Getting Creative: An Easy ‘How-To’ Guide for Making Your Own Scrapbook

Sharing photographs and stories with friends and family in conversation is a great way of reminiscing, but there is something very special and deeply personal about creating a scrapbook to relive and to share treasured memories. Scrapbooking is an increasingly popular hobby enjoyed by all ages, used as a way to protect and display memorabilia from a range of important moments from a sporting event to family history or a milestone in your life. It is an excellent way to preserve photographs, tickets, certificates, or artwork and add a personal journal entry to bring the story to life in your own words. Not only can a scrapbook give you enjoyment from creating it, but it can be passed onto loved ones as a unique and sentimental keepsake.

Choose a Theme

Deciding on a theme will help you to collate the items you want to include in your scrapbook and the number of pages you will need to display your mixed media. This could be occasions such as a graduation, wedding, new arrival, a special holiday or a family tree. Use a general scrapbook album to get going, and then once you have mastered the art of scrapbooking you can start to build on your collection!

Choose a Scrapbook

There are so many style and size options available for your scrapbook album. Which is right for you will depend on your personal preference. Styles include Post-Bound, which contains machine screws and posts that screw together to bind the book with page protectors that allow you to slide completed scrapbook pages into place; Three-Ring, which uses three-ring notebook-style hinges to hold the page protectors in place and offers the flexibility of adding/removing pages easily; Strap-Hinge, where pages have staples built into the edges and plastic straps slide through these staples to hold the pages in the book; and Book-Bound, which is a traditional high quality hardcover book with a sewn and glued binding so the pages are permanently bound and is how all Locketts scrapbooks are made. 

Ensure the paper quality in your scrapbook is sufficient to hold bulkier items such as greeting cards or folded newspaper articles. Ideally the paper should be ph. neutral. Photographs hold acid from the processing operation and when those acids combine with acidic paper, adhesives, or page protectors a chemical reaction occurs. Over time, this can leave you with discoloured or disintegrated memorabilia. Locketts use archive quality ph. neutral 160gsm thickness paper leaves in our scrapbook albums.

Choose a Layout

Planning your layout will give the design of your scrapbook a consistent look and feel. It will ensure you do not have to crop photographs unnecessarily to ensure they fit the page or run out of space for special embellishments or journal entries. Using colourful or patterned card/materials behind your memorabilia can add splashes of colour and eye-catching creativity, whilst adhesive mounts can help you position photographs for a sleek and professional display.

Tell your Story

Your scrapbook is a unique and personal representation of your memories. Bringing your photographs and memorabilia to life by telling your story in your own words will make your scrapbook extra special. Whether it is printed anecdotes or handwritten recollections, your stories will give loved ones an insight into your life and special experiences. You can add in captions, page titles, dates, names, places, poems or quotes. Let your imagination be your guide.

Keep it Safe

Once you have completed your scrapbook it is important to protect it, as you have now created something truly unique and sentimental. Page protectors are a great way to prevent pages and their contents from getting torn, dusty, or damaged. Keep your scrapbook in a safe place where you know it will not be exposed to damp or humidity so you can enjoy it for years to come.

Most importantly – have fun with creating your scrapbook – and enjoy sharing your memories with the special people in your life.

You can see our full range of Locketts quality Scrapbooks Here.