Scrapbooking for beginners

Scrapbooking is very easy to do. Anyone can participate in this fun and enjoyable craft. Even young children can get satisfaction out of creating an item. The basic materials are few, which include paper, adhesive and scissors. From there the sky is the limit. As with anything, you can use more materials. Stickers, stamps, paper punches, for example can embellish the work and make it stand out.

When I first started scrapbooking, I was disappointed because my pages didn't look as good as others. I am so glad that I didn't give up. While my pages don't look professional, they are looking a lot better. Different people have different styles and like different things. This is probably why there are so many types of art. It seems like a person's style tends to change over time as well.

I tend to like the simple, uncluttered look. I like to have two to four photos, a title, an embellishment and some journalling. While that sounds like a formula, it isn't really. Pictures can be placed anywhere on the page, together or scattered. Titles can have sub-titles. Each layout will probably be a little different. While they may look similar, each one will have it's own flair.

I start by picking out a photo or photos that I want to have on one page. Next I pick a background. I have a lot of paper that is already cut, so I often have to go through a bunch of pieces, before I find the one that fits. Once, I know what background I'm going to use, I pick a color for matting my photos. Matting is just putting a piece of paper or cardstock behind your photos. The matting is slightly larger than the photo adding a border to it. I matt nearly all of my photos. I don't always matt larger photos. So if I had a blue background I might use a slightly darker blue paper for matting. Sometimes I use other colors that compliment the background color.

Before adding the matting, I often put the pictures on the page in several different places, different order, together, separate, etc. Once I decide how I want the photos, I then tape them to the matting and cut around the photos, leaving about an inch of border. You may prefer a different amount of border to the photo.

Nearly every page needs a title. Usually the title is a word or phrase that sums up what is going on in the photos. As I'm not a jingle writer, I usually use something simple. Some of the titles I've used recently are: Giddyup, Look at Me, As I Grew, Bathtime and P'sketti. The last one was for a picture of my oldest daughter when she was a toddler, with spaghetti sauce all over her face.

In the beginning, the very beginning, I used to cut out my letters with an exacto knife. I had bought a set of Fiskar stencils from Walmart. I would trace them and then cut them out. From there I graduated to stickers. This has definite pros and cons. For example, if you have a daughter named Bobbi, you would probably use all the b's in one title. (If her name is in the title).

More recently, I bought a cricut personal cutter. This is a die-cutting machine. With it I can cut letters and shapes. I have never regretted buying this. However, I do wish that I had researched further. I didn't realize that there are quite a few types of die-cut machines. So, should you be interested in obtaining one, research several brands.

Often embellishments can really make a page stand out. You can use stickers, die cuts, flowers, ribbons and more. The list is endless. In the beginning I only used things that I very carefully cut out. Now I tend to use stickers, die cuts (often cut with my cricut) and things cut out.

Some people use brads and eyelets. There are tools for setting eyelets. I haven't gotten into this yet, so I don't have any advice on this subject. Sometimes a small button can make be a good add-on. This is another area where you can feel free to experiment and try lots of different things to find that look that is just right.

Journalling is simply writing down a few sentences about the picture. Typically you want to answer the questions of who, what, where and sometimes why. Some people use hidden journalling. This is where the journalling is under a flap or even behind the page.

When I'm journalling, I try to think of what a person who is looking at the pic would want to know. With pictures of children, I usually include their age, if I know it. If it is for an album of that child's pictures, I do not put the age on every page. I do make sure it is on 4 or 5 pages throughout the album, so the viewer will know the approximate age.

The above picture is of a layout I made of a few pictures of me when I was very young. I have a small amount of journalling in the lower left corner.