It's no secret I love crafts. In fact, I used to be a big time scrapbooker but since I discovered online scrapbooking, my supplies have been collecting dust! A few years ago I didn't think online scrapbooking could ever come close to the real thing, until I discovered
Mixbook. After making a book on their site, I concluded that online is better for the following reasons:
- Save money. Anyone who has made a scrapbook knows that the cost of the book, paper, stickers, printed photos, etc. really adds up. It could cost over $100 to make one book if you like to have a lot of pages like me! Not to mention all the extras you need like a paper cutter and stamps (sure, they are reusable, but they are costly in the beginning).
- More options. The internet is a huge place- bigger than any craft store. If you are making a scrapbook about your trip to Paris, and you want to include a sticker of the Eiffel tower, or make the background paper Paris themed, you would go to your local scrapbook store and browse their stock. They might have 1-2 sheets of 12x12 paper that have something to do with Paris, and maybe a few sticker sheets that have the Eiffel tower on them. If you like extreme customization like me, Mixbook allow you to upload any image as a photo, sticker or background - and you don't need to drive to the store. You can use the gorgeous photo you took of the Eiffel tower at night as your background, or upload one it from Google images to use as a sticker. The options are endless and, Mixbook thousands of stickers and backgrounds and they are constantly adding more!
- Convenience. You can start with a blank book, import your photos into a finished book, or anything in between! Most of the time, I like to start with a partially finished book and edit/customize as I go along.
- Professionalism. Lets be honest, as cute as handmade scrapbooks look, they are not professional looking. Stickers start to peel off, the photos start to discolor and glue gets in places it shouldn't. I LOVE the smooth pages and hard cover of the online photo books. I'm sure some people would argue that they like to put their plane tickets or other similar items into their scrapbook Check out some of my books below, and you will notice that I have all that in there. Simply take a picture of it and then remove the background. Upload your image as a sticker and there you go!
- Space. When you are a hardcore scrapbooker, you most likely have bins and bins of supplies. When you want to work on your scrapbook, you have to drag them all out and organize everything to see what you have (unless of course you are lucky enough to have a designated scrapbook area in your home but most of us don't have that much room). To work on your online photobook, simply sit down in front of your computer log in and get started!
Check out my photo books by clicking the caption under the photo.
I wish I would have read your post sooner. Your pages look great with some beautiful design features.
ReplyDeleteI made a scrapbook using ArtsCow.com... and even though the program provided some nice designs, it's actually a company based in Hong Kong and I am STILL awaiting my books (about 10 days now). Fail for me.