Scrappers’ Basic Toolkit: Tools You Need for Scrapbooking

Beginning scrapbookers (or scrappers) face a challenge at first. It takes creativity and good organization skills to make a top-notch scrapbook. Scrappers need experience in layout, design, and using the materials. Coming up with the appropriate scrapbook theme can be a difficult task for novice scrappers. And constructing a great scrapbook requires the right tools.

4 Scrapbooking Tools – Reasons You Need Them To Make A Scrapbook

You can start scrapbooking with a very basic set of tools, listed here, and build from there. Scrapbooking tools serve a variety of purposes, from simple preparation of your photos and keepsakes to tools to help you create interesting decorations and embellishments. Many tools will come from your desk drawer or toolchest. But you’ll want to check out your scrapbooking supply store for the items designed specifically for scrapbooking.

1. Scissors. Don’t laugh. It may seem obvious, but scissors are a basic scrapbooking tool. They help bring order to your photos and mementos, and they allow creativity while you construct form and line. You use scissors for more than cropping your photos. One part of scrapbooking is cutting paper, foam, and fabric into shapes to complement and highlight your keepsakes. Scissors are basic to the scrapper. There are two types of scissors common to scrapbooking:

- Traditional paper-cutting. Normal scissors that you use every day are useful for cutting straight lines and cropping photos. It’s important to use sharp scissors for this purpose so that your cuts will be clean and neat. You don’t want to damage your materials before you even get them in the book.

- Crafting. These scissors are available at art supply stores and shops. They come in distinctive shapes for different cut types. Curves, zig-zags, and waves are three common shapes used for cutting scrapbook paper and embellishments. They add zest to your pages.

2. Hole Punches. You can find single-hold punches to create confetti-like decorations or to make holes for attaching ribbons, yarn, or thread and tying things to your pages. As with scissors, there are two types of punch available to scrappers, and you probably need both. Conventional punches make round holes. More unconventional punches create shaped holes. Five-point punches create snowflakes, flowers, and asterisks. You can find scrapbooking punches that create daisies, stars, hearts, footprints, leaves, spirals, tiger paw prints, butterflies, other insects, and even a Mickey Mouse shape. They range in size from 1/2 inch to almost 2 inches, so you can create a variety of interesting shapes to add to your scrapbook’s appeal. You’ll probably want to get several different hole punches for this purpose.

3. Tweezers. Tweezers help handle small items and glue without making a mess or smudging your photos and pages. Easy to find and inexpensive, tweezers are a must!

4. Toolkit Choices. Scrappers use a variety of tools to add texture and excitement to their pages. You don’t need to get all of them right away, but you may want to consider some of these useful scrapbooking tools for your toolkit.
- paper trimmer – foam or rubber stamps – craft knife – eyelet setter
- ruler – glue pen – cutting mat – tag maker
- wire cutter – foam brushes – specialty glues – colored staples
- glitter pens – bone folder – craft hammer – tracing stylus
- acid-free pens – metallic sheets – embossing stylus – paper crimpers
- rotary disc cutter – sewing needles and thread – ribbon irons and crimpers – scoring tool

5. Computer. Well, it’s not exactly a tool you can run into the scrapbooking store to pick up on a moment’s notice. But a computer can be a valuable tool for scrapbooking. You can use it to research your theme and add information about specific photos and keepsakes. You can also find many great ideas, images, templates, and accessories for your scrapbook by searching scrapbooking websites. And if you really want to apply your computer skills to scrapbooking, try making a virtual scrapbook and post your creative work on the Internet. You could build your own personal scrapbook website!

Scrapbooking is a fun hobby that produces beautiful family heirlooms to pass down through generations. Investing the time and energy to create your own scrapbook allows you to memorialize an event, a person, or an important part of life. It also allows you to be as creative as you can be in assembling and coordinating materials, colors, shapes, and images into a cohesive, thematically-based whole that tells your story.

To create a great scrapbook, you’ll need these tools and more. But the tools described here will get you off to a super start! So go have fun! Start scrapping!

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