STICKERS

Stickers are one of the most basic scrapbooking supplies. Scrapbooking stickers should be acid free, and lignin free (or photo safe such as Stickopotamus™). Traditionally scrapbooking stickers are made out of printed paper, adhere to your page with a sticky back and are very quick, and easy to use. More recently scrapbooking stickers have become more embellished - some sporting fiber, beads, wire, ribbon and other such products that give your scrapbook pages depth and texture. Stickers are a must for every scrapbooker and come in almost any imaginable theme.

PUNCHIES

The paper shape which results from using a paper punch tool - not the hole left by the punch. Punchies can be used on a scrapbook pagefor decorative effect, if they have been punched from acid free, lignin free paper.

RAG BOARD/RAG PAPER

Board or paper made from material other than wood, such as cotton, which is naturally lignin free, stable and durable.

LIGNIN

A substance found naturally in the cell walls of plants. It is the reason that timber pulp manufactured papers turn brown and brittle. Newsprint only contains around 4% lignin. While it is becoming the norm for acid fee products to also be lignin free that is not always the case.

CROPPING

Cropping is the trimming of a photo to remove unnecessary sections. Cropping should be done to improve a photo not just to make a pretty shape. Cropping also allows for more photos to be added to a page. When cropping some attention should be paid to maintaining the historical integrity of a picture. Never crop out anything that identifies the time period in which the photo was taken.

ACID FREE SCALE

The Acid Scale goes from 0-14. 0 is very acidic while 14 is very alkaline. 7 is considered acid free but a pH value of 8 is preferable for use scrapbooks.

POLAROID OR INSTANT PHOTOS

A photo that develops before your eyes. Until recently these were the least stable of photo types. They have improved but are still very prone to fading in light. Due to the nature of most of the prints they should not be cropped. Cropping may result in chemical seepage which will damage the print and may be harmful to skin and eyes.

PUNCH

A tool used to "punch" decorative shapes from paper or card stock.

Eyelet

Eyelets are small metal circles through which the laces are threaded on a pair of shoes. They are used in a scrapbook context as decoration and as a means to "rivet" components onto a page--mainly card stock.

DIE-CUT

A shape or letter cut from paper by machine using a die pattern.

JOURNALING

Journaling is writing down the who, what, where, when and why that goes with your photos. An important part of scrapbooking that is often never done for fear of ruinning a page with bad handwriting or a mistake or putting it off for later which never comes. Journaling in your scrapbook should always be done using permanent, fade and water proof writing tools. Using the computer to journal makes it easier for some to keep up with this important task.

MYLAR

A reasonably hard wearing protective polyester covering that can be used to cover album pages or for memorabilia sleeves.

PHOTO SAFE

A marketing term used for products sold for use with photos and memorabilia. Photo safe is an ambiguous term and one that is not regulated, and while it is probably preferable to select products clearly marked acid free, lignin free and PVC free, the term has gained wider acceptance in the last few years and if the product is from a reputable manufacturer it is likely truely photo safe.

PAGE PROTECTOR

These are protective plastic sleeves which cover your scrapbook pages. They are available in a variety of sizes and can be side-loading to cover scrapbook pages that are bound or top loading which means that the protectors themselves are usually incorporated into the binding and require that the scrapbook pages be slipped into them. Polypropylene and Mylar are two of the most highly recommended plastics for protectors.

WAX PENCIL

A soft acid free pencil designed to write on glass, plastic and photographs. If used on the front of a print it will rub off but when used on the back will become permanent. Comes in all colours but blue is the colour used most often by scrapbookers. (Schwan All Stabilo - Aquarellable is a type of wax pencil)

CORNER ROUNDER

A type of punch which rounds the corners or photos and mats. A very important tool for those who are working with photos from the 70s and 80s which came processed with rounded corners. Comes in plain or decorative styles.

MAGNETIC ALBUMS

Also known as Peel and Stick albums these albums are not really magnetic. They have strips of adhesive on a backing card onto which the photos can be placed and then a page protector is used to cover the photo and any adhesive left exposed. Some magnetic albums have all three damaging components i.e. PVC, acid and lignin. Others are labelled as being photo safe. None-the-less they should be avoided as at the very least a fine layer of adhesive is placed onto the front of any photo put into a magnetic album.

POLYETHYLENE

A chemically stable, transparent, food safe plastic used in photographic preservation materials.

ACID FREE

Many papers can be considered acid free immediately after manufacture however unless they have been buffered, i.e. treated with a neutralising agent, chemical reactions with substances such as sizing or bleaching will cause the paper to become acidic over time. All plastic by it´s nature is acid free however some plastic is unsafe for use in photo albums.