Guestbook - Scrapbooker's Shelf

The basics

Scrapbook making is a fun and creative craft. You can really get creative and present your photos in fun and exciting ways that will really grab the viewer's attention.

Since we all go to the trouble and expense of buying film, capturing the perfect "kodak moment" on film and developing...we might as well go to the small extra effort to do it right!

There are a few threats to your photos you will want to be aware of:

Sunlight
Watar and humidity
High acid (found in magnetic albums, rubber cement, etc.)
Oily, dirty hands
Extreme hot or cold temperature
Being lost or scratched (from poor storage choices)

Things to keep in mind:

Wash your hands before beginning to work on your scrapbook.
Try to use acid free papers, adhesives and plastics. (Newspaper is not acid free! If you are saving an article be sure you do not place a photo next to it...you may still save your article, just keep it separate from your photo)
Get your photos out of storage in your garage, attic, etc! (Archivists suggest to store them in your bedroom closet!)
Do not eat, drink or smoke around your photos or negatives.

Let's get started!

Gather all of your photos and acid free papers you will want to use for your scrapbook pages.

Decide on a theme for each page and pick 3-5 photos per page to match your theme.

Use creative cropping on your photos. The idea is to get the most from each photo and crop the excess. Crop that extra head, sleeping Grandma at the party, excess sky, thumb or anything that is extra clutter nonessential to your photos "message".

Cropping can be greatly enhanced by the use of templates. Pick a template to match your theme and trim photos into appropriate shapes. If you like, you may use decorative scissors or wheel cutters to trim your photos and add some fun texture to your pages.

Create fabulous frames for your cropped photos by mounting them to colorful, fun background papers.

Embellishing is always fun! Just remember the photos are the focal point and the key is to accent not overbear the photos. You may choose from many different mediums...die cut paper shapes, stickers, rubberstamps, clip art, markers, craft punches and more. You are only limited by your imagination...let it go...be creative! Have fun with it!

Journal on your pages. Tell the "who", tell the "where", tell the "when", the "why", and the "how"! What good is a photo if you cannot remember the who, what, when, where, why and how?! Add humorous captions and appropriate quotes as you think of them. Anything to add interest to your page and keep the viewer's attention and jog the memory so you can enjoy your memory books for years to come.

Basic supplies:

fancy edged scissors, punches
templates
die cuts, stickers, rubberstamps
pens, markers
fun papers
adhesive

Are you overwhelmed, yet???

Relax, you are going to love memory page making! Just have fun with it! Your photos won't deteriorate overnight...just get to them as soon as you can. Organize them and start slowly.

Let's get organized:

Start with your most recent photos and work backward to the older photos. Otherwise you will always be trying to catch up.
When you are ready to get going on the older photos, gather all the photos and organize them. Sort them by the year, then into categories: holidays, school years, baby days, vacations, special events/accomplishments, etc. If your photos are currently in hazardous albums the first thing to do is transfer them to safe storage containers.
You may wish to have a file for each family member's photos. That way each child can have their own memory book to look at and enjoy and take along with them through their life.
Always get the double prints when you have your photos developed. That way if there is a cute photo of your kids they can each have a copy in their album. This is also a good idea for the rare time your xacto knife slips off the template and a photo is ruined.
You will want to save all of your negatives for those times when you just have to have another copy of that photo for Auntie Amy!
Some people like to keep their photos by the door. In the case of a fire you may be able to grab them on your way out. Most everything can be replaced, but not your photos. You may consider having an extra set made for Mom or Grandma so if yours do go up in smoke there is another set in the family.

Photo cropping and mounting:

Never crop a polaroid photo. It will disappear before your very eyes.
Try not to cut out things that date your photo. The Model T, or a store front for example.
Get creative using templates to crop your photos.
Cropping is great as it allows you to keep the "heart" of the photo and eliminate the excess space.
Never use rubber cement or stick flat glue. These will eventually turn your whole page brown. Often if something smells, it has acid and will ruin your photos..."If it smells, do not use it!!"

Negatives

Remember...whatever you do...don't throw away your negatives. You will need them! Store your negatives away from your photos in photo boxes or other acid free storage.

Scrapbook page journaling

Tell the story.. Share the memory..

Get it all down, being careful to be specific: Who, what, when, where, why and how are essential to your page. A complete stranger will be able to pick up your memory book and understand what is going on and what the theme is on each page. This is a wonderfully creative way to do genealogy too!

Why scrapbook making is the way to go with your photos...

Many people use a magnetic album to store their most precious photos. There are a lot of chemicals used to develop our photos. When we place our photos on something highly acidic (magnetic album page) or a plastic sleeve that emits gas, our photos will yellow with age. Magnetic albums have been known to actually dissolve our photos into their pages. If this has happened to you you may choose to "blow dry" your page, then gently remove photos by sliding dental floss under each photo from corner to corner. Photos are highly acidic and when put in a memory book with acid free paper they are neutralized to archival quality that will protect your photos for generations.

Be sure to use page protectors that are polypropylene or mylar D. Vinyl sheet protectors will break down over time, emitting hydrochloric acid that will literally eat away at your photos. When you purchase clear, polypropylene sheet protectors you are assured that the purest plastics are used.

Be sure to use acid free pens, ink pens, markers, calligraphy pens to document your memories. Never mark on the back of your photos with an ink pen, use a soft leaded pencil. Ink pens will eventually bleed through to the front of your photo.

If you are saving a newspaper clipping you may want to photocopy it, or put it on a separate page without photos...newspaper is highly acidic.

If you would like to contact me, I would be glad to help. Please feel free to write to me anytime.