So you have finally decided to give it a try and take a trip to your local craft store. Does the overwhelming variety of items you can use make you dizzy? Of course! We have all been there before, so you are not alone!

If you haven;t made the trip to the craft store yet there are a few things you may want to cover first to make sure that you have everything in order to get started smoothly.

First off, you will have wanted to get all your photos together and in one place. It is best to have them organized prior to starting so that you will know exactly where each picture is and where to find it. There are many types of "organizers" you can buy from small photo storage boxes to larger ones. My suggestion is to use something similar to a recepie box so you will have tabbed dividers and can label each accordingly. I personally use a Creative Memories Power Sort Box which retails for $35. I know that may sound rather expensive, but it has really helped me get everything so I can find my pictures fast. You can label the tabs however you want with a basic pencil. I have mine sorted out by child, holiday, birthdays, my family, his family, and so on. Now that's just my system, you are free to do yours in what ever way is easiest for you.

So now that you have your pictures sorted what's next?

Next you need to set yourself a budget on how much you want to spend on this particular album. Yes, I did say a budget. Once you get to the store you may go a little nuts like may of us have, and just start buying on the "Ooooh that's cute!" whim. If you're not carefull, you'll have filled up your cart whith stuff that is either for the more advance scrapbooker or just stuff you won't or don't need. I'm an impulse buyer, so you can believ me when I say that it is VERY easy to do.

Now that you have your budget, you need to sit down and make a list of items that are must haves and want to haves. Let's start with the must haves and whys.

An album - An album is what you will be putting everything together in. But there are tons of choices to be made and things to remember when making those choices. First of all you want to decide on the size of your album. The most commonly used size is 12in x 12in. But of course you can get them bigger and smaller depending on your taste.

Then you will want to decide on the type of album you want to use. You can choose from post bound or strap hinge. I prefer the strap hinge. A post bound ablum requires the use of a screwdirver to add additional pages, where as the strap hinge is you just undo the straps, add your pages, and redo the straps. Most post bound albums come complete with page protectors. Page protectors are sheets of plastic that go over your finished pages in order to keep them from collecting dust and dirt. They are a vital ingredient if your album will be handled by children. Page protectors for strap hinge albums must be purchased seperately.

Next decision is to decide if you want to use a vinyl, cloth, or leather album. Obviously the vinyl covered are generally the least expensive, but in my experience I have found that the cloth albums hold up much better, and tend to look nicer too. I have only done 1 leather album in my scrapbooking, and that was a very special album that I made as a suprise gift. Your albums will range in price, depending on sales and cupons, from $4.99 all the way to $49.99.

The most important thing to remember in choosing an album, is to make sure that it is acid and lignin free.  Anything containing acid and lignin poses a threat to the life of your album. After all the effort you will be putting forth you don't want to have it ruined over time with nasty chemicals that can and will eat away at your photos.

A trimmer - A trimmer will allow you to trim your photos and papers to the size you want them to be. It also comes in handy for cutting out that person you don't know that happened to land in your photo.

I suggest getting a 12 inch straight trimmer as it will allow you the room to get everything cut just right. I have 2 different 12 in straight trimmers. The 1st one is a Zision Trimmer made by Provo Craft. The second is the 12 in straight trimmer made by Creative Memories. I prefer using the Creative Memories trimmer as it contains grips on the underside to hold your photo or paper in place while you easily glide the cutter over the surface. While they are quite similar, the Creative Memories trimmer tends to have a much cleaner cut that the one made by Zision, requiring less time going over the edges with a pair of scissors. A decent trimmer will run on average $20.00.

Markers/Pens - You will want to have a good set of markers or pens to use while journaling. Journaling is where you write your memories about that particular photo, trip, event or time. You don't have to do any journaling, but it just adds that personal touch that only you can give.

I suggest getting a set of Zig Writers. They are on the more expensive side, but have many qualities that make them worth every penny. First they are acid and lignin free, making them safe to use. Second they are dual tipped. One end will be a fine tip and the other will be a round tip. So it is pretty much like getting 2 ses of markers in 1 package. As I said they are on the more expensive side. A 4 pack of Zig Writers runs about $11.99.

You can also use gel pens, which come in a wide assortment of colors, so long as they are marked acid and lignin free. Many people prefer using gel pens over markers. I use both.

Adhesive - You have to have a way to get your photos and papers put together. There are many different types of adhesive available to you. Most commonly thought of is the glue stick. I personally do not reccomend using them as they generally do not hold well.

What I do reccomend is using photo mountaing squares which average about $2 for a box of 250. They hold very well and are photo safe. Another thing to use is an adhesive runner. It looks similar to the device that you use to roll on white out. Nothing complicated there.

After you have those items you are pretty much ready to go!

If you would like you can add memoribilia, stickers, ribbons tags and specially designed papers. It's totally up to you how you want you album to look at the end.

Most importantly, keep in mind that YOU will be your own worst critic. A scrapbook does not have to look like the ones in the craft magazines to bee good. What is important is that you put it together will love and the desire to preserve your photos and memories for generations to come.