Q:: What are some scrapbooking and designing trends you love right now?
Maya::
I am not sure how trendy I am. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for anything quirky different or unusual. I will always love altered art and I am a collage artist through and through. The 3D fantasy layouts are a real joy to me because they express how liberating digital scrapbooking can be. No one has to worry about whether or not the page in an album or book is going to be capable of closing. There is so much dimension to explore and digital allows for that.

3D realistic elements are in right now, but this would be the second time around and they are being used differently than they were the first time they became popular. In fact, I have been reworking some of my retired kits recently as many of my older kits had plenty of this kind of 3D realistic element.

Q:: What trends are you glad to see have faded away?
Maya::
All art created from the heart is beautiful. I can't say that I ever got tired of anything or glad to see them go. Every artist has their own individual take that keeps life fresh and interesting. Besides, we all know that old things are new again over and over again. That much is predictable when it comes to trends.

Q:: As a store owner and also a designer, what advises would you give designers to stay competitive in this challenging market?
Maya::
I think the greatest measure of success is happiness. While we as humans may be conditioned to think competitively I think it can be a huge distraction for artists and I believe that the less we focus on what anyone else is doing out there, the better.

Create art that really makes YOU happy and tickles your fancy. Don't make art that you think people want to buy. Let the experience of creating the art be entirely self-fulfilling. I am convinced that when we do that, the rest naturally follows. Don't focus on the competition or what other people think of you or your art. Understand that the moment you put your art on the market for sale you are setting yourself up for your greatest challenge as an artist, which is to stay true to yourself. It's not an easy path. It can actually strip the joy completely out of the process if you let it. If you are easily caught up in the web of judgment and you worry about what others think and feel about you, designing will be a very hard road for you. If on the other hand you are able to stay connected to the true creative source, and remain in that light, success will be yours.

I have heard people complain that our market was saturated with designers since 2004. I firmly believe that there is room enough for all of us to each enjoy a slice of the pie of infinite creative potential. I have been saying this since the get-go. We don't have to fight one another over the same skinny little slice. We all have the potential to shine.

Q:: How can you help a designer who isn’t selling well? When do you advise one to retire?
Maya::
I would never advise anyone to retire. It is not my business to decide another person's path. My advice will always be to follow your heart.

If a designer is not selling well there could be any one of a million reasons why not. If her heart is not into it, or she is distracted with other things, the results will often show in her sales. There is not always something I can do to help in that kind of situation. However, sometimes a simple shift in perspective may be all that is needed to change things. I know of one designer who needed only need a few words to understand the potential in her situation that inspired an immediate increase in sales by 800%.

Q:: 7 years in the market is a very long time for a digital scrapbook store since there are many out there who come and go within a short period of time. What do you think make Scrapbookgraphics so successful and popular?
Maya::
You know, at the risk of sounding redundant, it is simply what I love and was meant to do. From a very Zen perspective I know that when I am not on the path, life seems futile and a struggle. When I am on the right path, doors open and opportunities are made available to me. I believe it is like that for all of us. When we are listening to and following our heart we are in synch with the Universe and a plan greater than we could even hope to understand. All of these years later and I am still filled with new inspiration daily, and have a wonderful support network happy to help manifest the dreams into reality.

I also believe that our giving people the freedom to explore their own path and follow their own dream without a lot of rules, or heavy management, may be one of the prime reasons why some of the very best digital designers make SBG their home. We truly want to create a space where creativity is nourished rather than stifled. I myself broke free from of a suffocating, father-knows-best corporate world and I am not about to impose that on anyone else. I have opted instead to providing a space where people of like mind and heart are free to follow their own inner guide. When that happens we all benefit from it.

Q:: What is your favorite thing about owning SBG (Scrapbookgraphics)?
Maya::
Being able to be a work at home mom, doing what I love.

Q:: What kind of exciting things do you have planned for SBG in the coming months? Who organize and come up with new ideas?
Maya::
I always have a million and one big ideas on how we can improve the site, or make things more interesting and fun for our community members. My biggest issue is always whether or not we can manage the work load. Multiple Sclerosis plays a very big part in my decision making with these plans. It is an unpredictable disease and I have to be careful that I don't bite off more than I can chew. I have two very big projects I am working on right now that I really can't talk about yet. The inspiration was just too exciting to ignore, so we are going forward with an action plan. I have to admit that I am feeling a little giddy about where this one may be headed. Lots of fun new stuff we are exploring right now.

Q:: As a designer and owner of a store, do you have time to create layouts too? How often do you do that?
Maya::
I don't create layouts that often anymore. When I am inspired and able, I tend to binge scrap until I have one or two albums done until next year. The truth is that my designing time has been limited as well. However, this isn't a time management issue. This is a health related issue. I suffer with pain in my arms and hands that makes it very difficult to design or scrap at all. However, no matter what the obstacle creativity always finds a way, and changes shape.

Q:: What does your family and friends think of your store and success in this industry?
Maya::
They are all very supportive, thrilled and even amazed, I think. I'm not sure my parents will ever properly understand what it is that I do, even though I have made them plenty of scrapbooks. After explaining it at length to my 70 year old father, he responded with..."Well, I'm not sure I understand it but it sounds ok, and it's legal, right?" :) Honestly, I think the digital scrapbooking community and industry is hard for most people to fathom without being directly involved, but my family can see how happy it makes me and how much my life has benefited because of it and that is all that matters to them.

Q:: What other hobbies or things you enjoy doing beside digital scrapbooking?
Maya::
Mostly I just enjoy hanging around with my men. I love spending time with my family. When I am intentionally trying to unplug, I sometimes enjoy writing. I have more notebooks and journals than anyone I know but they are all messy and filled with doodles, short thoughts and kit ideas. I'm probably the only one that could ever make head or tail out of what is scribbled in those pages and sometimes even I have no clue reading it back later. The exercise of writing comes primarily as a need to creatively express more than to have a finished product of any sort.

Q:: If you were offered a job outside of home equivalent to what you can make with the store and maybe even more, would you do it?
Maya::
Not likely. I have learned by now never to say never to anything, however, I gladly abandoned that world years ago and I can't see myself going back to it. Mick is hollering up to me again to offer that he thinks I might consider it if the pay were right and I could go to work in my pajamas. :) For me it has become pretty clear that if my heart is not into it, it's probably something to be avoided. I would have to be genuinely inspired. and money isn't my motivator.

Q:: How would you best describe yourself?
Maya::
Spiritual. Honest. Grateful. Goofy. Creative. Intuitive. Obsessive. Indulgent. Well intentioned. Open. Chaotic. Strong. Heart centered. Inspired. Committed. Imaginative. Driven. Unique. High Reaching. Courageous. Disorganized. Perfectly flawed. Human.