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Macaroni Crafts ~ Easy Vacation Scrapbook

Use inexpensive supplies to make a special family album

By Susan Dowey, Walnut Creek CA Publisher Mom April 11, 2013

I love to travel, whether for a weekend getaway or a jam-packed week away. While it can be a little sad when a vacation ends, I always enjoy coming home and popping my camera memory card into the computer and seeing all the photos from the trip. It is easier than ever to turn those photo files into digital photo albums to be accessed with a few clicks of a mouse. While digital options are great, it is still important to me to create a physical scrapbook with pictures, paper and souvenirs from each trip. In the coming years I want to be able to sit on the sofa with my family and share those memories all over again while turning the pages of a special album.  

I happen to enjoy scrapbooking as a hobby but you don’t need to be a “scrapbooker” or have extensive supplies to create a special album. Simple supplies such as acid free card stock, a hole punch, glue stick and a school folder can be used to create a personalized homemade album. Involve your whole family and your album will be all the more special. Of course you will also need photos and any memorabilia you would like to include such as ticket stubs, maps, brochures, postcards, ride tokens etc. A computer and printer can be very helpful too.

Here are directions for making your own easy scrapbook:

Supplies:

  • Pocket Portfolio with brads
  • Multi-color pack of 8½ “ x 11” acid free card stock packs (available at craft stores)
  • Binder size hole punch
  • Ruler (or a paper trimmer if you have one)
  • Scissors
  • Glue stick (choose acid free adhesive for best archival quality)
  • Pencil
  • Optional – pens, stickers, ribbon, etc. to embellish your album. I used a computer with word processing software to print the titles and print clip art of the deer and trees on the cover. I also cut out trees from green and brown card stock for decorating pages.















1) Gather your photos and determine how many pages you will include in your scrapbook.  Select paper colors you would like to use. Insert the paper into the folder and make a dot in the middle of each hole. Line the hole punch over the dots and punch 3 holes in your selected papers.

2) Add photos and embellishments to each page. You can print out titles and clip art from your computer. You can also let the kids help you cut simple shapes out of card stock. Lay out the titles, photos, shapes and images and then glue the items into place. You can also ad post cards to your pages in addition to your photos.

3) Your second page can be on the back side of page one and so on. Always punch your holes first and allow some room on the punched side of the paper, as the middle of the folder will cover a portion of the paper once inserted into the folder.

4) Create a title for the album cover either by hand or on the computer on card stock. Cut out the title with a ruler and scissors (or a paper trimmer if you have one). Glue down the title and any clip art, drawings or free hand embellishments you and the kids have created.

5) Insert your pages into the folder. Insert maps and brochures in the front and back pockets. You can glue small items like ticket stubs onto your pages as well.

 












Enjoy your special homemade album with your family for years to come. You can also make similar albums for holidays, birthdays, sports, school and other activities. It can also be fun to have albums that cover multiple years of one type of event like Halloween, Christmas or school photos. Each year you can create a page for that event and then enjoy watching the growth and change in your children over the years. They will love it too. 

You might decide that you really enjoy creating these albums and want to upgrade your supplies.  You can buy nice inexpensive or sale 12” x 12” scrapbook albums with page protectors to give you more room for photos. You can also buy kits that include themed papers and embellishments. Your kids will enjoy the process of helping you make the album and enjoying the finished project regardless of how much was spent on the supplies. Have fun creating your own special albums!