Time to Travel

I haven't been on vacation in a long time. This summer I get to go up to Oregon for the first time and visit some family and their new baby! I am so excited to see the ocean and eat seafood, just enjoy the beauty of the great outdoors. A different great outdoors. No real plans just going to wander up the coast line and see some lighthouses and tide pools. I will need to plan ahead again for the next trip and stay in a yurt on the coast. That sounded like fun! I will be taking lots of pictures ( of course) and post some when I return. Don't forget that you can post pages, cards, projects, all things beautiful in the gallery!

I have been busy planning classes-for when I return. I have been playing quite a bit with acetate and really enjoy this medium to work with. I also love sunflowers, so you can guess why I loved this card. Check out the website for full details on the other classes. Don't miss the Fall Room Book (there's limited class space) it's going to be too much fun to make and have!

You make the difference

* Just a quick note of thanks to all the new friends we met who participated in the scrapaganza shop hop! New faces and lots of stories to be told.

Scrapbooking is just that, a story waiting to be told! Only you have the skills to make the story come to life. Bringing photos and journaling together to document the journey, to talk about the good and the not so good. To share experiences with those we love and those we haven’t met yet. We make the difference. Every minute that we spend documenting the events in our lives makes a difference in someone else’s.

I have had the opportunity lately to converse with lots of different people about why I scrapbook. Yes, there are people out there who still believe this is a fad craft? A fad craft? We are not talking macrame here. There are those who doubt that it would matter to anyone in their family whether or not they recorded what was happening. So not true. Try this little test leave a scrapbook out where everyone can look through it. They can't resist the pull of looking into someones life. Everyone does it. And more often than not they want to know more, they read the journaling. Everyone has a story. What does your say?

When you think that the days speed by and you haven't got the time to scrap. Remember what it felt like the first time you saw an album, or the first time you completed an album. That pure joy just in completion. We are all busy with the day to day activities that make our lives hectic. Retreat to your scrap place and enjoy the journey of categorizing your photos, making notes for journaling, deciding just the perfect embellishment. You are the most important part of your scrapbook. No one can do it for you. Your thoughts and feelings are reflected not only in the way you took the time to take those all important shots, but in the time you took to document the things going on at the time. You are the only one with the power to tell the story behind your photos. It doesn't matter if you took 3 rolls of film or one perfect picture. The fact of the matter is you took it. You took the first step down a path that leads to satisfaction in a job only you can do. Any time will make a difference. Don't beat up on yourself or avoid it all together, make each moment count when working. Remember that you make the difference in your scrapbook, slow, fast, extravagant or simple, it all works.

Take this challenge this summer. Do a day in the life spread on each of your loved ones, in any shape and form, record the moments with heartfelt journaling. They will be your favorite pages in the years to come-you took the time to record for posterity.

YOU MAKE THE DIFFERENCE!

Take Suzanne's Summer 2008 Challenge - feel free to post your layouts in the "challenges" section of the K&M Gallery, there's a special section just for this challenge.

In Celebration of Fathers

My Father has been gone for a few years now. As I was reflecting this past Sunday about Fathers I was thinking about all that my father has done to influence me in my life. My Dad was always kind, nonjudgmental, hard working, self sacrificing, smart, happy. He had a dry sense of humor and liked to laugh. He loved blue spruce trees and good food. He liked having a garden but not so much on the actual gardening. He was honest and forthright. He lead by example and always with sensitivity to others. He loved his family. He taught us to be good upstanding citizens, he served his country and loved it. He was raised on a dairy farm and taught us about hard work and all the benefits of a job well done. My Mom and Dad have been the most influential people in my life. They loved, supported, taught and modeled the way for us as children to follow. I miss my Dad. I am sure that he would have really enjoyed spending time with all the new grand babies and seeing the changes in the store. He built all the displays for us. They remind me of him and how much he loved me. What a blessing.

It isn't easy being green...

I remember Kermit the Frog singing that song-who knew today that being green would mean something totally different? I guess we were green long before it was the "popular" thing to do. When we first opened our store we provided our customers with sturdy tote bags to put all their treasures in-now we can buy them for a small fee to put our groceries, and other purchases in. For a long time I have wanted to leave less garbage. I would really like it if we could refill our shampoo or favorite lipstick. I realize of course there are all kinds of "germ" patrol who frown on this and all for good reason. We recently changed our bags that we send your goodies home in to a biodegradable bag. It costs more but in the end will leave less of an impact on our world.
There is a whole new grass roots, if you will, approach happening to crafting of all kinds. Clever crafters are recycling, reusing, recreating. Most scrapbookers have saved their scraps from projects and even though some may not be card makers they eventually do use their scraps. We all have become a little more thrifty and old school. I was lamenting the other day that scrapbookers who are beginning today have missed out on a lot of great "old school" items. Take for example your plastic letter stencils, I still use mine, even though I have dies of all kinds sometimes I just need to make something quick and I get them out and use them. Newbies on a budget are not going to be able to get their hands on as many-aren't they great to have! Over the past couple of years I have been tearing out articles and page ideas from my old magazines, so that I can recycle the rest of the magazine I don't need or use anymore. (also saves on space!) It is amazing how much scrapbooking has changed, yet remained the same. The focus might alter slightly but the goal is the same, preserve our memories. I love the idea of using
up our supplies, I admit though I have some paper that I just love that you can't purchase anymore that I can't bring myself to use! I have plenty of others though to pull from. As a crafting group we are generally very creative and resourceful, we know how to take projects and alter them to make them our own. Even though we can just go out and buy things finished the sense of accomplishment and pride just isn't the same. Isn't it great to be able to whip out a darling invitation and all the goodies needed for a fun party or a sleep over from the stash of incredible goodies we already own? I really enjoy taking projects and altering them. Just this week I made a mini album in a tall band aid tin. I loved it! It was quick and easy and too cute not to display. Not to mention done-did I say done? This summer can be challenging if we let it. We are smart, resourceful people, we know that we can get out scraps and make cards and mini albums and pages with our children and loved ones to give for gifts or display for ourselves! Messy, can be. Priceless? Always. Live in the moment and make them count.

I am the queen of my scrapin' space

I was called a paper snob the other day…it kind of made me proud. I guess I am. I like a broad range of papers, when it comes to card making I like crisp finishes, vellum textures and smooth colors. I usually have a big pile of supplies around me and am working in a very small space. I love my work space, it has a comfortable chair, good music, my little DVD player, display items that make me happy and of course all my crafting goodies. I really like to work on more than one project at a time. If I can’t get one the way I want it, I will start on something else. I always have something to do and I don’t get bored. Yes, I actually finish things. Sometimes I just read a good book, try a new recipe, or watch a favorite movie…
This has been an interesting season so far. I can’t say that I am too sorry that it hasn’t been hot. I am not one who likes to be too hot. I enjoy having the windows open and feeling the evening breeze, watching my flowers I planted and some garden things as well. I am not the best gardener even though I come from a long line of master gardeners. I really enjoy the beautiful outdoors, being outside helps me regroup, allows me to think clearly and I get really motivated by that down time.
I am working right now on a new album that is 11x 8.5. I really am having fun with this size. It allows me to have all the elements that I love, big titles, paper piecing, embellishments. I can use 4×6 photos or I can shrink them down( I love doing that) I really didn’t think I would enjoy it as much as I have. There are so many formats for scrapbooking these days. There are no hard and fast rules and anyone can scrapbook. You can start anywhere and the sky is the limit. Do a little. Do it everyday. Weekends, evenings, early mornings. I am a night person, I get home from work and even though I am tired I look forward to a few hours of creative time, unwinding. Totally selfish time.
We have so many new stamps and papers that I am behind in the sample department. I have worked up some cute Father’s Day pages and ideas. I miss my Dad. I think about how much of our lives he has missed now. New babies, moving. I was looking through my family photos and reflecting on our lives together. I am so glad that I enjoy keeping a family history through photos and journaling, it helps me stay focused on what really counts in this life…

I love Take 10 Magazine

I love Take 10 card magazine! They have sketch challenges in each issue and I look forward to seeing all the great, personal, interpretations of the sketch. It is always fascinating to me how different and unique the finished designs are. Like us, the colors the styles the stamps or embellishments used, reflect a little of the artist. Individuality is something that I enjoy about creativity. We see design features through different eyes. Our art is truly our own. We have different levels of ability but in wonderful ways-we can choose to learn more and play and experience a new level of skill or we can enjoy the level we are at. Creativity is so broad based.
I frequently run into people who say they are not creative. Who defined creativity for them? Not all of us will be famous designers, famous anything, for that matter-does that make us any less talented? Do we have to be acknowledged by the general public to validate our creativity? I have a friend who is wonderful with words, she describes things so well you can see what she is saying, yet she claims that she is not creative. We are no longer stuck in elementary school art class. We are not limited by another’s lack of imagination. Free yourself, try something new. Enjoy the process of learning a new skill, play. We all have abilities, sometimes we just need a spark to start our creative fire. Look around your craft room, look through a magazine, check out the scraping “porn” on the web then relax and let your imagination flow! I admit that I am a little slow in the blog department, I am getting more with it-so thanks for checking in!

I love quotes

I love quotes! The right little thought for the moment. I read one recently “he too serves a certain purpose who only stands and cheers.” Henry Adams.

I thought about that sentiment quite a bit. It applies to all of us in some ways. Some days we can step up and go the extra mile with our family or friends and other days we can cheer for them as they struggle by. Races wouldn’t be as fun without a cheering crowd. Sometimes it is that way with our scrapbooking. We get a few moments here or there to record moments with photos and journaling other times we get together with our friends and are inspired to get a whole bunch of pages done and love to look at our finished albums. So here is to you that are struggling along in their scrapbooking thinking to yourself “is this even worth the effort?” Yes! Keep up the great work! Recording your families history and so very important day to day events. Your families will love their finished albums and cherish them as well as the time and effort you put into them. An extraordinary gift, a one of a kind gift. No one has your talent or ability, no one knows just the right little touch to add to the page that will touch someones heart. ONLY YOU. Fantastic power and opportunity! So don’t give up or get discouraged you will get your albums done and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Scrapbooks are heartwarming family treasures that keep us in touch with our loved ones here and gone. Remember you make the difference!