Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Amy's Scrap Space ...

AKA The Overt Minimalist.

Shhh, I'm going to let you in on a secret, I didn't really like the idea of showing you all my scrap space.
Why?
I don't have one, and, I can't use the excuse that we have been rebuilding our house for fifteen months, I never had one.

Like Nicole, I have always been a dining table scrapper but that has changed now too. Oh, don't get me wrong, there have been times when I have yearned for those closing doors Di was showing yesterday, and, once this place is finished I have the opportunity to have a room almost entirely to myself ... but guess what? I don't want it now. I like being out amongst the noise, I like seeing what the kids are doing, I like being able to keep an eye on dinner and I like feeling connected to what is going on in the house.

There is one other thing which makes a big difference to how and where I scrap ... the computer.


The majority of my pages are digital so I need little more than a computer with plenty of hard drive space, Photoshop CS3, an external hard drive and a good printer. My scrap space is all about function and practicality, we have a desktop situated in an open plan office space (a deliberate choice for monitoring children on the internet) which sits on top of a hand me down very large desk. If making a hybrid page takes my fancy, this desk more than comfortably accommodates my oversized craft mat.

Now, all this is quite underwhelming as a scrap space, so, I thought I'd show you a couple of other related tools and storage solutions.


My equipment is also quite minimal, and it always has been. I am a fan of using a steel ruler and a craft knife, I have never used a paper trimmer with any success. I like to use double sided tape for adhesive, nothing fancy in a dispenser, just the sort you cut and trim yourself. I used to use the Bazzill colour wheel all of the time when I was paper scrapping, it is still useful but digital scrapping makes those choices much easier. Cardstock? Well, in most cases it is Bazzill, I love Kraft and White with anything, a recent favourite is Ivy, but I also love Nightmist, Java and Paprika. American Crafts are my favourite lettering choices, though, I do love the lettering available through Remember When - colour matching to your choice of cardstock is hard to beat!

So, where do I keep all of my stuff?


Yes, this is it. One Artbin container to house all of my paper and cardstock and four smaller containers, not Artbin - just something cheap from the local craft shop - one for white lettering, one for black lettering, one for assorted coloured lettering and one for my tools ... craft knife, steel ruler, scissors, adhesive, spare blades, one grey lead and a Zig pen. That is it. Apart from the Artbin container, all this fits into a big bag with solid sides that also contains my page protectors and a couple of stamps, literally.

The girls at my now closed down local scrap shop used to giggle with me when I arrived, I was the sort of person who would come in tow with my photos categorised into plastic pockets and I carefully selected my cardstock and papers to match each one .. I would take it home in each plastic pocket ready to go. Now I have amassed much more cardstock, but I am still careful with what I buy and what I keep, having too many choices confuses and clutters me. Prior to my digital scrapping I would purge my supplies each month and donate all scraps/offcuts/no longer loved papers to our pre-school, it worked for me and I always had a little giggle when some Basic Grey or American Crafts showed up recycled at home!

Well, that's about it, there's not much more for me to show you. This set up works for me, I know it isn't for everyone but it goes to show, you can certainly scrap in a small space and with few supplies!
Have a great day, we'll see you here again tomorrow for another SAG scrap space.

13 comments:

  1. Indeed, you can, and quite beautifully too! Makes me feel totally overburdened by supplies even after purging!

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  2. Part of me is quite jealous!!! I have so much stuff. Even if you took out my cabinets of stamps, bins of mixed media supplies, tackle boxes of ink pads, binders of stencils, and bags of paint & spray inks out of the mix, I'd still have an overwhelming amount of pure scrap stuff. But I use it all and love it all! I think that's one of the fun thinks about our craft. Two such different styles happily coexisting.
    Rinda

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  3. Love it, Amy! Good for you! I admit to feeling a little self-righteous at times for my small space. ;) Glad to see it's not just me! (for having a small space...not the self-righteous part...)

    Anyway, I think it's inspiring to see what people can do without a lot of stuff.

    Pretty neat!

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  4. I just can't imagine having everything stored in so little space...Rinda is right though, there are such different styles which happily coexist!
    Alison xx

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  5. Oh bloody hell...wish i could cull to that!!!

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  6. ah, tomorrow will be a shock after the clean and tidiness of the past three days (but am inspired and have plans now after seeing all three of them)I can see I will have to do an after post once I get stuck into it.

    I've never had any luck with a craft knife and ruler (and I rather fear I would do myself an injury!) I use a fiskars paper cutter. love it.

    in an ideal world, where I have designed the layout of my house, I would have the office (which would also be my craft space, as the two just seem to go together) right next to the kitchen/living areas(close to action central)...but also overlooking the garden! a seperate room but with lots of light and open-ness - and nice big doors to close off the mess that I tend to make when crafting AND doing paperwork!

    but I dream on...you'll see tomorrow what I have instead...

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  7. Truthfully, I'm envious a bit - that you can produce such beautiful pages with so little clutter and supplies. I wish I could be content with just digi. But having been bitten by the mixed media bug in a very big way, I've been ADDING to my stash lately rather than subtracting. You've definitely given me something to think about regarding actual scrapbooking supplies though!

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  8. Wow!! If I had your selection I would certainly get MORE layouts done in LESS than half the time!! I appreciate you showing us your space Amy as it just goes to show how different we all are and there is no right or wrong way of doing this great hobby we love :)

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  9. You don't need an 'excuse' for not having your own space - it fits in perfectly with the way you scrap and that diversity is one of the things I love about scrapbooking. It wouldn't work for me - my daughter hogs the computer but if I use it she complains that I'm not spending enough time with her. Oh the contradictions of 7 year olds.
    Thanks for sharing.

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  10. Oh dear, my scrap space is looking more and more cluttered after seeing what you girls have. Sharon, please tell me I'm not the only one with clutter! Can't say I'm looking forward to doing my scrap space on Thursday!! LOL!

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  11. Is that a Bazzill colour chart? It looks very useful!

    I'm afraid I am a messy scrapper. Tidying up sometimes consists of stirring it all up and seeing where it lands!

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  12. Sian, it is a colour wheel and it gives you the choice of deciding on a key colour and then it shows the triadic and complimentary colours. It also has a lot of information on the back about focal points and emphasis, negatives and positives and how to get the right mix of colours.

    I am not sure where it would be available now, mine is several years old - perhaps trying at a local scrap shop or a reputable online store may be a start.

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  13. oooh I've never seen one of those bazzill colour wheels before. Most impressed that you have even less stuff tan me!

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