Iron Crafter Feature – Melinda Hileman

What is your name?

Melinda Hileman

Where do you live?

Jacksonville, FL (with my husband and rottweiler, Kona)

My craft technique repertoire has grown so much in the last few months! My grandma started me on plastic canvas when I was young, and I still love that. Paper crafts and paper-piecing are fun when you don’t get paper cuts (note: I can’t cut a straight line to save my life)! I’m trying to get back into sewing (so I’ve made some plushies, and cross-stitch). I am also into baking and cake decorating (Mom got me hooked on Wilton, but I have to be careful because this hobby made me gain a few pounds!) I love learning new crafting techniques, I so I look forward to growing that list!

I get my inspiration from the Internet (other crafters have such great ideas that I can expand on!) and my grandmother (she was an awesome crafter!). I love Danish modern furniture, Scandinavian art and design, and anything geeky or just plain cute!

I’d love to learn how to knit or crochet, and how to up-cycle clothes (its hard to find cute things that fit me/hide my tummy/make me look my age, so I want to know how to make things fit, and how to make them fashionable). I also want to learn more about embroidery – there are so many things you can do with it, and I definitely want it to be my next technique to master!

I am a staff writer for Dollar Store Crafts and sell my wire-wrapped stone jewelry at Grounding Stones Jewelry. I run Hileman Design, which does freelance graphic design, web design and desktop publishing (hilemanholdings.com). I’m available to try out products, make customized crafts and guest-post on your blog (or even create a new one for you), so shoot me an email at melinda@hilemanholdings.com

Why I craft: I work from home, and don’t have a car, plus I don’t have any friends here (its hard to meet people in a new city when you work from home!), and I am a borderline hoarder, so crafting lets me get out my creative ideas, be productive, and use some of the stuff I’ve stored away!

What I need to improve on: Organization, organization, organization (and remembering to organize things, not just throw them on the pile!)