Confessions of a Simple Scrapper

The next three weeks we will be focusing on inspirational scrapbooking in the Finding Photo Freedom workshop, so today in the classroom I shared a few confessions (in no particular order) about my scrapbooking and thought I'd share them here, too.

1. At heart, I am basically a very simple scrapbooker. A layout with just cardstock, letter stickers, and photos is enough to make me happy.

2. However, sometimes I scrap a photo just because I can! I make a beautiful page with lots of embellishments and it doesn’t have a story other than what the photo shows, it just makes me smile!

3. I don’t worry about what other people think of my scrapbooks. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy seeing others enjoying my layouts, but if no one sees them but me and my hubby, that’s ok too. I create for us.

4. I scrap just for fun - scrapbooking is my hobby! (Remember, the definition of a “hobby” is “an activity engaged in for pleasure and relaxation during spare time.”)

5. I use the same patterned paper over and over on multiple layouts if I love it! Who criticizes a quilter for using a great fabric on five quilts? It’s the same concept.

6. I didn’t give up chronology all together – I create a monthly digital overview layout and have a separate album that houses these layouts. I’m using one of the post bound albums I had in my stash for this project and will probably have five or six years in one album.

7. I like to scrap events! I wish I had a layout for each of my birthdays growing up so I could remember what we did, who was there, and how I looked.

8. I scrap old photos without scanning. For years, all my old photos were in photos albums and I enjoyed looking through those. When I rescued them from the sticky albums last year, I put them all in a storage binder and I use them right on my scrapbook layouts without scanning.

9. It’s not always the story or the photos that inspire me – sometimes it’s pretty paper, or a challenge, or an assignment in an online class, or a pretty new embellishment. It’s ok to be inspired by something other than the story or the photo because the result is the same – a memory is captured & recorded.

10. I don’t have any guilt associated with my scrapbooking or memory keeping.

11. I clean up my craft table between every layout. I put everything (even my tape runner) back in place before starting the next project. That’s just how I work.

12. I think layouts without photos are just as nice as those with photos.

Now I know some of you are having a hard time dealing with some of the things I’ve addressed here, and that’s perfectly ok. If you need to scan every old photo before you scrap it, that’s ok. If you don’t like to scrap events, that’s ok. If you hate to clean up your work space and thrive on the messiness of creativity, that’s ok. We’re all different and the great thing about this hobby is that it can bring enjoyment to each of us in unique ways.

My hope is that in the process of capturing your memories and showcasing your photos in your own unique way that you will find true enjoyment! Anyone else have any confessions you'd like to share?