Originally Posted By jasmine7 Hi gang! I've just decided to get started in scrapbooking, and while I have picked up some tools & supplies today, there's just so much stuff! I feel so overwhelmed. Can you give some tips for starting out? Are there any tools or gadgets you just can't live without? And what the heck are those little metal gromit thingies for? I saw them at a couple of stores today in the scrapbooking section, and I couldn't figure out for the life of me what they'd be used for, since they're so small. Really, any advice or tips or ideas you could pass along would be much appreciated. I'm going to Hobby Lobby tomorrow to check out their scrapbooking section.
Originally Posted By Autopia Deb The grommet thingies are eyelets and I use them occasionally to decoratively attach elements to my pages. If you only use one it can swing or swivel. Some tips. Choose a paper that goes well with the photos you'd like to use. Pick some stickers, stamps and/or punches that completment the theme of the photos, trim your photos and start arranging until you have a pleasing layout and then stick it all down on the page. Don't worry about perfection or stress out that you aren't doing it right. There is no right or wrong (other than making sure your papers, glues, etc are acid/lignon free). Just have fun. One must have piece of equipment is a paper trimmer. I have two, a smaller one for pix and one that's large enough to fit 12 X 12 paper.
Originally Posted By goodgirl I found it helpful to look at what other people have done. Go to your scrapbook store or Michaels and look for a a book on "simple layouts" or "quick and easy" layouts. These will give you ideas without making things overly complex. You'll be able to finish your first pages quickly. Then you'll want to do more and be more creative. Also, check with your local library. They may carry several idea books you can check out. Another thing I do is look through my friends scrapbooks and when I find something that appeals to me I take a photo of it. It also helps to get together with other people who scrapbook. You can look at each others books and share your tools and supplies and ideas. Many scrapbook stores also offer get-togethers for this.
Originally Posted By melekalikimaka I agree with Deb, I love my paper cutter. I've had it for at least 6 or 7 years and use it all of the time. You can even buy different blades for the cutter to make a zigzag edge, etc. I don't really make photo albums or scrapbooks but I still end up buying tons of scrapbook supplies to make different crafts. I also like to use the small, dark ink pads to rub along the edges of papers. It gives them a neat, sometimes antique look. Double-sided tape is very handy. Also, find a store that has really great ribbon that you buy by the yard (or less). It's fun to splurge on a bunch of coordinating colors and designs. Ooh and embellishments! Man, sometimes I'll find a particular line that I love and spend a small fortune. Congrats...you've just found a very addicting and expensive hobby. ;-)
Originally Posted By jasmine7 Thanks, gals! That give me a lot of great info to keep in mind when I go back shopping today (yeah, I already figured out the expensive part yesterday, lol ;-)). I couldn't fall asleep last night because I was planning up pages in my mind and thinking of things I can go take photos of to scrapbook, lol.
Originally Posted By Autopia Deb One of my favorite tools/supplies is the Coluzzle system. I love that I can use them to cut my photos and then make a nice even mat in exactly the same shape. I bought mine over time using the Micheal's 40% (and occasional 50%) coupons.
Originally Posted By hopemax These are my must have supplies - Paper Cutter: I have 2 a Fiskars Euro Trimmer which is about $20, less if you use a coupon. I also have the Making Memories trimmer, which is $50 (but you can use a coupon). The advantage of this one is it has a self-sharpening blade. - A good pair of scissors. - Adhesive: I use acid-free glue sticks, a ZIG pen for small things like letters ($2.50 at Walmart), but my main adhesive is an ATG gun made by 3M for framing. For many years, I just used photo tabs (box of 1000 for like $4). But I would go through them like water and it got expensive. I found out about the ATG gun through <a href="http://www.twopeasinabucket" target="_blank">http://www.twopeasinabucket</a> which is a scrapping site. They have a great gallery of layouts and message board. The ATG most people buy at <a href="http://www.framingsupplies.com/3M/ScrapbookersTapeGunsandTapesPage.htm" target="_blank">http://www.framingsupplies.com /3M/ScrapbookersTapeGunsandTapesPage.htm</a> The gun is not cheap, but the refills are much cheaper. If you really get into scrapbooking, and keep up with it, you may want to keep it in the back of your mind. - Acid free pens for journaling. Moving on from there - Self Healing Cutting Mat - Swivel head exacto-type knife - die cutting system: There are several types out there. The big one of these now is called a Cricut. It is electronic, and you buy cartridges which gives you a bunch of different designs you can select to cut out. The have 4 Disney cartridges already (a Mickey font, Mickey & Friends, 2 Princesses), with 2 Pooh cartridges out the first half on this year. But the systems aren't cheap. The small machine goes on sale for $130, the large machine for like $300 on sale. Cartridges are regular $90, but you can get them on sale or online for about $50. Then there are cutting mats and blades which are $10 for 2. So like I said, not cheap but I absolutely LOVE mine. Other die cutting systems are an even more expensive electronic system. There are several that can be hooked up to your computer and thus you can use and TTF font. These can run $400 and up. Also manual cutting systems. The names are the Cuttlebug, Sizzix and Quickutz. You buy a machine and then individual dies, and then you have to either press down with a lever, or hand crank the paper and die through the machine. Then there is paper and embellishments. The big craft stores always have paper sales. For awhile I just used their cardstock, because it was cheap. Then I moved to AZ and found out about Bazzill paper. Most scrapbook shops sell it, and it is textured. It is more expensive, but it looks really nice and comes in like 600 colors. What is good for me, is the company is headquartered here, so I can shop their warehouse sale. It is really easy to get taken with all the pretty paper, I would recommend buying stuff for use on specific pages and try to keep the "oooh, it's so pretty!" buying to a minimum, because then you quickly end up with more paper than you know what to with! I use eyelets, mostly in the holes in tags, and then put some ribbon or yarn through the hole.
Originally Posted By Goofy Sam Then there's the new craze ... Digital Scrapbooking! This is my current addiction. I have 2 small kids so paper scrapping is difficult to manage. For digital all I need is my computer and a photo editing program like Photoshop Elements or Print Shop Pro (I have graduated to Photoshop CS3 though) and a few basic supplies. You can make your own "papers" and recolor anything. There are freebies to be found all over the web. My favorite site is www.scrapgirls.com. They have a newsletter with freebies 6 days a week and a whole kit in the store that's free too. I've been trying to get Autopia Deb to try it for ages now. :-D
Originally Posted By jasmine7 Yeah, I kind of got swept up in the "Oohh, pretty paper!"-ness when I went shopping this weekend, lol. I've got a really dumb question for you all. Do you put your layouts onto paper & then glue or tape or whatever the paper onto the page in your book? I know that's got to see like an incredibly simple question to ask, but it was something that ran through my mind over the weekend. I'm 99% sure the answer is yes, lol, but like I said, I'm a newbie at this & figuring it out as I go. I did pick up a magazine and have flipped through it, and I have a beginner scrapbook book on hold at the library, so that should help. Thanks again!
Originally Posted By velo I just slip mine into the page protector. It gets a little crowded if you keep the piece of paper that came with the album in there. I usually have 2 pages, back to back in each protector. (this is assuming that you're not using Creative Memories albums - for those you have to adhere to the pages)
Originally Posted By jasmine7 Oh, gosh! I feel like a total ditz now. Would'ya believe I never even looked inside the scrapbook I purchased? I guess I assumed they all had pages inside of them (I had experience with a Creative Memories album a coworker gave me a few years back when I was making a scrapbook-type thingie for people on a forum I was on for an upcoming convention). Yep, mine has the page protectors in it, so I see exactly what you mean about sliding it in, velo. Thanks!
Originally Posted By christiemarsh88 jasmine7, I only scrapbook occassionally, but my mom is a huge scrapbooker. She has the Cricut diecut machine, and it's really, really amazing. But like hopemax said, very expensive. Another thing my mom uses the heck out of are rubons. They're like a mix between stickers and iron-ons, but no ironing required. They give you a really neat, distressed look. I know they carry those at Hobby Lobby And, my fellow Springfield-ian, "Scrapbook Generation" on Battlefield is a really great store. They have a great selection, and really good prices. They carry lots of unique items that you might not find at Hobby Lobby or Michaels. One more recommendation: (you probably already know this, but...) Michael's has a 40% off coupon nearly every week in their ad in the newspaper. Be sure to look out for those to make your expensive hobby a little less so!
Originally Posted By velo Jasmine7, don't worry about asking questions - we all had the same ones at some point!! the next thing we all ran into was "solid background or patterned paper" LOL, that was a hard one....
Originally Posted By iamsally I am not nearly as accomplished a scrapbooker as those who have posted here. My biggest problem being that I often do not finish projects. (But I am getting better.) My granddaughter has just started so we have been working together since Christmas. Anyway, the one thing that I have not heard mentioned here is to have a big tub (cheap at Walmart) for all your scrapbooking stuff. You can sort and organize in smaller bins but I just love being able to go to one spot and pull out my stuff. I am sure many here have more than one tub but I do not have a lot of fancy stuff.
Originally Posted By -em Did someone say scrapbook??? Best advice- Get a variety of acid free cardstock (most is now days but its good to check) good adhesive and a good paper cutter (I like the Provo Craft lime green one- though it goes through blades quick) Then add some basic stuff, a sheet of stickers, patterned paper etc and go to town. Don't start buying into the fun stuff( cricut, eyelets, paint etc)till you are happy with what you can do with the most basic supplies. my #1 advice- Dont cut important pictures! While it sounds good to cut that picture down to smaller size/shape cut etc- it may be a lifelong regret later... Things you may not realize are important now that are in the background etc may be invaluable later... -em
Originally Posted By iamsally ^^Oh gosh, so right. Scan and print them if you want to cut them up. Or have copies made first.
