Scrapbook Alley are New Zealand based suppliers of scrapbooking album and card making supplies.
We also stock acid free stickers and papers for protecting and enhancing your creative photo memories.
Acids are the most common cause of deterioration in papers and can eventually cause photos to brown and become brittle. Acidity and alkalinity is measured by the pH of a product. Acid pH is 1 to 6, Neutral is pH 7, and alkaline is pH 8 to 14. All products used in Scrapbooking should be acid free, therefore have a pH of 7 or higher. This will ensure longevity of your album.
This is a naturally occurring substance in wood fibres and is commonly found in papers. Lignin reacts with light and heat and results in acid production which can cause paper to turn yellow and become brittle. A good example of paper with high lignin content is Newsprint.
This is a plastic that is safe to use with your photos. Traditionally, photograph albums were often made from PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) which produced gases that reacted with your photographs, causing them to discolour and fade. Scrapbook Album page protectors today, for the most part, are made of Polypropylene so that photos can be stored safely.
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POLYETHYLENE
As with polypropylene, this is safe to use with your photos.
This means to cut or trim and is usually referring to your photographs. Photos can be cropped to better fit your page or for better visual impact. If you are unsure how much to crop, start by cutting a little, you can always cut more but can’t put the over-crop back! Polaroid photos can not be cropped as they release a chemical that may damage other parts of your page. Consider framing these photos to enhance their appeal. There are a number of cutting systems available to ensure the perfect cut each time whether they are straight cuts, ovals, circles or any other shape you desire.
Framing your photo is placing a border over the top of the photograph rather than placing a mat beneath it. You may wish to have an oval shaped photo with a rectangle outline. To do so, you could place a frame over the photo rather than cut the photo to shape.
Matting your photo is placing your photo onto a contrasting background, leaving a border around the photograph. Mats can vary in border width or, can be a different shape to the photograph itself. Generally, a photo that has a mat becomes more of a focal point on a page. Not every photo requires a mat so think about what you want people to see when they look at the page. There are no limits on the number of mats per photo. Try double and triple mats of contrasting or complimentary colours – this can add great visual appeal and often provides more depth in your photograph.
This is the term used to describe a great array of additional page treatments that add to the overall theme of your page. Embellishments include eyelets, brads, nails, tags, fibres, stickers, die-cuts, etc. Try to remember that embellishments should enhance your photos and memory, not overpower it.
It is essential to include in your album any memorabilia (keepsake) that helps preserve the memory. Often these items may not be acid free but should still be included as are a huge part of the memory. There are now many keepsake pockets on the market which you can safely place these items in and include on the page. Memorabilia may include tickets to an event, newspaper clippings, locks of hair, coins from an overseas trip, plane tickets, etc.
Every memory is made up of more than a photograph and whilst a picture can paint a thousand words, a photograph alone won’t preserve the memory. Journaling is where you fill in the blanks by recording all that you would like someone to know about a point in time. Journaling is not writing a description of the photograph but is more about including why it was special enough to take the photo in the first place. As a very basic guideline, remember to include who, what, where, why, and when. Journaling doesn’t have to be about the photograph at all, it may be about something special or important that you want remembered.
It is easy to add journaling to your page by producing it in a fabulous font from your computer but I would encourage you to record as much as possible by hand. Remember, these are the things that you can never replace. Do you have a piece of your Great Grandparents or Grandparents handwriting? How about something more recent, something from your mother or father? As time passes, these simple things become more precious. If you are worried about making a mistake, journal onto a piece of cardstock or paper and add it to your page once completed. Cardstock can be handy if you make a mistake as you can always turn it over and use the other side.
