Crafter In The Spotlight 8 - Itsy Bitsy

Hello friends!! Itsy Bitsy brings you "CRAFTER IN THE SPOTLIGHT" – a unique way of encouraging and appreciating the talented crafters. We recognize talented crafters week after week, turn the spotlight on them & feature them in our "CRAFTER IN THE SPOTLIGHT"! We love what you talented crafters create & are amazed at each of your unique creations every single day! We love the way you use Itsy Bitsy products & give life to those products.

We are delighted to announce this week’s “CRAFTER IN THE SPOTLIGHT” - July 2016 – MANISHA GUPTA! A Commerce graduate by academics, this extremely talented crafter got bitten by the Craft Bug when she first walked into an Itsy Bitsy store in Bangalore! :-) Card Making is her favourite craft & her creations are clean & elegant ! This young mother plans her crafting on Weekends & at nights & loves experimenting with various techniques!!

CONGRATULATIONS Manisha Gupta! Wishing you loads of success on your creative Journey!

Here are excerpts of my interview with Manisha:

Rashmi Closepet, MD, Itsy Bitsy: Tell us a bit about yourself, your background? Where are you originally from?

Manisha Gupta: Hello Rashmi. Thank you and the entire team of Itsy Bitsy for appreciating my work and giving this great platform to showcase the creations.I was born and brought up in Assam, completed my graduation in commerce from Kolkata and shifted to Bangalore in 2004, spent half my life in Bangalore and this city has become my Home now. I am working for HP as a Program Manager. I am blessed with 2 beautiful children (5 &1/2 yr n 7 months old)

RC: How did you get into crafting?

MG: I was always inclined towards arts and craft from the very childhood but it was ignored for few years till the time I walked into an ItsyBitsy store. I was thrilled to see the huge variety of supplies under one roof in Itsy-Bitsy. It just gave me the motivation to explore the world of crafts again. Since then I have always made birthday invitation/thank you gifts, favour bags on my son’s birthday every year. I am so happy that I started crafting, it’s a huge stress buster for me.

RC: What is your favourite type of craft?

MG: I love to learn and try new techniques, however I just love card making. I like sewing as well but don’t get much time to do that.

RC: What are your favourite products at Itsy Bitsy?

MG: If I could afford I would have bought the entire store, love all the products. To name a few I usually pick up Papers, ribbons, stamp sets, embossing folders, Inks, heat embossing supplies, embellishments and the list can go on & on.

RC: What products from Itsy Bitsy do you think are must have’s for a crafter?

MG: BIG SHOT machine is a must for any crafter.

RC: What product would you like to see at Itsy Bitsy?

MG: I would like to see more varieties and options of die-cut, stamp set, inks, ribbons

RC: What do you do to make your workplace inspiring?

MG: All my craft supplies are sorted and segregated in separate boxes which keep my Workstation neat and tidy. Apart from that I always keep a calendar which tells me the events for the year stuck on the soft board. Any occasion like birthdays, anniversary, baby arrival or festivals inspire me to create something new which can be gifted. It give me immense pleasure and so much satisfaction to gift a handcrafted item to the loved ones on their special day/occasion.

RC: What are your other interests?

MG: I enjoy spending my time with my little ones. Gardening is my second passion after crafting. I have a 2 beautiful terrace gardens with more than 100 pots and love to get my hands dirty whenever possible.

RC: If you had magic powers, what would you want to contribute to the Crafting world ?

MG: If I had magical powers I would want handicrafts to be a part of school curriculum for both Urban and Rural children. The traditional, diverse and rich handicrafts of india are dying, as it doesn’t fetch enough money for a decent living. Also the platform to showcase the art is limited. Given a chance I would like to design a curriculum for the Subject “Craft” which would give the platform for children to learn the rich & traditional handicrafts from all around the world. Also would like to revive some exquisite form of traditional art/craft which is gradually dying out in India.

RC: What is your most treasured possession in your craft stash?

MG: My Bigshot machine - I love to flaunt my BIGSHOT to the visitors who want to see my crafts & creations.

RC: How would you describe your style of crafting?

MG: Well my crafting style changes as per the project I am working on. There is no one particular style which I can call out. I love learning and exploring new techniques and styles which I implement in the projects.

RC: What do you do when you’re suffering a creative block?

MG: I take a break and go with the flow and don’t bother much.  However, with technology at our finger tips I always take help of online videos and blogs to channelize my creative thoughts. My 5 and half year son also helps me with amazing ideas. My husband is the biggest critic and that helps me to refine my creations.

RC: How do you organize your time for crafting?

MG: I am not a full time crafter, however very ambitious of become one someday. Most of the time I design the layout in my mind before starting the project, so that saves me from wasting time on experimenting different techniques and styles. I usually do all my crafting during weekends. During week days if I plan to finish any project, I prioritize my chores and save some time out for crafting at night post kids are off to sleep.

RC: Tips for people who want to craft?

MG: Crafting world is humongous. The more you explore, more you learn. The wide variety of craft supplies that is available today makes it easy to try and learn different techniques. All creations are unique and there is nothing right and wrong in Crafting. Just wear your creative hats and create wonders.

Here are a couple of Manisha’s awesome creations :

Many congrats Manisha for being the CRAFTER IN THE SPOTLIGHT - ITSY BITSY :-) :-)

You will receive Rs 500/- Itsy Bitsy gift voucher :-) :-) & a Crafter in the Spotlight badge, which can be proudly displayed on the side bar of your blog.

Also, visit our Youtube channel to view & to know more about this crafter – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M60mkBgwm7Y

Looking forward to many more creations, Happy Crafting!