It's a fun way to capture and document your memories.These albums are great gifts for family members, friends and future generations.Producing a well-told narrative in this innovative art form requires careful planning.
Step 1: You can pick a theme and materials.
The stories are united by a theme.The theme may be very general, like a family photo album.Before buying supplies or starting crafting, it is important to settle on a theme.The amount of material you include, the type of album that you will use, and your color scheme are all related to your theme.General themes include family, children or an individual child, pet, and extended family members.Specific themes may include: wedding, birthday, school year, sports season, vacation, holiday celebration, and pregnancy/ baby.
Step 2: You can make a list of stories and events to include in your album.
Think about the stories you want to tell when you pick your theme.You should take a moment to write down the stories.Look over the items and decide how you want to organize the stories.Do you plan to tell the stories in chronological order or group them?How much time will you devote to each story?
Step 3: You can choose photos and memorabilia for your album.
You will need to change your photos several times.Don't be afraid to be very careful during this process.A collection of photos and items are related to the theme of your album.There is a list of stories and photos at the workspace.You can sort the material by the stories you want to tell.You can put the pictures inside the folders or envelopes.Take out any photos that aren't related to your narrative by going through each folder and envelope.
Step 4: Pick paper, tools, and adornments for your project.
After you have settled on a story list and sorted through your images, it's time to pick a color scheme.You can use the aisles of your favorite crafting store.Pick up any tools you need to complete the project.To achieve a cohesive look, purchase paper and adornments from the same line and color-families.Buy acid-free paper.This paper will help preserve your art.Purchase ink pads and pens.There are ink that is waterproof and fade resistant.Repositionable andremovable glues can be picked up.You can move items around the page with relative ease with these products.If necessary, purchase a paper trimmer, several pairs of scissors, and/or cut-out templates.
Step 5: Pick an album.
It's not a one-size-fits-all thing.Pick a size that will fit your theme, the number of stories you want to tell, and the amount of material you intend to use.12 x 12 inches is the most common size.This size is ideal for anyone who wants to fit several images on a single page.It's great for general albums.The 8 12 x 11 inches album is ideal for those with less material.One to two pictures can fit on a page.This is a good size for a vacation, school year, child, or pet themed scrapbook.Other common sizes are 8 x 8 inches, 6 x 6 inches and 5 x 7 inches.These are great to give as gifts or to use for a specific theme.One picture can fit on a page.When shopping for an album, pay attention to the type of binding used.There are three types of binding: post-bound, strap hinge, and 3-ring binders.You can move pages around, remove pages, and add additional pages with each binding method.
Step 6: Make a layout for a page.
Before cutting and adhering your material to a page, devote time to creating a few potential page layout.Pre-planning your layout will save you a lot of time and prevent you from wasting materials.Take a few pages out of your album.Use the position of photos, memorabilia, designated journal spaces and headings to experiment.When you find a layout that you like, take a picture of the layout to use as a reference.
Step 7: You need to layout your page.
Pull the file of pictures and memorabilia if you choose a story from your list.Pick one of your pre-planned layouts after removing a page from your album.The pictures should be placed on the page.The items should be adjusted until you are happy with the layout.If you need a new page layout, you can always switch to it.
Step 8: Attach your photos with mat and crop.
After you have finalized your page layout, you will be able to alter your photographs.Take the time to trim, decorate, and adhere your items.If you need to crop an image, lightly mark your cut lines on the back of the item with a pencil.To cut the item down to size, use a pair of scissors or a paper trimmer.If you want to draw attention to an item, consider matting.Pre-cut photo mats can be used to create a border.Acid-free glue can be used to affix photos to the page after you have created borders.
Step 9: Each story, event, or page has a title.
The title introduces your audience to the story you are telling.The title should be brief and descriptive.You can use Pens Stamps Stickers, Computer and printer cut-outs to create the title.
Step 10: You should include journal entries for your photos and memorabilia.
Images and memorabilia are meaningless without descriptions.The journal entries transform the items and images into meaningful narratives.Time and page space should be devoted to crafting descriptive caption and thoughtful journal entries.The names, dates, locations, and brief descriptions may be included in the caption.Journal entries can include: anecdotes, quotes, poems, lyrics, and longer descriptions of an event.You can use your list of stories to write your caption and journals.You should plan out what you are going to write before adding a caption or journal entry.Fix any errors in your writing.You can either hand write your caption or print and adhere it to the page.
Step 11: Your pages should be embellished.
You can dress up the page after adhering the primary items.Embellishments can be used to add interest to your pages.The decorative elements should be used lightly.Stickers Stamps Ribbons and fabric Cardstock paper cut outs are some of the types of adornments.
Step 12: Each page should be put into a protectors.
Each page of your album needs to be protected in order to preserve your photos.Plastic sleeves are what page protectors are.They are available in different sizes and binding styles.You can protect your page from dust, dirt, and fingerprints by slipping it into a page protectors.Purchase protectors that match the size of your album.You can choose between protectors for both sides of the page.You can choose a clear finish.
Step 13: You can add the pages to your album.
You can insert your pages into your album.You can rearrange the narratives to fit the storyline of your album as you complete more pages.You can work on stories out of order.
Step 14: Store your book in a dry place.
You have to consider where and how to store your album in order to preserve it.The ideal storage space is clean and dry.A preservation-quality box is what you should put your album in.Do not store your album in areas that are prone to leaks.