We pride ourselves in giving creators the space they need to feel inspired, not just with their crafts, but their home life, work life, and everything else in between. When we get the chance to see our creators in action, we love to help celebrate their amazing accomplishments! In the midst of this hectic and lively back-to-school season, we are excited to hear from creators who balance their everyday lifestyles with teaching and creativity.
Learn more about the incredible teachers in our Create Room community:
Meike Schneider’s background in the art industry gives her a unique perspective on creativity and self-expression. She works diligently every day, creating packaging designs and illustrating children’s books with playful character designs. Meike deeply enjoys teaching traditional and digital art courses to help online students develop their own unique art styles.
"I love to see my students growing! It’s so rewarding to see someone starting their education without any previous experience in 3D Animation or even art. These people work really hard and put lots of hours into their work to get better. It’s also super inspiring to work with passionate people who love what they do! It’s always inspiring to work with other creative minds to come up with new ideas."
Meike’s favorite part of her DreamBox is being able to store a wide spectrum of her art supplies right where she needs them most:
"I love to have everything in one place and the fact that everything is reachable from the desk. Since I’m teaching traditional art courses as well as digital courses in 3D Animation, it’s great to have lots of different storage options in the DreamBox. For traditional art courses I need lots of space for paints and papers and the digital courses require space for technical stuff such as cables, headphones, graphics tablets and other technical equipment."
Take a look at Meike’s stellar artwork and her illustrations here @meikearts!
Karen Martinez designed her DreamBox to be a haven where her children could learn and create with ease. To help her kids know exactly where their school supplies and crafts are located, she devoted an entire side of her Box to house everything they need all in one place.
As a proud mom of four children, Karen is awed by the progress her kids have made over the years, both creatively and artistically:
"The most rewarding part of helping them express their creativity is seeing the evolution. Their artwork begins to get more detailed, they go from placing stickers all over a page to strategically building scenes with them, etc. Looking back at where they are at the end of the year is always so fun."
If you want to hear more from Karen, we encourage you to go check out her blog, Mamma Bear Says, where she shares insightful thoughts on parenting, homeschooling, and DIY crafts.
Sheree Thomas runs a child care facility at her home where she takes care of children in the local community. As a mother of two boys and an avid sewer, she loves helping young children discover a passion for crafting.
“The most rewarding part of helping children learn how to express their creativity; is when we finally get to the stage where they celebrate their uniqueness. With preschool aged children they are just starting to learn how to properly utilize the art supplies, and in the beginning some children feel a little intimidated by new projects. I love when we finally get to the point when they care less about how their project compares to someone else’s, and instead they feel proud to show off the things that make their project unique and special to them. I try as much as possible to remove the pressure of trying to make something perfect and instead focus on the process of making an experience fun."
In her spare time, Sheree creates YouTube videos to help ignite an interest in beauty products, sewing and more. Check out her channel at Imagination Rainbow!
Rachel Timmerman is a total expert at creating a harmony between work and homeschooling her children. When she first received her DreamBox, she discovered how much her children loved to sit with her and craft together. This inspired Rachel to make her DreamBox a place for creativity and growth.
"These days we hear the word "innovative" or "innovation" a lot. Innovation is just creativity! It's something someone came up with by being creative! The most rewarding part about helping my kids express their creativity is that they are learning to harness their creativity and expand it. This will help them in all aspects of life - not just arts and crafts. In addition, my oldest son recently learned that he has a real talent for drawing! He never drew much before but one day recently, while sitting at the DreamBox with his brothers, he started doodling and the rest is history now! He's really good!"
Curious to learn about Karen’s favorite homeschooling tips and fun craft ideas? Read about her DreamBox lifestyle on her guest post, DreamBox organization tips for busy working moms.