Scrapbooking More Than Slapping Pictures On A Page For Many Local Women

For many women, scrapbooking is more than a way to capture cherished memories in a highly organized, colorful album.

It's therapy.

"You're going back to the time of whatever memory you're scrapbooking," said Mary Ruth Dixon, owner of Dorothy's Stamps n' Scraps in Boiling Springs. "You're not thinking about work, whatever else you have to do, the house that needs to be cleaned.

"It's your escape."

Scrapbooking crept into our national consciousness in the 1990s and boomed earlier this decade, becoming a multi-billion dollar industry with Web sites and chat boards, television programs and documentaries devoted to the hobby.

It's still going strong today, Dixon said, who's completed two scrapbooks of her own - one documenting a trip to Italy, the other a vacation in Hawaii.

It's a time-consuming venture. If you have all of the supplies you need - all of the decorative stickers, the rolls of tape, the background pages, pictures and other mementos - and a solid game plan, you could finish one in about a week, assuming that's what you devoted all of your time to doing.

For most scrapbookers, putting a book together means working around children's nap times, jobs and other family commitments . Completing one takes time and dedication.

"You don't just slap pictures on a page," Dixon said.

Read complete article in GastonGazette.com

Low Cost Ways To Scrapbook Vacation

There are many ways to save money when scrapbooking your vacation memories.

First of all, while of vacation, collect brochures and low cost or free postcards whenever they are available to you. You can typically find postcards of your hotel/motel in your room and low cost or free post cards are usually available many different places.

Other things to look for while you are on vacation include match books/boxes, coasters (disney provides many of these in their resorts), packaging of toiletries, packaging from your sourvenirs, tickets and or passes for events or parks, maps and/or brochures, and free or low cost pins or stickers.

For instance, Disney cast members pass out lots of stickers in the parks and at their shopping destinations to children and customers who request them. Another good place to get low cost or free items for your scrapbooking is roadside stops and airports.

Look for kiosks and information counters that provide brochures about local attractions, etc. At many locations you can also get maps of the area you are visiting and this can be a wonderful part of your scrapbook pages.

Read complete article in Examiner.com