Digital or Traditional scrapbooking

[SuperstarMama]

I just made my first ever digital scrapbook. I used shutterfly... it was fun and overall I'm pleased... I did this for a gift.

I have been collecting tons of scrapbooking material for about 6 years... and have yet to start! Yikes!

So.. now I'm wondering... do I just do digital or do I sit down and do it the traditional way? I do know that my dd (6 yo) would love to sit with me and help... but I also know it will probably take me a lot longer.

I'm just trying to weigh out the pros and cons... would love any feedback.

I can tell a PRO of digital for me would be it would be faster... and looks nice.
A PRO for traditional is the fun of shopping for all little things... stickers, embellishments, papter, etc. I do love to shop.... And... could be special time with my kiddo.

Any input ladies??

[Can'tTurnLeft]

I like the way traditional looks way way way better. That being said digital is easier, faster, more likely to be finished and FAR cheaper.

[Mother of Sons]

I have this dilemma too. I've been scrapbookong for years and I like ot but I am behind. Most of pics are on the computer so it really wouldn't be cost effective to Leo t them. I do think that traditional books feel more special and I want hers to have that "mom made this for me"'feel too.

What I am going to do is combine them. I'm going to dona basic layout On the computer and embellish with some things that I already have. Best of both worlds.

[malakoa]

what a great idea to mix the two!

i'm a wholly traditional scrapper and I love it. . I love the feel of the paper and using my cricut. I love books.

Great times.

[klpmommy]

I love the physicalness of traditional scrapbooks. I love being crafty. I don't get the same satisfaction out of digital.

[BHope]

I left traditional paper scrapping in the dust years ago when my oldest got old enough to dig into my supplies. It was too expensive, too messy, too time consuming, and definitely not a time of bonding between me and my littles. :giggle

[malakoa]

My six year old scraps right along side of me and it's great.

[BHope]

My six year old scraps right along side of me and it's great.We've made a number of digital scrapbooks together. And that has been a bonding time for us. But paper scrapping together? :no :giggle

[klpmommy]

P&E help me paper scrap. They help me pick papers, help me put the stickers on the back, sometimes I'll make a special page where they can put stickers on the page. E esp loves it.

[malakoa]

My six year old scraps right along side of me and it's great.

she has her own books and drawers of things she can use. It's a parallel experience.

[SuperstarMama]

OH, thank you so much for the input....
I'm actually getting dd some supplies for Christmas b/c she's been asking me... she's 6 and really wants us to do some of this together.

I think I'll actually "START" a traditional scrapbook and see what I think. I used to always put my pics in albums and journal them... but then when dd came along in 2004 I figured I wanted to make things even more special...and yep, I've been collecting things that long!

[Sweet Life]

I get the idea of 'perfect' in my brain, and it stops me, too. :hug But I tend to have the same problem whether it's digital or traditional. :shifty My two cents is to jump in and try it - if you are feeling led to traditional scrapping then set a goal to do your DD's first year (or first six) or whatever and see what works for you.

The pros and cons have pretty much been covered, but I'll add that I combine the two in a couple of other ways.

First, I do a digital album each year for the family album, but the children's albums are traditional so that I can include their artwork, certificates and sentimental things like hospital bands (for the ones that hospy births ;) ).

Second, you can make digital pages (rather than an entire album) and slide your 12 x 12 printed digital page into your 12 x 12 scrapbook, intermingling it with your fully-traditional-pages.

I like the idea of embellishing the digital pages, too, but I've never done it.

[SuperstarMama]

Okay, I'm really liking these ideas... I love the idea of mixing the two together! So... remember this is all new to me... So, where do I purchase the 12 x 12 prints? I've only used Shutterfly... and just took a quick look... didn't see that I could just print a page that size?!

Any recommendations of websites to use for this?

[Sweet Life]

There are two pieces to the printing a 12 x 12 puzzle.

First is having access to the software (likely on your computer, but possibly online) to create nice scrapbooky files. Technically, you could do it with any photo software (like photoshop) but it's not going to be as friendly to a scrapbooker as a specialized software. I'm pretty familiar with the Creative Memories software, and it's good software for creating the pages on your computer (but I know there are a lot of others out there).

The second piece of the puzzle is how/where to print. If you have a decent printer, you can print it at home (but I'm a photo snob, and would require an exorbitantly expensive printer to accept this option :giggle). You can print 12 x 12s at Costco. :tu And perhaps other photoshops like Walmart (last I checked, neither walgreens nor sams printed 12 x 12s). Or you can go to a specialized shop like Creative Memories.

I'm sure there are other options out there, but this might give you some ideas. :heart

[AngelaVA]

If you google "Hybrid Scrapbooking" you might good some good ideas.

I am a fan of digital for all the reasons mentioned plus I can print multiple copies of a page e.g. one for my family album, one for an album for the individual children but...when my kids are older and I have a place to lay stuff out without it getting destroyed I may try hybrid.