15 Ways to find time to Scrapbook and Create
Do you ever find yourself saying, “I’d love to scrapbook,
but I just don’t have the time”?
You’re definitely not alone.
Finding time to create is one of the biggest challenges many scrapbookers and crafters face. Life is busy. There’s work, family, appointments, housework, shopping, cooking and all the everyday things that somehow seem to fill every spare moment.
Before you know it, another week has disappeared and the craft supplies are still sitting exactly where you left them.
The frustrating part is that creativity is often something we want to make time for. We know how good it feels to sit down, play with paper, tell our stories and switch off from everything else for a while.
But somehow crafting keeps being pushed further down the list.
Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love and Big Magic, has spoken about treating your creative life a little like a love affair — finding those small pockets of time because spending time with something you love matters.
And I think there’s something lovely about that idea.
You don't necessarily need an entire free weekend to be creative. Sometimes twenty minutes with your photos, papers and favourite supplies is enough to reconnect with that part of yourself.
Scrapbooking Takes Time
We also need to acknowledge something: scrapbooking isn't always a quick hobby!
There are photos to choose and print, papers to match, embellishments to find, journalling to write, layouts to plan and supplies to organise.
And, of course, there might be just a little craft shopping involved along the way.
Sometimes half the battle is simply getting everything ready before we can even begin creating.
So rather than waiting for the magical day when we suddenly have hours of uninterrupted spare time, it can be much easier to build creativity into the life we already have.
You don't have to use every idea below. Choose one or two that feel achievable and start there.
Small changes really can add up.
15 Ways to Find More Time to Create
1. Schedule Your Creative Time
If crafting matters to you, put it in your calendar.
It doesn't have to be an entire day. Perhaps Tuesday evening becomes your craft night, Saturday morning is your scrapbook time, or you set aside an hour on Sunday afternoon.
Treat that time in the same way you would any other appointment.
When creative time is simply something you'll do if you get a chance, it is very easy for something else to take its place.
Put it on the calendar and give yourself permission to keep the appointment.
2. Stop Waiting Until Everything Else Is Finished
This can be a big one.
Do you tell yourself you'll scrapbook once the washing is folded, the kitchen is spotless, the emails are answered and every other job is finished?
The problem is, there will always be another job.
Your creative time doesn't have to be something you earn by completing everything else first.
Sometimes the washing can wait while you spend an hour doing something that makes you happy.
3. Look at Where Your Spare Time Is Going
You don't necessarily need to give up Netflix, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube completely.
But it can be interesting to notice how much time quietly disappears into them.
One episode becomes three. A quick scroll becomes forty minutes. You jump onto YouTube looking for one scrapbook technique and suddenly you're watching your seventeenth craft-room tour.
We've all been there!
Try swapping one evening of screen time for an evening of creating.
You can still enjoy all those things — just make sure inspiration isn't taking up all the time you wanted to spend actually creating.
4. Commit to a Class, Crop or Creative Day
Sometimes we are much better at keeping appointments with other people than appointments with ourselves.
Booking a scrapbook class, crop day, retreat or creative day gives you dedicated time to work on your projects.
You'll also learn new techniques, see what other people are making and spend time with people who understand why owning seventeen shades of teal cardstock is completely reasonable.
Creative company can be wonderfully motivating.
5. Join a Challenge
A small creative challenge can be just the nudge you need.
Try a scrapbook sketch, colour challenge, stash challenge or weekly craft prompt.
The important thing is not to turn it into another obligation. Use challenges as inspiration rather than something you have to complete.
Sometimes having a simple starting point removes that dreaded question:
“What am I going to make?”
And that means you can get creating much faster.
6. Craft With a Friend
There is nothing quite like crafting with friends.
Invite someone over for an afternoon, organise a monthly crop date or meet at your local creative event.
Share supplies, swap ideas, have a cuppa — or a wine — and catch up while you create.
Setting a date with friends also makes you much less likely to cancel your creative time.
And don't forget to take a few photos while you're together.
Today's craft day could become tomorrow's scrapbook page!
7. Give Yourself a Project Goal
Having a project in mind can make it much easier to sit down and start.
Maybe you want to:
finish your holiday album
create a scrapbook for a grandchild
document a special birthday
make ten Christmas cards
finish an old mini album
complete one layout each week
finally scrapbook those photos you've had printed for years
Your goal doesn't need to be huge.
In fact, smaller goals are often much more motivating because you can actually see yourself making progress.
Instead of saying, “I need to finish my family albums,” try:
“This month I'm going to finish four layouts from our holiday.”
That feels much more achievable.
8. Make Everyday Jobs Work Smarter
Sometimes creating more time really does mean finding ways to save time elsewhere.
Meal planning, batch cooking and freezer meals can make busy evenings much easier.
Online grocery shopping can save a trip to the supermarket.
And there is nothing wrong with sharing household jobs with other members of the family.
If your budget allows, outsourcing the occasional job can also give you back valuable time.
You don't need to do absolutely everything yourself before you're allowed to sit down and create.
9. Organise Your Craft Space
You finally have an hour to scrapbook.
You sit down.
Where is the tape runner?
Where did you put the photos?
You know you bought that perfect sticker sheet.
Twenty minutes later you're surrounded by half-opened drawers wondering what you were looking for in the first place.
Sound familiar?
A reasonably organised craft space can make short creative sessions much easier.
You don't need a Pinterest-perfect craft room.
You simply need to know where your most-used supplies live.
Keep basics such as adhesive, scissors, journalling pens, trimmers and favourite tools within easy reach.
And yes, organising your craft supplies can occasionally reveal that you already own three of something you were about to buy.
Although technically, craft shopping is a hobby of its own.
10. Change Your Routine
Sometimes there is time available — it just isn't where we expect it to be.
Perhaps mornings work better for you than evenings.
Maybe Sunday afternoon is quieter than Saturday.
You might even find that half an hour after dinner works better than waiting for an entire free day.
Experiment with different times until you find your natural creative window.
Once you've found it, try to make it part of your regular routine.
11. Use the Little Pockets of Time
Not every part of scrapbooking has to happen at the craft table.
There are lots of little jobs you can do in ten or fifteen minutes.
You could:
choose photos for your next layout
edit photos on your phone
send photos for printing
write some journalling
choose a scrapbook sketch
make a list of page ideas
select a colour palette
sort embellishments for a project
fussy cut a few pieces
browse your own supplies for inspiration
Then when you do have proper creative time, you're ready to start.
2. Keep a Project Ready to Go
This is one of the easiest ways to make short crafting sessions work.
Keep one project in a tray, basket, project bag or 12 × 12 storage envelope with everything you need.
Add your photos, patterned papers, cardstock, embellishments and any notes or sketches.
When you get half an hour to create, you don't need to spend twenty minutes deciding what to work on.
Just grab your project and begin.
13. Separate the Preparation From the Creating
Sometimes we think we need three uninterrupted hours because we're mentally combining every part of the process into one session.
But you don't.
You might spend fifteen minutes today choosing photos.
Tomorrow you print them.
Another day you choose papers.
Then, when you sit down to scrapbook, most of the decisions have already been made.
Breaking projects into smaller stages makes them much easier to fit into everyday life.
14. Lower the Bar
Not every creative session needs to produce a masterpiece.
You don't have to finish a complete layout every time you sit down.
You might simply create the background.
Or add the photos.
Or make an embellishment cluster.
Or write the journalling.
Progress counts.
One of the biggest barriers to creating can be the feeling that we need enough time to make something wonderful from beginning to end.
Give yourself permission to just play.
15. Make It Easy to Begin Again
Try finishing each creative session by leaving yourself an easy starting point for next time.
Before you pack up, make a little note:
Next: add title and journalling.
Or leave the embellishments you're considering beside the layout.
That tiny reminder means you won't spend the first fifteen minutes of your next session trying to remember what on earth you were doing.
Your Creative Time Matters
Making time to create isn't really about squeezing one more job into an already busy day.
It's about recognising that creativity has value too.
Scrapbooking gives us time to slow down, play, tell our stories, preserve memories and connect with other people who love creating.
And sometimes we need to give ourselves permission to make room for that.
You don't need to completely reorganise your life.
Pick one small idea from this list and try it this week.
Maybe you'll schedule an hour in your calendar.
Perhaps you'll prepare a project basket.
Maybe you'll skip an evening of scrolling and head into your craft room instead.
Twenty minutes is better than waiting three months for the perfect free weekend.
Start small.
Pull out some paper.
Choose a photo.
Make a mess.
And most importantly, enjoy your creative time.
Because those stories aren't going to scrapbook themselves. 💕
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