Those were the words I said to Martha Stewart upon meeting her at a book signing in Birmingham, Michigan in 2008. She responded, “Well send us some pictures.” Just so happened Martha was looking for clever craft ideas and I had the perfect one for her.
I sent Martha the pictures and she invited me on the show. She liked my idea. I turned a box from IKEA into a play oven that had removeable racks, a light that turned on and off, and a window for displaying coloring pages. That box got me on national television, in the local newspaper and on a local radio station. A local celebrity – imagine that?
Beyond The Oven has absolutely nothing to do with cooking. In fact I really don’t like to cook. I’d rather clean than cook. Craft than cook. I did however enjoy cooking with my Easy Bake Oven and playing with my pretend stove and refrigerator as a child. But that was the extent of my fondness of cooking.
I was born to create. Ever since being little I have always enjoyed making stuff and coloring. I can remember experiencing pure joy making mud pies on rainy days and coloring coloring pages during trips in the car. I especially enjoyed the pages with foods on them. My mom, a creative as well, kept me actively engaged in all sorts of creative endeavors.
Those childhood experiences matured into a passion for not only making and creating, but for finding, buying and sharing cool stuff and fun ideas! With each post I wish to enlighten, inspire and ultimately sow a little more imagination and creativity into the world. ~Cheryl
