Oh my goodness! First of all let me explain that this hobby is ADDICTIVE!!!!! Second let me say that it's TONS OF FUN! I would suggest going to some classes if they are available in your area first, but if not go easy on the supplies at first as it will not take long before you have a house full! I would suggest getitng several photos together with a common them, ie Birthday, Boating, Vacation, etc. with at least 3 good photos per theme, then buy the stickers and paper for just those photos at first to see if indeed you like doing this. You will need at least the following supplies: Acid free paper, glue, scissors, one multi shaped template for cutting photos mats, and stickers to match the theme of the photos you are going to be doing first. You can buy single sheets of paper at Micheal's, and at most scrapbook stores. DO NOT LIMIT YOURSELF TO ONE COMPANY! There are a few suppliers who will try and tell you that their product is SAFER, BETTER ,etc, this is just not true, acid free is acid free, PERIOD! So don't get trapped into the more expensive products, this craft is expensive enough already. You will need page protectors for the size of paper you buy, which is either the larger 12 x 12 or the smaller 8.5 x 11. Either is fine it is just a personal preference which you do. Make sure you get a GOOD idea book and READ it BEFORE you cut your first photo, make sure you have double prints or at least the negatives of photos you start out with because you will get better at this craft over time and you don't want to start with Grandmas pictures! Check out many links on how to's BEFORE you start, and feel free to ask any question here you need to. Love and good luck Penny Here is a link that might be useful: scraplink

I have to agree with Patti from NH. This past Christmas Season, I was such a flake and didn't get many pictures taken. So I had a few of getting the tree, a few of the kids with Santa, and a few of the kids and my husband putting together this very old train track (that still works) that has become a december tradition. Anyways..I put all these on a two page layout and titled it "Getting ready for the Holiday" Or "Christmas" (don't remember now!) So I must agree if you can do them around a time frame. Spring 2000, March, Friends, etc.. Have fun scrapbooking. We just moved and this is starting to feel like home a little now. So it is time for me to get scrappin' again. Angie

Here's my idea. Take it for what it's worth. It would be fun to have a periodical (weekly, monthly, whatever) motivational theme. Everyone could post sites, ideas, or whatever that match that theme and if interested could make up pages for their own scrapbooks. I'm thinking of something that would be a motivator to work on pages not a type of competition. I don't post personal pictures on the internet so I wouldn't post a final page, but would be interested in ideas or sayings related to certain subjects. Here is a stab at some idea themes for events. 4th of July Picnics Summer Vacation moving everyday life (this is more of a challenge to scrapbook than most events) the lake I have to go take care of business, but maybe somebody has some ideas and could expand this idea.

Hi Gwen and Caroline. I'm usually haunting the Garden Party, but decided I should branch out into other forums. I'm very sporadic about visiting any of the forums, but when I'm here, I'm here a LOT! I seem to scrap for gifts a lot. When my niece got married (4, count 'em FOUR years ago tomorrow), she asked for a photo album like I did for my mom. I gave her the album (book) -- empty. She never asked for photos. I offered her the photos in photo page protectors, but she'd seen ONE page I did for another scrapbook, and she wants me to scrapbook her entire wedding. You have to understand, I took something like 15 rolls of film!!! I've been half-heartedly working on it, hoping to finish for Christmas, but it won't happen. So I'm shooting for their 5th anniversary instead. BTW, it was a 'normal' wedding with a great Halloween reception and dance. My current major project is a calendar for my mom for Christmas. Our LSS has a contest every month where they offer 10 pkgs of 4-5 pieces of paper and a theme. You pick up the pkg on the 1st, add anything except more paper, and return it on the 10th. It hangs in their store all month, customers vote for their favorites, and the most votes gets a $20 gift certificate to the store. I've entered five months, and won twice, and of course October isn't over yet! =) I've designed the pages to fit the store's theme, with a picture of the people in our family who have a birthday or anniversary in that month. On the calendar pages, I'm going to fill in everybody's birthdays and anniversaries. I know she'll love it. Can't wait to get them all done.