Several years ago, while visiting my new daughter-in-law I noticed a table set up in a basement room. Covered in books and pictures, with accoutrements indicating some sort of craft work was happening, the sight aroused my curiosity.
Having just heard about the new fad of scrapbooking, I had until that point envisioned a hobby that was more about sorting favourite photos and sticking them into an old flimsy dimestore book, such as the ones I had used to hang on to my children’s birthday cards. That had been about arranging them so as many as possible would fit on a page, then gluing them on. Not too much creativity involved.
This did not appear to be the case here. After a few moments of explanation, I soon realized modern scrapbooking wasn’t just about sentimentality, but required ingenuity and imagination. Rather than just storing memories, it’s about showcasing them.
With the advancements of technology, how this is achieved has changed yet again. From products designed at makeshift craft tables in homey hobby rooms, the next step was going digital. Rather than paper and physical photos, digi-scrapping uses computer technology and software programs to layout digital pictures and embellish them with textures, text and clipart. The end result, of course, remains the same — a collection of memories gathered into a beautiful keepsake.
Since that first glimpse at the new hobby, I’ve tried my hand at a few scrapbooks of my own, one done the old-fashioned way, the rest digitally. The newest one to my collection, however, was done by my daughter for my granddaughter’s first birthday. It is perhaps the most treasured, a lovely book that I can flip through and see that darling face whenever I want.
If you are new to digi-scrapping or a pro, finding suitable backgrounds is an important element of your design. Here’s a random sampling of scrapbooking from iCLIPART.com suitable for, but not exclusive to, birthdays.
