If you knew what I know now, you would have started digital scrapbooking a LONG time ago. I always envied anyone who could finish a traditional scrapbook! I still do it! However, after trying to complete just a few pages and watching almost two years go by with only 2 pages completed, I was baffled. One of my favorite stories about my attempts at scrapbooking is the time I traveled 45 minutes to my sister-in-law’s house to make a scrapbook of my, at the time, 2-year-old freshman year. When I arrived, I loaded up my huge bag of supplies and empty scrapbooks, unpacked all my papers, tape, cutters, and markers, and spread them out on the table. That’s when my sister-in-law asked me, “Kelly, where are your photos?” I left my photos at home! I could not believe it. I just sat and laughed at myself.

Being the tireless person that I am, I had a CD of photos and went to Target to print another set of photos that I wanted to use. I was beginning to wonder how much this whole project was going to cost me and how much time I would actually spend on it. In the end, the memory my son would have made for me would be worth more than the time or money spent on it, so of course I continued.

After another few months, a flooded basement, and a move to a new house, I opened my scrapbook bag to pull out the 2 pages I had completed. I had been introduced to a company where I could scan my pages and save them as jpeg and finish the rest of my pages digitally! I was excited to learn that there was another option for making my scrapbooks. At this time it was called digital storybooking. I didn’t care what the term was, I was so excited to check it out further. The sad thing was that when I pulled out the entire two pages of my scrapbook, to my dismay, they were all molded. The bag they were stored in was caught in the flood and, being stored in a dark, damp area, the pages had become moldy and ruined. I had to throw them away. So many thoughts went through my head, but in the end I realized that I had only lost a couple of photos of my son and was thankful that I put this project off. I finally understood why so many said that if their house caught on fire, the first thing they would grab would be their scrapbooks.

After that night, I knew digital was the way to go for me. I also knew that if I ever wanted to create something traditionally, I could still do it and then scan it for archiving in case I wanted to print a copy in the future.

Digital Scrapbooking allowed me to create my son’s first book in 45 minutes. He didn’t have to be creative; I could use what was already there for me. I just had to match the images to the pages and add some text and voila. Since I didn’t have to worry about my writing, I was able to write more about all the memories than if I had done it by hand. Honestly, I’d say my first project was more like a digital photo book. Only images, a background that was already chosen for me and the ability to write a small text. Every project I did there after got a little more elaborate and creative. I was becoming more and more confident in the digital tools available to me in the free online study and could feel my creativity beginning to emerge.

There were so many perks for me, but one of my favorites was that I could create multiple copies and I could make each copy look a little different than the one I just posted. I was thrilled that there was never any mess to clean up, just a laptop to shut down. What excited me the most was that I actually did something with my photos and created an amazing memory book full of stories that won’t fade away.

The question to ask yourself is: Do you want to start small and learn as you go and have the freedom to grow with your creativity and have a free site that grows with you? Would you like an online site that allows you to create and design your digital photo albums and digital scrapbooks the way you want without feeling limited by your options? Heritage Makers is my favorite and the best, don’t waste your time anywhere else. If you have time, look around and let me know what you find.