Write. Click. Scrapbook.

Fake It, 'Til You Make It.

Welcome back to my final day of this series on scrapbooking when you don't have photos. We've covered a few different approaches -- focusing on the story or journaling only in various forms and using memorabilia in place of photos. Today we have yet another idea: using stock photos. There are lots of different stock photo sites on the internet and many of them have free photos. Flickr can also be a source for photos once you check the terms of use on the photograph. Right around September 11th I was talking with some friends about what we were doing that time, 10 years ago and it prompted the following layout. I don't have any photos from that day but I was able to find one online to use on this layout.

 

Celeste uses stock photos frequently - she used stock photos to document some good things in her life right now:

 

I used photos from the Food Network website to document my family's obsession with the show Chopped:

 

Another option is to use screen captures to get images from your computer of websites. I used a utility called Gadwin PrintScreen to capture different websites that I use when reading:

 

That's it from me -- I hope this gave you a few ideas on how you can scrap those photo-less memories and stories!

and the giveaways go to . . .

Thank you, Stampin' Up! for making these ten ladies very happy!

Ladies, if you could please send your mailing address to us at writeclickscrapbook at gmail dot com, we will line you up with your comment so that we might help you get your Stampin' Up! goodies! Thank you! We will accept your emails through Thursday at noon. Thank you!

Tickets and Letters and Notes, Oh My!

Yesterday I showed you different examples of layouts without photos - just journaling and a title. Today, I'm going to share another approach - using memorabilia. Memorabilia can be anything that stirs your memory of something - tickets, letters, notes, drawings. They can be a perfect substitute when scrapbooking a memory for which you don't have any photos. Take my first trip to the Boston Pops for example. I didn't take any photos that evening but I did keep our (front row!) tickets as a memento - I used them in this layout:

I recently came across a map my husband had made for me when we were first dating. It's scribbled on a post-it note but it brought back such fond memories that I thought it deserved to be scrapped:

Of course this time of year we have the perfect opportunity to scrap letters, those ones that get to Santa. I've done this several times, scanning the actual letter of course because the original gets sent to the North Pole :)

 

And I've even incorporated two letters (lists really) into one layout:

I took a different approach with some sheet music from my childhood. I scanned it and used it as the background for my layout:

But wait, there's more! Tomorrow I'll discuss another approach you can take when you don't have photos to go with your stories. See you then!

Take a Picture With Your Brain

Even though we all have piles (and piles) of photos waiting around to be scrapped, sometimes there are other stories that need to be told. Memories that might not have a photo to go along with them. What do you do then? For the next three days, I'm going cover different approaches to scrapbooking when you don't have photos.

Today, I'm going to focus on using the story itself as the basic for a layout. Take the title of this post for instance - it came from something my kids said to me one day when I didn't have my camera with me when they were being especially cute. How could I let a quote like that go unscrapped?

The first ever photo-less layout that I made is one of my favorites. It was one of those days, you know, when everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, went wrong. While the kids were napping I put my thoughts down on paper, clearly feeling very sorry for myself. I quickly realized that I was starting to sound like Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, and the result is this layout - just a story and a title.

Celeste used a similar approach when she scrapped Storm Alfred:

Christa created this layout to document all the places she's lived - using a map and chipboard houses to denote the various locations around the US. Isn't it clever?

I had held off on documenting a list of places I'd lived because I didn't have photographs - clearly this shouldn't have been a problem! I decided to use tags and chipboard houses to do the same:

Here's a totally different take on the list idea - Emily created a list of things that are happening in her life right now.  It's such a fun and interesting layout to look at, and not a photo in sight:

Lisa sent me the following link that should inspire anyone when journaling without photos: Unphotographable: a text account of pictures missed.

 

Check back tomorrow when I'll tackle another approach to scrapbooking without photos, this time using memorabilia.

Sunday Photo + Words

write. click. scrapbook!

What a month we have had. Here is a recap of our challenges and inspiration this month.

 

Journaling Challenges

1. A Garden Story Flower or vegetable, public or private, arboretum or farmer's field: gardens add a rich layer of beauty to our lives. As bleak November sets in, revisit the warmth of summer by telling a story you haven't told before that involves, even in a small way, a garden in some form. 

2. Something in Common Write about something two people have in common. You can think personal or physical characteristics, likes and dislikes, habits, favorites.

3. A Small Thing For Which You Are Grateful When we think about things we're grateful for, we tend to think of big topics (health, marriage, and family, for example). Instead, try writing about something small you are grateful for, like the perfect cup of hot chocolate (or the cup you drink from), pretty toenails (or socks that keep your feet happy), your favorite sweater (or the stranger who complimented you on it). This is a great chance to scrapbook about yourself! Or, think about a small thing your subject might be grateful for and write about how it influences his/her life for the better.

 

Photography Challenges

1. A Garden Story How does your garden look right now? Is autumn in full swing or do you have snow? Or are you one of the very lucky ones that still have blooms in your flower beds? Take time to document how your garden looks now, and then let's extend it to all year round.

2. Common Things Check your photo files and find photos from this day/week last year and take new ones from this day/week and make a diptych .

3. Three Small Things For Which You Are Grateful

 

Scrapbooking Inspiration

1. A Donna sketch/digital template

2. a texture inspiration piece

3. seasonal color inspiration

 

We would like to thank Tara for joining in with a fantastic layout, and Nathalie for posting her beautiful  photos. We have had a remarkable month here at Write. Click. Scrapbook. Just 6 days until a new gallery, a new month, and the beginning of December Dailies. We wanted to express our appreciation for you, dear readers, once again. Thank you, thank you! And please don't forget to add your projects to our Flickr family gallery. We love getting to know you more!

So do you go out for Black Friday?

Marie here today! I hope everyone had a splendid Thanksgiving and got to eat lots of turkey, pumpkin pie and stuffing. I hosted this year, so today I am kicking my feet up, reading the enormous paper I never got around to reading yesterday, and relaxing the day away. That's right, relaxing. I don't normally venture out for any Black Friday shopping...now online, that is another story! My dear hubby sometimes likes to get up early and go out just to observe the craziness, but I like to sleep in after all that turkey. So although I don't participate in the day, I do enjoy a good challenge. And Erin and I have a great one for you today!

I used to love watching those shows like Super Market Sweep, and the fun run around in the toy store to grab whatever they could in 60 seconds. Well today we challenge you to do just that with a Black Friday inspired layout. Put on the timer for 60 seconds and as fast as you an, grab some product-anything you might need for a layout and then sit down and get it done in 30 minutes or less. Let me tell you, it was a challenge, but a super fun one. I was a little bit running around like crazy! This is what I came up with for my products...

And here is my layout...in 31 minutes :)

 

Erin, of course, played along. First her products ...

 

... and Erin's page.

Erin said, "Limiting myself to the supplies I picked during my 60 seconds definitely helped me complete the page faster. Usually I'm going back and forth between my supplies, just being my usual indecisive self. I think I finished in 24 minutes. Pretty sure that's a personal record!"

 

A few others took on the challenge too!

First by our Lisa O.

Next Celeste did a digi page-using a template that helped her with the snappy deadline.

And finally Amy

Here's what Amy said about our crazy challenge. "I am a seriously slow scrapper, so I doubted my abilities to finish this in 30 minutes. Here's what helped: the photos were printed as two 3x4s and one 4x6. I didn't cut them apart but just stuck them down as is. I already had a draft of the journaling written from back in 2004 when this tooth-losing experience happened. I changed some of the wording when I hand wrote the journaling, but not very much. Much as I love printed journaling, it's much faster to write it by hand. My final time: 32 minutes. And that is definitely a broken speed record for me!"

So are you a Black Friday shopper? If so, leave us a comment and share an awesome deal I missed out on today ;)

give.away.day. featuring STAMPIN' UP!

Yesterday Marie and Erin had great fun playing with Stampin' Up! products. Today, Stampin' Up! is helping us tell you how grateful we are for you, our kind readers, on this Thanksgiving Day.

This week, Stampin' Up! is offering TEN Christmas Keepsake Box kits for our give.away.day!

Who knew you could capture the spirit of Christmas in a box? That's just what you can do with the exclusive Christmas Keepsake Box kit from Stampin’ Up! The completed box is perfect packaging for a gift that will never be forgotten, and the kit itself can be the perfect gift for your favorite crafter! The kit comes with almost everything you need precut and includes instructions to help you make it.

If you would like to be considered for this week's giveaway, please leave us a comment telling us of an homemade Christmas gift you are making or hoping for this year. Or you can share with us something that you might tuck into your Christmas Keepsake box when you are picked. (The power of positive thinking!!)

Due to the holiday weekend, comments will remain open through Tuesday evening. Ten lucky numbers will be drawn at random and posted on Wednesday morning. Please remember it is your responsibility to check back and to claim your lucky number by noon on Thursday. Good luck everyone! 

If you aren't one of the lucky ten numbers, don't fret. Stampin’ Up! is hosting a HUGE Online Extravaganza until November 30, where select products from Stampin’ Up! will be 20-60% off. Don't let that turkey fatigue cause you to pass that one by...

Lastly, a big thank you, dear readers, for making us a regular stop on your pathway of learning and inspiration. We appreciate you and hope that you continue to visit us daily!! Happy Thanksgiving!!

The Three Project Challenge

Hey there. Erin and Marie here again and today we're challenging ourselves to use one set of products three ways. Because we all like to get the most out of our supplies, right?

We each have a set of Stampin' Up! papers, cardstock, stamps and ink and some punches that we'll be using today.

For my three projects I used the Just Add Cake paper line, Pennant Parade stamp set, Petite Pennants punch, Scallop border punch, ink and cardstock.

First up, my card.  

 

Next is my layout about Ryan's first haircut. Sniff. My last baby is no longer a baby! Also, I'm really loving orange right now.

 

And my third project - mini-notecards to stick in Emma's lunchbox. I'm writing little notes to her on the back. I love how these turned out and I plan on making more so I can stick one in her lunch every week for the rest of the school year.

 

For Marie's three projects, she used the Big Top Birthday paper line, Make a Monster stamp set, plus cardstock and ink.

First is her card.

Marie said, "For this card I used the Make a Monster stamp kit. With three monsters, eyes, teeth, hair, and horns, the kids and I are all going to have a blast creating little creations and fun cards for them to send."

 

Next is her layout.

"I finally got around to scrapping my very first Halloween photo. Yes. My daughter is SIX. My problem is, we don't really do scary things yet and I kept getting caught up on the need to use all of my cute orange, black and purple Halloween paper. Well, as soon as I saw this Stampin' Up! paper, I knew I was once again going to break the rules. Red, white, and blue make so much more sense with the kids' costumes. And finally, I have scrapped a Halloween page!"

 

For her third project, Marie made a mobile to hang over her youngest son's changing table.

"A few years ago I was surfing the interwebs and stumbled upon an adorable tutorial (photo mobile inspiration) for a mobile over at Design Dazzle. I knew I would end up making it one day. Hooray that day has arrived! While it was originally created with fabric, I knew I could easily adapt it with some cute paper and twine. It was a fun project, plus an act of desperation as we are in the sweating-my-head-off-wrestling-a-very-strong-baby-during-diaper-changes stage. So far it is working well!"

Seriously, is this not the cutest mobile ever?

Now it's your turn! Grab some product and challenge yourself to make three different projects using the same items. We'll be checking out the Flickr gallery to see what you come up with.

 

All product used today was courtesy of Stampin' Up! Thank you Stampin' Up!

So what do you do when your girly house turns boy?

I have to admit, I was super excited when I found out my first baby was a girl. The pink Converse, the flowers, the ruffles, the hair bows. Oh and the girly, girly scrapbook supplies. And then I had two boys. How would I scrapbook? Ok so maybe I am a little sad I won't be pulling out my favorite dresses again, but when Erin and I decided to do some girl to boy (and boy to girl) inspiration, I realized something. I had to look REALLY hard for a super girly page. I love using blues, browns, reds, and greens on my daughter's pages. Now I think Jack probably wouldn't appreciate me putting those pink Converse on him, but pink on a page? Why not?!

Challenge #1

Turn a girly page into a boy page.

Here is my girly inspiration page I did back in 2007.

I pretty much used the same layout design, chose circles instead of the flower paper, and look! A little bit of pink. And yes, some of the wishes are the same too, but I want all three of the kids to have a version of this page. Charlie's is on the list to do...

 

Here is Erin's original girly page...

Perfectly sweet and girly! And now her boy version.

Erin said about this challenge "Now that I have a boy after having two girls, I have to change my way of scrapping. I'm no longer using just pinks and purples and flowers and all things girly. It was a challenge at first, thinking of scrapping in boy terms. This challenge was an easy way to get a page done about Ryan. I had the basic design already in place. I just had to swap out the paper colors and alter the design a tad. I'm definitely going to pull out some of my favorite girl pages and use them as inspiration for some Ryan pages. His album is sorely lacking content!"

 

Here is an original girly page from our Amy.

And here is her new page.

Amy said, "I was surprised at how quick this made it to make a layout. Having a general idea of the placement of things meant I could quickly format the journaling and not really agonize over the design. It also made me think about my supplies in different ways, both how I used them on older layouts and how I might use them on the layouts for the challenge. I wanted to do a punched edge on the "be kind" layout, but this exercise made me realize that all my edge punches feel fairly girly. I think I might need to buy some more masculine ones!"

 

Challenge #2

Just in case you started with boys and suddenly need some girl power, Amy also shared a boy to girl layout

And her new "girly" version.

 

Okay your turn! Find some inspiration in your albums and scrap!