Remember the decade you "grew up" in. And No Photos Required!

As the years go by and times change, so do our memories. That's what scrapbooking is all about. We change, life changes, the world changes. Do you remember what happened in the world that made you who you are today? Do you remember things that changed the world as you were growing up? A scrapbook layout doesn't have to be about the memory a person. A layout can be about a time, a feeling or an event. Those kinds of nostaligia memories contributed to making each of us who we are today.

What went on in this glorious country that played a part in your past and contributed to who you are today? Do you remember? Got to admit, I don't either. I grew up in the 60's in elementary school and the 70's in high school. Wow, what a couple of nostaligia decades of change! So many new creations and inventions. Man walked on the moon and Archie Bunker changed the course of television. Talk about 2 extremes!

But what about you? Do you remember what happened in the country while you were growing up? Or maybe things happened that you don't remember or didn't experience personally but they made a huge impact on the country or world. I don't remember hearing about Neil Armstrong walking on the moon in July 1969. We didn't have a television or a radio. I assume the kids in school talked about it and the teachers probably talked about it but I have no recollection of its happening. But what an impact it had on this country!

So to help you do a scrapbook layout of contributions that impacted you and your kids, pick a decade and find out what happened during those 10 years. See how many you remember, how many you don't but wish you did or are glad they at least happened! Wow, the nostaligic memories will flood back and the tears will start to well up when you remember what you thought you forgot! And an extra added bonus to this method of memory collecting is NO PICTURES REQUIRED!

I did a layout like this for my daughter (now 28). I used her favorite colors of that time and just picked from the lists. Granted they might remember more than I do, but it was a general accumulation of nostaligia things in her decade.

I titled the list "You Know You Grew Up in the 80's If You Remember..." and a list of things that went on in the 80's from fashion to TV to fads and word phrases to toys and movies. Things like
...if you wore a ponytail on the side of your head
...watched Fraggle Rock.
...wore yellow construction boots.
...wore biker shorts and baby doll tops and felt very stylish.
...remember "I've fallen and I can't get up!"
...thought He-man and She-ra should hook up
And the list goes on. And how much fun I had doing this as I remember my daughter doing almost ALL these things!

In this 12 x 12 layout, I only wanted a single page spread, so I made a removable page where the list continued. Only supplies I used was brads and embroidery floss to attach the additional page. I typed the title "You Know You Grew Up in the 80's If You Remember...". I type the journaling in pink onto white card stock and then mounted it on black cardstock - this made the first "page", then mounted the first page onto the matching pattern background.

To make the additional movable page, I just made it smaller than the main page and did the same color scheme - pink ink on white cardstock on black cardstock. I used pink and black embroidery floss and attached it with brads. I adhesive mounted the first page on 3 of its four sides, leaving the one side open. I slide this page into the page protector and where I wanted the additional page to slide BEHIND the first page, I used a sharp craft knife and slit the page protector the length of the additional page. The additional page is now behind the main page, also protected by the page protector. It only comes out when you want it to!

An absolute ton of memories on one scrapbook layout!

Here are some links to places that can help you with this kind of memory search.

In The 70's, 80's, 90's Click the year at the top of the screen, then choose whatever category you like!

SCOPES SYSTEM - What Happened in History

AMERICAN FILM INSTITUTE - Hollywood History

TV GUIDE - TV History

Acid Free - Yes or No? You decide...

We all know that acid free is the absolute best for scrapbooking. It keeps the items from fading, preserves them and gives them life for generations. Yes, that is good! However....

Sometimes scrapbook products and items can get rather pricey. I have been a scrapbooker for 10 years. I have seen the prices really high.

And while the price of these neat and "I want that" things are so high, the budgets we have for scrapbooking supplies usually doesn't increase. And those that scrapbook ALOT or have several albums going ( I always had at least 4) or (like I did) scrap every single photo ever taken of you children, these extra things tend to be to expensive for our budgets. I know there is a spray can of a acid protector solution - you spray on your papers. But it is out of my budget because I do so much that I just couldn't afford to buy that stuff for every page. Granted, it you can buy a can and use it sparingly or only on certain things like newspaper clippings, but what about the rest of the scrapbook embellishments? We still want to preserve and keep our albums from damage. But you can think about what you are doing and economize and still have well preserved albums.

Always use acid free cardstock or background papers. That is a must, as we all know. You can't scrimp on this. The cardstock, back ground, pattern papers are the backbone of the layout. Somethings you just can't economize on. HOWEVER... watch for sales! I know that Walmart has several options of reams of cardstock for a reasonable price. I get the ream of 500 white cardstock for $4.97. A penny a piece - doesn't get any cheaper than that! So what if the background of every page is white - utilize the other pattern papers for the color and embellishments. Also you can color up the white cardstock with inks and chalks! But this is your foundation - you can't economize on the foundation - just find ways to make it work for you!! Joanns' Crafts OFTEN has the pattern papers on sale. STOCK UP!!! Beautiful patterns, designs, characters, pretty much, you name it, they got it! I found a 12x12 sheet for each of the Disney Pricnesses - 6 for 96¢ so I got one of each of the Princess for my grand daughters Disney scrapbook. I browsed a scrapbook store one day and saw the same papers were 75¢ EACH!!!!

Matte your photos - at least once, but 2 or 3 times also creates a wonderful layout. Lots of color, and lots of acid free!

Even if you do 8x10, buy 12x12. This gives you 2 layouts for the price of one sheet of 12x12. First, cut out the 8x10 piece. That is your background paper of the first layout that you enhance with solid paper. The piece leftover - that is now the embellishment for the second layout - which has a solid back ground! Great for double page spreads!

SAVE YOUR SCRAPS! I mean it. Save them! You will be surprised at how often you just need a small piece of something and hate to cut that 8x10 or 12x12 just to get that small piece. I have one of those 3 drawer plastic storages. The first drawer is labled SOLID, middle drawer is PATTERN and the last drawer is OTHER. Anytime I have scraps I throw them in the proper drawer. Next time I need a small piece - for like die cuts or letters, I just flip through the drawer! The OTHER drawer is for like velum, or speciality papers. This has saved me so much money!!

And since not all scraps are 2'"2" - some are larger! Take several of the larger pieces and construct them for the background and you've made your background from scraps.

The only other thing that I would suggest you absolutely HAVE TO HAVE ACID FREE is the photo adhesive. Photo squares (which are my favorite) or that cool little runner tool thing - MUST HAVES. You shouldn't glue a photo. Even if the glue stick says acid free, you shouldn't use it on photos. Use the acid free glue sticks on other paper embellishments, but NOT ON YOUR PHOTOS. Loosing the embellishment you made is one thing, but loosing that photo - there goes the memory. You can replace the embellishment, you can't replace the photo.

But you want to put other things on your layouts. Brads, buttons, washers, envelopes, anything that you think of. Are these things acid free? There is a pen that you can buy that will tell on paper, but other things, wood, metal, etc, how do you tell? I don't know. So I use this theory. WHERE on the layout am I going to be putting the item? Think about it. I have this small bottle cap with a photo in it. Is the cap acid free? I dont' know. Am I worried that it will mess things up if it is not - well, no not really. Why? Well, first because it is metal. Metal doesnt' fade. Maybe the writting on it fades. but since I am putting a photo in it, what difference does it make. It won't get wet or rust. So why worry? Remember, you can only do so much. Nothing is guarenteed even though they say "lasts for 100 years". Just use your common sense.

Where are you putting the item? I have these little envelopes I got at an office supply store, I have no idea if they are acid free. But I use them. They are laying on acid free cardstock, they are decorated with acid free papers, and the card inside is acid free, and the entire layout page is in an acid free page protector. Other than 100% guarentee, this is a close as it gets. And if the envelope does fade, what damage will it do? It will probably take several decades to fade in the first place and what have you lost? Just the envelope. Again, no 100% guarentee, but pretty darn close.

So just look at what you are doing. Think about it with your common sense, and make your decision from there.

I welcome any comments you might like to leave or if you have any suggestions about acid- free....

How To Scrapbook Your FAVORITE FOODS!

Scrapbooking is all about memories. Well, favorite foods can have some great memories! Whether the foods are yours or your kids, make a scrapbook layout about them so you'll remember in years to come! You might not think right now that there is much to remember, but in years down the road, they are guaranteed to bring a couple good laughs!

My grand daughter was 2-3 years old and she had her favorite foods and of course I had to document them! Her scrapbook would not be complete without these! This is a case when a scrapbook layout doesn't need any journaling - the memory is there, just not much to say about it but a picture holds a 1,000 memories! This way, you only have to do one scrapbook layout, instead of 1,000 words!!!

I Love My Chips!

At 2 years old, she loved sour cream and onion potatoe chips! The bag was nearly as tall as she was! I used a couple shots of her with the bag of chips. Then I cut the front portion of a bag of her favorite chips and glued it onto cardstock, then glued that onto the back ground page. I did this for the sake of protection from the acid - I have no idea if the bag is acid free or not, so I just did it this way to help the unknown. Each photo is matted on cardstock so the actual photo never touches the bag. I used 1/4:" letterpunch for the letters.

Peanut Butter Princess

She loved PB! So it was hilarous when she got ahold of the near empty jar and took her spoon and chowed-down! I used the same colors, blue and red, as in the jar label. Took the label off the jar and mounted it on cardstock and then on the background page. The letters are 1,1/4" die cut letter punches. Photos are doubled matted. The border is made with strips cut with a Coluzzle Template.

You Make 'Um, I Eat 'Um!

She didn't like the cereal by itself, but she did like the cookie bars you make from the Rice Cripsies. So one day when I was making them with her, I just let her eat off the mixing spoon! Then I cut the front out of the box, and the recipe for the cookie bars from the side. I mounted the front of the box on the layout and added the recipe (matted) by thread. I used eyelets on the recipe card and kind of "hung" it from the box front. That way she will always have that recipe! Photos are matted on cardstock.

All thses scrapbook layouts are quick, easy and inexpensive. Use your own judgement about the acid free issues of the packages you use.

Our First Pumpkin - Quick, easy and lots of color!

When my son got married, they lived with us for a few months and Halloween was in there. We are not big Halloween fans, but we do like the fall and harvest-y themes of the season. I do like the carving of pumpkins and baking the pumpkin seeds!

So when I do a scrapbook layout on a theme that I am not a fan of, there's always an event or feature that is a memory other than the holiday, so I twist the layout theme to show the memory I do like about the event/holiday.

This scrapbook layout is a 12x12. It is titled " Our First Pumpkin". The kids carved it together with the help of their little 2 year old neice (my grand daughter that is "hosting" the swap of Box Tops 4 Education for Free Scrapbook supplies at Scrapbook For Box Tops

This scrapbook layout is quick, easy and few "supplies", but it still generates the theme of their first pumpking harvest/carving that they did as well as just a family function!

3 photos tell the story of the event. This is a 12x12 layout.

I cut the photos in a circle and matted them on a 1/4" larger circle die cut. The letters were purchased from Missy Made It . I added a pumpkin die cut and there you have it! Quick, easy but shows the "process" they went through from start to finish and a "family shot" at the end. Has basically nothing to do with
Halloween. That's a fantastic feature of scrapbooking - out of the box, no right/wrong way to do it! It's your memory - you create its designation!

Get Your FREE Scrapbook Embellishments Here!

At Scrapbook for Box Tops - we are still collecting box tops and swaping them for free scrapbook supplies. Come on over and read about the new products offering box tops, get free printable coupons to use on the participating products and for a limited time as a back to school event...they are offering DOUBLE box tops on many items!

Scrapbook for Box Tops

So...print a coupon, save money on the product, cut the box tops and send them off for free scrapbook embellishments - all the while you are eating healthy! What a great way to scrap!!!!

Maps, Phamplets and Tickets of your Vacation!

A picture might say a 1,000 words, but those words are pretty important on their own! What I am trying to say is, pictures are not the only things that hold a memory or tell the story.

On your trips this summer - look out for things that will make you remember WHERE you were and WHY!!!

In my Vacation Album scrapbook

I used "road" sticker strips. Looks just like a road and I put a little stretch on each page. This continues on each page and just offers the ammenity of "continuation" in your album.

I used the map of the area I went. This is especially good for places like National Parks or a specific location. Although I do admit I did a scrapbook layout from California to Texas - and used the map highlighting the trip on Interstate 10 East! That is what I used as the "background" paper! The actual map!! And I made other little markings for things on the way that I want to remember. This way, the map as the "background paper" not only offers the theme of "travel" but also offers memories! Cuts down on cost and thickness of the layout. If you dont have the actual map or it isn't in usable condition - scan it and print it out!

In addition...

you can use admission tickets and phamplets that you might get at a destination. I did a layout for Disneyland - a 2 page spread with5 photos of my 2 kids at different ages when we went to Disneyland- so it shows "Disneyland Through the Years". It also has admission ticket showing the price of admission and the parking ticket to see how much we had to pay to park!!! Admission is about $52 to Disneyland this year - in 1999 it was only $36!!!!

The phamplet that they hand out as you walk in - I just cut out the map of the park and it shows the whole park with all the rides - and we always look to find our favorite!

Look Out For Other Things That Hold Memories

Had I been thinking "scrapbook" when I went, I would have also kept food receipts from when we bought the Mickey Mouse pretzels and the frozen chocolate covered bananas. Or the label from the popcorn box or even a pebble from a walkway!!

There is so much that you can find that will offer you memories. Don't just rely on photos. They are great and do their part, but other momentoes are just as great.

Free Scrapbook Supplies - Make your summer work for you!

School is nearly out but that doesn't mean Free Scrapbook Supplies will be gone!

Check out Scrapbook For Box Tops for some tips on how to make box tops work for you this summer!

Scrapbook for Box Tops is still "open". Collect box tops all summer long! Send them to us any time you have a bunch collected! June, July, August...we are still here. Get Free Scrapbook supplies all summer long and help Kellie with her school fund raiser as she starts 3rd grade in September!

Hurry! Don't forget!

Velcro - for Scrapping? You Bet!

We all know that velcro is a wonderful invention with tons of uses. But in scrapping? Sure! You have to attached everything in your album with something - and since "interaction" and "activity" pages are kind of the "rage" nowdays, what better way to combine the two!

Buy velcro with the adhesive already on the back. I bought a package with 2 yards at a craft store for 99¢. That will last a long time since you just need a very small square. (99¢ - VERY inexpensive,long lasting and saves you money!) You just then need to cut off the length you want! The adhesive is pretty strong, at least in my experience, so no other addition is needed. Just make sure of your exact positioning as once down, you can't reposition it. Here is a photo of a 2 page layout (5x4 size) using the velcro...





Zebra Envelope Page (Click on photos to see it closer)

I used the frilly fibers and a pull tab from a can of soup (YES a PULL TAB!!)for the closure decoration on the outside of the envelope flap.




Envelope opened. The inside of the flap I decorated with another animal pattern paper.

Although you can use velcro to adhere most anything that you want to be able to be moved, I like using velcro on envelopes. Envelopes are my current favorite thing to put in my albums. They hold all kinds of stuff! At the moment I am just using them for holding additional pictures and a cardstock square for journaling. But give me time - I will think of more!!

Just take an envelope you have laying around or of a particular size you want, tear (gently!) it open at the construction of it and there is your template! How quick and easy is that! For another example......

Cut it out or print it out on the BACK of the paper you want to use for the envelope then cut out. Create the envelope. Now for the closure - VELCRO!! Cut a tiny bit off that 2 yard length (see what I mean about it lasting a LONG time!) take the cover off one side of the velcro. I usually put the fuzzy side on the envelope and the pointy side on the flap. Just seems to be the best "appearence" way to do it.

Now it is a good idea to make that flap a bit stronger. I always line the inside area of the flap with a contrasting paper. If the envelope is solid, i use a print and visa versa. This adds strength to the flap for pulling it open. All you have to do is turn the envelope over with flap open, and trace the flap and down only as far as you need to go into the envelope so that that area is covered. It doesn't have to be totally inside the envelope.

Now make sure you are SURE of where you want it as once down, it sticks really well, Most likely you wont' be able to reposition it. Remove the adhesive covering from the pointy side of the velcor. Adhere the velcor to the UNDERSIDE of the FLAP. Now, take the cover off the other side of the velcor and close the flap. Press on the top of the velcro and you are done! Envelope closed with Velcro.

Now just create a "pull" to open the envelope if you want and just glue the envelope onto your layout! You could also, instead of a "pull", just wrap ribbon or fibers around the envelope. Adhere them to the bad of the envelope but leave them loose to the front, that way you can just tie the ribbons to "close" the envelope.

Here is another 2 page layout of the envelope with velcro...




Flag layout. I just used 3 strands of fiber, adhered them to the back of the envelope and brought them around so they tie in front. This is the envelope open. I decorated the inside of the flap with the same pattern paper. I didn't use velcro on this one, just used the fibers to tie it shut, but you could use the velcro if you wanted to. Possibilities are endless!




Open Flag Envelope


Give it a try. If you have any questions, leave a comment and I will get back to you!

Hope you enjoy this technique. i have found it to be one of my favorites!