Glad you asked! An online crop is a series of scrapbooking challenges that are typically hosted on social media: Facebook, YouTube, blogs, and so forth. Challenges are scheduled through out the weekend (depending on the host), and scrappers can play along at their leisure and in the comfort of their own homes!
Online crops are an easy way to connect with other scrapbookers, be creative, win prizes, and to have a ton of fun!
A special thanks to our 2017 Sponsors – April Lilli Shop and SpiegelMom Scraps for their generous prize offerings! All participants will be entered for a chance to win one of these cool prizes!
Be sure to join us on Friday, May 7th starting at 4:00 pm CST! Specific details for each challenge will be posted on the Victoria Marie Facebook Group page as the “pinned post”. Scrappers have until Monday, May 8th to play along with the challenges.
Lately I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed by all of the projects I am working on (both personal and business). I find myself wanting to do all of the scrappy things…
Project Life
A Day in the Life
A Week in the Life
Traveler’s Journaling
December Daily (still haven’t finished 2016)
Planning
Cards
Pocket Letters
One Little Word
Art Journaling
The list goes on and on and on! Do you feel me? Are you in the same boat? All of these projects seem like so much fun (because they are) and there isn’t a day that goes by when I don’t see stunning examples of these projects on Instagram and think, “Wow, I really need to do that!”
I need coffee to deal with my overwhelm!
Except…I don’t freakin’ have time to do all of the scrappy things!!!
I have fallen into the scrappy overwhelm trap many times, feeling as though I need to have multiple scrapbooking projects going on at the same time to justify my existence as a creator. And this feeling did not go away after I started my business last June. The pressure to create different kinds of projects ALL THE TIME intensified (self-induced) and I began to feel a little down about the entire ordeal. Talk about stressful, unnecessarily stressful. I decided to cut myself some slack.
I decided that I did not have to do all of the scrappy things.
(Mind blown)
December Daily 2016…still not done.
I made the decision to focus on the projects that I truly love and have time to complete. Maybe one day I will dabble with Project Life or perhaps I will create more spreads in my traveler’s journal…who knows! But I certainly will not set unrealistic expectations on myself to do all of the scrappy things.
Our creative energies ebb and flow and we should allow space in our creative environment to focus on the projects that truly fill us up!
We do not have to keep up with the creative Joneses!
(By the way, my maiden name is Jones…ha!)
So off I go to my creative space to work on my ONE project, knowing that other projects are available to me if and when I decided to do them…or not.
Over the past week, I have experienced a lack of confidence in some of the projects I’ve been working on. I decided to pull myself out of my “self-induced rut” and make a bright bold layout, peppered with positive affirmations, as a reminder to myself that I CAN move forward and get things done.
That’s what girl bosses do!
This layout was created using the Jellybean Kit by Clique Kits (April 2017). I began this layout with a stunning painted pattern paper by Bella Blvd called “Believe”. The gold foiled brush script phrase “believe in yourself” serves as the title for this spread. I love when the work is done for me!
I created two bands of pattern paper to anchor my photo and embellishments. The yellow paper is called “Paint Me Pretty”. Under the yellow paper is a piece of black polka dot vellum paper called “Confetti” by Pretty Little Studio. The velum was used to mute the busy background paper just a bit.
Next, I created clusters of embellishments around the photo. Some of the elements on this layout are from my stash – I used most of the embellishments that came in the kit on other projects! That’s a good problem to have. 🙂
To the top right of the photo, I added a doily, a wood veneer tag that I accented with a gold foil heart that says “love”, a small pink flower die cut, and a camera puffy sticker from my stash.
To the bottom left of the photo I create a small cluster to include a yellow flare button that says “She is Crafty”, a die cut arrow, and an ampersand puffy sticker. I added two arrow puffy stickers and enamel shapes by Freckled Fawn to further accent the layout.
Lastly, I typed my journaling strips using my We-R-Memory Keepers Typecast Typewriter…one of my favorite journaling techniques.
Check out the process video for this layout on the Victoria Marie YouTube Channel! And be sure to stop by the Clique Kits website for more information about this kit! Happy scrappin’!
If you are like me, then you probably have thousands of digital photos spread across multiple devices. It is so easy to take photos on our phones and tablets, making the accumulation of photos very easy. However, it is often the case that these photos remain on our devices. And the more photos we take, the harder it becomes to get the motivation to sort, organize, and print them.
Over the years, I have developed a digital photo organization process that has served me well! And yes, I am going to share my awesome tips with you. Let’s get started with setting up an organization flow that will help you work through your digital photos. Remember, this week we are focusing on tackling one set of photos at a time. It is not recommended that you attempt to organize all of your digital photos in one setting, especially if you have thousands to sort and organize. Pace yourself!
THE PROCESS – DIGITAL PHOTO ORGANIZATION
STEP ONE – Start Somewhere! Anywhere!
In this first step, you are going to pick a starting point to begin this process. For example, perhaps you elect to organize your holiday photos or your birthday party photos from last year? Just pick a set of photos and go with it.
STEP TWO – Review Your Photos
Once you have selected a set of photos to organize, you will start the process of reviewing each photo. This should be a relatively quick process where you make swift decisions. For each photo decide if you want to KEEP or TOSS the photo. The photos that you elect to keep should be your very favorite photos. From those photos you can later select which ones you want to SCRAPBOOK. Toss photos that are duplicates, blurry, or photos that you simply do not like. Continue this process until you are satisfied – what remains should be the photos that you truly want to keep.
STEP THREE – Sort and Organize
At this point, you will need to sort and organize your digital photos into categories. Creating digital folders is a very easy way to manage your photos. You can opt to set up folders on your computer, but be sure to back up your photos just in case something happens to your computer (more on this in a few). Decide how you want to organize your photos: by theme, year, month, person, event, holiday, etc.
Create a digital folder for each category and assign your photos to the appropriate folder. Also, set up a folder for photos that you wish to scrapbook in the future. That way when you are ready to create a layout, you have photos designated for scrapbooking. This will save you a lot of time when you are ready to create! NOTE: Your digital photo organization system should be unique to YOUR photo management needs! Do what works best for you.
STEP FOUR – Back Up Your Photos
Once you are done reviewing, sorting, and organizing your digital photos, it is time to back them up! I recommend using 2-3 methods of storing your digital photos:
On your computer
On an external device such as an external hard drive
On the Cloud (internet based storage) HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Here’s why…
If something happens to your primary digital photo storage, (i.e. your computer crashes) then all of those precious photos will be backed up and secured using the other methods.
While your computer and even an external hard drive are good photo storage options, I highly recommend that you consider using a cloud based service as a digital photo storage solution. Cloud based services are increasingly popular and there are so many options to chose from. Companies that offer cloud storage will allow you to store tons of digital photos and media, sometimes for a fee, and you can access your media at anytime and on any device (i.e. computer, tablet, smart phone). Some services allow you to share your photos using Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, while others offer products like digital photo books and scrapbooks. Here are just a few services to choose from – there are tons more!
Once you have your photos securely backed up on the cloud, you can have the peace of mind knowing that if something should happen to your other devices, you will easily be able to retrieve them using an internet based storage solution.
STEP FIVE: Print Your Photos and Repeat the Process
Now that you have organized your photos, it’s time to print them! I recommend selecting a set of photos to print as a batch. You can opt to print your photos at home or use one of several photo printing services. My favorites are:
Make it a habit of printing your photos on a weekly or monthly basis. Also, don’t forget to take advantage of photo printing sales! Walgreens and CVS often offer photo printing specials which makes batch print super affordable!
Once you have finished organizing your first set of photos, its time to repeat the process! Pick another set of photos and start the process all over again! Remember, photo organization takes time so don’t feel that you have to rush through it. Set a realistic goal and be consistent. Before long, you will have a library of organized photos ready to be printed, placed in photos albums, or used on a scrapbook layout.
Welcome back to the third and final week of the Victoria Marie Spring Clean Challenge! This week we are talking about photo organization. I truly believe that organizing photos, whether print or digital, can be an easy process. All you need is a simple system and a bit of dedication to see this project through.
Now, I know what some of you are probably thinking: “Victoria, I have a million photos! I can’t possibly organize all of those photos in a week!”
Well great…you don’t have to!
This week were are only going to focus on one set of photos at time. So, your challenge is to pick a set of photos (past or current) to organize this week. You may elect to organize and purge photos on your devices (i.e. smart phones, tablets) or dig into a box of photos that is collecting dust under your bed! Just pick a starting point and go for it! The feeling of organizing one set of photos will build your momentum to attack another set of photos, hopefully in the near future!
Here’s the plan!
Like we did in Week 1 and Week 2, you are going to establish your organization and purge criteria. Remember, this is unique to YOU so do what you feel is comfortable. Identify a set of photos to organize. NOTE: Be realistic! If you have 10 boxes of photos from your childhood, organizing and purging those photos will more than likely take more than a week! Pick one box then go from there.
FIRST STEP: After you have selected the photos you wish to organize, go through each photo (print or digital) and make a decision for our photos: KEEP, SCRAPBOOK or TOSS/GIVEAWAY.
KEEP: Select ONLY the photos you really want to keep. Put these photos in a folder (physical or digital) for later retrieval. The photos that you decide to keep will need a “home” – printed and placed in albums, remain on your computer, or put in cold storage (i.e.photo boxes).
SCRAPBOOK: From the photos you have designated as “keep”, select the photos that you wish to scrapbook. These photos should represent a story that you want to tell – select the very best photos for this task! Put these photos in a separate folder (physical or digital).
TOSS: As you are sorting your photos, set aside the photos that are duplicates, damaged/fuzzy photos, or simply photos that you do not want to keep. NOTE: Special consideration should be given to older/vintage photos that cannot be replaced or reprinted. You might opt to keep those photos or give them away to someone in your family who might want them.
GIVEAWAY: Once you have sorted through all of your photos and have selected the photos you want to keep, scrapbook or toss, make another folder for the photos you wish to giveaway to family members or friends. Consider making small photo albums for these individuals with your extra photos! Or keep a few around for future projects (i.e. kid’s school projects).
SECOND STEP: At this point, you will need to decided how you want to organize your photos – by date, theme, person, etc. I personally like to sort my photos by year and month. Set up a system that works well for you!
THIRD STEP: Establish a home for your photos! For print photos this could be a photo album, a photo safe box, or in your scrapbook album. For digital photos, be sure to establish at least two (2) places to store your photos – on a device such as an external hard drive and using a Cloud based service like Google Photo, Dropbox, or iCloud. More information will be provide in this week’s YouTube video. Of course, be sure to print your most favorite digital photos to have on hand for scrapbooking or to place your photo albums.
Once you have completed sorting, organizing, and purging your first set of photos, repeat the process! Depending on the number of photos you have, this process may take you a few weeks or even a few months to complete. Be patient and work with one set of photos at a time! You can totally do this!
In order to be eligible to win the prize, participants will need to respond to at least one (1) challenge prompt and post a picture on the designated post for that challenge prompt on the Victoria Marie Facebook Group. Winners will be selected by Random.org.
A winner will be chosen and announced on Monday, March 27, 2017.
-Layering Like a Boss 2 – Impactful Embellishing
-Layering Like a Boss 1
-Layering Like a Boss Bundle
-Make the Kit – A Mini Course
-A Scrapbooker’s Guide to Mixed Media
-The Holiday Project – 12 Stories 1 Album
Hey friends! Welcome to Week 2 of the Victoria Marie Spring Clean Challenge! I am so excited that many of you have been playing along with this challenge and are enjoying the organization process.
This week we are going to focus on those wayward scrapbook layouts that seem to never make it into our scrapbook albums. This of course can be a very large undertaking (depending on how many layouts you have) but it is certainly doable!
Honestly, I admire those who are diligent with layout organization. 🙂
Let’s get started by establishing layout organization and purge criteria. I want to underscore that the systems you create for yourself should be individual and unique to your personal organization style. Likewise, be open to the fact that your system may change as you evolve as a scrapper.
TOOLS:
Before you begin this process, you will need to grab a few things:
Your layouts…of course!
Containers for your layouts
Albums and page protectors
Post-It Notes and a pen
Adhesive of your choice (to repair layouts if needed)
A nice clean space such as your desk or floor to spread out and work!
ESTABLISHING YOUR ORGANIZATION/PURGE CRITERIA
Before you get started, take a moment to establish your organization/purge criteria. In other words, decide if you want to organize your layouts and albums in chronological order, by theme, person, etc.
Next, begin by creating 3 main categories for your layouts: KEEP, REDO, and TOSS.
KEEP: Sort through the stack of layouts that you want to keep. Assign each layout a home based upon your organization criteria. I found it useful to make labels using Post-It notes to further categorize my layouts. For example, all of the layouts pertaining to my daughter went into one stack, sorted by date.
While going through this process, repair any layouts as needed (i.e. missing letters, fallen stickers). I discovered that some of my titles and embellishments were starting to come off. I simply reinforced those elements using Tombo Mono Aqua Adhesive Glue. When you are ready, slip your layouts into page protectors and place them in their assigned album. Don’t forget to label your album!
REDO: Set aside layouts that you want to redo. I recommend placing these layouts in a separate container and storing them by your workspace. That way you can easily reach for these layouts when you are looking for a project to work on.
TOSS: If you have identified a few layouts that you no longer want, its perfectly okay to toss them. Yep, you read that right! More on this topic later. Before you toss a layout, see if there is anything on the layout that can be salvaged (i.e. embellishments, ephemera, title). Also, be sure to safely remove the photo from your layout if you wish to keep it. Of course, you may opt to throw the entire layout away…that is totally up to you. If you are having second thoughts about tossing a layout, consider giving your unwanted layouts away to a friend or family member.
Goodbye!
Somethings to keep in mind:
Create a Unique Organization/Purge System: Every scrapbooker is different and will make organization and purge decisions based on his or her level of comfort. Some scrapbookers desire to keep and maintain all of their layouts while others opt to let some go and only keep the layouts they deem “really special”. Either way, you can’t go wrong. Do what feels comfortable and natural to you.
Don’t be afraid to change your process: As you evolve as a scrapbooker, the way you organize your layouts may change. Remain open to this and make adjustment as you see fit.
Pace Yourself: Remember, this is not a sprint! If you have a lot of layouts, start with a small stack and go from there. You might find that it will take you longer than a week to organize and sort your layouts.
It’s Okay to Toss a Layout: Yes, I assure you it is! If there is a layout that you do not like or if it doesn’t serve a purpose in your storytelling journey anymore, consider letting it go. Now, I recognize that scrapbookers have varied opinions about tossing completed layouts so I will come back to this topic later. 🙂
Okay, you are all set to begin your deep layout organization and purge! Take your time and enjoy the process. I will post of video of my process later this week!
If you are playing along, be sure to post a picture of your before and after on the designated post on the Victoria Marie Facebook Group Page! You could be entered to win a Mystery Scrapbook Organization Prize! A winner will be selected on March 27th!
