The papercrafting team was delighted to welcome our 2022 winners to the office where they were treated like crafting royalty.
Part of their amazing prize package was an exclusive experience day, where they were able to meet the people behind our magazines, CraftStash and CraftWorld, from the art team right through to product development.

On arrival, Lorraine Lowe, Monika Weclewska and Tracey Rogers discovered their winning projects waiting for them with a commemorative framed photo each. We missed meeting Ann-Marie Sinfield who unfortunately was unable to join us on the day.

Special guest and much-loved CraftStash presenter Lou Collins surprised our VIPs with a pile of TEXT{ures} goodies for a celebrity craft-along. Our talented trio wasted no time, creating projects reflecting their styles, and there was much crafty chat and laughter, as we got to know more about them. Monika remarked how she’s missed crafting with people this last few years, “It’s so nice to chat face-to-face, there’s nothing better!”

Creative Stamping Editor Nicky led a guided tour of the office, where the team explained the process, from planning magazines right through to sending them to print.
Designer Zahra showed our VIPs how we turn projects into pages!

Our guests were fascinated by every step of the magazine production cycle, from planning and commissioning to how we use their projects, edit their copy, then our amazing art team turns everything into the magazine pages we all love. Lorraine said “It’s incredible to see what happens once we send in our cards, you just don’t realise what goes into making a magazine”, and Tracey agreed, marvelling at the timescales from sending a mag to print, to seeing it on the supermarket shelves.

We asked how the winners had enjoyed receiving their prize haul, with Monika saying how exciting it was, having crafty packages arriving almost weekly. Lorraine added, “I literally can’t get into my craft room for all my winnings, I’m still opening them!” Tracey told us that she’s managed to play with almost everything so far, and in fact she has tried new styles with some of the brands she hadn’t used before, so it has really broadened her crafting horizons.
Following lunch and a chat with the editors, we showed our VIPs our incredible studio, with a professional photo shoot with photographer Laura.

Look out for our winner interview videos from Lou and the CMTY 2022 winners on CraftWorld, with an in-depth look at their winning projects, how they reacted when they got the call to say they had won, plus their expert advice on entering this year’s competition.

Our winners were naturals on camera! It was so interesting to hear how the designers had prepared and selected their projects for entry, and how surprised they were to win – but there were smiles all round when we explained just how their projects stood out to us.

Now that they have all joined our Design Team, we see their skills growing, and Lorraine summed it up by saying how working on commissions “makes you try things you might not have thought about”. Tracey agreed, adding; “Working to a brief and a colour scheme really stretches your creativity” and all the designers agreed they couldn’t wait to start on each new commission as soon as it came through!

Tracey shared her incredible paper flower-making skills in a crafty show-and-tell!
The papercraft editors have loved having this year’s four winners on our Design Team, so look out for much more from them in the future.

Getting the chance to meet them and get an even greater insight into their amazing skills has been a bonus, and as our happy ladies said goodbye at the end of a fun-packed and busy day, Monika enthused “It’s been fantastic to meet you all and see where it all happens, I really feel part of the team.” Lorraine agreed, adding, ‘Coming up to meet everyone in person and see how it all happens is better, even, than all the crafty prizes!” Tracey summed up her experience, “Thanks for an amazing day, one I will remember for a very long time!”

As we waved them off, laden with crafty goodies and happy memories, only one question remains…who will we be meeting this time next year? Could it be you?

Enter in this year's Cardmaker of the Year competition here!

Find out more about the competition here!

We can't wait to see all of your amazing projects!

Happy crafting!