Questions & Answers : Part One.

Thanks again for all the kind comments - here we go...

I don't really have a question but wouldn't mind seeing more pictures of your scrap area, especially if you have anymore "new finds". Posted by: Kelly | June 9, 2005 07:50 AM

Sure Kelly, here is a little tour:

This is from the outside doors looking in at
my computer desk, part of my scrap table, and my chest of drawers where
I am keeping things like letter stamps, product lines, art supplies,
and larger embellishments.




Here is a close-up on the lazy susan you see there on the scrap table. A great buy @ $.75 :) that turns around and holds things like my "wet" adhesives and some Making Memories and Scrapworks rub ons.




Here is a look toward the back of the room:



And a look at my shelving unit (from Costco) and a view of my scraptable (a kitchen island from Cost Plus a few years back - originally bought as a changing table for Simon):





























Close-ups of some things: my scraptable workspace. Love the drawers.



Here is what is in one of the drawer:



And underneath is my box of scraps - I just pile them all in there and shuffle through when I need a little something.



One of my favorite things on top of my table is my pen holder (from an estate sale of course):



The shelving unit from Costco holds LOTS of things like my photo boxes with pre-2004 pictures:




Inks and stamps in silver bins from Target:




Ribbon in large glass jars, organized generally by color (from a yard sale - I think they were commerical mayo jars):




Patterned paper in wire baskets, organized by manufacturer (ala Jennifer McGuire from the Container Store):




And cardstock on top, organized by color:




Also in the shelves are a few binders holding 12x12 pages (the others are upstairs in our guest bedroom). After buying way too many Dalee linen-covered albums at much higher prices I now buy these 3-ring binders at Walmart for $10 a piece. And on the wall next to the shelves I have hung my embellishment storage - you should be able to get buy these kind of things at a hardware store/Home Depot type of store. I open packages most of the time and dump contents inside.




Hi Ali- I would also like to see more of your scrap room. What do you think about when you are laying out your pages? Do you favor a specific style such as more linear or circular?
Posted by: Melissa | June 9, 2005 08:07 AM

What do I think about when I am laying out my pages: I really do almost always begin with the story I want to tell. Telling the story is the reason I scrapbook. I rarely ever come to the table with papers in mind (unless I am doing a specific product assignment). In general I deal with the photos, grab some papers and begin moving things around on my table. Cutting strips, adjusting the foundation, etc.

As for favoring a specific style, I love lines mixed with circles. I tend to use a lot of straight lines and add circles for accents or within patterned paper. Here is a sample from the new CK Artistic Effects  book:




As far as scrapbooking...I totally love your journaling. I think it's the most important part of any page. Capturing the moment, the memory, the event. What is your most important goal in scrapbooking? Posted by: Denise | June 9, 2005 08:09 AM

When I scrapbook, I have two main goals which I feel are equally important:
1. tell the story : getting it down whether the story is told in pictures or words, in my own authentic voice - the way I talk to myself in my head
2. have creative me-time: play, experiment, explore my own artistic and design passions

My question is how do you organize your cardstock? I am trying to decide whether I should organize it by color. I currently have it organized by color if it isn't a part of a specific pattern paper group...ie. scrapworks by bazzill. (I only have bazzill papers) The cardstock that is meant to go with a certain group of pp I have with that companies papers. The trouble is I don't tend to consider it when I am looking for a certain color cardstock since it is "hidden away" with it's sister pp. What do you think...combine it with all the others or keep it seperate for coordination with the matching pp? Long explaination eh? Posted by: maureenw | June 9, 2005 08:10 AM

Take a look at the above photo - I organize by color and don't worry about the sub-categories of Bazzill. I bought the paper holder at a store in Portland - it is meant to stand tall but I recently laid it on its side in order to fit it on top of my metal shelving unit. It is not as easy to access this way...but it is working for now until I move into a new place.

I'm in love with Kraft cardstock lately. You seem to use it quite a bit too. Any tips for making your Layouts "pop" when using such a subdued backdrop like Kraft? Pop, in that subtle, relaxed way you have. Posted by: sheri | June 9, 2005 08:14 AM

I love to pair kraft with white, yellow or orange - bright, happy colors. Cardstock is always the beginning for me. I build from there. One thing I often do is use kraft to "frame" the layout. I gather a bunch of photos & an embellishment or two together in the center, round the edges, and then journal around on the outside - directly onto the cardstock. Here is another from CK Artistic Effects (using a beige foundation cardstock as a frame).




How do you get out of scrap "boredom"??? There are only so many things you can do w/ kids, husbands, family etc. The reason I was attracted to your work in the first place was b/c you scrapped ordinary things, moments, defining times. But even that can become stagnant. How do you constantly keep it fresh? Posted by: kristi | June 9, 2005 08:17 AM

I am dedicated to taking breaks. To getting away from scrapbooking. To stopping when it is not fun anymore (sometimes I have deadlines these days where I have to keep going). To stepping away from my table and letting things sit for awhile. I talk a lot about balance, the search for balance here in my blog, and that applies to scrapbooking as well. When I am bored I do something else like the Art Journal Challenge, read books (words & ideas tend to get me going again), go outside (easy in the summer when the plants need to be watered), exercise, clean house, organize all my stuff, etc. 

One thing I have always acknowledged is that by scrapping the ordinary things I will never run out of material. Everyday brings something that can be recorded. Rather than feeling overwhelmed by that fact, most of the time I feel excited. And it frees me from the pressure of thinking I have to come up with something clever or "special." It is what it is...our lives. Thinking about that usually brings me back into the studio pretty quick.

My question is very similar to kristi's: what inspires you? Also, how do you avoid what often happens to me--at an event, sometimes I am so focused on pictures to scrap, etc., that I find that I am not truly enjoying or "in" the moment! Posted by: Emily | June 9, 2005 08:19 AM

I am seriously inspired by just about everything. It can be a single word within a conversation or an email. Reading - lots of magazines & books. Being engaged in life is inspiring. Keeping my eyes open all the time and trying to be in touch with how I feel in the moment.

I tend to not take too many photos at events. Like Simon's birthday. I have more photos from everyday things like him eating and playing in the backyard than I do of his birthday events. And that is totally fine with me. I think it also helps me journal - I was there. I was paying attention. I took a couple photos - keeping it all in perspective.

Would you be interested in participating in a collaborative project with mixed media and art journals artists?! I would like to host a round robin with both scrapbook and mixed media artists...Posted by: celine navarro | June 9, 2005 08:24 AM

Sounds interesting - time is always my issue - email me :).

My list seems like a school test. :)
Did you have a ‘now I get it moment’? Like you’re going along making nice pages and then one day a lightbulb turns on and you found your place in this world.
Is there a topic for your new book yet?
What is your favorite product line right now?
What do you do with your scraps?
Posted by: Amanda | June 9, 2005 08:27 AM

Did I have an I get it moment? I must have LOL. Actually, for me, it was gradual. But I felt happy and fulfilled and just had a sense I was doing what I was supposed to be doing. From the beginning I was in love - scrapbooking is the perfect match for me between the words and the design/art elements. And I work from my home, creating pages for my family. Every page I do is one that will go into our family books.

There is a topic and an AWESOME group of contributors but I can't tell you much about it yet.

My favorite product line right now? Today, it is Foof-a-la. Yesterday it was 7gypsies. Tomorrow it will probably be Scrapworks. I love so many things.

Scraps go in a box below my scraptable (see photo above).

More to come...