Category Archives: how to scrapbook

Book Update (and a couple recommendations to tide you over)

Book Update (and a couple recommendations to tide you over)

It is taking me a little longer than I thought it would to finish up my latest book about using sketches in scrapbooking. How’d you like to help me decide on the title and cover?

This is what I’ve got right now, which one do you like the best?

Option 1

Option 1

Option 2

Option 2

Option 3

Option 3

Option 4

Option 4

Just let me know which one you like most in the comments below.

To tide you over until I get my booked finished, I’ve got a couple recommendations for you.

One:

and two:

Why should you read these two books?

You should read The Happiness Project because of one phrase in particular: the days are long, but the years are short. This was the impetus that started Gretchen Rubin on her happiness and habits journey. This was the idea that made her realize that she needed to pay attention to now, because all too soon today becomes yesterday, and then last week, and last year.

Folks this is the reason we scrapbook. We scrapbook because we know that as soon as we live a particular moment, it’s gone forever, unless we capture it in some way through memory keeping.

We scrapbook because it makes the current moment so much more happy, either because we’re trying to be present and aware of it, or because we’re actively scrapbooking, and making pretty stuff. Making stuff makes most people happy, at least in my experience.

You should read The New Rules of Scrapbooking because Jennifer Wilson is a woman after my own heart. In her book, she lists five basic rules of scrapbooking, that basically tell you to ignore all the rules and all the guilt that you think makes up scrapbooking. It’s a freedom manifesto for the scrapbooker plagued by self-doubt, fear, and guilt. Scrapbooking is a hobby that should help you feel more free. Jennifer’s rules will help you get there.

Making Time

Making Time

This past month has been one huge adjustment after another. Getting up every day at 6 am to make sure the big kids make the bus in the morning. Prepping every day to make sure I have a full class’ worth of information for the classes I’m teaching. Constantly reading and planning for said classes.

Scrapbooking and writing seem to have fallen off the radar entirely. At least from the amount of updating that’s been going on here.

But that’s not entirely true.

I’ve made a few pages this month.

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I even got a little crazy, and turned the right hand page into a pocket.

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Project Life through the beginning of September is almost done. Today or tomorrow I’ll print up September’s photos, and add those in.

I took True Scrap Planner Love and hung out with my friend Colleen while we watched it. I still don’t get the point of decorating a planner, but I did add days of the week stickers to my school planner. Some people might call that progress.

And LOAD begins today. That makes me very happy. Today’s prompt asked, “How are you legendary?” and after a quick text message exchange with my sister, I’m going with bossy.

I LIKE being bossy. As soon as I can find a picture of my sister and me, that’s what today’s page will be about.

And then I’m going to wander the interwebs looking for pictures of castles in the mountains. I’m playing today. No school work, no house work, just research for a story idea. I’m dying to write. Maybe if I get a bunch of research done this month, I can participate in NanoWrimo in November. Then again, maybe I’m just insane to even think about it. On the third hand, nothing’s going to get written if I let school planning hang over every day like a cloud of gloom.

So, even though today has had a less than stellar start, it’s still a new start, and I’m going to run with it. Got any cool pictures of castles in the mountains for me?

Defining Scrapbooking

Defining Scrapbooking

You think you know what a scrapbook is, right?

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It’s pictures attached to paper with personal stories, all gathered together in a book, right?

Well, yes and no.

Yes, scrapbooking is still the traditional scrapbook, with its acid free papers and embellishments and photos, but it can be so many other things as well.

We are going through a digital evolution, and it has changed scrapbooking as well.

Photo books with pictures and a few captions printed by someplace like Shutterfly or Snapfish? Yep, that’s a scrapbook.

Completely digital pages, that never get printed? Yep, those are scrapbook pages.

Blog posts with family stories and pictures? Yep, that’s a scrapbook

Short and sweet posts on Facebook or Twitter or Instagram that capture a moment in words or pictures or both? Yep. You’re scrapbooking.

There are so many people scrapbooking, who just don’t realize it. They think it has to look a certain way in order to be a scrapbook, but really, it can look like anything at all. A real scrapbook captures personal stories and pictures and ties them together. If you’re doing that in any medium, if you are documenting life, you ARE scrapbooking.

What do your scrapbooks look like? How are you saving your memories?

A Huge Pile of PL Pages

A Huge Pile of PL Pages

When preparing for a crop, I prefer to bring projects that don’t require a lot of thinking. I can NOT journal in company. Just having people around thinking is too loud for me.

For the crop two weekends ago, I brought Project Life pages with me to assemble, thinking that they would be easy to do while chatting. So not true.

Project Life was intended to make scrapbooking simple. It really doesn’t work that way for me. The simple arranging of photographs and choosing of journaling cards takes much longer than creating a page. Although, PL does allow me to cover more volume quickly than if I were to make a page for every story covered in my PL album.

But then again, I will probably use these photos again to tell variations on these stories, because I’m crazy like that. Who said you can’t repeat yourself? I apparently plan on doing that!

Heh.

Anyhoo… How about a few photos of PL pages for you? Or should I say, 20 zillion?
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Welcome to January. And lots of iPhone photos! (In fact all these photos are from the iPhone I got for Christmas. Very cool birthday and Christmas  present from my family.)

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You know how you plan on doing something, and then midway thru it, you forgot what you were doing? Yep, that’s what happened with the journaling labels on the star card. There was going to be a rainbow of labels, but I forgot I was doing that while writing. Literally decision made and forgotten within 10 seconds.

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I brought an old Studio Calico kit with me to the crop, just in case I wanted to switch gears and make a regular page. I found all sorts of things I could use on my PL pages. Including these stickers. Also, the love is a punch from mirror cardstock. My cheap, use what I have, version of gold foil for the day.

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Before I put myself on a spending freeze, I treated myself to the mini superheroes stamp set from Mama Elephant. I love their stamps!

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I have a little jar, filled with tiny flat or almost flat things to use on PL pages. I think it’s time to replenish the jar. I used a lot of bits and bobs.

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I am loving playing with the filters on Instagram. Also, we’ve made it to February!

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I tried a watercolor technique on a Heidi Swapp card, but it came out very subtle. Not a bad thing, but hard to see here. Also, a bit of stamping, and the ink wasn’t completely dry when I slid the card in the pocket, so there’s ink transfer to the pocket itself.

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I found the Creeper Valentine’s card on Rebecca Cooper’s blog. I love being able to use something from an awesome scrapper.

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Using up some more stickers and chipboard and overlays. And, the super cure kitty from the Mama Elephant stamp set.

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The month at a glance cards are from the old Turquoise PL set that I am still working on using up. Fit perfectly to point out when winter vacation was.

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A few shots of the paint I put on the walls at my sister’s house. and on my hands as well. The splats of distress ink on the Heidi Swapp card really seemed to emphasize the theme.

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A last day at my sister’s and then back home to try to get some work (at least planning) done.

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I don’t know about you, but I am very tired of the cold at this point. And getting sick didn’t make it any more fun.

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Shhh… Don’t tell my husband there’s a picture of him sleeping on the interwebs! Also, hello March!

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My mother and I have been walking more. Laps at the mall when it’s yucky outside, neighborhood walks when it’s nice out. You’ll be seeing that window display again.

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Big fluffy snowflakes at the beginning of March and my son dressing up for school. He actually was looking forward to school that day. I wish that was the case all the time.

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How about some funky food holidays? Pumpkin pie for Pi day, and very green deviled eggs for St. Patricks. Maybe I should do something funky for Easter and Passover too. (The only traditions we carryover from my Jewish Grandfather, Jewish food on Jewish holidays. Which means latkes and matzos and occasionally matzo ball soup.)

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Which brings us to the middle of March, when I went to the crop. The bottom card has space for a photo, and then I’ll finish out the month on the next few pages.

One of the big reasons Project Life takes me a bit longer to do than average, is because I do not consistently take horizontal or vertical photos. I’ve been taking photos for a loooong time. I’m used to turning the camera to suit the composition and topic of the photo. I don’t think I could stick to one orientation to save my life.

How about you? How do you usually take photos?

Got a Date with Myself!

Got a Date with Myself!

I just realized today that I have been falling into an excuse-making pattern. I’ve made very few pages lately. Most of what I’ve created has been for the blog, or LOAD. I haven’t really been scrapbooking strictly for myself.

modern alchemy blanket || noexcusescrapbooking.com

Also, when I do work on making stuff, I’ve been forcing myself to work on finishing crochet and sewing projects, rather than playing with paper.

Do you know how sad that is?

Everyone falls into the trap every once in a while of putting fun last on the to-do list. They tell themselves that they need to do X first, before they can get to Y or Z. They think that getting other things done is more important, or will give them energy and time to focus on the fun stuff.

Don’t believe it.

Putting fun on the schedule, making it a priority, energizes you. When you make time for fun, you’re happier, and that leads to more happiness around you as well.

That’s why I’m glad I’m heading out for a free crop at the local library tomorrow.

While I really do want to finish my crochet and sewing projects, I need some play time too. Signing up for a crop at an external location means I am committed to playtime for myself.

It’s very freeing to realize that I can play with as much paper as I want, because it’s part of the schedule.

What sorts of things on your to-do list prevent you from paper-crafting? Schedule some time for fun now!