5 Top Timesavers
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There’s no doubt about it; scrapbooking is a lifestyle. Once you start preserving the past, you find that memory-keeping has an enormous impact on your present and your future. And I think it’s fair to say that the happiest, most productive, and most involved scrapbookers are
those who take a holistic approach to the hobby. They weave it into the hours and minutes of each day, finding greater joy and fulfillment in little moments and big events alike.
Would you like a few tips for making memory keeping a bigger part of your life, for “fitting it in,” so to speak? Then, who better to turn to than Ella’s list of nine most influential scrapbookers for 2010? These over-achievers are all doing their part to keep the masses (including us!) inspired and energized, which translates directly to more pages made and more memories preserved.
And you can bet that these women don’t just talk the talk; they walk the walk as well. We had already gathered 27 of their best time-saving and productivity-enhancing tips in our newest release, Time to Scrapbook!, but they had more to say than we could squeeze into that inspiration-packed eBook. Please enjoy five bonus tips from nominees Maggie, Noell, Stacy, Shimelle, and Renee.
1. Keep photo prints on hand.
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Maggie Holmes
See Maggie's MISA profile here. |
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Maggie says, “I always start my scrapbook pages by selecting photos that inspire me. And yet this can also be the most time-consuming part for me—looking through images on my computer to find the ones I want to edit and print out. So, when I have some spare time, I will edit and print out a bunch of photos all at once. I don’t necessarily know how I’m going to use them down the road, I just know that I love them and that they’re worthy of being made into prints. And then when I have a sudden urge to scrapbook (or perhaps a looming deadline), I always have inspiring photos to choose from.”
2. Simplify by editing down your number of photos.
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Noell Hyman
See Noell's MISA profile here. |
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Noell says, “When choosing photos for a layout, ask yourself the question, ‘Which picture best tells the story I'm trying to communicate?’ This works better for me than the more common question, ‘Which photos can you do without?’ It's harder to get rid of photos than it is to choose the one or two that best tell the story. I make a lot of multiple photo layouts with lots of pictures, but when I really need to simplify (i.e., save time), which is the case more and more these days, I find I can accomplish so much more by asking myself that first question and using fewer photos. In the end, I always feel like I've made a bigger visual impact and shared a more compelling story, too.”
3. Know what works for you.
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Stacy Julian
See Stacy's MISA profile here. |
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Stacy says, “I probably talk about this too much, but I can’t stress enough the importance of sorting your stash of product so that it ‘makes sense’ to you—so that it flows with your personal approach to page design. I love my Scrap by Color system, because it fits the way I think. In another example, as much as I admire the clean and graphic scrapbooking style, I know that it’s not my comfort zone. So before attempting to step outside of my natural approach, I warm up my creative muscles by practicing what I call “intentional imperfection.” I don’t line things up; I don’t measure. I just play and experiment, and it never fails to unlock my creativity. It’s important to pay attention to your natural thought processes and preferences, and then work with those (rather than fighting against them) as often as you can.”
4. Break it up.
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Shimelle Laine
See Shimelle's MISA profile here. |
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Click here to watch the video. |
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Shimelle says, “Stop telling yourself you have to have long blocks of time to finish a page, because that’s just not always going to be possible. Instead, treat smaller parts of the page as their own accomplishments. And celebrate them! No matter how busy you are, you can spend 15 minutes one day making an embellishment you love. Then spend another 15 writing journaling about a picture you adore. Eventually, you'll find the 15 minutes to put all the pieces together, too! And you’ll be practicing your art a little each day. Doesn’t that sound divine?”
5. Take advantage of technology.
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Renee Pearson
See Renee's MISA profile here. |
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Renee says, “One of the ways I make more room for creative time is to simplify other areas of my life. And technology can be a huge help. For example, I love 1Password (which is for Macs only). I use this online program to securely store all my confidential information, software licenses, passwords, etc. There are also add-ons for the major browsers so I don’t have to do so much typing. I love little time-savers like this, so I can use the minutes I’ve saved in other ways! There are lots of directly creative tools online, too. For example, I love using a Mac dashboard widget called Hslider. It’s very useful for getting RGB and Hex codes for colors I spot on the web that I then want to use in my digital scrapbooking. Check it out here. Keep an eye out for other tech tools that will simplify your life, and use your saved minutes wisely.”
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As Noell Hyman said when we interviewed her for her profile, “A decent percentage of my scrapbooking happens when I'm not actually sitting down and physically doing it, but while I'm getting other stuff done, because I'm scrapbooking in my head.” If that doesn’t encapsulate living the scrapbooking lifestyle, we don’t know what does.
We at Ella Publishing co. hope that the tips above, plus those shared in Time to Scrapbook!, will help you translate your “mental scrapbooking” into beautiful, tangible pages that you love.
Happy scrapbooking!
