Welcome to PaperPeony. My name is Cathy Kruger and this blog is about everything that I find inspiring in my life and work. I live in Stellenbosch and have a stationery design studio where I create beautiful Stationery.

I am fortunate enough to live in beautiful Stellenbosch in South Africa - where we are surrounded by natural beauty, stunning winefarms, good restaurants, wonderful small shops, amazing markets, and a host of creative people.

I am interested in most things creative – design, photography, interior decor, baking – the list goes on! I trained as a Physiotherapist and worked in both South Africa and the USA (Michigan) for about 6 years, before moving into the corporate world of pharmaceutical sales where I literally “existed” for 10 years. I learned a valuable lesson in that time - just because you are good at something does not mean that you love doing it!!

Then – I met a wonderful man and got married – and my life changed in so many ways!!! I love sharing my life and all the little joys (and sadnesses..). I am now a wife, homemaker, stepmother – and a creator of handmade stationery!! I work from home and am able to combine all my roles. My husband and I love to travel – and you will see my travel photos on the blog too.

Why PaperPeony? Peonies are my favourite flower – their “shaggy-abundance” just blows me away! Our climate in South Africa is too hot for them to grow here, so we see them very seldom -  I will never walk past a florist without buying them if I see them!! And paper – well, because I love beautiful paper goods and now create my own.

I am blogging in order to share my inspirations and creations. So much of what I see inspires me – flowers, crafted goods, photos, beautiful cakes, books, other blogs and websites, magazines, homes, gardens….. I could list for hours. I want to share this joy - and there is a “world” of people out there in the blogosphere to share it with! So – join me a few times every week and we can get inspired together….