Sweet Shoppe Designs – The Sweetest Digital Scrapbooking Site on the Web

Hey, hey Sweet Shoppers, it looks like some of you are eagerly awaiting the reveal of our latest Featured Designer, and I am really excited to put this chickie into the spotlight because frankly, I think she’s awesome. Of course, I am incredibly biased and say that every 15 days, don’t I? Today, I’m happy to give you a little bit of insight into one of our newest designers, Erica Zane! When Erica applied, all of us fell in love with her behind the scenes because we adore her whimsical, doodlie style and her attention to detail! Each and every one of her kits have so much personality and she has such a knack for creating kits for every theme or occasion. Erica’s unique take on digital designing excites me as a designer and I hope after you get your hands on her incredible featured designer kit, Beachy Keen, that each of you will love her a little more too. Beachy Keen is yours FREE with any $10 purchase made in the shoppe between now and August 31st, so don’t miss it!

Just The Basics

Where did you grow up?

I was born in California but spent most of my childhood in a super small town in Washington.

What’s your favorite season?

Fall for sure!  I especially love those beginning days of fall, where the sun is still warm but there is a nice crisp feel to the air.  The perfect days for going on walks, playing at parks and just enjoying the outdoors.

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?

Of course I would have to pick green!  I love a good green (but really aren’t all greens good?!)

If you could change your name, what would you change it to?

I never liked my name growing up because I had a hard time pronouncing the “r” sound so every time someone asked my name I got even more shy and embarrassed.  When I was in high school I thought it’d be awesome to have a green name, like Jade or Sage.  I still think those would be cool, but I don’t know if either really fits me. ;D

What’s your biggest fear?

Heights!  I do not like heights at all and I get all freaked out when my kids get too close to areas that drop off.  Snakes are a close second – they just wig me out!  If I see one I will scream and run away, even thinking of them now is giving me the heebie-jeebies!

Where would you go for your dream vacation?

The beach!  I LOVE going to the beach with my family, we especially love the Outer Banks area in North Carolina.

What’s the first thing you do when you wake up?

First I have to get my toddler out of bed and get some breakfast going for my 4 kids.  While they are busy eating I check my email & the SSD forums & sometimes even design a little.

What is the last movie you saw?

In the theaters I think it was the last Harry Potter movie…yikes, it’s been a while!  At home, besides kid movies, we last watched Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets…I guess we like Harry Potter, haha!

Go out or stay in?

Stay in please!  I am such a hermit and my poor hubby has the hardest time getting me to go out.  I hate going out alone and would rather take my kids to the grocery store than go alone, but sometimes when I do get out alone I admit I kind of like the quiet! ;o)

Cats or Dogs?

I’m allergic to cats, so I prefer dogs for sure!  But my hubby is allergic to some dogs…so for now we just have a lizard and a bunch of fish.

Inside The Artist’s Studio

How do you come up with the names for your products?

I love coming up with silly names that go with my kits that make me laugh to myself.  But sometimes I am just stuck and pick a random name that sort of fits.  But often times I get the best names from my IRL buddy Denise (aka neeceebee), she’s come up with some great ones for me!

What’s your best selling kit ever?

At the Moment it is “With You

What is your “home office” or work environment like?

We have 2 desktops in our living room area where my hubby & I have our computers next to each other.  I’d like to say my desk was always clean but for some reason everyone (including me, ack) likes to leave random stuff on it where it stays until I can’t take it anymore and clean it off.  Then the next day the process starts all over again!

When you scrap, do you prefer to use your products or those from another designer?

Usually I’ve worked on my kits so long that I’m ready to move on and scrap with someone else’s stuff for a change of pace.  But if I’m in a hurry, I know where to find certain elements/colors in my EZ folders so I’ll head there.

Describe your designing process. Take us briefly from the start to finish of making a kit.

First I have to find colors I love, which usually takes quite a bit of tweaking.  Then I create my papers which sometimes causes me to tweak my colors again.  Elements come next, if I have a them in mind I’ll often start with those things then fill in with the more generic stuff.  If I have no theme in mind I’ll start with the generic basics and hope that something strikes me soon, haha.  The alpha is usually somewhere in the middle of the element process.  I have some things I like to include in every kit so when I think I’m done I’ll look though & make sure I got them all (like stitches and a staple and journal spots/tags and frames).

Food For Thought

How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?

Apparently 34 because I can never remember how old I am!  I usually have to ask my 10 year old how old I am, haha!  (Even as I type this I had to do some counting to make sure that’s how old I was!)

What is your happiest childhood memory?  What makes it so special?

My best memories are of camping at the beach every summer.  My grandparents had these huge army tents, so we had a main kitchen tent with some picnic tables and a wood stove and a mini fridge with a little tent off that for my grandparents (complete with TV & VCR so my grama could watch her Soaps, haha!).  Then each family had their own big tent around that.  Grampa would take us out in his little boat to an island where we’d dig for clams and collect crab pots, and if you wanted to be out all day, fishing.  The beaches were cold and it was often raining but we loved it!  (Since then I’ve turned into a weeny & prefer the warmer East coast beaches!)

What do you think about when you lie awake in bed?

I am all paranoid at night for some reason and will think about emergency escape plans like if there was a fire right now or if someone was breaking in or if we heard a tornado, how we’d keep everyone safe.  Or if I’m in the middle of a kit I will often think of things I want to add to it & will email myself from my ipod so I don’t forget the next morning, haha!

If I gave you $1000 and told you that you had to spend it today, what would you buy?

Oooh, can this happen please?!  There are so many things I could do!  School clothes & shoes for the kids, groceries & bills & boring stuff like that.  But I would really love a new camera!

What is your favorite quote?

I love a lot of the lines from Dr. Seuss in “Oh, The Places You’ll Go”, I think my favorite is “You’re off to Great Places!  Today is your day!  Your mountain is waiting, so… get on your way!”

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Now that you’ve gotten to know Erica a bit better, take a peek at some of her favorite products, and don’t forget you can pick up her amazing kit that’s perfect for Summer, Beachy Keen, FREE with ANY $10 purchase made in the shoppe between now and  August 31st!