer geek, I had to look. I don’t think I have ever been so excited to find something in my life. It was like someone had read my mind and put the two things that I loved the most together. I couldn’t get enough. I bought a ton of kits, purchased PaintShop Pro and started scrapping. Later I realized that the kits didn’t always have exactly what I wanted or needed for my projects and I started creating my own things. Within a year I was creating more of my own pieces than I was buying and decided to try selling.

What graphics software programs do you use?

Joli: I primarily use Paint Shop Pro version 8 (which is now owned by Corel) but I also use Photoshop CS2 and Photoshop Elements. There are so many great actions, scripts, and styles out there for all the different programs so I take advantage of them all and enjoy using all the coolest goodies for each program that I can get my hands on… at least the ones I can afford!

Kelli: I primarily use PhotoShop CS3, Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop Elements and occasionally use Paint Shop Pro, even though that is the program I started with.

What do you do to get inspired?

Joli: The easiest way for me to get inspired is to surf the online scrapbook galleries or pick up the latest issue of a scrapbooking magazine. I subscribe to them all and can’t imagine my life without them. My closet is LINED with back issues of all the magazines. This is TRUE inspiration for me and someday I’ll have to have an add-on built to my office/studio just to store those back issues. ;)

Kelli: Sometimes things just pop into my head. Sometimes it’s flipping through a magazine and something will catch my eye, or even just a color scheme can do it for me.

Do you have any design tips for us?

Joli: Oh my goodness… this is a hard question for me because I think there are so many fantastic tips and tricks that a person learns over the years of designing and it’s hard to pick just one to share. I guess my first and primary tip would be to always remember to work on a duplicate of your original. You should NEVER work on an original. Your computer could freak out, you could lose power, or you could inadvertently click save when you didn’t mean to and lose the original. This really could be devastating. It’s just a good habit of duplicating your original image before you start your project. Another tip would be to advise you to look into and purchase the program called “Microsoft One Note”. It’s a POWERHOUSE of a program and really can make organizing favorite blogs, websites, tips, ideas, and TONS of other information into this one program. I’ve had it for a few years now and just love it. I use it for something every day. I told Kelli about it last year and she also immediately fell in love with it. Do a Google search for it because I think there is a 30-day trial version of it available online from Microsoft. The best part is that it costs less than $30 if I remember right. I look forward to sharing design tips and ideas with you in future issues of Scrapbook Dimensions Magazine.

Kelli: Always remember that it doesn’t matter if someone else doesn’t love your pages. If you love them, then they are amazing.

What is your favorite layout?

Joli: I am a first-time grandmother (at age 36!!! oh my goodness!) so the answer obviously is my most recent layout which introduces my grandson to the world. Taking center stage is the ‘proud grandmother’ picture with me and my grandson Kade, the adorable first pictures I took of him in the hospital, and a beautiful picture of my daughter Ashley holding her new bundle of joy. I LOVE this layout! I created it using a quickpage which I included with the kit I created last year called “Mother’s Garden”, available at ScrapProfessor.com HERE.

Kelli: I love this layout because all of the photos and colors just rolled together very easily for me. The layering is my favorite part. I used several papers and elements from different kits by Royanna Fritschmann at Divine Digital. The photos were taken of my Daughter at North Star Mine in Grass Valley, CA.

Tell us how you get all your pages done and juggle everything else you have going on.

Joli: I have a girlfriend that comes to my house every Friday to scrapbook. It’s my scrap time and I really enjoy it and look forward to it every week. I think making time for everything (like scrapbooking) helps ensure a balance between work and fun. It’s not easy finding time to get everything done but this system seems to work pretty good for me.

Kelli: I’m really organized. I work full time outside of the home and my job can be pretty demanding.

How do you keep yourself disciplined?

Joli: Well… that’s a tough one. I HATE the word (and description) discipline… It just doesn’t sound good. I guess I’d have to say the answer is my husband. He’s pretty good at keeping me focused and he always says, “It’s easy to do what you can do, and it’s easy NOT to do what you can do”. I’ve been known to procrastinate in the past so that little saying helps keep me motivated and helps me get things done in a timely fashion.

Kelli: I don’t. I realized in the beginning that when I design if the kit isn’t coming together for me I need to step back from it and do something else. I never force a kit. I did that in the beginning and had several things I wasn’t happy with.

What do you do for fun when you aren't scrapping or designing?

Joli: Family is number one for me. (Isn’t it for everyone?) I enjoy spending time with my family – especially outdoors. I love to out fish my husband… that’s always fun. We also have several ATV’s and enjoy riding in the mountains or at the dunes. Camping is always a nice getaway for me. I am a fan of “Survivor”, “Big Brother”, “The Biggest Loser”, and a couple other reality shows. I don’t have much time to watch them but I make it a point to relax a few times a week so I don’t miss an episode. I’ve finally got my husband hooked on “Survivor”, too, so we get to snuggle and watch it together these days. Since I became a grandmother recently I really look forward to spoiling my grandson and creating albums and projects that cherish and treasure his precious life!

Kelli: Mostly spend time with my family. We have BBQ’s, watch movies and just have a good time together.

What other projects do you have up your sleeves?

Joli: Kelli and I are starting a new website, DigiScrapU.com, which is primarily a ‘hybrid’ scrapbooking website. I’ve been working on designing it and we hope to launch it soon. We also co-own YourDigitalDesigners.com, so between the three websites I manage to stay pretty busy. Next to scrapbooking, web design is another thing I really love to do.

Kelli: Joli and I are currently working on another store called DigiScrap U, or DSU. The store will be primarily hybrid. We will carry papers and books and still have digital kits. We will also be working on putting together hybrid kits that you can purchase. The kits will include an album, a digital kit, and several matching embellishments. There will be a lot of classes and tutorials to get you familiar with hybrid scrapping.

Video Preview from Joli

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Cindy Wyckoff - Editor-in-Chief
		About the author:
		Cindy is the Editor-in-Chief of Scrapbook Dimensions Magazine. She has enjoyed crafting and being creative throughout the years including scrapbooking, gardening, interior design and teaching.
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