Scrapbooking

A few posts ago we gave you some scrapbooking FREEBIES but then we thought... do you even scrapbook? 

If not, you should be! Its a fun creative way to store your photo's instead of in the old dusty box or falling apart album... so here is our SCRAPBOOKING 101 for beginners:

You have decided to make a scrapbook page, that’s the first step. Learn how to create your first page with the following basic scrapbooking supplies. Create a shopping list and budget before you begin to help stay on track with the supplies you need.

Sort and Organize Photos

Organise your photos into groups of themes, such as wedding, birthday, anniversary, and so on. Keep sorting down into groups until you are happy with your final selections. This will allow you to easily choose a theme for your first page.

Choose Cardstock, Patterned Paper and Album Size

Standard scrapbooking sizes are 12″x12″ and 8 1/2″ x 11″. These are the most popular and readily available sizes for albums and papers. Cardstock is a sturdy, heavyweight paper that provides a good base page for a layout. It is available in a variety of different weights, sizes and colors. Patterned paper is generally thinner and is available in many patterns and colors to complement your layout.

Select Your Cutting Tools

You will need a way to trim down photos and paper for your projects. A good pair of scissors is a must, but if you want to have straight cuts, a paper trimmer is a good investment.

Choose an Adhesive

A glue stick is usually the most basic and inexpensive to start out with. Choose an acid free adhesive that works well with your cardstock and photos. Products include double sided tape, foam tape, and photo tabs.

Journaling and Embellishments

If you plan on handwriting your titles and captions, photo safe pens are specially created for scrapbooking projects. Look for pens that are acid-free and permanent. Embellishments are not a necessity, but they are nice to have if you want to add a few extra touches to your pages. Items include stickers, pre-made cut outs, ribbons, buttons, eyelets, and tags.

Put it all Together!

It is best to layout all photos and embellishments on your base page before you begin cutting and pasting. You can play with many different layouts and ideas on the page to see which one works best with your photos. Color plays a huge role in the overall look of your page. It is best to choose between two to four colors that will work well with your layout. Once you have decided on a final look, you can begin gluing your photos and other embellishments to the scrapbook page.

That’s it! You have created your first page.

Just remember, not EVERY SINGLE page has to be a work of art and stickers and buttons. keep every other page simple and it will make your scrap book all that much more beautiful and effective!

Happy Scrapbooking!!!