Handmade Family Scrapbook Album

If you scrapbook, chances are—like so many of us who scrapbook—you started this fun, creative hobby as a means to preserve your family’s photos, memories, treasured mementos, documents, artwork, school papers, certificates, awards, milestones… the list goes on and on.  Scrapbooking can be such a fun, therapeutic, hands-on activity; why not get the entire family involved?  Not only will you have help preserving your family’s memories, but you will also be able to include the unique perspective of each family member who is involved in creating the album.  No matter what age the family member, every person can be involved in some way—and what better family night activity is there than reflecting on family memories while you create your family album?

Worried that getting the whole family involved in scrapbooking might become too expensive or too lengthy of a project to do together?  Don’t fret!  We’ve got lots of tips to help you create a unique and attractive family album together… inexpensively and quickly!

Time & Money Saving Ideas for Scrapbooking Together as a Family

1. With the responsibilities of work, school and extra-curricular activities, it is difficult sometimes to find time to spend together as a family.  Try setting aside one night out of the week for a “family night” and use this time to create your family album together.  The album does not have to be completed in a night’s, week’s or even a month’s time… scrapbooking makes a great on-going activity!
2. Begin your family album project by organizing photos into sets for each family member—this will help save time for hands-on scrapbooking, and can be a fun way to get everyone in the mood before you start the album.  Give double prints to two separate family members… the photos may be the same, but each will be unique when the family member adds his or her own journaling and creative perspective.
3. Invest in sets of letter, number and hand punches for the whole family to share.  Making your own letters, shapes and numbers is much less expensive than purchasing pre-made die cuts and stickers.
4. Purchase an Ultra Shape Xpress Shape Cutter along with Letter and Shape Templates—this is one of the least expensive die cut systems out there, and can be stored together conveniently to save space, and be easily accessible and transportable for all family members. 
5. Organize your scraps into color sets kept in zipper top bags—a red bag, a blue bag, a green bag, etc.  Most scrapbookers have tons of scraps, and organizing them for the whole family to share will save both time and money!
6. Share tools and supplies.  As long as each family member has their own pair of scissors and adhesive, most of the rest can be shared!  Larger tools, such as the Euro Paper Trimmer, the Ultra ShapeXpress Shape Cutter, Shape Templates and Self-healing Mat can be shared easily.
7. Share ideas.  If you think of an idea that would work well for another family member’s page, share it with them!  We all get stumped, and having other people to help us out with a creative idea is part of the fun of scrapbooking together!
8. Choose an organized space where the whole family can work together with plenty of room and in comfort.  The more convenient, comfortable and organized the activity, the more enjoyable it will be for each person, and the more time you will have to actually scrapbook together!
9. Make your own handmade cardboard or chipboard covered album, like the one below.  Include making the album as part of your family project—handmade albums are extremely inexpensive to make and allow you to personalize the cover, size, color and patterns to suit the preferences of your family. 

By R. Lynn Baker