Are you wondering what scrapbooking is?
Scrapbooking is a hobby that involves making something more out of your albums than just pasting pictures. Make something that your family and relatives will enjoy for many generations to come!
Basic materials for scrapbooking
Album
Glue
Paper
Scissors
Pen
Optional accessories
Various cutting and cutting tools
Punches – they are used to print different paper figures.
Ready-cut paper figures (die-cuts)
Stickers
Self-adhesive plastic pockets - used to protect and display different mementos (eg baby's first lock of hair)
Tags, paper piecings, shaker boxes, paper dolls
Other decorations - here you can use eyelets, split ties, buttons, beads, yarn/thread, ribbons, etc.
Pens and markers
Idea books and magazines
Before you begin
The first thing you should think about is what kind of page you want to create. Baby page, family page, Christmas page, travel page, company page - Everything is possible!
If it is the first time you are going to create a page, it may be a good idea to make a sketch of how your page should look. Then it is easier to know how many images you will use, how big they should be, how much text you want, etc.
There are many ready-made scrapbooking sketches you can use, if you have difficulty coming up with your own. Soon you will be able to sign up to my new member portal, where a new sketch will appear every month.
Materials
When you are going to make an album, it is important to think about what kind of materials you should use. It is important to look for acid-free paper and cardboard, because paper with acid will eventually turn yellow. Newsprint has acid in it, and you know how yellow it turns after a while. This is also the case with stickers and other things you want to use in your album. The acid can destroy your photos. Fortunately, it is now the case that more and more products are acid-free, and thus safe to use in an album. Almost all products specially made for scrapbooking are acid-free. Most are also lignin-free, which means that the paper or cardboard will not become brittle or brittle.
The pictures
When choosing images, it is important to think about what it is you want to tell. Select the pictures that best tell the story, or that best describe the event. To focus on the important things in the images, you should crop the images.
You can use pattern scissors or plastic templates to draw a pattern, or you can use something you have in the house, for example, different glasses for round pictures. Eventually, you may acquire more equipment, such as various cutting and cutting systems. When you don't want to cut anything in particular to the images, but still want to do something with the images, you can e.g. round the corners.
After you have cut out the pictures, you should think about whether you want to paste them on another paper before you paste them on the page. If you are going to use a paper with a lot of pattern, this is a good idea, because it makes it easier to separate the image from the background. If, on the other hand, you use a plain colored paper as a background, this is not necessary. But if you still want to highlight a picture better, you can glue it on a paper that has the same color as the main color in the picture. This means that this image becomes the main focus on your page. The same happens if you use a paper with a strong contrast to your image.
The text
The most important thing in a scrapbook is the text. This is what makes the album so special. It doesn't matter how great the album is; without the text it will just be a pretty photo album.
The easiest way is to describe who, what, where and when to a photo, but if you want to make the album even more special, turn the text into a little story. That is what makes your album something out of the ordinary.
There are plenty of text types to use. If you don't want to write yourself, you can e.g. write what you want on the data, print it, and use in your album. This is also a good idea if you have a lot of text, but little space on your page. Today there are a number of great fonts to choose from, both in Microsoft Word and fonts you can download from the internet.
Put everything in place
When you have the pictures ready, and you have thought out what you are going to write, or have written the text on a separate piece of paper, then you are ready to glue everything down on the page.
To begin with, it is important that you do not glue anything until you are completely finished! Then you have no possibility to change the page if you are not satisfied. So rather wait with the gluing until you have everything ready. As you get the hang of it and know what you like, you can glue as you go.
You can use regular glue, but I recommend you use a special photo glue. It is acid-free and will not destroy your photos. There are both photo tape, photofix (small, double-sided pieces of tape) and photo corners that do not contain acid. They are easy to use, they protect your photos and you avoid getting sticky on your hands, which you often get with ordinary glue. There is nothing as bad as getting glue on the pictures! There are also special glues for use in scrapbooking that are acid-free. A very good alternative to the glue stick are glue pens. They are easy to use and you avoid getting sticky on your hands, which is often the case with ordinary hobby glue.
Decoration on the side
Now that you have put the pictures in place and written what you need to, the time has come to decorate the page. You can use stickers, paper dolls, buttons, eyelets, stamps and plastic pockets with e.g. baby hair, tickets, money or other things. Here, the only limit is your imagination!
Do what YOU want to do, because it is you who should first and foremost enjoy what you create. Look for things that will highlight the theme you have chosen for your page.
Finally
I would recommend that you put your pages in plastic pockets, if you are not using an album specially made for scrapbooking. This will protect your pages against e.g. dust and sticky little children's fingers. Now I hope you will enjoy this hobby as much as I have. Good luck, and have fun!
