One of the most forgotten steps when you create a new scrapbook is to journalize it. The reason why journalizing is important is so that you can remember what was going on; so you can reflect years and years later and remember more clearly. Journalizing each page also adds a personal touch to the scrapbook – because no one remembers any event exactly the same. You can begin by creating a title for each page. Think of your page as a story and then name it. Use big bold letters for the title to draw attention to it, but make sure it does not overwhelm the most important elements of the page – the pictures.
Each picture on your page should have a few words as a caption. You will want to name the people in the pictures or the places shown. Others who do not know all of your friends will also benefit from these labels. You also want to think about captions as a small element on a page and you may only want to use a caption occasionally and not put one on every picture.
You will also want to include text into your page design. Many pre-made layouts will already include a space for text. Use this element of the design to record the “story” behind the pictures. What would you tell a dear friend looking through the album? All of this information is easily forgotten, so it is important to jot down a few words on a piece of notebook paper and save it with your photographs if you think that you won’t get the chance to create your pages right away. Time just seems to blend the years together. Very few people can remember everything they did by date, but if you include a date or time you will be able to preserve the memories.
Occasionally you may forget your camera at an important event, lose your pictures, or not be allowed to use a camera in the space. Even if you went somewhere and you didn’t take pictures, you can still document that part of your life by using the scrapbook to document. These pages will be mostly journaling. Use descriptive words to take the place of the photographs. You may also add stock photos or a photo of the one telling the story.
You can use letter stickers and cutouts to help you to journalize, but using your own handwriting will give your album added character. However, you can also use your computer to print out some journalizing elements on your pages. You will want to choose some way of journalizing that will allow you to scrapbook in a dramatic way and help create a wonderful and memorable album.
Happy Scrappin!
