scrapbooking ideas

Scrapbooking 101: Everything You Need To Know Are you looking to start scrapbooking as your new hobby? Whether you want to tell a story, record your family tree, or simply preserve precious memories — it’s a fun way to relieve stress. If you thought about giving scrap booking a try but are completely clueless about where to get started, this article would be your guide. Even if you’re not an artist or the creative type, you can still make beautiful scrapbook pages when you follow the rules and guidelines of scrapbooking 101. Basic Scrapbooking Supplies When creating your first scrapbook page, here are some scrapbooking supplies and tools you’ll need to have on hand. 1. Scrapbook Album One of the most essential scrapbook supplies you need to secure is a memory book or a scrapbook album. Like most scrapbook supplies, you have various options for colors, designs, finishes, and sizes. Below, you’ll see some of the most popular choices: Post-Bound The pages are held together through a metal post that looks like a long screw hidden behind a flap. This kind of scrapbooking album comes with pages covered by sheet protectors. You can also add extra pages as needed or unscrew posts to move them. Ring Binder or Three-Ring Binder This is the type commonly used in school. Every page of this binder is inside page protectors, which have corresponding 3 holes. This is ideal for projects in which you aren’t sure if it’d be large or small as you can customize the number of pages to include. Journal This type of album resembles a hard-covered book. Pages are permanently bound, and you can’t add extra. Although, there are some types that let you remove pages through perforations. This is ideal for smaller projects that don’t require plenty of pages or embellishments. Picking a Size When choosing a size for your album, think about the things you want to include. Most scrapbookers love to add plenty of embellishments and photos. If this is true in your case, use a larger album, but if you’re using mainly just photos, stick to a smaller size. The standard size for most beginners is 12 x 12 inch. This size lets you use different sizes of photos and still have plenty of room for other scrapbooking ideas. If you wish to add protectors, ensure that they are Mylar, polypropylene, or polyethylene — other types can damage or fade your pages. 2. Cutting Tools You’ll be needing small and large straight-edge pairs of scissors. Other options you may want to buy include decorative scissors, shape cutters, and paper trimmers. For advanced scrapbookers, having a digital die-cut machine is quite helpful. 3. Adhesives When you visit a crafts store, you can see many types of adhesives or glues to pick from. Decide which one you’d prefer, especially when it comes to residues. Glues can be quite messy to use, so you may prefer to use adhesive tapes instead. 4. Decorative Paper To bring out your artistic side, you may need a variety of colored or patterned paper. Decorative papers come in 8.5 x 11 inches or 12 x 12 inches per sheet. This can be sold in individual sheets or packs. As much as possible, purchase only acid-free or lignin-free paper. Acid-free means they’re treated to remove acids present in wood pulp papers, while lignin-free indicates that the paper underwent a process to remove the wood pulp’s acidic part. Die Cuts These cut paper shapes come in a variety of sizes and add flair to your scrapbook. You can buy them premade or in packages. 5. Photos In today’s digital era, every special moment has to be captured in a photo. After all, it’s the best way to store and reminisce memories in the years to come. Photos are the most crucial part of your scrapbook page. Make sure that all your photos are well lit and in focus for the best results. 6. Pens If you want to add something handwritten to your scrapbooking, you’ll need pens with pigment ink. They’re colorfast, fade-resistant, and waterproof. Take some time to practice writing first to avoid making your scrapbooking page look like a draft paper. 7. Stamps Rubber stamps can add interest to your scrapbook page. Try using embossing powders with a heating tool to give a print dimension. You can also use markers to add a bit of color to your stamped photos. 8. Stickers A quick way to add an embellishment to your scrapbook is through stickers. Craft stores have sticker packages in various designs and shapes to fit whatever decorative layouts. Scrapbooking Tips Since you have all your tools and supplies ready, you can start putting your artistic mind to work. Here are tips to make sure your scrapbook turns better than you expected. Organize your ideas before you begin. You need to decide ahead what theme you’ll have for your scrapbook page.Remember that in art, less is more. Don’t go too crazy over embellishments, putting too many can destroy a fantastic design.Avoid touching photos as it can fade quickly. Your photos should have a matte rather than glossy finish to lessen the appearance of fingerprints.Writing adds a unique element to a page. Make your scrapbook more personalized by writing your thoughts and feelings. Put Your Ideas on Paper If after creating your first scrapbook page, you realize that it’s a hobby you wish to continue, find inspiration from various places. You’ll need tons of inspiration to fill up all your scrapbook pages. Now that you have an outlet for your creative mind, enjoy endless hours of fun and stress relief!