A Look Inside My European Scrapbook

Okay okay okay for the sake of transparency, I want you to know that this little beauty started out as my boredom eliminator traveling all summer. Flight delay? Tape together old receipts. Baggage claim lines? Time to get out the old pen out. You get the idea. What I’m trying to say is that I did not intentionally set out to scrapbook my travels. Straight up, I am not a scrapbook kind of girl. Not knocking any of you ladies (or gentlemen) out there that are! This notebook turned into a literal “scrap”book filled with the findings I gathered here, there and everywhere we went this past summer. And in all honesty, its existence came from the annoyances that come around when traveling… not my love for creative collaging. Either way, I’m so happy it came to be!

Since returning stateside there have been many moments that I’ve exclaimed (mostly to Luke) “ughhhhh this summer was the best,” “can we take a second and remember our lives in ______,” or “I miss _______” and the like. You know, classic traveler’s bug and nostalgia. I’m so happy that I have this book to remember all of the little tickets, coins, maps and small anecdotes from our time there. It may not be your typical, organized scrapbook… but I like it this way. Messy, askew, discombobulated is kind of my thing.

I loved collaging and writing en route to the next place because it made me actively remember the moments in time that might’ve slipped through the cracks of my memory if I hadn’t taken the time to collect them onto a page. From narrating the silly close calls we ran into, to the little notes our hosts gave us with restaurant recommendations, to the ridiculous amounts of tickets and tokens we accumulated from one city… it was such a relaxing and fulfilling activity to do every now and then. It definitely made me more appreciative of all the memories we had even when we were still in Europe. And guess what? Bringing a little notebook, a pen, some tape (doublesided, scotch or duct tape) and a plastic bag to store the little keepsakes you come across is all you need, friends.

What do you think, guys? Am a paper hoarder or do you like it? I’ll say this, I’m not even halfway through the notebook’s pages and this little guy is a THICK book filled with good times and pretty things… even if they are scraps.