The art of preserving memories has never been more popular than it is today. With so many tools and techniques available, scrapbooking has gone from simply collecting photographs in an album to creating decorative canvases that complement and explain the photos. Whether you want to design a showcase to remember a birthday, wedding, vacation, or any other special moment, scrapbooking is definitely the way to go.

There are a few basic rules to keep in mind as you learn to scrapbook; once you’ve mastered these, you’re free to get as elaborate with your artwork as you want.

• Avoid acid, lignin, and standard glue – never use any scrapbooking materials that contain acid or lignin, as both of these substances can cause photos to become discolored and disintegrate. Only buy acid- and lignin-free paper at your local craft store. For a safe adhesive, use double-sided, acid-free photo tab tape.

• Be careful with photo cropping – cropping is a great way to trim photos so that unwanted images are removed, but beware! When you’re first learning to crop, make color copies of your most important photos and practice on these. There’s no worse feeling than realizing you’ve permanently cropped something important out of a non-duplicated photo.

• Don’t forget to journal – one of the most rewarding aspects of scrapbooking is being able to include captions and journal entries next to photos so that you can always remember that moment’s significance. Journaling can be as simple as noting the date when the photo was taken, or it can be as elaborate as including entire anecdotes to accompany the photo. 

Colored paper, stamps, elaborate cut-outs, stickers, and creative borders are more ways to further personalize your scrapbook pages. Inside One 51 Place apartments in Alachua, Florida, there’s so much space that you’ll never have a problem finding a place to display your scrapbook creations. In fact, you don’t even have to put your scrapbook pages in an album – many people show off their artistic skills by framing their decorated pages and putting them on walls or on tables. If you would like more information about the other benefits of renting an apartment at One 51 Place, contact our leasing office today.