Open letter to ANY scrapbook company;

To Whom it may concern;

When i started Scrapbooking 12 years ago i was excited and eager to document every life moment of my then FIRST newborn babe.. I received from my wonderful aunt a Scrapbook starter kit with templates of shapes i could cut my pictures and then matte them.. Stickers, Paper and a glue stick it was enough but i craved MORE.. so I started buying decorative scissors and finding fun paper.. My 2nd Son came and I think i was just as excited.. Soon after he was born i started obsessing over punches and finding new and exciting ways to use them.. I ended up having well over 200 punches and boy they were fun.. Scrapbooking wasn't just a craft it was an obsession, one that in certain periods of my life was even my anti-depressant..

Although 12 years ago i felt somewhat of a trend setter.. the craze was just taking off and anyone who would look at my then scrapbook would oooh and awww and say how cute the pages were etc.. even now i get good compliments but i have a complaint to submit...

When did Scrapbooking turn into it's own art form?.. when i started Pictures were king... all techniques were to help preserve your photo's to last into the next lifetime.. and the larger size (12x12) was to get as many pictures on the page as remotely possible.

NOW it seems as though all that's needed is one picture and a host of ribbon, buttons.. weird paint techniques etc.. don't get me wrong i use ribbon, buttons etc.. but it seems as though Pictures have taken a back seat to the "artist's" creativity.. and I've decided i just don't have very much creativity because my scrapbook pages are very formulated.. there's a title, pictures then a box (usually done on the computer) that explains the activity going on...

Is this why I'm finding it frustrated to keep up with my scrapbook??.. am i comparing the other works of art and thinking i can't measure up so why even try??? I don't even get the same excitement going into a scrapbook store (if i had one anywhere close to me)...

So I will continue with my formulated scrapbook pages.. and ignore all the new fads.. i do it for my family history.. and so what if i just completed 4 layouts that only get me through April of this year which means I am STILL way behind.. I think this letter has released my inner frustrations and hopefully will catapult me to be more motivated to keep up with this.. Because if it doesn't my husband is going to write his own letter titled: what to do with hundreds of dollars in scrapbook crap!!!

sincerely
an old fogey scrapbooker..