Scrapping “TO GO”
Hey there DoodleBLOG friends! (all you cats and
kittens). Shawn here (yes, again). As promised, I want to talk a little bit
about scrapping away from home.
·
For some of you, this may be the only place and
time you get to scrap, and you may be old pros.
Maybe you will find something good here anyway – or maybe not.
·
Some of you may have NEVER been to a crop or a
retreat. Maybe you just never have the time or the extra cash, maybe they don’t
work with your schedule or maybe the thought of packing your scrapbook room to
take somewhere is just too daunting. Maybe
I can help!
·
Or if you already sometimes scrap at home and go
to crops or retreats maybe you will find something here, too.
So here we go…..
1. KNOW WHERE YOU ARE HEADED – What you pack – and
how you pack it – will need to be defined as much by this as by anything else. Is
it a small day crop where you will share an 8 foot table, or a retreat where
you have a big table to yourself?
2.
KNOW HOW YOU ARE GETTING THERE - Are you driving
there in a big SUV, a tiny convertible, or are you flying to the event?
3.
KNOW YOUR SCRAPPY SELF. Think about your process. What is your starting point for a
project? Do you start with photos and
then pick all your supplies before you sit down to scrap? Do you just make pages and worry about photos
later, if ever? Do you like to make
pages using a single collection? Do you
scrap by color?
4.
KNOW YOUR “STASH”. Don’t get overwhelmed
here. Just get an overall idea of how
much you have and how you have it stored.
Do you only keep a small stash and it’s already in a single tote (if so
– who are you and how and why do you do this?? – also, if this is you CALL ME –
you don’t need me, but maybe I need you!!) Do you have a GIANT ROOM full of
supplies – like maybe a whole dining room – that just has stuff EVERYWHERE (see
photos)…or are you somewhere in between – like a big stash but still pretty
easily managed to move?
5.
MAKE A LIST. OK, I get it. Not everyone loves lists (I do – like A LOT)
but bear with me here. This list will be
worth it. My OG crop packing list is now
SEVERAL years old, and it is still evolving, but it changes a bit with every
crop. This is both because I learn more about what works for me, but also
because I go to lots of different events, and I work on loads of different
projects. I divide my list by how I carry them so I know what goes in each
tote/bag and also so I make sure I get all of the bags into the car. Make sure
to include the non-scrappy necessities like clothes, meds, snacks (and for me
maybe a little liquid refreshment)
6.
PRIORITIZE – I tend to be a “photos first” kind
of scrapper, and I use black, white or kraft cardstock on just about every
layout so pictures and cardstock are almost always the first things that go
into my car. If you always use a Cricut or Kiwi Lane Templates or you stamp everything
then those items will go first.
7.
KIT, if you can.
I’m going to be 100% honest – this is a great plan, and totally NOT
something I do well. It just does not
work that well with my process most of the time. I do currently have an Iris
container full of different papers that I plan to use in my wedding album, and
a bag of embellishments set aside for that as well. I suppose that may be a really large kit, but
I’m not sure it counts. If you can kit, that is a great way to get ready to get
ready. The more of your project you can put together in a kit, the easier it
will be to sit down and scrap.
8.
Remember the less important things, too. If you will be gone for the weekend you
probably need to take clothes. If it is a day crop, a sweater or chair cushion
may be in order.
9.
Be prepared to be wrong. I have gone to several crops with a plan like
making Christmas cards or working on a specific group of photos only to find when
I get there that I am not inspired enough to get that project done. Be sure to
have a backup if you need it.
10.
Pack it up - and hope it all fits!!!
11.
Take extra if there’s room. In addition to #9 above you may find that you
REALLY want some letter stickers you didn’t think to put in your kit, or your
table mate may want to borrow that 3 inch circle punch.
12.
The last bit of advice I would give is remember
that just because you take it TO the crop does not mean you have to take it IN
the building. This is one I figured out
pretty recently. Take projects in as you
want to work on them, and when you finish with one, go swap it for another. I
have also been known to bring my pretty large Thicker collection and leave that
in the back of my car, then I just go grab letters as I need them.
That’s it – Happy Travelling
And more important Happy Scrapping!
