Change is the topic of the month here on the ScrapHappy blog. Nikki and Alison have both done an great job of documenting their changes through aging and parenting. Nikki talked about using journaling as a tool to tackle the bumpy times of change and Alison talked about changing up her crafty style as an emotional outlet. I tell ya, both their stories hit close to home for me, how about for you?
With those topics of change well covered, I myself had to change my plans for this post! As I was pondering what to do here a topic landed in my lap. I was hearing a lot of chatter about crafting guilt. Guilt over not getting enough done AND guilt over having too many “unused” supplies. So I want to share an idea on how to tackle a bit of both of those problems. This isn’t a cure-all, but give it a try and see if it helps!
This is my best breakdown of what I go through when feeling that crafty guilt. It tackles both the idea of not “using” my supplies enough as well as putting inspiration right in my face.
So enter my brain for a few minutes…
1. Take a look at the supplies.
For me, a category of supplies that I love but that I don’t use “enough” are stamps. While I’ll talk about stamps in this post, just remember that this can work with anything… paper, stickers, washi—anything you’ve been stashing away.
2. Feel guilty about “having more than I use/need”.
3. Stop for a moment. Reframe. I am a stamp hoarder collector!
Reframing also requires some thinking. Why do I feel guilty? If I bought them on a random whim, or if I over-spent my budget, then that guilt informs me that I need to be more cautious next time. That guilt is doing a favor to my wallet or my impulse control.
But what if the guilt, as is often the case, is about not using those supplies enough?
4. Imagine this scenario: You see a beautiful poster and you buy it and hang it on your wall.
Are you “using” that poster? Do you “need” that poster? Why did you buy it to begin with? My guess would be that you just liked it! That is the feeling I get much of the time when I buy craft supplies. They are just beautiful and I like looking at them. That, in its own way, is “using” those supplies. You can use craft supplies for that sense of beauty, the same as you would a poster.
5. Turn your supplies into “posters”—display them as the art that they are! **
Now I know you can’t display them all. Just pick a couple. I chose these watercoloring stamps by Art Impressions. I love their style and the samples they always have on their packages. Yet I never seem to put them to much use. I’ve managed to fit both the stamps and the package art in this one frame!
6. Use them with your eyes, and use them to simply enjoy looking at them!
7. Just having them out often gives me ideas to use them on projects.
Feel like creating right now? Do it! Don’t have time? Make notes for later.
Often seeing my products right there channels my lack of impulse control into actual creating. The dishes can wait, the crafting needs to happen now! LOL. Here is a project I created just having flipped through my supplies. I didn’t even get to the displaying point!!
All stamps by Art Impressions.
8. No ideas? No time? No worries!! Just enjoy them as is! They are now your “posters”.
9. Feeling done with looking at those things?
Maybe the guilt is creeping back in because you still haven’t “used” them. Guilt happens! Go back to step 4!
Or maybe you’ve just had your fill of these. Go ahead and change them out for something different. Enjoy all your supplies in turn!
10. Rinse. Repeat.
What do you think? Do you feel crafty guilt? What is the source of that feeling? Do you think this trick will help you see your supplies in a different way? Let me know in the comments!
** Before we go… Let me share ways that products can be displayed.
1 . You saw in my first example that you can put your supplies into actual frames! (I removed a photo from 1993 out of this frame to repurpose it in my craft room!) I just left the prongs on the back a little loose to accommodate the thickness of the items.
2. If you have some photo display stands lying around, use those.
3. Or maybe you have a spare bookend. Those are made to hold things up! They can hold up your scrap supplies just as well as books.
4. Make your own display stand. Here is a quick tutorial to do just that. I used a nice thick sheet of cardstock to make this stand. Dimensions do not need to be exact!
5. Pattern papers are a bit bigger and floppier to display. Here is a video I made a few years ago on how to display finished layouts, but the idea works for simple sheets of beautiful scrapbook papers also!