Let's face it, you aren't the only one who is into cropping or card making. It's fun to create on your own, but it's also great to share and to scrapbook or make card together. We are going to give you some fun ideas to get together and share.

Cropping Party

Formal or informal, a cropping party is a great way to get some pages done, while visiting and sharing with others. It can be as simple as planning every last Friday night as the date, and taking turns at each others homes, to planning an elaborate party. Either way, it's good to have a few things in mind. You need to have enough room for all involved to spread out and put all their things out. It's a good idea to take inventory of large specialty items different people have to share. If someone has a large paper cutter, have them bring that. How about a personal die cut system, or an adhesive machine. If people are willing, these things are fun to bring and share.

If you have quite a few of you, and there is not enough room around you dining table, here are a few ideas. You can set us a few card tables too, and spread out. You can also check out your local senior citizen building, your church, the Elks club in the area, to see if they have a meeting space you could use for a night.

A themed crop is a fun idea. How about a PJ party? You could start at 8:pm and go until 1:00. Make pj's a must, and have memories of the giggly sleep overs you used to have as a teen. It would be fun to have everyone bring a photo or two of them when they were young to scrap. Some fun touches to that evening would be popcorn, red vines, and hot chocolate. Make sure you have a separate area for the food, so you wont get your pages messy.

Another theme could be to get together after a shared vacation to scrap the pages from that. We went to Disney world with my girls dance group. We had a great vacation, and lots of fun. Why not carry over the fun and have a post vacation Disney world cropping night? It's fun to share ideas and duplicate pictures with one another. To invite everyone to this crop night, you could make a fun Minnie mouse card inviting all to join in the fun. You could have some fun Disney tunes playing for all to enjoy and get them in the mode. It would be fun if everyone made a tag to swap to add to a page. Treats for this night could be ice cream sandwiches, bowls of colorful candies, and veggies and fruit cut up.

Another fun group I belong to is a "make and take" card group. There are 12 ladies in this group, and we all take turns hosting this event at our homes. When it is your month, you have all the paper cut, and embellishments ready for the group to make two to three cute cards to take home with them. It's fun to share new techniques and fresh ideas with one another. Another fun part of this group is the card exchange. We all make 12 card to take with us on the night of the party. When you get there, you get to exchange with the others, so when you walk out, you have 11 different cards, the one you made to exchange, and the 2-3 projects you made that evening. FUN!!

There are also craft stores that hold scrapping and cropping nights. I know that we have a store in our area that you can just reserve a spot, and you can go with your stuff , spread out, and crop top your hearts content. You also have free use of their die cuts, and scissors and punches. You just have to purchase the paper. It's a great night out with friends if you reserve enough spots for all, and make the mess somewhere else!

When you invite to your crops, its fun to mix up the guest list. Invite some experiences croppers, and invite some new to the hobby. Invite some people who have different strengths, and learn from one another. Tun on some great tunes, make sure you have plenty of water and drinks on hand, and CREATE AWAY!!