Meet Ms. December!

Torrey Moseley is Ms. December! She's a seriously talented paper-crafter and has a wicked sense of humor. Check it out for yourself in the following interview!

1. Brief info about yourself, including your name, where you live, your family (if you want), etc.
My name is Torrey Moseley, though, many of you may know me under different last names. Don't ask. Change is good, right? I currently reside in Dallas, Texas--land of big hair. I'm married to a wonderful guy named Jonathan. Not only is he supportive of my paper-crafting obsession, he actually wants to learn how to do it. I haven't figured out yet if it's a case of "can't-beat-'em-join-'em" or if he really WANTS to do it. Doesn't matter...either way, I'm a lucky gal. We don't have kids, thank goodness---cuz I'm too old for them now. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE kids...heck, I was a pediatric nurse for over a quarter of a century. I was just never blessed with kids of my own...so, being a nurse, I got to claim that I actually had HUNDREDS of kids; just never given birth to any of 'em.

2. How long have you been stamping and/or crafting?
I started down my papered journey in 1999, and haven't come up for air since. Originally, I was solely a scrapbook artist. Over the years I've evolved into a full-blown paper-craft artist--cards, tags, collages, mixed media projects, home decor. It's been a running joke between my best friend and me that we are not, Not, NOT stampers. Don't mind the fact that I wrote several magazine articles on stamping, was a design team member for a book on stamping, and that I own like a kajillion of them. I guess some day I'll have to suck it up and admit that I am, indeed, an AVID stamper. Nah. I don't have to admit ANYTHING. :P

3. What are your favorite Bombshell sets and why?
I ADORE the Koi Tattoo, Lotus Garden, and Peek-A-Boo Geisha sets. I'm REALLY into the beauty of Asian imagery. But, I also LOVE all the pin-up girls and their touch-o-naughtiness...OH PLEASE don't make me choose!!!

4. What kind of projects do you like to do?
I am into cards at the present. I like 'em because they're like tiny, little, mini (gee, was that redundant enough?) scrapbook pages that I get to give away. But I'm at the whim of my muse, so check back next week and I might be all about altered art. I'm not fickle...I'm just experiMENTAL (emphasis on the "mental").

5. What are your favorite coloring mediums?
My #1, numero uno, premier choice for coloring is colored pencils. I've tried Copics. I own a LOT of Copics...I'm deathly AFRAID of Copics (Copicphobic is a real term, trust me...I'm a nurse). But, colored pencils? LoVe ThEm!!!! And, when used with odorless mineral spirits for blending...I just can't beat the results. I plan on posting a tutorial about coloring with them. They're my friends. I just love them--from their blunt little ends to the tips of their pointy little heads. I've even given them all names...like "Mr. Chestnut PC 1081" and "Miss Lilac PC 956"...oh wait, those are the names that Prismacolor gave them. Guess I'll just call them all "George" and be done with it.

6. Describe your crafting "style".
Well, SOME people would call me lumpy and chaotic. I prefer the term "Dimensionally Eclectic". I'm a self-proclaimed magpie. My pockets are ALWAYS filled with shiny bits and interesting what-nots. There isn't much I won't or haven't incorporated into my art. If it sits still for more than 5 minutes...it's fair game and a potential subject for my art (eyes neighbor's cat that's lounging on the porch and hasn't moved in 8 minutes).

7. Describe your crafting process. Do you start with a stamp set? A sketch? A technique you want to use?
I am TOTALLY a minion to my muse. She points me in the direction to go, then unhooks my leash and turns me loose. I RARELY plan anything out. I'm a spontaneous crafter... I sorta tend to be all over the place,  which is a nice way of saying I'm a bit A.D.D. when it comes to my art. LOOK! A squirrel! Do you like cheese? I'm hungry. Ooooh, pretty butterfly! Hi!

I gather shards of inspiration from everything, anywhere. I tend to look at my world around me with an artful eye (er rather, 4 EYES, as I wear glasses--well technically 6, 'cuz they're bifocals). Color combinations, textures, patterns, lines/contours--the beauty is EVERYWHERE, and is often in the least likely of places. Usually my projects just sort of float into my consciousness from who-knows-where. And, when they surface, they're usually complete, not just sketchy, nebulous ideas. It's a very Zen/Stream-Of-Consciousness sort of thing.

8. Do you have any other hobbies?
Um, let's see...I am pretty much a renaissance chick so yeah...there are a few. Cooking, Photoshop (I like to make little animated .gifs for forum signatures/avatars...wanna see some? Go Here), photography, poetry, WRITING, MMORPG (Massive Multi-player Online Role Playing Games--yeah I'm a WoW chick--FOR THE ALLIANCE!!!), miniatures, reading, garage sale-ing, photo restoration, singing...I could go on and on.

9. Free for all including little facts, etc. about you.
Oooh, free-for-all.
• I can name all 50 states in alphabetical order in less than 30 seconds.
• I'm a "retired" nurse practitioner.
• I have chameleon eyes that go from brown to amber to jade green depending on my mood (like those mood rings from the 70s).
• I was one of the Original Memory Makers Masters (back in 2003--at the apex of when Memory Makers was an EXCELLENT magazine).
• I can balance a broomstick (vertically, on its end) on the tip of my finger while reciting the Greek poem "Erotokritos" IN GREEK. (I'm kidding, I don't even know Greek, except for how to say "baklava" and "spanikopita").
• I have ONE tattoo--it's on my ankle. My mom calls it my "identifying mark" if I were ever to be horribly disfigured in a car accident she could identify me from it. I don't think she likes it much. It comes with a HILARIOUS story that I'll be happy to tell you about...later.
• I am sort of Acrophobic. Me + heights = not pretty. Add that to my Copicphobia and you get AcroCopicphobia--a fear of coloring with markers at great heights. Yeah, that's it.

Now that you've gotten to know more about Torrey, here are three of her favorite Bombshell projects!





Since the above probably whetted your appetite for more Torrey-esque eye candy, check out her blog and her Bombshell Gallery!