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Inexpensive Scrapbooking With Plastic Bags

By Autumn Lockwood

Republish: EasyPublish™
Published: 17Nov2011
Word count: 1687
Viewed: 227 time(s)

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Although there is certainly a time and a place for archive-quality scrapbooks, sometimes you just want a quick and inexpensive way to make a durable little scrapbook. These little plastic bag scrapbooks are great to make as a children's project. Or, make a few as quick gifts for relatives who just want to treasure a few family photos. It is also a great method for teaching young children about saving photos. If you already have photos displayed around your home in picture frames, you could even borrow a few of these for one of these scrapbooks. Make a few of these quick little books today, and let the photo fun begin.

Supplies Needed

To make a plastic bag scrapbook, you will need a box of gallon-sized plastic zip lock bags. Some brands put a lot of printing on their bags, so be sure to find one that keeps their bags plain. You will also need two pieces of lightweight cardboard, cut to measure 12 x 12 inches square. Gather a supply of scrapbook paper, or simply substitute inexpensive construction paper, especially if children will be making this craft. You will also need a ruler, glue stick, scissors, a stapler, hole punch, yarn needle, assorted markers, and a thick nail and hammer. Plus, of course you will need a nice selection of photos. For children, use printouts of digital photos, instead of original film print photos. If you are making a book for a relative, you might want to choose photos that are nice enough to display in scrapbook picture frames. Children, however, are usually happy with any kind of photos.

Constructing The Book

If you are making the scrapbook for a children's project, you will probably want to assemble it yourself. Decide how many pages you want, and select that same number of plastic bags. Connect them by stapling 5 bags together along the left side, with the zip lock opening along the top . If you want more than 5 pages, create more page sections. Place one of the cardboard covers on a padded work surface, with a stack of plastic bags on top. Using the nail and hammer, pound holes through the cover and plastic bag stack, each an inch apart. Repeat with the other cover and the rest of the plastic bag sections. Sandwich the bag sections between the covers, line them up, and stitch together using a needle and yarn, knotting the ends when done. Using the ruler as a guide, score a line along the front and back bound edges, so that you can fold them back. This will allow the book to open easily.

Adding The Photos

Once the book is constructed, the fun can begin. Give your child a stack of photos and construction or scrapbook paper sized to fit in the bags. They can then use round-tipped scissors, glue or adhesive squares and markers to make interesting pages. When their pages are complete, simply slip them into the bag pages and zip shut. If you are making the book as a gift, you might want to take a bit more time making the pages. As an added advantage, these pages are so easy to open and close that you can swap pictures between your book and picture frames easily.

Your kids are sure to love these fun and easy scrapbooks which will allow them to display their favorite photos to you and your relatives.

Autumn Lockwood is a writer for Your Picture Frames. Display your favorite photos in one of our interesting bamboo picture frames or other styles of frames. Visit our website to browse through our wide assortment of wood picture frames today or give us a call at 800-780-0699.

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