basics

Do you have trouble with journaling? Wish you could tell the pertinent facts and details in a really fun, new way? Do you want to experiment with adding personalized text and wording to your layouts in a unique way? Well, join me as I share how to use word puzzles on your scrapbook pages. This new way of journaling only takes seconds to create online and print out on cardstock. Add some word puzzles and word games to your pages with just a few keystrokes and the riddle of creating fabulous FUN pages is no longer a secret!

Ahhhh! Fall is in the air. The sounds of children laughing fades into the distance as the school bus pulls away from the driveway. I look up and leaves are changing their color coats. The changing of the seasons from summer to fall has begun. After a busy summer of travel and fun, there is now time for me to concentrate on the house (EWW!) or maybe the scrapbooks. Yes! The scrapbooks! Those are more fun than cleaning house anyway! What shall we work on this month? I guess the sound of the school bus is still in my head because I keep thinking of ABC albums!

Do you love paper? I do! I also hate to waste any part of those beautiful backgrounds or solid bits that are left over after I cut a mat, die cut, or punch shapes. If pieces are roughly over two inches square, I save them to make other things. One of my favorite is this crazy quilt page. Here are the easy steps to create one of your own!

"Oh Say does that Star-Spangled banner yet wave...
over the land of the free and the home of the brave...."
~Frances Scott Key, 1814, Star Spangled Banner

Believe me, circles are no longer boring!! I have just discovered the artwork of Hungarian born painter Beate Santor and her wonderful variations on the circle shape.

WHY DO YOU SCRAPBOOK?

Whenever I talk to scrapbookers about why they participate in our wonderful hobby, the first reason they give is some version of "I want to pass on the family photos and stories of our lives in a safe manner!" I agree! Documenting who we are and what we did is a great gift to our children and grandchildren. Since photography was invented and made popular in the late 1860's-1890's, families have been taking photos of their loved ones in order to remember them.

Do you feel behind in your scrapping? Do you wonder if you will ever finish that album? Do you wonder how some scrappers get caught up and stay caught up? If so, sit a spell and take this little eight question scrapbook quiz. It will help you see what your goals and your style are within the hobby. No two scrapbookers are identical --as we all know. But we do sometimes put a lot of pressure on ourselves to either get a lot done or to be super artistic on every page. And there are some of us who have never looked realistically at our hobby or our style. If you are just beginning to scrapbook and hope one day it will all get done or just plain feel overwhelmed by the number of photos stacking up...read on!