Wednesday Sponsor Giveaways: Elise Blaha, ReVa, Studio Calico, & SheyB

Two things come to mind...you don't have to buy everything RIGHT NOW ;) and don't worry about mistakes...those can be covered or redone, or might, quite frankly go unnoticed by anyone other than you!!

My advice to the new scrapbooker is twofold. First, don't try to be perfect, lest you become completely overwhelmed. Second, don't be afraid to glean as much inspiration that you can from others. Oh - and, yes. EVERYONE can scrapbook!

The thing that has been most liberating to me that I wish someone had told me in the beginning is that trying to keep up and scrapping chronologically are not the only way to do things. It is OKAY to work on what inspires you at the moment. It is also okay to blend several crafty hobbies into your own creation of life art.

Don't buy every new thing. You will never use them and soon get overwhelmed with all your stuff.

I would say first and foremost don't worry about being caught up. Just concentrate on the process and how much fun you have while scrapping. Using ring binder albums is my #2 suggestion! :)

I would say you don't need to buy EVERYTHING. Go easy, don't worry it will SOON be more than you can store.

Don't buy every new thing. You won't use it and you will
soon get overwhelmed with all your stuff.

I would say that the most important thing is to have fun and not stress about things looking exactly perfect.

I would tell them to Just Do It! :)

Don't get overwhelmed with all the stuff but start small and use what you have on hand. I have so much paper that is waiting for the perfect project when I really should just scrapbook.

Why? oh why? did someone not say "You don't need to cut your pictures in those shapes!"

My advice would be to forget about perfection. Just create pages that have pictures and words. Once that is down, you can experiment with design later. Do not sacrifice your memories just because you don't have the "perfect page".

My advice is twofold. First, don't fear simple pages. Often they show off your photos perfectly. Second, don't be afraid to glean as much inspiration from others. Oh - and EVERYONE can scrapbook! Seriously.

Don't be nervous.
It's not difficult.
Try to feel free and open your mind!

i am a new scrapbooker, so i don't have a whole lot of wisdom to share...however, here is a nugget that i am not so great at following, but hope that everyone else can be: just relax and have fun! it isn't about making the perfect page, it is about doing something creative and keeping your memories in a fun way!

I always date my pages on the back.

I wish I had a scrapbook friend tell me that I didn't need to buy everything I saw--cardstock in every color, patterned paper, embellishments, stickers, etc.
I have way too much stuff that I doubt I'll ever use b/c I've found that my "style" is very minimalist when it comes to making a layout. I would have never guessed that would be my style b/c I love all the "stuff" out there but when it comes time to make a page I use very little.
Thanks for the opportunity to win.

Be true to yourself. If the page makes you happy then it's the right technique. It's your story not someone else.

I wish someone would have told me that i did not need to use EVERY photo from an event... simple is better and usually gets the story told just as well.

Organize your pictures first. Just pick your favorite pictures of one event/day/etc and put them in chronologicial order.

My best advice is...don't stress about what other peoples LO look like, you are creating them for you, your family and freinds, it doesn't matter that it doesnt have the leastest and best things on the page! As long as you are happy thats what counts. I think sometimes we all need to remember that. Be true to yourself! And don't feel like you have to scrap EVERY single photo you have taken. That is impossible expectation that is just too hard. Enjoy your scrapping don't stress, just do what you feel is right, looks good, feels good!

Organize from the start !!

wow there are over 1600 comments so figure my chances of winning are SLIM, but I'll respond anyway. I started scrapping at a time when the craft was very new. Everyone seemed to be doing the same kind of thing so not sure what advice I missed. However, there was one woman who was an artist who came a few times to crops and she was doing elaborate and artsy things to her pages, like fabric and paints. She currently has a line of clothes (with several stores) called Just Ducky. Anyway, think that I became dissatisfied with just pasting photos on white paper with a few stickers and became a "renegade"...hahahaha!

I wish someone would have told me that more is not necessarily better. Some of my pages have too many photos...looking cluttered or too many embelishments. Also, scrapbooking takes practice, practice seeing the visual traingle, practice with matching colors and papers to make your photos tell the story. Don't get frustrated, enjoy the journey and look back at all the wonderful memories that are being preserved!

Well I am a new scrapper.
The best advice I wish someone had told me was get your layout ready where about you'd like to glue it down. That way if your not happy with it, you can make your revisions without having to start over.
I could use any helpful hints, since I'm new!
Thanks