SCRAPBOOKING I have always loved to make scrapbooks ever since I was young. Putting pictures and clippings together was part of the way I 'organized' my disorder!! When I went abroad, I made a scrapbook (sometimes two!) to record my journey. My elementary and high school years are all in scrapbooks along with faded cards from friends and dried roses and imcomprehensible missives from crushes and admirers. Instead of the usual formal wedding album, I made a scrapbook out of the pictures and used floral borders cut up from magazines. My son Josh really brought out my 'creativity'!! He is nine years old and he is always pouring over his albums. Here are some tips for scrapbooking that I've found helpful: |
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 Don't strive for perfection.
Don't wait for the perfect time, the perfect
picture, the perfect font! Enjoy putting your memorabilia together in your own
unique way. |
 Skip the chronological order.
When I was younger my scrapbooks were
ordered by date. After Josh was born, I realized I wouldn't be able to do it if I
insisted on putting it together that way. |
 Recycle magazines. Before you give away or throw a magazine, look for usable
pictures. Colorful borders, a picture of a party,
an inspiring background, a cute drawing- use your
imagination and you'll be able to come up with a one-of-a-kind album. |
| Look ahead. Think about what you would like to remember 20 years from now.
Funny stories, a newspaper article, a receipt with
the prices on it, a quotation, etc. Add it to
your collage of a scrapbook. |
Choose the right scrapbook for
you or make your own!. I prefer making loose
leaves of pages and slipping them in and out of clear sheet protectors. That way I
can change the order of the pages easily. I used to make pages and then have them
bookbound afterwards but I prefer the loose pages. |
Keep your stuff together. If you have a basket or a box full of your scrapbooking
materials, there will be a bigger chance you'll work on it more often. Keep it handy
so that you won't have to hunt high and low for it.
I have a whole cabinet full of supplies! |
| If you've got a kid, let him or
her help.. As soon
as Josh was big enough to
contribute, the scrapbook changed in character. He's funny in that he's
a collector, too! His teacher told me he'll ask her not to throw something because
he'll bring it home to put in his scrapbook! |
Pick a theme. Sometimes it makes it easier if you have several small
scrapbooks. Pick a theme for each- Summer Vacation, Travels, Favorite Things, etc.
You can also pick a theme for a page to pull it together. Like I noticed that
Josh had a picture in a big red chair at different ages of his life. I put all three in one page with a nice title! |
Have fun with it and experiment!
Some of my favorite pages are those where I
stuck heads of family on pictures I cut from magazines. When Josh was still a baby I
pasted his head on the shoulders of a formally dressed guy and pasted the caption
"Chairman of the Bored". Luigi, my
husband, liked it so much, he had it photocopied and sent it to Josh'
grandma! |
Materials acid free paper in different colors, clear sheet protectors, pictures, scissors, glue, markers, rubber stamps and stamp pads, crazy scissors, magazines to cut up, stickers, ribbons, |
Links Graceful Bee, Crazy for Scrapping, Denise's Page, Memory Makers, Scrapbook Haven, Lifetime of Memories |
Samples
more to come! |
My guestbook's open, come and see, |
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