Happy Halloween! It’s T-minus 6 hours until the ghouls, goblins and ghosts are unleashed around the neighborhood. Snap-happy parents will be taking aim at their little monsters as they collect candy from friends, neighbors and virtual strangers. Then, it’ll be time to unload the loot and get sugared up. While my daughter devours her share of sugar, I’ll be going through my freshly snapped photos to see which will make the cut for my annual Halloween-themed scrapbook layout. Last Friday, I paid a visit to my local scrapbook shop to see if the manager had marked down some of the … Continue reading →

Despite the miles in between Happy, happy Halloween! Not exactly Shakespeare, but it ties in well with my “Ghouls Just Want to Have Fun” page title. I’m rushing to put together a double page Halloween layout for my great aunt’s 90th birthday scrapbook. I’m in charge of creating half of the holiday-themed pages, while my sister-in-law has to come up with designs for the remaining holidays and major occasions, such my birthdays and family reunions. Right now I am working on Halloween. The layout has to include all of the youngest members of the family, as well as photos from … Continue reading →

(My kid: More shark-y than scary.) For the past five years I have designed Halloween-themed scrapbook layouts that were far cuter than they were creepy or chilling. My young daughter is not into blood and gore, so to get my page designs to reflect the spirit of her adorable animal costumes I stayed away from using horrifying Halloween embellishments. Instead, the layouts were filled with candy stickers, pumpkin die cuts and other sweet-not-spooky decorations. However, she is getting older, and while she doesn’t plan to break with tradition and trick-or-treat as a decapitated ghoul, she did select a few 3D … Continue reading →

You’d never know that Halloween is still more than a month away by strolling through my local scrapbook supply store. The tiny shop is filled with thousands of spooky Halloween-related supplies. Anything and everything you could possible image using to spice up your holiday page designs is on sale; unfortunately, much of it doesn’t come cheap. I fell in love with some amazing seasonal products, though most are not in my budget. Fortunately, if I hold off long enough I might be able to pick them up for reduced prices at post-Halloween sales. If not, I plan to utilize every … Continue reading →

When it comes down to it, a scrapbook layout is really an adventure in storytelling. Photos, embellishments, memorabilia, captions and journaling all help recount a special memory and preserve it for years to come. With Halloween just around the corner, now is the time to start strategizing holiday layouts. Consider how you want to tell the tale of your All Hallows’ Eve festivities. For example, if you want to put an emphasis on photos rather than write out lengthy journaling blocks, consider spicing up the shots by taking them from unique angles. Experiment with some extreme close ups and or … Continue reading →

Now is the time to stock up on Halloween scrapbooking supplies. Typically, I don’t purchase holiday-related items until after the 31st, so I can take advantage of post-holiday sales. However, this year, I’ve seen several major retailers (including Michaels and Hobby Lobby) offering up to 50 percent savings on Halloween-themed scrapbook elements before some kids even have their costumes picked out. Not that I am complaining. Still, if you are planning to purchase materials for your Halloween memory book prior to the holiday, there are some factors to consider. For starters, if your children haven’t already selected their costumes, stick … Continue reading →

Most people look to falling leaves as a sign of autumn. In my home, it’s a set of blood red fangs rather than rust-colored foliage that marks the change of seasons. My 5-year-old nephew likes to scare my 8-year-old daughter with photos of his Halloween get-ups, which are designed around a pair of well-worn plastic fangs and loads of fake blood that drips from his mouth, down to his chin and throat. The pictures always score at least a couple of layouts in my holiday scrapbook. Yesterday, as I paged through past Halloween-themed memory albums I was reminded that All … Continue reading →