Stash strategy

I have realized that most of the time when I buy new scrapbook supplies I hold on to them for a long while until it feels like the “right time” to use them. I bring them home from the store and stare at them for a while, absorbing their colors and design and envisioning using them to create a glorious layout … someday. Someday, not today. And usually not next week or next month, either.

After I let them sit out in my craft room for a time and inspire me to dream of future artistic achievements, I dutifully file them away in their proper place in my organization system. Then I turn to my stash and pull out some older (and often less expensive) paper to use on my next layout.

What am I doing? It’s as if these pieces of paper need to mature like a bottle of young wine! Why can’t I just enjoy using these brand new supplies while they’re still brand new?

I’ve been thinking about the psychology of this for a little while, and what I’ve decided is that for me it’s about perceived value. I place a higher value on new supplies because they’ve just come out so they are “on trend” and being oohed and ahhed in online discussions.  So, because they seem more valuable to me when they’re new, I feel more intimidated by using them.

Now, there are two situations in which I will pull out my newer, cooler supplies to use earlier than my usual strategy dictates. 1. When I want to enter an online contest. 2. When I plan to scrap a photo that is more special than the everyday snapshot (vintage photos, for instance). I guess the value of those scenarios is in balance with my perceived value of the supplies. Kind of crazy, right?

Or are you just like me in this regard? Do you hold on to the cool stuff, thinking that your everyday photos don’t deserve them? Do you wait for the paper you purchased in 2009 to “mature” a bit so that when you pull it out in 2010 it doesn’t feel so special and intimidating any more? I happen to think that most scrapbookers hoard product in one way or another. When do you use your supplies—right away or down the road? I would love to have you leave a comment about your stash strategy!

This is a layout I did recently where I tried to buck my own strategy. I bought these Basic Grey papers and used them on a layout right out of the Archiver’s bag. And it felt really good. So I’m raising my glass to a little less maturity in my scrap stash!