How do they have THAT much time?

[FantasticDisFamily]

Ok, it is one of those days - have to be on campus but not much happening. Not even any students stopping by for me to harass.

So I laid out a couple of basic pages. (I tucked a couple of pages into my bag with photo packs this morning along with my little paper cutter.) Once I knew placement I sketched and labeled the sketch with the numbers on the back of the photos from the developer. I was thinking kewl! I have some pages ready to go next time I have time to sit down and scrap at home.

But then I picked up the new Creating Keepsakes magazine and started leafing through it. I have to ask - all of these folks who are featured talk about working on a layout for DAYS! Starting it, carrying it around, walking away over night or for a few days...

How do they have time to spend that much time on a layout AND get anything done?

Right... too much time on my hands. Just wish I could go home and put it to GOOD use!

Deb

 

[WDWAurora]

I do sometimes wonder if those people work, or are maybe "stay at home moms" or something...I don't have time as a single college student, I can't imagine having THAT much time with kids! Some of them could be retired...I don't know but it really depresses me. I'm not getting any more scrapbooking magazines because it bugs me so much.

 

[Spinning]

Well I am a SAHM and certainly don't have that much time on my hands. Maybe they have a work station and leave it out and think of something as they walk by. I don't know. Most of the mags are way out of my league and I don't even want to put that much into it. Each one of those pages must cost a mint! I do like embellishments but not on every page.

 

[WDWMom]

If a layout took me a couple days I would get frustrated and I am sure I would never pick up a picture again. I like to look at the magazines for new things but I really can't stand reading about other scarppers and how they do or how few pictures they put on pages. I don't have the time or money to do one picture layouts.

Off soap box now

 

[Alice28]

I'm letting my subscription to that mag lapse....I find the layouts WAY too complicated and tedious and I think most scrappers do not scrap that way. And many of the layouts, to me, seem so impersonal....

BTW, I am a SAHM and there is NO WAY I can spend days on a layout. When I get time to scrap, it's wham-bam-thank-you-maam and I try and whip out 8-10 pages at a time. I mean, don't get me wrong, they look nice, and I journal and embellish with stickers and such, but give me a break. I want to be able to enjoy my completed books!

 

[nicki dahling]

OK , I am guilty of being one of those ladies that takes a lot of time on my pages. I am a SAHM ( retired though ). My children are 18, 19, and 20 so I am very blessed to be able to spend all day if I would like on my pages. Now when they were younger I would have to have done scrapbooks on weekends or when the kids were in school. I wish I could slap them down sometime. My cousin does this with her CM albums and it drives me crazy ( of course the way I do minds distresses her also ). She has a 16 and 3 year old though , so I tell her all the time to do what works for her. I tried doing quick pages once and regretted it afterwards ( even went back later and added more , and tore out more ). But the one thing I like about scrapbooks and try to tell people is that you have to develop your own strategy. Do what works for you. My daughters like to scrap, but one does her's fast and the other is more of a perfectionist than me. But they both take pride in their final work. To me that is the most important thing. That when you are done you have created something you are proud of and have enjoyed doing.

Cyndi

 

[ToDisney]

I'm a SAHM and no, I don't get to spend ALL day on books. (That assumption always bugs me.) I'm sure that's not what was meant. I do, however, spend HOURS and DAYS on pages (just not all at once). I work on them when I can. Personally, I don't like the look of just slapping down photos with a few stickers. But isn't that the great thing? We all have different tastes and styles and no matter how much time we spend or don't spend on our books, our loved ones will enjoy them just the same.

With that said, I stopped subscribing to CK years ago because I like to be inspired by magazines and they were just too much for me. I prefer PK now.

 

[WDWAurora]

ToDisney-please don't take the SAHM comments to heart. More of what I meant by that was that SAHMs are actually at home occasionally. I leave for class in the morning, come home, change clothes in 5 minutes, go to work, get home for maybe 15 minutes, eat, then head to meetings for my campus organizations. I didn't mean that you don't do anything else...more that you're at home, and as you pass by, you might have the opportunity to work on things. I only get to scrapbook during school vacations, or during snow breaks, like last week (I did like 10 pages, woohoo!). In no way was that comment meant to mean that you had nothing else to do, mainly just more of the few minute opportunities because you're in the home...if that makes sense.

 

[caseylouandtyler2]

wdwauroura,

I'm sure your intention was not to start a SAHM and working mom war. You were just wondering how the magazine lo people have the time. Just a thought maybe they do what I do, scrap after the kids are in bed. Or leave the house and go to a scrap, then the kids aren't crawling up your legs, chair, arms, or helping you. Or they probably have a separate scrap room where there lo can sit there while they get an idea.

just a thought

 

[FantasticDisFamily]

Ok, first my musing post wasn't meant to start a war! Before they changed our "be on campus requirements" I was able to spend my summers essentially home (but that is too far off track).

And I DO have a workroom where I can leave things out if I'm working and finish for the evening, etc. On occasion I have come back to a partially finished page and said - oops! that isn't working for me and made a change. Although right now it is sewing mode with theater season in full swing.

Glad to see though that I'm not the only one that sees most of what is in the magazines as way to ...hmmm... I'm not even sure what the word is!

As for style I use a combination of fairly simple to more complex pages. Although I tend to stay away from embellishments like brads, grommets, fibers, etc - anything that adds "hard" bulk. Guess it was the early scrapbook "training" I received from the girlfriend that took me from casual to more serious scrapper about not doing anything that might wear on the surrounding pages.

I haven't been able to justify a subscription to any of the magazines but occasionally will pick one up because something specific catches my eye. In this case my DD wanted to run over to the local Barnes & Noble Saturday - and since I'd left the kids all day (they are 13 & 16 so it wasn't neglect!) while I went to a crop - how could I say no? Anyway, I was flipping through the CK and saw a couple of ideas in the sports section for DS's football layouts.

I've found I pick out bits and pieces on occasion. And I have done pages with a single picture - but it has to be a really spectacular item and something that is large enough to stand alone - like a team picture or one of the formal shots from our last cruise for instance.

Deb

 

[grover]

I am one of "those" people!! I take as much time as I need on a layout, it may take hours or days--but of course I am not sitting staring at the pages all that time! I work at it,leave it, think about it, work at it... I personally love CK, the layouts are inspiring to me and most of them are my style. You have to remember as well that alot of people do these layouts with the sole purpuse of being published and the submit them to many different publications. You will also see in the mags the same people published month after month-i'm not sure but I think that is their "job"!! I am not a SAHM, I work full time, have a child and a busy life. I don't think anyone should be faulted for the amount of time they can spend on their layout just because they have a nice/intricate/complicated/beautiful layout. That is the beauty of scrapping-it's all up to you and how YOU do it.
Grover in Winnipeg

 

[JESW]

Also keep in mind that many people create pages with being published in mind. I create my scrapbooks for me and my family - not to share with magazine readers and/or internet users.

I don't mean that as a bad thing to anyone, but there are people who put a lot of time and effort in their pages just for that purpose. I like to journal more, and a lot of pages I see in magazines these days are more artsy - just my opinion - and I DO like that look, but not for my books. (I would use that look more for cards)

Jill

 

[Favorite Auntie]

I spent both days this past weekend scrapping, by myself. I got my entire Disney Cruise done....33 pages! They came out great if I do say so myself! I am single, so no kids or hubby demanding my time, but let me tell you I was tired! I finished at 9PM Sunday night in the middle of the Superbowl...

How about those PATS?!?!?!

 

[FantasticDisFamily]

Ok, wasn't thinking about it as the whole point being to be published (yea, and I'm the one teaching marketing ).

I agree Grover that scrapping is all about doing what works for you and I didn't mean to make it sound negative - simply wondering. And you're quite right, if the purpose isn't to get an album (or albums) done then you really could spend more time.

Maybe it is just me - I have so many different things going that I want to get done it doesn't seem as if there is ever enough time to do it all.

Deb

 

[mcnuss]

Most of the mags are way out of my league and I don't even want to put that much into it. Each one of those pages must cost a mint!

I agree! I like to flip through them, but I cannot even begin to imagine spending that much time or money on a page. I have a few that are extra special with more elements than others, but I confess to having an eBay paper piecing habit, so most of my really cool pages were purchased, not created.

Whether you're a SAHM or one who leaves the house to work, I cannot imagine spending days and days on a lo. I just don't have the patience. And if you're a SAHM whose kids are not in school, I don't know how you'd even find a minute to work on a page!

Truth be told, I have not touched my books since my ill-fated plans to make holiday cards. They consumed me, I never finished them all bc I got all O/C about them, and now I can't bear the thought of breaking out the supplies again. Anyone want some nice holiday stamps cheap? I am not a stamper!!

 

[grover]

How much do you want for the stamps?? Wouldn't happen to have a heat gun to sell as well???
Grover in Winnipeg