With the demands of work and family, do you ever feel like you don't have enough time to ndevelop deep friendships the way you would like? nnLots of women are solving this problem by getting together with their friends while also nworking individually on an important project: creating heirlooms that their families will enjoy for ngenerations. nnScrapbooking clubs are the quilting bees of the modern era. When you join – or form – a nscrapbook group, you create a regular time to meet with creative, loving, and nfamily-centered friends. nnCarving out a regular time to meet is an ideal way to create and maintain these meaningful nfriendships. Plus, as everyone gets together to work with family photographs and poignant nmemories, conversations tend to be deep and meaningful, too. nnYou can start your own scrapbooking club by asking yourself these questions: nn--> How often do you want to meet? nHow frequently do you want to hold group meetings (or crops)? Weekly, twice-monthly, monthly? nIt’s best to get a consensus from group members as to which day works best, as well as which ntime of day. Will you need child care – and how many people will be pitching in for the sitter? nHow many people do you want in your scrapbook club? nnThe group dynamic varies greatly if you have 12 people, versus 30 or more. Decide in advance nhow many people you think will comprise an ideal group. Do you want an intimate gathering nof friends – or the energy of a larger collaboration? nn--> Where do you want to host the crop? nYou can start out at your home, if you have the space. Or you can ask if the scrapbookers nin your club would like to rotate houses. nnFor larger groups, consider churches, community centers, or conference rooms. Often churches nand businesses will be very receptive to providing space for this type of gathering. Scrapbooking nis a fun, family-oriented activity, which places of worship and community centers generally nlove to embrace. nn--> Do you want to charge membership dues? nIf you have to pay for your scrapbooking space, you’ll probably want to recoup those costs. nIf you are going to provide instruction (or food or a babysitter) - simply charge reasonable ndues from each member to cover your costs. Many scrapbookers are accustomed to paying for this ntype of scrap space. nn--> What will you serve?nYou can serve food - or not. I like to keep things really simple. I have a simple basket of ncold Evian bottles - which I stock up on when there's a sale. nnThe best foods to serve don’t leave anything behind, so stay away from anything that would make nit necessary for guests to wash their hands with each bite. If you’re going to serve finger nfood, use toothpicks. And – for the chocolate fix - M&Ms are wonderful because they really do nmelt in your mouth and not in your hand. nn--> How structured would you like your meetings to be? nSome scrapbooking clubs will invite Instructors to teach a variety of more advanced techniques. nCheck with your local scrapbooking store and direct sales consultants to see which classes nmight be available. nnTip: You – or one of your club members – might want to consider becoming a consultant yourself nin order to supply the group with product and training in the latest techniques (direct sales nconsulants often receive this training from their teams and from the company themselves, nie.
http://www.momscape.com/scrapbooking/business.htm ) Then you can earn a profit and then club can earn and share the free hostess rewards. Free scrapbooking goodies for all! nOr you can schedule your crop around a monthly scrapbooking club kit, ie.: nhttp://www.momscape.com/scrapbooking/scrapbook-clubnIt’s fun to see the different projects that each club member comes up with, using the same nsupplies. Plus, some monthly club kits(like the one cited above) come with idea sheets nand an artist/designer gallery of club creations.nn--> What is the best way to set up the meeting space? nMake sure the lighting is adequate and that each guest has enough table space. You can set neveryone up on your dining room table, or – if you have the space, create a more elaborate nconfiguration. One idea I found on the Two Peas in a Bucket (
http://www.twopeasinabucket.com) nmessage board is to create a square from 2 8-foot tables and 2 6-foot tables. This nconfiguration will comfortably accommodate 8 scrapbookers. nnIt’s fun to have some community tools on one table, too. I have the basics: trimmers, nColuzzle, Silent Eyelet Setter, a mini sewing machine, etc. nnI also like to bring a selection of my favorite idea books and scrapbooking magazines, nespecially those that feature seasonal project ideas. nnAnd place a small gift bag or paper lunch sack in the center of each table for little scraps. nThis goes a long way in helping to keep each workspace organized and clutter-free. You can nalso set a relaxing (or energizing) mood with your choice of soft background music. nn--> How will you find club members? nIf you don’t already have a group of scrapbooking friends (or you want to find more), nsimply announce your group in the community. nnWord of mouth is the best way to do this. Ask your scrapbooking friends to bring their nscrapbooking friends to the club meetings.nnYou can also post flyers and announcements on community bulletin boards in libraries, ngrocery stores, community centers, etc. nnCheck to see if your local newspaper will run a free ad in the Community Notes section nbefore each scheduled crop. For example: “Free Scrapbooking Crop. All levels of experience nwelcome. Instructor/designer on hand to answer questions and provide instruction. Come nhave fun and meet new friends. Time and location. Your contact info.”nnYou can also send email invites to all your friends. Evite.com (
http://www.evite.com) is a ngreat tool for keeping track of invitees. Simply pitch your crop night as a “girls’ night out” n(or “mom’s night out”) where you’ll get important things done (and it never hurts to let nthem know you’ll have chocolate on hand.) nnHave a great time meeting new scrapbooking friends and inspiring one another to complete cards, nlayouts, and gifts-from-the-heart in your new scrapbooking club.