Peek Inside… Maeve’s Dream Keepers

Finding our latest “Peek Insider,” Maeve, was a truly serendipitous experience. A lifelong journaller and longtime Paperblanks fan, Maeve had even filled out an entry in her journal (before we got in touch) answering questions as if she was being interviewed for our Endpaper Blog!

Our Peek Inside series is all about celebrating creativity and inspiring other writers, artists and scrapbookers, so we are thrilled to be able to bring Maeve’s practice interview to life!

About her passion for journalling, Maeve writes:

I have been writing since I was four or five, and drawing since I can remember. My first “journal” was actually a door. Little me was so happy to be able to write her feelings, and wrote on the door in huge letters about her passion for an anime that she was so into at that time. The writing remained there until I moved out from the place when I was 12, and kept embarrassing me every time I had my friends visit me. I don’t keep every old journal and notebook that I’ve ever had; however, I still have some valuable ones and most of them are Paperblanks. I always carry a planner and a journal or two in my bag as I have multiple tasks and schedules to organise and I no longer have time to sit in one place to write and draw. I usually use different journals for different purposes: diary, photo albums, Bible verses and devotions, ideas, study, etc. This time, I’ll introduce three of them.

The first one is a Peace Micro that I purchased last month. I’m working on a special project using this tiny beauty – I’m filling it with 100 things I love about my husband and will hand it to him on Valentine’s Day!!! It’s not something that I can just go to the store and pay for. I need to devote my time to think of him, write and decorate the pages. Just like I did when I used another Paperblanks book for an album, I cut out every other page of the book to allow it to hold photos and stickers. But I do not waste the cut pages! Their quality is so good that it’s perfect to use them for drawing and writing practice. I am not really a sketchbook person so it works perfectly for me!

The second journal I’d like to introduce is my Nocturnelle Mini. I first bought this for therapeutic reasons. When I felt I had written in it enough, there were still more than 100 pages left. I tore out all the used pages and turned the book into an analogue backup of the cheesiest text messages from my husband. Filling the pages with his love, it reminds me of not only how much he loves me but also how much I love him! I’m going to read them after every time we have an argument. 😛

The last one is a Sublime in Nature Midi that I finished last New Year’s Eve. This is the kind of journal in which I write all my feelings: what I’ve done, what I like, what I want and what I want to be. The most common, yet most important, kind of journal that everyone should have. Peeking in the journal, you don’t have to be a psychic to know what is on my mind. Many people already keep these kinds of journals, but I have two rules: One is not to keep any negative record of anyone, and the other is to write down any dreams and desires that come to my mind.

Name: Maeve Cook
Age: 25
Country: Japan/England
Places Travelled and Lived: Japan (Shizuoka (my current location), Nagoya and Tokyo), U.K. (Lancashire, York and London) and U.S.A. (Hawaii, Los Angeles and Indiana). I’ve lived in a small city called Shimizu in Shizuoka, Japan for about five years now. My husband and I, and our two Pomeranians, are moving to America sometime this year. I’m so excited for our new adventure!!!
Loves: Violin and art, and anything that requires my creativity such as cooking, sewing, crafting and even makeup! I always enjoy fantasies and comedies like The Brightest Star in the Sky by Marian Keyes, Stardust, Hot Fuzz and The Big Bang Theory.
Teachers/Education: I majored in linguistics in university but couldn’t graduate because of family reasons. I am eager to go back to school someday, and this time I want to major in music or/and art! For art, I’ve never been taught but my heart tells me what to do. 🙂
Occupation: Artist, ESL instructor, violin and music theory instructor
Creative Works: Instagram @bailrigg_mansion and @petite_maeve_art
Quote: “I am what I am by the grace of God” and “I feel myself old but not wise.”

I’ve often been told the importance of taking action but many times, I am too shy to share my dreams with others. I think many of you feel the same way. Journals are usually very private and not shown to others, yet writing down your dreams in your journal is the easiest action you can take to step forward, and it is very powerful. My entry from last year is a great example as I’m featured on the Paperblanks blog this month (what fortune!).

Writing down my dreams somehow helps me to focus on them and not miss any open door. After keeping my dreams in journals, I now have three years’ experience as a violinist in a local philharmonic orchestra, have been happily married to the most loving man on Earth, been a wedding singer at chapels and a singer in a worship band in my church, and got my first art commission for a picture book!

I will continue journaling to exercise my creativity and to find how hopeful, blessed and dramatic one’s life can be.

About Paperblanks: At Paperblanks, we believe that art should have a place in all aspects of life. That’s why we follow the artist’s way in everything we do – creating, crafting and releasing designs we believe have the power to touch people. For more about Paperblanks, go to our website at paperblanks.com.