This month's treat is absolutely amazing and that's all there is to it! We been a fan of Jenn Olson's work for a long time and wanted to wait until the perfect moment to put her in the spotlight here at the Sweet Shoppe. We thought our 6 month anniversary celebration was the perfect occasion! When you look through the gallery of this talented scrap artist, you cant help but to be immediately struck by how absolutely gorgeous her children are! Every photo is perfection and the clean lines, amazing font work, attention to detail and colors that pop off her pages make spending an afternoon checking Jenn's work out a true pleasure! Every page tells a story and these pages will be treasured for years to come because Jenn really strives to capture her family's day to day life in every single page she creates...it is what all of us should strive to do when we scrapbook.

Jenn lives with her husband and 3 children on a tiny little dot on the WA State Map, otherwise known as Moses Lake. She began scrapbooking in 1997 and found digital in April of 2005. Adobe Photoshop CS2 is her software of choice and she shoots her fantastic photos on the Canon 20D. This spring she was also inducted into the Creating Keepsakes Hall of Fame.

All of us at Sweet Shoppe Designs hope you enjoy learning more about Jenn this month as you read through our interview with her. She has inspired us to SCRAP MORE, take better pictures and tell the stories behind those photos. We hope she inspires you to do the same...

Sweet Shoppe Designs: Tell us a little bit about your family.

Jenn Olson: I have one amazing husband (Eric) who is a physical therapist by day and housekeeper/cook/cabana boy by night and we have three crazy kids, Ella (8), Evynn (5) and Seth (2) who all have birthdays within a month of each other. We also have two silly dogs, Bambi, the neurotic Chinese Crested and Shaggy the overly eager Pug.

SSD: Who and what are your sources of scrapbooking inspiration?

JO: Good, good question. I get inspiration from just about every page, every other scrapper I see. I love taking inspiration from other art forms outside of scrapping, such as art journaling and graphic design.

SSD: Where has your work been published?

JO: Digital Memories Magazine, The Basic Grey Newsletter, Simple Scrapbooks Digital 5 and most recently in CK with the HOF articles

SSD: Tell us about your scrapping workspace and environment when you scrap (are there a million things going on or is it calm and quiet?)

JO: My workspace is what used to be our formal dining room. Slowly I've overtaken it and it's now my "studio". In decor it's a hodge podge...I'm waiting for the day that electronics look like potterybarn. :) As for the environment...remember the three kids and two dogs? Quiet is a rarity!!

SSD: The photography of your children is always so stunning - what are your tips/tricks for getting that perfect shot with young children?

JO: Well...thank you. My kids are the consummate posers, now...so they're not much help. LOL! My best tips and tricks...hmmm. Always have the camera handy, try and catch them before they know they're being observed and lastly...light--tell them to go play in the room with the most diffused sunlight!

SSD: Congratulations on being named one of the Creating Keepsakes Hall of Famers for 2006! What has your life been like since "the big call"? How has it changed?

JO: Thank you again. :) Life since the "big call" hasn't changed too much. A few extra projects here and there, but all in all...I'm still just nonfamous me....and just fine with that.

SSD: What advice would you give to newcomers to the digital scrapbooking world who seek to be published or win exciting contests like CK HOF?

JO: Pretty much a blanket advice will work here. Be yourself, don't be afraid to take chances, continually evolve and learn and finally, always please yourself first.

SSD: What do you think are the next big trends for digital scrapbooking?

JO: Oooh. Good question! I wish I knew!! There are so many aspects of digi scrapping that follow paper trends, and then so many aspects that don't. That's part of what I love most about digi, it's so liberating...you can pretty much make your own trends!

SSD: What's the best book you've read or movie you've seen recently and why?

JO: Hmmm. Does a dvd anthology of a television show count? I've gotten hooked on this show called "Rescue Me" on the fx network. It stars Denis Leary as a really messed up firefighter and follows the things that happen in his life. I recently watched seasons 1 & 2 on dvd so I could catch up to the 3rd season now midway through. I call it Grey's Anatomy on crack. (Can I say that?) LOL. It's got all the drama, all the humor, just Denis Leary style. I can't get enough!

SSD: What are your summer plans? Are you going on vacation or staying close to home?

JO: Well, this summer is kind of the summer of the kids. LOL. My husband's work schedule has been insane and so we haven't gone or done anything, really. The kids have been doing different camps and taking week long trips to Grandma and Grandpa's for some individual time. I've been booking photo shoots most weekends and spending the weeks proofing and editing...so this summer has flown right by!

Sweet Shoppe Designs also asked Jenn to share some of her favorite creations with our visitors. It's fascinating to look through someone's gallery with our own eyes but seeing what an artist particularly enjoys from her own collection is always intriguing...

If you would like to see more Jenn's fabulous work, be sure to visit her Scrap Artist Gallery. You are going to LOVE her gorgeous work and we are so thrilled to be able to spotlight her work during our anniversary celebration so special thanks to her for sharing herself with us, you ROCK Jenn!! As always, our SugarBabes have each chosen their favorite layout from Jenn's gallery and have created pages which were inspired from her originals. Those layouts will be featured throughout the month on our homepage so be sure to check them out each time you visit!

Also, don't forget to Scrap with our SugarBabes the entire month of August by picking out a layout you want to lift from Jenn's gallery! Once you're done, come back and share the link to it with us in our special forum...just for playing along, you could win $15.00 to pick up a couple of your favorite kits from the newly redesigned Sweet Shoppe. Thanks so much for sharing yourself with us Jenn, it was a pleasure getting to know more about one of our favorite scrappers...