Scrapbook Album Ideas

I've finally come to accept that I enjoy the idea of scrapbooking (and buying scrapbooking supplies) somewhat better than I actually enjoy scrapbooking. As such, I read a lot of scrapbooking magazines and think a lot about scrapbooks I might one day make, though I seldom actually make them. Here's a list of scrapbook ideas I've considered at one time or another, included here in hopes of inspiring others:

Holiday Albums. Include a spread for each year and watch your family grow up before your eyes!

1. Christmas album. Pages to include: letters to Santa, visits with Santa, acquiring/decorating the tree, favorite decorations (indoor, outdoor), family traditions, favorite recipes, parties, letters/pictures from friends/family, etc.
2. Hannukah album. Pages to include: family traditions, recipes, etc.
3. Halloween album. Do a spread for each year and make sure to capture in your journaling the significance of your childrens' costume choices.
4. Easter album. Consider doing page for each of the following: Easter baskets, Easter egg hunts, best dyed Easter eggs, best Easter hats, Easter traditions, etc.
5. Birthday album. Do a spread for each year and make sure to include the following: venue, theme, guests, the cake, special gifts, special memories.
6. Anniversary album. Do a spread for each year and add journaling that talks about the memories you've made together during the past year. 

Geneology/Heritage Albums. Sure to become family heirlooms!

1. Family Tree album. Create an album with spreads for each "branch" (family) of the tree.
2. Heritage album. Gather/copy family documents and photos and preserve them in a way that tells a story
3. Family Recipe album. Gather the best family recipes and collect them into a single album. This could be particularly special if you can arrange for each recipe to be handwritten by the person who submitted it.
4. Family Reunion album. Pages to include: guest list, venue, activities, collected stories, superlatives ("funniest," "best preserved," "biggest heart," etc.)
5. Tribute album. Have you lost someone dear? Create an album celebrating their life and reflecting upon the ways they have shaped your life.

Family Albums

1. Wedding album. Why use one of those pre-made wedding memory books that never has spaces to record the memories you really care about? Make your own!
2. Where We've Lived album. Scrapbook all the places your family has lived. Include journaling that explains the reason for each move.
3. Siblings/cousins/grandchildren album. Create a scrapbook that celebrates the special relationships that form between family members.
4. Family Pets album. Don't neglect the fuzzy members of the family!
5. Home improvement/Renovation album. Because the only thing more satisfying than finishing a major home improvement project is being able to look back at photos that show just how far you've come!
6. Year in Review album. Display what your family gets up to in a year by devoting a page to each month
7. Neighborhood/Community album. Celebrate the community in which you live. Pages to include: Neighbors, favorite places, favorite restaurants, etc.

Children/School Albums

1. Baby album/book. Why use one of those pre-made baby books that never has spaces to record the memories you really care about? Make your own!
2. School Memories album. Be sure to include pages for friends, clubs/activities, class schedules, report cards, special events, etc.(Variations: elementary school, middle school, high school, college)
3. School Photo/Timeline album. Put those envelopes of school photos to good use - create a timeline album that shows your child growing up.
4. Artwork album. What to do with all those pictures your darlings haul back from Kindergarten? Give your refrigerator a break and scrap them in an album.
5. Prom album. Pages/items to include: invitation, placecard, pressed flower from corsage, photos, journaling commemorating the big day
6. Graduation album. Pages/items to include: announcement, program, graduation photo, party details, gifts

Hobby Albums

1. Sports album. Do you participate in a sport, either as a player or coach? Create an album to capture your memories and memorabilia
2. Fan album. Are you passionate about a sports team, celebrity, band, or musical style? Preserve and share your obsession with others via a fan album. Include stats, memorabilia, articles, ticket stubs, CD covers, etc.
3. Club/activity album. Do you participate in a club or activity that's an important part of your life? Create an album to help capture you memories and memorabilia. (Variations: scouting, PTA, book club, service club, church, etc.)
4. Hobby album. (Variations: fishing, camping, gardening, coaching, cooking, hunting, needlework, carpentry, etc.) Celebrate your passion! A fishing album might celebrate all the trips you've taken and your best fishing stories; a gardening album might contain spreads devoted to your favorite varieties; a needlework album might create lists of handmade gifts you've created and pictures/samples of some of your best work ... so many choices!
5. Collection album. What do you collect? Create an album that displays the highlights of your collection and shares stories about how your collection came to be.

Travel Albums

1. Vacation album. (Variation: Honeymoon album) Collect your photos, brochures, ticket stubs, road maps and other memorabilia, add journaling, and presto ... you can relive the trip over and over again!
2. Annual Family Trip album. Does your family visit the same relative every year? The same beach? The same cabin? Dedication like that deserves an album. Since the snapshots you take from year to year may be somewhat similar, consider organizing the scrapbook by "activities" rather than chronology. For instance, if your family always goes to the same beach, consolidate photos from multiple years to create pages devoted to best sandcastles, great tans, sleeping in the sun, bathing beauties, muscle men, buried alive, playing in the surf, etc.
3. That's Entertainment album. Create a scrapbook to show off all the shows you've attended. Include programs, ticket stub, reviews from the newspaper, and your own personal remembrances from the event.

Gift Albums for Adults

1. Wedding Shower album. Gather photos, scraps, ribbon, guest lists, gift lists, etc. and create a keepsake the bride and groom will treasure forever.
2. Baby Shower album. Gather photos, scraps, guest lists, gift lists, etc. and create a keepsake that the new mom will be sure to treasure.
3. Teacher Year-End album. Create an album that captures photos and memories from the past school year & present it to your child's teacher. Makes a great end-of-year gift!
4. Cookbook album. Share treasured recipes & family food traditions with members of the family ... old and new.

Gift Albums for Children

1. ABC album. Consider illustrating each letter with photos of objects from your own house; for instance, instead of a generic picture of a cat, include a picture of YOUR cat. If you really want to get creative, incorporate tactile materials ("fur", "sticky", bumpy")
2. Colors album. Consider devoting a page to each color and including pictures of objects from around your own house - the front door, toys, vases, curtains, etc., to serve as examples.
3. Animals album. You can decide to include a mix of all animals, or stick to a particular favorite category (ex: jungle animals, farm animals, pets, sea creatures, dangerous animals, bugs, snakes, etc.)
4. Nursery Rhymes album. You don't have to include a comprehensive list of nursery rhymes - just the ones with which your child is familiar or that have a special meaning for you/your family.
5. "People In Your Family" album. Devote a page to each of your child's favorite people. A great way to refresh their memory of out-of-town grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins!
6. "Your Favorite Things" album. Devote a spread to each of the usual categories: favorite foods, favorite places, favorite people, favorite toys, favorite songs, favorite cartoons, etc.

Gift Albums/Ageless!

1. 101 Reasons I Love You. Anyone will melt upon receiving this one! Be sure to include a mix of serious reasons, sentimental reasons, and silly reasons, embellished with photos, quotes, pressed flowers and any other keepsakes that illustrate your point
2. 101 Reasons I'm Glad You're My [variations: mother, sister, husband, best friend, etc.]. Try mixing "big" reasons (ex: "Because you're compassionate") with more special, intimate reasons (ex: "Because you cry at Hallmark commercials," "Because you still pack Twinkees in your bag lunch," "Because you always wear your lucky underwear to football games," etc.)
3. Congratulations album. Celebrate a special accomplishment or award. (Variations: Eagle Scout album)
4. The Year You Were Born album. Create a visual snapshot of the year in which someone dear to you was born. Include spreads devoted to music, TV, politics, world events, advertisements, most popular baby names, inventions, etc.
5. VIP album. Celebrate the important people in their life (variations: Friends, siblings, cousins, grandchildren, work colleagues, neighbors, club members, etc.)

Albums About You

1. Seasons album. Scrapbook your favorite things about each season
2. Poetry album. (variations: bible verses, books, quotes/sayings) Scrapbook your favorite poetry.
3. My Favorite Things album. Pages to include: food/restaurants, fashion, movies/TV, books, poetry, flowers, etc.
4. Career Album. Reflect upon the places you've been as well as the places you'll go.