Using It Up and Wearing It Out

I have a question for you But I promise that if you give me your answer, I'll keep it myself. Are you a hoarder? Do you have a store cupboard ready to take on the very worst of weather followed by alien invasion?

I'm not so much a hoarder. I'm more of a one hit wonder. I'll buy something new, we'll try it, we'll quite like it; and I'll buy it again, but never get round to making that recipe a second time. The one with the water chestnuts: there's your example, right there. With a layer of dust on.

Now, scrapbooking supplies: same idea? Save for a rainy day? Or use it as soon as you get it? I used to be a saver, in those early days, when every fresh sheet of beautifully patterned paper was a revelation, and each new embellishment a tiny treasure all of its own. But then I remembered the balloon story. And now I use things up.

Because when I was little, I went on a school trip. We went to Hamley's toy shop on Regent Street in London, and I spent most of my souvenir money on a balloon making kit, which contained a tube of red gunk (in the days when ingredients weren't important, or listed) and a little plastic tube, like a straw. To make a balloon you put a squeeze of red gunk on the end of the tube and blew until a balloon appeared, in a sort of bubble gum effect. But when my mum saw this DIY magic in action, she warned against over use. She said I'd be sad if I used up all my gunk at once. and that I should save some for "again". So I did. And you can guess what happened, because you are a grown up and not an impressionable nine year old who does what she's told. Of course, when "again" finally arrived - balloon making day! hurray! - I went to squeeze the gunk and I discovered to my huge, balloon-less distress, that there was no gunk to squeeze. It had all dried up All of it. There were no balloons that day; but from that very minute I decided that keeping things for good wasn't always a clever idea.

So if I open a packet (water chestnuts aside) I do try to keep on going until the entire packet has gone. Sometimes I even use a whole pack of something all at once. Which is how I came to make the page I'm posting today, and how I came to write How To Use An Entire Pack Of Rub Ons And Have Fun Doing It for the Gossamer Blue blog. The rub ons in questions are from MME and they came in The Life Pages March kit found here.

So, do you hoard? Or rip open that pack, and have fun doing it?

Let's Not Be Listless

Ah, freshly sharpened pencil: is there anything more satisfying than lifting you to a clean new page in my notebook and beginning another list? I'm not a to-do list-er (very often), nor a carrier of shopping lists or a creator of a list "to pack". I like to tell stories with my lists.

Sometimes a scrapbooker will say to me But you always write on your pages and I never know what to say. I have one answer: make a list. Because sometimes I don't know what to say either. I find a photo I like and I get into a paper cutting frenzy and get all excited about making a new page an' all, and at the end of it I think...but...story...

When this happens, I go back to the picture, I forget about the pretty stuff I've stuck round it, and I try to write down the first five things I think about when I look at that photo. I don't try to tell the whole story - because maybe there is no big story there - and I don't aim for an essay with a beginning, a middle and an end. No: it's more of a word association game: that was the holiday we met the nice lady who made the miniatures; and we swam in the hotel pool and the lifeguard offered to take our photo; and....you can see what's happening: I start remembering little details which aren't directly related to that photo, but which help make up the bigger story of two weeks of my life. And that gives me choices! Suddenly, out of no words at all, I now have more than enough. And I can add that list - just the way it is, a stream of consciousness about summer 1992 - to my layout; or I can think about whether I want to make new pages. I can ask myself if I want o go back to my pictures of that holiday and find more. Should I flesh out the details? See? More than enough.

It's easy to use the same method for "just now" pages.In fact I've always thought that a nice way of doing a Life Pages album would be to sit quietly for a couple of minutes every day - not even at the same time or in the same place - and list five thoughts which come as I look at what's around me. Like this:

I'm glad I bought him that jigsaw for Valentines Day, though it's taking up quite a bit of the carpet...but he hooked that green rug himself so I guess he can jigsaw on it whenever he likes...especially if he shares the rest of that box of holiday liquorice he's been saving since the holidays...oh, wait: I'm off sugar...so who's going to eat the hot cross buns I've just brought back from the shops?

A little ramble of a list like that, every day, all year, would build up quite the revealing story. And all it will have come from is a list. Nothing complicated.

I've been writing about lists over on the Gossamer Blue blog too, and with a slightly different slant. You can find it here if you'd like to see my list of journaling list prompts. Don't forget your pencil!

My Reading Habits

Today I'm happy to be picking up a tag passed on to me by friend and fellow reader Helen of the blog I Will Bloom. She  answered some questions about her reading habits and asked me to do the same. So with thanks to Sandals & Sunnies for sending it to Helen, and to Julie of Notes on Paper, whose answers encouraged me to start thinking, here are my reading habits:

I like quirky books. This is my growing collection of Japanese doll pattern books. I work the instructions out by looking at the very lovely pictures

Do you have a certain place at home to read?

I dream of a sunny window seat, with an enticing view, just in case I want to glance up to rest my eyes, or daydream, or admire next door's new curtains. But as that's unavailable, I almost always choose the bed, if I can creep away to find it without being noticed: pillows at my head, the sun on my back, and a handy shelf for my biscuit (see below) beside. In the evenings it's not as good a spot as it was once; bit I'm hopeful a good new lamp will return reading before sleep to its top spot as the best part of the day.

A bookmark or a random piece of paper?

Now, I do own bookmarks. I'm sure I do. It's just that I'm in the habit of leaving them inside books. I acquire a nice new one, I use it diligently, and then when I get to the end, I toss that book aside and grab the next one, leaving the marker behind in the tossing. I'm perfectly happy to grab any piece of paper and use it instead: often a postcard (usually from a blog friend), a note from school, an appointment card..

I like books which tell me how to do things. This is a small selection. It leaves out the knitting, the cross stitch, the curtain making..you get the idea..

Because I never, ever, ever turn down the corner of a page. I couldn't. I'd be a liar if I said I'd tried. Even the thought makes me cringe. Funny, I don't mind battered books at all: ones with loose pages and crumpled covers and a history, I love them all. But still, though: not the corners.

I like magazines and I find it very hard to throw out the old ones 

Can you stop reading or do you have to stop after a chapter or number of pages?

Yes. I can stop reading quite easily. I'll even stop in the middle of a paragraph, because I'm perfectly sure the rest will still be there when I get back. Similarly,  I'll lift a book and find my place even if I know I only have time to read a couple of sentences. Because there isn't anything else I'd rather be doing while I wait for everyone to find their shoes, or for the kettle to boil, or for the glue to dry.

Do you eat or drink while reading?

Ah: a contentious one, this. You've caught me out. It's my guilty little secret. I'm a librarian who likes to read while she eats, or eat while she reads. Both, anyway. If a good sandwich is a pleasure, then the enjoyment is more than doubled by the simple addition of a few words to cast my eye over: book, magazine, paper, all are good. And many of you will already know that if I get the chance I choose lunchtime to catch up on my favourite blogs (or making the dinner time, which is almost the same thing). Occupational hazards include crumbs in my keyboard, chocolate chips down my front, and icing sugar hands with a further layer of newsprint.

I like books for children, even if my retro collection now make me look more than a little retro

Do you watch TV or listen to music while reading?
Not books. I would never try to read a book and watch TV at the same time. But I do read the paper and watch TV and carry on a conversation all at once all the time.

One book at a time or several at once?

Define "several". Are we talking two or three extra? One in every room? A spare in the car? which? I have books I've been reading for several years, several books I reread every year, books to tell me what I need to know, books to make me laugh, to think, all on the go at once. I will even read one for ten minutes and then dip into another, especially at bedtime. I'm an incurable dipper.

Reading at home or everywhere?
I'll read anywhere, given half a chance. I look forward to piles of magazines in the doctors or dentists; and I have little time for the killjoys who work to have those piles banned for hygiene reasons. Have you ever heard of anyone catching their death from a comic? No, I haven't either.

Reading aloud or silently in your head?

Now I'm a silent reader. But I grew up doing a lot of reading aloud. Teachers, grownups, seem to assume that a good reader is a good out loud reader. I don't think that's always true; but for me it translated into a lot of narrating of school plays and reading round the class and standing up in church. Later, when I was doing A Level English, I used to wait until everyone else was out before I opened my set texts and heard them speak. I remembered it by listening to the rhythm of it and in time I discovered this was how I should revise any of my school work. I read it out loud. 

And I like my books a little bit mixed up. What? another book secret? I'm a librarian who doesn't shelve properly. I like the fact that I know where every book is on the shelf, even when it hasn't been classified...

Do you ever read ahead or skip pages?

All the time! Is that guilty secret number two? I can't seem to stop myself. I can read the end, and then go back and read the rest, and not have my enjoyment of the whole spoiled in any way.

Do you ever write in books?
No. Never. Couldn't do it, wouldn't do it.

So that's me: what about you? If you'd like to share, please consider yourself tagged!

What Matters Most: Gossamer Blue Inspiration Blog Hop

We're halfway through the month again and that means it's time to extend a very warm welcome to everyone looking for some Gossamer Blue Inspiration

Today I'd like to encourage anyone who has ever had difficulty translating what is in your head onto what is on your page..to keep going! The layout I'm going to show you was very nearly a complete failure. But I kept trying things until I found a way to turn it into my favourite September page. Here it is:

When I opened up my kits the first paper I really wanted to use was that cat pattern from Crate Paper. The yellow is a favourite of mine, so I always have a sprinkler bottle of ink that shade close at hand on my desk. I thought a school page would look good with a paint-y background and I thought it would be easy to dip a paintbrush in my ink and brush it across a piece of cardstock. But could I make it look the way I wanted? No! I tried it on Kraft card, on white 8.5x11 card, on cream card, nothing looked right until...

I took a pair of scissors and cut right round my brushstrokes on the smaller white card and put the result onto a bigger 12x12 background. Now I like it! And I've discovered a new trick: if you aren't sure where to start with an inky background, do what I did and brush, then cut before deciding where you want your ink to end up

What Matters Most: a page about starting back to school, for the last time.

I hope you've enjoyed my inspiration post today and that you are ready to hop on and pick up some more tips. Of course you'll always find plenty more in the Gossamer Blue gallery every month too.

Here you go: click on a name and enjoy.. - Alex Hunter Andrea Gray Anabelle O'Malley Brenda Smith Brenda Weaver Caylee Grey Chantal Philippe Diane Payne Emily Spahn Erin Taylor Eunyoung Lee France Wisniewski Jill Cornell Jill Keller Joy Taylor Kathleen Graumüller Katie Ehmann Kellie Winnell Kelly Xenos Michelle Wedertz Michelle Wooderson Olatz Garaiyurrebaso Patricia Roebuck Rebecca Luminarias Sandra Dietrich Sian Fair


 

The target was Target: a Page For Jot 7

The target was Target. No doubt about it. She'd paged through her brochure collection, she'd begged me to buy a guidebook, she'd made a note of everything - everything - which needed her attention just as soon as she'd arrived. BUT, once the tickets were booked, it was obvious she had one seriously big goal in mind. And that was Target, that discount wonderland, that distant dream.

It was right there on the very first page of The (Not So) Small One's Big Book Of Florida: noted under Shops I Want To Visit (also Walmart, Barnes and Noble and anywhere with an extensive confectionery aisle), cross referenced with Things I Might Buy - oh so many things, just little ones, but nothing costs very much and if you save hard and arm yourself with some luggage scales from the Pound Shop you can do some hard hitting bargain hunting damage, right?

But maybe I should let her tell her own story:

Orlando, Florida. It just screams magic. I mean, you've got walt Disney World, Harry Potter, the list of theme parks and attractions all claiming the title of "most magical place" goes on...To me, howver, it is Super target which is pure magic. This glorious haven of notebooks and candy is all I need> From water bottles to clothes, groceries to bicycles, it has it all with the added American novelty and a Starbucks on your way to the exit. In my opinion nothing can beat it..

That's the story she told when I asked for one. for a page. I had been pulling together some ideas for Jot 7 (OUT NOW): a scrapbooking bucket list, things, scrapbooking wise, to try at least once in your scrapbooking life. You can find them in Jot 7 (OUT NOW). I chose one and practised what I preached by using someone's else's journaling. And I discovered how freeing it can be! For once I wasn't thinking about the words. I just enjoyed sticking things down, knowing that The (Not So) Small One was in charge of the recording. I'd do it again tomorrow! in fact, I think I probably will because she has quite a lot to say on the subject of Twizzlers. Seriously, I can highly recommend giving it a go. That Dangerous Notebook I talk about? the one the family agree can be a little bit worrying? I'm passing it round..

You'll find Jot 7 right here

The "Blog Cos You Want To" Club

"Want To" No.2: Play on the Popular

Today I thought I'd call another meeting of the "Blog Cos You Want To" Club: what do you think? I've spotted quite a few Five Things posts popping up, so maybe it's time for a new suggestion? 

if you are anything like me at the minute, you are busy, with a big list of things to do and people to see; but you are still hoping to keep in touch with everything blog. A quick run around to see what everyone is up to, maybe, a few hello's; and something fast and fresh for your own blog. Sound about right? But wait - today I'm going to suggest you forget fresh and play on the popular. Post something from the past.

Usually I do like to keep it new when I'm posting. I don't schedule  or plan too much, so that what you get is where I am right now. But, once, when I was feeling short on inspiration someone very wise told me not not to worry. You have plenty of posts already there if someone feels a read she said. That's a reassuring thought. You have plenty of posts already there. Give it a minute and think - haven't you got something great in your back catalogue? 

I'm going to suggest that you go back as far as you dare - a couple of years if you can - and find something seasonal (a Christmas project for now!) and something with as broad an appeal as you can conjure. Not a scrapbook layout, then, but maybe a recipe or a general craft project. I have one post which has been pinned many times - it's Christmassy and it's not a scrapbook layout. I'll show you in a minute. Go ahead! Post a popular pin, or a post with lots of views, or positive comments 

WHY WILL THIS WORK? 

- Trust me: not all your readers will have seen it the first time. In two years a readership can change. Bet you have some new readers who would love to see what you were making a couple of years ago if you find the post for them! And think about it - how many times have you spotted something you like and promised yourself you'll go back because it was such a good idea? Regular readers won't mind a seasonal reminder of a great project, especially if they didn't save it or pin it the first time.

- Pinterest has changed the way we look at older material. I have no doubt. It has reclaimed blog posts from years ago, kept them in view and reinforced the idea that it doesn't have to be new to be good.

- It's going to give you a chance to take a look at what you were posting in the past and maybe muse on how your style has changed over the past couple of years. Do you have a different way of taking photos now? what have you learned since then? or were you doing something then that you might like to go back to? Just take a minute to think about it. One thing I noticed in my "popular post" was that I had two differently styled photos - some pin one and some, the other...maybe it's nice to include a choice?

- If you are very short on time you can simply cut and paste. If you have a little more time to spare, you can tweak. I had the link to Tagxedo in my post (below), but I found I was getting emails asking me how to get to the site, so it obviously wasn't clear enough. Look now and you'll see I have added "click here".Why not use the hard work you have already done and take a couple of minutes to add in an extra tip or re -edit a picture or include some useful links? If you do, you have every chance that your project will become more pinnable. So, one final tip: take charge of the Pinterest description which will appear under your photo. Think of a compelling way to describe your project.. When you are uploading your photo into blogger, click on it, click on properties and add your description to the ALT text box. That will be what appears when someone pins your post. Honestly? I think my "popular post" became popular because of the way it was described by a pinner. Get there first.

Convinced? Let's see what you have in that storehouse of yours! Play on the Popular! This is mine:

Tagxedo: Making Great Cards Just Got Easier

 This started out as an experiment and turned into a little project. Have you heard of Tagxedo (click here) ? It's a word cloud creator, a bit like Wordle only even more fun. As soon as I tried it out once I could see lots of possibilities.

You can paste in any text you like, choose a shape, colours, fonts, themes, whatever. I put in a few lines of "Jingle Bells", picked out a tree shape and came up with this:

Both photos today edited in RadLab

Then I gave it a bit of From High In The Sky and it gave me this:

which I'm pretty pleased with. Both of these are printed out at 7x5 and put into little Ikea frames.

But they would also make great cards or Christmas tags. And there's more: you can upload a photo and shape a favourite bit of text round it. I'm thinking of snaffling some schoolwork and turning it Tall and (Not So) Small shaped. That would make a different kind of birthday card next year. Or a poster..

The "Blog Cos You Want To" Club

"Want To" No. 1: Five Things

Blogging?

• Some days I think I'll never come up with another story again. Other days I can't get the words down fast enough.
• Some days I get unstuck when I try to do something technical. Other days I take a deep breath, start googling and work it out (and that's very satisfying).
• Some days I have nothing to show you because I didn't get it finished, or I have to keep it quiet for a bit longer, or whatever I was making didn't turn out the way I wanted. Other days I discover a page just ready to go

Like this one which just came back from Scrap365 (a tongue in cheek look at my top housekeeping tip, for the "And Finally" column in the last issue)

• Some days I go with short because there just isn't any more. Other days, I discover that quick and snappy can be very effective and gets lots of you talking
• Some days my camera battery runs out, the light is bad and I can't find the tripod. Other days, I nod my head and say I'm glad I took a picture of that even if it's a bit on the blurry side.
• Some days I wonder how some of my early readers are doing, what they're up to, how they are. Other days, I'm delighted to welcome a new face.

Is this starting to sound a little familiar? Maybe you feel like this too? It comes, it goes, it ebbs, it flows..I was talking to my good blogging friend Ruth the other day, about motivation in part; and she said maybe we needed a bloggers-in-a-rut group. I think she's right. Just for fun I'm going to try to pull together some occasional posts with easy ideas, and tell you why I think they work. So even if you don't like the suggestion. at the very least I'll get you talking about why not! That's the Blog Cos You Want To Club. What? You don't blog? Then go on, make it your mission to support someone who does! Pick a blog you usually read and comment on it, follow it, "like" it, pin from it and say thanks...you know what they say: Use It Or Lose It!

So, an idea for today? If you are in a serious blogging bind I suggest the first place you start is with Julie Kirk's excellent series The Push Up Bra Approach to Blogging.There isn't one piece of advice I could give you that she hasn't covered. But if you want someone to throw out a quick idea and say - here, you'll get a post out of this one, read on..

FIVE THINGS
Back in 2011 I ran a series of posts called Five Things.
- 5 Things I've Noticed
- 5 Holiday Observations
- 5 Things I've Learned about Blogging
- 5 Reasons to Love an Uncle
- 5 Reasons to Come Back here Tomorrow
- 5 Things I Need Explained This Week
- 5 Signs of Spring
- 5 Ingredients for my Perfect Weekend

You can see by the titles that my lists ranged far and wide. That's what makes it so much fun to do.
WHY WILL THIS WORK?  Because you can scribble down a list or a half anywhere and everywhere. Treat it like a shopping list and just scribble. Because you can come up with titles first and then fill in ideas when they come, or you can have a thought and create a list round it. Because it gives your readers a peep into one tiny little bit of your world. Because it intrigues. Because it chimes. Because it invites your readers to say Me too! 

Trust me. Try it with a few new fresh-out-of-the-box ideas.

- 5 Useful Things to Know About
- 5 Things to Think About at Midnight
- 5 Products I Love
- 5 Colours in my Home
- 5 Books I Have Read More than Once
- 5 Comfort Foods
- 5 Favourite Comments on my Blog

I haven't used these ones yet myself. Coming to a blog near you soon! The Blog Cos You Want To Club. Are you with me? More suggestions as they happen...

What to Scrapbook When There's Nothing to Scrapbook: Storytelling Sunday Edition

Last Sunday of the month? Traditionally that means it's my cue to remind everyone that next week is the first Sunday, then; and that..is Storytelling Sunday. We're moving swiftly towards the end of the year and Pick Your Precious will be finishing up in December: so that's two more chances to tell us your story!

Usually I have a quick suggestion or two....for November I have a whole list. It's a companion to What to Scrapbook About When There's Nothing to Scrapbook About, but this time with the emphasis on "the precious". People, places and things you'd rather not have to do without; and I hope you'll find something here if you feel like a bit of inspiration to take you to the end of the year.
Or beyond...

• If you won the lottery, who is the first person you would spend some money on and why?
• If you only had one book to read for the rest of your life, which would it be?
• If you had to choose one thing you owned - only one - to pass on in your will, what would that thing be?
• If you were packing to move house, what would get the most bubble wrap?
• Something you often want to put your hand out and touch as you pass it
• One store cupboard item you make sure you are never without
• The most thoughtful birthday or wedding gift you ever received
• Something you brought from your childhood home
• The Christmas present you have held on to and appreciated for the longest time
• Something you wish you hadn't thrown out by accident
• Something you are delighted that you recycled or gave a new lease of life to
• Start your story with "I tried it and I liked it.."
• What meal do you ask for or make for yourself as a birthday treat?
• Ten things to make you smile, beginning with P. Go.
• Has anyone ever surprised you by bringing out something you made or gave them any years ago?
• Favourite thing you have made by yourself. Ever.
• A book, movie or game you always recommend - maybe it isn't your true favourite, maybe it's the one you think everyone will love
• A skill you would like to possess and how you would use it
• Your favourite cheap treat
• The first person you phone for advice and why

There it is. Pin it, print it out, pass it on, use it to help you Pick Your Precious..and then come back and tell us your story for Storytelling Sunday next week. See you there?

ps..a big thank you to everyone who hopped over to my Five Ideas post at Shimelle's and left a comment. A bit of encouragement is always much appreciated!

Five Ideas..at Shimelle's

Today I'm delighted to be over at Shimelle's with my post Five Ways to Scrapbook What They Say and I'd love it if you said..

yes! to having a peep. Thank you .

National Stationery week: Tell Someone Your News

...with a neat trick I discovered recently. It's a newspaper clipping generator and you can find it at fodey.com. Feed in a snatch of a story, add a headline and you quickly end up with your very own news story. But be warned:  it's kind of addictive; and that's before you even take a look at the clapper board generator or the wizard text or..

I've been thinking of lots of ways of using my news for papercrafting:

- personalised cards, first of all. This is a quick story about that nephew of mine, Little E. I could make a page about it (I probably will); but this turned out to be a great way to record it and send to his Mum

- journaling on a layout. It's definitely eyecatching..

- journaling on a layout when you don't have a photo. Here I printed it out onto Kraft to make my card, but I also printed it onto photo paper in case I wanted to scrapbook it.

- postcards. Again, simply printed onto photo paper

- personalised gift tags. I can see them now: "News just in: Uncle Dave has found his wallet and discovered Christmas shopping. Open here for the surprise of your life.."

Big Tip: Check the date you want to add before using the generator. That strategically placed embellishment cluster? It's there for a reason. ..

That's fodey.com. Try it. I think you'll like it!

National Stationery Week: Drop Someone a Note

Long Live the Letter!  I said on Monday - and you agreed. I started thinking about my favourites from the past: before emails, before texts. I wrote to my cousin every week for a year when we were teenagers; to a school friend who moved to Hong Kong, to a French pen pal; but some of the most exciting letters of all came from that intrepid traveller Uncle Dave, who wrote once a week from his apartment in Taipei. 

I looked forward to that blue airmail letter landing on the mat and I replied by return, cramming news of a n average sized Tall One and a tiny Small One onto that folded sheet. Isn't the design of an airmail letter just perfect? it's so crisply, neatly self contained. You write it, you fold it, you post it..

I decided to make a home grown version

Starting with some older, thinner patterned paper - Jenni Bowlin from a few years back - and a vintage look for a good old fashioned idea. 

The folded flap at the back secured with a Jenni Bowlin sticker. Today's red and cream typewriter is the one Uncle Dave bought in the junk shop. Shh..don't tell anyone, but it's just for decoration: it sticks a lot. 

I had a piece 12x9 inches waiting to be used, so my measurements worked like this:

The little red leather carrying case for the typewriter. When we brought it home we realised what a quirky purchase it was: it was made in Germany in the late 1950's and has German characters included.

And once it was finished I thought - I'll make another to post. This one will become a holder for a gift card. And then I thought - I need another one too, to make a "time capsule" birthday page, with a letter folded, ready to be opened on a special day in the future..

No Title? No Problem: Twenty Fail Safe Ideas for Naming Your Layouts

I spotted a headline the other day and I thought - that would make a great layout title. So I wrote it down "About That Time.." It's a non-title title: It says just enough to draw you in, make you want to read more, without giving away the whole story. It's adaptable, too. You could use it more than once and I don't think anyone would even notice. It says "come and read this.." It's a hook.

Mmm..I thought..a list of go to, reel-you-in titles would be a handy thing to have. So I made one, and here it is. You are very welcome to make use of it too. Pick one to add to a nameless page you have already made or use them as starting point to ease you into a partly formed page you've been thinking about for a while. There are twenty non-title titles here - and if you  try every one a handful of times each, that's coming close to one hundred layouts you haven't had to think about naming..

..Happy Sunday!

Twenty Titles for Scrapbookers

- About That Time..

- And Then I Said..

- No one Knows This But You..

- There Was This One Time..

- Random Fact #

- Let Me Tell You About It

- Have You Got a Minute?

- It Was a Monday (or a Tuesday or..)

- So, Here's the Thing...

- Can You Tell I Was Mad? (or happy or excited or..)

- Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before

- Before I Forget...

- Now That I Think About It..

- Confessions of a Scrapbooker Part One (or Two or..)

- A Quick Story About

- This One Means a Lot..

- Here's One You Might Like..

- The Case of the..

- The Long and the Short of It..

- This is the Story of...

Print it, Pin it, use it any way you please.

It's Undercover

I'm turning back again to thinking about journaling. That balance I want to achieve between having the page look the way I want it - and having the story. So, inspired by Mitra's thoughts on putting together an album, along with with basic plan I used for some Scrap365 pages, I made this.

It's another page with a flap.

I've written before about The (Not So) Small One's trips to the dentist. She has been brave and good and gutsy through a long treatment plan; and we aren't quite there yet. Five years since it started, she tells me: we're still going back every couple of months. The Five Year Face..and counting..

But I've probably said enough already. Nobody wants their Mum telling the world too much about their teeth - her mouth is firmly clamped shut in this picture, and mine should be too. So - hidden journaling, with a hint through the circle I punched to look like she might finally be opening up

It started with an 80's combination: I'm seeing that pink and grey coming back; but I added some last minute splashes of  colour and I typed right onto the patterned paper.

Oh, did someone say 80's? It's 25 years since the first Comic Relief Red Nose Day here in the UK, this Friday, and I'm off to find a nose. Because I can feel another page coming on..

What to Scrap About When There's Nothing to Scrap About

What to scrap when there's nothing to scrap about?

Thirty journaling prompts right here on my list are ready and waiting to go!

Pin it. Print it out. Pass it on. Take it to a crop and talk about it. Use it to start a new Book of Me. I hope you find something here to inspire you.

1. The first poster you ever put on your bedroom wall and where it came from
2. The first gift you ever bought all by yourself and who you gave it to
3. Your favourite kind of crisps and what you think they say about you
4. The most evocative smell you know: not your favourite, but the one which best conjures up a picture or story
5. A shop you miss from your childhood
6. The highest place on earth you have ever been
7. The worst meal you have ever eaten
8. "Today is worth remembering because" - and it can be anything, large or small
9. The last time you grabbed an opportunity and how it turned out
10. The first book you remember being able to read all by yourself
11. Something you are frightened of
12. Your favourite kind of weather and how it makes you feel
13. "I've never told anyone this before..."
14. If you had to leave home, disappear and never come back, which five things would you take with you?
15. Your favourite catalogue. Do you buy or just enjoy looking?
16. Are you good at mending things? What's the last thing you fixed?
17. A cooking utensil you can't do without and why
18. "I never leave the house without..."
19. What would you like to find at the end of the rainbow?
20. If there could only be two brands of cereal left in the world, which would you choose? Healthy or not?
21. A dream which came true
22. The teacher who made the biggest impression on you. At what stage in your life?
23. Choose one favourite song from each decade of your life
24. What did you buy with your very first wage packet?
25. Do you believe in ghosts? Ever think you have seen one?
26. If you could be a fly on the wall anywhere, where would it be?
27. If you found a banknote in the street what would you do? Have you ever found something valuable?
28. A bad habit you have managed to break
29. What do you think about in the dentist's chair?
30. Sweet or savoury? What's your pleasure?

..and then, what's next? A big pile of pages, all waiting to be lovingly filed away. Happy scrapbooking!

If you are interested in printing pages, my recommendation since joiliprint closed is Printfriendly.com

So This Is Scrapbooking: A New Series

Today I'd love to introduce you to a new blog series I've been planning. It's called So this is Scrapbooking and I'd love you to be part of it.

So this is Scrapbooking

I've been thinking about it for a while now, and it feels right to make a start at this time of year when we begin to reflect on the year closing before us and we reach out to everyone we love. 

What's it about? Well, what else but scrapbooking? I'm looking for guest posters to tell us their scrapbooking stories. I think we could all hold our hands up and say "I love to scrapbook and I've made lots of friends because of it". But I'd love to hear more than that. Much more. I'm inviting you to share specific, up close and personal experiences you have had thanks to scrapbooking. How has scrapbooking empowered you? What has it brought into your everyday life?

Tell us:

• about an opportunity which opened up for you. Have you seen you name in print or won a prize?
• about a scrapbooker you have met who has changed your outlook on life
• have you started a small business related to scrapbooking? an etsy shop?
• how you have reached right out of your comfort zone and discovered you can organise crops or classes.
• how you have discovered you can do something you would never have believed possible - without scrapbooking

Does this sound like you? I'm going to be putting together some guest posts to appear over the next few months and I'd love to hear from you. I'd love to encourage anyone who doesn't usually speak up to give this a go! I know you are there and I'd be happy to introduce you. There have been some new and very welcome fresh faces in the comments box here recently: maybe you have a So this is Scrapbooking story we'd all love to hear? If you fancy a guest spot, drop me an email (find my address on the typewriter, top left) and we'll talk. I'm going to be setting up a Pinterest Board to keep the posts together and I'm thinking I might stretch out of my own comfort zone with a pdf compendium. Let's see where this takes us!

I'm looking forward to hearing from you.