Top Scrapbook Tools Reviewed. Scrapbook Tools Online Video Review

Top Scrapbook Tools Reviewed. Scrapbook Tools Online Video Review

Ali tells you about her four favorite scrapbook tools.



Top Scrapbook Tools Reviewed.

How To Make Scrapbook Paper Look Aged. Make Paper Look Old

How To Make Scrapbook Paper Look Aged. Various Techniques To Make Paper Look Old.

The aged look is in -- whether it's for heritage layouts, shabby chic looks, vintage designs, or to indicate distressed paper.

"How do I make paper look old?" A number of products will help you get that aged look you want -- many of which are found in your own kitchen.

You will have to experiment to get the look you are going for -- or perhaps you will inadvertently discover a look you just love! Serendipity is a big factor in making altered books.

Tips for Making Paper Look Old

Tea Bag Staining
Drag a wet (not dripping) tea bag over your paper. Weight your paper down while it dries to avoid warping. The paper will be stained a brownish color. A lingering tea-smell might remain. Tea-bag staining is not acid free, if this matters to you.

Coffee Grounds Staining
Like tea, you can use coffee grounds to make paper look old. Apply wet coffee grounds to your paper. Remove grounds. The paper will be stained brown. Dry paper under a weight to avoid warping. As above, there is likely to be a coffee odor afterwards. Coffee grounds are also not acid free.

Balsamic Vinegar Spattering
Same as above. Expect odor. Vinegar is not acid free.

Lemon Juice
Paint your paper with lemon juice, then heat with a heat gun. The paper will take on a brownish, aged look. It will continue to darken as you continue to apply heat. Lemon juice is not acid free.

Decorating Chalks
These chalks are my favorite way to make paper look old. Apply the chalk (one of the brownish colors) to the paper using a cotton ball, makeup sponge, Q-tip or swab. This is especially effective on the ripped edges of paper or vellum. Allow the chalks to set, or spray with a fixative if speed in important. Decorating chalks have many uses when making altered books. Acid free decorating chalks are available at joann.com.

Walnut Ink
Walnut ink is made from black walnuts. It is usually sold in crystallized form, and must be hydrated before using. Apply the wet walnut ink to the paper, lace, fabric or other material. You can create various effects as you strive to make paper look old. For more information about walnut ink, refer to the Definitions page of this web site.

Paper Tearing
Instead of cutting your paper neatly, tear it. Holding the paper towards you while you tear will produce one look; holding it away from you will produce another. Color the torn edges with decorative chalk, walnut ink, tea bags, or similar to give an aged appearance.

Bleaching
Apply household bleach to your paper. Apply directly with an eye-dropper, brush or sponge, or use a water-color pen. If it is available in your area, a Chlorox Bleach Pen is also a good choice. Note that some papers could contain inks that are colorfast and bleach-resistant. You will find more information about bleaching in the tip on using bleach in this section of the website.

Sanding with Sand Paper
Lightly sand shiny paper or other paper to produce "tooth" or a worn look. Sand the same way you sand wood -- in a directional move, rather than circular.

Paper Crumpling
Crumple up your paper. Flatten it out, then crumple again. Repeat as often as you wish before using the paper in your layout. Iron the finished paper if desired, for a special look, or try placing the (thickish) paper in water before crumpling for yet a different look.

Paper Burning
Another way to make paper look old is to burn the edges of the paper. For safety's sake, do this over a sink, using a candle or stick of incense. Pinch the firey edges out with your finger. If desired, wet an inner border on your paper before applying the flame. You can do the wetting with a damp Q-tip, paint brush, or your finger. This prevents the paper from burning more than you want, since the wet inner border will prevent the flame from going further.

Candle Waxing
Write over your paper with a white candle, covering as much area as you can. Crush the paper so the wax cracks. Apply paint over the surface, forming random cracks. Remove the wax by ironing your paper. Place it between two sheets of paper towels padded with newspaper on both sides and use a hot iron.

Matte Gel or Matte Medium
These products will take the shine off paper or pictures, etc.

Brown Paper Bag Scrapbook Album. Basic Brown Paper Bag Scrapbook

Brown Paper Bag Scrapbook Album. Basic Brown Paper Bag Scrapbook

This brown paper bag scrapbook album is a great recycled look for your scrapbook albums and shows you how to make a basic brown paper scrapbook bag album as a base for your own designed scrapbooks.

This brown paper bag scrapbook album uses non gusseted lunch bags which can be found in supermarkets in the food packaging sections.

Brown paper bags without gussets are quite lightweight which means your album will not have the same Bulk as a traditional gusseted brown paper bag album.

Start by folding each of your bags 1 inch (2.5cm) in from the bottom. This will create a strong spine for your album.

Stack all your bags together to form the album, making sure they are aligned together.

Next mark out your holes for punching. If you use a metal hole punch that requires you to hit it with a hammer you can punch multiple bags at one time, making the process much faster.

If you want your scrapbook album to be more durable and stable you can include a cardboard front cover and back cover.

Binding your scrapbook album -
There are many different ways to bind a brown paper bag album, you can use ribbons and tie bows, cords and tie knots or you can bind it in a more traditional book binding way as we have done here.

Take your string or cord and thread it through the holes , looping under each hole to form a blanket stitch style.

To finish off the binding we simply threaded it back through each of the loops.

You can bind your scrapbook album however you want, it really is a simple method and there are no rules as such, just make sure it is loose enough to turn your pages.

Once your brown paper bag scrapbook album is bound you can begin creating your scrapbook.

While the majority of scrapbook supplies and papers are considered acid and lignin free, paper bags are not. So please make sure you use duplicate photos when making this project. Non-digital photos can easily be color copied or scanned and printed in a copy store or photo lab.

Scrapbook Brown Paper Bag Materials
Non Gusseted Lunch Bags or Brown paper bags
String or Cord
Hole Punch
Hammer

Paper Bag Scrapbook. How To Make A paper Bag Scrapbook

Paper Bag Scrapbook. 3 Tips Unique to the Paper Bag Scrapbook

Can you guess the best way to make a scrap book? Out of scrap, of course! I’ve been enamored with paper bag scrapbooks ever since my son’s pre-school teacher made one for each of her students a couple of years ago. Such a great use of materials and the results are a weight and feel that I just love. Surprisingly, we don’t see very many of the around so I thought I’d try to spread paper bag scrapbook love by offering some simple instructions.

Making a paper bag scrapbook is very easy and would make a great project to do with your children on a rainy day. They generally make a good project for just about anyone!

Simple Instructions:

Place a few paper bags – no more than 4 or 5 – on top of each other in alternating directions (alternating open ends and closed bottoms).

Fold your stack of paper bags in half.

Staple along the fold about ½” from the crease – this creates the spine of your paper bag scrapbook.

Embellish the spine to hide the staples – options:
Cover the staples with a strip of ribbon, paper, cardstock, fiber or other embellishment that you think suites the theme of the paper bag scrapbook you are creating.

Punch holes along the spine and run with ribbon or fibers – tying knots and/or weaving in and out of the punched holes.

Sew a line through the fold in the paper bags (note: this is my favorite way to bind a paper bag scrapbook)

Be creative – eyelets, snaps, rivets and other scrapbooking tricks can be used to make an excellent binding for your paper bag scrapbook.

Once you have embellished your spine, you’ll want to get creative with the use of your scrapbooking skills. Photo treatment, journaling, embellishments including decorative papers, borders, rub-ons, paints, fibers, ribbons and fabrics can all be used just as with a traditional scrapbook project – to create lasting memories in a unique presentation.

3 Tips Unique to the Paper Bag Scrapbook:

Most importantly, remember that a paper bag scrapbook is essentially made of very cheap paper that is not acid free. So this will not be an archival quality project. Be sure to use copies of your original photographs or inkjet prints on photo paper.

The open end of each paper bag ‘page’ can be used as a unique pocket space for journaling, photos, slide out cardstock pages and other dimensional items.

The closed end of each paper bag ‘page’ can be utilized in much the same way by lifting the folded flap to reveal your additional journaling, photo, etc. You could also trim the closed end of the paper bag ‘page’ to make another open end

Chemicals That Can Destroy Your Scrapbook

Various chemicals in your scrapbook materials that can damage your scrapbooks over time

Once you spend your precious time and energy creating a scrapbook, make sure it lasts! There are a few simple things you can easily do to ensure that your scrapbooks look just as good as the day you finished them, for years to come.

The first thing to avoid is paper that is not lignin-free. You've probably heard that before, and it is true, but what is lignin anyways? Lignin is a stiff component of a plant that quite literally holds it together. Although lignin is necessary for plants and trees, you want nothing to do with it! After a while, lignin will cause photos, fabrics and other paper that touch it to turn brown. Yes, lignin-free paper does cost more, but it is a vital part of preserving your cherished scrapbooks.

If the paper is not lignin-free, it will eventually discolor your photos and other materials touching it. So when buying paper for your scrapbooking projects, be sure to look for packages that say "lignin-free," because if it doesn't say it, then it most likely isn't.

Fabric is a big concern for preserving your scrapbooks, but unfortunately it is often overlooked. Many people assume that all fabrics are acid-free, but they aren't. Silk actually goes through an acid bath during the manufacturing process, as well as many tie-dyed fabrics. This isn't to discourage you from using it, not all. Just try to make sure that no photos directly touch fabric, and if you need them to overlap, make sure there is a layer of paper between the two.

Another consideration when using fabrics is if the color will bleed off onto your page and other things touching it. To test for this, cut a square inch off and soak it in a glass of water over night. If there is no color bleeding from it the next day, then there isn't any risk to your scrapbook. But if you do see color in the water, or collecting at the bottom of the glass then don't use that fabric in your scrapbook at all.

When using glitter, be sure there is a top layer of spray adhesive to lock them down, or better yet use special glitter glue where the glitter is mixed right in. If this is not done right the glitter will slowly fall off, and loose glitter means scratched photos.

After you have planned the layout for your photos, be sure that you are using the right kind of mounting tape for them! Regular mounting tape is fine for buttons and bottle caps, but when it come to mounting photos you need to use special photo mounting tape which is completely acid-free. If you don't, your photos will slowly discolor. The tape should say "acid-free" right on the packaging.

These are just a few simple things you can do to ensure that your scrapbooks last and last.

Get "Top 10 Professional Scrapbooking Techniques" by Palyn Peterson for FREE right now. Get your free scrapbooking gift now!

Scrapbooking Materials. Most Important Scrapbooking Materials

Scrapbooking Materials. Most Important Scrapbooking Materials

The most important scrapbooking supply is the album itself, which can be permanently bound, or allow for insertion of pages. There are other formats, such as mini albums and accordion-style fold-out albums. Some of these are adhered to various containers, such as matchbooks, CD cases, or other small holders.

Modern scrapbooking is done largely on 12 inch square or 8½×11 inch pages. More recently smaller albums have become very popular. The most common new formats are 6, 7, or 8-inch square.

Basic materials include background papers (including printed and cardstock paper), photo corner mounts (or other means of mounting photos such as adhesive dots, photo mounting tape, or acid-free glue), scissors, a paper trimmer, art pens, archival pens for journaling, and mounting glues (like thermo-tac). More elaborate designs require more specialized tools such as die cut templates, rubber stamps, craft punches,stencils, inking tools, eyelet setters, heat embossing tools and personal die cut machines. No you dont need all of this, a simple book and picture wouls work lovely.

Various accessories, referred to as "embellishments," are used to decorate scrapbook pages. Embellishments include stickers,rub-ons, stamps, eyelets, brads, chipboard elements in various shapes, alphabet letters and ribbon. The use of die cut machines is also increasingly popular; in recent years an electronic die-cutting machine, similar to a printer, can be connected to one's computer to cut any shape or font.

One of the key components of modern scrapbooking is the archival quality of the supplies. Designed to preserve photographs and journaling in their original state, materials encouraged by most serious scrapbookers are of a higher quality than those of many typical photo albums commercially available. Scrappers insist on acid-free, lignin-free papers, stamp ink, and embossing powder, and pigment based inks, which are fade resistant, colorfast, and often waterproof. Older "magnetic" albums were not acid-free and thus caused damage to the photos and memorabilia included in them.