Designing and scrapbooking is a fun way to capture and store memories. Scrapbooking albums are gifts and keepsakes for family members, friends, and future generations. While this innovative art form has a handful of rules and standards, it takes careful planning to produce a flowing story.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Scrapbook Design
Step 1. Select the theme and material you want
Scrapbooks showcase photos, memorabilia, and stories united by a theme. This theme can be very general, like a family photo album, or it can be very specific, like a wedding album. Deciding on a theme is important before you buy materials and/or start scrapbooking. Your theme will indicate the amount of material to include, the type of album and the color scheme to use.
- Common themes can be family, children or one particular child, pets, and extended family members.
- Specific themes can be weddings, birthdays, school years, sports season, holidays, holiday celebrations, and pregnancy/babies.
Step 2. List the stories and events to include in the album
After choosing a theme, think about the story you want to save and tell it. Take the time to write down all of these stories – write keywords, short descriptions, or complete fiction. When your list is complete, look at your scrapbook materials and determine how to structure the stories.
- Will you tell stories in chronological order or group them by subtopic?
- How many pages do you provide for each story?
Step 3. Select photos and memorabilia for the album
Before you start scrapbooking, you'll need to edit a selection of photos and other materials a few times. During this process, don't be afraid to be very selective.
- Put together a collection of photos and materials that directly relate to the theme of your scrapbook album.
- Sit at your desk with an organized list of stories, photos, and memorabilia.
- Group the material into categories according to the story you want to tell. Place photos and memorabilia in labeled folders or envelopes.
- Go through each folder or envelope and remove any memorabilia or photos that don't relate to your story.
Step 4. Choose paper, decorations, and tools for your scrapbook
After establishing the story list and grouping the images and decorations, it's time to define the color scheme. At each craft shop you subscribe to, look for scrapbooking paper and embellishments that complement the theme and story. While shopping, pick up any tools you may need to complete the scrapbook.
- For a unified look, buy scrapbook paper and embellishments such as stickers and stamps, from the same type and color group.
- Buy scrapbook paper that is acid-free, lignin-free and has been coated with calcium carbonate. Paper like this will help maintain the shelf life of the scrapbook.
- Purchase pigment pens and ink pads. Look for inks that are water-resistant and fade-resistant.
- Take a removable and pick-up adhesive. This kind of product makes it relatively easy for you to move various items around on a scrapbook page.
- Purchase a paper cutter, some scissors, and/or pieces of paper of various shapes, if needed.
Step 5. Take an album
There are various sizes of scrapbooks. Choose a size that will accommodate your theme, the number of stories you want to tell, the amount of material you want to use, and the number of embellishments you want to include.
- The most common size is 30 x 30 cm. This size is perfect for anyone looking to fit multiple pictures, memorabilia, writing, and/or embellishments on one page. This size is also very suitable for regular albums.
- Albums measuring 21 x 28 cm are suitable for scrapbookers with fewer materials and decorations. You can put one or two images per page. This size is perfect for holiday, school year, kids, or pet themed scrapbooks.
- Other sizes that are also commonly used are 20 x 20 cm, 15 x 15 cm, and 12 x 17 cm. Scrapbooks of these sizes are suitable as gifts or for very specific themes. You can include 1 image per page.
- When shopping for an album, pay attention to the type of album volume used. There are three common styles of album binding: post-bound, strap hinge, and 3-ring, or D-ring. Each binding method allows you to flip through pages, drop pages or insert additional pages.
Part 2 of 3: Creating Scrapbook Pages
Step 1. Design a scrapbook page layout
Before cutting and pasting scrapbook material on a specific page, take the time to create a few possible page layouts. In addition to creating a unified look, designing the layout in advance will save you a lot of time and prevent you from wasting materials.
- Remove a few pages from your album.
- Experiment with positioning photos, memorabilia, note-taking space, headlines, captions under photos, and embellishments.
- When you find an arrangement you like, write down the relevant dimensions (eg photo size) and take a photo of the arrangement for reference.
Step 2. Organize your page
Choose a story from your story list and then grab a file of pictures and memorabilia. Remove a page from your album and choose one of the layouts you have designed. Place pictures, memorabilia, and decorations on the page. Adjust the existing items until you are satisfied with the arrangement.
Since you haven't cut or pasted anything, you can always change an existing layout to a new page layout if needed
Step 3. Cut, frame and paste your photos and memorabilia
Once you've finished setting up your page, be sure to start tweaking your photos and memorabilia. Spend your time cutting, decorating, and pasting all the items.
- If you need to cut out a picture or piece of memorabilia, use a pencil to draw a faint cut line behind the item. Use scissors or a paper cutter to cut the item to the desired size.
- If you want to draw attention to a particular image or item, consider framing the item. Use paper, cloth, ribbon, or photo frame paper to create a border.
- After cutting out items and creating borders, use an acid-free glue to attach photos and memorabilia to the page.
Step 4. Add a title to each story, event, or page
Titles can introduce your audience to the story you're telling. The title on each page or story should be short but clear. To create a title, you can use:
- Ballpoint
- Stamp
- Decal
- Stencil
- Computers and printers
- Paper cut of various shapes
Step 5. Label your photos and memorabilia and/or notes
Without descriptions, pictures and memorabilia are meaningless. Collages of various items and pictures are turned into meaningful stories with captions under photos and notes. Provide time and page space to compose descriptive captions and in-depth notes.
- The description can be in the form of name, date, location, and a brief description.
- Notes can be anecdotes, quotes, poems, lyrics, and long descriptions of events.
- Use your story list to make it easier for you to organize captions and notes.
- Before adding captions or notes on a page, plan what you're going to write about. Correct your writing and correct any writing errors.
- You can also handwrite your captions and notes, or print and paste them on the page.
Step 6. Decorate the page
After pasting the various main materials on the scrapbook page, you can decorate it with decorations. Many embellishments are used to add luxury, dimension, texture, and/or attention to your scrapbook pages. These decorative elements are optional and should be used sparingly. Types of decoration include:
- Decal
- Stamp
- Ribbon and cloth
- Scrapbook paper
- Paper cut of various shapes
Part 3 of 3: Assembling and Saving Scrapbooks
Step 1. Insert each page into a page guard
In order to protect your photos and memorabilia, it is very important to protect each page of the album. Basically, a page guard is a plastic sheet. These plastics are sold in various types and models of binding. Once your pages are complete and dry, protect them from dust, dirt and fingerprints by placing them in a plastic page protector.
- Purchase a page protector that fits the size and type of binding of your album.
- You can choose a page guard that can be filled from the top or the side.
- You can choose a layer that is opaque or transparent.
Step 2. Add protected pages to your album
Put all the scrapbook pages you've finished creating into an album. As you complete more pages, you can rearrange the story according to the album's storyline. This lets you fix stories that are out of place.
Step 3. Store your scrapbook in a dry place
To protect your scrapbook, think carefully about where and how to store the album. The ideal storage area is a cool, dry, clean, and unchanging place. Place the album in a flat storage box.
Do not store albums near heaters and vents or areas of the house that are prone to leaks
Tips
- When using a sonogram for a baby-themed page, photocopy the sonogram as the color will fade over time. However, do not copy it too often, as the heat of the copier accelerates the color fading.
- If you're scrapbooking about school, include photos of your friends, the current school year, and pictures of the school.
- If you want your scrapbook to last a few years longer, use non-acidic materials, as acids damage pages and photos.
- If you're creating a baby-themed scrapbook, consider adding a photocopy of a sonogram, a hospital bracelet, or a lock of hair.
- If you're scrapbooking a wedding, try using material from a bridesmaid/bride/guest's dress or suit, adding flowers from a dried bouquet, combining all your options on one page.
- If you're scrapbooking a birthday, you can add a sheet of wrapping paper, leftover balloons that have exploded, decorations from the birthday party, party paper sprinkles, and a guest list.
