Keeping Up With the Scrapbooking Community

A smart publisher once told me, "Always provide your readers with extra value." It's a motto I've adopted as my own. Some of my readers don't care a hoot about scrapbooking. But for those who do, I need to stay on my toes. I have to stay involved in my craft or I'll let them down!

How do I stay involved in scrapbooking? Here's where I find inspiration:

1. Craft stores. I visit them whenever I can, wherever I can. Every store is different. This summer I spent time at ScrapbooksPlus! (Chantilly VA), The Scrapbook Factory (O'Fallon IL), Daisy Lane (Mattoon IL), and For Keeps Sake (St. Louis MO). These indies are dear to my heart. The women entrepreneurs who own them continue to inspire me.

2. Craft events. I had a table at the Great American Scrapbook Convention and I attended Scrapfest last year. Walking around the show floors you see what's hot and what's trendy in the industry. It also provides me a chance to visit my friends (and many of them have been my pals for more than a decade). One of my faves is Judith Kleinschmidt of Stamps by Judith.

3. Craft Magazines. I subscribe to Scrapbooks, Etc. I also love PaperCraft Inspirations, a UK publication that includes a free gift with every publication. That means I get to try flocking and stencils and pop-ups cards and all sorts of things.

4. Books. I love looking outside the papercraft industry for inspiration. Recently I bought Generation T: Beyond Fashion (120 New Ways to Transform a T-Shirt) by Megan Nicolay. Want a tee to transform? You can win a "Kiki Lowenstein Fan Club" tee at my blog. (Hurry. The contest ends August 15.)

Fiction continues to inspire me. I fell in love with Waking Up in the Land of Glitter by Kathy Cano-Murillo, the Crafty Chica. Kathy not only delivers a fun story, she also reminds us that crafting is for everyone, no matter how we come to it or what we bring to it.

5. Craft Sites and Communities. A few of my favorites include Spotted Canary, About.com Scrapbook.com and Fiskars.

6. Craft Radio. I love Diva Craft Lounge Radio with Danielle and Rayme.

7. Doing it. None of this matters very much if you don't actually put it into practice. Crafting is like riding a bike. You could read a dozen instruction manuals, but you don't REALLY get it until you climb on and give it a whirl. I challenge myself to try new techniques. My latest album (shown at the top of the blog) celebrates the release of my dear friend Avery Aames' new book, The Long Quiche Goodbye, by using a round cheese carton. I paid homage to a food I love: TOMATOES. You can read more about it at my blog.

Size Does NOT Matter

So...I was happy making a page the other day when I found myself stressing out because I was using two 4 x 6 inch photos.

See, most of the magazines lately are showing these oversized photos as the focal points on pages.

And I started to feel bummed. Right in the middle of working on the page! Up until then, I was enjoying the colors, the textures, and the theme. But this crummy feeling crept up on me, and I thought, "Really, Joanna, you are just not cutting edge anymore. How pathetic."

(Do you talk to yourself like that? I do. Sad, eh? Mainly it happens when I'm tired, and I've been tired lately. Funny...I wouldn't let anyone ELSE talk to me like that.)

A day later, I received my February/March issue of Scrapbooks etc. Magazine. Inside was an entire article on getting creative with 4 x 6 inch prints. And a few days later ScrapBook Inspirations, my favorite UK magazine, arrived and it showed a page sketch built around 4 x 6's and a gatefold album solely of 4 x 6's.

Here's my point: Everything old is new again.

Here's my other point: This hobby is a particularly trend-driven one. And if I stress over that, I ruin it for myself.

And here's my third point (because 3 is such a good number): Guilt and creativity do NOT go together.

So, I'm going to get back to making pages, and I'm not going to care about the size of my photos. At least, not until the next attack of the ucky comparisons.