G.J.'s SCRAPBOOKING

CYNTHIA HART'S SCRAPBOOK WORKSHOP: A Complete Guide to Preserving Memories in Archival, Heirloom-Quality Books (Workman Trade Paperback, $19.95, 1998) I thought it would be nice to create a scrapbook for my son's first year at school, and so I started scouring the bookshelves for interesting scrapbooking titles. It was VERY hard to find ones that aren't hokey and super-cutsey. CYNTHIA HART'S SCRAPBOOKING WORKSHOP was one of the few books that somewhat appealed to me. You may be familiar with Cynthia Hart's Victorian art calendars. Her designs in this book are quite elaborate and definitely reflect her Victorian tastes, but the book isn't entirely Victorian-styled. There are plenty of contemporary ideas, which I actually didn't care for as much as her vintage-style page layouts. The book is comprehensive and an excellent source for the novice 'scrapbooker.' She covers the basics of how to use archival materials, how to restore damaged photos and prevent photos from future deterioration, and she also offers helpful information about tracing your family tree. Then she gets into the heart of how to create a scrapbook: the basic tools needed, planning your pages, incorporating three-dimensional objects, color and design schemes, and detailed instructions for making your own album covers. The rest of the book is devoted to lush, full-color scrapbook designs. Each design is accompanied by detailed instructions. She covers a wide variety of occasions, including baby, wedding, bar mitzvah, sweet sixteen, 50th wedding anniversary, sports, kids' artwork albums, holidays, travel, and pets. My favorites were the designs in which she worked with old photographs. The 'Childhood in Collage' and the 'Special Grandmother' layouts are gorgeous. This book is extremely well thought out. It offers detailed, easy-to-follow instructions for creating a memory album. And it features a wide range of scrapbooking ideas that will inspire readers to do something creative with their shoeboxes full of old photographs. Highly recommended.