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Scrapbooking is a fun way to preserve memories, cherished moments, and everyday adventures for years and generations to come. Scrapbooking is amazing, but the reality is it’s time consuming and expensive. Plus now with our smart phones (especially for me) I can take a picture anytime of anything, I actually stop myself now from taking pictures because it’s gotten out of hand.

I actually stopped scrapbooking for awhile and I really regret it. All the pictures of my husband and I dating are somewhere, honestly I still think they are on my old camera card (not even printed). I started scrapbooking again after our son was born and have been scrapbooking ever since. I want to share how I am able to scrapbook with my busy life, kids who touch everything, and how to keep my hobby inexpensive.

I am a stay at home mom, so I use the time of day when my children are the most cooperative. For me it’s early in the morning. Everyone’s life and schedules are different so I suggest creating a block of time once a week to scrapbook or pick one weekend a month or whatever works for you! I would suggest one day to match paper and pictures and the next day to put it all together. Sometimes trying to choose paper is so hard.

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Tips & Tricks for Scrapbooking:

1. Buy a Cricut- I know it’s expensive, but you will use it all the time. The Cricut will cut down on your expenses because instead of buying stickers/embellishments, you just have to buy paper and create your own. I have found having card stock in a variety of colors is all you need to create on the Cricut, card stock is cheaper then stickers/embellishments. I have had my Cricut for years and I am still learning new ways to use it. The internet/Pinterest are full of SVG (it’s like clipart, that you can cut on your Cricut) to download and use. Plus you can mat all your pictures easier (then with a paper cutter) and create your own page titles out of paper. The Cricut can also write and you can add journalling to your scrapbook pages too.
2. Use coupons and wait for sales, for pictures and supplies! This tip will save you so much money. Around holidays the paper is usually on sale for 20 cents, that is an amazing deal. Use your coupons at the local craft stores, 50%, 40% off for your glue or paper stacks or page holders. If you have a local Hobby Lobby, the paper section is usually 50% off every other week. Check the crafting store ads weekly for the deals and coupons. Also sign up for the emails because sometimes you get exclusive coupons in your email. For the pictures, go through the pictures, pick the best ones, and print them during sales.

3. Organize photos online and at home in a photo box- For the photos online, I organize them by months, I go through the pictures, delete the blurry ones or for your favorite pictures (that you took like 10 of the same moment) pick your favorite shots of that moment to print. Wait to print your pictures when they are on sale. I only put my favorite photos in the scrapbook, so I organize the rest of my pictures in photo boxes. Here is the link to how I organize my pictures into photo boxes https://www.simplycraftylife.com/photo-organization/
4. Only put your favorites into the scrapbook- this is a two step process for me. First I sort them into categories, for example outside, holiday, school related, family outings and pick my favorites. Then I wait a day and go through my favorites and pick my favorites again. Sometimes I end up taking some out and sometimes not, but a second look is always good.
5. Try to do your scrapbooking monthly or seasonally so you don’t get to far behind because then you will just feel overwhelmed. Stay on top of your scrapbooking so it stays fun! I’m going to start doing seasonal pictures because then I can pick my favorite pictures from the soccer season, playground pictures, and pool pictures since we do these things all summer long.

6. Do multiple pictures on a layout- I know this is a tough one for some. I always see these beautiful layouts with one photo on Pinterest and scrapbooking sites, but honestly I would become a scrapbook hoarder. The scrapbooks would take over my house because I just have to many pictures. Multiple pictures can still be adorable and add embellishments to the pages and have page titles. More can be better! This will save you money on paper and supplies.

Bonus Tip:
Use scrapbooking kits with everything in it. Everything matches and its super easy to put the pages together. They do cost a little more, but you don’t have to match paper or find/create stickers. You can just scrapbook. I’m a huge fan of Echo Park Paper, I used this kit last fall. Also try https://glitteronadime.closetomyheart.com/default.aspx It has amazing kits and supplies to choose from.

Always remember when you scrapbook, that this is your story you are telling. I hope these tips and tricks will help you preserve your cherished memories into a scrapbook. If you have any other tips and tricks please share them in the comment section. Happy Scrapping!

Jenny

Try these brilliant scrapbooking tips and tricks to help you stay up to date on your scrapbook even with your busy life.