Brine Design

Scrap Room Makeover: The Before

Ok. This was the mess before. Totally honest photos. No photoshopping ;p

Ok. Just before I completely bare my soul here ... promise you'll not snicker. At least not where I can hear you. And remember, it's the BEFORE room. The after is much, much better.

Here goes nothing ...

The writing in the images has not translated into web size, so I've re-typed them beneath.

General Overview:

CONS: Wrong colour (to dark and uninspiriing for me - for this purpose.
             Busy flooring
             Ugly printer and technoarti is the first thing you see when you enter.
             Prime space dedicated to my traditional scrapbooking supplies, which are now rarely used.

CONS: Lots of space
            Central to family room, therefore easily accessible for quick posts (like this?? NOT!! lol)
            I like my 12 x 12 wooden frames to house recent layouts
            Like the idea of all the open shelving, especially right behind where I sit. But do I even
            use any of this stuff any more?

I’ve got lots of shelving, which is great. It took a lot of hunting to find this stuff at online auctions. I also like how my ribbons are sorted by colour in K-Mart shoe tidies, and likewise with my paints. Behind the cupboard doors is more shelving housing Bazzill cardstock and patterned papers sorted into manufacturers. In the foreground is my A3 printer, which was expensive, but very worthwhile. Especially when I was doing a lot more hybrid. I got it because it has 6 or 8 separate ink tanks (forgotton now) and Ali Edwards also had one and recommended it because it doesn’t dry up and seize when you fail to use it for 3 weeks (suited my erratic hybrid style). I figured it was my equivalent to a die-cutting machine (which I would never invest in!) To the left is a bag full of unfinished pages. Awaiting journalling, or glue, or just waiting to be resurrected.

My tins of word stickers, chipboard alphas, cards. In the middle is my pile of “stuff to be sorted” - includes printed layouts to be inserted into albums, material I want to re-cover my chair in (???) Dana’s specially-knitted jumpsuit made by my mum (awaiting scrapping in some kind of special memorabilia frame). Baskets are full of stuff I’ve made but have no use for and want to sell, or foam stamps, or my punches. OH! And that red folder with “supplies” written on it is a catalogue of all the digital supplies I’ve ever bought. I needed to start cataloguing them because I began buying stuff I had already bought a year ago (how embarrassing). When I like something, I usually um and ah, put it on a wishlist. Revisit the wishlist several times, before caving. It’s just that sometimes I don’t remember the caving bit and I cave again. Repeatedly ... Anywhoo ...

Stamps are sorted into text and picture/ image stamps. Rubber are housed in caddies. My clear stamps are housed in an A5 ring-binder from fficeworks. I also keep small items like buttons, borders, brads and inks in these caddies.

Inspiration cork board. Not much inspiration on there atm. It’s a neglected part of my scrap room that I’d like to re-energise.

My chipboard shapes are sorted into arrows, flowers/hearts, frames, scrolls, extra. I don’t know why I keep these, I don’t use them. But my thoughts originally were to keep them visible so I could be inspired to add them as a finishing touch on my hybrids. Next is my junk pile on the floor in the corner. It houses my terribly expensive heat tool 9aka old cruddy toaster). Broken desk light. My school memorabilia. Studff I need to purge (box) and stuff I haven’t unpacked from my last crop outing. Talk about disorganised .... HELP!

Well, here it is. The command centre. Central Station. The hub of it all. My desk. In all it’s embarrassing glory. Often so cluttered I can’t work without scraping something off the side ... Phone book out completing errands. Towel there because I’d been nursing baby guinea pigs on my lap. Goggles because I’d taken the kids swimming ...?? Bills folder on the seat, awaiting urgent attention. I hope you realise I feel like I’m bearing my soul here. This is where I like to spend my time. And it’s go darn messy. Haphazard. Disorganised.

But, hark! I hear change is acomin’ ....

TO BE CONTINUED ...

Memory Makers Idea Book

Yes! I've been advised I'll have no less than FIVE layouts published in the American Memory Makers' Big Book of Scrapbook Ideas, to be published May 2011. YIPPEE! Pity I can't show you the ones they chose, but a contracts' a contract, right? I'm so excited. Stay tuned for some scanned pages when it's out.

I've also managed a couple of layouts in the current copies of Scrapbook Creations and Scrapbooking Memories, both of which arrived by post yesterday. Still very exciting also. Especially when I see fellow CTers in there too :) I'm telling you, if you haven't already tried submitting your beautiful creations to magazines, than DO IT NOW! If you've only just joined my blog, then you'll find some tips on how to go about this that I posted a few weeks ago, here.

I've been away for Easter, hence my online abscene. But I've got some great ideas and inspirational tips coming your way soon - am currently working on a few different tutorials to give away on Fridays (were you getting a tad sick of layered templates yet???) so if there's anything you'd like to know how to do, drop me a line (or comment) and I'll do what I can. Just bear in mind, I'm no tech-head or even an expert, so be kind and not too ambitious!

Back soon with my regular posts. Happy Scrapping!