scrapbooking do’s and don’ts
Scrapbooks aren’t always just for photos. I tend to go out with myself often, but when I was a kid, my sister had a scrapbook that she used to sneak me into every once in a while. Of course, back then she used normal paper and colored cardboard that is now yellow from acids. She also used white school glue that doesn’t hold anything in place anymore. The important point I’m trying to make is that I still remember the contents of that scrapbook.
She kept theme park and movie ticket stubs, concert ticket stubs, and when she got older, I even found an old love letter from a guy she had a crush on at the time. Other things I remember seeing were schoolwork with an A+ on it, notes her friends handed out in class, and even pressed flowers and leaves.
Today, we can still preserve those kinds of memories by adding these little extras to our scrapbooks. The difference today is that we know that many of those types of things are destructive to our scrapbooks and we know how to fix that using digital scrapbooking techniques. I always recommend making digital photocopies of everything. Unless the original paper is guaranteed to be acid-free, it will yellow and crumble over time. So keep the original in a memory box or other safe place, but use secure digital copies in your scrapbook.
So what other types of “extras” are safe, and what kinds of things will destroy your scrapbooks?
Items that are safe:
*Old report cards
* Short essays or poems
* Birthday invitations
* Maps and postcards of the vacation city
* College brochures and acceptance letters
* Greeting cards for special occasions
* Decorative Napkins
* Name tags or place cards from table settings
* Receipts from a Favorite Restaurant
* Tickets and programs for plays and concerts
* Tickets and programs of sporting events
* Old driver’s licenses
* Album covers
These elements can be added to individual pages, or they can be left intact and placed in a sheet protector along with photos of the events they represent. Just be careful with bulky or uneven items, as they can ruin the pages on top of them over time when the book is closed.
Common items that can destroy your scrapbooks over time:
* Pressed leaves and flowers
* Newspaper clippings
* Clippings from magazines or articles
* Thermal printing receipts or carbon copies
* Pencils and most markers
* Glitter or other objects with sharp edges
* School glue or rubber cement
* Synthetic Material or Fabric
* Most hobby and home paints or stains
Organic materials like flowers and leaves have a natural content and emit gases that will deteriorate your photos and papers. Newspapers and magazines use acid-filled oil-based inks and they stick to everything… just watch your fingers after reading them. Thermal papers and carbons have a lot of acids and very little heat is needed to turn them completely black. Crayons, markers, household paints, and stains use acids and other harmful chemicals to bind colors just like white glues (school paste) and rubber cements. Glitter has thousands of tiny sharp edges that cut, scratch, and mar your photos and other items…not to mention get everywhere.
If you must use glitter, get the more expensive type that is fully coated with a clear, acid-free glue. While it’s not perfect, it holds most of it in place and covers most sharp edges.
Here is the whole point. There’s really no limit to the items (and memorabilia) you can put in your scrapbooks. Additional elements can help capture feelings and emotions, as well as tell more of the overall story. Just use a little caution. Verify that the materials do not contain acid or lingon. If in doubt… make a copy on your scanner or color photocopier and use the digital version in your book. Save thick, bulky items for your shadow boxes or protect pages below and above from damage that thick borders will cause.
Above all… happy scrapping