one picture is worth a thousand words, then scrapbooking is a whole story. Do you want to make a photo album with your own hands? Stock up on photos, imagination and heed our advice.
What is scrapbooking? In short, this is making photo albums with your own hands. The name of this technique has English roots: scrap (read, “scrap” or “scrap”) – clipping, book (“beech”) – a book. In such an album, in addition to photographs and captions to them, you can see decorations and unexpected elements (postage stamps, pieces of fabric, dried flowers …), which are designed to immerse the viewer in the atmosphere of a particular event.
Family or personal scrapbooking albums – often referred to as scrapbooks – sometimes look like a true work of art. Professionals can use handmade paper and photographs taken with film cameras to create them.
Do not think that the purpose of this art form is to surprise the viewer with the cost of materials or the filigree performance. Even a simple scrapbook of ten pages, but made with love, will help you immerse yourself in this or that event, again feel the wind of wanderings and the smell of distant countries. Well, or just indulge in pleasant memories.
Ideas for scrapbooking albums
The main thing in scrapbooking is not rare photos and funny captions to them, but an idea. There are events that cannot be ignored: a wedding and an engagement, the birth of a baby and children’s holidays, a family celebration, New Year’s holidays or a long trip. Collect not only photos related to these events, but also small gizmos that will decorate your future scrapbook. Everything will come in handy: a bride’s garter, a ribbon from the “envelope” of a newborn, a twig of a Christmas tree, a foreign banknote – any little thing will help to recreate the atmosphere of a holiday or an important event.
And don’t limit yourself to anything. Your scrapbook can be composed of a dozen separate mini-albums. It may look like a herbarium. Or fold like an accordion. You can make a photo album of only Polaroid shots, or compose it from pencil sketches and sketches. Graduation, birthday of your beloved cat, climbing Mount Everest (or a hill in the neighboring area), corporate holiday – any event is worthy of its scrapbooking album.
Scrapbooking for beginners: how to make a photo album from scratch
Where should a beginner start? If you have already decided on a general idea, then at the preparatory stage it is worth selecting the photos that you plan to place in the scrapbook and purchasing everything you need to create it.
Photos can be randomized, but ideally, your photo album should tell a story. Therefore, most often the pictures are arranged according to the chronology of events. We repeat: no one bothers you to divide the photos into thematic sections or even tell the story in reverse order. And answer the audience’s questions: “I am an artist, I see it this way.”
We recommend that you perform the first work using a ready-made base – just type “base for scrapbook” into the search engine. Once you’ve got your hands on it, you can experiment with non-standard formats and unusual materials.
What do you need? In addition to the basics and photos, you will need:
- Cardboard and colored paper. Choose colors that will brighten your scrapbooking album and create the right mood.
- Scissors (one must be straight, and also with curly blades). You will most likely also need a clerical knife.
- Glue. In addition to regular PVA, you can use glue stick and double-sided adhesive tape. It is also good to have a “gun” with hot glue on hand.
- Pens, pencils, markers. Without signatures – nowhere. Whether they are informal or austere, monochrome or multicolored, you decide.
- Decorations and additional items. The broadest category to include anything from magazine clippings, buttons and dried plants to tickets, seashells and scraps of fabric.
The preparatory stage has been completed: the photographs have been selected, the materials have been purchased, the instruments have been prepared. How to get started on a scrapbook?
To avoid chaos, we propose to implement the idea step by step. We’ll start by placing the photos in the album.
Let’s say you decide to tell your story in chronological order. How many photos can be placed on a page? There are no special rules here. Usually 2-3 shots. But it can be just one photo – if you want to emphasize it. Or five “Polaroid” pictures – so you can highlight a busy day of your vacation.
Lay out the selected photographs one page at a time on the table. Is the story working out? Is everything logical? Don’t try to place as many shots as possible – the simpler the better. Doubt about some photo? Set it aside.
At the same time as unfolding the photo, consider what else will be posted on this or that page. Are explanatory captions required? Will each page have a title? Sketch straight away, look for concise phrases.
Keep in mind that all of this will require additional space. As professional designers say, “the page must breathe” – a too dense layout degrades the perception, and a sufficient amount of “air” (as the space between individual elements is called) visually lightens the composition you create.
And about jewelry. They should create and maintain the atmosphere of the event that your photo album is about. But in no case should you draw all the attention to yourself.
Are you ready to place selected elements (photos, lettering, decorations) on the page? Here is one more recommendation: adhere to the golden mean in the composition: you do not need to do everything “according to the ruler”, but you should also avoid excessive variegation.
And now you can transfer everything to the pages of the photo album. We recommend this order:
- We paste photos. Get to this stage creatively – you can crop the photo (not necessarily straight) or provide frames.
- We place the headers. They can be made both on specially prepared substrates, or they can be written into scrapbooking by hand.
- We make captions for the pictures. Get creative: write directly over photos, draw arrows, use stickers, etc.
- We fix the decorations. You may need to be smart here: if something doesn’t stick, sew on the item or carefully secure it with duct tape.
Cover art is a special story. Some start out with the outside and then move on to placing the photos inside. If the idea of the cover has not yet been born, go “from the opposite” – start its design at the last stage of work on the photo album.
All the same recommendations that we gave above are applicable to the external design. Strive for simplicity, avoid pretentiousness, make laconic, but lively, positive inscriptions.
Do not forget that the cover is under the most stress when looking at a scrapbook. It is unlikely that fragile multi-layer applications or light-colored materials that are easy to get dirty will be appropriate here.
The best way to store a finished photo album is a specially sized box: it will protect not only from mechanical damage, but also protect the scrapbook from contamination (drops of liquid, house dust, etc.).
Source: https://pgbonus.ru/statji/dom-i-sad/interer-i-dekor/fotoalbom-svoimi-rukami