Collage Scrapbooking

Scrapbooking Ideas for Thanksgiving: Creating a “why I’m Thankful” Album

Chances are good that you’re thankful for something. Your kids. Your soul mate. Your health. So why not turn those grateful thoughts into unique scrapbooking ideas for Thanksgiving?

A “Why I’m Thankful” (or, if you want to get the whole family into the act, a “Why We’re Thankful”) album is the perfect way to celebrate Turkey Day. Not only will you be able to nibble on Aunt Martha’s delectable cranberry stuffing, but you’ll also be able to share with your loved ones exactly why you’re smiling so broadly this year.

If you’re a scrapbooking fanatic, you might feel tapped for scrapbooking ideas for Thanksgiving. Consequently, a “Why I’m Thankful” book will provide you with a new way to explore the activity you adore.

Marvelous Freeform Musings

Start your creative scrapbooking by getting out a pen and paper and writing down everything for which you’re thankful. Don’t be shy and don’t try to edit yourself – you’re not writing the Great American Novel. You’re simply expressing your innermost thoughts.

As your list grows, you may begin to see some patterns emerging. Those patterns should start to give you scrapbooking ideas for Thanksgiving album pages.

For example, if you notice that you seem to have written quite a bit about how you’re thankful for your parents, why not dedicate a few pages (or more) in your Thanksgiving scrapbook to them? Even if they are no longer living, you can do so in memory, which will make a lovely tribute to those family members who can only “participate” in Thanksgiving in spirit.

Pictures from the Piles

We all have scores of photographs in piles and files. After you’ve chosen some page themes for your creative scrapbooking, it’s a terrific time to take an afternoon and sift through your photos for the perfect images.

Let’s say that you want to devote a page in your Thanksgiving scrapbook album(s) to your son who just started college. (Has the time really flown by so quickly?) After collecting several autumn “shots” of him throughout his preschool, elementary, and/or secondary school years, you could put them together in a beautiful collage.

Additional scrapbooking ideas for Thanksgiving could be to use your photos in unique, unexpected ways, such as just cutting out the heads of the individuals and pasting them on “cartoon” bodies. (It’s not as gruesome as it sounds!) That way, if you cannot seem to find the “perfect” snap of someone, you can create it yourself using stickers, freehand drawings, or stamps.

A Wealth of Writings

Are you someone who keeps every greeting card that is sent to you? Do you hold on to sticky notes from your hubby no matter how mundane? Have you convinced yourself that all these slips of paper will someday be important?

It’s finally time to make good on that promise!

A Thanksgiving scrapbook is a wonderful place to showcase all those little scribblings you’ve held on to for a lifetime. For instance, perhaps one of your scrapbook albums is dedicated to your spouse. Inside, you could fill page after page with simple (but thoughtful) writings that you’ve kept in a drawer throughout your courtship and marriage.

Alternatively, if you have notes that your children wrote before they were quite literate, those treasured, misspelled letters could add a dash of sweet silliness to any Thanksgiving scrapbook albums.

Entice Others to Be Thankful, Too!

Finally, remember that as you come up with new scrapbooking ideas for Thanksgiving based on the “Why I’m Thankful” topic area, it can be extra motivating to share them with family and friends.

Truly, you never know who might be looking for the inspiration to start her own scrapbook albums. There are absolutely people out there who would enjoy the activity of creating their own books of lasting memories… but they are unsure of how to begin.

By showing them your holiday “Why I’m Thankful” scrapbook and brainstorming other scrapbooking ideas for Thanksgiving with your buddy, you might just find out down the road that you’re the reason she’s thankful this year!

About the Author

Michele Cardello, director of marketing and creative for Life Imprints, a creative scrapbooking supplies company also offering contemporary picture frames, in Cleveland, Ohio, has worked in the photo packaging industry for 10 years. Cardello helps customers find creative ways to preserve and appreciate a lifetime of memories.

Looking for a good book on lettering and doodling to use for scrapbooking and collages. Any suggestions?

There is a book called Oodles of Doodles by Pat Olson. I have volume 2.
The book has lots of clever sayings and different pictures that can be traced and cut out for scrapbooking.
I don't know if you can still buy it in stores or on Amazon. I bought mine on eBay though in Sept. for only a few dollars.

Altered art canvas, collage, journal. artwork,scrapbooking

Tags: art, collage, collage scrapbooking, college scrapbooking, college scrapbooking paper, college scrapbooking stickers, college scrapbooking supplies, photos, scrapbook, scrapbooking

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 19th, 2009 at 6:17 am and is filed under scrapbooking. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.