Melissa Freedman asked:
Every few years, the scrapbook
industry tries to change up the craft, so that trends and design don’t become stale. Sometimes these changes work well…like the introduction of chipboard and glittered paper. But sometimes the changes don’t enhance the beauty or purpose of the craft…the beauty should be found in the meaning of our memories and the purpose should be found in the importance of our pictures.
One such change with an unclear future is the new 6×12 albums, introduced by American Crafts at CHA. The new album size may highlight the current debate among manufacturers and retailers about the future of scrapbooking…
I’m not sure I agree with the trend that the new 6×12 albums may be following. And here is why: I don’t like the recent trends that have moved the industry away from the REASON for SCRAPBOOKING…
From double page layouts to single page layoutsFrom using multiple photos to using one photo per layoutFrom sharing your thoughts through journaling to no journaling on a page…at all And with 6×12 pages…where are our pictures and journaling supposed to fit? We wouldn’t be surprised if we open up a scrapbook magazine and find some of the “top layouts” with no pictures on them at all. Just pretty paper and stickers. Now don’t get me wrong…I LOVE the pretty paper and stickers. In fact, I sell the pretty paper and stickers on the website I co-own.
However, photos and journaling should be the focus of scrapbooking.
And as for trends…they should provide a meaningful change in the way we preserve our memories. Trends should help us to use our pictures, however imperfect or unprofessional they may be, compared with the perfect pictures you see in scrapbook magazines. Trends should compliment the activities we commemorate with our families, friends and pets. And trends should guide us to better design…to help us develop the creativity that lies in each of us.
Trends should not dictate a wholesale change in the make-up and spirit of scrapbooking.
We scrapbook to say the things that are in our hearts, for future generations. That’s why we hope that, rather than making our pages smaller, and less “memoried”…we hope that the industry moves back in the direction from whence it came.
Back to journaling (by hand!), back to showcasing beautiful designs on FULL double-page layouts. And back to it’s purpose of helping all of us create pages that future generations of our families will cherish.
Website content
Every few years, the scrapbook
industry tries to change up the craft, so that trends and design don’t become stale. Sometimes these changes work well…like the introduction of chipboard and glittered paper. But sometimes the changes don’t enhance the beauty or purpose of the craft…the beauty should be found in the meaning of our memories and the purpose should be found in the importance of our pictures.One such change with an unclear future is the new 6×12 albums
, introduced by American Crafts at CHA. The new album size may highlight the current debate among manufacturers and retailers about the future of scrapbooking…I’m not sure I agree with the trend that the new 6×12 albums may be following. And here is why: I don’t like the recent trends that have moved the industry away from the REASON for SCRAPBOOKING…
From double page layouts to single page layoutsFrom using multiple photos to using one photo per layoutFrom sharing your thoughts through journaling to no journaling on a page…at all And with 6×12 pages…where are our pictures and journaling supposed to fit? We wouldn’t be surprised if we open up a scrapbook magazine and find some of the “top layouts” with no pictures on them at all. Just pretty paper and stickers
. Now don’t get me wrong…I LOVE the pretty paper and stickers. In fact, I sell the pretty paper and stickers on the website I co-own.However, photos and journaling should be the focus of scrapbooking.
And as for trends…they should provide a meaningful change in the way we preserve our memories. Trends should help us to use our pictures, however imperfect or unprofessional they may be, compared with the perfect pictures you see in scrapbook magazines. Trends should compliment the activities we commemorate with our families, friends and pets. And trends should guide us to better design…to help us develop the creativity that lies in each of us.
Trends should not dictate a wholesale change in the make-up and spirit of scrapbooking.
We scrapbook to say the things that are in our hearts, for future generations. That’s why we hope that, rather than making our pages smaller, and less “memoried”…we hope that the industry moves back in the direction from whence it came.
Back to journaling (by hand!), back to showcasing beautiful designs on FULL double-page layouts. And back to it’s purpose of helping all of us create pages that future generations of our families will cherish.
Website content
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