Creating a scrapbook is an easy way to collect, organize, and display memorabilia related to an event or person. A popular theme for scrapbooks is to commemorate milestones such as a birthday, wedding, or graduation. People also create scrapbooks as a reminder of fun trips to different countries. For families, parents can create seasonal scrapbooks to show photos of the children growing up. There are many easy and creative ways to bring your memories to life.
A map can be the perfect backdrop for a scrapbook page. Instead of using traditional paper, a map adds variety to the pages. If your scrapbook is about a trip, you can use a map you got during the trip or print one out. Drawing dotted lines on the map can be a fun way to outline the travel route. For additional personalization, you could add a marker on the map in the shape of a heart or a star for your favorite places. You can also place the photos on this page to surround the place you visited on the map background.
Many memorable experiences have a physical memento. It’s easy to find the materials needed to fill out a scrapbook if you keep the ticket stub from these events. They often have the date of the event and serve as a good reminder of the memories created on that day. Ticket stubs also create visual interest since they are printed on a different type of paper and a different size than photos. You can choose whether you want to attach the stub directly to the page or keep it separate in an envelope.
There are some items you may not want to attach directly to the scrapbook. The souvenir might be an awkward shape or uses a particular material that doesn’t adhere to the pages easily. One way to include this memorabilia is to add tiny envelopes for storage. You can attach an envelope or create your own envelope. If you create your own envelope, you can vary the patterns on the paper and the shape of the envelope. Envelopes also help organize the scrapbook since each item will have its own place. When you are finished looking at the scrapbook, you can easily tidy it up by putting the items back into the envelopes and store it away.
Scrapbooks do not have to be exclusively two-dimensional. You can always add a tactile element by including some three-dimensional objects. An easy way to incorporate three-dimensional items is to use natural materials. If the scrapbook is about a beach vacation, an interesting item to include would be sand from the beach. You could also include pressed leaves or flowers as a reminder of which season the scrapbook is about. Another way to add dimensional depth is to create pop-out images. You can easily create pop-outs by cutting shapes that will fold out when the pages are opened.
You can use tabs to create a more engaging and interactive scrapbook. There are many different ways you can utilize tabs — a scrapbook can be organized into different sections and use tabs to denote the sections. If the scrapbook is about a trip with multiple locations, each section could have its own tab to show which location it is. You can also create tabs on the same scrapbook page that flip up. Take photos and attach them to the page with the tape placed horizontally only along the top edge. This will allow the photos to flip up, and the space underneath the photo can be used to write about the photo or memory. Having this tactile element makes the scrapbook more fun for children when they interact with it.
An easy way to make the scrapbook visually striking is to make a shape with the scrapbook entries. This includes arranging the photos and souvenirs into a heart shape or drawing a heart around the elements as a decoration on the pages. For scrapbooks about a particular season, you could create a seasonal shape. You can arrange photos to resemble the petals of a flower if it’s a spring scrapbook or the leaves of a falling tree. If the scrapbook is celebrating a holiday, you can arrange the scrapbook entries into the shape of an icon that represents that holiday.
It can be difficult and expensive to find decorating material made specifically for scrapbooks. However, there are many different household materials that can be easily used for decoration. You can use leftover gift wrapping paper, paper shopping bags, or newspaper articles to serve as a fantastic page background. Adhesive materials such as stickers, postage stamps, and labels can brighten a page. You can also use string, colored tape, or ribbon to create decorative borders or corners. Many household items can be repurposed as scrapbook material, although it may take some creative thinking to come up with alternative uses for them.
If the idea of creating a full scrapbook sounds daunting, you can always make a mini one. By choosing a smaller size, the pages will have less area that needs to be filled by memorabilia. Having a mini scrapbook can make the process much faster and easier. If collecting all the paraphernalia for a scrapbook also seems intimidating, you can choose to focus only on one element and spotlight it in the book. You could choose to focus only on photographs and play around with how to display them creatively. Another option is to have a ticket stub mini scrapbook filled exclusively of a single type of ticket stub.
A fun and easy way to personalize scrapbooks is to add sketches. You can sketch anything that adds a thematic element to the scrapbook. For vacations, the scrapbook can feature sketches of famous landmarks. When you reach a milestone, you can draw little icons that show what type of event it is. For example, you can sketch a graduation cap for a graduation ceremony or wedding rings to celebrate a new marriage. If you are uncomfortable with your drawing skills, you could choose to include handwritten notes or scribbles. Sketches and notes can be added directly to the page, or they can be on a separate sheet of paper that is then attached. If the scrapbook features a child, it can be fun to include some of the child’s drawings in it.
Photos can look quite plain in a scrapbook if they are all in the same shape and size. To generate more visual excitement on the page, you can cut photos into fun, different shapes. If the scrapbook is about a certain holiday, you can cut the photos into a shape that represents that holiday. For people who you love, you can cut their pictures out in heart shapes. In scrapbooks about a vacation to a different country, you can cut the photo out in the shape of the country or in the shape of a famous landmark. It’s easy to get creative with different photo shapes. You can also print out stencils from the internet and cut photos using them to ensure that you get a good shape.