Sunday, October 14, 2012

School Report Themed Scrapbook Page Idea

School Report Themed PageThis week, scrapbook page designer, Jennifer Schmidt, shares one of her school themed scrapbook page ideas in the article School Report Scrapbook Page Idea Using a Mini 8 Punch. The great thing about this layout is that the basics of it are so simple that it could easily be transformed into a scrapbook page for any theme. Jennifer used the basics of inking and layering to create a great scrapbook page design that would be perfect as a the basis for a layout for your own family album.


View the original article here

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Organizing Your 12x12 Scrapbook Papers

Paper StorageOne of the most popular articles here on About.com Scrapbooking is all about ideas for organizing your scrapbook supplies, especially 12x12 papers. This week, I have updated that article,?12x12 Paper Storage Solutions - Ideas for Storing and Organizing 12x12 Patterned Papers and Cardstocks,?with new links and information for 2012. This is the place to get started if you need some new ideas for getting your patterned papers and solid cardstocks organized and ready for scrapbooking.


View the original article here

Scrapbooking Organization

Button OrganizerIf you can't do any scrapbooking because your supplies have completely taken over your space then this is the article for you. This list, Scrapbooking Organization - Getting Your Scrapbook Paper, Supplies, and Embellishments Organized, is filled with ideas for organizing your papers, embellishments, supplies, and more. Some of my favorite links in this list are to suggestions from About.com Scrapbooking readers. They have fabulous ideas for getting organized using recycled items and simple techniques. At the end of this article, you will find links to inspiration to help you get started scrapbooking once you are all organized.


View the original article here

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Where to Learn Beginner Scrapbooking Techniques


Beginner scrapbookers have many resources available to learn how to scrapbook. Scrapbooking is one of the fastest growing hobbies, and options for learning this craft come in many different places. Before considering which method is best for you, consider your time and money commitment, as well as your goals for a new hobby.

Are you just looking to make attractive pages for your family to enjoy and preserve your photographs and memories? Maybe you want to learn how to scrapbook for a new hobby you can share with others. Scrapbooking can be as simple or as complex as you want to make it.

Your local craft store is a great resource for beginners to learn this hobby. Some craft stores specialize in scrapbooking, and their staff can help you choose basic tools and supplies to get you started. Many of these stores offer classes on the latest techniques. These classes often allow you to try out new tools and see how others approach their page layouts. You might also take a project class that allows you to complete an entire album.

Classes vary in cost, but most are quite reasonable. They usually provide all the tools and materials necessary, which make them a great way to try out this hobby with little financial investment. You will need to bring several photographs to use on your page layouts. Teachers are experienced and enthusiastic. They are trained to teach all levels of scrapbooking techniques and can answer any questions you might have about this hobby to help you decide if it's right for you. Don't be surprised if you see more experienced scrapbookers in these classes. Some people will take them just for the social aspect of the class and for new ideas on how to use basic techniques more effectively.

To find a class in your area, check with the large craft stores, as well as your local scrapbooking stores. Most offer classes with convenient schedules, and many offer classes that can be started any time.

Another option is to learn in your own home. Direct sales companies, like Creative Memories and Close to My Heart, have consultants that will come to your home and give a class on basic techniques. Much like a Tupperware party, you invite your friends to your home for a lesson. The consultant will teach the basic philosophy behind scrapbooking, as well as, how to choose supplies and tools, and how to design a simple page. You and your friends will usually make a 2-page layout with materials supplied by the consultant and photos you bring from home. Consultants may or may not charge for the lesson. This usually depends on the cost of the supplies used for the pages. The lesson usually ends with an opportunity to purchase that company's products.

Craft magazines are full of information on basic techniques and beginner tips. In the United States, most bookstores sell a variety of scrapbooking magazines. The most popular magazines are Creating Keepsakes, Simple Scrapbooks, Memory Makers and Scrapbooks, Etc. Buy a single issue of each magazine first. Each has a slightly different slant on this hobby. For example, Simple Scrapbooks focuses on quick, easy pages. Once you find one that seems to match your style, buy the annual subscription which is always more cost effective than buying single newsstand copies.

Many craft stores offer crop nights that can be another way to learn. Crops bring together groups of scrapbookers to work on their pages together. Basically, they are scrapbooking parties. The store will often charge a nominal fee and provide refreshments for the evening. Many will allow you to use their tools during the crop, as well. This is a great way to try out more expensive tools, like die cut machines and cutters. You could even invite your friends to your home for a crop. Crops allow everyone to share techniques with each other and provide beginners with tips and ideas.

One more option to learn basic techniques is to purchase an album kit. Many album kits come complete with all the supplies you need to make an album. They provide detailed instructions and sometimes even basic color and design layout theory. However, to complete the album you will need to buy your own tools, such as, scissors and adhesive.

Once you've learned beginner scrapbooking, remember to practice your techniques often. The more pages you make the better you will become at designing layouts. As you master the basics, you can use the same resources above to find more advanced tips and techniques.




Christine Perry is an avid scrapbooker and has over 10 years of scrapbooking experience. Her favorite photography and scrapbooking subjects are her reluctant teenagers. She invites you to her website, http://www.intoscrapbooking.com for more scrapbooking tips and discount scrapbooking supplies.




Easy Scrapbooking techniques


One of the great things about scrapbooking as a hobby is that the more you do, the more opportunities you discover. As you learn to see the world through the eyes of a big scrapbooker, other hobbies like sewing, moulding or begin to seem applicable to your scrapbook album as well. Cutting veterans are always looking for new and interesting ways to incorporate in their album. Here are some scrapbooking techniques, which you may want to try.

1. age gracefully: there are several ways to give your paper documents and vintage feel. Try tearing a recipe in a cookbook unused so that the edges are ragged. Then the spritz with tea, scrunch up until book and smooth again. After the paper dries, you will have what appears to be a fragment of time worn in history. Ink stamps, when applied to light, it can also give the appearance of being old and faded.

2. Lumpy and bumpy: the use of textiles has recently become one of the most exciting new trends in scrapbooking. Arches, fibres, ribbons and cords bulky certainly require some planning and understanding of your materials. A very simple technique is to weave a fiber strand through holes punched along one edge of the page. This pop-laced look if you are using a different color underneath. Plan ahead as these pages will significantly increase the thickness of your album.

3. Sew you go: parchment has become a popular material for words display or creation of pockets. This next technique combines the beauty of parchment, with ice-cold that feeling in the House of stitching to create pockets of fun. Simply apply a poem, words or a picture to your parchment. Them Choose some small element like sequins, buttons or small shapes to the Pocket. For example, the text might be "happy new year", and you could fill the pocket with confetti. Then you can form a Pocket sewing the edges of the card above the scroll so that the stitches are obvious. Sew simple!

4. bold and Beady: some people avoid using beads because they imagine that they are too difficult to adhere well. Try using the thin thread with small pearls uniform and then affix with a transparent adhesive tape and tacky glue liquid which is confident on images. Then, use the design as a border for your photos.

5. create a background: stamps & letters-cut offers a fun alternative to plain paper for the background. Consider forging or die-cut words or letters are all through your page. You could use the words of a song, names or random word choices. Finally, tape images on your prose. By selecting the type of fonts and colors that you like, the possibilities are endless.

When you try to scrapbooking techniques, keep in mind that proper tools can make or break the experience. Just imagine trying to crop and journal your pages with cutting tools obtuse or dried out markers. The first step to using a new technique is to set your drive for success. Search for the materials you need and then play up to get it right. Most importantly, let your creativity guide you and enjoy.




Barbara Kirby is the author of free ebook-The Scrapbookers Directory that gives you instant access to discount scrapbooking supplies, ideas, layouts, freebies and more. For more information check out http://www.thescrapbookersdirectory.com




Saturday, October 15, 2011

Scrapbooking ideas-chalking tips


After reading these tips chalking, you might wonder how you ever scrapbooked without them. When you use chalk, it is possible to create faux leather trim, as backgrounds, add an antique appearance, or to decorate images of clip art and bring together all you layout. There is no need to limit your designs for backgrounds, blocks or accents. You can also use to add appeal directly to you. Once you master the basics, you can enjoy the addition of some new twists and techniques for the old classics.

Gypsum mocking: Rusty forms are not always a great emphasis on your pages. You can create the illusion of a rusty by shading your accents with chalk them mount with a dot.

Building perspective: using the cut and shading to give cardboard blocks a three dimensional appearance. Apply shadows to chalk the sides of the block.

Marbling: plaster and water are all that is necessary to create a beautiful background. Fill in a pan with .5 "shallow water and scrape 2-3 colors on the surface. Stir once-and-drop a piece of cardboard on the water. Remove it immediately and lay flat to dry.

Reverse: apply plaster Chalking it background. Using an eraser, remove some of the color. This is a perfect way to create a plaid design for your background.

Inscription: Color the Interior of your lettering designs to create a shaded title.

Not just simple cardstock. Use chalk on dry embossed papers by rubbing chalk onto the raised image. Apply the plaster to parchment crumbled, color images of heat stress on dark colored cards. Be creative and try different things with chalk. Add a little color to your favorite photos and black and white. Mixing and matching these techniques will add dimension and character to all your pages.




Scrapbooking close to my heart consultant Marcy Larsen. Scrapbook Layouts, molding techniques and more at marcylarsen.com.




Scrapbooking techniques


Take a notebook or a mundane daily diary or journal and add some decoration with a border and you end up with an album. The notebook, diary, journal or scrapbooks have the same production base. All are full of thoughts, ideas and feelings. What separates an album from others is the Visual impact and the beauty of the production. In a sense, the album to show events or thoughts that other people can see it. All these elements to preserve mementos and gifts. It's just that the album dabbles in creativity and imagination, while other elements are pure and simple.

Just like with many other aspects of life these days, scrapbooking has changed with the advent of computers, the internet and things like printers and scanners. These hardware elements have the same effect as the print scrapbook presentations. All make the process faster and easier. Desktop publishing and new software has also made scrapbooking easier for everyone. You might have an album and do not use a single piece of paper. Doing this is known as digital scrapbooking and has taken off in popularity. Whereas all these new-fangled computerized methods used to be the domain of geeks and techno-nerd, they have now branched to the practice of scrapbooking. People of all ages, from anywhere in the world now have access to many things to help them produce their own scrapbooks. Because of the internet and a lot of websites geared scrapbook, options have skyrocketed. Never in the past, someone could make as much as they can now. Another aspect of digital scrapbooking fits very well with the world of social networking. Sites like Myspace and Facebook are a good match for your skills of scrapbooking.

Over the years, scrapbooking has grown from a hobby to today's elitist where is a valid ' commercial activities. Web sites and locations of bricks and Malta have multiplied in what is seen today. It used to be a small scale, but now is expanding day by day. With the new entries in the scrapbooking industry, there are new techniques of scrapbooking and a lot of them. Because of the myriad of choices for scrapbooking, it is difficult to pigeonhole particular scrapbooking techniques. There really is no right or wrong way to decorate an album. This leads to new techniques and unique scrapbooking every day. Don't get me wrong, there are techniques that will surely scrapbook your presentation, but a bit of whimsy with a smidgeon of creativity will go a long way.

So where does one go to find new and different techniques, scrapbooking? There are web sites, books and even friends scrapbook. Scrapbooking is a learning experience and while you're creating your masterpiece, you will see interesting techniques you may not have thought in the past. Go ahead, use them and share them with your friends. Convince them to share their scrapbooking techniques too.

When you plan your scrapbook, take some time and think about the whole process through to the finished project. Starting with the most important part of the album; the paper. Paper should be robust with a long life and acid-free. You want your work around for a long time and the correct paper is essential for long life. As you plan the design of your scrapbook, keep mental notes on various supplies needed. Supplies such as pens, inks and stencil should be carefully designed to make your project. Go into each album with the proper planning and you will find it easier to express your thoughts and end up with beautiful presentations.

Lots of scrapbooking techniques highlights the need to have index pages or highlight pages. They will inform you on where to find them and how to display them. These special pages should be immediately apparent as special pages with unique symbols and colors. Another way to distinguish the pages with bookmarks with tassels. Tassels are decorative and functional in an album.

There are many elements to the art of decoration. Decoration should not be exaggerated as it will make the project look gaudy. The right type of decoration is fundamental in the scrapbooking techniques. Choose decoration with planning before you begin. Display and then go with it. There are many choices, which you can use. Stamps, embellishments, rub-ons, stickers, snow globes etc can really glitz on your scrapbook if done to excess. Choose carefully and use each appropriately.

You want more versatility to your scrapbook? Here are some ways to add impact to the project. You can add pop-up pages, linked pages, trinkets punch craft, peek a boo and panoramic pages to make your scrapbook unique and wonderful. Scrapbook techniques are unlimited and very diverse. Go ahead and explore these techniques and add versatility to your scrapbooks.




Has been there, done that, demolished a page on it

Ken