With our "Make It Meaningful" Album Contest in full swing, we at Chatterbox are bombarded every day with questions about how to make an album as meaningful as possible.

I think about things in my life that have meant the most to me; family, friends, beautiful places, sentimental objects, special events and life-changing events... even trials in life. How do we put onto paper, in an album, the feelings that we have about those things?

First, think about your intention when you are getting ready to take a photo, item of memorabilia or story and make it into a scrapbook page. Who are you making the page for? What are the things you want to remember? If you were to die tomorrow, what would you want the people closest in your life to know about you and the way you feel about things?

Secondly, when deciding what to embellish your page with, think of it in terms of meaning. Would the page be more meaningful if it included more journaling and less embellishment? Would it be more meaningful to embellish an Easter page with lace and buttons from your daughter’s Easter dress that she’s outgrown, or with purchased embellishments? Would it be more meaningful to include a hamburger die cut when you’re making a page about your family’s favorite restaurant, or a receipt and a menu from one of the visits you made?

An easy way to make meaningful pages and albums is to use our product, Scrapbook Love tiles to prompt your journaling while embellishing, too. We have many different themes that match perfectly with our papers and will spark your creativity when it comes to journaling. Be on the lookout for our series of idea books next year called "Make It Meaningful." For now, check out our website at www.chatterboxinc.com.