Enjoying the art of scrapbooking one project at a time.

If you’re like me creating is a part of life. It allows you to explore and express yourself. It’s like a little haven. It’s an outlet. A retreat from the rest of the world.

Oftentimes we don’t have the time we’d like to dedicate to our hobby. Our days are filled with work, taking care of others, cooking meals, and in general just trying to get things done or simply get by. Scrapbooking gets put on the back burner until there’s a slot open in the schedule.

But what are some ways we can get more creating in our days?

• Schedule it. Set aside 20-minutes a day or a few hours one night a week as your scrapbooking time. If you’re consistent  in meeting your scheduled scrapping time  it’ll be part of your regular routine before you know it. No more frustrations that there’s never enough time to scrapbook–it’s right there in your day planner!

• Break your project into smaller chunks. Many times scrapbooking seems impossible to fit in our days because we’re setting out to do too much before we’ve even started. Instead of trying to scrapbook all of last months photos in one sitting break them up into smaller pieces.

If you’re planning a mini-album or set of layouts, break the project into three segments:

1. Get your photos together in and order, then if you have time write down your journaling.

2. Gather your supplies. Cut paper that needs to be cut, paint chipboard, make embellishments, cut ribbon, etc. This is the step to prep.

3. Put it together and add finishing touches.

• Involve your kids. Have your kids do their own art project while you do yours. This may involve some involvement on your part depending on the ages and abilities of your children.

• Take pictures. If you don’t have time to dig out all your supplies and project, how about trying to get some shots you’ve been meaning to get. This works best with still life.

• Print pictures. Upload and order prints for your next project.

• Keep your supplies within reach. Keep the essentials (adhesive, scissors, paper trimmer, etc) in a  tote/basket for easy transporting or a desk drawer with your current project (in a folder with your materials) nearby. This is helpful when you have just a few minutes. You’re still able to get something done even if you only have 5 minutes.

• Make realistic goals. Don’t set yourself up for failure. You’re likely to get more done when you working in smaller, more focused chunks of time than attempting to scrapbook the last 6 months in one epic sitting.

Creating Keepsakes has a few articles out now on organizing your scrap space, supplies, and your process. Here are a few that stood out to me:

• Go through your scrap supplies regularly, ever six months or so. This will help you purge unwanted and unneeded items, as well as allow you to see what good things you still have but may have forgotten about.
• Sort your photos. Do this as you pick-up your prints. It will make for easier scrapping since you know where pictures are filed and will keep the picture pile small.
• Store embellishments out of their packaging by color, manufacturer, or type. This will save a lot of space.
• Organize little by little. Organizing your scrap space may seem daunting, so start small. Pick one drawer, box, etc. and begin there. Do one per day, week, or whatever fits your schedule. Before you know it you’ll have a completely organized scrap space!
• Put your most used items closest to you. I do this and it saves a lot of time. I keep my scissors, adhesives, and pens in a box on top of my desk and my tool kit in a drawer beside me.
• Label, label, label. It makes putting away supplies  after a layout and filing new products so much easier. Why? Because everything has a place and you know exactly where it goes.
• Prepare for a crop. Instead of taking all or most of your supplies and potential layouts with you, how about compiling files for layouts you know you’re going to work. In the file put your paper, pictures, notes to journal, stickers, etc and bring your basic tools. You’re set and you’ll be more focused, rather than spending time at the crop figuring out what you’re going to scrap.
• Hang them up. You spend your time creating beautiful layouts while most of them will spend their time closed in an album. Use your scrap space (or your kitchen, hallway, etc.) to display your work. It will feel good to see all your hard work displayed, you’ll be able to share your accomplishments with visitors, and your family will enjoy seeing and remembering the good times.

To see all the tips visit 10 Organizational Tips and 31 Tips for Getting Organized Now! at Creating Keepsakes.

I use Shutterfly for uploading, storing, and ordering my photos online, so I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to realize they’ve partnered with Creating Keepsakes to make some very cute photobooks.

Having a new baby I definitely want to chronicle his first year of life with lots of photos (and I mean lots!), but I’m also doubtful that I’ll have much time to devote to planning and making an album for him. I’d like to have it done by the beginning of 2010.

For me, this is a perfect way to have “scrapbook elegance” and “convenience,” so says Shutterfly. I’ll be using Becky Higgin’s Sweet Baby design and I’m looking forward to it!

I’ll keep you updated with my progress and, hopefully, the ease of the program.

This year I’ve taken to my local library in order to expand and hone my scrapbooking skills, as well as gain a plethora of new ideas! The first book I discovered was Simple Scrapbooks: 25 Fun & Meaningful Memory Books You Can Make in a Weekend by Stacy Julian.

The first thing I notice about this book was its age. Published in 2000, it brought be make to the times when scrapbooking was mitagated to plain cardstock (sometimes,  in all too bright colors), simple diecuts, and a few stickers thrown in here or there. Scrapbooking materials have definitely matured in the last ten years! That being said, it’s a worthy book to add to your scrapbooking library.

What I liked

There are a lot of good album ideas. Most projects are simple and straightforward with simple layouts and color schemes, along with helpful sections like “Guidelines” and “Preparation.”  There’s definitely an emphasis on a return to actual “scrapbooking.” Julian explains “how to quickly and easily record the most important aspects of your life” (7), so that you can scrapbook and have a life too.

She poses the question, do we scrapbook to record all of life’s events or do we scrapbook in way that when people see our albums they walk away knowing more about us. She offers these questions to ponder (8):

• What is the routine of your daily life?
• What songs do/did you sing to your children?
• What hopes and dreams do you have for your family?
• What are your valued beliefs and traditions you’d hope to pass on to your children?

Good questions to ask. I know I am benefiting from them, since I’ve been trying to break away from my pattern of scrapbooking chronologically.

Stacy Julian defines a simple scrapbook as “an album that focuses on one theme and follows a specific formula with the help of a framework” (8). Building on that definition, she leads to the framework of a simple scrapbook that you can build in one weekend.

The framework is simple, consisting of a title page, table of contents, subtitle page, fill-in pages, and a material file (where you keep the photos, memorabilia, materials you’ll need to complete the album). The goal with having a framework for these simple scrapbooks is that you’ll have a sense of completion even though you’re not completely done.

What I didn’t like

To be truthful, there wasn’t much I didn’t like about Simple Scrapbooks. I could complain that the layouts are too simple and remind me of my early days of scrapbooking when I all knew came from Creative Memories, but the point of the book is to make quick and simple scrapbooks. Some of the projects do require more work beforehand, which might not be able to get done in just one weekend.

This is where the material file comes in, getting things ready for your scrapbooking weekend. You know, tracking down family recipes and the only couple of your grandparents wedding photo so you can scan it. If you count your research time, some of these ideas couldn’t be started and completed in a weekend. But if you prepare ahead of time, you’re likely to make it to completion by Sunday.

The “Family Storybook” was truly the one project that I had a hard time with. It’s a good idea, but the directions were hard to follow her method and seemed would mean a lot of rearranging layouts from other albums.

Overall, it’s a useful book with lots of great ideas. It’d be a good investment if you’re planning to make a few of the scrapbooks.

Noteworthy Scrapbooks from Simple Scrapbooks

Collector’s Catalogue (34)

My Hometown (45)

Random Memories* (60)

Pictures I Love* (64)

Romance (76)

A Little Book About Your Name* (90)

Christmas Cards and Photo Book (131)

Christmas Exchange Album (136) - A great idea if you have a family of scrapbookers!

*Scrapbooks I’m planning to make and blog about this year.

It’s inconvenient that storage systems can be so expensive, especially since being organized is a great tool in life. (Which is why it is expensive, people have a need, so sellers make it costly. Anyways…)

There are plenty of ways to keep your scrapbooking materials organized without going broke. Here’s a few tips:

• Mason jars work great for holding supplies like paintbrushes, buttons, thread (mini spools), pens/pencils, ribbon, etc.
• Use a Parmesan cheese can to keep a few spools of ribbon. Decorate the can, drop them ribbon in the bottom, and pull it through the pour spout (the three holes).
• Spice containers will work for keeping glitter or beads.
• Cut a cereal box down to use as a magazine file.
• Use giftcards and coupons. Keep your eye on craft store fliers for storage that might be useful to you. when you need an item that you can’t make or find cheaper elsewhere scout the ads, many craft stores put out weekly 40% or 50% off coupons.
• Save your shoe boxes to store photos, scraps, or whatever else you have.
• Check your local thrift store and scour garage sales for items you can repurpose, like kitchen utensil caddy.

I’d love to hear of any other frugal ideas you have for organizing your scrapbook materials (or, really, any idea for repurposing items).