Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Decluttering My Scrap Stash

Hi, everyone! Welcome back to Life on the {Scrap}beach!

The past few days I have been decluttering/purging my scrap stash. I did this about eighteen months ago when we were packing to move to Miami. I found it to be really helpful in my scrapbooking, since it reduced my stash to things I would really use & eliminated the visual noise created by supplies i would never use. Since new stuff from CHA is going to start hitting the stores over the next few months, I thought it was time to do it again. I think I'll start doing this twice a year around CHA time ~ January and July ~ so it's not such a big job all at once. Plus it's nice to make room for new goodies instead of just adding to what's already there & trying to figure out where to put it all.

When I went through my scrap supplies before our move in Summer 2008, I had a few motivations. The first was that scrap supplies are heavy & movers often charge by the pound. I didn't want to pay to have anything shipped that I didn't absolutely love and know I would use. There were a lot of those sorts of things in my stash since I had never thrown anything out & had purchased quite a few things in the beginning of my scrapping that didn't work with the style that I had developed over time.

The second was that our move also happened to coincide with a call from my local scrapbook store for donations of supplies for the troops overseas. The owner had been contacted by a morale officer looking for items the soldiers could use to make cards, scrapbook about their time overseas, etc. I was happy to be able to donate everything I purged that was new or nice quality to that effort, and that provided motivation to be strict with myself about what should stay and what should go.

This time as I was going through my supplies, I tossed everything I knew I wouldn't use into large flat rate boxes from the USPS. When the boxes were full & I was done going through my supplies, I taped them shut and sent them off to some young and/or new scrappers I know. It felt good to get the items out of my house, but to also rescue them from the trash and send them to some people who would get some use out of them.

One thing I realized as I was looking at what was left, is that I have a serious imbalance between my papers and embellishments. I have tons of paper and relatively few embellishments {comparatively}. So as I am shopping this year, I am going to try to be more mindful of what I purchase. Specifically, less paper and more embellishments, embossing folders, dies and Cricut cartridges. I need to go for things like ribbon, fibers, bling, pearls, flowers and chipboard shapes. I have plenty of inks, paints, Glimmer Mist and other art supplies that I can use to customize what I purchase and/or cut to fit specific projects.

I am sure some pretty papers will sneak in here and there, but I am going to try to focus the bulk of my scrapbook budget on embellishments and staples ~ not paper. I am sure it will be hard since I love paper, but I will do my best! :D

Are any of you in the midst of purging your supplies? What do you plan to do with what you cull from your stash?

~Kathryn
Life's a beach. Scrapbook it.

14 comments:

  1. I am trying to reduce my stash as well. I have a few young and new scrappers to give them to as well as an etsy shop. Since my budget is getting tighter and tighter I decided to focus mostly on my etsy shop so I can afford to buy me some glimmer mists! You may want to sell some items.

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  2. I still don´t have too many things so doing a purge is still not necessary. Oh but scrapbooking supplies are so beautiful that is really easy to start buying and storing things.

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  3. I am trying to figure out a good layout in my scraproom. Which requires me to go through everything. I am working my way around the room and finding the same thing as you. I have an imbalance. I have patterned papers but little cardstock, I have no flowers (though I just got my white ones!) and little chipboard. I have loads of random metal things like binder clips, random strange brads and stickers I think are now ugly! I have to try to narrow down what I love/like/could still use for someone else's style/hate. I think figuring this out will help me only buy what I need and lack as well as stop me from buying out of my style! Great idea for a blog post. You got me thinking!

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  4. I am going through my stash and getting rid of a lot of it. I am planning on sending some of it to a couple of people I know who could use it.

    I just bought a new basket to hold my GM in and plan on going back and buying a couple more to keep my TH DIPs in.

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  5. Kathryn I wish I had your problem!! i think that things are so cheap and so easily available in America, thats why your things pile up so quickly.here in Greece we don't have that problem...everything is precious because it comes from so far away...we hardly see anything in a shop because only one shop stocks minimal stuff in Athens and its so expensive...

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  6. I wish I had that problem. I know a lot of scrap friends think I have a Ton of stuff but I don't. I have a small scrap corner and use every inch. Someday I will have a scrap-room of my own and only Hope to I have a large enough stash I need to purge.

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  7. I am fairly new to scrapping. When I first starting buying, I felt like I had to have everything and bought stuff I should not have bought. I am better about chosing paper pads (which I love-it is all together) I had to build up my inks-and stamps--I know have stamps that fit me either and that is only 8 months of scrapping. A new store is opening soon--I hope they have like a yard sale day or trade day or something. NOne of my friends scrap so I can't give it to them. I am a teacher and I have taken some things to school for the kids and to the art teacher too. So I have somewhat of a plan........but I'm going to rethink my Little corner of my room and buy needs not the wants. But I am like you--I love paper!--Doesn't it look so pretty there in the pad that you hate to use it because you will never find it again and then what? KH

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  8. I just cleaned out my stuff a few weeks ago and decided to sketch a new scraptable/shelf that i want the hubby to make...its custom so it will fit into the corner of my room and with a fold down table wont take up much space...im very excited about it so i dont have to lug all my stuff out to the kitchen table every time i want to craft! Plus, since its custom made it will hold all my stuff in one place!!! NOW if i can only get the hubby to start building!!!!!

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  9. i try to purge each time i go thru my stuff. if i see something i don't love, or have used something quite a bit i toss it all in a box. anything in the box is fair game to all of my friends...once i get tired of it sitting there i take the box to the hospital where i work and donate them to the pediatric ward. i sell bigger stuff on craigslist or at crops.

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  10. Hi Kathryn,
    2010 Im been DONATED!!!!? yes, thats how hubby has put it!!!!!, the BEST ROOM in the house for my scrapbooking studio, YEAH!!!!!! He's after something, he dont make those kinda moves, and let me spend money, without some comeback....., beleive me, married 4 30years, you know EM?????hehehehe, anyway, Its a good size old fashion double bedroom, and being a kiwi gal, im doing a DIY on the room so, anywayz, scrap paper that everyone throws out or users, for what ever bar toilet paper allthough it does work, you just gotta soften it with a dash of baby oit and luke warm water and hangout to dry for 1/2 an hour. Anywayz I am making my ANGEL minis, and mini, mini's out of,. I have so much pretty and ugly papers, that I can see another life for, so thats what Im doing, Im doing other stuff to declutter but that's a whole different ball game, so that's it from me
    Arohanui XOX
    :-)

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  11. I am going through my craft/studio room right now too. First I have to get through all of the "stuff" that was placed in there too, as a way of "getting it out of the way." I know when I really get into things that I will have outgrown a lot of things. My thoughts were that I would give the supplies to Good Will, as they will likely find their way to a good home. :)

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  12. Well I don't have that problem, I have lots of space that I would love to fill up. I also have learned that if i buy paper i also buy the chipboard pieces and some stickers from the same collection. Over here if they sell the paper the dont have the other stuff and if the have the embellis they don't have the paper. So i am always searching for something, but the never on a sale and if the paper is on a sale i still pay 18 euros for a paperpad.
    But that won't stop us from scrapping we love it....
    And it is so nice of you to send it out to those who need it, that is really kind of you but we all know that you have this big heart, that is why we all love you. Thanks for being a friend.

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  13. Seems like lots of folks in Europe and far away countries don't have the availability of supplies like we do here in the States. Maybe you could do a giveaway geared specifically for them? Just a thought...

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  14. I have to admit I don't have that problem yet, Kathryn...lol. I'm a quilter only just beginning my mini album adventures (couple of months now). I have the basics but am lacking in the stamp dept., and SERIOUSLY lacking in the Bling dept. Oh, well.....with time. But I too am looking forward to all the CHA releases!

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