Scrapbooking 101 by Scrap with Shelby

Many times when I talk with perspective customers, the biggest objection is often
“I don’t know where to start! It’s all too confusing” Well, I’d like to help with that, so I’ve put together some basic info.

Some Basic Terms

• Crop – Can refer to 2 things. First, cropping a picture means to cut out all the extra stuff that doesn’t really matter. Why crop a picture? Well, for one thing, it puts the emphasis on the main subject in the picture. Secondly, it allows the scrapbooker to fit more pictures on a page and in an album. Secondly, a Crop refers to an event where people gather to scrapbook.
• Acid and Lignin free – When shopping for any materials that will be around your pictures, you want them all to be acid and lignin free. Acid will deteriorate your pictures, paper and album, over time. Lignin, which comes from the wood pulp used to make paper, is the stuff in newspapers that turns the paper brown. Paper, stickers, albums, albums pages, page protectors, adhesives, pen ink etc…. should all be acid free.
• Buffered paper – This is paper that has had alkaline added to “cancel out” or neutralize the acids in paper. I like to use buffered paper to frame memorabilia (like cards, announcements or programs) that I want to add to my scrapbooks that clearly aren’t acid or lignin free. (note, there are also clear envelopes called memorabilia pockets made specifically for this purpose as well)
• Journaling - Simply put, journaling is the text that tells the story of your pictures, the who, what, when where, how as it were. Don’t under estimate the value of journaling. In addition to valuable information, the generations to follow will cherish your memories and thoughts about the pictures as well! Some ideas of what to write…what is happening in the picture? What are your or those in the pictures thoughts? In this regard, some of what I have written in my children’s scrapbooks is simply a love letter from their mommy. You don’t have to be a professional writer. The fact that it is personal from you is what makes it interesting. Always use acid free pens. NEVER use ball point pen, permanent pen or sharpies!
• Page (sheet) protectors – These slide over the pages you’ve completed and keep your work free of damaging finger prints (and the acids on your hands), dirt and general wear and tear. These should be acid free and Polypropylene (vinyl) free as well. Note, the style of these will vary greatly based on what kind of album you choose (see types of albums)
• Layout – this simply refers to a page design. This can be one or two pages.
• Mat – the frame or frames (double mat) around a photo or journal box
• Scraplifting – in the writing world, this is known as plagiarism – copying another’s work. But this is pretty common in the scrapbooking world. You see a really nice layout and copy it, often tweaking the design or colors to make it more personal to you. I like to think of it more as “getting inspiration” from others, rather than copying! ;-)

Adhesive
There are countless types of adhesives out there. In scrapbooking, we use some kind of tape or glue that holds the pictures or embellishments to the page. Of course, these should always be acid free. I prefer some kind of double sided tape, usually from a tape runner. I never recommend glue sticks…they seem to be safe, but I find that after awhile, they dry out so much that the pictures and paper start to “flake” off the pages. I also don’t recommend liquid glues - they are very unforgiving and tend to “wrinkle” the pages if you use too much. Some other types of adhesive are:

• Tape runner/roller – dispenses double side tape, very easy and convenient
• Photo splits/mounting tabs – individual squares; user is sometime required to remove a backing
• Photo corners – these are like those old fashions corner pockets people used to use. You stick the corners down and insert the pictures into the corners. This way, they can be removed and no adhesive every touches the pictures. You can also use these mount items such as announcements, programs, certificates etc… that you want to preserve but not alter or glue down permanently.
• Glue dots/lines – comes on a roll or in sheets, user must manually attach, glue dots are used for embellishment or ribbon
• Xyron – this is sticker maker that ranges in size from 1/5 inches to a full 81/2 x 11 size sheet. I find the Xyron “x” aka the 150 seems to work for most people’s needs.

Cropping tools
Lots of tools out there…Let’s break some of them down:

• Paper trimmer -There are so many trimmers out there. I find that each person has a preference as to what is their favorite – my personal favorite is the Creative Memories 12 inch straight trimmer. If possible, go to a crop and see how many you can try. But really, if you buy no other tool, a 12 inch paper trimmer really is a must.
• Punches or shape makers - These gadgets allow scrapbookers to punch out shapes from their pictures or papers. They come in all the basic shapes like square, heart, circle etc… and every shape you can imagine such as footprints, animal shapes, cars, swirls etc… I wouldn’t buy too many of these as you can usually find these at crops. Just stick with the ones you think you might use a lot, or just have to have. Beware of the “cheap” punches…you get what they pay for (meaning hurry up and use it, because it may quickly fall apart)
• Corner rounder – “rounds” the corners of your photos. These also come in pretty scalloped or lacy patterns now too.
• Small paper cutters – These are long the huge old fashion cutters with the big arms that come down, only much smaller – about 6 inches. While not necessary, they are a “nice to have “ tool. My only criticism is that since you can’t replace the blades on these, you have to replace the entire thing about every 2 years.
• Cutting systems – These are used to cut shapes out of your pictures or paper. Creative Memories makes a wonderful system (no, I do not sell Creative Memories, I just really like some of their tools!). Fiskars, EK Success and Coluzzle also make systems all of which are NOT my favorites. Purple Cow has a free style system that I would love to try sometime.
• Die Cut systems – These are manual or electronic machines that use dies (templates) to make shapes or alphabets. They are becoming more and more common. Some brands are Sizzix and Ellison (one owns the other I believe, so these are compatible) and Cuddlebug which are all manual systems (use a physical die, turn a crank, push a lever etc and out comes the die). Electronic versions include Cricut, Xyron and Wishblade. These have “cartridges” that each have fonts or shapes or both. You just type into the keypad and it does the cutting for you. Note, the Wishblade hooks up to your computer whereas Cricut and Xyron are more portable. I think the existing Cricut (not the new Cricut coming in May 07) is the best value. Don’t pay more than $200 for it anywhere. There are really great deals to be had on these). While a Sizzix or cuddle bug may seem cheaper initially, you can so very much more with Cricut. It should be noted that a small Xyron (around $7.50) is necessary to glue many of these dies cuts down.

Album types
Like tools, there are many kinds. Let’s look at just the basic types for now:

• Top loaders (post bound) – yuck! I hate these. They may be cheap, some may look pretty on the outside, but these are the worst. These have posts that hold page protectors. The protectors are open at the top so you can slide your pages in. I do not like these because they do not lay flat – the pages tend to “buckle” especially if you put too many pages in one album. If you must use these, look for the card board spacers sold separately, and do NOT add any more pages than what came with the album. Hopefully in a couple of years your pages won’t start to tear like mine did.
• Three Ring – not as cohesive left to right as there is a bigger gap, but the pages do lie flat, and you can rearrange the order.
• Spiral Bound – think spiral notebook, but without the lines. Disadvantage is that you cannot rearrange the order of the pages. However, some of these are really quite attractive.
• Strap hinge – These are my favorites! These use a strap that holds the actual pages by their end, so they can slide across the straps. This allows the pages to lie flat – even if you add more pages! I think these are the best value because while they may cost more, you can put more pages into them. There are some generic brands out there, but it should be noted that Creative Memories has a life time guarantee on their albums. I’ve had several non-CM albums fall apart, but never a CM one, and I have at least 20 well handled albums (my customers flip through my albums constantly for ideas).

Basic “Must have” Supply list

• Adhesive
• Album
• Page protectors
• Pen
• Trimmer
• Scissors

Nice to haves

• Cricut
• Small Xyron 150
• Punches or shapemakers
• Eyelet setting tools such as a crop-a-dile etc…
• Embellishments such as stickers, brads, tags , ribbons, etc

Coming soon:

• How to set eyelets (what is an eyelet, what tools do I use?)
  
• How to set brads
  
• How to use a sizzix
  
• How to use a Xyron
  
• What is? ( wierd embellishments explained like t-shirt labels, pinch tabs etc)
  
• Where to get ideas? (websites, which books, which magazines etc…)
  
• Techniques (tearing, folding, paintin, inking, etc…)
  What do you want to know about?
  Email me at shelby@scrapwithshelby.com and tell me.
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