Laura Vegas

loved everyone's Q&A's. such a wide range of questions. so i decided to break them up into 3 seperate posts. and i'm putting the questions into my own words, just to make it easier. here we go.

what's your favorite layout?

it's really hard for me to pick a favorite layout. i have 13 years worth of layouts for alyssa, and 10 years worth for sarah. lol! but as i was browsing through my external hard drive, these are two that caught my eye. they're not necessarily the best design ever. but i love the look of both of them, even after doing these a few years ago. and i think even more than that, they're just some of my most favorite photos of the girls. ever.

are you a chronological scrapper, or do you go with the flow?
when it comes to actually scrapping, i go with the flow. i just go to whatever photos are calling me, whatever photos match my products i need to use, or whatever photos are easiest to get too. if that means photos from last week, photos from 7 years ago, or photos from 9 months ago, it works for me. i have no desire to force myself to scrap something, just because it's next on the list. kwim? now, when it comes to putting these layouts in albums, then i'm totally a chronological scrapper. i may not scrap in order, but my albums are in order.

do you ever sleep? do you ever cook?
i do sleep, although it's not much. lol! on average, i would say i get about 5-6 hours of sleep a night. maybe a little extra on the weekend, more like 7 hours. it's not that i don't require more sleep. because i do. there are just too many other things that i want to be doing, than laying there sleeping my time away. i know, that's craziness talking. or maybe lack of sleep. lol! and as for cooking, i go in spurts. i do cook a lot. i don't love it, but i don't mind it either. right now is a good time for cooking more, since we're done with soccer for now and are actually here most nights. and about 85% of what i cook are rachael ray recipies 🙂

you're always scrapping up a storm, so does it ever start to feel like a chore to you?
i wouldn't say it feels like a chore. but there are plenty of times where i'm thinking "ugh, i have to go do this" or "ugh, i have to work on that". but at the same time, i love what i'm doing and am totally grateful for the assignments and "chores". it keeps me busy, keeps me creating. truth be told, i scrap better when i have something specific to do, by a certain deadline. and then, when the deadline is met, i usually get the urge to work on a totally-for-me project. so it's a win win thing 🙂

do you like making layouts or cards better? which did you start out making?
i started out making layouts, over 14 years ago. i didn't really get into the card making until about 4 or 5 years ago. i did it here and there. then i got really good at making cards with my scraps, after EACH layout. every layout had a matching card for a while there. then i got away from the cards a bit. which leads to this next question.

do you have to submit your cards to Cards magazine each month to get published, or do you have a sort of standing contract with them?

card inserted just to break up this wordy "blah, blah, blah" post with something cute! this is why i used to be good at making cards. because i was submitting to cards magazine each month. lol! i never had a standing contract with anyone. so i kept up on the calls, and made cards, and submitted everything i had each month. this year, i am exclusive to creating keepsakes magazine, so i'm not submitting to cards anymore. which is turn, is probably the reason i havn't made cards lately. lol!

when you draw the pen lines around the edges of your layouts, do you freehand them or use a ruler?

 

here's an example of what sara was asking me about. i think i've mentioned this before, but i always have at least 2-3 rulers laying out when i scrap. i'm really anal about things being perfect and straight. but the pen lines? i do a mix. sometimes, i will use a ruler or a piece of paper (since i don't like to get my beloved rulers dirty) to draw my lines. but i then go back and rough them up a bit, making extra little lines and stuff, especially on the ends. but i also do freehand my lines. and i'm pretty good about drawing a straight line. but you know at some point, the pen comes off the paper and you have to start it again. and to me, that is always noticeable. so that is mostly why i go back and rough it up a bit. so that it hides any not-so-perfect spots.

when you scrap, do you stand or sit?
i used to sit when my scraproom was downstairs. although i was constantly getting up to get things. but i sat. when i moved my scrap space upstairs, i scrapped standing up (since i had the island to work at). it worked for me, and i never missed sitting down. now my scrap room is back downstairs, and i admit i enjoy being able to sit down again. lol! i still do both though. if i'm in my room, i sit, but constantly get up and look for things. if i'm working out at the island, i stand.

when do you do most of your scrapping? how do you find time?
this is a tough one. my scrapping gets done at all different times. i do a lot of things just here and there, throughout my days. i'm not one to sit down during the day. i'm not one to do nothing, or to only do one thing at a time. i'm always busy, and always doing something.  i work at home, so i take full advantage of naptime with the daycare kids. that's my really productive time. in the evenings when the girls and i are hanging out (and joe's napping before work), they'll be doing homework or having some computer/tv time, and i'm working on stuff right beside them. joe works nights, so i have my time then too, after the girls have gone to bed. i don't scrap a whole lot at night, but i can if i need too. and i do a lot on the weekends. it just sort of gets done. i wish i had a better explanation, rather than just saying that i have this amazing ability to get a zillion things done at once. lol! but i also know that i have my favorite scrappers who i think do 10 times more than i do. so i think it's easy to think we don't do enough. but maybe stepping back and seeing what you HAVE accomplished (instead of thinking of things we HAVN'T accomplished), will make you feel better 🙂

what is your album of choice and where do i get them?
i used to use post bound albums, from making memories. for years and years. but i have since switched to 3 ring albums, and would never go back. this has a lot to do with the fact that i'm NOT a chronological scrapper. so i might do 3 layouts at once, that are from three totally different years. in post bound albums, they're a pain in the tush to add in pages. 3 rings are glorious, you just open and insert pages as needed. i have a mix of both making memories 3 ring albums (the corduroy albums are super nice!), and the american crafts modern 3 ring albums.

can you show us your journal my christmas album (i have never tried the december daily album)?
i know i posted on december 1st, and said that i was planning on doing the journal my christmas project. i already had my album totally assembled and ready to go. and yet, i didn't do it. so sad. i have no clue what happened to me this christmas, but i was behind the entire month and not feeling totally into the holiday. i think it's because we still had so much soccer going on, and even spend the 2 full weekends before christmas at soccer tournaments. so, no album. but the good news, is that it's ready for me next year 😉

how do i purge my supplies?
i try and be really good about cleaning out my scrap supplies and purging what i don't need or don't think i'm going to use. i try to do this every few months. sometimes, it's really hard to part with stuff. but when you really get comfortable with your own style and what you like, i think it's easier to be honest about what you are going to want to use in your projects. i might think something is as cute as can be. but i also might know that i wouldn't actually use in on a layout. that sounds crazy. but i just have a good sense of what i like after all these years. as for actually getting rid of the stuff i purge out? usually, i just share it with a few close, local friends. they appreciate and use it, so i feel good knowing it's going to good homes. i also will box stuff up on occasion, and do giveaways here on the blog or send it to far away friends.

did you make the mom's cry when you gave them haley and nikolas's collages for christmas?

 

i'm not sure i made them cry. unless they did it after they left. lol! that should really be my new goal. to make people cry when i create something for them. that would mean it was perfect. lol! i do know that they totally loved them, appreciated them, and showed them off. so that makes me happy! and my family all loved their's too. the photo above shows the one i made for my family, which i have framed and propped up on the built in desk in our kitchen. do you want to know the main reason i love it there? behind that, is a TON of outlets, modem cords, and phone jack and phone cords. i've never had anything nice to cover them up, until now. lol!

stay tuned for the second part of the Q&A tomorrow. and friday, i have something really fun to share, something scrap related 🙂