Scrapbooking seems to have an ebb and flow in my life . . . trying to fit in my life no matter what else is going on. In fact, I've noticed that when I can't find time to scrapbook it has an effect on my mood and self-esteem. Life has been crazy, finances have been brutally tight and I've had to learn to scrapbook in a whole new way. In the store I could SEE everything. The different colours and patterns inspired me every day and creating a new and exciting layout seemed so easy most of the time. In my little space here at home everything has to be in bins and boxes and the inspiration just isn't there. And because I scrap alone most of the time, I don't have the enthusiasm and guidance of other scrappers to inspire me either. So for quite a while I rarely scrapbooked. And I missed scrapbooking. So I added it to my to do list. That made it a chore that I rushed through in order to accomplish something. And my creativity suffered. I knew I was having problems when even friends commented on my recent layouts that they didn't seem to be mine.
A few weeks ago we had a 12-hour crop and I brought a ton of paper and embellishments and photos with me, determined to conquer my layout drought. And I was thrilled with the pages I created. My stash was spread out more, I had the stimulus of other crafters around me. I think I have my mojo back. So at home this week I have changed the way I scrapbook. I actually pull out bins of paper and embellishments and sketches and play with them until I have found the look that will make me happy. And I don't care if it takes 15 minutes or a few hours. I don't stop until I'm happy with what I've created. I haven't really changed my style at all -- I still prefer lots of layers of papers and patterns and minimal embellishments. But I am really happy with what I'm doing again. It will never be a chore again. When "scrapbooking" comes up on my to do list now, it is permission for me to forget about the housework and errands and whatever else is on my plate for the day . . . and take some "me" time to create; not quitting until I am happy with the result.
Here are the layouts I did this week:
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