Wednesday Sponsor Giveaways: Elise Blaha, ReVa, Studio Calico, & SheyB

My advise...use your zoom. It's there for a reason. My favorite pics? The ones that show the droplets of water running down the kids faces and the tiny freckles across the bridge of my daughter's nose...those little things make me smile!

write down all the quirky and ordinary things that happen in your everyday to prompt your lournallin. take photos of all kinds of stuff,not just specialevents eg kids shoes,partners feet ,your breakfast. We always retain meoroies fop the big events but the little things slip by.

I would make page kits in bags or sleeves by cropper hopper and work on those. This would be to avoid the feeling of having too much product and not enough work done.

I wish I had someone to give me advice about which basic scrapbooking tools to buy. I must have tried 3 or 4 different paper cutters, many types of adhesives and albums before I settle with the brands that I'm using. Basically I wish I found your website earlier as I'm using all the products that you recommend.

when i started scrapping there were so many rules...so i would say 'just start...there is no right or worng way....photos and journalling are the most important things.....and simple is good!!!
rach xx

Hi Ali, You get such a huge number of comments! Cool!
Best advice for a new scrapper...don't feel like you have to have every gadget and cutesy sticker. Those are all still in my stash untouched! Stick to timeless embellishments that you love. Most importantly...JOURNAL on the page at the time you are creating it.
Thanks Ali.

Nice prizes this week Ali!
When I first started scrapbooking, I wish someone had convinced me that I didn't have to scrap in chronological order and could just enjoy events, holidays and photos as I got film developed (Yup! I've been scrapping with 35mm photos! LOL)
Sue

If anything I wish that someone would have told me that this is a process and that my style would evolve. And it keeps evolving, ever changing, new ideas, new tools, new products. Nothing stays the same, each day is new and different - and so is my scrapbooking style.

Goodness sakes you don't have to use every embellishment on every page.

The advice that I would give a new scrapper is that you do not need to know everything and/or own everything when you first start. You can always make beautiul pages with whatever tools and supplies you have and remember scrapbooking is a hobby. You don't need to be perfect. If you like the page you created then it's fine.

I wish someone had told me that I didn't need every gadget on the market!!

Definitely keep it simple and don't stress about how many years of photos you have to get scrapped! Just start with now and gradually work your way back or do the events that mean the most to you, that you want to document for the future. So many stories get lost otherwise! Just do what you can and anything you do is better than nothing!
Aloha, Kate

Start basic and remember to journal! Journaling is so important in preserving memories.

if you can't scrap it right away at least jot down some journaling, so you always remember the details

When I was first starting to scrapbook I wish someone would have told me to keep it simple and classic so that over time I'd continue to be happy with my pages. Also, that you don't have to go with what is trendy - do what you like and what features your photos and stories best. They are your memories - not magazine art!

don't feel like you have to have hours of free time to be able to scrap, if you are short on time, do your scrapping in steps, pick your photos & paper, next time glue stuff down, the next time do your journaling etc. so what if you can't get a layout done in one sitting at least you are working on it!
love the give away -would love the camera strap cover -so cute!

My advice is to enjoy the process of being creative. Don't get caught up in making your pages perfect or with the latest 'must-have' products. Use what you like and what feels comfortable to you. Enjoy recording all of these wonderful memories!!

The advice I needed but never got was....don't buy too much. I have soooo much stuff now that it inhibits me sometimes. I am trying to work around that now and purge things that either aren't me or I have too much of to ever use it all.

My advise is to take more photos of our daily routine. I am mostly inspired to start scrapping when I saw those photos.

You don't need much...a black pen, a little paper, memorabila and of course journaling! Sometimes I wish I was back just having a small box of supplies.