I can't remember ever NOT being a scrapper. I actually have my original scrapbook from the early-mid 1970's... just basic plain paper scrapbook with pictures, postcards, and momentos glued and taped in with some handwritten journaling.
Then I did a version of scrapping in those old magnetic photo albums in the 1980's. Cut out shapes from construction paper, added quotes and comments cut from magazines and newspapers, photos, and momentos (movie tickets, etc).
When DD was born in 1995 I started what you would consider "modern" scrapbooking. But the supplies were really limited. LOUD patterned papers, basic color cardstock, decorative scissors, rubber cement. But I still didn't know ANYONE else who scrapped, nor had I heard of CM. I bought almost EVERYTHING I could find, when I could find it, because supplies were so limited!
I put the scrapping aside for a few years after DS was born in 1998, as I didn't seem to find the time. (And everything I had, including albums, fit in a milk crate!!

) But I picked it up again in about 2000 and haven't looked back since!
I attended my first (and only) CM party/crop in about 2003 and while I was impressed with how quickly the pages went together with the CM method, I wasn't sold on it. Other than that I have only attended two other "away from home" crops... one at church as a Ladies Night event in about 2002 and another one just this past November (I went alone and didn't know anyone else, so I got lots done... no gabbing!). My mother actually signed me up for that one and watched the kids for the day

. She knew I was struggling to find time to scrap.
ANYHOOOOOO.... the short answer is, I started and continue to scrap on my own. But I find a lot of help and inspiration here on the DIS and in scrapping magazines. HTH...................P