very happy sweet shopper
 

I was a paper scrapper and started trying digital scrapping maybe 5-6 years ago, i printed a couple of baby books of my daughter and a one year book of 2010 (that I printed in 2015) but they were definitely not anything fancy - i really didn't know what I was doing but the books are cute and the kids like looking at them

Then i joined SSD in 2016, i started to change my style joined in a lot of competitions, quite a few bingos and at the same time started keeping all my scrapped pages in folders of the year the photos were from. I quite quickly made the decision to scrap exclusively with SSD products and picked a few designers who match my style more just so my full albums are more cohesive

In 2017 i noticed that i was doing a lot of 2012 photos so i concentrated on those photos mainly as well as a bit of current stuff when it fit in with bingo challenges - i had a few black outs, built a nice kit collection and then went back and redid some of the earlier 2012 pages that i did before i decided what my style was.

Late 2017 i applied for my first CT and got a thanks but no thanks - i was really sad - i'm still sad tbh but have a c'est la vie attitude about it now - and i took a MASSIVE break from scrapbooking. I was really disheartened for ages because i realised i wasn't as good as i naively thought i was (i don't need sympathy on this bit i'm over it now and sympathy will just make me sad all over again lol)

Then a few months ago i went through a stage of getting heaps of photos of my girls - my little one is at a cute age - and i thought hey why not get back into scrapping. So i took stock of what I had, deleted the pages that i didn't like anymore and re-did a whole heap.

Then i thought about printing - now, when i printed my baby books, the 2010 album and my honeymoon album i went cheap - i picked a place that had a special on and went with it - the pages weren't good to start with but the printing made them too dark and cropped too much off the page - so i made great use of the other best part of SSD - the forum - and asked for recommendations for a good printer

Jak (i think that's her name) who is an Aussie recommended album works and aurian (i think that's her name) recommended Photobook worldwide - being confident that both would be good because the recommendations came from digital scrappers i went with the one with the best discount this month - and ordered from albumworks

All i can say is - OMG - totally blown away!!! THIS is why i scrap, the end result is just omg so so adorable i love love love it - i actually can't express how excited i am - all the kids love it even hubby was impressed

Thanks so much for whoever makes SSD happen, thanks so much designers, thanks so much CTs (i'm a shameless scraplifter from the samples pages on product listings) and thanks so much forum for giving me a place to get printing advice.

If anyone sees this and knows the people who run the show please pass on my thanks - i really really want you guys to know you actually change lives - i know it's only a "hobby" but this amazing book means a lot to me - my kids are growing so fast and now i have something tangible to look at while i reminisce and miss my mum years

I've probably blabbered too much i just want you all to know how awesome we customers think this place is :)

Dear Kitartas, i loved loved loved to read your story, and i spek for the other designers as well, you are so very welcome!

This kind of stories makes us love even more what we do...

And please don't be ashamed about scraplifting.. that is how most of us learned to scrap like we wanna do and improve ourselfes.
Thank you for this heartwarming story! :D

What a great story! I'm glad you found your way back to digi. Seeing your hard work in (good) print is so much fun. I know that most of my friends, and definitely my hubby, don't really get the whole digi thing but they sure do enjoy looking through my weekly project books that I buy each year. Thanks for sharing your story!

I loved reading your story.
And I'm very happy you found your way to SSD. Please continue sharing your work. I love seeing it. :wub:

Ah, this makes me so happy!!

I'm so glad you found your way back to scrapping! Having your layouts printed is such a wonderful feeling! And what Wendy said, don't feel ashamed about scraplifting. I did that a lot too when I first started out. Now I enjoy scraplifting paper scrappers every now and then. :)

I really enjoyed reading your story! My motto in life is "play with it til it works"... It sounds like you've done that with digiscrapping. It takes some time to figure out which store/designers fit your style, and it takes time to figure out what your style it.
I'm so glad you've found SSD (definitely MY favorite store!), your style and a printer you like! Now all that's ahead is progress!

This is the BEST!!!!

Awww...your story makes my heart so happy! :wub: Totally agree about SSD changing lives for the better. I feel the same way. Don't know what I'd do without this hobby we love so much and the amazing people who make it what it is. Love me some SSD!!

So glad you're back to digi scrapping and loving it. My family jokes about my scrapbooking obsession but everyone enjoys the books and we relive so many memories. And that's what it's all about. I too, love SSD. Next thing you know, you'll make some good friends with other scrappers and they'll be friends for life!

I love this!!! I'm so glad you love your hobby and craft--this is why we do what we do, right?! I'm so glad you are here with us at SSD!! :wub:

So glad to hear that you are so happy with your printed book. I was just as excited when I got my first one back from Albumworks!

Thank you for sharing this! So glad you've found us and to have you here! Scrapbooking is for keeping your memories and as long as you and your family are enjoying your layouts, nothing else matters! With that said, there are lots of talented scrappers here in the forum, so whenever you feel like you need help with a technique or ideas to make a layout better, just ask! I got better at scrapping by scraplifting too!

:wub: :wub: :wub:

What a sweet post! Thanks for sharing your journey, after all, it's about YOU and what YOU love. I too know that feeling of a little pride behind your work and the pain when it's "rejected" by others but it looks like you found the silver lining and have found the best path for you. That's awesome!

This is an awesome story!! I loved learning more about you. I got a lot of thanks but no thanks replies too - we all have ;) I'm just so happy that you've found your love for scrapping again and are happy with the results ... that's definitely the most important part!!