Designer Spotlight with Paige Evans: Nicole Martel

Nicole Martel is in the spotlight today, sharing some of her favorite layouts as well as a brand new layout! She also answered some questions and listed her social media sites so you can find more of her fun designs!

Name: Nicole Martel
Location: Crownsville, MD
Blog: nicolemartel.blogspot.com
Instagram: @nicolemartel6542
Pinterest: @nmartel
Facebook: nicole.martel.1675

Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started crafting: Since I was a teenager, I’ve always had an interest in art. I even took a few art classes in college. And taking pictures has always been my hobby since I was a teenager. When I was 21 years old, my mother invited me to a Creative Memories workshop and I’ve been hooked since! I will be honest, I totally made fun of her for scrapbooking; I had no idea how fun this hobby would be when I started. I’ve been scapbooking for 18 years and I am still learning more things as the years go by. I LOVE it. It’s my passion and my therapy. I think therapy would be cheaper though… LOL.

Favorite thing to create: I create mainly layouts, but every now and then I’ll create a mini album or card. I love making mini albums for my friends and family! I also love to frame layouts to give as gifts to my family. It makes me feel good to share something that I poured my heart and soul into.

What do you love about this hobby? I love the scrapbooking product, but mainly what I love about this hobby is the friendships I’ve built over the years! I’ve become friends with so many ladies who share the same passion as me and I just love that. And these ladies live far from me, but when I see them on Google Hangout, it’s like they are in my scrap room with me. Seriously, it’s awesome.

5 fun facts about yourself:
1. I zipped lined 355 feet in the air when I was in Costa Rica back in 2005. It was so cool.
2. When I was 19 years old, I played goalie for a Novice Adult Ice Hockey League. Getting bruises from the puck was always fun.
3. I’ve been working for a credit union for almost 9 years (same job) and I love it. I enjoy helping people. It’s what I do.
4. I love eating breakfast for dinner. I’m not a real good cook, but I can do breakfast! My favorite is French toast, scrambled eggs and bacon. Yum, although, I can never cook the bacon just right…
5. I really love to read, but my problem is I can’t seem to give up Netflix. It’s addicting! 

SWEET FAMILY by Nicole Martel

I love the patterns in the Cool as a Cucumber Soup collection by Jillibean Soup and since I couldn’t decide on which patterns, I decided to use three different patterns and cut them to make them work for this layout. I love patterned paper!

A BEAUTIFUL LIFE by Nicole Martel

I created the background using heart stamps by Ali Edwards. I love the way the hearts look in orange, yellow and blue. The colors match my son’s personality in the photo.

FEELINGS VS. FACTS by Nicole Martel

For this layout, I kept the design simple, using journaling cards as my photo mat. I printed the journaling on white cardstock before embellishing this layout. I used a few stamps by Ali Edwards for my title and sub-title. I love how much impact the stamps add to this layout.

HAPPY PLACE by Nicole Martel

This layout is my most recent favorite. I used my Silhouette Portrait to sketch the digital cut file on white cardstock using a purple sketch pen. Then I used a few journaling cards to mat my photo. I decided to add some buttons in the flowers to add more dimension to the layout.

LOVE by Nicole Martel

Most of the photos that I scrapbook include candid shots. I love capturing a natural moment between two people. In this case, I whipped out my cell phone to snap this shot. My son was totally unaware… and I just love it. The Pinkfresh Studio papers and embellishments goes so well with this photo! I love when that happens.

I love how Nicole scraps in 8.5 x 11!! Scrapbooking is a little different for each of us but in the end it’s the photos preserved and memories that matter most!