Scrapbook Fever - A 21st Century Scrapbook Retailer

I told Shelly Izen, the owner of Scrapbook Fever in Salem, OR that I was going to blog about how smart she and her husband, Bud, are.

They are a scrapbook retailer who "gets it" when it comes to thinking outside the box and looking for opportunities outside the normal "make and take" or technique classes for their store.

Scrapbooking without photos is really just a paper craft. And, GREAT photos inspire us to scrap. I can't tell you how many "so-so" photos don't get scrapped at my house. It's only the great ones that make me feel like scrapping.

Could scrapbookers use digital photography tips? You bet they could! And Scrapbook Fever has responded to that need and is now offering digital photography classes in their store.

Read their class description - makes me want to drive to Salem:

Digital Photography Class 101 series with Canon Rep – Our fabulously successful Digital Photography 101 series is brought to you by Canon! This is a course for beginners who need some assistance in understanding their digital camera and its functions! If you take the majority of your pictures using the Auto function on your camera, this course is for you!

This is a series of four (4) two-hour classes designed to help you understand the functions on your digital camera, show you some cool Canon products to print your pictures on, and finish up completing a project using the pictures taken and printed during these classes! Everyone will complete a very cool 8x8 mini album (designed by us of course)

Now, if they added custom photo books and gifts (also a great series of classes to offer) with something like our PhotoBookBiz option, they will have propelled themselves completely into the 21st Century of Scrapbooking.

I applaud their willingness to offer a class like this and think they are very smart scrapbook retailers!

Digital Scrapbook Artist by Serif

I got a copy of Digital Scrapbook Artist a couple of months ago. I'm the first to admit that I'm a Photoshop Loser - I simply can't enjoy using it and can't seem to make it work for me. I think it's because while I'm not normally technically challenged, that I think like a "traditional scrapper" too much. I want all the tools and techniques of traditional scrapping right there and very obvious for me.

I have used a much simpler program to do my digi pages but was starting to feel limited by it. Then I discovered Digital Scrapbook Artist. I love it because it's "traditional scrapping" in a digital form. I can crop my photos in cool shapes and there are deco scissors to edge my papers with. The program is specifically built for digital scrapping unlike PhotoShop Elements which is USED for digital scrapping but not specifically built for it.

Digital Scrapbook Artist has a site where you can download some very nice kits that work with the program. The site is called Daisy Trail and they're still getting it up and going.

What's really exciting is the update to the program coming later this summer. You can read about it HERE. I love that it looks like the upgrade will help me organize the kits I already have - it's a mess and I can't find anything. I haven't found a solution that I like to organize yet despite many suggestions.

If you're like me and haven't found a program that you're completely comfy with - I'd recommend Digital Scrapbook Artist! You can check it out at their YouTube Channel HERE. There are lots of videos about using the program as well as a video tour to help you decide if it's right for you!

Scan My Photos Scanned My Photos

A while ago, there was a contest sponsored by Scan My Photos on Twitter. If you re-tweeted the contest tweet, you could win free scanning. Well, I won free scanning!!!

The prepaid shipping box was quickly emailed to me and then I had to decide which photos would go into it. I hauled out all my photos and started sorting. I actually wish now I would have just grabbed piles and put them in the box instead of trying to sort them. They will all have to eventually be scanned anyway. But, I wanted the photos of family members scanned first so I went for those.

I followed the instructions provided and crammed the box FULL - I think I ended up with well over 1000 photos and I could have probably crammed in a few more. Then I dropped the box in the mail - it was all pre-paid so all I had to do was take it to the post office and send it off to California (not India as some services do).

In a week or so, I got it all back - all the photos were scanned! WooHoo! The prize package included several copies so I was able to give a CD to my folks. Now, I have to decide what to do with the photos now that they are scanned. Do I throw them away or keep them? I guess I'll keep them.

I can't wait to use them for digi scrapping and make photo books at PhotoBooks{etc}!

The best part is that I didn't have to scan them! I had started several times but doing one at a time on a flat-bed scanner was going to take FOREVER!!!!!

If you're on the fence about the cost of a scanning service - get off the fence and go for it! Time is money! There is no way I could have ever scanned this many photos myself! I highly recommend Scan My Photos and will use them again to finish up my scanning.

Scrapbooking is Everywhere- Part 2

Last summer I blogged about seeing Scrapbooking in the post office in the small town my parents live in. Well, last week, I was on vacation in Coeur D'Alane, Idaho with my family and we stopped at Cabela's on the Idaho/Washington border so my husband and sons could, well, do whatever men do at Cabela's (we actually walked out the door with ammunition and 2 pocket knives). I said, "See ya'!" when we walked in the door and they headed for the "Gun Library". I headed over to wander around the "housewares" department. Did you know you can get a recliner done completely in camo - as well as curtains, towels, and hot pads? Anyway, someone asked if they could help me find something and I (being sort of snarky) said, "Yes, a scrapbook store." Their reply was, "Uh, we have a section over there of scrapbook stuff."

I almost laughed in their face. I went over near the "Country Store" and there it was - a small section of Karen Foster Hunting and Fishing scrapbook products! And here I thought I was being all smart-alecky about it.

Scrapbooking at Cabelas... who knew? I had visions of Wes from the Scrapped Movie shooting holes in the albums to embellish them (remember that?)

"I'll Be There For You..."

Remember the theme song to the show FRIENDS by The Rembrandts? What's funny about starting your own business is that usually, as you start talking about it, your friends are SO SUPPORTIVE of the idea. They'll say, "Go for it!" or "I'll support you 100%!". They will cheer you along and tell you that you've got the talent to do whatever you're thinking of doing.

But, you know what happens when you finally open that business? Your friends are often nowhere to be found. There is an old saying that comes from the bible that roughly says, "No man is a prophet in his own country". That is true at times. I often find that those who were your biggest supporter during the planning stages of your business, don't take you seriously when you actually launch the business. They will often treat your business lightly and sometimes even expect a "friend discount" (translation - WHOLESALE PRICE).

It's sad, really, because you would hope that those closest to you would be your best customers if they are interested in whatever you're selling or doing. You would also hope that they would be your best customer advocates and tell others about your new business.

So, the lesson for today is that if you have a friend who owns a business - be it a scrapbook business or a plumbing business - use them. Put your money where you mouth is and show them that you really DO support them 100% by becoming one of their customers.

Kizer and Bender at CHA

Check out what the Scrapbook Industry's favorite retail consultant duo have going on at CHA Summer next month.

They have helped CHA put together a national "Craft 'till You Drop" weekend.at the start of the show. You can get details on it HERE at their blog.

And, if you're heading to CHA in Orlando, you can sign up to attend some of their fun and informative sessions there. Find out more about what they're doing at CHA HERE.

Please take advantage of the opportunity to get some great advice. Scrapbook retailers sometimes don't realize how much they could use sound help and information. Veteran retail consultants like Kizer and Bender and established peer-to-peer networking groups like ScrapBiz can be absolutely essential to your survival as a retailer.

Why Scrapbooking Matters - Part 2

So many of our photos have such fun stories to go with them. I encourage you to make story telling every bit as important as photography when it comes to scrapbooking. We can put photos into an album with the name of the person and the date of the event on the back. But, is that enough? We can glue the photos on cardstock and embellish them like crazy and not have enough room for much journaling - but even that may not be good enough.

For instance - the photo to the left looks like a boy just putting on a shirt. And, in 25 years, that boy may not remember exactly where he was at the time. In 50 years, no one will know that there's more than meets the eye in this photo. They will just see a boy putting on a shirt. They may not even be sure who the boy is.

Here's the story: This is a photo of my 11 year old son at our Family Reunion in Wyoming last year. We were playing a game with all the cousins to see who could put a shirt on first. But, here's the catch. I had soaked the shirts in water, rolled them up and put them in the freezer the night before. Does that change what you see in the photo? He has spent about 30 minutes beating and pulling on his frozen, rolled-up t-shirt. Only after he was able to break the ice enough to unroll it and then pull the sleeves apart was he able to get it on. And, out of the 25 kids playing the "Frozen T-Shirt" game, he got his shirt on FIRST!

Wouldn't it be a shame if I didn't take the time to put that story with the photo? It totally changes what you see and suddenly you start seeing how the shirt is pulled at the neck. You can see the frost on the top of the right sleeve. You might even wonder if he's freezing as he puts it on.

The stories are what make the photos meaningful to the next and future generations. Don't forget to leave a place for them.