How to Begin Your Scrapbook

No more excuses; it's time to finally start scrapbooking and preserving those memories!

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Pictures
• A Scrapbook
• Cutting Tools
• Tape Runner
• Writing Supplies

1. Choose the theme of your album. Is it going to be a continuous book of your everyday life? A specific event? A certain topic?

2. Gather your photos. Find all the photos you are going to want in your album. If your book is going to be a continuous work, gathering all your pictures won't be as necessary as it is for a more focused album.

3. Collect all the supplies you need. The few essential items are a straight-edge cutter (this gives cleaner, smoother lines than scissors), a tape runner (strong double-sided tape), pens, and some paper. Punches, stickers, fancy cutters, and any other embellishing items are optional. Remember, you can make you scrapbook as simple or detailed as you like!

4. Lay out your pages. Divide your pictures out amongst the pages you have available. This will give you a better idea of how much free space you have to work with, and how much you may need to crop your photos. Keep in mind that one event does not have to be on only one spread. If you have 30 pictures from one day, it's okay to spread them out to the following pages also. If you do this, just keep some continuity throughout the entirety of the event, like the same paper, or same color scheme.

5. Decide where you want to begin. You don't have to start with the first page! This is a common mistake and leaves many people stuck and frustrated. Instead, start with a page you will really enjoy or have an immediate idea for. Beginning with a page you like will get the ball rolling and will make continuing onto new pages easier.

6. Find page ideas. Copying is highly encouraged in this craft, so look at idea books and magazines or your friends' albums. Don't be afraid to copy others, since your pages will be different anyway, because your pictures make the layout your own.

7. Get scrapping! Now it's time to finally stick something down into your book. Don't overthink it; don't stress about messing up or making the book look bad. A scrapbook is a reflection of you, so let your personality show through!

[roanna]

on 7/7/2009 Nice advice!