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Looking over the threads on 2009 goals (clean up stamp rooms, cutting back on spending -- all of which are great goals), I've decided I've got to do something about my addiction to magazines!
I subscribe to CK, Simple Scrapbooks, PaperCrafts and regularly buy Card Creations and other stamp/scrap magazines I see in the store. The problem is they take up space --I cut out the ideas I like and keep in my idea book, but worse than that -- they take up so much time! I find myself leafing through the pages over and over again but not actually doing the stamping or scrapping that is supposed to be my real passion!
Therefore, I have resolved to not renew any subscriptions for 2009. At the end of the year, I'll reevaluate and pick one magazine I just couldn't live without and re-subscribe. While it may not save me a lot of money, maybe the time saved can be used for actual crafting!
Location: Somewhere in the middle...closer to there, nearer to here...
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Originally Posted by grams4eande
Surely I'm not alone in this addiction SCSers!
I don't have "that" addiction, but I have my own issue with stamps and stamping supplies...so in the spirit of sisterhood. Good for you! Hope you can keep your resolution. It's a hard road. Today I had to go to Michael's for my daughter and it was extremely challenging to not buy something, but I withstood it.
i had it for awhile buying them oh i like this idea, then put them away look thru them again and think why did i buy this... i stopped getting them i seem not to do any of htem that way or forget about the ideas that i did like..
i like thumbing thru them and try to remember lol.
Um...no...why would you think I had that addiction? Is it the 10 hours I just spent sorting through the mags in my craft room then recycling 90% of them? Or did you make that assumption based on the stack on the floor next to my bed that reaches almost to my pillow? :rolleyes: An addiction? NO! They just keep multiplying when I am not looking...I don't know how to make it stop!! And maybe I don't want too....:twisted:
I used to be addicted, and then cut back to one (simple scrapbooks) for three years so I could give the money I would have spent on the others to my church's capital stewardship campaign. I only used birthday or Christmas money to buy magazines off the news stand during that three years...so very few magazines came into my house.
The three years ended in July, but I've not subscribed to any more yet. I've just bought them on the news stand. It's been a lovely six months of indulging, but I will shortly subscribe to two more magazines (Creating Keepsakes and Papercrafts) and quit buying on the news stand at all. The church still needs the money more than I need the magazines.
I also vowed two years ago not to keep any magazines that were older than three years. I never go back through them, and passing them on to friends who will enjoy them and then pass them on or recycle them feels quite liberating.
Good luck going a whole year. I don't think I could do that.
I used to be addicted, and then cut back to one (simple scrapbooks) for three years so I could give the money I would have spent on the others to my church's capital stewardship campaign. I only used birthday or Christmas money to buy magazines off the news stand during that three years...so very few magazines came into my house.
The three years ended in July, but I've not subscribed to any more yet. I've just bought them on the news stand. It's been a lovely six months of indulging, but I will shortly subscribe to two more magazines (Creating Keepsakes and Papercrafts) and quit buying on the news stand at all. The church still needs the money more than I need the magazines.
....
Wow! Three years is a long time - it would be wonderful if I could make it all year let alone two or three years. That pile on the floor, on the bookshelf, in the bathroom(!), the basket next to the TV....what will I do with that space! Thanks everyone for the support -- I will try to be strong as long as possible.....
I don't have an addiction, but the way I handle the one subscription I have is I tear out the pages of ideas that I like. I keep them in clear plastic holders in a binder . . . then I have only the things that appeal to my taste and don't have to continue to look through the entire magazine (or save the whole magazine either). It's worked for me so far.
I used to get 3 or 4 mags, and I loved to get them. And then I'd buy all the $15 "special" issues (HOF etc...) I'd read them in the tub, take them with me to the kids' practices etc... I LOVED my mags. I stopped getting them when I realized two things, I can get all the ideas I need online and I can't afford to give up the space that they take up. I also needed to cut back on my hobby spending and I would rather buy stuff to work with than mags to look at and wish I was that talented. I only buy them when I'm going on vacation and want some fun reading for on the plane, by the pool and other places I can't devote my full attention to a book. I really don't miss them at all--which is amazing since I was such a junkie!
There are sooo many resources online where I can find inspiration for specific products, themes, and styles and that is a lot more user friendly for me.
It was hard at first, but now I don't give it a second thought. No regrets here! Go cold turkey--you always have SCS for a fix!
You have SCS for free...you don't need ANY magazines with all the talent here ;)
Now, I have an addiction to gossip and beauty mags (OK, In Touch, US, Cosmo, Glamour, etc...) but for inspiration I come here!
You're absolutely right -- there is so much inspiration here that I should have all I need. And since I'm not planning on giving up my subscription to Vanity Fair, Vogue or Newsweek, I'll still have something for a magazine "fix".
Several years ago I moved from a big city to a small town -- the hardest thing was giving up my addiction to newspapers -- in a big city I could get the NY Times, LA Times, Boston Globe, etc. In my new small town, I could only get the local paper. After a while, and thanks to the Internet, I could get all the "news" fixes I needed. I had forgotten about that until a few minutes ago, so I'm feeling more confident I CAN DO IT! Now, about those extra pounds I've been needing to lose.......
eeeek...I don't know if I could give up the mag addiction. I love seeing all the creativity and inspiration, in addition to the product! One addiction leads to another! LOL! Good luck to you!
eeeek...I don't know if I could give up the mag addiction. I love seeing all the creativity and inspiration, in addition to the product! One addiction leads to another! LOL! Good luck to you!
I tried. I really did.
But, I love print media. I love having a magazine to ogle when I'm in bed, or in the car waiting for the kids, or on a road trip for a few hours with nothing else to do (I'm not the one driving).
I've cut back on the subscriptions, but, I still buy off the rack when I need a print media fix. ;) But, I am trying to be good about hauling 'em all to the recycle center when I have a year's worth piled up . . .
__________________ Julie Ebersole (JulieHRR once upon a time . . . )julieebersole.com"So shines a good deed in a weary world." -Willy Wonka
If my addiction was just paper crafting mags, I might be okay but mine includes quilting and cooking too! I love my magazine collection and my DH encourages me to buy, so I guess it's okay.
Thankfully I don't have that addiction! Just stamps, paper, glitter, stickles, cardstock, books. . . . everything else LOL. I have actually never purchased a scrap/card mag!!
i miss "the rubber stamper", and let all my other card mags expire, but am thinking of getting *just one* so i can read it before i go to bed......other than that, i agree, there's more inspiration/knowledge at this website than i'd ever find in a magazine!
one thing to consider...instead of taking those old magazines ( of any kind, not just crafting) to the recycling bin or center, you might want to take them to a battered women's shelter.
Another magazine addict here. After filling two large bookshelves with mags, I decided it was well and truly time to cull some of them! I now only keep mags for 12 months and then tear out the pages that I want to keep and put them in a binder. This has saved so much space and the bonus is I now have more shelf space for supplies LOL.
I too have this problem....I've even bought the same issue 2x because I wasn't sure I had it. I read and reread the issues for about a month, taking notes of neat ideas or sketches...then I recycle them, so I don't really collect a pile. I have cut down on buying idea books/special issues and typically read those at the bookstore instead of buying.
I had that same addiction for many years but I slowly recovered. I stopped all my subscriptions and bought a few each month. Then I went cold turkey on all stamping magazines but kept buying scrapbook magazines. Now, two years in my "program," I buy only Scrapbooks, Etc., each month and look through a few others at the bookstore. Then I got bold and threw away two large boxes of old magazines that just took up space, in my house and in my brain. It was very liberating.
Mary Beth
Unintentionally - I have been weened of the addiction of magazines. I too have piles and piles of the mags and the items I've cut out and saved...a few years ago I found that I was just flipping through the sb mags and not finding articles I wanted to read or layouts that inspired me so I started to let my subs lapse. I did renew Simple Scrapbooks and Scrapbook ETC but probably will let them lapse as well, SS is out this month not sure of the other. I haven't purchased a stamping mag in ages. I found the gallery here much more inspirational then any of the mags.
i miss "the rubber stamper", and let all my other card mags expire, but am thinking of getting *just one* so i can read it before i go to bed......other than that, i agree, there's more inspiration/knowledge at this website than i'd ever find in a magazine!
one thing to consider...instead of taking those old magazines ( of any kind, not just crafting) to the recycling bin or center, you might want to take them to a battered women's shelter.
Great idea! As I'm thinking of cleaning up my craft space, maybe some of the unused/hoarded supplies I need to purge could also be donated for the kids, and moms, at the shelter to use. Thanks!
I honestly don't see the problem with having magazine subscriptions. If you can pay your bills then why even hold back? I see it has a healthy addiction. Life is to short and with the fifteen dollars you saved by not getting a subscription, can you save the world with that fifteen dollars? It is way cheaper than therapy to by the way.
Don't ask me because I am an enabler!
__________________ ************************************************************** Deborah "Imagination is more important than knowledge" ~ Albert Einstein
I gave up my magazine subscriptions and joined the Fan Club instead.....I get tons of inspiration here and the satisfaction of knowing I am supporting my favorite site. No recycling necessary either!
Sometimes I do give in and buy an actual magazine - but not that often. Now as someone else mentioned, if I could just give up my addiction for other types of magazines......
In the beginning, I thought no way could I give up my subscriptions to my favorite magazines, but now I go to our local library and read magazines instead of purchasing them. My hubbin ran up debt on 4 credit cards that I knew nothing about, with nothing to show for it, so I've given up subscriptions to my favorite mags and the internet. I can get online at the library for one hour only, and that's not enough time to look at my email and websites, but I do have a couple of magazines I still get from time to time > Scrap & Stamp Arts Magazine & Just Cards. The library carries Scrap & Stamp Arts, so I look at it there, if I don't get a freebie in the mail (complimentary issue for one of my cards getting published in there) *smile*.
Also, did you know that some libraries can't keep their craft & some cooking magazines, because they get stolen as soon as they are put into circulation, so if you have old craft magazines, donate them to your library. Our library has a freebie box for people to donate their old catalogs/magazines right inside the front door. Just be sure to mark out your address with a Sharpie though!
I own every issue of Creating Keepsakes, Memory Makers, Rubber Stamper (RIP), Stampler's Sampler, and MANY MANY of RubberStampMadness (in all its various sizes).
I have at least the current year for every other mag.
It gets difficult managing it, but I can't part with them. I did a huge purge a couple of years ago bc I used to have all (or most) issues of all(or most) titles.
Not to mention all the books, and CDs/DVDs from Page Sage etc....
I own every issue of Creating Keepsakes, Memory Makers, Rubber Stamper (RIP), Stampler's Sampler, and MANY MANY of RubberStampMadness (in all its various sizes).
I have at least the current year for every other mag.
L
That you've been able to keep all of those issues is impressive. If you're going to be a true collector, that's the way to go! For me, going the other way, I feel really good right now about my resolution and I'll see how it goes.
Now I'm thinking about the catalogs I've been keeping. I have several years worth of SU!, CTMH and TAC catalogs that I'm debating if I should purge. I do go back and look for inspiration from time to time. Maybe I should cut out the pages/ideas I like (I can't believe I said that!) and keep them in my ideas book with my magazine cutouts and purge the catalogs.....Am I brave enough to take that plunge?
I gave up buying craft mags a couple of years ago and haven't gone back - but then again the internet gave me a new addiction. There is plenty of free inspiration out there so I think I will just carry on as I am.
Plus - it really started to put me off when a few of the magazines started to be just advertising and not really any new ideas.
I also miss The Rubber Stamper mag I liked all the card samples and recipes from SU as I have a lot of SU products. Crafts and Things bought it and just isn't the same, I would like more cards from readers made with SU products.
Well, I just purged all my Hobby Lobby scrapbook magazines. Took them to a couple of friends who don't mind getting "old" scrapbooking magazines and told them, when you are done with them, please pass them on . . . However, I love looking at craftin' videos & DVD's. Have been buying them as I see them at the thrift stores and checked out several series of the Memory Makers DVD's from the library. I've had a Marathon this week -- watch one DVD, pick out 1 or 2 things I really liked such as a technique or design, create a small sample of it on an index card and put it into a small 4" x 6" photo sleeve album, and go on to the next DVD. I still have part of Series 6, all of 7, and 8 to go! =0)
Location: South end of the Central Valley of California
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Last week, in a fit of cleaning, I collected about 50 of my old stamping and scrapbooking magazines and took them to the local library. (The Friends of the Library group has an ongoing used books and magazines sale to raise money for newspaper subscriptions and children's programs.) They all sold in 2 days and the Friends group was thrilled. I'll be doing that again and I hope some of you will do that too!:p
__________________ Margaret
"Life is a paradise for those who love many things with a passion" Leo Buscaglia
Last week, in a fit of cleaning, I collected about 50 of my old stamping and scrapbooking magazines and took them to the local library. (The Friends of the Library group has an ongoing used books and magazines sale to raise money for newspaper subscriptions and children's programs.) They all sold in 2 days and the Friends group was thrilled. I'll be doing that again and I hope some of you will do that too!:p
What a great idea! Why don't I ever come up with this kind of inspiration??? So much better than recycling! Thanks for sharing!!!! :mrgreen:
Great idea on the library donation! It's been eight months and I'm still going strong in my resolve to end the subscriptions -- especially the ones I didn't renew but the company renewed on its own and then sent me a bill! Sometimes I do miss getting that catalog in the mail but all I have to do is get online and I can see the same thing or even greater inspiration here on SCS!
I used to buy magazines regularly. I subscribed to some of them as well.
Now, I prefer to spend that money for my stamping supplies. I didn't like most of the cards or projects they published, it was not my style.
I find much more inspiration online.
I buy any special issues that REALLY call to me. Not all of them, maybe two a year. There is a quarterly quilt magazine I MUST buy. I pay full price and buy it the first day I can. But it's only $6.99 and four times a year.
I sub to Papercrafts. Me and my bff read it, she gets it after me. She keeps them forever. I don't. (obviously as I give them to her)
Otherwise twice a year my LSS has a "garage sale" where you can sell/buy your used stuff. I'll pick any up I want for 25-50cents.
that's it for me. I'm happy with that though.
I also get Good Housekeeping, Simple and Delicious and one other cooking magazine. I won't lie, I LOVE magazines.
__________________ My BlogMy GalleryAll dog's feet smell like Fritos. I know you don't believe me, go check... See, I told you so.
My name is tracy and I am a magazine junkie. I subscribe to papercrafts which is my absolute favorite crafting magazine, family circle, better homes and gardens. I also buy all the specialty ones as well from papercrafts. I can NOT imagine not buying them. Yes, my three shelves on my bookcase could hold other products, but I can always just buy another bookcase
I love to read mags, but quit buying them several years ago. I just would rather spend my lmited funds on supplies & tools. I also found pagemaps.com, which I find much more inspiring than most mags. The forums keep me informed on what the newest things are, and where the sales are!
I love magazines, fashion, beauty and of course crafting. I used to be really bad about buying them every month. However I've recently gotten over my addiction, in fact, I haven't bought a new magazine in months. First of all, my local grocery stores have just stopped carrying most of the mags I used to buy. This makes it super easy not to be enabled to buy! I can't even find one scrapbooking magazine, much less cards or stamping in the store. And of course so many just aren't even around anymore.
But really, I can't justify the cost. They have gotten so outrageously expensive, and I almost never make a project that I see. As much as I enjoy thumbing through them, it wasn't worth it to me anymore.
I recently discovered that my local thrift store sometimes has a bunch of old scrap magazines, depending on donations. I love buying these for a dime each! And usually the style from a couple years ago, which is more where I'm at anyway!
__________________ Aimee mom to two girls & one cool dog! My blog
My stamping/scrappin magazine addiction
