It’s always interesting to learn more about our fellow scrappers, isn’t it? I’m excited today to share my interview with Jill Williams, a Polly at The Lilypad. We’ve been online scrappy friends for awhile and I know she is a lovely, sweet woman. It was fun to learn more about her. Here is a pic of Polly Jill and a few of the gorgeous pages she has created for The Lilypad.
Jill said, “Thank you Rae for giving me the opportunity to share with fellow scrappers!! ”
I”m Jill and totally addicted to digital scrapping! I’ve been married for thirty six years. We have a son, a terrific daughter-in-law and two beautiful grandbabies. I can see the little light at the end of the tunnel called retirement!! I work full time as a Process Improvement Manager for a distribution Center and I do enjoy my job; however, retirement sure sounds delightful! My dream is to retire in three years or so and travel the USA in a Class A RV with my husband. I would love to be able to take photos at each stop we make and scrap them as we drive on to our next destination! The first thing on our “retirement” bucket list is to visit all of the National Parks in the United States. (Hey, wait a minute, Jill, your first stop isn’t to come visit me???? LOL).
I provided these questions for Jill to answer:
What area do you live in?
I live in rural Northern Illinois along the Illinois/Wisconsin border (about 150 miles west of Chicago). We are surrounded by woods, soy bean and corn fields. It’s a pretty laid back part of the state. There are a lot of small towns in the surrounding area – towns of 300 or 400 people.
What got you interested in scrapbooking and when did you start?
In 2006, I Googled “computer crafts” while searching for something to get my creative ideas flowing. An ad for a digital scrapbook site popped up – I followed the link and the rest, as they say, is history. Up until that point I’d never heard of digital scrapbooking and had no idea just how much of an impact it would have on my life. It took me a good 3-4 months to become familiar with the software and learn everything it was capable of doing. Youtube tutorials became my friend! I have bonded with many other scrapbookers over the years and formed some really strong friendships through the process.
What are your favorite scrap themes or topics to scrap about?
This is an easy question! I have thousands of photos of our two precious grandbabies that I scrap! Our granddaughter is 3½ and grandson is 1½. I’m in the process of making books for each of them, so I add as much journaling as I can. I scrap about special days we’ve spent together but I also scrap about those everyday moments we spent together that make up the biggest portion of our lives. I also enjoy scrapping vintage family photos that were given to me when my parents passed away.
What’s your fave drink and snack foods?
I love Coke…the full sugar…no diet stuff! But have been making healthier choices for the past few months (which means no more Coke!); so, I guess now my favorite drink is de-caf black coffee – the stronger and hotter the better. As for snacking, I am a popcorn eater! I think I could eat popcorn every day of the week!
What is your scrap area like?
I have a desktop computer and large monitor set up in a spare bedroom. There is a window to the right of the computer and I really enjoy watching the birds at the feeders while I’m scrapping. The “computer room” is my little haven – it is filled with all sorts of photos, family mementos and Longaberger baskets and all of my “other” craft goodies like a Silhouette Cameo, Minc machine, laser printer and Cinch machine. The closet is filled with papers, ribbons, stickers, foils, paints, etc. All of the “stuff” a crafter needs!!
While scrapping, is the music playing or TV on?
My scrap area is just down the hall from the living room, so if my husband is watching something interesting on the TV, I listen as I scrap. But I scrap most often when he is sleeping (we work opposite shifts), so I usually watch something on my iPad while creating pages (love Netflix and Hulu!). Sometimes I put earbuds in and listen to 70’s or 80’s music, depending on my mood.
Is there a technique or tip you’ve learned lately?
I had never really done much art journaling up until a few months ago. I think it is going to take a lot of practice because it is totally different than anything I’ve done in the past, but I’m slowly learning different techniques to create artsy pages.
Is there a fave product you love to work with?
I like to create layered clusters, so am always drawn to kits that have a lot of greenery and flowers.
Has your style changed along the way, and if so, how?
I don’t think my style has changed too much over the past 11 years, my style is pretty “traditional” – lots of clusters with lots of white space.
If you could pass on an idea or tip to a new scrapbooker, what would it be?
Don’t give up and don’t be afraid to ask questions. I remember being so terribly frustrated at times because I couldn’t figure our how to do something with the software I was using! But I kept at it until I figured it out – I asked a lot of questions in the forum and learned so much from fellow scrappers! Even today, not every page I create goes smoothly, sometimes I just can’t find the mojo I need for the page so I throw in the towel and start over, usually grabbing a different photo – that usually does the trick!
I hope you have enjoyed learning a bit about Polly Jill and please go visit her gallery to see the amazing layouts she creates! You can find it HERE.
Leave a Reply