Well, I’m not sure I’m really back in the saddle, but I am trying. Back in the scrapbooking saddle, that is.
I basically gave up scrapping over three years ago when I started blogging. Scrapbooking, although it is something that I love and goes hand in hand with my love of taking photos, is a very time-intensive endeavor for me. I’m not very creative and not very good at choosing and mixing mixing colors, papers, embellishments, etc. I think my problem lies in the fact that I have too many supplies, too much paper, too many choices. I’m not very decisive when I’ve literally got hundreds of options to wade through. But, I am trying. I went through a lot of my paper and stuff, and weeded some of it out and gave it to my mother-in-law for her and her sisters to use in their scrapping. I threw out some really old stuff, and have moved some of my less-than-favorite stuff to a different “pile”. That, at least, narrows down my choices. Or so I hope 🙂
I actually chose something really difficult for me to start back scrapping with. Tim sort of understood when I explained it to him. The layout I was trying to work on when I quit three years ago was the one of my mom on her last Christmas. I just didn’t feel like I could do it justice, or do it “right”. I chose that one to start back with, which was probably not smart, but I thought if I could get past that one, I could probably get back to scrapping most anything. I decided to take the Nike approach, and just do it. Nothing fancy, nothing special, just simple and plain. And it is very plain, but it’s done.
Here’s an idea of how it turned out – my poor mom will probably turn over in her grave to know that these less-than-flattering photos of her are out here for all the world to see 🙂 She didn’t like having her photo taken on a good day, much less when she was sick and not at her best. You might not can see, but I did include it in the journaling – she never once looked at the camera when I was taking photos this Christmas morning. The one that turned out to be her last, and these are most of the last photos I have of her before she died.
Anyway, I hope I’m over the hump and can get back into my scrapping somewhat. I don’t have a lot of newer photos printed out, but I have tons of older ones. And goodness knows, I have enough supplies to do hundreds of pages. They are not the latest and greatest embellishments and paper. Most of them are 6-8 years old, although some of the newer stuff is 3-4 years old. I very wisely stopped buying scrapping supplies since I actually wasn’t doing any layouts. And I hope to continue that, although the urge to buy something “new” and “cute” is always with me. Sort of like that little voice that is always telling me to “eat some chocolate. Right Now!” 
Oh send me a picture please of the finished thing so I can see it big! I kinda understand too about doing that one….and I think my pictures of her are the same, never looking at the camera. Even the ones from the wedding, which was about a month before she died, I don’t think she looked at the camera much then either.
I think photos like these demand a simple page because they don’t need embellishments taking away from them. You are showcasing photos that are precious to you.
I agree with Dawn – simple work. Let the beauty of your mom and your memories of her speak for themselves. Good job just “getting ‘er done.”
I agree with Dawn too – gettting it done is a big step and the simple beauty of these particular memories are what makes it so special.
I can so relate – it’s been a couple of years since I scrapped regularly too and I have so many out-dated supplies that are going to get used anyway… one of these days.
Beautiful lo, Stacy. I’m so glad you got back in the saddle. It has to be hard to go through those photos.
On the upside, they have the cutest dog papers and embellishements now and you have adorable photos of Beau……
Ok Stacy….you need to know that ‘back in the saddle’ means something very sexual in the UK and I nearly choked when I read this title! LOL
Stacy, these are nice! I think sometimes time is what is needed to scrap something difficult. I understand about feeling overwhelmed with it all. I’m deciding that I’m not going to scrap as much and put extra photos into photo boxes. I also want to go through my supplies and weed out a bunch of them. I think it’s just become too much “stuff” and is overwhelming. Maybe if I weed out a lot of it and just do simple projects it will be easier.
Thanks for sharing your pages!
What a beautiful layout, Stacy! Truly! I think it showcases the pictures of your mom perfectly. I’m so glad you decided to give scrapbooking another go. I totally understand the feeling you were talking about…being afraid you couldn’t do such special pictures justice. But girl, you did! So now you know you can scrap anything.
I also know what you mean about having too many supplies! Yikes. I made myself stop buying a while ago since I get so little time to scrap these days. But every once in a while the urge to buy something cute just overwhelms me…the perfect place to go–Target’s dollar spot–they’ve often got really cute little scrapbooking embellishments. I spend a buck or two, get something new and fun, and don’t feel overly guilty 🙂
Can’t wait to see more of your layouts, Stacy!
Stacy, I’m so proud of you for scrapping again and starting with a page about your beloved mother. I’m sure she would be very proud of you. The page is simple yet beautiful. You are highlighting your mom, not a bunch of cute embellishments!
I haven’t scrapped much at all since my mom died two years ago. Mostly because of my master’s program. But I do want to do some pages about my mother soon. I want to list or highlight the things that she loved so that I don’t forget them.
I hope you continue to share some of your pages here on your blog. You inspire me to get started again!
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