Tips for Scrapbooking Beginners - Where to Start

by: Paula McDonald

Taking Pictures
The first thing a potential scrapbooker should know is how to take a good picture, as the vast majority of scrapbooks are centered around our photographs. Visit our photography page for specific tips on taking pictures.

Photo Storage
I have found that the system that works best for me is to store my not-so-great pictures in those inexpensive photo storage boxes (in chronological order). All of my other pictures go into regular photo albums immediately after being developed so I can keep them in order. Then, as I update my scrapbook, I simply flip through the album and decide which pictures are scrapbook worthy. Since using a digital camera, I sometimes order extras that I know will be used in my scrapbook so that another copy can stay in the regular album.

Scrapbook Design
After gathering and organizing your pictures, the next step is to decide what theme you want for your scrapbook. You could create one for a child's life, a wedding, vacations, family, or any specific theme that ties your pictures together. Personally, I have a scrapbook for the 1st year of life for each of my two daughters, and continue to add pages to additional scrapbooks to capture memories as they happen chronologically.

Photo Selection
Once you have decided on a theme for your scrapbook, select several pictures to be grouped on each page. The most popular size scrapbook is 12x12, which usually holds about 3 pictures plus journaling, though this is extremely flexible. Sometimes, a special picture might be placed alone on a page with more embellishments, or many cropped (trimmed) pictures can be squeezed on. There are no rules!

Cropping Photos
Most scrapbookers like to crop their pictures. Cropping is cutting out any distracting or unnecessary background to focus on your subject. This is best done using a personal paper trimmer, which makes a quick, clean, level cut.

Choosing Paper
After cropping your pictures, the next step is usually deciding on background paper and mat paper for your page. (I say usually because, again, there are not rules. You may decide not to use a mat for your photo, or use several or no papers for your background.) The background paper can be chosen by theme (for example, holly paper for a Christmas layout) or you can select papers that complement the colors of your photos. For example, if your child is wearing a purple hat and you want to emphasize it, mat your photos on matching purple paper (and find a background paper to complement).
Journaling

Descriptive text added to expand on the layout is called a journal block. This can be handwritten or done on the computer, and adds a personal touch besides complementing the photos to present a complete collection of memories for the layout. When journaling, focus on answering the "who-what-when-where-why" questions of your photos.
Embellishment

Embellishments such as die-cuts (cardstock cut into various shapes), stickers, eyelets, fibers, glitter, etc. can be added to really give your layout some "punch". Let your creative juices flow!
You can find many the scrapbooking items you'll need at http://www.bayoupizzazz.com/catalog/index.php.

About The Author
Paula McDonald is an avid scrapbooker, a stay-at-home-mom, and owner of Bayou Pizzazz Scrapbook Supply. Her online scrapbooking store can be found at http://www.bayoupizzazz.com/catalog/index.php.

10 Themes for Scrapbooking

by: Jacqueline M. Schimmel

There are so many reasons out there to scrapbook! For one, it’s history, right? And it’s important for us to remember and cherish these memories, especially for our generations to follow. I would have been so thrilled had my mother saved stories to go along with all her photos. She still keeps my baby photos and photos of her and her family in shoeboxes. Awful thought isn’t it?

Well, we all have those tons of photos of our ancestors, at least most of us do, but there are so many other memories to cherish besides family trees. How about a baby’s first year? You can document month-by-month how your baby is growing and all the things he or she is learning. This makes a great present come wedding time.

Apropo wedding, of course you’ll want to save your precious wedding memories. Not only the professional photos, but also those of the reception, the church, maybe even your engagement party. There are subthemes such as the ring, the dress, the bride, the groom, the kiss, etc. There are entire lists!

What about your vacations! You don’t want to just slap these photos in a regular album! That would be a waste! You’ll want to share your story about where you went, what you saw and did, right? Names, places, dates are all very important for scrapbooking. That is the reason we scrapbook, to tell our story! The same goes for holidays, such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, etc.

Do you have any pets? There are so many cute ideas and embellishments for pet pages out there. It is incredible! I’ve scrapped my big red tabby cat Pooky and made really adorable memory pages. To some people, pets are like children!

Ever remodeled an old house and have shot before and after pictures? Now, there’s a super scrapping idea. You can journal in all of the work you’ve done to restore the house, how long it took, and any blunders that occurred along the way!

Scrap your feelings about something. There doesn’t even have to be a picture on the page, just use your imagination and create a nice layout using just your words and emotions. It’s kind of like writing in your diary, except it might be something you’ll want to show someone else. So keep it clean! What about your hobbies? I’ve made scrapbook pages about scrapbooking!
Just a few more to get you going: graduation/school years and your job (in case it’s worth scrapping). Have FUN scrapping!!!

About The Author
Jacqueline Schimmel is a Professional Scrapbook Designer and the name of her business is Memories Artwork located at http://www.memoriesartwork.com. All information stated is copyright of Memories Artwork.