Cards of the Week - how do I decide?

I've been asked a couple of times how I choose which card to send out every week, so I thought I'd share my thought process and the criteria I use.

First, as demonstrators, we're really lucky to have new card samples posted every day on Stampin' Up!'s Demonstrator Website. There are so many gorgeous projects, sometimes it's really hard to choose! These cards are submitted by very talented demonstrators from all over North America. We are allowed to use these cards on our Demo Websites (provided bu SU!), but not on our own personal websites (i.e. THIS site.) We can, however, send them out to email subscribers - which is why you receive them every week in your inbox, and the cards and projects you see on my website are my own creations.

What I look for is the following: (Not in any real order...these are just my random thoughts)

• Could just about anyone duplicate the card? Even if they don't have all the products?
• Does the card only use one or two stamp sets? Any more than that can be overwhelming for someone who is just starting out...especially if they don't have a ton of supplies (yet!)
• Does the card show a different technique?
• Is the card cluttered with too much? (I LOVE clean-looking cards!)
• Does the card have a great color combination?
• And finally, does it appeal to me? (Not that I'm the absolute authority on card design, but if I don't like it, chances are other people won't either!)

The other thing I wanted to mention was this...I've gotten comments about how the cards I choose are too simple and that's OK, I know the samples I send out won't appeal to everyone. But the main reason I choose the cards you see every week is that I want most, if not all, of you to be able to make the card yourself.

Don't get me wrong, I love to see the fabulous designs that others do. They inspire me! If you are one who makes really involved cards, show them to me, I'll probably love them! In fact, I hope that you take the cards I send to you every week and build upon them for your own creations! :)

If you aren't receiving my card of the week every Tuesday, please let me know and I'll make sure you are on the list! And if you are receiving them, I hope that you enjoy them - and I hope they inspire you to create your own masterpieces!