Lauren Elise Donaldson is a photographer, stylist and design blogger behind LaurenEliseCrafted.com and Cottage Journal. As a child, her creativity and craftiness were always fostered which eventually led her to design school and to a degree in architecture from the University of Southern California. After residing in Italy, impassioned by the beauty and culture found there, she refocused her energies on supporting handmade and the independent craft movement. Fostering that lifestyle, she uses her lens to capture her own stories of craft and simple, creative living. No matter the project, her goal is to inspire others through the act of making.