Scrapbooking 101: Where do I start?

Have you always wanted to scrapbook, but don’t know where to start? Do the rows and rows of stickers, embellishments, adhesives, and albums at your local craft store make you feel completely overwhelmed? Do you have piles and piles of pictures in no semblance of order?

Don’t worry. You’re not alone.

First, buy a large plastic container then go through your house and gather all of your photos and memorabilia into one place. Look in drawers, old photo albums, shoeboxes, picture frames, closets, files, the attic—wherever you tend to stash stuff. Then purchase archival quality photo boxes for all of your photos.

Decide on the types of albums you would like to complete. Are you doing one large family album? Or, would you rather do an individual album for each child? Will you be making themed albums such as Christmas and Vacation, or will these pictures go into the family album? Make these decisions now, before you sort.

Start with the last roll of film you developed. Don’t try to tackle years of old photos yet. Get the current ones into an album first, and then work backwards. Plan an evening of sorting, or month of sorting if the need requires, and keep in mind the types of albums you want to create while you are sorting. If you have lots of pictures, divide the pictures into decades. Then you can tackle one decade at a time and divide them into years.

Start out with just a few supplies. Patterned paper and stickers are the basics. You will also need a small paper trimmer and some sort of adhesive. Try to stick with the same type of adhesive throughout your scrapbook. Mixing adhesives can possibly create an undesired chemical reaction that would damage your photos.

If you are a beginner, it’s a good idea to purchase a scrapbooking magazine to see some layout ideas and get your creative juices flowing. But, don’t let the huge variety of tools and gadgets available overwhelm you. Add one tool at a time, and before you know it, you’ll be scrapping like a pro.

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