Saving Money by Digital Scrapbooking

I have always enjoyed Scrapbooking and the creative outlet it provides, but I didn’t like the expense or the mess it made to make a page. A couple of years ago I found a web-site that got me excited about digital scrapbooking and when I found that I could do it for next to nothing I was hooked!

There are actually many reasons I found digital scrapbooking better than traditional paper scrapbooking.

It is inexpensive

• There are endless “Freebies” out there. There are a lot of really good freebies.
• Many computers come with photo software pre-installed. I found my computer had Photoshop elements (PSE) on it. While there are many software choices available, I find that most of the free tutorials out there are for Photoshop Elements. You can get a Free Trial of PSE Here

• You can alter digital elements to any color you would like to match any theme and stretch your purchased supplies even more.
• You can re-use your paper and elements like buttons as many times as you want which saves additional money.
• You can continue to switch elements (without wasting them) until your layout is just right.
• It is much faster than traditional scrapping (and time is money).
• Cost to print at a store like Costco is around $1.49 for 8X8 and 1.66 for 12X12  Go here to see a list of places that will print scrapbook pages, prices and Ease of use .
• o   My Favorite is Persnickety Prints     http://www.persnicketyprints.com/ $ 1.49 per page but they have a half off sale twice a year.  I also can store all my layout there so they are never lost.
  ·         You NEVER have to worry about running out of an alphabet sticker again. You can re-use and re-use.
  ·         No more big bulky scrapbooks. Fit more pages in one book. Fit more books on your shelves.
  ·         No worries about elements being archival and damaging photos
  ·          Shop all the online digital stores any time for exactly what you need and get it instantly downloaded! (Save money on gas!)
            
  ·         Multiple Copies –
  ·         I have a friend who is making a paper scrapbook for each of her kids, the traditional way is way too much work and expense with digital you just hit print!
  
  
  ·         Sharing your Scrapbook - there are more ways to share your scrapbook pages than just in an album. Scrapbooking digitally makes it easier to share your pages with friends and family through email, on the web, or in slideshows
  CONS
  ·         Software that can be expensive
  ·         Not having your own handwriting on your pages (Or have a font made of your handwriting.)
  ·         Not being able to easily include physical mementos (ticket stubs, receipts, etc). But they can be scanned and included