Honestly; when I started Craft Critique I didn't know what the future would bring. My initial goal was to gather some talented writers together... people who were already writing about their favorite crafty products... and form a collective. The world of crafty bloggers was just taking off, and so many of my friends were talking about their favorite companies on their blogs... but not benefiting in any way! I thought, by getting everyone together in one place we can help each other, share readers, and cross promote to each other's blogs!
My dream was to become a one stop shop for craft product reviews; the Consumer Reports of craft. Not JUST scrapping and stamping... but all crafts! I mean, how many of us are just doing one kind of craft... most of us dabble in a lot of different areas. Plus, I wanted to help my favorite crafty companies; because they deserve a shout out, and because we all want to know what other people really LIKE... and what products just aren't worth the money.
So I just started blogging! The first articles I posted were just links to other crafty blogs and press releases... and well, people liked it! So I held our first call for reporters... Enter Melissa Norris!
Let me stop right here to take this opportunity to thank Melissa from the very bottom of my heart. She is really the reason Craft Critique is still here. When it comes right down to it, I am a marketer and a salesperson... an idea girl... a talker. But organization is NOT my strong suit. Melissa is the gal who keeps Craft Critique moving forward. She is the ying to my yang and she can also read my mind... a wonderful quality in a managing editor!
Then there is Dana Vitek... I knew I liked her when I saw her application and she informed me that I had to select her for our team because I once told her (in a thread on splitcoaststampers) that she rocked. She was absolutely right! Dana's sense of humor and mad grammatical skilz are essential to Craft Critique's daily functionality, and to my mental health. She absolutely DOES ROCK!
All of our wonderful reporters, past, present and future deserve a big round of applause!
Our current staff...
Senior Staff Reporters:
Heather Strenzwilk
Katie Renz
Kimberly Brimhall
Kim Fox
Kristine Fowler
Lexi Daly
Martha Bonneau
Sara McKenzie
Tracy Shultz
Staff Reporters:
Reyanna Klein
Megan Lock
Heather Voinski
Jo-Anne te Raa
Suzy Haghighi
Specialty Reporters:
Julia Stainton
Papercrafts Specialist
Simone Collins
Trend Reporting
Susie Ziegler
Fabric Crafts Specialist
And of course our readers… what would we do without our amazing readers! You are the people who participate in our blog carnivals, leave your comments and opinions, and take the time to read our little ole blog! We couldn’t do it without you! It’s because of you that Craft Critique is like a runaway train! It just can not be stopped! With over 120,000 monthly readers we are here to stay!
While we are on the subject… if you already have a link to Craft Critique listed on your blog roll or website PLEASE let is know so we can include you on our “Crafty Bloggers who support Craft Critique” list. If you’d like to add us to your blog you can find fun blog widgets and blinkies on our sidebar to download. Then, just drop us an email at info@craftcritique.com and let us know you added us so we can add you!
And that brings us to our next giveaway… All I want you to do is tell someone about Craft Critique! You can do this in a number of ways…
- Post something about us on your blog, in a post, on the sidebar… wherever!
The prize includes 3 full collections (Lime Rickey, Wassail, and Porcelain) and some embellishments from Basic Grey, American Crafts thickers and ribbon, Stampin’ Up! mini book, paper and stamps, A Muse notecards, Pearls and rhinestones from Kaiser Craft, glitter and sparkle decoupage from Duncan, scalloped chipboard book from Maya Road, photo splits from Scotch 3M, the books; Creepy Cute Crochet: Zombies, Ninjas, Robots, and More!
I am basically going to keep stuffing stuff into the box till I can barely tape it shut!
And the winner is!!!....
Consider yourself twittered. ;-)