by Priscilla Benfield

Created on: June 10, 2009   Last Updated: June 12, 2009

Scrapbooking is a fun hobby that anyone can do. Scrapbooks can be a treasured gift that will bring years of pleasure. Using photos and other items like children's drawings and report cards can be a great way to preserve the milestones of your child's life. The variety of scrapbooks you can make are endless. A personalized scrapbook can be created for anyone of any age. You do not need to be an "artsy" kind of person either. Here is how to get started.

First gather up all your loose photos. Use index cards to categorize the photos. An example of that would be holidays, graduation, birthdays and other special occasions. Next if you would like to get more specific, narrow it down to a specific event. Let's say you would like to make a scrapbook of your family's vacation. Use an old shoe box to help organize your photos. Using the index cards as a filing system, continue to separate the photos.

Next locate any paper items you have saved from your vacation. Brochures,ticket stubs or anything that you have that you would like to include in your album.Set these aside in a large envelope.

Time to go to the arts & crafts store. You can get started scrapbooking and not spend a lot of money. Start with the basics and if you enjoy what you are doing, you can move up from there. You will need an album to put your photos in. Look for an album with acid-free paper. This will make sure that it will last for years. You need a way to attach your photos and other memorabilia to the pages. There are many choices for this. Glue sticks, photo squares (little pieces of two-sided tape that come in a dispenser) or plastic corners that stick onto your pages. I prefer the two-sided tape squares. A glue stick is also handy. Make sure that it is made for scrapbooking. Scissors are necessary. You can purchase a variety of scissors that will give your pictures or paper a decorative edge. These are a nice touch and are usually reasonably priced. If you use them once, the children in your life could always use them for crafts or school projects. The last thing that is necessary is acid-free paper. The pages that come in an album are white. White is boring. Buy a variety pack of colored paper in the same size of the album. This also can be used for school projects if you decide that scrapbooking isn't for you. A nice optional touch is purchasing stickers. A good scrapbooking section typically has an entire section devoted to all kinds of stickers. Alphabet stickers are great for those who aren't comfortable with their own handwriting. Theme stickers relevant to your vacation such as the place or activity are probably available also. Now that you have your supplies you are ready to make your scrapbook.

Have all your supplies and photos set out on the table. Start by laying out page ideas. Using your photos and memorabilia group together what you would like on a page. Crop photos if it would make the focus of the photo more pleasing. Lay the items on your colored sheet of paper. Arrange and rearrange until you are satisfied with how it looks. You can even use a contrasting color paper cut into smaller pieces under the photo to help make the photo "pop". Use your imagination. There is no wrong way to do this. When you are satisfied with the look of the page, start to adhere the photos to the paper. Once the page is finished, slide it into the album page. Continue until you have used all the photos and memorabilia. The beauty of the slide in pages is that they can be easily rearranged.

Your first scrapbook is completed! Store your supplies in a plastic bin and your photos can be stored in a shoebox. It doesn't take up a lot of room. You are ready for your next project.

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