TOOLS AND SUPPLIES

FOR A SCRAPBOOKING BEGINNER

For your first scrapbooking page, the investment will be really relatively low : with just a little material you will be able to create your first work!

 

The album

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The first thing to be made is to provide you with a bought or made by you album : according to the arrivals, you can find a very cheap one in a lot of popular stores : Foirfouille, Gitem, But… and others similar stores.

You will be able also to buy it in a scrapbooking store but the price will be higher. Preferably choose (although there is no quite precise standard) the format 30x30 which is adopted by the majority of practicing scrap.

Some albums are provided with small pockets out of plastic, others will have sheets (white or black) protected or not by a silk sheet between them. Each one has its advantages and disadvantages. Perhaps is it simpler for the beginners to adopt the system with small pockets?

Most of the time, when you are not a beginner anymore, you will build your album yourself... Look on this site the different techniques to make them...

 

To trace and cut

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Then, you will need a large rule, a pair of large scissors, a finer scissors for precise cuttings.

A pencil, a gum and a good cutter will be also very useful for you. A trimmer to cut papers is very useful.

 

Add if you can some crantor or deckle scissors, relatively cheap. There is a lot of models and forms : for example models to cut like postage stamp teeth,or waves models, zigzag…

You will use them to cut special edges, to bring variety to your framings of photographs and even to your photographs themselves.

 

Papers

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To decorate the pages with your album, envisage matched papers (preferably “acid free”) or with complementary colors. You can buy these printed papers in all the creative leisures shops or in the on line scrap shops . Si vous n'avez pas de boutique près de chez vous, regardez sur Amazon par exemple, on peut tout y trouver !

It should be noted that if you have a good printer, you have the possibility of printing yourself your papers using the “freebies” (free goodies on some sites) which you can find everywhere on the Net.

You choose your paper, download it and then print with your home printer. Note that sometimes you save money by buying printed paper rather than to print it oneself...

 

Unless having a “large size” printer you will be limited to A4 format.

See the marvellous and free paper collections on
PubliscrapMODO or on yonaflorie

A research on Google with the key word “freebies” will provide you all the necessary matter !

Or, and this seems the easiest way to start, get your papers in specialty scrapbooking store and match colors to suit your tastes and photos to highlight.

Canson colored paper is very useful (do not take the "black color" which isnot "acid free".

 

Adhesives

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Glue and adhesives are absolutely essential! They exist in a wide range to meet your needs : permanent or repositionable adhesives for "matting" your papers or photos, small objects to be stuck, fabric or metal. Take a look here to see the diversity of the offer!

Usually, avoid strong smelling adhesives because they contain solvents which can rather quickly damage your photographs.

The adhesive spray above is guaranteed without acid and ideal for the scrapbooking and all the photographs layouts. Think also about “roll'n stick” that is as well practical.

Lastly, according to the uses, some conditionings are more indicated than others. For the gluing of large surfaces (doublings, matting…) it is better to have a retractable stick of adhesive. On the contrary, for precise stickings, get a pen of liquid adhesive with a fine tip.

Writing the journaling

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Scrap makes it possible to relocate the photos in their original setting. The problem is to find an environment, an atmosphere, a mood which does not exist on glossy papers.

Journaling is one of the ways to restore their mood to the pictures you want to emphasize.

To write these captions - it can be quite simply as a description of the photographs with the names of the places, the date, the events… - envisage felt-tip pens of color of various sizes, pens with gilded or silver plated writing, “erasers stabilo” which make it possible to write in white and relief…

You will write on torn papers, strips cut out, even on the page of the album … You will use also font with the printer to print strips you glue under the pics...

There exist also self-adhesive boards sets of characters easy to use but considerable cost!

(see the journaling page of this site)

 

Embellishments

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Especially at the beginning, privilege recoveries of all kinds to embellish your pages of scrapbooking. Of course, all can be bought and it is even very pretty but the invoice growes up very very quickly!

Thus try to the maximum to recover a crowd of small objects to be inserted directly in your pages: ribbons, laces, buttons, flowers out of paper and fanfreluches of all kinds, medals, fixings and Parisian fasteners .

There exist the impossible to circumvent ones: eyelets (or eyelets to be crimped). These are small metal objects that one crimps, by behind work with a hammer and a special tool. In the same order of idea, you will find also brads (Parisian fasteners) of all kinds and all colors.

To fix a brad, bore a hole with carries part or with a nail, thread the legs of the brad in the hole then fold up the legs by the back

For those who are in a hurry and have no much time to search in their drawers looking for recoverie embellishments note there exist all ready kits: buttons, ribbons, mini clothespins, sequins are assembled and ready to use !

In the same way, you can buy ribbons, baizes of matched colors….

Tags or labels. From models, you can easily print them on cardboard before to cut out them : do not forget to give them an brown gummed paper eyelet so that they are truer than natural!

You will find tag shapes on many sites. Come from my share to: HERE or THERE. This last site abounds in advises, references to scrapbooking brands : to visit, absolutely.

There are also the carry-parts and the punchies, the inking-pads and the stamp… But you enter there in the field of the confirmed scrapbooking!

I wish you beautiful pages!