Newbie needed advice & now my very FIRST PAGE EVER is done!! Link to Pic on pg. 3!

[Missin'Disney]

HEY ALL, I'm new to this forum, have barely begun to scratch the scrapbooking surface - I've wanted to start forever, but it's very daunting. I've found the mouse memories website really informative from a beginner's standpoint, and I've decided to do Disney scrapping exclusively for my first album. I've got several trips to cover

Anyway, the prices for everything are sooooo expensive and I was just wondering if anybody can suggest a retailer with a good Disney inventory that may be cheaper than mouse memories. Or an ebay seller. Also, where is the most reasonable place to buy cardstock and supplies that aren't Disney-specific?

If any of you can point me in the right direction I'd greatly appreciate it cause right now I'm feeling very disoriented. Just trying to figure out what things are necessities and what can wait until I'm more seasoned is dizzying enough. I have a friend who has been doing this for quite a while, has a whole dedicated scrapping room and has graciously invited me to come learn with her, but with 6 kids b/w the two of us, there never seems to be time! Plus I'm a travel agent and I work from home (Disney exclusive of course!) So there just aren't enough hours in the day. Any help or advice greatly appreciated!!!

 

[chessie]

You don't have to go with all licence Disney products. I started scrapping Disney before there was any licence Disney stickers, papers or embellishments.

All we had were the Mickey head punches from all night media.

Go to your LSS or wherever you buy scrapbook supplies. Look for animal print papers for animal kingdom, travel papers or papers that have the Epcot countries for Epcot layouts. Think Hollywood for the Studios and anything with a movie theme

Use cardstock in colors to represent different characters. You can use pastel papers for princesses. green and purple for Buzz Lightyear.

Stock up on black, red , white and Disney yellow cardstock.

Get buttons, brads and eyelets in Disney colors.

You can really do an entire album without using a single licensed product

 

[Missin'Disney]

Thank you for the advice Chessie....you raise some good points. But I still need to buy all the basics....I'm assuming I NEED:

scissors
Paper trimmer
safe glue
cardstock
paper
safe pens for journeling
plastic protectors for works-in-progress

I'm sure I'm leaving stuff out, but I was wondering where everybody would suggest buying this stuff as cheaply as possible... Please feel free to tell me necessities that i left off the list.

I have a Michaels and an A.C Moore close to me. I know they both carry scrapbooking stuff. But I don't know if they are considered "good deals"
I also ordered the "Essential Disney idea book" off an online toy store that had it for 50% off. I am hoping that this can give me some layout help ideas. Has anybody used this book? Do you recommend it?

Alright, I really appreciate the advice of you veterans out in DISworld!
Thanks!

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Price wise ACMoore, Michael's and Joann Fabrics will be as good as anywhere else. I would suggest shopping the sales though. And don't just buy for the sake of buying, you can spend way to much that way. I would start with 1 trip to Disney, probably the most recent (experts say to scrap the newest memory first, then work your way backwards).
Anyway, sort your pics, decide what size you want to do, I do 12x12 because I like to cram as many pics on a page as possible.
And you need an album too. Those are on sale at Michael's. 40% off.
When you have an idea of your pages, then start buying supplies for each page. I kit my papers, pics for that layout, and any embellishments into 2 1/2 gallon Hefty ziploc bags, that keeps them all neat and organized.

Get the supplies you have listed, but don't be thrifty on your tools. good quality tools will last a lot longer. For your plastic protector I suggest the Iris tote, they are on sale thins week at I believe Michael's. They are nice and sturdy.

If you want an overall less expensive way to scrap, you can look into digital scrapbooking. I don't know much about it but there are other girls that can point you in the right direction. There are sites that will print your pages for you.

sorry to cut it short, gotta get the oldest from Cross Country. If I think of more later I will let you know!!

 

[GrumpyMom25]

I'll second the Iris totes ... I use them to store my paper and cardstock in. I've sworn for awile that I'm going to keep one in my van so I can get my paper home safely from the store.
Since you've got a M's and ACM around they're a great place to shop ... watch for their sales and use their coupons. I started out with a Fiskar trimmer, some Elmer's glue sticks (I like Zig glue pens now as well), bought different edged scissors and never really used them, patterned paper and cardstock. You'll find tons of Disney embellishments at M's and ACM.
Have fun and don't let yourself become overwhelmed ... also found it useful to look at other people's work to get ideas.
Be sure to share when you get that 1st page done!
Another thing ... check out M's Sandylion Disney Album kit ... I picked on up last week to use for the trip we took last month. Came with the album, patterned paper and stickers ... used my 40% coupon on it. That may help you get started.

 

[chessie]

Start off small. When I started scrapping, I bought only what I needed for the page I was working on. I only bought a tool when I needed it. Resist buying packs of paper. It sounds like a good deal but you end up not using much of it so it is not a bargain at that rate.

-Use your 40 % coupon for your paper trimmer
-Buy adhesive squares as your adhesive. They are the least expensive. You can invest in others as you go along.
-I prefer the Zig pens but there are tons of other journaling pens out there. Just get 1 in black
-A pair of cutter bee scissors or the equlivent is all you need to start.

You don't even need an album. You just need to know what size you want to use.

Go to your local pizza place and see if you can buy a pizza box. They might even give you one. You can keep your completed layouts in there until you get the album you want to use.

You honestly don't need much to start. I swore I would not accumulate any more stuff then would not fit into my XXL tote. I now have an entire room dedicated to scrapping and beading.

 

[Missin'Disney]

Thanks so much for the responses and advice. I've got to resist the urge to stockpile (I've definitely got hoarding tendancies ) And these online shops make it too easy!

I'm going to take your advice Bernard & Miss Bianca and start with our most recent trip. I was not sure how to tackle our numerous trips, in order or most recent first, or all together, according to theme. Too confusing. I'm glad to at least have that figured out now. I need to get the pix I want to use sorted out and then shop for paper that will coordinate. In the meantime I will use my 40% coupons to get the staples.

Thanks again for helping me sort this all out guys. It means a great deal to me. I'll keep you posted!

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

trimmers and tools are on sale at ACMoore this week, 40 or 50% off this week. I got a new trimmer for $13.

Oh another thing for Disney, I started an ABC album for left over pictures.

here is a link to the ABC's of Disney list:

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1457364

and here is a link to the FAQs of Scrapping

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1502156

other options for scrapping numerous disney trips it to do 1 album for each park, scrapping some in chronological order, by park, or ABC.

 

[Missin'Disney]

thanks for the links and the helpful ideas! Good to know the tools are on sale. I can't wait to start shopping. Any brand(s) known as the preferred brands for tools?

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Everyone has their personal favorites.

I have the Fiskars trimmer, Cutterbee scissors and tweezers, I like the Creative Memories tape runner (dry adhesive) they are like little double sided sticky tabs to hold the pics on the paper. For wet adhesive I like Zig glue pens (looks like a ball point pen) for small items and Scotch Quick dry tacky adhesive for bigger projects. Those you can find at Walmart.

That's really all I can think of.

I would recommend getting this bag, AMM tote-ally cool tote to store your tools in. It's essentially a plumbers bag, but cuter! LOL

http://www.scrapnsave.com/ammtocomitop.html

Oh and if you want more than say 2 of those iris boxes I would recommend this from Joann Fabrics, and use a coupon to get a good % off.

http://www.joann.com/joann/catalog.jsp?CATID=cat323863&PRODID=xprd74098

 

[Missin'Disney]

thanks again!!
Really helpful....
Now that I've been nosing around this forum I'm getting nervous about the whole Digital vs. Traditional scrapping conundrum....
Yikes! Another whole can of worms. I like the idea of being hands on....but the convenience of Digital and not having to take out, clean up, worry about working space or storage space is definitely alluring. But geez, talk about an even bigger learning curve. I'm completely confused!! I already have photoshop on my Mac (not that I use it or anything) and now that there is Digital Disney stuff I don't know if I'm better off going that route

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

You can do both, a lot of people hybrid scrap, don't ask me what it means though. LOL

I am a tactile learner, so paper is better for me. I'm not the most computer literate person in the world, I get frustrated really easily when it comes to anything computer related, probably be cause DH is a computer guy.




BTW, YAY!!!!!! another Mac user!!!!
sorry, I get excited, there aren't many of us around. LOL

 

[labdogs42]

I do both kinds of scrapping, but if was starting today, I'd probably just go digital. Check out some of the digi threads here to see what we're talking about! But, if you really want to go paper, I like Creative Memories albums the best. I also like their personal trimmer and tape runners. As for paper, go to Michael's or AC Moore and go crazy! I use a lot of plain papers in my Disney albums and I usually buy one of the dated kits when I'm in the parks to accessorize with. Have fun shopping, whatever you decide to do!

 

[Boo Bear]

joann.com has a huge selection of discounted disney stickers. I got my 12 x 12 disney album from there for my last trip... $15 with their 50% off online coupon.

 

[Missin'Disney]

I really appreciate all the feedback and advice you've all given me so far...what a friendly forum this is....
I think I'm leaning towards going the paper route to start with and then see if I could learn the digital later on...the paper just seems so fun....getting all the materials and embellishments seems like half the fun even though it is a lot of extra work. I guess a lot more expensive in the long run too. I'm gonna try to shop the sales though!

Bernard & miss Bianca...my hubby is an IT guy too...probably explains why we both have Macs (or more like 5 of them!)

Keep the great advice comin' gals - I need all the help I can get

 

[Missin'Disney]

Oh, Jessica (Labdogs42) your digital pages were great to look at. thanks for posting the link to them in your sig. I'm sure you've had lots of practice to get 'em looking that good... & your family is delightful!

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Bernard & miss Bianca...my hubby is an IT guy too...probably explains why we both have Macs (or more like 5 of them!)

Yep!!! I have 2, he has 1 for work. We have a Linux box (or 4) in the basement. We have Apple TV, the whole nine yards.
He works on windows boxes all day long and hates them! LOL

Plus the kids use Mac at school so it's an easy transition for them.

BTW you can call me BAMB or Buffy, Bernard and Miss Bianca is such a pain to type. LOL I love my name but I never expected to be on the DIS this much, so I picked the wrong username.

 

[MazdaUK]

Host a creative Memories class and get free stuff! (Although its not a cheap option, I love their albums and ended up becoming a CMC so i could get the whole kit cut price ) It will also help you through getting started - and they do a bit of Disney stuff

Scrappindeals also has good bargains, but its a bit dangerous as I always end up with LOADS of extra stuff.

I don't want to digitally scrap as I'm in front of a screen all day (guess where I am now ) and last thing I want to do when I get home is look at it for another few hours. of course I do to keep up with this lot, but you see what I mean

One more tip - hide your credit card or give it to your partner to look after

 

[nicurn]

I am another one who has an entire room of stuff. I like to make stuff vs scrapping at this point. (paper bag books, board books, exploding boxes..) I just discovered digital scrapping and I LOVE it. you can do it anywhere, it's not messy and it's much less expensive than paper scrapping. (there are all kinds of free kits, and you can make your own stuff). You also don't run out of stuff, once you download it, it's just there. There are a bunch of places to print out your pages in most sizes (8x8, 12x12, etc) I just got 10 pages printed at scrapbooksplease.com for 99cents for a 12x12 page. I was quite happy with them. I am also "caught" up now with pretty much all my pictures thanks to digital. Here's the best part though, my cats can't drag everything around! have fun scrapping, no matter how you do it. maggie

 

[Missin'Disney]

For those of you who "hybid-scrap" do you feel like the digital finished products look as awesome as the layered paper ones do? I feel like the flat finished product would lack a certain something. Of course the ones I've seen posted look awesome and it does seem like there is SO much you can do with the digital layering, but I wonder if in person they look "flat" (since they are). The whole learning curve of the digital route seems extra hard...I mean, can you figure it all out if you don't have someone teaching you?