Easy Digital Scrapbooks

Digital Scrapbooks the Easy Way – and why

Photos are for everyone! Memories are for everyone! Preserving them has a whole host of personal wellness and mental health benefits, so–of course–that MUST be for everyone, too! Don’t believe the myth that “scrapbooking” is only for certain people.

The good news is that it doesn’t have to be hard or complicated. It doesn’t have to feel like a chore. In fact, I often advise people to stop thinking about it like an item on your to-do list. It’s so much happier than laundry! Set aside some time to do it like you would lunch with a friend or some quiet Me Time or getting your nails done or going for a walk or anything else that gives you joy.

Preserving your memories is actually FUN! If you haven’t looked through that list of personal wellness and mental health benefits at the link I led with, take just a quick minute to do it now. You’ll be astounded at what your own photos and memories can do for you.

As I mentioned in June in “Personalized DIY Books Make Great Gifts,” the three main things we need to make sure any photo-memory book has are: quality, privacy, and longevity. To those requirements, we are going to add convenience to our must-haves for easy digital scrapbooks.

Today I’m excited to share with you a simple way to create digital scrapbooks for yourself without the overwhelm. Next month I’ll tell you about fancy digital scrapbooking, too!

Try a Starter Project (optional)

Now that you know the WHY of creating easy digital scrapbooks (the wellness benefits I mentioned earlier), we can move on to the HOW. I really don’t throw around words like “easy” and “convenient” lightly because of my experience in over 19 years as a memory-keeping consultant. Some things that are “easy” for some people are not necessarily easy for others.

We will look next at the easy (I mean that) and convenient method I love sharing with people who need an uncomplicated and straightforward way to be a memory-keeper, but before I do I want to suggest an optional idea that might help you if you’re nervous about using a brand new software platform.

We’ll get to the “template” bullet point soon, and the “set aside some time” point is crucial, but the “starter project” idea is the optional one you are welcome to try if you want to get your feet wet with the (free) Create & Print software I recommend for easy digital scrapbooking.

This “starter project” allows you to create a very simple project using just a couple of pictures and a few lines of text before you move on to a whole digital scrapbook. Try something like a magnet, a mug, a stainless steel water bottle, or an ornament. (These are all high-quality products with a 100% satisfaction guarantee, by the way. They make great gift ideas, too!) This, of course, is optional, but you could give it a go if you like.

Overcoming the Obstacle of Time

“I don’t have enough time” is the number one reason I hear why people don’t preserve their photos and memories in print (as photo experts recommend). If this rings true for you, I have three good reads to suggest and a 10 Minutes Daily Plan.

1. Why we need free time and how to get more of it!
2. Tips for “finding” time for memory-keeping.
3. Simple ways to get back on track when you’re overwhelmed.

The 10 Minutes Daily Photo Plan is one I came up with earlier this year in order to help people DO what they want to do. Hop over to that link and you’ll find not only the plan for memory-keeping in just 10 minutes a day, but you’ll also find some ideas for how to even find 10 minutes a day in the first place. There’s even a video recording of the class I taught about this plan, if you like!

I’ve even got a printable version of the 10 Minutes Daily Photo Plan here.

This plan uses the start-where-you-are approach, where you start with today. This is just one option for a digital scrapbooking habit, so you can use it now, or in the future if you prefer these ideas to start:

How to Decide Where to Start

There are a few schools of thought on where to start digital scrapbooking. You could start with this year or last year or wherever you left off last. My personal advice is to start with whatever is easiest. (That’s where that Starter Project may come in.) Usually, starting with what’s most recent is the easiest because the memories are fresher, so I suggest starting with last year’s photos and memories.

And if that doesn’t resonate with you, that’s just fine. Start with what makes the most sense in your brain. Whatever makes sense to you is often the easiest thing for you to do.

Keep in mind, too, that starting is the big deal! Once you start, it’s soooooo easy to keep going. Part of it is natural momentum, but part of it is simply that you’re enjoying it so much.

Start Your Easy Digital Scrapbook

Now that we’ve learned why preserving your photos and memories is so important, made sure your book is the best it can be, thought about a Starter Project (or done one), and overcome the most common obstacle to memory-keeping, let’s get right to it!

I personally think the easiest way to make a digital scrapbook is chronologically. These are often called “yearbooks.” Say you have a picture from Independence Day 2014. When you make a digital scrapbook chronologically, you already know where the picture goes. It goes in your 2014 yearbook on the July page.

Above you see one example of a yearbook, My Year in Chalk, and below you see another yearbook example, Color Blocked Yearbook. Both have a pre-designed cover as shown, then pre-designed pages you can choose one by one to fit your needs which have a design (usually a monthly theme or phrase), photo place holders, and areas for text. You can even add text to the spine, too!

I like the “scrapbooked” look–you know, the kind that makes it look like I did all this creative work when I really just dropped in my photos and text–but if you don’t, there are lots of other options to see here, including the new Our Year in Review book which has a very clean, simple look, which you can see below.

And, last but not least, here’s a 5-minute tutorial video I made showing you how to use the easy (free) software to make your easy digital scrapbook!

NOTE: You will first need to put your pictures in your Forever account (which is private and secure, and your pictures stay that way, too). If you want to upload from your phone using the (free) Forever app, this video tutorial can help. If you’re uploading from your computer, this video tutorial can help.

Don’t Wait!

Memories fade so much faster than we want them to, and even though we sometimes convince ourselves that we “don’t have time” to put our photos and memories in pages, we don’t have time not to! When it comes down to it, I know that I “don’t have time” to not get the mood boost or the relaxation or the connection that comes from spending time with my photos and memories.

I heard this advice not too long ago, and it changed my perspective on a lot of things. I admit I’m a person who will always make time for digital scrapbooking because I love the result as much as I love how I feel when I’m doing it, but I think this advice relates to a lot of things in life.

Certainly, don’t burn yourself out, but waiting for a “better time” doesn’t always work, either. I think we are more capable than we give ourselves credit for most of the time.

Share!

I have a Facebook group which is a great place to ask questions, get information, and be inspired, but one thing I especially love about it is that it’s also a great place to share! When you complete your digital scrapbook, we would LOVE to see photos of it! Join the group at that link, and then feel free to share your accomplishments so we can all celebrate together.

I’ll be back next month here at Between the Bookends to show you Fancy Digital Scrapbooking. It’s more involved than this simple process, perfect for creative Me Time as well as the flexibility to put anything you want wherever you want it on a page. See you November 21!