Blog Love: Whip Up

The person I am about to introduce needs no introduction - she's been a regular read ever since I first began crafting and blogging - the blog she began in 2006, Whipup, was a major source of inspiration for me when I began Feeling Stitchy, 5 years ago.

It's a huge honor that Kathreen was able to answer a few questions for us, and kick off a series of special interviews with blogs I've loved over the years that have brought creativity, beauty, and diversity to our online crafting community. So, get comfortable, prepare to click around and be inspired, and let's all have a talk with Kathreen Ricketson:

{ You 5 years ago }

Top: Rob and Kath sitting at swim practice waiting and waiting

Below: My two kids five years ago - just little ones playing at the beach

from a blog post 5 years ago 
"for today - we are making Irish Stew, going to round up the chooks before they dig holes all over the garden, and go and do the never ending grocery shopping. The kids are raiding the craft box and are thinking about inviting a friend over later. They were quite inventive and co-operated this morning by making themselves breakfast in bed."

Lately I’ve been feeling that the blogging landscape has changed so much in the past 5 years - do you feel that, too? Do you think you’ve changed and evolved as a blogger in the past 5 years?

Oh definitely. I can't keep up anymore. So many new blogs and bloggers -- it is exciting and nourishing but also quite daunting too. I feel like having blogged for so long I should be able to keep up with it all - but everyday there is something new, new projects and crafts and tutorials and swaps and groups. For me personally I am blogging differently than 5 years ago - I used to have a personal family/craft/kids type blog but I found it too much to be writing about my personal life online. I have been involved in lots of projects over the years, swaps etc, I also had a stint writing for Treehugger. But now I am concentrating on Whipup and my kids magazine Action Pack and my books.





Our lives have become so inundated with the internet - how do you maintain a healthy balance of online vs. offline?

I think to key to staying sane in this exponentially expanding craft blog world is to not get overwhelmed and feel you have to do it all and read it all. It is so easy to forget the purpose of it all and get trapped in blog land don't you think? I try to maintain a schedule and not look at emails everyday ... it can take a lot of time answering emails!




Whip Up is filled with inspiration and craft posts from bloggers all over the world - as editor, do you find yourself doing a lot of brainstorming and planning, or does it all just “come together”?

A bit of both. I occasionally have themes and invite guest bloggers when I need a break or am going on holiday. I have some regular posts such as a roundups and newsletters and book reviews and I often will do a series of posts on a particular subject of interest such as getting your craft book published: http://whipup.net/2012/01/12/how-to-get-your-craft-book-published-part-1/




What is your first crafting memory?

Sewing with my grandmother. This is a picture of me and my nanna going to a ball. We are both wearing homemade dresses -- she helped me to sew my dress and she made her outfit.




Can you please show us your favorite crafty project?

This is one of the quilts from my recent book - Little Bits Quilting Bee - I love it because it just came together so perfectly. I love the colours and the striking simple design and I love the quilting -- such a labour of love!




Do you have a favorite craft?
I love to sew and to crochet.




Do you own a TV? Do you watch it?
No we don't own a tv. (yup - I had a feeling!) :)




Name your 5 favorite films?
These are five films that I love - not sure if they are my absolute favourites - but I have watched these more than once and would happily watch them again - great films.

Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Being John Malkovich (1999)
Withnail And I (1987)
Amelie (2001)

*****

Thank you, Kathreen, for letting us get to know you better! All images in this post are used courtesy of Kathreen, and come from Whipup, Action Pack magazine, and her recent book from Chronicle: Little Bits Quilting Bee. I'd like to say thank you again to Kathreen for making the blogging community a richer, more colorful, more beautiful place. You have been an inspiration to me and to all of us crafters online! <3