Organizing your photos can also be very sentimental. You will see the photos of better times and the memories will just come to you. One downside to building a scrapbook is feeling that nostalgia, and being extremely aware that the events have all happened in the PAST. Nonetheless, your task of organizing your family photos for your scrapbook is a fitting tribute to those memories, and should not be considered a chore.

Here are some steps to effectively and rapidly organize your family photos

1. First, designate an are inside your house for your project. The space must be free of clutter initially, to allow you to move the photos around as you sort through them.

2. Next, put the photos that are promising (in terms of inclusion in the scrapbook), and put away those that are damaged. Polaroid pictures should be piled separately because they leak and may damage the others permanently.

3. Make copies of the photos you chose. These will allow you to be creative and not worry about making mistakes.

4. Start arranging the photos again, this time in chronological order, by events, by the people in the photos or by holidays.

Some more Helpful Tips

If you’re compiling photos for a wedding scrapbook, you should include the photos of the couple while growing up.

If it’s a family tree, organize according to the side of the family the photos were from.

Determine what the scrapbook is for.

Is it a gift for an oldie or a baby? Is it for inclusion in a time capsule? Your goals for the scrapbook will determine everything you put there, including the materials you are going to use (do not use perishable materials or those that could rot and infect the rest of the scrapbook with decay if you plan on keeping the scrapbook in a time capsule).

The size and style of your scrapbook also needs to conform to your goals. Keep it small if you plan on sending it out, and make a huge page if you plan on framing it or using it as a conversation piece in your living room.

The basic supplies must always be available to you

You can use rare materials as accents but the major components of your scrapbook must be made of materials that can readily be bought in thrift shops and bookstores. Remember that future generations may want to add something to your scrapbook so make sure they can easily duplicate the theme of your book by using easy to find materials.

Make copies of every photo you use

It doesn’t hurt to make duplicate copies of the photos you are using in your album. This way, you can be as creative as you want with your scrapbook photos without worrying about accidentally destroying them (because you have reserve copies anyway).

For more ideas on how you can make your first scrapbook the most fabulous ever, download this guide containing 500 Scrapbook Sketches today.

Layout – The first thing to consider is how big your page is and will the scraps be too bulky or too humongous to place there? It’s a good idea to have little pockets built in each page, for very small things that could get lost or damaged by gluing and too frequent pressing.

The Story – An ideal scrapbook tells a story … I saw one scrapbook with pages that contained only hand prints and photos of a child. Up until the child reached 18 years of age. This is a really sentimental way of keeping those precious “growing up memories”.

Your First Layout

There are two ways of finding some great layouts for your scrapbooks.

1. Online Scrapbooking Ideas – The internet exposes us to the lives of millions of people. Usually these people will have blogs, myspace pages and customizable web pages. The really creative ones will adorn their web pages with photos and knick-knacks. The idea is to observe how the pages were built and get ideas. Internet surfing can be very productive, as long as you keep your eyes open and your creative juices flowing.

Alternatively, you can look for sites that SELL scrapbooking pages, print out those that you purchased and use them as ages for your scrapbook. These aren’t expensive if you just buy a few for your scrapbook’s dividers, but if you plan on putting all of these quality and high resolution pages in your scrapbook, it could get very pricey for you.

2. Magazines and Books -Learn from professionals who make a living putting out layouts of magazines and catalogs. See the colorful sales brochures? Where is the text located? How big are the photos? The best resources are sometimes the design magazines and real estate. They take photos of their products at very unique angles.

You can learn a thing or two from these professional publishers.

Inspiration may also be found from a book that has nothing to do with crafts, or an old calendar.Note that the beautiful and scenic photos from calendars can be good materials for your backgrounds.

Maybe you can create your “best memories” scrapbook according to the lyrics of your favorite song, poem, or quotes.

Lastly, you can learn a lot from friends. Why not propose a get together with friends and family who may or may not be into scrapbooking? You can obtain briliant ideas from their handiwork, or they can give you tips on how to improve a layout you’re already working on.