KISS me - Keep It Simple, Sister

Some of my favorite pages and layouts are the simplest ones. First, because they are easy to duplicate, and they usually don't take up much of my time - in the creating or duplicating. I also often like the clean, classy, simple look anyway. If every page is a gathering of elements, layers, and embellishments, it starts to feel cluttered and/or complicated - much like eating a seven-course meal every single day. Your taste buds grow impervious to the fancy food, and you soon find yourself longing for a simple hamburger on the grill.
A simple, classic look for Hannah's junior high volleyball
days.  The background paper does most of the work.  I added
a title and a couple layers on the left side, and on the right,
I simply added the arrows to point out Hannah.

Consider this your keynote sentence for today's post:  Not every page in your scrapbook has to be a masterpiece. Now, go back and read that again - out loud. Go ahead; I'll wait.

This can be a tough one for me. I take my time with almost every page, and it's usually a while before I stop saying, "Hmmm,,,it's missing something," or "It needs something else." This is just another way to get bogged down in scrapbooking with no hope of ever catching up, so the reverse perfectionism starts kicking in. You can't do things well and/or fully to your liking, so you start procrastinating, and then that procrastination becomes a sad acceptance that you'll never get to those scrapbooks like you promised yourself you would.
The background on the left is from an old calendar. I find
myself using these a lot. They make gorgeous pages, and all
I have to do is add a picture or two. Then because that page
is getting all of the attention and already has the "wow"
factor, I don't have to add much to the other side/page.

Another important thing to note is that you want the pictures to be the focus of every page. The point of scrapbooking is to show off the pictures, not necessarily the backgrounds and embellishments.

So - for your own sanity, Keep It Simple, Sister. (Not that our fellow brothers don't need this reminder, too, but how many guys do you know who'll be reading this? 😏) So, how do you do that (keep it simple)? Start by finding layouts that you like and sticking with them. Use different colors and embellishments, but  the same basic layout. That way, you don't have to think about how to lay it all out. And for a lot of double page spreads, add nothing except pictures for one of the pages (like the picture below, where I actually added nothing to both sides because I had so many pictures to include. I don't do that often - no title or embellishments for both pages - but I do it often for one side).

It's okay to do that - really. I am giving you permission; now, all you have to do is give yourself permission. And lastly, do a search on Pinterest specifically for something like, "simple scrapbook layouts." Repeat after me: Not every page has to be a masterpiece.

Now, go finish up about 3 double page spreads.  If you keep it simple, you can do that in one sitting, so go...create...scrap...enjoy your pictures.  Why are you still sitting here...go! 😉

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