Okay, so when it comes to Scrapbooking, “on a budget” is a relative phrase.  Scrapbooking costs money, if it’s important to you to use materials that will preserve your photos and other memories — which is what most of us scrapbooking want.  But scrapbooking is a huge industry, with a lot of fancy — and expensive — materials, and there are some ways to minimize that expense while still ending up with a lovely end result.

So…here are the tips & tricks I employ for scrapbooking on a budget:

1. Stick with 8.5×11″

When I say “stick with,” I don’t mean never, ever, ever use any other size.  You can definitely make individual albums in alternative sizes.  But if you use 8.5×11″ for your main scrapbooking, rather than a more standard “scrapbooking” size like 12×12″, you can use a lot of materials intended for the office, rather than the craft room, which is almost always far less expensive.  If you use 12×12″, you’re typically bound to specialized materials designed for scrapbooking, and the markup on those is huge.

I use standard page protectors and heavy-duty binders.  A lot of the heavy-duty binders (like these from Avery) will come as an extra-wide size that covers your page protectors.  And then buy the majority of your cardstock in bulk packages.  Look for acid-free and lignin-free.  You may be able to find a lot of this among the “regular” cardstock selection, although you might have to branch into the more basic craft materials for a broader color range.  (Of course you can also buy 12×12″ cardstock and cut it down.)

AVERY Heavy-Duty Binder with 2-Inch One Touch EZD Ring, Black (79982)Samsill 200 Non-Glare Heavyweight Sheet Protectors, Archival Safe, Box of 200Exact Index, 8.5×11″ White

Wausau Creative Collection Classics Cardstock Starter Kit, 8.5 X 11 Inches, 72 CountRecollections Cardstock Paper, Essentials 20 Colors – 200 Sheets 8-1/2 X 11Recollections Cardstock Paper, 8 1/2, Bright Essentials, 200 SheetsPA Paper Accents Rainbow Cardstock Variety Pack, Modern HuesAstrobrights Colored Cardstock, 8.5” x 11”, 65 lb

Then the only other thing I have to have (besides my photos) is adhesive (I most often use photo mounting squares) and scissors.

2. Print your images smaller.

I’ll be honest: this is kind of a pain in the behind; it costs a little bit of time.  But it saves money — and space.

When companies switched from printing primarily 3.5×5″ to primarily 4×6″ for images, this presented a size problem for 8.5×11″ scrapbooks.  4×6″ is just really big for a page that size, at least if you’re wanting to put multiple images on a page.  So I took to “sticking two images together” side-by-side and having them printed as a single 4×6 that I can then cut apart.  (So the result is two 3×4″ photos per 4×6 print.)

These fit much better on my pages, are barely smaller than the 3.5×5″ prints I was getting previously, and cost only half of a 4×6 print.

You can be selective.  I do typically print a few of my photos at their full 4×6″ size.  But the majority I print at this half size, and it saves me on the cost of the prints, as well as on the cost of materials, since I can create fewer pages to feature the same number of images.  (If you print in the Shutterfly app, where 4×6 prints are free but shipping is astronomical, they’ll probably come out to about 5 cents each.  At least they do for me.  If you get a “101 free prints” code, check the shipping at 99 and 101; there are some reports that it’s cheaper to just do the 99.)

I use the “combine” feature in an old version of PhotoScape to put my pictures together.  (I think the new one, Photoscape X, has a fee because it’s treated as an app.  The older one was/is freeware.  I use this program all the time, because it’s a quick way to crop images, add text, remove red eye, etc., without all the extra bells & whistles — and load time — of something like PhotoShop.)

Pro tip: don’t order prints from multiple years all in one batch, especially if they’re similar events; separate them so they ship separately and you won’t confuse yourself.  This bonehead ordered newborn photos of three different kids all in the same print order and had to try to separate them when they arrived.  Don’t be like me.

3. Scrap simply.

If you focus on the photos (and journaling), with (mostly) simple frames/mats and that sort of thing, you’re not spending a lot of money on fancy  embellishments…or taking up a lot of precious page real estate with embellishments.

The majority of my pages are pretty clean & simple, with embellishments only added when it seems like “something is missing” or when there’s an empty space that needs to be filled for balance.

(By the way, those Honey Cookies are here on the blog.)

4. Invest in tools & materials that will let you do the most with the least.

While scrapbooking paper can sometimes be expensive as paper, paper is one of the least expensive embellishment options available.  Investing in some fun papers to use for trimming, and/or in tools like border templates, decorative scissors, and/or punches (assuming they’re in shapes that will get varied use, not something you’ll use just once) can enable you to embellish a lot of pages for a minimal cost.

I like simple punches like circles, squares, and hearts.  Depending on your style, you might also get frequent use from something like flowers or leaves.  More “specialty” punches like a house, for most people, wont get used much.  (I do, personally, have a few “oddball” punches that I got cheaply as part of a box of supplies at the thrift store — and I rarely, if ever, use them.)

Pro tip: A teddy bear punch makes a great baby, if you trim off the ears.

5. Break out with personal favorites or the occasional page.

Staying basic with the majority of your pages doesn’t mean you can’t have extra fun with special pages here and there.  Most of my pages are pretty simple, but I like to do more complex pages on occasion, especially as a participant in various scrapbooking challenges, which lets me expand my creativity, learn new skills, etc.

It can also be fun to invest a bit more over time in some specific embellishments that you personally just love.  Maybe brads are your thing.  Or silk flowers.  Or glittered paper.  If you can afford it, splurge on these.

The idea behind keeping it simple is that you don’t need to have any of this fancy stuff, not that you can’t have any of the fun extras.

(It can also be great to participate in swaps for this kind of thing, so that instead of buying whole packages of a lot of different things, you can have a few each of a lot of different things.)

Doodlebug Design – Hippity Hoppity Collection – Mini Jewels – Spring Assortment49 and Market – Flower Embellishments – Royal Posies – Passion PinkCreative Impressions – Brads – Round – Primary – MiniDoodlebug Design – Sequins – Rainbow Pack

6. Stock up during sales.

Stores like Hobby Lobby often will have all their scrapbooking products — or all their paper — on sale, which is one of the best times/ways to get scrapbooking supplies cheaply.

Places like Hobby Lobby, Michael’s, and JoAnn’s also often have coupons for 40% off a single regularly-priced product.  Use these to grab a big paper assortment, an album, or other “larger” need like this.

Scrapbook.com is another excellent source.  They’re not going to be your best bet for page protectors or the more basic solid papers you can buy in bulk elsewhere.  But they have good everyday prices on designer papers (keep in mind that 6-inch square paper pads can be a great option for embellishments and frames) and on the other “fun” supplies, like stamps, inks, punches, etc.  (Particularly items that would get used for both scrapbooking and cardmaking.)  They’re an especially good option for adhesives.  (One of my personal favorites is photo mounting squares.  And I often snip them in half to save even more.)  And when they run sales, their discounts are often very steep.

7. Go hybrid.

Digital scrapbooking is becoming a whole thing, of late.  (See the bonus point.)  But you don’t necessarily have to go all-in.  You can opt for hybrid scrapbooking, which means that you create your pages physically, but you use digital elements you’ve printed out.

This can be an especially good way to get, say, a single sticker you love and not waste a whole remainder of a sheet you don’t need.  Or if you love the 3-dimensional types of embellishments, to get the impression of them without investing in anything other than paper or sticker paper (and printer ink).  Particularly since there are a lot of places you can get freebies.

• My Memories’ free kits – These are intended for use with My Memories Suite software, but there are “universal” file options that can be used with any graphics programs.
• PixelScrapper/DigitalScrapbook.com – This site rocks.  Generous — and uncomplicated — licensing makes it easy to know what you can and can’t use the elements for.  A free account gets you up to 5 downloads per day, with the caveat that you can’t download kits (other than one you can choose as a bonus when you first sign up).  A paid account gets you unlimited downloads, including kits.
• Free Digital Minikit (by PixelScrapper) — Free digital minikits weekly, from the owner/creator of PixelScrapper.  Personal use only, or commercial use with attribution/link back.

Those are some of the best places to get started, although you’re likely to find individual freebies offered here and there at various times, as well.

Sticker Paper, 100 Sheets, White Matte, 8.5 x 11 Full Sheet Label, Inkjet or Laser Printer, Online LabelsMACO Laser/Ink Jet Matte Clear Full Sheet Labels, 8-1/2 x 11 Inches, 1 Per Sheet, 50 Per Box (ML-4005)

BONUS: Go digital.

If your pictures are digital, you could also opt for digital scrapbooking — where all of your pages are created entirely on the computer.  This can use a purpose-made program like My Memories Suite, or a standard photo-editing program like PhotoShop (very popular) or Affinity Photo (my preference, due to features/cost balance).

This is not my first choice, because I would want my pages printed out so I can flip through them, and having full pages printed is pricey.  But if you don’t feel the need to have yours printed out, this might be a better option for you.  It has all the same benefits I pointed out for hybrid scrapbooking, with the added benefit that you don’t need any “real” paper, adhesives, etc., you don’t need to print out the individual images, and so on.

You will likely end up needing to spend more on digital storage space, though — both for your finished layouts and for all the elements you download and keep on hand.