| Beginners Class this Saturday with Rachel Millington.... |
10/03/10 12:00 |
Be quick, we still have limited spaces for this lovely class by Rachel , which suits total beginners, and those that love a clean and graphic scrapbook style. Just one class kit, if signed up to come you will need three 3"x2" PORTRAIT photos either in sepia or black and white, or to go with the yellow/orange papers and embelishments...
 ...of course, there will be cake!! |
| Moda Basic Grey Blush Fabric |
10/03/10 12:00 |
Eagerly awaited, new Basic Grey Blush fabric by Moda.  Jelly Rolls, Charm Packs and Layer Cakes will follow very soon! |
| Friday Night Crop |
10/03/10 12:00 |
 Every month scrappers come from far and near to crop at PaperArts on a Friday evening. Well some scrapbooking gets done, there is a lot of chatting, eating and drinking (mainly home made cakes that we provide, and Fish and Chips we go out to get if desired) and even some shopping (not compulsory.) Jen has been scrapping with us at PaperArts since we opened 7 years ago, she has the most stamina, she can easily manage 12 hour crops, "the youngsters cannot stand the pace" she says! |
| Scrapbook Trends and Cards! Spring 2010 issues are in! |
10/03/10 12:00 |
 Scrapbook Trends and Cards! Spring 2010 issues are instock, http://www.paperarts-shop.co.uk/index.php?sect=Scrapbook Trends - Card Trends. Older issues are now reduced. |
| Martha Stewart Punches in stock! |
10/03/10 12:00 |
 New! PaperArts Scrapbooking are now stocking Martha Stewart Punches, see http://www.paperarts.co.uk/index.php?sect=703 |
| PaperArts' 7th Birthday Celebrations |
10/03/10 12:00 |
 12 hours scrapping, fish and chips and cupcakes of course! |
| Moda Love U Collection by Deb Strain |
10/03/10 12:00 |
 PaperArts Scrapbooking Brand new patchwork cotton from Moda Love U Collection by Deb Strain, perfect for baby quilt, in stock at PaperArts http://www.paperarts.co.uk/index.php?sect=24 |
| What is Scrapbooking? |
10/03/10 12:00 |
| Keeping a scrapbook is not a modern day phenomenon, even before the early 19th century, when photography was invented, people kept memorabilia and printed records in a scrapbook. Here in the UK we often associate a scrapbook with the sugar-paper books we made as children, but these were not made of acid and lignin free materials. Acid and lignin, which are present in cheap paper products, turn photos yellow (we all have those adhesive backed albums with yellowing photos from the 80s) and they become brittle over time. Modern day scrapbook products are made with materials that are acid and lignin free to preserve the contents for posterity, it is also important to use permanent pens, although computer inks are safe to use too. We enjoy the art and the craft of the scrapbook process.
Why would we want to make a scrapbook still? In this modern computer age there is a draw to the hand made. Although scrapbooking does exist in digital form here in Europe we are more interested in the craft of producing our own scrapbook for our own satisfaction, not as duty like in the US where many people keep a scrapbook as their religion dictates them to. Modern day scrapbook products started appearing in the US in the early 1980s, and even today most manufacturers are based in the western US states, often with religious owners and staff associated with the Mormon faith. This does not mean that the majority of us who scrapbook for ourselves and our families and friends are tied to religious themes, far from it! Scrapbooking is very sociable; there are many classes and crops (an event where people gather sociably to work on their own scrapbook) around the country, similar to the old fashioned sewing bee. More socialising and eating/drinking and shopping is done than scrapbooking!
A scrapbook enables us to record our lives in a fun and artistic way, each page (or layout) usually contains one or more photographs, possibly some memorabilia like tickets of leaflets, and at least a title and a date. Journaling is very important, it makes the scrapbook meaningful. Just imagine a stranger from Mars looking at your layout, do you “tell the story” of what is happening in the photo?
Naturally many people start with a baby or wedding scrapbook, a holiday to Disney, a retirement cruise, that big holiday to Australia or camping in Wales, it doesn’t matter if the destination is not exotic, they are your memories. Many scrapbooks are not theme based. Post bound albums with PVC free page protectors allow individual layouts to be inserted into the scrapbook allowing an easy rearrangement or removal to another scrapbook at a later date. The most common size of scrapbook is 305mm square, more commonly referred to as 12x12 as in the inch measurement! A good scrapbook shop or online store will be able to supply everything you need, the scrapbook itself, photo safe adhesives, embellishments (like flowers, ribbons, brads and buttons), stickers, cardstock in 500+ colours and differing textures, and patterned papers in coordinating collections and/or themes. Then there are the tools, a trimmer that cuts 12” paper is a must have, and electronic die cutters are very popular.
A good scrapbook shop, like PaperArts near Stroud, which has been established since Feb 2003, will have a lot of individual papers so there is no need to break the bank to get started with this addictive hobby. Come and join in with the “scrappers” at a local crop or sign up for a Beginners Class, we are a friendly bunch! |
