Getting Involved
In case you haven't heard, March is National Craft Month. Like we really need a special month, right?
To celebrate the occasion, I'm sharing some tips on getting involved in the crafting/scrapbooking/card making community. It's great to craft for your family and friends. But what I find even more rewarding is sharing advice, supplies, and projects with fellow crafters - people who "get" what you do.
There are many ways to get involved in the crafting community. A simple Google search for scrapbook or craft stores in your area should yield results for local stores (something other than Michaels or Hobby Lobby). Most stores offer weekly or monthly crops where you can spend all day or night crafting your heart out.
One of my favorite sources is the online community. I'm a member of a great group of ladies who found each other on Scrapbook.com. We have monthly challenges and are completing a round-robin journal for each member.
Here's a sample of one of the round-robin pages I created. We're doing a postcard journal about where each of us lives.
There are swaps posted daily on sites like Scrapbook.com. Another great site is TwoPeasInABucket.com. To participate in the swaps, you just find one that suits your style, sign up, create the required project, and then mail it off at the end. You'll get someone else's project in return. It's a great way to share your work and also see other people's styles and creations.
My friend Connie participates in a monthly "ugly paper" challenge that she found on Scrapbook.com. She sends in two sheets of "ugly" 12x12 scrapbook paper and gets two in return. She then has to create a layout using the paper and posts her work. The group then votes on which layout they like best. Here's one of her creations using the ugly paper.
I also love reading other crafters' blogs. I get a lot of inspiration for my work by viewing their creations and reading their tips and techniques. A little over a year ago, I had never read a blog. When I got involved on Scrapbook.com, I found several artists whose work I loved, and started visiting their blogs to get more details on the gorgeous work that I saw. This led me to other blogs, and before I knew it, I had a list of more than 30 blogs that I visit regularly.
My crafty friend Julie has just started her own blog: A Creative Journey Through Life. Go check it out and gather some inspiration.
~*~ Sign-ups for my Vintage Spring Collage Swap are still open. Check out this post for the details. ~*~
To celebrate the occasion, I'm sharing some tips on getting involved in the crafting/scrapbooking/card making community. It's great to craft for your family and friends. But what I find even more rewarding is sharing advice, supplies, and projects with fellow crafters - people who "get" what you do.
There are many ways to get involved in the crafting community. A simple Google search for scrapbook or craft stores in your area should yield results for local stores (something other than Michaels or Hobby Lobby). Most stores offer weekly or monthly crops where you can spend all day or night crafting your heart out.
One of my favorite sources is the online community. I'm a member of a great group of ladies who found each other on Scrapbook.com. We have monthly challenges and are completing a round-robin journal for each member.
Here's a sample of one of the round-robin pages I created. We're doing a postcard journal about where each of us lives.
There are swaps posted daily on sites like Scrapbook.com. Another great site is TwoPeasInABucket.com. To participate in the swaps, you just find one that suits your style, sign up, create the required project, and then mail it off at the end. You'll get someone else's project in return. It's a great way to share your work and also see other people's styles and creations.
My friend Connie participates in a monthly "ugly paper" challenge that she found on Scrapbook.com. She sends in two sheets of "ugly" 12x12 scrapbook paper and gets two in return. She then has to create a layout using the paper and posts her work. The group then votes on which layout they like best. Here's one of her creations using the ugly paper.
I also love reading other crafters' blogs. I get a lot of inspiration for my work by viewing their creations and reading their tips and techniques. A little over a year ago, I had never read a blog. When I got involved on Scrapbook.com, I found several artists whose work I loved, and started visiting their blogs to get more details on the gorgeous work that I saw. This led me to other blogs, and before I knew it, I had a list of more than 30 blogs that I visit regularly.
My crafty friend Julie has just started her own blog: A Creative Journey Through Life. Go check it out and gather some inspiration.
~*~ Sign-ups for my Vintage Spring Collage Swap are still open. Check out this post for the details. ~*~
posted by Erica | 6:00 AM
1 Comments:
You are so right, we really don't need a month for us to get crafty do we?! LOL. Like you, going to scrapbook.com changed me big time! The friendship and wealth of ideas is incredible! I love the circle journal pages you posted and Connie's use of "ugly" paper is wonderful!!! Thanks for the blog shout out sweetie!
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