If you love making folded flowers, this is your project!

My very favorite part, the Gluber flower nest. Why didn't I think of that?! Thanks for sharing this with us Natalie McRae, you are awesome!
Part two of today's entry is an interview I did for Laura McAllister. Laura is a student studying design. She was given the assignment to interview a designer that she admired in the field and somehow, she picked me. I was very flattered.
Anyway, I read my answers to Eric after I filled it out and he thought you all may be interested. So, I asked Laura for permission to share it with you.
QUESTIONS:
SCHOOL/WORK
1. Where and what did you study?
I went to school at Utah State University. I studied design and graduated with a Bachelor's of Fine Art.
2. Why did you decide to study graphic design?
I really enjoy being creative and design is a great outlet for that.
3. While you were studying, did you already know what area of design you wanted to work in? Did you end up working in that area or did you end up doing something totally different? What kind of places have you worked in (doing graphic design) or have you worked as a freelancer?
I planned to work as an art director at an ad agency. I did just that for one year after I graduated at a firm called Scopes, Garcia, Carlisle. Then, I had my first baby and quit to stay home. I did freelance work off and on until I started designing for Cosmo Cricket.
4. What do you love about design and being a graphic designer? And what is your least favourite aspect?
I love coming up with the ideas. My least favorite part is production work.
5. What do you need for your work environment? Do you need peace and quiet, or must you have music blaring? Is your desk full of different things, or is it totally empty (no distracting things *smile*)?
My desk is always a crazy mess of doodled on papers and sketchbooks. What I listen to depends on what I'm working on. A tedious project calls for music I can sing too. Something difficult to do, like a complicated repeat, calls for quiet or soft background music.
6. If you had to relocate your studio, what would be the most important thing you would take with you? i.e. what would you make absolutely sure you didn’t leave behind?
I guess I have to say Eric, since he and I work together. But I love my mac and wacom too.
7. How would you describe your work style? Are you structured and organized, or do you tend to wing it and see what happens?
I always have a clear vision of what I want when I start. Sometimes better ideas come along as I am working and I am taken in a different path, but I never try to design without a good vision.
8. Do you use any software tools beyond the Adobe range? What tools do you spend the most time with?
I stick to Adobe and use Illustrator the most.
9. Do you think that quirkiness in a designer is a good thing, and if so, how/why?
Well I hope so, because I have been called quirky more than once. I think being right-brained makes one different than the mainstream. Being different is often perceived as quirky.
10. How big a role do you think self-confidence and people skills play in being a successful designer?
I don't think they are as important as design. I don't have great people skills. I'm nice, but I'm awkward in social settings. I can't help it. As for self-confidence, this is necessary for an artist to be true to their work. An artist without self-confidence may cave to the criticism of others and forget their inner voice.
11. Are you good at drawing/illustrating, and do you think that this skill is essential to becoming a good designer?
I am OK at drawing. Eric is much better at it than I am. It is definitely an asset and if I didn't have him to rely on so much, I would spend more time improving my abilities here.
12. Since I started studying graphic design, I seem to be looking at ads everywhere and analysing them. Is there something that always annoys you about ads or something that you think that is way overused?
I appreciate good design and creative thinking. I hate ads that don't offer either. I really hate ads that don't have a point... nothing to say, nothing to think about, nothing to enjoy looking at. Such a waste!
INSPIRATION
13. Do you have a favourite book or website etc that you refer to often when you need inspiration?
I like several sights including designsponge.com and printpattern.com
14. What book(s) should be on every graphic designer’s bookshelf?
A sketchbook. Really, I don't look at design books all that much.
15. What do you do when you can’t come up with an idea? Are you ever scared of running out of ideas and never being able to come up with something new and different again?
I never worry about not having new ideas. I do worry about not having good ideas. When I don't have any ideas, I take a walk. Then I try again. If it doesn't work I repeat.
16. Do you switch off from design when your work day ends, or do you still notice lots of design around you?
I notice design 24/7. Eric and I are ridiculous together. We go to the coffee shop and comment on the colors of the woman's scarf sitting behind us. We go to the library and comment on the design of the book covers. I even posted some typography I noticed in a parking lot once.
17. Do you ever find inspiration at ordinary times, say when you are at the supermarket or doing laundry? – And what do you do if a great idea hits you?
I am most likely to get a really great idea while doing something mundane. I have a pretty good memory for them. This is probably because I tell Eric right away and saying it out loud makes me remember it.
COSMO CRICKET
18. How did you make the jump from full-time employment (ok, I don’t even know if you were working full time before this, but anyway… :)) to running your own business? Was there a particular catalyst?
Before Cosmo Cricket, I was a stay-at-home mom with an occasional project. It was a difficult transition which I'm not sure I ever fully made. I am constantly trying to manage and juggle everything and more often than not I feel like I am failing at that.
19. After working for yourself, do you see yourself ever going back to working for someone else?
Yes. I work for other people with all our license partners. I actually really enjoy working for other people. I like to make people happy.
20. I think I read that you recently sold Cosmo Cricket to Advantus, right? I was wondering if that was very much a win-win situation as does that mean that you have now less of the ‘business’ stuff to deal with and you can just concentrate on the creative stuff?
That's exactly what it means and why we did it. I will be designing for them just like our other clients.
21. You work with your husband… when you work on a line, do each of you have clearly defined roles as to who does what? If releasing say two lines, does one of you focus on one, the other on the other?
We overlap very much and it can be very hard to tell where I end and Eric begins. However, we each have our own strengths too. Eric is a better illustrator. I am a better pattern designer. We compliment each other nicely.
22. When you start designing a paper line, how do you go about it? Do you start with colours or themes, perhaps an inspiration board or photographs?
We never use an inspiration board (although there have been times I've put one together after the fact for sales presentations and things). I usually have an idea in my mind and Eric and I are so close that he can see it when I explain it to him. He starts with some sketches that will become elements for chipboard and maybe patterns. We both do color so that just depends on the line. I do most of the pattern work, usually incorporating a few motifs from Eric's sketches. Then we come back to filling in the rest of the embellishments and icons.
23. Do you create pen/pencil sketches first, or do you do everything at the computer?
We almost always start on paper first.
24. Do you usually have a solid idea of what your design will look like or does the idea evolve as you work on it?
It's usually pretty clear in my mind when we begin.
25. Ah, this is a question I am so eager to get an answer to: how do you pick up your colour combinations? Is it by colour wheel, experience, just off the top of your head or simply trial and error? There is one Cosmo Cricket paper that has been my favourite since I saw it, because I loved the colour combination. It was the stripey paper from Jolly by Golly line. Oh yes, it was called Sweater weather.
We just pick colors we like. Eric picked the Jolly By Golly color pallet and I had the hardest time working with it. All those bright colors are hard to place next to each other and not cause a headache. I was glad when that line was finished. It's one thing to use them in small work like Eric was doing for the chipboard. It's quite another thing to place them next to each other in repeating patterns!
26. I read in an interview that you love designing patterns. When you’re designing a pattern, how do you get it started? What format is it in at that stage? What scale/how big is it? Are there any main principles to pattern design?
I always start with a 12.5" blank square in Illustrator. I usually have something in mind and begin building the pattern in the upper left corner by drawing out the shapes. Then I play with the shapes for quite a bit to determine their arrangement and scale. I just play with it until it feels right. I may do 4-6 different versions of the same or similar pattern before I am done.
27. What is your favourite Cosmo Cricket paper line?
Right now, it is Circa 1934.
28. I think you design fabrics now, too. Is that something that you really love doing? Is there something that you secretly wish that you could design one day?
I always wanted to design fabric because I love sewing. I would love to see my designs on handbags one day. That would be awesome!
29. Any tips you might have for someone just getting started?
Respect criticism from people in your industry. Learn as much from them as you can. Try, try and then try again. When someone doesn't think you're work is good, don't feel bad, don't cry, don't complain. Just prove them wrong by trying harder the next time. That's what I do. And believe me, even now there are lots of times I have to pick myself back up and try harder.