Scrapbooking took off in America as a way to get family photos out of shoeboxes and into albums, and it's still a wonderful way to tell your story: vacations, graduations, a new baby, a year of Little League.
The standard format is the 12 x 12 inch page, with 8.5 x 11 and smaller 6 x 8 albums for quicker projects. Pocket-page systems, which use divided sleeves for 4 x 6 and 3 x 4 inch cards, are popular with busy memory keepers.
Supplies worth knowing about
Albums
12 x 12 post-bound or D-ring albums are the classic; 8.5 x 11 albums fit on a regular bookshelf.
Patterned paper pads
Coordinating designs in one pad make matching easy. One themed collection per album keeps it cohesive.
Photo-safe adhesive
Choose products labeled acid-free, lignin-free or photo-safe to help protect prints over time.
Stickers & embellishments
Alphabet stickers for titles, chipboard, enamel dots and die-cuts. A few per page is plenty.
Pocket pages
Divided page protectors that hold 4 x 6 photos and journaling cards. Fast, tidy and forgiving.
Punches & corner rounders
A corner rounder gives photos a finished look instantly; border punches turn scraps into trim.
Pro tip: Scraplift. Find a layout you love online and copy its structure with your own photos and papers. It's the fastest way to learn design.
Know before you buy
What does acid-free mean?
Acidic paper can yellow and damage photos over time. Acid-free and lignin-free papers are made to be more stable, which is why they're recommended for albums.
When is National Scrapbook Day?
It's traditionally celebrated on the first Saturday in May, and many craft stores and online communities run crops and challenges around it.
Digital or paper?
Both! Many people design pages digitally and print them, or mix printed journaling cards into paper layouts.