Guest Designer: Leigh O'Brien an Interview with one of todays hottest stampers!

Recognize this face?

How about the name?

If you pick up any hot stamping magazine, browse blogs, or surf the net for stamping sites you are sure to stumble across the work of the incredibly talented Leigh O'Brien. I was ultra excited when Leigh agreed to be our guest designer this month. We gave Leigh a choice of images to work with and she choose to play with the DoodleFactory Tropics collection. All month she has been emailing me cards but I have been hoarding them all to myself up until now.

I realized that something was missing from my last guest designer spotlight. It needed something a little more personal so this month I thought we should get to know our designer a little better.... But before we get to her interview I thought it might be nice to see the chick behind the avatar... so here she is... introducing the one and only... often imitated never duplicated... Leigh O'Brien... (who as it turns out, hates photos as much as I do!)

US: Tell us about yourself...

LEIGH: "I am a SAHM. I have a terrific hubby that is thankfully clueless about how much I actually spend on crafting supplies. I have an almost eight year old son that keeps me both busy and entertained! Before my "retirement" I worked at Sony Music Distribution for 12 years. "

US: What is the main reason you like rubber stamping?

LEIGH: "My little hobby turned to complete insanity when I was living in Chicago from 2002 through 2006. I made great friends through stamping and they've enabled me to keep up with the trends through "encouraged purchasing". I do feel a sense of accomplishment with each finished card or project. I think my favorite parts of rubber stamping are that the hobby continues to evolve and that your can create a small "work of art" in a relatively short amount of time. (I'm not into long projects...I need instant gratification!)"

US: who is your favorite DoodleFactory character?

LEIGH: "OMG... I couldn't pick just one. I am totally enamoured with the whole Doodle Factory line of stamps. I love the quirky, edgy quality to them."

US: Out of all the cards you made for us which is your favorite?

LEIGH: "I think my favorite card that I created with the Tropics set is the Luau card. First of all, Moki's sort of frenzied expression cracks me up. Second, I don't normally do asymmetrical card designs but I really liked the layout on this one and the big parentheses totally highlight the sentiment."

I agree, I think that Moki (who is a Monkey BTW) is awesome, but short of saying they are all my favorites I really dig the parrot pirate, I love how you incorporated the X from the X marks the spot sentiment into this design.

To see more of Leigh's work you can visit her blog at: http://sunflowerstudio.typepad.com/sunflower_studio/

Thank you so much Leigh for the awesome cards!!