The best present I ever received was a Scrapbook my Mom made me for my 21st Birthday. This Scrapbook contained photos of my family and me from the time I was born up until my 21st Birthday. It took four thick albums to fit all the memories in, but each page and picture brings back a special memory, experience, and emotion. There are write-ups of events from my childhood, poems I wrote as a kid, and even some of my drawings. It is a gift I will cherish for years to come, and is the perfect gift if you are looking for something meaningful for a 21st Birthday.
If you decide to give such a project a try than make sure you give yourself plenty of time; my mom took a year to compete mine. There is much to do before you can even think to begin the Scrapbooking portion of the project. The first task is to gather up all the photos you would like to include in your Scrapbook albums. This can take some time as 21 Years often means more photos than you could ever imagine. Once you have gathered all photos you will need to organize them in the order you want them to appear in the album. Commonly, this is done from Birth up until the Present. It is also a good idea to write down the location of the photo and people, or any special memories associated as this can also be added to the scrapbook. This will also mean many photos so you will want to have boxes to organize them by years as it will take you quite some time to work through them all.
The next step is to visit your local Scrapbooking store. However, beware as these stores are like magical kingdoms with so many beautiful and amazing products to choose from. These products quickly add up so make a list of what you need before you go, or else you could end up leaving the store with a very empty wallet. Some of the basics you will needs are the actual albums, various colours of scrapbooking paper, stickers (there are tons to choose from for every event you can think of), gel-tip pens to write down memories or reminders in the scrapbook, various edge scissors so you can create different edges for your pages, scrapbooking glue, and a small paper cutter is always helpful as well. There are numerous other products to choose from, but if you have never attempted scrapbooking before it’s always helpful to pick up a book or magazine on it as they can give you some helpful ideas and designs to get you started. Otherwise you can browse the internet for some helpful hints.
Once you have picked up all the supplies it your time to experiment and play. This is the fun part! You can make the Scrapbook exactly as you want it. You can play with different colours and layouts to suit your desired design. You can decorate the pages any which-way, and add your own special loving touch. However, the most important aspect of this gift will be the fact that you made it yourself and it will be a gift that will last for years and years, and will always serve as a reminder for those special family moments. Believe me when I say that the receipient of this gift will cherish it and love it more than you will ever know, I know I do and I have never been able to put into words to my mom how special it truly is.
