Scrapbooking on a Desert Island

I enjoy listening to podcasts, particularly scrapbook-related ones, while I'm doing chores. Sadly, of the four scrapbook-related podcasts I mentioned in a March 2014 post, only one remains. Fortunately, it was my favorite of the four. I do listen to podcasts other than scrapbooking ones, such as the foodie-favorite Spilled Milk, Julie Fei-Fan Balzer's Adventures in Arting, Katrina Kennedy's photography-related Capture Your 365, and, of course, the outstanding Serial. But I was in the market for another great scrapbooking podcast. I did some Googling and came across The Scrap Gals.

After listening to the most recent episode, I was hooked. I went back to the beginning (which, oddly enough, is Episode 2, not Episode 1) and started binge-listening. One of my favorites was Episode 14, "Scrapbooking on a Desert Island." Tiffany and Tracie each chose the limited scrapbook supplies they would bring if they were stuck on a desert island. As I was listening, I started making a list of my own answers with plans to leave a comment. But after a full page of notes, it was clear that I had a blog post on my hands, not a mere comment.

I won't go through what Tiffany and Tracie chose to bring with them to the hypothetical desert island, as you can listen to the podcast and hear for yourself. Instead, I'll share my own pick for each category they discussed.

Paper

If I could only scrap with one manufacturer for the rest of my life, it would be Echo Park. I own most of their Dots & Stripes papers and use them frequently as backgrounds or accents. Tiffany and Tracie split their answers between 12" x 12" and 6" x 6" paper pads, but I'd still choose Echo Park's Dots & Stripes regardless of size.

Cardstock

I'm a Bazzill loyalist. I love their color and texture options and the quality is second-to-none.

Project Life

I don't do pocket-style scrapping and have never bought products intended for Project Life or related systems. I've been given some product from various manufacturers that I've used here and there, but I haven't used any enough to form opinions.


Embellishments

I have a very minimalist style and don't use a lot of embellishments. I'm very particular about what I use as embellishments - they can't be too large, they can't add bulk to a page and they have to actually make sense with my page. Some people think nothing of putting an owl, or an anchor or a bicycle accent on a page, but I am such a literal person that I would have to actually be scrapping about owls, sea travel or cycling to use any of those. Consequently, I don't buy a lot of embellishment packs, since 99% of them aren't relevant to my scrapping. I do use stars, arrows and hearts fairly often. I also use a lot of holiday- or birthday-themed embellishments. Some of my favorites are the Icon Stickers by Simple Stories.

Letter Stickers

I'm obsessed with Simple Stories letter stickers and would definitely sneak them into my desert island packing, but I'm going to have to give the official win to Jillibean Soup Beanboard Alphas. Technically they are not stickers, as they don't have adhesive, but they're still my vote for best letter stickers. They have everything I love about chipboard letters without any bulk.

Tools

Tiffany and Tracie lumped adhesives and journaling pens into their tools selection, but I need dedicated categories for those. My #1 dry adhesive is Tombow Mono.

My favorite wet adhesive is Martha Stewart Glittering Glue.

My favorite journaling pens are Marvy's Le Pen.

I have to mention my favorite ink, too. It's ColorBox Chalk Ink, in Chestnut Roan.

Now, on to what I actually consider must-have tools. I love, love, love my Fiskars Bypass Trimmer. I'd need to bring along a larger trimmer for my 12" x 12" paper. I wish this one came in a 12" x 12" version. I can't tell you how much money the words "self-sharpening" have saved me over the last decade or so.

Finally, my beloved Fiskars Microtip Scissors. I love them so much I made a layout about them.

And that concludes my desert island packing list! What would make onto your list? I'd love to hear!