What a Creative Year 2012 has been! (Giveaway)

Hello my Crafty Friends!  With the end of 2012 looming near I wanted to write a post celebrating 2012's crafty achievements!  Lately it all keeps coming to me how amazing 2012 has been creatively! To say that 2012 has been an amazing creative year for me is a major understatement!  It has been an unbelievable, fantastic, blessing, dreams not only coming true but being surpassed! It has proved to me that following your passion is the way to live!  And I am passionate about creating!  I love creating, I love making different things, I don't mind the work involved!  :>   (hint: maybe at the bottom there is something worth reading?)

Cover of Paper Crafts Stamp It:
One of the first joyful creative moments on 2012 is when in February my first published card by Paper Crafts was picked up for there Stamp It issue!  I had made 5 cards for that issue and of course the last card I created the day of the deadline was picked up!  Later a dream that I hadn't even dreamed of yet came true when in April (i think) an editor of the magazine (Susan Opel, we all love her!) emailed me and shared that my ONE card my FIRST card in a PC magazine was going to be on the cover!  The cover?  Wow God you amaze me!  I still remember the feeling as I sat at my kitchen island, it was surreal and my whole body was tingling!

(my card is the tulip one on the bottom!!!!!)

 Stamping Royalty:
Another dream came true when I was one of the winners of Paper Crafts Stamping Royalty 2012!  I entered a few cards (I think 4) and mailed it on the last possible day after completing the winning card that day!  I had of course hoped, dreamed, crossed my fingers that would be a winner but they do get so many cards....I couldn't believe it when I did win!  The prize was amazing!  And the published card is in the November/December issue of Paper Crafts magazine!  :>
Not sure if I can share the card here, and not sure if I ever shared a photo of me in the crown:

Top 5 Gallery Idol 2012:
I think one of the biggest shocks for me was the morning of Friday June 1st.  Let me paint a picture of the morning, when I woke up I couldn't open my eye and it really hurt as it was all swollen and I had pink eye!  I looked horrible!  Than I discovered my monthly friend was visiting. I thought to myself what a day and it's not even 8 am yet!  When I went onto facebook I saw I was tagged in a photo and a lot of comments made on that photo and my facebook wall.  Saw a photo of me with 19 other ladies put on by Paper Crafts and thought oh yes must be Stamping Royalty, oh wait there are other faces on there....  Top 20 Gallery Idol....WHAT?  Why is my face in that photo?  I think I even made a comment like why am I in this photo not realizing what it meant! Oh boy! In my defense when I entered I really didn't know I stood a chance!  To have made it to the Top 5 was amazing!  All the support I received truly touched me!  You all celebrated with me!

Winner of a Moxie Fab World Challenge!
I think for all of us card makers it's a dream to winner one of the Moxie Fab World Contests!  In July that dream came true for me when I was one of the winners of the Card Creations Lace and Doilies challenge!  Yay!  You can see it here.

My Etsy Shop:

In September I opened up my etsy shop AnitaRexDesigns!  I do have to say the encouragement I received from you my crafty friends really helped me actually do it!  At first I wondered if I would ever get my first sale and it came three weeks later!  And in November all of a sudden the sales started happening!  I am so happy with the success of my shop this Holiday season!  :>  Wow!  What a blessing!



Breakfast Televsion:

This October I was given the amazing opportunity to be on Breakfast Television which is a local show on CityTv here in Winnipeg.  It's on every morning from 6 am to 9 am!  And most city's in Canada have there own show!  The first time Ariel and I were both on sharing Thanksgiving crafts in October, a second time we were on sharing Halloween Crafts, in December I was on and shared a handmade Holiday Card and gift bag and also some of my wreaths! This is beyond a dream come true!  I am happy to share that Ariel and I will be on next week again January 3 2013!

Creative Classes:

In December I was asked by a friend if I would be interested in teaching classes in  high school in the inner city!  I said yes and taught 3 classes in December!  Excited to see where that is going to take me!  And looking forward to what else I can share with the kids!

Design Teams!

This year I've also been blessed to have been on design teams for Gelatins Stamps, Scrapbooking Cafe Online, an international designer for Sweet Stamp Shop and on the personal design team for Freckled and Fun by Beth Sialka!  :>  

As I mention before this year has really showed me that following my passion, creating, following my dreams is more than worth it!  God has more than blessed me and it makes me SO EXCITED for what next year has in store!  I have plans and dreams and look forward to what 2013 holds!  Thank you for reading this!  Please leave a comment as I will be drawing a winner from this to receive something a prize from me! (it's a suprise!)  I will draw on New Years Day!