Susan has been a member for the past three years and has become an important part of our community! We can always count on Susan to join in our challenges and online events!
It's been a pleasure watching her card making style grow and evolve right in front of our eyes.
Let's learn a bit about Susan…
“Hi, my name is Susan and I am an addict.
A happy addict who has an addiction and like so many others it is to StampNation and to card making. How did this happen to me?
I was born on the Wirral, UK. My parents, including myself, four brothers and three sisters immigrated to Australia. What an adventure it was travelling half way round the world by ship. Our ages ranged from the youngest of 18 months to the eldest being 15 years old. I was eleven, the third oldest and the eldest daughter. Being the eldest daughter brought a lot of hard work and responsibility, especially when those two brothers would abscond!
I grew up in a rural area roaming free on horses and riding motorbikes. I left school at the age of 16, I went to work and at the same time I moved out of home. I met my future husband at 17 and we eventually married and two years later children came along. We are now grandparents and oh what joy that is!
I have always been community minded as an adult teenager I managed and coached the village netball team, later that would be a far remote netball team in the Pilbara of West Australia in a mining town. Meals on Wheels, Club secretary/treasurer/president for tennis, netball, Country Women’s Association, embroidery, Girl Guides.
I have enjoyed being crafty from a very young age. My primary school teacher was amazed that I could knit and sew my dolls their clothes when I was six. I was so proud of a knitted outfit that I had knitted for my favourite doll; my mum had knitted herself a jacket and skirt and I was allowed to use the left over wool, I knitted one just like it.
Over the years I received many ribbons for my knitting and sewing. Even a Grand Champion ribbon for my hand embroidery, as I do suffer from lack of self-confidence I have always put my winnings down to it being a fluke (lucky). However, at one of these shows I came across card making and I was hooked instantly. Unbeknownst to me my self-confidence was about to do a face-about!
I still have a passion for my hand embroidery; it does take longer to complete a project in comparison to card making, which to me is instant gratification. How was I going to maintain this instant gratification and build my self-confidence? With Catherine Pooler and StampNation of course! Although I didn’t know I would at that time.
I had only been stamping for a few months when I finally had the courage to start looking online. I instantly loved Catherine and her matter-of-fact, get down to it attitude. I then justified, to myself, the cost of membership to StampNation was a good way to save space. After all I had a new hobby that needed feeding. I currently have a library full of craft books and hundreds of magazines, even magazines from the 60s and 70s and I’ve run out of space.
So membership for the price of a monthly magazine saved me finding space plus I gained far more than a magazine could ever offer me and that is a wonderful world of talented, encouraging and inspiring friends. A win, win situation!
I have thrived over the past three years here on StampNation and I would personally like to thank Catherine, the Dream Team and members for helping me become a more confident person and more importantly, LOL, a confident card maker!”
Here are some of Susan's creations…
I so enjoyed learning more about Susan! It's amazing to learn about our Sistahs from around the world. Immigrating by a ship and living in a rural area with horses roaming free is such a different experience than I've had.
Yet, we share a bond….and that is paper crafting. What a wonderful thing, right?
Susan, we are lucky to share this journey with you! xoxox, CP