Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Do you speak Scrapanese?

Yesterday, I was at my LSS because I was out of CS and PP, and wanted to stock up. Well the new lines of CBX and BG and KI were in, and I just had to have them. I had some pictures at home, and matched with that new BG, it would be the perfect LO. But maybe I should wait. The new lines that they previewed at CHA, were adorable. Decisions. Maybe if I get the new issue of CK, I can get some even better ideas. Oh, but the colours are so perfect, and I have these really cute MM brads that would look great. Should I get the whole line, and the matching ribbon, and CS stickers? I probably won't use them all. But they're so pretty. I can always RAK what I don't use. or I could start a SWAP and get some goodies in return. Oh I'll just buy it. Besides, can you ever have too much when it comes to SBing? I think not.

Are you perplexed? baffled? mystified? bewildered? puzzeled? confused?
Are you making plans in your head for a bomb shelter, convinced that this is some kind of secret government code and your new home of Planet Scrap is being invaded? Well relax. This is just the lingo of a scrapper. The online lingo that is. Have you ever looked over somebody's shoudler and read their post in a Scrapbook, online, forum? The above little dialogue is likely similar to what you saw. And you were probably just as confused then. Well, we can't have the residents of Planet Scrap confused. So I am here to clear things up for you. The following is a list that will explain it all. no longer do you need to sit there all befuddled, with a pasta strainer on your head, and a baseball bat in your hand, waiting for the invasion. I will let the secret out and let you in on a little language I like to call Scrapanese.

The Following was taken from Two Peas in a Bucket. A fantastic site for Scrapbookers. However I did do some of my own editing. (and I'm sure there are some missing)
http://twopeasinabucket.kaboose.com/peadictionary.asp


AAM All About Me --usually an album created about ones self. --a type of page that is not included enough in our albums!
AF/LF acid-free/lignin free
AFK Away from keyboard
APC Altered Playing Card - decorated but still showing the original number and suit.
ATC Artist's Trading Card - 2.5" x 3.5" cards decorated and traded with other artists.
avatar an icon or representation of a user in a shared virtual reality.
B&M Brick and Mortar Store. As opposed to an online store.
BBL Be Back Later
BBS Be Back Soon
bf best friend
BF Boyfriend
BG Basic Grey a brand of paper, embelishments, etc.
BHG The magazine is Better Homes & Gardens
BIL Brother in law
BRB Be Right Back
BTDT Been There, Done That
BTT Back to the top...When you want to bring a message back to the top of the board for more people to see the topic and respond.
BTW by the way
CBX Chatterbox a brand of paper and embelishments
CG Computer generated
CHA Craft & Hobby Association
CJ Circle Journal
CK Creating Keepsakes
CKU Creating Keepsakes University A traveling scrapbook workshop put on by Creating Keepsakes magazine.
Crop to be with other who enjoy scrapbooking; the act of scrapbooking.
CS cardstock
CTMH Close to my Heart- a stamp and scrapbooking company
D/L download
DB DearBrother
dbil Dear Brother In Law
Dboyf Dear Boyfriend
DD Dear Daughter
DF Darling Fiance
DGS Darling/Dear Grandson
DH Dear Husband
DS Dear Son
DSD DearStepdaughter
dsil Dear Sister In Law
DSO Dear significant other
DSS DearStepson
DT Design Team
DW Dear Wife
ETA Edited to add (you thought it was Estimated Time of arrival didn't you...Scrapanese people)
FIL Father-in-law
Fonts lettering
GC gift certificate
GF Girlfriend
GJ Good Job
GL Good Luck!
H Husband
HIA Hobby Industry Association
HOF Hall of Fame contestant/contest by Creating Keepsakes
HOTP Hot Off the Press, a paper and embellishment company.
HSB heritage scrapbook
HTH Hope that helps
IMO In my opinion. (also IMHO In my Humble Opinion OR Honest Opinion)
ISO In search of
ITA I totally agree.
JK Just kidding!
JM2C Just my two cents
JMO Just my opinion
jsyk just so you know
KI short for KI Memories which is yet another brand.
KWIM Know What I Mean?
LMK let me know
LO Layout
LOL Laughing out loud
LSS Local Scrapbook Store
M's Michaels craft store.
MB Message Board
MIL Mother-in-law
MM Making Memories. Yup you guessed it, a Brand
NSBR Non scrapbook related
OH Other Half
OMG Oh my goodness!
OP Original Poster
OTOH On the other hand
PC Provo Craft another brand (no it's not politically correct)
PIF Pay it Forward. A scrapper puts an item up for grabs that she doesn't need. Another scrapper offers to take it and as an act of good faith she in turn puts up something of her own to give away, and then it continues from there. There is also BPIF which is a backwards PIF. This is where a scrapper asks for a specific item. another scrapper offers up that item, and then she asks for something for herself.
plmk please let me know
POV Point Of View
PP Patterned Paper
PP Paper piecing
PSA Public Service Announcement.
QK QuicKutz, a die cutting tool
QVC Quality. Value. Convenience. A shopping channel.
R.A.K. Random Act of Kindness In the scrapbooking world, this is where one scrapbooker does something nice and unexpected for another scrapbooker. For example, sending a Two Peas Gift certificate or giving a bunch of supplies. Makes the recipient feel all warm and tingly!
ROFL Rolling on floor laughing
S/O Spin Off
SAHM Stay a home mom
SB scrapbook
SBR Scrapbook related
scraplift copying a layout that catches your eye.
SS Simple Scrapbooks - A monthly and/or bi-monthly scrapbook magazine
SU Stampin' Up - a direct sales comany that has stamps, ink pads and papers and some scrapbooking
SWAP - This involves a group of people where each person is assigned to a specific item. If it's a group of 8 people then you need to get 8 8 of your specific item, and you swap this item with the 7 other people, so that everyone gets a collection with a varriety of goodies.
TFL Thanks for looking
TFS Thanks for sharing
Thread Killer the last person to post to a thread
Threads A string of posts that ar tied together with a common theme
TIA Thanks in advance
TMI Too much information!
TOU Terms of Use--usually posted on a thread on the message boards when someone thinks a post violates the terms of use of the boards
Troll A person participating in the site with the purpose of causing irritation or disruption
TTC Trying to Conceive
TYVM Abbreviation for thank-you very much.
U/L Upload
vellum A kind of tracing paper which tones down the color of te object behind it. Usually plain but can also be colored and patterned.
WTG Way to Go! (Meaning Good Job!)

Welcome to the Planet

So I know what you're thinking. What is the deal with this scrapbooking craze? What's wrong with slapping pictures in a photo album and calling it a day? What's wrong with just leaving them on the CD, why bother printing them at all? What the heck is CC, LO, LSS, PP? What's a crop and why does it take a U-Haul to go to one? And how in the world did I get roped into this world? I didn't ask for this. WTF is going on?
Oh so many Questions. I'm hoping that this Blog will help give some of you an answer. You've unexpectedly been sent to live on this scrapbooking planet. Whether, it's your wife, or daughter, or sister, or mother, or whoever, if someone in your family or circle of friends is involved in scrapbooking then you, my friend, are involved! Oh yes you are! It may be in a big way, or it may be in a very small way, but you're involved whether you like it or not. So you better deal with that little fact right quick.
Now when I say you know someone involved, I don't mean they have a few books with little corners on their pictures and descriptions underneath. Oh no! I mean this individual has a camera permanently attached to their person, they have entire rooms of their houses dedicated to this hobby. There are signs of this hobby scattered throughout their house. They have an entire group of online friends and talk to them all day about nothing but scrapbooking. They get excited over new lines of paper, now tools, and magazines. They go to weekend retreats dedicated to everything scrapbooking. I mean INVOLVED!
So what is the deal with this hobby? OK in all honesty I can't tell you that. It's like asking a normal person the meaning of life. Ask a scrapper (who is not a normal person..I know cause I am one), why they scrap and you'll get answer like "to preserve memories for my children." Well yes you can do that with a basic photo album, but that doesn't tell a story. Why we scrappers become so obsessed and sucked into this hobby is beyond me. When I first started out, I swore I would never paid $1 for piece of paper. Now I get excited when it's onsale for $0.89. There is just something about the colours, and the products, and the tools that makes a normal bargain shopper like myself go crazy and spend $80 on some paper and a few stickers even though the check engine light remains on in my car. A reasonable person would fix this. But to me, well, if I break down on the highway I'll have my camera, take some pictures and scrap about the experience later. I'm just hoping to help you see this new world through the eyes of a scrapper, beyond the basic question of why we do it. So get over that question and move on. My answer, personally, is that it's a fulfilling hobby, it's something to keep me busy. I love photos, I love taking photos and I like to tell a story with those photos and I think that's better then just shoving them in an album. It's just something I like to do.
So will I be answering all these questions today? NO. where's the fun in that? If you are living on the scrap planet (no one just visits, you're stuck here), you're going to be here for a very long time, so I may as well drag this out! I will post something else today, but as for the rest. Stay tuned and enjoy your stay on Planet Scrap!