Handy Scrapbooking Tools for Beginners

Beyond the basic equipment for the beginner there are other handy items that can be added over time to you scrapbooking kit. Here is a list of some useful tools:

Rubber Stamps
There are a variety of rubber stamps on the market for scrapbooking and cardmaking. Stamps can be used to add decoration to the page and for titles and journalling. Inkpads come in different colours. Make sure you only buy inkpads that are acid free and contain permanent ink.

Craft Knife
Craft knifes can be a godsend for cutting out titles. Make sure you use a cutting mat at all times. If you choose a cutting mat with a grid you will find it makes cutting and measuring much easier.

Paper Trimmer
One of my favourite scrapbooking items is my paper trimmer. It cuts paper and card up to 12x12. I use the Kaiser brand which has a variety of interchangeable blades but there are many others on the market to choose from. The beauty of interchangeable blades is that I can easily get the kind of look I want such as scalloping with a flick of a switch.

Eyelet Tool
If you intend to add a lot of embellishments to your pages you might find an eyelet tool useful. You can buy a kit that includes a hole punch with a variety of different hole sizes.

Embellishments
Embellishments add interest and flair to your pages depending on your theme and the look you are hoping for. Try buttons, paper, fabric such as ribbons and twill tape, tags, wire and metal.

Essential Supplies for Scrapbooking Beginners

Many people think that they need a lot of equipment to scrapbook but a beginner can get by with only a few essential items. Here's a list to get you on your way at very little expense.

Essential Supplies for Beginner Scrapbooking

Scissors

Ensure that whatever scissors you buy are sharp and easy to use.  I find a small sharp pair for cutting around lettering and small shapes useful.  Also it is handy to have a larger pair for general cutting.

Not essential but kind of useful is to have some fancy scissors with unique patterns to cut out edges and make decorative frames. These can be bought in pack containing various design patterns at very low cost.

Adhesive

Choose eiither double-sided tape or photo stickers.  Photo stickers are easy use and are suitable for photographs.  They come on a runner which makes them easy to handle. Glue dots can be useful for sticking down heavy card. What ever adhesive you choose make sure it is acid free and archive safe.

Pens

Acid free permanent scrapbooking pens are readily available and relatively cheap. A fine tip and a thicker tip for journalling and decorating pages will be enough to get you started. There a range of colours available but black is probably the most useful colour.

Trimmer or Guillotine

A guillotine is useful for trimming card and cropping photographs.  You will get much straighter edges than what can be achieved with scissors.

Card and Paper

Make sure that any card you buy is acid and lignin free to prevent deterioration of your precious photographs.  If you don't you will find your photographs turning yellow and fading as the chemicals in the card and paper eat away at them.

Albums

Albums are available in different sizes.  For a beginner the standard 12x12 album size is a good choice. Scrapbooking albums are acid free, photo-safe and are usually marked archival quality. They are a bit more expensive than other kinds of photo albums but it is worth paying a little more to get an album which will protect your photographs from premature aging. Don't try to economise on this.  It really is not worth it.

Related Links
Start a Scrapbook Tutorial for Beginners to Create First Page
Handy Scrapbooking Tools for Beginners