Its All About the Story

By -


I started scrapbooking (i hate that word) about 7yrs ago. It was like finding my perfect fit. I threw myself into it with wholehearted abandon. I ate, slept and dreamt in layouts. I worked in a scrapbook shop. I gave lessons at the shop and then later from my home. I was passionate about it.

Enter blogging about 4yrs ago. It was like finding another perfect fit. I threw myself into it just as hard and I have been an avid blogger since that day. Scrapbooking eventually became a distant memory.

The common denominator? Words. Photos. My life.

What am I missing at the moment? The arty side. The paper and glue side. Do I miss it enough to dive back in as voraciously as in the past ? No. Definitely not. But I miss it enough to do the projects that mean something to me. Not endless layout after layout after layout.

I think scrapping got too hard - its easy to fight creativity and to make it harder than it has to be. To get complicated and keep putting stuff off. It was so much easier to simply log on, churn out a blogpost and gooi in some photos .

Scrapbooking with paper slows me down. In a good way. Its all a bit zen really. It gets me into a different headspace, away from the clicking of keys and swiping of touchpads. It is something that fuels me and yet I cast it aside.

"My biggest fear sometimes is that I wont tell a story deeply enough". - Ali Edward -

I can relate to that fear. I dont want to get so immersed in the creation of some page full of flounce, paint, embellishments and stuff and not tell the story that lies beneath the prettiness. I think I live in this dichotemy of beauty vs truth.


Omigosh, who knew I could write so MUCH about scrapping eh?  Thanks for reading if you made it this far!

Best I get cracking on my 'Mel @ 38' layout.  For those of you who are interested you can see my other pages from age 32 to 36 here.

Comments

Shayne said…
I can completely relate.

But as you say it is just so much easier to write a blog post together with some pics, and then print out the yearly journal.

but I miss the creative side of that.

Are you going to do Week In the Life?

i've done it the last few years and loved it. Except this year i'm going to do it 1 -7 Aug. I love it.
July 22, 2011 at 2:26 PM
blackhuff said…
I can't relate - I never done or had the desire to do scrap booking. I rather prefer a normal photo album. I think it's the simplicity of the photo album which I like. Scrap booking looks so unorganized to me. But that's just my opinion.
July 22, 2011 at 2:57 PM
Stefanie said…
Why don't you like the word scrapping? I still regard myself as a scrapbooker at heart and now that I have gone over to the dark digi side I am even more fulfilled, up to date and am still journaling and telling all that needs to be told. 1-7th of August sounds good to me. 25th July a little too close. I need Ali's inspiration after the fact I think.
Has Blackhuff seen my linear scrapping style?
I think scrapping with a photo, generic word like Beautiful, sans date and even the basics of journaling is art and not scrapping...I need my pages to have meaning...like me they need embellishing and BODY!
July 22, 2011 at 3:14 PM
MelB said…
Yup, I am doing Ali's WITL next week. I have printed out her templates and theres not much else to do besides live and document the week. Why do you guys need to prepare? I will put the album together the following week.
July 22, 2011 at 3:37 PM
MelB said…
@Blackhugg - photo albums are lovely but can become meaningless to future generations if there is no story with the pics. I have annual photo albums too.

@ Stef - the word scrapping evokes a *crafty* feeling for me. ANd I have no interest in crafts. Its sounds naff and doily.
July 22, 2011 at 3:40 PM
Shayne said…
It's not that I need to prepare - i have also downloaded her stuff and will follow a simple format.

however, next week I am going to be REALLY busy and i know i wont' take in what i need to and remember to take pics etc etc.
July 22, 2011 at 5:32 PM
allie. said…
Someone wise once said: "Truth is beauty, beauty truth" so maybe it dopesnt have to be that complicated after all?
:-)
July 22, 2011 at 5:42 PM
cat said…
I have to admit that I have never been grabbed by the scrapbooking bug. I tried! Then I just made cards from the stuff I bought. I do however love making my photobooks - I am at present recapping 2008.

Mosaics, now that's me. It appeals to the slower me.
July 22, 2011 at 6:09 PM
Lynette Jacobs said…
Oi...much to be said about this "craft". I love that it gives me "down time" and "recharge" time and time to think.
July 23, 2011 at 11:48 AM
Joanne said…
I loved my scrapping days and I look back at them fondly. I am way more fulfilled in my fun/exciting/strange/well paid/demanding and all important (to me) respected job.

PS - And seriously when your kids get older they just dont want pics taken. They love my scrapbooks though - go figger
July 24, 2011 at 9:41 AM
Julia said…
I love looking at peoples scrapping but have never attempted it myself. Looks so complicated! Must see if I can try it at least once this year.
July 31, 2011 at 4:32 PM
Marcia (123 blog) said…
LOL at your instruction in the comment box.

Thanks for popping over and yes, please join in on Thursday and "get your craft on" .

I used to also think of crafts as badly-made things like odd-shaped pottery and things I'd more likely to throw away than keep until I started reading the crafty blogs. There are still the horrible things out there (in my opinion - I'm a very simple and uncluttered kind of girl) but there are also some STUNNING things that suit my style perfectly.

In that post I linked to Allison from little lovelies - I love her uncluttered, clean style.

ANYWAY, loved reading your whole darn blog up to now!
August 21, 2011 at 10:29 PM
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