Online Scrapbooking
Hobbyists Can Do Online or Digital Scrap Booking
By Wes Waddell
The scrapbook page or layout set is a story that features a day in the life of an individual. There are only a few words that will be needed to describe what is happening when the picture can speak for itself. These are usually presented in a colorful manner that many perceive to be much better than a plain old photo display album.
Traditionally, scrapbooks were made using the imagination of the individual by hand. These days, the same things can be done on your computer or even online enabling the user to download the digital scrapbook templates to finish the scrapbook. You can even have this kind of scrapbook page posted on the web when you're done.
Research shows that there are more than 100,000 downloadable digital scrapbook templates available to date. More than 5000 of them alone are located on
www.PrincessCrafts.com. This allows the person to use a different one on each page of the scrap book since it will be quite boring to use one or two all the way through the entire scrapbook project. Matching two page scrap book layouts are a great idea though.
There are a few things people should know about digital scrapbook templates. Some of the sites offer this for free while there are others that will ask the person to pay a small fee.
PrincessCrafts.com, the first and largest digital scrapbook membership site has some of both.
Those who decide to become members get unlimited access to all 5000 plus templates for as long as they remain a member. You can even view the works of other members on the
BLOG. That will give you ideas on how to finish your next digital or computer scrapbook project.
When a digital scrapbook template has been downloaded, you can choose to print this on paper or do the work on the computer. The photo will be scanned or uploaded from the digital camera and then pasted right onto
the page.
This will make it 100% faster for the individual to have this posted on the web should this be shown to a much larger audience which goes beyond the family. It's also a great way to create scrap book pages for video and slide presentations at schools, retirement communities or at the local craft show.
Has this drastically changed how scrap booking is done? The answer is both yes and no. This is because many still prefer to use cut outs and other art material to decorate the digital scrapbook printed page and also to put other things in the background.
Many people like the hands on feel of hand scrapping, others prefer
the mess-free digital option.
Computer technology just made it 10 times faster to complete a finished scrap page and helped a bit in the production time when one is busy thinking of the proper layouts. Digital also let's you start and stop at any time with no mess to clean up.
Another huge benefit is for people with arthritis or joint problems.
No cutting with scissors or messy gluing. Users still have to decide on the scrapbook theme and choose the designs
and photos that go in it.
A side from digital scrapbook templates,
PrincessCrafts.com and some of the other sites even sell the
digital elements and embellishment
materials needed since these things are not always available or are more expensive in the local scrapbook store.
Not all the sites offer the same thing. You'll even notice that there are a few that even give helpful tips to beginners and veterans alike on new techniques that can improve the skills in this hobby. My favorite resource
other than these 2 sites is the one at:
www.ComputerScrapbookTraining.com that now offers the Greatest FREE Digital Scrapbook Gift... EVER!
If you are looking for hi-resolution kits that you can arrange
yourself, then you'll want to check out the site at:
www.ScrapbookKitsnBits.com.
I also think that it is a good thing that viewer's are allowed to post questions and discuss
topics about scrap booking on the
PrincessCrafts BLOG. This will surely help those who may have a hard time understanding the tips mentioned when making this work.
When your scrapbook has been completed, this can be posted on the web. You can post this
on the same site where the digital scrapbook templates were acquired or have this posted elsewhere such as one's personal website or photo sites like
Shutterfly.com.
Scrap booking is not new. People have been doing this for 100s of years and it is only recently that there has been an
upsurge in it's popularity again. Maybe because people have found the time savings that digital scrapbooking offers and the fact that you no longer need to be an artist to create totally beautiful scrapbooks.
We also have archival safe supplies available today that have not
been in the past. Now your scrapbooks can be preserved to last
for 100s of years.
It could also be the fact that families are becoming more important again and passing on family history is just one of the many ways
that make scrapbooks fun to preserve your most
cherished memories.
I think a lot of it is the no mess, no cleanup and no large space needed like
you do with the old traditional hand scrap book methods.
With digital scrapbooks... all you need is your computer and printer and
just a little time here and there to be able to preserve your best
memories for generations to come.
Regardless of the reason you choose, the one sure thing is that online digital or computer scrap booking is here to stay. This will give the hobbyists and crafters more options when it comes to planning and the final outcome of the finished scrapbook, which can be finished in a few days instead of the weeks or months the old traditional scrapbook methods took.
It can even be made into real hardbound books.
Resources:
www.PrincessCrafts.com
www.MyPrincessCrafts.com
www.ComputerScrapbookTraining.com
www.PC-ScrapbookElements.com
