This week's featured crafter first learned about scrapbooking through her sister and now she's hooked! She takes pleasure in preserving and sharing her memories with family. In fact, her daughter Hailey, 10, has already started to scrapbook. Let's meet Andrea!
How did you get into your craft?
Name: Andrea Grau, 41
Hometown: Selden, NY
Occupation: Stay-at-home mother
Craft: Scrapbooking
I started scrapbooking about five years ago. My sister introduced me to it. She lives in New Hampshire where scrapbooking had become popular a lot sooner then it did here in New York. My first real experience was at an SDV, “Scrappers Dream Vacation.” I traveled to Massachusetts for a three-day weekend of scrapbooking. I fell in love with scrapbooking the minute I walked through the doors of the event. There was no turning back. I definitely have to thank my sister Lisette for starting it all.
What's your best craft tip?
My very best tip would be to always remember to do some journaling on all of your scrapbook pages. The more you write about the pages you are creating, the more memories you will create for generations to come. Oh, and yes there is a great need to be organized. It will save you a lot of time.
Where do you find inspiration?
I find a lot of inspiration in the pictures that I take. Ever since I have started scrapbooking, I take more pictures then I ever had before. It’s incredible how many things go on around you that you really don’t notice until you find something to create out of them. I would also have to say that my father is a huge inspiration. He remembers so much of his past that he amazes me. He has a story to go with every photo. We are very lucky to be able to hear his stories. That is why it is so important do scrapbook all of your memories.
What craft would you like to learn next?
I would like to learn to make jewelry. I recently made my mother-in-law a memory bracelet. It was a lot of fun, but for now, I think I will stick to scrapbooking.
Where do you get your supplies?
I started buying a lot of my supplies from Michaels, AC.Moore, and Joann's Fabric. It’s great when you have coupons and sometimes you find things at discount stores, but you have to be careful, sometimes the items are not great quality.
What's your biggest challenge?
My biggest craft challenge is to stop buying so many supplies. The problem for me is that I have too many supplies and sometimes this makes it harder to get things done. You spend too much time choosing what you want to use, and in my case, it takes time to find the items you want to use.
Any advice for beginners? Less is more.
Why do you love your craft?
I love scrapbooking because you can be as simple or detailed as you want to be. There is no right way or wrong way of doing it. I also love seeing people smile when they see what you can create. I like knowing that the memories on the pages I create will be around for generations.
I started making custom designed scrapbooks for enthusiasts who like the look of scrapbooks but don’t have the time, knowledge or creativity to do it themselves. Let me take those boxes of loose photos and transform them into a beautiful memory album that will be treasured for years to come. I can create custom and pre-made scrapbooks, scrapbook layouts and mini albums. The pre-made albums are wonderful as gifts for someone who has a special occasion coming up.
To inquire about Andrea Grau's scrapbook creations, please contact her via e-mail: creating4u@optonline.net.
Want to show off your creative side? Send me an e-mail with pictures showing off your favorite craft and you might be chosen as our next DIYer of the Week!
