I have a confession to make: I’m not a big fan of scrapbooking. Don’t get me wrong... there’s nothing inherently bad about scrapbooking, it’s just not ME. I don’t know what it is... a patience factor? A need to keep all of my photos in chronological order and in one place? Who knows, really.
I did make a scrapbook to save all of my photos and memories from a 6-week long study trip in England and I still have it: Two albums full of browning, peeling Scotch tape, photos, scribbled memories, and random ephemera. This was back in the 80s, before scrapbooking products were as mainstream and advanced as they are these days. I still look back at those two England albums and think about how much I love the concept of scrapbooking, not to mention all of the supplies. I regularly stroll scrapbook stores for papers and embellishments for my cards, altered books and other projects. I thought about how I love making assorted memory booklets and cards as gifts and wondered why I couldn’t combine my love for altered books with scrapbooking.
All of the projects in this article are a part of an altered book that is a very special gift for a very special friend, to celebrate our 20 years of friendship this year. I chose some very memorable events in our friendship and “scrapped” them within the altered book.
The first thing, that comes to mind when I consider scrapbooking is the ongoing debate regarding “acid free” and “archival” issues. From what I understand, there are two camps: everything MUST be acid free and archival OR “it’s not a big issue.” I fall into the latter. If you’re interested in scrapbooking in your altered books, I suspect you do, too. My main goal in my altered book photo spreads is to capture a moment and record a memory. If it also includes ephemera – movie stubs, foreign coins, etc.—I throw that in there, too. I look at it this way: If my altered books aren’t here in 100 years, I won’t know about it, now will I?
I can, however, build my altered books as well as possible and take care in choosing the bulk of my materials, but I do it for the sake of art. Did Georgia O’Keeffe worry about whether or not her paintings would crumble and fade? I suspect not. My kids and grandkids will cherish whatever is left of my legacy, however crumbly it may be, just like I do with my grandparents’ and great-grandparents’ things.
With that said, here are some things to keep in mind:
- Choose a well-made book. Check out the tips in the first article in this series regarding choosing your book. If it’s already falling apart, it may not be the best choice, unless you’re planning on replacing the paper block inside.
- Use up those great scrapbook supplies, papers, etc. to enhance your altered book.
- Use quality paints, adhesives and mediums in your work. I use Golden products, which is only a personal preference. You can seal your work with gel medium, which will protect your photos from fading and crumbling.
- Use copies of precious photos. I store all of my original negatives and photos, in chronological order, in light-safe boxes or in albums with sheet protectors and they’re doing just fine there. I go into those archives for specific photos to add to my altered books.
- Don’t get your pages too wet with adhesives and paints. This will contribute to a faster breakdown of the book’s binding.
This may be your first glimpse into my Altered Books 101 series. If you are interested in learning more about Altered Books, or would like more details on some of the techniques discussed in this article, please take a look at the archived Altered Books 101 articles.
To find the products mentioned in this article and shown in these layouts, check with your local scrapbook retailer. Look at our Premier Retail Stores for coupons to a store near you.
