The "A.B." in ABCreations stands for Anmarie Bowden, that's me! My favorite ice cream is Mississippi Mud from Baskin Robbins, altho I'm partial to Oreos crumbled on top of Vanilla Bean ice cream too! I was born on Super Bowl Sunday. I have been digiscraping since 2000. I live in beautiful sunny California. I am married to my soul mate and we have two gorgeous children. My favorite saying is, “If you think my hands are full, you should see my heart!”
1. Check Out The Gallery
First, look at some inspiring layouts! Chances are, perusing others’ creative layouts will help boost your creativity and inspire you. Leave a comment for the really awesome layouts you see, they creator will be tickled pink when they open their email and see they have a nice comment. Doing nice things for others helps us feel good, and that's always good for our creativity!
A quick look at the W4E gallery has me amazed at some of layouts that totally jump out at me and make me want to scrap my own RIGHT NOW!
This first layout is by ChinaDoll. Reading her childhood memory really tugged at my heart strings. She is so specific with such basic everyday moments that I can see her as a little girl peeking thru the cracks. What a great idea to share a memory that so many generations to come will appreciate!
And I love this page by WtaDolly. The clustering is gorgeous, and the red with subtle hints of blue, yellow, and green really make the photo pop! There is something intriguing about the off-centered papers too and how they are stacked together, it really catches my eye. The shadowing on this layout is exquisite.
Beautiful layouts like these always motivate me into action. So hit the gallery!
2. Take Baby Steps
Secondly, give yourself just a little push. I usually motivate myself by merely choosing the photo(s) I want to scrap, and then picking a kit with a similar theme or palette. Nothing crazy, just a baby step.
This small step lets you see what you have to work with, and you’re not obligated to do any more than that for now. But often it’s just enough progress to get you wanting to do just a little more. And then a little more...
Here is an example by ChinaDoll of how to take it one baby step at a time. You've got the photos and the kit you chose earlier, now pick out some of the papers you like from the kit...
Then add those photos...
Tell a little bit about what is going on, even if its just the date or a location...
Lastly, take a step back and see what else you might like to add. Think about what elements are your favorites in the kit you chose. Or look at the photos and see if anything in the background has a related item in the kit...
After a few baby steps, you might be jazzed enough to keep going immediately, maybe not. Either way, eventually you will move on to the next stage.
3. Get Inspired By Your Journaling Potential
Another great motivational tip is to read through some journal prompts! There are a ton of them in the challenge area HERE. Maybe you just need a little push on what to journal about? Think about easy, new, and fun ways to get journaling done: make a top 10 list, or a grocery list, or a TO DO list, or a What We Did Today list; ask someone a few questions and write down what they say (try asking Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How); have a child in your life tell a story and write it down, or write down some of the goofy and hilarious things kids say and use that; email or text your friend a photo and when they ask you to tell them about it, use whatever you said in your reply as your journaling, use some of that twitter feed; or one of your facebook status updates; use a fill-in-the-blank message; or maybe just use a quote! Get creative and try using some journaling cards, postcard backs, tags, or cards.
I asked my kiddos what their favorite part of our recent family camping trip was and wrote down what they said...
4. Try a Challenge, Bingo, or a Speed/Slow Scrap
Sometimes to get out of that rut, we need to branch out of our comfort zones and try something new. Have you ever participated in a challenge? There are so many of them, you are bound to find one that you like, plus you get a prize for participating, so go for it! Have you ever tried digital Bingo? Even if you lose you win because everyone wins a prize just for participating! And if you've never done a Speed/Slow Scrap then you are in for a real treat! It's a ton of fun, and you guessed it, prizes for all participants!
Hopefully these ideas will help get you out of that rut! Take advantage or one or all of these tips and get started on your layouts right now! You can do it!! Happy scrapping!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment