about
As far back as I can remember, I have always loved making things with my own two hands.
After high school, I studied Multimedia Design at San Diego State University and graduated in 2009…smack dab in the middle of a recession with no job prospects in sight. (Insert quarter-life crisis here.)
A year and a handful of odd jobs later, I applied for an In-House Scrapbooker / Product Designer position at American Crafts in Utah (mind you, I live in Southern California…what in the world was I thinking?!), not really expecting anything to come of it. Three weeks later I was living in Orem, Utah.
Working at my (then) dream job was an amazing, invaluable, unforgettable experience that taught me so much about design, marketing, and finding things to do on a Sunday in the Mormon bible belt.
In early 2012, I was laid off from AC. In that moment I was crushed (what am I doing with my life??), but in the big picture, it was the BEST thing that could have happened. I got to move home to California. I got to start fresh. I got to do what I wanted to do all along: pursue MY creative passions and work for myself!
And so here I am. Each workday is different than the one before. At any given moment, I could be wearing five different “hats.” The hours are crazy, the dress code is nonexistent, and I am free to take a nap whenever I need one. I wouldn’t trade this job for anything!
xoxo
Thank you for stopping by and feel free to drop me a line anytime! annmarie.morris15@gmail.com
annmarielovespaper.wordpress.com 
11 Responses to “about”
love your blog..
I’ve been seeing your pages in Scrapbook Trends and I always really like them. So I came to scope you out : ) Just wanted to see what your blog was like – enjoyed reading about how you moved to Utah from CA so you could play with paper more! How great for you! I admire that! So anyway, just wanted to say hi. DO you ever hang out at Studio Calico? I’m there alot – drop by and see us sometime!
Briana Johnson
You moved away from me no!! haha Your very pretty! & very talented!! WOW, utah…nice! Doing what you love….even better!
@marisakquijano: thank you!!!
your stuff is so freaking cute….
AC is one of my fav companies…. you’re one lucky girl!
Merry Christmas…
Ann-Maire, you inspire me and I know your love of paper, because I too LOVE LOVE LOVE paper! I was wondering if you could guide me on where to start to get to what you do. You have my dream job! Thank you for your help!
Loyally,
Emilee
Hi Emilee – what a sweet comment! If I knew of a special formula for getting into this industry, I would definitely share it with you. For me personally, I got my Bachelors Degree in Multimedia Design in 2009 and graduated smack dab in the middle of the recession. There were virtually NO jobs to be had, so I was forced to take on odd non-design jobs here and there. One day (about a year later) I saw Kelly Purkey tweet about an In-House Designer/Scrapbooker position opening at American Crafts and on a whim, I applied for it. Before I knew it, I was packing up my life in California and moving to Utah within a matter of 3 weeks! It was pretty crazy but oh-so-worth it. I would say the best way to get yourself out there is to maintain a blog and post images of your work as often as possible. Really develop your own style and show everyone what you’re made of. It also helps to post in galleries and comment on the projects of people who truly inspire you. I think the secret is to REALLY LOVE this hobby. Love it enough to work on it even when you’re not inspired, because that’s the nature of this job. It’s 40 hours a week, Monday through Friday. Sometimes it definitely feels more like a job than a hobby, but it truly is one of the best things I’ve ever done. I hope this helps! I know you can make it if you want it bad enough 🙂
Would like to talk to you about designing paper.. cant find direct email address.. please contact me!
How nice it is to fulfill a childhood dream and loving it! Keep it up with the other interests! You seem like a very outgoing person.Love your blog! 🙂
We like your stamps.. We have posted them on our blog. Keep up loving paper:)
Hey Ann-Marie!
I found your blog through Pinterest and I must say, you make me want to scrapbook again! As soon as I’m living in my country again, I’m going to start doing that again! A while ago, I did a post on a scrapbook I made! It would mean a lot if you’d take a look at it!
http://prettylittletreasures.wordpress.com/category/my-creative-side/
I’ll keep following your creative views! Thanks for sharing it!
xoxo
Jules