Archive for the ‘Scrapbooking’ Category

Reunion with Scrapbooking Kits

Saturday, November 28th, 2009

When you’re learning about something new, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of relevant information available. This informative article should help you focus on the central points.

Bonding with kids is important for their emotional quotient. Sharing moments with them like going out, joining activities in school, and simply having great dinner in fancy restaurants with them are just some of the affairs they remember worthwhile as a child growing up with parents. How about indoors?

There is one activity parent and child could engage doing at home without thinking of mistakes and errors. That is kit scrapbooking. Fancy ready-made scrapbook kits are sold online. Some of them have additional items like stencils, camera, paints, colors, stickers and many other ready to tweak stuff. It could cost but what matters is the activity it could give to a child.

It promotes bonding while spending the time together. Most of these scrapbook kits are to be assembled with instructions. For such an activity, the child is inclined to follow what was instructed, with mommy’s help. What is fun is expecting the outcome of the project. You can never lose with scrapbooking kits because they could be kept as a nice remembrance of the shared moment.

How would feel as an adult looking at a scrapbook kit you assembled with your mom when you were just 6 years old? You could just imagine the wonder and joy it can remind you of the good old days!

If you don’t want to spend a single cent in scrapbooking kit, why not make you own set? You can start making the layout of your scrapbook by occasion. If you really have serious passion with scrapbooking, it takes a good mood to list down ideas on how you will start with making workable templates. You can list down important events that happen most of the time in your yearly routines like the following:

Sometimes the most important aspects of a subject are not immediately obvious. Keep reading to get the complete picture.

CHILD’S BIRTHDAY – if you have more than one sibling, you can decide on working a template based on their favorite colors, do sketches on how you will come up with each child’s theme and decide to finish the layout later. You can also make a pink theme for girls and blue for boys.

ANNIVERSARIES – you can make concept for you and your husband’s yearly celebration. You can provide space for memorable pictures, cards, and dried flowers, which you can insert for the scrapbook. No formalities needed as long as the layout is organized and worth to cherish and will look unique in each glance.

SEASONS – Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations may be the busiest times of the year. Cards may flood in for everyone in the family. It takes some thinking to realize you may also provide a space even for the stamps used in sending the snail mails. You should also keep dedications with dates. These are good elements to work on with a template for an effective scrapbooking Christmas kit.

HALLOWEEN – could be the coolest themes you can have for scrapbooks. Lots of pictures and fun images could go well with a template. Kids are definitely interested in looking at their spooky photos attached to a good scrapbook. You can create a kit by working with scanned images you can use even in the future and for mass production, which you can distribute to involved relatives.

Yes, creating scrapbooking kits may be all about distributing the template for beloved relatives who shared important memories with you. You could collect images, reproduce them by scanning, make instructions and compile them in kits. Send them to at least 5 to 10 relatives. Call a reunion and require them to bring and show each other the assembled kits. Isn’t that a fun idea?

As your knowledge about Scrapbooking continues to grow, you will begin to see how Scrapbooking fits into the overall scheme of things. Knowing how something relates to the rest of the world is important too.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit my latest venture: GVO and make sure to claim your $1 trial membership!

The essentials of do-it-yourself scrapbooking

Sunday, November 15th, 2009

When you visit different scrapbook stores, you will find different scrapbook kits that will trigger your desire to be a budding scrapbooker. But then, these kits, scrapbooking magazines, and materials can be quite expensive. If you are interested in scrapbooking but don’t have enough budget to buy such expensive materials and scrapbook guides, here is a simple guide in do-it-yourself scrapbooking.

Focus on the basics. Just like in doing artworks and crafts, scrapbooking requires a lot of materials and supplies, but this doesn’t mean that you have to allot a huge amount of money in order to create a scrapbook. Today, so many products are being offered by the scrapbooking industry. Since these products are especially created to provide ultimate comfort to those who are greatly indulged in scrapbooking, they can be quite expensive.

If you are just a beginner, you don’t need to be overwhelmed by these products. What you need to do is focus on buying the basic materials and supplies which include album and sheet protectors that come in different sizes and colors, scissors or paper trimmers that will allow you to cut lines without hassle, adhesive that is inexpensive but easy to use, photo tabs or photo splits to keep the back of the photos clean and can be easily removed, papers and cardstocks that is the foundation of the scrapbook page, and journaling tools such as a wide variety of pens. Remember, all your supplies should be acid-free and lignin-free to ensure that safe preservation of your photos.)

Learn the basic scrapbooking techniques. Scrapbooking magazines can be quite expensive because these are created for a special segment of the market. If you are tight on budget and you would want to create scrapbook all by yourself, it will pay if you start pumping out your creative juices.

Aside from creating your own style, you can also get ideas from the Internet about the basic techniques used in scrapbooking. Here are some basic scrapbooking techniques that you can use in creating your d-i-y scrapbook.

The more authentic information about Scrapbooking you know, the more likely people are to consider you a Scrapbooking expert. Read on for even more Scrapbooking facts that you can share.

- Inserting Eyelets. Indeed, eyelet is a great means of attaching things to an album or a page, or to add color and embellishment to a certain page. Eyelets usually come in various shapes and sizes that can help draw attention from a focal point in the page. In inserting an eyelet, you will need a puncher, an eyelet setter, a hammer and a mat.

You can do this by selecting the place where you would want to insert the eyelet and by laying the paper on the mat face up. Hole the punch upright and use the hammer to hit the top of the punch. After this, you can now insert the eyelet and turn the paper over. You can also place the eyelet setter on top of the eyelet and then tap the top of the eyelet setter using a hammer to flatten the eyelet ridge.

- Paper Piecing and Using Patterns. Another basic technique that you can use in your d-i-y scrapbook is paper piercing and the use of patters. In using patterns, you need to lay a piece of tracing paper over the pattern.

With the use of a pencil, draw over the outline and transfer the pattern to paper. You can now place the tracing on the patterned paper and then slip the transfer paper underneath to draw over the lines. In creating paper-pieced embellishment, just follow the steps in using patterns then cut out the pattern pieces.

Aside from the two techniques mentioned above, you can also use chalk and vellum papers in creating wonderful scrapbooks.

Hopefully the sections above have contributed to your understanding of Scrapbooking. Share your new understanding about Scrapbooking with others. They’ll thank you for it.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, owner of this site as well: Wealth Upgrade Club (click to claim your FREE membership)!

Ideas for Layout Scrap Booking

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

The following article includes pertinent information that may cause you to reconsider what you thought you understood. The most important thing is to study with an open mind and be willing to revise your understanding if necessary.

There are many ways to make an excellent scrap book. Although there are templates in the internet and books written about it, nothing comes close to the power of imagination that is something each person has inside.

Scrap books are made of many things and the backbone of this are the pictures. Those who have been doing this for years should take as many pictures as possible so a story can be created from the beginning to end.

Those who are still regular camera after having this developed should write something in the back while those using digital camera should make a note on each frame to help recall what happened when making the layout.

Other details such as tickets, cards and souvenirs from the event should also be part of the layout. These will serve as good backdrops or as the title for each corresponding page.

When everything has been collected, this is the time to choose the right colors that will go well with each photo. This means getting the right colored crayon, marker, pen, colored paper and other accessories that will be useful when working on a page.

Some people find it easy to coming up with ideas for the layout of the scrap book. Those who are suffering from a mental block should try relaxing like watching television or doing something else since the image or the activity may simply pop a vision in the head.

How can you put a limit on learning more? The next section may contain that one little bit of wisdom that changes everything.

Those who view the scrap book will usually view two pages at once especially when these are placed side to side. There must be coordination from left to right given that there is a story being projected here which is the basic idea of the scrap book.

There are many ways to come up with the layout for each corresponding page. There is nothing wrong with using the same colored background because the photos used are different for each one and no one will pay that much attention to it.

The person should just be careful not to overdo it because this could make the succeeding pages boring.

This may not apply all the time so before applying the glue on the backside of the photograph and the everything else on paper, it will be a good idea to put the things together first and then decide whether to continue to do so or think of something else.

After working on a few pages, it will be a good idea to look back to avoid losing track of what has happened previously. Again, the key here is project continuation from one page to the other just like how a writer starts and ends a story.

Completing the scrap book will take days or even weeks especially when the hobbyist has other things to work on. Should other ideas come later on, it will be a good idea to write this down and then review it when it is time to work on it again to be able to come up with a better one each time to show to family and friends.

Each page of a scrap book starts from nothing and turns into a work of art. There are many ways of making this happen so the right idea can preserve that moment in time not only in the minds of those who were there.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, still having the Free Adsense Templates available for instant download

Quick and simple scrapbooking

Sunday, July 26th, 2009

Scrapbooking is one hobby that produces great results. Unlike other kinds of hobbies that only sharpens the skills but do not produce anything concrete, with scrapbooking, you will not only develop your creative skills but you will also create great pieces of artwork in the process.

This is perhaps why scrapbooking is one of the hottest hobbies in the country. Testament of how big it is, are the numerous shows and magazines that have cropped up on the subject. There are also annual fairs and conventions just on scrapbooking. In the Internet, there are websites, webzines and webrings that are devoted to the endeavor.

Scrapbooking might seem daunting at first especially to a person who has no artistic or creative bones in his body. Cutting, sticking, and designing can be a nightmare to a person who is not really much into the practice. Some people even find the prospect of putting together one page of artistic work too much for them to handle.

But making a scrapbook is not so hard. In fact, it can be the easiest thing in the world especially with the tools and gadgets that are coming out and being sold in craft stores. There are now scissors that cut lines with designs in them. There are punchers that do not only punch holes but punches different shapes. Craft stores also sell stickers that scrapbookers can stick into their pages for that more finished touch.

If you just know what to do, where to go and how to go about it, scrapbooking can be a breeze. Below are just some of the ideas and tips on creating quick and simple scrapbook pages.

Buy prepared pages

Scrapbooking products have become more and more sophisticated these days and all are aimed to make scrapbooking as simple as possible. If you feel that you don’t have the talent to put together one page even if your life depended on it or you just don’t have the time to create a layout that will look very nice with the photo that you are thinking of putting; then you can buy those prepared scrapbook pages that already have layouts and designs. All you have to do is to add the finishing touches like the photo and some accessories if you feel like it.

If you base what you do on inaccurate information, you might be unpleasantly surprised by the consequences. Make sure you get the whole Scrapbooking story from informed sources.

These pages are often thematic. For instance, there are pages that can be used in a wedding scrapbook while others can be used in a baby shower or in a kid’s birthday party. Often, there will be slots where you can put photos and other notes.

Stick them up

Another set of innovative products that has made the lives of scrapbookers worthwhile is the scrapbook stickers. Like the scrapbook pages, these stickers are also oftentimes thematic. Still, the themes are not only limited to occasions and special events.

For instance, in addition to the usual themes of birthdays, christmas, baby showers, weddings and the like, there are stickers that will also depict Christian sayings, kiddie images, business matters. girly stuff and sports. There are a lot to choose from.

These stickers are great in decorating a page that you have already out together. It often adds color and aesthetic appeal to the page without the hassles of drawing, cutting and pasting. All the scrapbookers have to do is to just buy the stickers, peel the sticker off and stick it to the page. Real easy that even a child can do it.

Knowing enough about Scrapbooking to make solid, informed choices cuts down on the fear factor. If you apply what you’ve just learned about Scrapbooking, you should have nothing to worry about.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, still having the Free Adsense Templates available for instant download

Scrapbooking Business Idea

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009

The best course of action to take sometimes isn’t clear until you’ve listed and considered your alternatives. The following paragraphs should help clue you in to what the experts think is significant.

Passion for scrapbooking can lead to business opportunity. If you have the flair business, you will convert your hobby into a money-earning asset.

THE MARKET:

Make studies on how you can harness prospective customers when you start your own system of putting up a scrapbooking store. Of course, you will waste money on a weak strategy and set-up. Where will you put up a store? Will you operate it online or you will rent a place and hire people? The latter is big deal because it will involve overhead cost. Prior to that you will first consult an accountant and a coach before you can finalize on spending money for the store. But given the motivation of unique selling point, you can do all the concepts you want to reach the edge of your desired business.

Online scrapbooking is another option if you want to cater to global market. Put up a nice paid website and maximize the use of Internet to optimize your visitors whose hobbies are centered in doing scrapbooks. Remember that you are selling happiness and a placeholder of memories, which people can keep for many years. It establishes closeness to families and close clans.

For an online scrapbooking store, you can do what it takes to use search engine optimization. You can hire a website who can put up e-commerce sites and help you with the payment scheme methods, flow and traffic in your site, and most of all marketing. The website itself is the marketing medium of your business, although it operates virtually. Expect to be spending costs on domain name, web hosting, contents, and some freebies.

If you base what you do on inaccurate information, you might be unpleasantly surprised by the consequences. Make sure you get the whole Scrapbooking story from informed sources.

The disadvantage of online store is when traditional customers are not yet open to the idea of getting stuff ordered online. Others would prefer the touch of textures of paper and materials than just browsing through images, which will more likely be affected by the network connections.

Given all the creativity and strong will to put up one, there is nothing impossible. If you have skills in computers, you can even put up your own web design and do the graphic arts yourself. Basically, those who plunge to online stores are those who are computer savvy enough to do the basic tasks rather than depending on hired people alone.

As soon as the business flourish on its own, one can hire and even train people on how they can create scrapbooks for business. Of course, this will go to another category and phase of scrapbooking store. Now the question is: are you going to put up a merchandise of goodies, or are you going to render services?

Once you brainstorm with your scrapbooking teammates, you will realize the scheme will adjust depending on what all of you want to render to people. But when it comes to creativity, the options are endless. It will always be the question of how much your customer would want to spend in indulging with scrapbooking.

Anyway, this will all be studied first before diving to the idea of doing a business out of scrapbooking. You can directly sell goodies in a rented space and provide other items like a typical bookshop. Customers can combine thoughts for scrapbook making, and you have a counter with a creative crew to help customers make up their minds. Just remember, scrapbooking is all about creating memories.

The day will come when you can use something you read about here to have a beneficial impact. Then you’ll be glad you took the time to learn more about Scrapbooking.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, still having the Free Adsense Sites for instant download

Creating memories on paper

Sunday, July 5th, 2009

When you’re learning about something new, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of relevant information available. This informative article should help you focus on the central points.

One of the reasons that people do scrapbooks is because they want to preserve the memories of some great occasion or event. In fact, a scrapbook has long been synonymous with albums because it is primarily filled with pictures and memories. One difference with an album and a scrapbook is the fact that you can put a whole lot more in a scrapbook than just photos.

You can place three-dimensional objects that make the occasion more memorable and meaningful. Below are some occasions that people often create a scrapbook for. Read on and you might get some ideas on how to preserve memories in those occasions into paper.

Coming of a Baby

An ordinary baby album will probably contain the baby’s first photos but a scrapbook can contain not only the first photos but also some of the special milestones that the baby will go through in his first year. All the firsts that he will experience in his life can be documented in a scrapbook.

For instance, you can include the baby’s strands of hair after he gets his first cut. You can bind these and then place in a piece of see-through plastic. Another first are the nails that were first cut, both from the fingers of the hands and the feet. Parents can also include copies of special documents such as the birth certificate and the baptismal certificate.

Another great idea is to put the baby’s thumbprint, handprint and foot print. Some will also paste a piece of the baby’s first ultrasound photo, his first medical certificate and his first vaccination chart.

Wedding and wedding anniversaries

Truthfully, the only difference between you and Scrapbooking experts is time. If you’ll invest a little more time in reading, you’ll be that much nearer to expert status when it comes to Scrapbooking.

A wedding scrapbook may contain pictures at the wedding but it can also include wrappers from the gifts of the guests, wishes that the guests gave for the newlyweds and the gift cards that they have put on their gifts. This is one way to preserve the day not only for the newlyweds but also for their guests.

Another good idea is to document not only the wedding itself but also the days or months of preparation for the wedding. Photos can capture events like the bachelor’s party, the bridal shower and even the pre-wedding practice.

The scrapbook may also contain the invitation for the wedding, dried flowers from the bouquet of the bride, a piece of the garter, mayhap even the souvenir if one can manage to paste it on the scrapbook.

Graduation

Another event that is worthy of reminiscing is the graduation. This marks the ending and the beginning of an old and a new chapter in a person’s life. A graduation scrapbook can contain the invitation for the event, the investiture that is usually given to the graduates, some pieces of strings from the tussles, and of course the photos of the graduates.

Corsages that are dried may also be put in the scrapbook if one can find a way to paste it in a flat surface.

If you can, you can also include messages from the graduate’s classmates and friends as well as to his or her teachers. Put the messages in a kind of message board.
If there are awards merited, one can put the medals or copies of the certificates in the scrapbook. If the graduate did a special address, a copy of the speech should also be included in the scrapbook.

Take time to consider the points presented above. What you learn may help you overcome your hesitation to take action.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, still letting you get Free Adsense Websites – every month!

Creative Scrapbooking for the Noob

Saturday, July 4th, 2009

There is no right formula to scrap booking except the skill to use papers, scissors, glue or pastes, and the heart to do the hobby. Yes, it is a hobby. Assuming you lived in an isolated coast without any influence, do you know how a scrapbook looks like?

From the word scrap, a scrapbook is a collective book size pages containing memories of collaged images. A sophisticated scrapbook can be bought at bookshops, where you can get them hardbound ready for filling up. Actually, it is nothing but empty pages. If you are fond of laborious details, you could create collective empty pages, bind it in a fashionable way, then that’s it—you got yourself a scrapbook!

Anybody in intermediate years had done scrapbooks without ever remembering when they started them. For beginners, the knack is when you have a good concept to start with. Usually scrapbooks are motivated by good memories with peers. When two people combine ideas, work hand in hand in putting up personal scrapbooks, then the outcome is priceless.

Scrapbooks do not need to be perfect. Most of the time, they are random combination of pictures with cut outs from magazines to give relevance to the expression and mood related to the picture being collaged. Without too much dwelling on the result, there is the tendency to create very informal compositions. The creator has no one to blame, after all if it is a personal scrapbook.

Nowadays, because of the advent of digital printing, pictures to be used for scrapbooks need not be original developed photos from film. Original photos could be copied, scanned and printed digitally. This will save important photos from being accidentally ruined, in case something goes wrong with the pasting and cutting.

If you are a beginner, how will you start doing your own scrapbook?

If you base what you do on inaccurate information, you might be unpleasantly surprised by the consequences. Make sure you get the whole Scrapbooking story from informed sources.

It could start with a definite theme coming from grouped sets of pictures. You can do it your own or invite companions to come along to help you. If the pictures contain many people who are close to you, it is best to recopy the pictures to have the freedom of cropping each photo at your own discretion. The over all color scheme of your concept can enhance harmony in composing each page. A sunny beach party could make use of bright earth colors to blend with the overall theme.

Think that you are recycling and making use of old magazines instead of just throwing them away. Sometimes, there are images that can make your composition richer than you expect them to be.

Once you feel accomplished with your compilation, you can include it as your personal memorabilia. Keep it away from dusts just like the way you take care of your photo albums. Scrapbooks are livelier to look at than just photos in a cold album. When shown to friends, scrapbooks are more entertaining.

For beginners, it is important to consider the use of creativity by making use of what is available at home. It does not have to be expensive, unless you really want to use special materials relevant to what you want to accomplish.

Remember the most important ingredient in doing scrapbooks. The sentiment and heart for it comes first. Then you will realize how fun and productive it will turn out to be.

I hope that reading the above information was both enjoyable and educational for you. Your learning process should be ongoing–the more you understand about any subject, the more you will be able to share with others.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, still letting you get Free Adsense Websites – every month!

The Gift of Paper Scrapbooking

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009

Since time immemorial scrapbooks are created out of papers-the most versatile material one could use in many ways. Truth is, scrapbooks are not possible without them. Every print from old to modern age has been built around exploiting the use of paper. Needless to say, paper scrapbooking still evolves today.

No matter how complicated the process of scrapbooks turn out, papers are out of question as main material. Stores now offer pre-maid paper, which can be bought and compiled based on personal taste. But is this satisfactory enough?

Making use of recycled paper for scrapbooking:

Sentimental scrapbook collectors are not always satisfied by commercially available layouts found in stores. They would still prefer doing their own cut out from old magazines for a treasure surprise they can by combining different images they prefer. This is not all about saving money but it is all about making use of art talent and skill. Yes, scrapbooking is also an art in itself.

PAPER SOURCES

There are different kinds of papers used by magazine publishers. Usually vogue images are printed in sturdy, glossy pages. It takes an eye to spot good magazines fit for use in scrapbooking. Sometimes you will not know how priceless piles of magazines can do for an effective scrapbook. If you are collecting stuff for serious scrapbooking, there has to be different photography on them.

Do not stick on just specific publishing, but rather, collect various kinds with different colors, motifs and articles accompanying good shots. Expensive magazines are more likely qualified to suit your needs. Be wary in throwing them away. If you don’t want to file too much bulk in storages, you can cut out pictures at once and throw away or sell the unused old pages to junk paper buyers.

ELEMENTS OF DESIGN LAYOUT

The information about Scrapbooking presented here will do one of two things: either it will reinforce what you know about Scrapbooking or it will teach you something new. Both are good outcomes.

If you have a hardbound scrapbook, you can at once assemble your layout. You can plan it beforehand by starting with the theme played on a specific color scheme.

Remember the proper elements of good design. It takes understanding the color wheel to know what it takes in having the confidence of combining colors. A good tip is to look at different fabrics.

Choose a favorite one and try to apply it to your scrapbook theme. Fabrics had been pre-designed by manufacturers before releasing them to the market. It means the colors are already in the right combination. This could inspire you and help you in case you do not have the flair with colors. Consider repetition of patterns, rhythm, harmony and sense of emphasis.

MAINTENANCE AND RESTORATION

How long do you want to preserve the scrapbook? Papers last long, but it will depend on its make. There are papers that can attract specific insects and do different changes to the scrapbook pages. If you can stretch out a budget, it is best to keep pages covered by plastic bounds.

Several kinds are available commercially, which you can buy even during the pre-design stage planning. Use synthetic glues and not those made out of organic materials. Keep the scrapbook in a box or drawer free from dusts and make sure not to expose it to moist and damp places. If brought outdoors, do not expose for long to sunlight. Keep it away from children’s reach.

Paper scrapbooking is a very rewarding hobby. If you make good ones, you can even give it away as a gift to a loved one. It will be appreciated more!

Now you can be a confident expert on Scrapbooking. OK, maybe not an expert. But you should have something to bring to the table next time you join a discussion on Scrapbooking.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson (Click on the link to learn more about me)

Basic Materials for scrapbooking

Thursday, January 22nd, 2009

The more you understand about any subject, the more interesting it becomes. As you read this article you’ll find that the subject of Scrapbooking is certainly no exception.

One of the hobbies that has the whole America in a frenzy is scrapbooking. From ordinary cutting of photos and putting ribbons, the craze of scrapbooking have gone beyond the simple and developed into one sophisticated operations.

Gone are the days when you have to dye the paper, cut the graphics and paste the decorations. Most people do not even draw anymore. And certainly, only a few ever stitch their own scrapbooks.
All they need to do now is buy blank scrapbooks that are already prepared, pick some really nice stickers and decorations in the craft stores and voila, they are well on their way to a great scrapbook.

Still for the newbies in scrapbooking, the basics tools are still the best. In fact, in getting started with scrapbooking, you may want to stick to the old and basic materials first just to be able to get the feel of how is it to really do scrapbooking. Although the new trends and materials provide great convenience, it somehow does all the work for the scrapbookers, leaving the essence of creative creations behind.

To get you started, here are some of the basic materials that you’ve got to have in hand.

Scrapbook paper

You can’t get started with scrapbooking if you don’t have a scrapbook to begin with. There are blank scrapbooks that you can find in your craft stores. You can use those to get you started.

You can also start with pieces of specialized papers, recycled ones, colored papers, art papers or construction papers that you can compile after. Some scrapbookers do this because they don’t want to make all the pages uniform. After which you can make a cover and then you can stitch the pages and the cover together.

If you find yourself confused by what you’ve read to this point, don’t despair. Everything should be crystal clear by the time you finish.

Scissors

You can never make a scrapbook without a good old scissors in your box of tools. This is perhaps the most basic of your tools as this is the one that you will be using in cutting shapes and graphics as well as putting designs on the pages itself.

You can also buy scissors that cut designed lines and not just your usual straight lines. Much like the pinking shears used in sewing, these specialized scissors can be real handy when cutting graphics and decorations for your pages.

Cutters and cutting boards

Not all cuttings can be done with a scissors. Sometimes, you need a cutter to make your work a little easier. When using a cutter, make sure that you have a cutting board underneath to avoid cutting papers underneath or worse putting cut lines on the surface of the table. In addition to the cushion, cutting boards also have guide lines that will help you cut paper in a straight line. This will save you a lot of work in sketching and using the ruler just to be able to cut it straight. Cutting boards also have measurements that will help you when you need to cut paper at a certain length.

Sticky stuff

This is another tool that you cannot go without when doing scrapbooking.
Most people use the glue gun especially when trying to put on decorations that are really bulky such as buttons or gemstones. When dealing with paper, you can use ordinary glue and even paste. Glue gun will only make the paper look bulky and wrinkled.

Now you can be a confident expert on Scrapbooking. OK, maybe not an expert. But you should have something to bring to the table next time you join a discussion on Scrapbooking.

About the Author
Check out Anders Eriksson’s latest web hosting sites: Lifetime Hosting and Cheap Unlimited Webhosting

Getting into magazine scrapbooking

Thursday, January 1st, 2009

If you’re seriously interested in knowing about Scrapbooking, you need to think beyond the basics. This informative article takes a closer look at things you need to know about Scrapbooking.

Through the years, more and more styles and themes have emerged when it comes to scrapbooking. Since the craft doesn’t require formality, anything goes as long as the person enjoys the outcome of the product.

One of the most common themes when it comes to scrapbooking is magazine scrapbooking. This theme mimics the layout usually seen in different kinds of magazine in the market. Magazine scrapbooking involves the use of photos along with texts and embellishments scattered all throughout the scrapbook pages. Aside from the photos, texts, and chosen embellishments, magazine scrapbooking also includes the use of patterned pages with matching theme and colors.

SCRAPBOOKING 101

Before you start making your magazine scrapbook, you have to consider first what are the materials you will need. Here is a basic list of must have’s in order to be a scrapbooker.

1. Album. The first thing you need to consider is the place where you will place all your photos and embellishments?the album. You will need to decide what is the size of the album you want to work in order to determine the amount of materials you need to use in making the scrapbook. The usual size of scrapbook albums most scrapbookers use is 12 x 12 but it is up to you how big or small you would want your scrapbook to be. Aside from the size of the album, you will also need to consider the color you want to use and the pattern that will work for the theme of your chosen album.

Hopefully the information presented so far has been applicable. You might also want to consider the following:

2. Refill pages. Since you still don’t know how many pages you need for your album, it will really pay if you have refill pages of your chosen album. In the market, refill pages are usually sold in different sizes, so it is best if you pick up a couple of packs when buying album refills to ensure that you get the same quality of the of the album you already purchased.

3. A pair of sharp scissors. Scrapbooking requires a lot of cutting so it is best that you purchase a nice and high quality of sharp scissors. It is advisable if you use a pair of scissors that have very fine tips and is comfortable to hold or to use. Fine scissors might be a little more expensive compared to the ordinary pairs out there but this will ensure that you can use a pair scissors that are dedicated exclusively to your scrapbook.

4. Adhesives. In the market today, there are so many kinds and styles of adhesive that come in different sizes and styles. For beginners, it is best if you use an acid-free adhesive that is perfect for cardstock and photos. You might want to consider brands such as 3L Click ‘n’ Stick Mounting Squares, Herma Dotto Removable, and Herma Vario Wheel Dispenser.

5. A variety of cardstock, printed and specialty papers. Just like in choosing your scrapbook album, you need to select papers that will work well with the colors and the theme you have chosen. It will also pay if you choose colored papers, cardstock and accents to highlight your photos. (Tip: Try to buy papers and cardstocks at several local scrapbook stores because they sell individual sheets for each page.)

6. Several journal pens. It is best to use acid-free, permanent, pens that have fine tips for hand writing especially if you are doing magazine scrapbooking because you will need it for your journaling. You can buy pens that have different sizes.

This article’s coverage of the information is as complete as it can be today. But you should always leave open the possibility that future research could uncover new facts.


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