Valerie Salmon

I suppose you can say that crafting is a large part of my livelihood. I love to create things with my hands, formulating ideas, then transforming them into tangible items that are hopefully as pretty as they are useful. Before I was a scrapbooker, I was an avid seamstress.
I developed a natural passion for sewing as a very young girl, listening to the daily humming of sewing machines, observing dressmakers & tailors work at my mother's home-based tailor shop. Although I never completely stopped sewing, it was over-shadowed by my newfound addiction to scrapbooking 8 years ago.  Ah, if only there were more hours in a day!

I am a mom-of-two, now living in Indiana after relocating from my homestate of California several years ago.  When I'm not busy with my family life, I am busy crafting, designing, and creating in my craft room.  I enjoy any and all kinds of crafting and I don’t mind sacrificing my time for a neat outcome!  The creative process is the best!

As a self-confessed gadget girl, being a part of the Fiskars team has enabled me to experiment with a variety of crafting tools.  Most recently, as we highlighted the Fiskars rotary cutting tools, my love for sewing has been renewed.  These rotary cutters currently rank high as my favorite tools.  I haven't put them down and continue to use them in my sewing projects these days.  They are especially perfect for cutting straight lines in smaller crafted items.

Here are some projects where the rotary cutters were key tools used.

This is a small custom case for my daughter, using some cute fabric.  I created it to carry her Nintendo DS game unit as a little travel purse, since the game is her constant companion.  Not only is it adorable, but it's padded for extra protection.  I included a small interior pocket to hold a couple of game cartridges as well.

This case can be easily adapted to be a camera bag or even as a small purse for someone who likes to travels light.

In a recent Fiskars article, I made a no-sew fleece throw. It started me on a roll to make additional fleece blankets, including the one pictured below.

Using scraps from a blanket I made for my daughter,  I even made a matching sleeping bag for one of her Groovy dolls!  Just because this is small, I didn’t skimp on the details.  I still lined it with a contrasting denim fabric and included a built-in stuffed pillow. Making smaller projects are my favorites because in just a few short hours, I am instantly gratified with a finished product!

My all-time favorite Fiskars tools are the squeeze punches.  I love the variety of designs available & their ease of use.  I enjoy making greeting cards just as much as I do scrapbooking.  Take a look at these two cards.

For the winter card, I used the Heidi Grace winter line and punched several snowflakes in various patterned papers, then layered them using foam adhesive.  The epoxy circles also finish them off nicely.

The "Smitten" card below, uses two sizes of scallop heart punches and the Heidi Grace valentine line.  I varied the punch sizes & fanned the patterned papers to mimic flower petals.  This maximizes the punch use.  
Thanks for letting me share a bit about myself and some of my recent crafty projects. I hope these projects help inspire you to create some beautiful things that make you and your family smile!

By Valerie Salmon