I love creating and memory keeping. But I’m at the phase in life where I constantly feel like there’s so much to do but so little time.

With how busy I am nowadays, I feel like memory keeping and creating always end up neglected at the bottom of my to do list, and it gets lost amidst another more pressing deadlines. So I can totally relate when friends lament how they don’t have enough time to rest, let alone do any sort of memory keeping.

But then I find myself feeling restless and itching to create when I haven’t made anything for awhile.

So unless I choose to make time, I won’t get round to creating for awhile.

In an effort to be more intentional with memory keeping and creating this year, I came up with a list of ways to fix my lack of creating and to make time for creativity and doing the things I love.

5 ways to make time for memory keeping/creating:

1. Set aside a period of time for creating every day.

This might be the hardest one for me, since time (actually the lack thereof) is the biggest obstacle for my creating and memory keeping. But I’m starting with at least 10 minutes a day. Then as time permits, I’ll spend more time creating.

2. Make your supplies easily accessible.

I tend to have an “out of sight, out of mind” mentality when it comes to supplies. But having my supplies easily accessible and readily available reminds me to use them whenever I see them.

3. Have a place for creating.

Sometimes, having to take things out and put things back can be a hassle and kind of puts me off from creating because of all the trouble that it takes. I currently don’t have much room in my house for a specific creating spot, but I’m exploring my options. For now, I will likely get a tray to keep all the supplies for the projects I am currently working on.

4. Look for someone to keep you accountable.

Last year, #letscatchuponprojectlife helped me to get out of a rut and back into memory keeping. Ask one or two of your best creative friends to keep you accountable in this area. Big things happen when you make yourself accountable.

5. Just do it.

It’s always easier to make excuses or procrastinate. But whatever it is, just make time for scrapbooking/creating/memory keeping. After all, if there’s a will, there’s a way!

Expanding creative energy helps me to create more. So I’m planning to try out these ways and be more intentional in memory keeping and creating this year.

How do you make time to create and document memories when your schedule is super busy? I’d love to hear how you do it!

As a memory-keeping system, Project Life can be as simple or as complicated as you need or want it to be. Becky says it’s as simple as just using an album, pocket pages, and a core kit with your photos. But as a scrapbooker turned Project Lifer, I still like to mix things up and add a creative aspect to my memory keeping.

Since we talked about using pocket scrapbooking to document memories last week, I thought it would be apt to share my favorite memory keeping tools which I use when doing pocket scrapbooking.

Aside from my camera which is (obviously) what I use to capture memories, here’s a list of my favorite essentials, the tools which help me to get stuff done. This list is different from my list of favorite embellishments, which I’ll share in another post.

Top 10 tools for Memory Keepers:

1. Paper trimmer

Like what a trimmer is supposed to do, I use this to trim my photos and Project Life cards. I have the EK Success Cutterpede trimmer.

2. Cutter Bee scissors

This scissors is incredibly sharp. Since I don’t have a Silhouette (it’s on my wishlist though!), this Cuttlebee is my lifesaver for cutting whatever I need.

3. Tiny Attacher

I used a regular stapler for the longest time. But I’d heard so many good things about the Tiny Attacher that I finally decided to take the plunge when my local scrapbook store had them in stock. And I love it. It can staple through (almost) anything (including wood veneers!) and it’s so easy to use.

4. Punches

These give me the perfect circles in various sizes. The squeeze punches from Fiskars are my favorite, but I also have one from American Crafts which is also good.

5. Corner rounder

So far, my spreads have a mix of square and rounded corners. But when I decide that I want rounded corners, this is super handy.

6. Project Life cards/core kits

In addition to photos, Project Life cards help me to fill in the gaps and give me a place to include all my journaling.

7. White cardstock

I purchased a whole stack of these and use them regularly for printing my weekly title cards and digital cards.

8. Zig pen/Sharpie

These are my go-to pens for journaling and adding text to my photos.

9. Printables

Although I have one core kit and several mini kits, I love using printables from Paislee Press and One Little Bird, which add another fun element to my spreads. I also like using free printables that I find online.

10. Adhesive

Each has a different purpose, but I generally use glue tape for photos and paper, glue dots or liquid glue for smaller elements, and foam dots for dimension.

While you obviously don’t need all these tools to document or be a memory keeper, these are my personal must-haves. These go-to tools definitely help me to get the job done a lot quicker and more efficiently, leaving me with more time to create memories for documenting!

What are your must-have tools for memory keeping? Let me know in the comments!

Missed the other posts in this series? You can catch up on them here:

• 5 reasons why you should be a memory keeper
• 5 ways to start memory keeping
• 12 ways to document your memories
• 15 memories to document in 2015
• Documenting with pocket scrapbooking

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All the Memories is a blog series talking about all things memory keeping – from memory keeping ideas to answering your questions. This is the year to get those memories documented!

I love making memories. I love documenting. I love being creative.

And I love that pocket scrapbooking combines all three elements together.

Like I mentioned in this post, Project Life is my method of choice for documenting memories nowadays. But whether you call it pocket scrapbooking or Project Life, I love so many things about this method of scrapbooking.

5 reasons I love documenting with pocket scrapbooking:

1. It’s fast and easy.

That’s the way pocket scrapbooking is supposed to be anyway. Sometimes, I might over-complicate things, but I can always go back to the basics with no problems at all – just slip photos into pockets, write journaling, and I’m done!

2. It lets me be creative without being overwhelmed.

With the various pockets and spreads, I can be as creative or as simple as I want. Pocket scrapbooking lets me channel my creative energy without taking up too much time or making me feel like I have the impossible task of memory keeping. And in the end, my memories still get documented while I’m being creative (yay!).

3. It lets me document consistently.

Because I have an album to fill and weekly spreads to create, pocket scrapbooking motivates me and keeps me accountable in documenting life, even the seemingly trivial and unimportant stories of our every day.

4. It’s flexible.

If a system isn’t flexible enough to meet my needs, then the system doesn’t work. But here’s the cool thing about pocket scrapbooking: You and I can use the same system in a completely different way that is unique for our needs. It’s all up to you, so just decide and choose what works best for you.

For example, while everyone has their own strategy for documenting (weekly/monthly/by events), I choose to document weekly because I love the consistency and regularity of that. Also, it’s just less confusing for me to do weekly documenting. But even if I change my mind and decide to document monthly instead of weekly, I can switch it up with no problems at all.

This also means you can also choose to go all paper, all digital or a combination of both (hybrid). Whether you use 12×12, 9×12, or 6×8, size is completely up to you too.

Whatever works for you, pick that.

5. It focuses on the things I love.

In the end, I love pocket scrapbooking because it combines everything I love (making memories + documenting + being creative) into one fun big project.

And I couldn’t enjoy it more. Enough said.

Are you using pocket scrapbooking to document your memories? What do you like about this method?

P.S. Still not convinced? I also liked this post on pocket scrapbooking.

Missed the other posts in this series? You can catch up on them here:

• 5 reasons why you should be a memory keeper
• 5 ways to start memory keeping
• 12 ways to document your memories
• 15 memories to document in 2015

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All the Memories is a blog series talking about all things memory keeping – from memory keeping ideas to answering your questions. This is the year to get those memories documented!

Sometimes, it’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and busyness of life and forget about the little moments that make up the big moments.

Since this year is all about intentional memory keeping and not letting the moments slip by, I put together a list of 15 (big and small) memories to get you started on your memory keeping.

Look out for these moments and document them in any way you choose!

15 memories to document in 2015:

1. A new experience

2. A new restaurant that you visited

3. The first concert of 2015 that you attended

4. One new food that you tried

5. A new favorite recipe

6. One new country/city/town that you visited

7. One new friendship that you formed

8. Your most-used mode of transportation in 2015

9. Your favorite song (the one that is always on replay)

10. Your favorite drink

11. A funny story/epic memory

12. A new routine

13. One new book that you read and enjoyed

14. One thing you regret doing/not doing

15. One goal you set and achieved for yourself

What other memories do you plan to document this year? Let me know in the comments!

Missed the other posts in this series? You can catch up on them here:

• 5 reasons why you should be a memory keeper
• 5 ways to start memory keeping
• 12 ways to document your memories

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All the Memories is a blog series talking about all things memory keeping – from memory keeping ideas to answering your questions. This is the year to get those memories documented!

So you’ve decided to start memory keeping (YAY for you!), because it’s obviously a good idea to document your 2015 memories, right?

But what method should you use?

Like I mentioned in my last post, there are seriously so many options for how to document your memories.

These days, I like using Project Life (or pocket scrapbooking) as my chosen documentation method. But more on that in another post on another day.

That said, since I like having options (most of the time anyway), I put together a (non-exhaustive) list of ways that anyone can use to document those precious memories.

And all you have to do is to pick your favorite way and try it!

12 ways to document your memories

1. Mini books/albums

If all other paper projects seem too daunting, just start small with minis first. (I’ve got lots of inspiration here.)

2. Photo books

Photo books are few and far between for me, but for those that I’ve made, I really do love. I also love seeing Ronnie’s beautiful photo/story books.

3. Pocket scrapbooking/Project Life

I’ve mentioned this already, but I couldn’t not include it in the list right? (Full post another day.)

4. Photo collages

This one is so easy and convenient to do, you can literally do it at your fingertips on your smartphone. Just download a photo collage app (like this) and viola! You can do weekly or monthly collages and print them out at the end of the year. Or just whenever you want, really.

5. Picture frames

Since so many things are digital nowadays, I always appreciate looking at a nicely framed photo and holding it in my hands.

6. Daily/weekly/monthly journaling

Try a consistent journaling project for a neat compilation of thoughts and memories at the end of the year. Or do what Elise is doing and just keep a journal, period.

7. Blogging

I still remember the days of angsty teenage posts and blogs. But those days aside, blogging is actually like keeping an online journal, which is a really good way to document with words and photos.

8. Videos

A picture may paint a thousand words, but some videos are just beyond words. Since Youtube and vlogging is kind of a thing right now, you could totally hop on that bandwagon. Just saying.

9. Digital/hybrid projects

If paper isn’t really your thing, try going digital or doing a mix of both. (Paislee Press and One Little Bird are some of my favorite shops.)

10. Scrapbook layouts

This is how I started scrapbooking (again, that’s another story for another day). But layouts are perfect for combining anyone’s love for words, memories, and paper into one project.

11. Social Media

Since I use relatively limited social media nowadays, this isn’t my preferred memory keeping method. But if it works for you, then I say go for it! Better memories documented than none at all.

12. Photo albums

Sometimes, you just need to go back and be old-school by printing photos and slipping them into regular albums. No need to do anything else fancy. Just good old albums. (Remember to go acid- and lignin-free if you want to really preserve your photos though!)

As I always say, there isn’t a right or wrong way to document, just the right way for you.

Let me know which way you’re using to document your 2015 memories, or more memory keeping methods that you have to add to this list!

Missed the other posts in this series? You can catch up on them here:

• 5 reasons why you should be a memory keeper
• 5 ways to start memory keeping

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All the Memories is a blog series talking about all things memory keeping – from memory keeping ideas to answering your questions. This is the year to get those memories documented!

Last week, I shared my reasons for why you should be a memory keeper. With those reasons in mind, the next question you might ask is, How do I to get started? 

If you do a quick search for “scrapbooking” or “memory keeping” on Google or Pinterest, it’s easy to soon get lost in all the many possibilities and options available to memory keepers nowadays.

To help you sort through the options, I’ve put together a quick list of my go-to strategies for how you can get started in memory keeping.

So enough talk, it’s time to get started!

Are you ready?

5 ways to start on your 2015 memory keeping:

#1: Take photos.

A lot of my memories are often captured in photos, which become the basis for my memory keeping. If you’re not sure where or how to start, just taking photos of the big and small moments of every day is a good place to begin.

#2: Write down memories.

Even when you don’t have pictures, capturing memories in words is a great way of memory keeping. So just write stuff down.

#3: Choose one way to document those memories.

Since there are so options available, just decide on one memory keeping method and experiment with that. Will you go digital? Or use the ever-popular pocket page scrapbooking? Or are you inclined to mini albums and layouts? Start with one way and figure out if it works for you.

#4: Remember to keep things simple.

Like point #3, while the options are plenty, choose to keep things simple and don’t let yourself get overwhelmed. Start small and expand your options later, if you need/want to.

#5: Have fun!

The memory keeping process shouldn’t be stressful. So pick a method that you enjoy. Once one way starts becoming too stressful, stop and choose another memory keeping method instead.

With these five reasons, just pick one way first and start the memory keeping! Like many things, there is no “right” way of starting, just the way that works for you.

Let me know in the comments what other tips you have for memory keeping!

P.S. This post and this post also have some great tips on beginning memory keeping.

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All the Memories is a blog series talking about all things memory keeping – from memory keeping ideas to answering your questions. This is the year to get those memories documented!