Scrapbooking Encouragement

Friends,

I know you are sick of hearing about the gym and my newfound love of all things healthy. So, I'd like to discuss scrapbooking. I love it. If you are a scrapbooker or if you are thinking of becoming a scrapbooker or if you used to scrapbook and have not in a while (ahem...Christina) or if you've never considered scrapbooking, I think I've found a great product for you. But first let me ramble for a while. I'm a hot/cold scrapbooker. I'll do it religiously for a while, then get tired of having my junk out, so I'll pack it up and put it away for a while. By while, I mean months. Weeks. Just depends on what else is going on in life.

I sometimes get out of touch with the current trend. Sometimes I don't care for the current trend, so I stick with my basic, simple style. Every now and then I turn out a pretty fantastic layout.

Whether I'm hot or cold, I always enjoy reading Creating Keepsakes ( http://www.creatingkeepsakes.com/) Magazine and Simple Scrapbooks (http://www.simplescrapbooksmag.com/ ) Magazine. (I'm getting to the great product in about 2 seconds.) While purusing my May copy of Creating Keepsakes, I discovered that Lisa Bearnson, Ali Edwards and some other famous scrapbooker are creating monthly kits that include albums, layouts, embellishments, and tons of ideas. I was intrigued. I got on the website (http://www.lisabearnson.com/kotm/) and was impressed with the versatility of June's kit. So, I ordered it.

It arrives Friday afternoon. As soon as I opened it, I realized that it's amazing. Each layout is sealed in it's own bag. There is a hinged clipboard for display. There is a booklet with page ideas. Each page is multiple layers. There are a variety of embellishments. I haven't opened the bag with a layout yet, so I can't attest to the quality of the paper. Truthfully, it's probably not the nice thick paper I love to buy at the scrapbook stores, but everything is already cut. DID YOU HEAR ME???? Everything is already cut for you. I don't have to cut mats or title blocks or ANYTHING. That in itself is worth a lesser quality paper. I don't mean that the paper isn't good. But the cardstock isn't Bazzill, which is top of the line.

The other thing that got me about this approach to a monthly kit? There is no committment. I was a member of a scrapbook club, but you were charged almost $40/month and you had to cancel your membership to take a break. With Lisa Bearnson's approach, you order only the kits you are interested in. So, if my budget is tighter one month, I won't order it. Or if the kit is something I'm not interested in, I won't order it. But I have the freedom.

I also like that there are several samples with each layout idea on the website. Ali Edwards also posted some of her examples on her blog. Speaking of her blog, can I mention that I thought I'd died and gone to heaven when I realized ALL. THESE. FAMOUS. SCRAPBOOKERS. HAVE. BLOGS. But not to worry. I really like you all more. A lot more. I mean...you're real people and you're my blog friends.

Check it out and let me know what you think. Please.


Just a disclaimer: Since my local scrapbook store closed, I'm thirsty for supplies. The amazing scrapbook store in Atlanta is 2 hours away--not something I could do every weekend. If you have a local store, I highly encourage you to support it. Then again, one can never have too many supplies!!!