There are a few things to keep in mind when shopping for your very first scrapbook. Your local craft store will have aisles and aisles of scrapbooking goodies for you to choose from so it is very easy to become overwhelmed with so many products. If you’re new to scrapbooking it can be daunting to realize just how much stuff there is available for this craft, including how many different types of scrapbooks there are.
If scrapbooking has really tweaked your interest and you’re keen to get started, your very first purchase needs to be the actual scrapbook that you will use. But what type of scrapbook should you buy? Don’t stress over this too much as the scrapbooks themselves are fairly straight forward, your only decision should be on the size and quality of the cover.
There are a few different sizes to choose from with the most popular being the 12 x 12 inch and the 8 and a half x 11 inch scrapbooks. Choosing one of these popular sizes will make it easier to find supplies like borders and new pages. These scrapbooks usually come with a minimum number of pages and allow you to add more as you go along.
The larger size 12 x 12 inch scrapbook and paper are a bit more expensive but they allow you to fit more onto the page. But most people choose a scrapbook and pages that are the same size as what their home printer takes so they can design their pages on a computer and print out the pages before adding embellishments. These sizes are usually the Letter size if you’re in the US or A4 if you’re in Australia or the UK.
An added advantage of using these standard paper sizes is that you can walk into any office supply or department store and readily find them without any problems.
Another thing to look at is the scrapbook’s binding. You should try to avoid the spiral bound scrapbooks as they will not let you add new pages and you will be limited to the number of pages that are already in the scrapbook. Always look for the scrapbooks with the removable pages so you can add more pages when you need to and also rearrange pages if you want to make any changes.
Covers come in all manner of colors and styles so the choice is up to you as to what you would prefer, though a nice strong cover will definitely last longer. Look for thicker cardboard or even plastic-coated covers.
Choosing the right scrapbook for your needs is fairly straight forward once you know a few basics and feel confident about making these choices. So get scrapping and have fun.
Kristy Taylor is a syndicated journalist and keen scrapbooker. Visit Cheap & Easy Scrapbooking for more tips on scrapbooking on a tight budget.
