How I got Started Scrapbooking

And he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, with intelligence, with knowledge, and with all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold and silver and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, for work in every skilled craft.  (Exodus 35:31-33)

Hello Everyone,

I want to start off with my background as a child and work my way up to scrapbooking. When I was a little kid my sister and I would love getting the super thick JCPenney catalogs. My favorite thing to look at was the wedding and prom dresses. We would both get out paper and draw up sketches of dresses, then say when we get older we will make that dress. Then when my parents were mowing a yard for a summer job, I remember sitting on some steps drawing pictures of the ocean. I loved the cartoon, The Little Mermaid and dreamed of seeing the ocean one day. I also remember going to my grandma and grandpa's house when I was little and we would be playing with our cousins and they said it would be cool if we had a club house, so my brain went to work trying to come up with a design.
I was in girl scouts and loved doing all the crafty projects. One time, in order to get some kind of badge we had to use seed beads and make things so, years later I remember going with my dad to his work while he loaded buildings and I took beads and made things. I remember teaching myself how to design things with the beads. When I was in High School, I took my beaded things and showed a friend and then everybody said they wanted one. I didn't want to sell them to them though because I was afraid they would fall apart on them. My Aunt a few years later, started working at Hobby Lobby and took up beading as a hobby as well. One time, I was at her house and she showed me her stuff and I asked her how she kept it from falling apart and she told me about a crimping bead. She didn't know I  made things with beads as well so, the next time I brought my work to show her. When I first started College, my Aunt and I would set up at local craft shows and sell our pieces. I didn't have many pieces because I was in College. It was fun though to set up and meet new people. In class, I would always be doodling on my notepad while the teacher lectured. I would also think up room  designs and themes. I had an art appreciations class as a requirement in college and the teacher was always telling me my perspective was wrong. LOL Anyway, one day we had a project and we had to take paint swatches in monochromatic colors and do self portraits. I remember taking the project in and when the teacher saw it, he actually cracked a smile and said good work. (Normally he was always tearing apart my art because it wasn't that great, not that this was all that great either lol) I guess  you could say that was my first paper piecing. We had to do another one, but this time with stuff behind us.
I was going to college to get my degree in Elementary Education. My dream was to teach Kindergarten, I just loved working with the kids and using my creative imagination to come up with lesson plans. I got to Student teach in a Kindergarten classroom and I love it and the kids loved me. I did a whole lot better though when it was just me and the kids in the classroom. You see because of my weight, I didn't feel confident when the classroom teacher was present. That's where the fears I was talking about came in, I felt as if they were judging me and I didn't add up because I wasn't good enough. The kids though never seemed to be judging me.
I got my bachelor's degree in Elementary Education on my 23rd Birthday. LOL Awesome birthday gift huh? After I graduated I watched my nephew until he started preschool. Then when he got into preschool my sister had my niece. Then I started watching my niece but in the mean time I needed to come up with a way to make money because I needed to start paying my student loans. So, I started selling clothing on Ebay to pay the bills. One day, I would have to say it was God led, but I looked up scrapbook pages on Ebay. I don't know why I had looked it up because I have never did it and didn't know anybody who had. Anyway, I fell in love with it. Some of the sellers had the prettiest layouts and I loved all the details in the piecings. So, it was about the beginning  of January 2008 and I told my mom I'm going to do that. She kind of laughed and said "You can't do that" I said yeah I can. LOL Where the confidence came from I don't know, so we went to Hobby Lobby and bought some scrapbook supplies. She wanted me to do sticker layouts, I did to please her, but I Really didn't feel it. So, I got busy making my first scrapbook creation.

 Art appreciation projects:

Art project I was talking about above.

LOL creepy looking.

An oil pastel drawing

An oil pastel drawing

An oil pastel drawing

 

So this past summer, I was reading a book about how to find out what you are suppose to be doing in life. It wanted you to examine your interests from a kid up. After much examination, I kept seeing a reoccuring thing, I loved getting creative. Sometimes, I stay up hours past bed time because I am just so excited about a project that I'm thinking about starting. I truly love making scrapbook pages and cards. I remember reading about how you are suppose to do something to bring glory to God. The thing was I didn't really know how making scrapbook pages would bring him Glory. But now I see it's the passion and love that you have doing it. Every single piece that I have created so far has been for a loved one, it's kind of a way that I express my love to them. Each card theme I have ever did has always been for a person that loves that particular thing. I truly know that I wouldn't have the talent or ability to do this if it wasn't for God. I'm thankful for the gift he has given me and I plan on using it to glorify him.
 Thanks for taking the time to view my blog.
Thanks
~Amanda~ : )