Does Anyone Know How I Should Start Scrapbooking?
I have never done any scrapbooking and need some tips. Please help
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To start there are a few supplies you’ll need….
a scrapbook – there are several kinds out on the market but it seems that the most popular kind are the drop in page kinds (more explanation later); they come in several sizes – 6X6, 8X8, 8 1/2 X 11, and 12 X 12. Personally I prefer the 12 X 12 because you can put several photos on one 12 X 12 page.
card stock – this is what you will use to create your pages. You will want to select card stock that is quality and lignin and acid free. You want the hard work you put into your albums to last for years to come. If you use inferior card stock it could ruin your photos rather than protect them.
A note here about card stock…it’s best to select card stock and decorative paper from one particular line of products because doing so will ensure quality of product across the board and the colors will coordinate better.
Speaking of color – here’s another tip – choose only 3-4 coordinating colors to use in your scrapbook in addition to white or vanilla. It will create a cohesive look through the whole book which will make it look very put together.
a cutter – I recommend one with a 12″ cutting capability. No matter what size album you choose there are a lot of pretty decorative papers on the market that only come in 12X12 size. You must have a cutter this size to be able to cut the paper smaller. A lot of solid color card stocks also come in this size so you will need to cut that too sometimes.
adhesive – again make sure you choose a quality product that is safe for photos. You will also want to make sure that you can purchase refills for your adhesive. This is probably the one item you will end up spending the most money on over time. Personally I prefer the Dotto repositionable adhesive. Refills are easy to find and about the same price at most places and should you ever decide to remove a photo you can easily do so with this adhesive. It is made for use in scrapbooks.
A pen for journaling the stories you have to tell in your scrapbook. Again make sure it is safe and will last. Don’t use a regular ball point pen. They are not safe for protecting your photos and never write on the back of your photos with one as the ink has been known to leach through to the front of the photo ruining the picture.
I want to say here that journaling and writing your stories with in your own handwriting is really important. Your family will treasure the time you took to write the titles and information. On some pages you’ll want to put a title but not every page needs one.
Another thing to remember is that you don’t need to scrapbook every photo. Choose anywhere from one to 6 per event or milestone. Don’t be afraid to crop them to get rid of distractions and to emphasize the focal point of the photo.
Scissors – you’ll need scissors for doing longer cuts and well as a pair for doing some detailed cutting.
Okay from there you can add all kinds of things – ribbon, eyelets, stickers, rubber stamps & ink, buttons, rub-ons, brads, flowers made for putting in scrapbooks, die cuts, punched shapes, etc.
There is one simple rule to remember – the photos are what should stand out on the page not the decorations around them.
To help achieve that goal of making the photos the focal point of the page you will want to matte them. All this means is putting a piece of card stock behind the photo that is from 1/4″ to 1/2″ larger around than your photo. Then put your photo on the page. Sometimes you might want to double matte the photo but only sometimes.
For all kinds of ideas and where to go from these basics there are some places you have access to…
Split Coast Stampers is a web site full of ideas for scrapbookers and rubber stampers.
They have 3 scrapbook challenges each week which have no deadline but is a source of ideas. They also have a gallery of finished scrapbook pages.
To see the page ideas go to Forums (top right of page) scroll down to Challenges and then click on the sub heading of scrapbooking.
To see completed pages other people have done go to the Gallery (top right of page) and scroll down to scrapbooking. Click and there you go lots of different ideas.
The web site also had ideas and instructions for making your own scrapbooks. To find them there are a couple of places to go to – Resources (top right of page) Then scroll down the list. Some of the items listed are instructions for different techniques but there are plenty of project ideas there too with tutorials.
The other place to go to on the web site is the Gallery then scroll down to Anything but a Card. Click. Then scroll down to Handmade albums, etc. There you go more ideas for making your own scrapbooks.
Another resource for page ideas and such is your local library. There are a lot of books out there about scrapbooking. There are also several magazines about scrapbooking too so wander over to the magazine section to see if your library has any of those for you
Scrapbooking is a lot of fun, and you can spend as much or as little as you like!
How about making a paper bag album? Here’s how:http://www.papercraftcentral.com/paper-b…
Unless you want your album to last for the rest of your life, you don’t need to use archival quality scrapping supplies. You can use things like drink coasters and punch a hole in them, then thread through a metal ring to hold them together and make an album.
Try looking around the house for things you can recycle and go with your pictures – wrapping paper, old cards, memorabilia like concert tickets etc and you can put these in your album to decorate it.
My website has some ideas on it that you might like to try. What about doing a Circle Journal with your friends, for example:http://www.papercraftcentral.com/circle-…
Have fun and remember you are making a scrapbook that will please YOU. Just let go and enjoy it!
I would start by picking a theme. The first one I did was of a trip I took. Then go from there. I find you don’t need to by expensive items at craft stores – the dollar store has some wonderful items.
you should buy a fairly big picture slot book and make it very colorful with pictures and label the pictures