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Question:
I started a scrapbook for my daughter when she was born. I put
"Congratulations", Birthday cards, and other items in it through
the years. My daughter is now 17 years old and the pages of the scrapbook
are very yellowed and fragile. I can add or delete pages from the
scrapbook without a problem; however, I would like to keep the original
pages in tact without taking all the birthday cards, etc. off the existing
pages and putting them on new scrapbook paper. Is there a way that I can
do this? You see back in 1982, I was unaware of "acid-free"
paper, etc. I don't know if it even existed then. If you can offer me some
suggestions so I can complete this scrapbook, I would be very grateful. (I
wanted to give this scrapbook to my daughter when she graduates high
school this June.) Thank you for your time. Patty.
Answer:
Patty, You probably now know that if the pages of your daughter's
scrapbook are yellowing, it means that they are deteriorating. Obviously,
you can do with it what you want but I assume you want some guidance on
giving your daughter a scrapbook that she can still enjoy decades from
now. Unfortunately, I don't have any easy, perfect solution to your
problem as I understand it. So far, I have thought of three options:
1. You could spray everything (pages,
cards, etc.) with Archival Mist. This may not be your best option for two
reasons: it is very expensive and you can't use it on photographs. If
there aren't any photos on the pages, and you have a large budget for the
project, this is a way to do it and not have to redo the pages. The pages'
and cards' acidic deterioration will be slowed down by a huge amount with
this treatment. The treatment is more effective if both sides of the paper
items are sprayed, but treating the exposed side only will slow down the
acid attack on the paper. It won't reverse any yellowing or brittleness.
2. Depending on the size of the pages, you
could make color laser copies of the pages as they are. This won't give
you images of the insides of the cards, but might be a partial solution to
use with my suggestions #3 and still preserve the gift as you originally
created it for her.
3. My suggestion - if you really want to
give these keepsakes to your daughter in a long-lasting form - is that you
do rework the book on modern acid-free, lignin-free scrapbook pages. I
know it will be a lot of work, but you could keep the feel of the pages
you've already done by just recreating them with new materials. You may
also find that the project inspires you to add more written comments and
maybe photos and other items that will make the gift even richer.
Good luck and I hope the project is
rewarding to you and your daughter!
Souzzann Y.H. Carroll
Author of A Lasting Legacy: Scrapbooks and Photo Albums that Touch the
Heart
Question:
I need to know if it is safe to cut Polaroid instant pictures. In
the past, I had heard that it was not, because of the chemicals in the
backing, but lately I've been told that these have changed and are no
longer dangerous to cut. Others say to cut only the bottom white portion,
but nothing else. Thanks! Ed
Answer:
To the best of my knowledge cutting Polaroid pictures is (still) not recommended.
Question:
During a photography class I took in High school we were taught how to
create marbleized paper for mounting photographs. It was a long time ago
and was wondering if anybody on the team would be able to give some
instruction on how I might be able to do this. Here is a little of what I
remember. We used a photo print developing tray that was partially filled
with water. Then inks were introduced to the water bath (multiple colors
if desired). The inks floated on the surface of the water. Then the paper
was placed into the water in various ways to create different patterns.
Thank-you for any help Richard
Answer:
Paper Adventures just released a paper marbling kit that will allow
you to use this technique safely on your scrapbooking pages. I was able to
see a demonstration of this technique at the HIA Show last month and was
impressed how easy it was to make a beautiful design on papers using this
technique.
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