Spotlight: Elena Olinevich 2017 G45 Brand Ambassador

Hello, G45ers!

We hope you are having a great Friday and are ready for one more Graphic 45 Brand Ambassador announcement before the weekend gets started. Today, we are honoring Elena Olinevich, who is joining us again for 2017. Elena has done so many creative projects for us this last year, and we are looking forward to seeing more of her inspiring cards, layouts, and watercolor/mixed media techniques. Today, she shares some interesting details about her own life, along with a terrific Vintage Hollywood mini-album, complete with YouTube tutorial and insightful tips. Read on to get the inside scoop on Elena's crafting style, and after that, stick around for the announcement of this week's blog prize winner. 

Elena Olinevich

"First, I would like to share with you my excitement for staying for one more term with Graphic45 family. I am so blessed and lucky to be able to now be named G45 Brand Ambassador.

 Also, I want to thank G45 family and you, the readers and followers of G45 blog for all the kind words you give all the time. I wish I could say thank you to every single comment on the blog, Facebook, and Instagram. I am amazed how many times my projects were pinned from the G45 blog, and it makes me feel really happy that I can be an inspiration for someone.

Well, a few words about myself. I am from Belarus , Eastern Europe, in my middle 30s. I have been a creative person since I was a child. Then a had a long break while I studied at the University and was busy at my full time job. While I had reached a lot in my career life, I felt that I missed something. I had no time to enjoy life, so it was a hard decision, but I decided to step away. I took a break to decide what I really want to do, since I had a 3 year old daughter and I wanted to be a mother, a wife, and a person, not just a key account manager.

As you might  have realized, my life has changed since that time  in 2010 – I started crafting again. I feel so very happy that now I am a full time artist, and I still have the time for me, for my work, for my family.

Fun Facts:

• I craft daily (almost), even for a few hours.
• I prefer to craft when there is no one at home, and I prefer the silence. If I turn on the music, I start singing, not crafting.
• I am very obsessed with the details; that is why even creating a card can take me more than one day.
• I love watercolor and I am trying to combine my 2 passions – watercoloring and papercrafting.
• I started as a cardmaker, then I switched to creating scrapbooking pages. After that I felt that mixed media was something that attracted me most of all, and I love doing big elements and complicated albums. What hasn’t captured me yet – it seems that off the page projects are still something that I haven’t tried enough.

Vintage Hollywood Tag Mini Album

by Elena Olinevich
 

"In creating with Graphic 45 products, I have discovered some new ideas. I used to create big albums , but what a joy I felt creating a cute mini-album using the Staples Tags.

 Vintage Hollywood is my one of my favorite collections at the moment.

A few months ago I made a Camera box using the Book box for one of my assignments. If you are interestied, you can check it on the Graphic 45 blog here.

 So I wondered what kind of mini album I could create to put it into that box and I decided to make a Tag mini album with alphas from the Alpha Banner set – using the word CINEMA for the large alphas, and HOLLYWOOD for the smaller ones.

 It was something new for me. I have never used them for the banner. I always put them as an embellishment into my projects, but actually it was a good idea to put the main words into my album to keep the idea of Vintage Hollywood.

 I also determined that I needed to use all of the Tags and Pockets pack and to showcase the Ephemera cards, as their back side is full of awesome background for putting notes or memories.

 I would like to share some of the tips I have discovered while working on my project.

I also featured them in my video tutorial. I didn’t made a long boring film process, I only showed some of my tips in my first video

Vintage Tag Mini Album YouTube Tutorial

1. If you create a Tag mini album, think on how to add some functional pockets. Since the size of tag mini album is very limited such kind of extra space allows you to put more pictures or cards inside.
    
2. I suggest people to use the Ephemera cards. They add more texture and their backside can be used for many occasions such as putting the note, keeping the photos, and so on.
    
3. Since the Pockets made specially for this collection have the awesome design and color, I suggest to adhere them one size – to one tag size, and the other – to the backside. In fact, you receive 2 separate pockets at once, and you still showcase the beautiful pattern (You can check my video on how to do that.)
    
4. Make you alpha banners more creative. Play with the background for them. You can take the more busy background or even play with the images on it. In my case, I put the image of the embracing couple under the alpha, and you still see them, however there is something secret in this.
    
5. While decorating the tags for your mini, keep in my that they can be used not only as the beautiful cards, but also can be a part of embellishments for your photos. That is why it is a good idea to keep some space for this.

I also filmed the video tour of my Tag mini album, you are welcome to check it too." ~Elena Olinevich

Video Tour of the Complete Mini Album

Graphic 45 Supplies:

• Vintage Hollywood 12×12 Pad
• Vintage Hollywood 8×8 Pad
• Vintage Hollywood Patterns & Solids Pad
• Vintage Hollywood Tags and Pockets
• Vintage Hollywood Ephemera Cards

Graphic45 Staples:

• Regular Tag Album – Black
• Alpha Banner – Black
• Alpha Banner – ATC Black
• Alpha Banner – ATC Red

This week's randomly chosen winner is…Whendi Whalen, who commented on Facebook to say, "What pretty papers, I love all G45 items! Thanks for the chance to win!" Congratulations, Whendi! Please contact info@g45papers.com with your shipping details to claim your prize.

This week's prize package includes two 12×12 Off to the Races Paper pads, design and Patterns & Solids, Die-Cut Banners, Chipboard, Shabby Chic Metal Clock Keys, Black Regular Tag Album, and Celebrate ATC Ivory Tags, a $76 value!

Thanks for joining us for another day of Brand Ambassador announcements. We are so happy to feature Elena and her beautiful Vintage Hollywood mini-album. Thanks to her for sharing so much of herself and her work with us today with her thoughtful and details biography and project. Congratulations again to our weekly winner, Whendi. We will see you all back here next week for more Brand Ambassador introductions and more beautiful crafting inspiration. 
 

Happy Papercrafting!