Color Combo Blog Hop: Summer Hues

Posted on 07/16/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath

Welcome to the Color Combo Blog Hop for July!

If you arrived from Curly Scrapbooker, you are in the right place! If you are here and didn’t come from the previous blog, I am listing the hop below my post so you can go start back at the beginning if you wish!

The Inspiration


The Interpretation



Isn’t funny how the color combo of “Summer Hues” is the story of a horrible ice storm we had in February? I don’t know about you, but I love using dark blues or reds (or both) with snow and ice photos. They just seem to work really well together.

Now, take another look at my layout. See that dark blue paper? That is corrugated paper that I bought shortly after I began scrapbooking. Yes, that paper is eight years old. I’ve moved it five times. And that my friends, is why I am challenging myself to be a scrapbooking minimalist.

Next stop along the hop is http://www.vsws.typepad.com/. Enjoy!

If you want to check out the whole hop, here are the participants:
http://amysoto.blogspot.com/
http://scribblesstickingstitchingstroking.blogspot.com/
http://www.snapsandsnippets.blogspot.com/
http://scrapyourlife.net/
http://craftygoodies.blogspot.com/
http://www.MichelleRoycroft.blogspot.com/
http://digipage-blog.everything-digital-scrapbooking.com/
http://sugarandscrap.blogspot.com/
http://www.curlyscrapbooker.blogspot.com/
http://www.scrapworthylives.com/
http://www.vsws.typepad.com/
http:/handmadebykirsty.blogspot.com
http://throughthecameralens.typepad.com/
http://1200somemiles.blogspot.com/
http://helenascreativemaven.blogspot.com/
http://alyssephotographs.blogspot.com/

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Stephanie

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My Scrapbook on the Road is Finished!

Posted on 07/15/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath
This entry is part 11 of 37 in the series Minimalist Scrapbooking

Make sure you read to the end to learn about a giveaway!

{I decided to add my photos as a video because there were 53 photos of the album to share and I did not want upload that many photos to one post. If you would prefer to check out the stills, you can view them here. In fact, I would check out the stills because I am not real happy with the clarity of this slideshow. 🙁 Make sure to come back and read the rest of the post for the giveaway.}

  1. I used my daughter’s words throughout this scrapbook. The title on the cover (Fly Over the World) was her description of how we would get from Illinois to California.
  2. I printed photos in a variety of sizes. I printed most of my photos as wallets or even smaller so I could fit more photos in the book. I should have printed more 5×7, 4×6, and other sizes larger than a wallet. I ended up with too many tiny photos. I’m ok with it because I made a photobook, too. Now I know better how to print my photos for this style of album.
  3. When I travel, I buy postcards. Lots of postcards. I usually include some in my travel scrapbooks, and the rest end up in a drawer of postcards. I love this style of album for postcards because it made it super easy to journal on the road and is a great way to display the postcards.
  4. If you end up making an album like this, make a pocket page or two. In one pocket, I have a DVD of the video we took on our trip and a backup of all the photos. The pocket also has some of the extra photos and postcards. The other pocket has tickets, arm bands, and a postcard.
  5. I finally have a good use for transparencies. I have bought a few transparencies over the years but never use them. I never know how to best use them and they are so expensive, that I end up not using them at all. They are fabulous for this style of album. I will be buying more transparencies.
  6. I used tags in this book. I don’t usually use tags. I find them awkward to use on layouts, but I love just sticking them in the book binding rings in this style of album.
  7. I know you may want to know what the journaling says, but the journaling is for me and my family. 🙂
  8. The album cover is inspired by one of my favorite albums by one of my favorite groups. It just happened. I didn’t plan it. I decided to add the stars to the cover because I had them and we were going to Hollywood (home of the stars). Then when I selected paint from my 11 colors of paint, this green stood out. I knew what I had to do. It just fit perfectly with the stars. And that is how my scrapbook came to look a bit like this:

    Everclear "Sparkle and Fade"

    {The cd has stars all over it, which might be kind of hard to see on here. I saw and listened to this album a lot as a teen and I still listen to it, but rarely look at the cd anymore thanks to digital music. I wrote my name on it, because I grew up in the age of discmans. On band trips (that would marching band), we would listen to each other’s cds, so it was important to have your name on yours so you got them back.}
  9. This album exemplifies minimalist scrapbooking. I had to buy new book binding rings (but then was able to use rings I already owned as discussed in an earlier post), postcards, patches, photos, and of course a vacation. The rest of the album was created using supplies I already owned.
  10. And guess what, I have a giveway! Ali Edwards is kindly giving away a spot in her class, Scrapbook on the Road. If you would like to win, just comment below. I’ll select a winner on Monday, July 18 from all comments posted by 10 a.m. Central Standard time on July 18. Thanks, Ali, for the class and the giveaway!

{I realize my 10 appears as a zero. I can not figure out the problem in my code. If you have any suggestions, let me know.}
Related posts:
Scrapbook on the Road: A Minimalist Scrapbooking Course
My Scrapbook on the Road: The Skeleton
Scrapbook On the Road: The Supplies for the Road
Did I Accomplish Much Scrapbooking on the Road?
After the Trip: Scrapbook on the Road

What is your strategy for scrapbooking trips? Comment below or join the conversation on facebook or twitter.

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Stephanie

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A Break from Books & Blogs

Posted on 07/14/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath
This entry is part 31 of 45 in the series Books & Blogs Review

Books & Blogs is going on hiatus for a few weeks. Don’t worry, it will be back but I just need to take a break from this particular column. I’ve got some blogs on my to-review list so it will be back, I just need to step away from this column for a few weeks to get renewed inspiration.

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Stephanie

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Not All People who Scrapbook are Scrapbookers

Posted on 07/13/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath
This entry is part 19 of 86 in the series Scrapworthy Lives Results

Each Wednesday, I write a post from my dissertation.


Though scrapbooking structures many scrapbooker’s lives, it does not structure the lives of all people who scrapbook. Most of my respondents consider themselves to be scrapbookers and I refer to all of them as scrapbookers in my research. Not all people who scrapbook, however, are scrapbookers. At least one of my respondents does not consider himself to be a scrapbooker and said as much. Future researchers need to carefully recruit people who scrapbook or have had scrapbooked rather than focusing solely on scrapbookers—that is, people who identify as a scrapbooker. Moreover, more research needs to be done regarding how one comes to identify as a scrapbooker and what this identity fully entails.

Even for those scrapbookers whose lives are the most structured by scrapbooking, “the world does not center solely around leisure” (Kelly 1992:250; see also Kelly 1983). Scrapbooking, like other leisure activities, is contextual and relational. This is most clearly seen when one examines how people combine scrapbooking with other tasks such as scrapbooking while spending time with friends or family. It is naïve to think that the scrapbooking is a bigger priority over the other task that is accomplished at the same time. Both may be equally important or their importance may shift.

People become scrapbookers because they want to organize their photographs, they have been introduced to the hobby by a friend or family member, or they have experienced an important milestone or transition in their life (e.g., parenthood, marriage, or retirement). Scrapbooking is increasingly becoming the [aspirational] norm for how photographs are organized—though many people keep their photographs on memory cards, computers, mobile phones, shoe boxes, dresser drawers, blogs, social networking sites, and conventional photograph albums. According to one industry worker, “people kind of think they’re doing something wrong if they’re not” scrapbooking their photographs. Not only is scrapbooking a way to organize photographs, but it is also a way to organize memorabilia.

Industry workers are in agreement that scrapbooking has become more popular because it is more accessible to people than it once was when it was not an industry. Moreover, the industry has grown so that there are multiple ways to scrapbook. There is something for everyone. A couple of respondents had been introduced to scrapbooking through an Inspired Stories [pseudonym] party but did not like the look of that scrapbooking style. It was not until years later when they learned there were other ways to scrapbook that they became scrapbookers.

Do you identify as a scrapbooker? Why? Comment below or join the conversation on facebook or twitter.Boston, MA: George Allen & Unwin.
Kelly, John R. 1992. “Counterpoints in the Sociology of Leisure.” Leisure Science 14(3):247-53.

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Stephanie

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Blurb.com Giveaway!

Posted on 07/12/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath

Remember, my post about photobooks from Friday? Well, Blurb.com is going to give one of my readers a $75 coupon to be used for a photobook on their site!

Here’s what you have to do to win:

Answer the following question in the comments to this post to be entered to win: What would your photobook be about? I will randomly select a winner from all comments posted by Friday, July 15 at noon (U.S. Central Time).

Good luck!

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Stephanie

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Invest in Scrapbooking

Posted on 07/11/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath
This entry is part 36 of 66 in the series My Scrap Happy Project

Each Monday, I discuss my Scrap Happy project based on Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun.

Last week, I kicked off my new monthly blog hop tied to The Happiness Project. If you would like participate in next month’s hop, email me and I’ll get you the details. The week before that I began talking about Buying Some Happiness. Buying Some Happiness isn’t just about splurging, but also about investing, donating, and saving.

Today, let’s consider buying needful things—or investing.

Investing gets to the heart of minimalist scrapbooking. When I think of minimalist scrapbooking, I focus on using the supplies I already have and buying supplies I actually need to complete a project (e.g., adhesive). I would also add spending money on quality over quantity when purchasing scrapbook supplies (and other things in your life).

My weakness has always been pattern paper. I do really well not buying pattern paper for a while, but then then start buying it again. The problem is that I don’t use a lot of pattern paper when I am actually scrapbooking, so to buy more is usually a waste. If you have seen any layouts that I’ve posted lately and have scrapbooked for any length of time, you’ve probably noticed some pretty old pattern paper in the mix. This makes me happy. I’m happy to use the stuff I already have. I do miss buying the pretty pattern paper and I know I would eventually use it, but I want to focus on using what I have for a while first. I am getting a great deal of satisfaction out of using what I have and thinking more about the scrapbooking purchases I am making. For instance, I do think that I would use a book binding machine often enough to justify the expense. Right now, I am in the research phase of deciding which machine is right for me. I want to make sure I am getting something easy to use, is affordable, and won’t break on me.

Overall, for me investing (or buying needful things) boils down to:

  • Buying less pattern paper (and supplies overall)
  • Using my supplies before buying more
  • Focusing on quality over quantity

I do have to say that limiting my scrapbooking purchases has made me happy. I am scrapbooking more. I am challenged to focus on coming up with a creative solution using what I have. I am not bogged down with figuring out where put the new bag of scrapbook supplies so that I can actually scrapbook. Now, I am buying some supplies. I spent a whopping $8 at my local scrapbook store last week. I have never left that store spending less than $30. Is this bad for my local scrapbook store? I don’t think so because I am using my supplies, which means, that I will need more supplies at some point. The alternative is buying and not using, which could drive some people from the hobby.

When you think of buying needful things as it relates to scrapbooking, what do you focus on? Comment below or join the conversation on facebook or twitter.
If you want to read more about The Happiness Project or my Scrap Happy Project, check out the other posts in the Scrap Happy series.
Are you doing a happiness project? Are you doing a scrap happy project? What’s stopping you? Join me today!

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Stephanie

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10 Summer Stories

Posted on 07/10/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath
This entry is part 10 of 37 in the series Minimalist Scrapbooking

The Cover


I am working on an album containing summer stories. My focus is on telling the stories that remind me of summer. I began by brainstorming a list of the things that remind me of summer. Here are ten of those ideas:

  1. Summer projects
  2. Food
  3. Lightning bugs
  4. Eating outside
  5. Gardening
  6. Bike rides
  7. Pool
  8. New TV series
  9. Summer work schedule
  10. Reading

And here’s ten more:

  1. Festivals, fairs, parades
  2. Friends
  3. Cookouts
  4. Vacations/day trips
  5. Bare feet
  6. Evening walks
  7. Summer sounds (bullfrogs, insects, birds, cicadas)
  8. Library
  9. Hanging out at mom and dad’s
  10. Trips to the park

What summer stories do you want to tell? Comment below or join the conversation on facebook or twitter.

This post was completed as part of Shimelle Laine’s 10 Things.

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Stephanie

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We Have a Winner!

Posted on 07/10/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath
This entry is part 37 of 66 in the series My Scrap Happy Project

Last Monday, I organized The Happiness Blog Hop. The winner of The Happiness Project is Mollymoo951 with her comment on iStampScrap&Craft. Congratulations Mollymoo951! Please contact me by next Sunday so I can get you your prize or I will choose someone else.

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This Week on Scrapworthy Lives: July 9, 2011

Posted on 07/09/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath
This entry is part 17 of 47 in the series This Week on Scrapworthy Lives

Each Saturday, I provide a compilation of links from the week’s posts.

Ten Ways to get more out of Scrapworthy Lives:

  1. Get a free copy of The Scrapworthy Lives Guide to Minimalist Scrapbooking by subscribing to my newsletter. You will receive no more than two emails a week from this list. Subscribers will be the first to learn about any new products and promotions at Scrapworthy Lives.
  2. Subscribe by RSS. Click on the RSS button (in the upper right corner) and you can receive all of Scrapworthy Live’s posts in your RSS feeder.
  3. Comment. I would love to hear from you! Join the discussion by commenting.
  4. Become a fan of Scrapworthy Lives on Facebook.
  5. Follow scrapworthy on Twitter.
  6. Subscribe to Scrapworthy Lives on your Kindle!
  7. Show your love for Scrapworthy Lives. Visit my store at Skreened.
  8. Email me your questions and suggestions. Email me at stephaniemedleyrath at gmail dot com and let me know what you’re thinking, what you’d like to see, and any questions you might have. I will personally respond to your emails and may use your questions in future articles.
  9. Share a great article you find with your friends. Tweet it, facebook it (is that a real expression?), email it, save it and so on. Just look at the link at the bottom of each article to share it in the way that suits you best. I appreciate it!
  10. I joined the crowd and am now on Pinterest. Follow me if you’d like. If you want an invite, email me at stephaniemedleyrath at gmail dot com and I’ll send you an invite.

Stephanie

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Do You Make Photobooks?

Posted on 07/08/2011 by Stephanie Medley-Rath

Do you make photobooks? I primarily make photobooks as gifts. It’s a great way to share a bunch of photos of my daughter as a gift to her grandparents. It does take time, but not quite as much time as a conventional scrapbook.

Well, a few months ago, I purchased a Groupon deal for a discounted Blurb book. I was curious about Blurb because they will slurp up your blog content and convert it into a book. I think this is fabulous for folks who are blogging about their lives, but think it would be neat to do for my own blog as well. Due to my own quirks, I would rather do this for like a year of my content instead of random dates. My coupon was set to expire June 27 and I couldn’t just let that happen. Instead of slurping up my blog, I decide to make a photobook of my trip to California. Because I made a scrapbook on the road for this trip, I was not planning on making a more conventional scrapbook about the trip, too. I also knew I would not be able to include every photo I would like to include because of space limitations in the scrapbook on the road. Most of my photos from the trip are landscape photos, which seem really conducive for a photobook. A photobook seems like a perfect addition to the scrapbook on the road.

As a happy coincidence I got an email from Blurb about a month ago running a promotion for affiliates (which I am) to create a free book. Now I really had a problem. Two coupons to use by the end of June, but only one topic in mind. I decided to create two copies of the book, one for the family and other one will be for my daughter. She is just now three and will not remember our trip. I don’t plan on ordering duplicates or making duplicates of everything just so she can have a copy, but since I had a deadline I decided to this time. I did make one change, though. For one of the books, (ours) I upgraded to premium paper and for her’s I kept the standard paper.

Here’s what I made:

Until August 31, 2011, you can Save 20% On Your Entire Blurb.com Order (Code BLURB20).

Do you make photobooks? Comment below or join the conversation on facebook or twitter.

Want a free copy of The Scrapworthy Lives Guide to Minimalist Scrapbooking? Sign up for the newsletter and it is yours!
Stephanie

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Posted in Uncategorized, Photography, Minimalist Scrapbooking | Tagged , | 2 Comments