Open to any and all ideas.

Janet

Dx RA Nov 2008 Dx Type 2 Oct 2008
Current Meds: Metformin, Prandin, Celebrex, Methotrexate, Folic Acid, Plaquenil, Lisinopril, and just added....... Nuvigil (to keep me awake so that I can remember to take all of my other pills!) 

I like to scrapbook too, and I remember feeling at a loss when I was first diagnosed.

Since then, we have gotten a digital camera which has made things a lot easier.  I crop all of my photos on the computer, so I don't have to crop them with tools.  I have a lot of pages to do, so this saves me a lot of time and joint effort.

(I made a 12 x 12 album for each of my children every year.  This means 5 big scrapbooks a year!)

If I have some really special photos I will sometimes crop them differently (with Creative Memories shapes), but usually they just stay rectangles.  Not as interesting, maybe, but at least they get done!

I also use a lot of the pre-cut photo mats.  They are a little expensive, but they save a lot of cutting.  I tell my husband that it's cheaper than replacing joints!

I know that Creative Memories and other companies have software to make a complete scrapbook digitally.  This is my back-up plan for if I ever become unable to make the books the traditional way.  I'm trying to avoid this option, but it's nice to know there will be a way to make scrapbooks for my kids even if my RA doesn't cooperate.

What kind of scrapbooks do you do?

Take care,

Shu-Shu

Recently, I learned to do some pages digitally, it was really cool.  I had them printed at kinko's and they turned out really well.  The great thing about digital is you can move things around, change the colors, so many more options and the only cost involved really is printing unless you don't already have the photo editing software. 

With both the hands on and digital scrapbooking, everyone has their own techniques and are tons of fun.  I have two friends that love to scrap but they do not like digital so we get together and scrap together. Sometimes that is good and sometimes not so good. Sometimes we may not have all of our materials gathered up or know what we need...The best thing is we are all honest and give each other an honest opinion on what looks good and what doesn't.

I had to become better organized with my scrapbooking because of RA.  The materials are heavy, so I try not to drag out everything on the same day.  So I scrapbook in stages:

1.  Download photos to the computer.

2.  Create a copy folder.  Then delete all the photos I don't want to print.  (The originals are still saved.)  Edit the remaining photos.  (red-eye, cropping, lighting...)

3.  Create 5 copies of this folder.  (One for each child.)

4.  Delete photos from each folder, keeping only the photos I want for each individual scrapbook.

5.  Order the photos.  If I'm lucky, they will keep the photos in order. 

The computer part is time-consuming, but it saves a lot of work later on.

Then, for each scrapbook I do a modified version of "power layout".  I usually only do one or two steps a day.

1.  I put the 12x12 pages in a scrapbook work box.  I toss on the pictures that I want to put on the first two pages, then turn the page.  I toss on the next pictures...  to the end of the book.  I usually do all of my books at the same time.  Laying out the photos in each box usually only takes a couple of minutes. 

2.  After I have the pictures "layed out" for the page they belong on, I choose the background wallpaper and put that with the photos.

3.  I choose any other paper that I will need, such as for a border or for mounting photos, and put them on the correct pages.

4.  Ditto with stickers and other embellishments.  (With this system I only have to get out my 25-pound sticker album ONE TIME!) 

5.  At this point I actually start using tape to put everything down on the page.  At the end of this stage the books are about 90 percent finished!!!

6.  Put headlines/titles on pages.  (This is one of the hardest steps for my fingers...)

7.  Journal.

The End!!

I hope this is useful someone.  It took a while for me to come up with this system, but it has really helped me to get my books done without causing major stress on my fingers.

Working on my wedding album hint - wedding was 24 years ago!

I am slow but when I get going I really go.

Dx RA Nov 2008 Dx Type 2 Oct 2008
Current Meds: Metformin, Prandin, Celebrex, Methotrexate, Folic Acid, Plaquenil, Lisinopril, and just added....... Nuvigil (to keep me awake so that I can remember to take all of my other pills!) 

This reminds me of a similar quote from someone else's posts on another board: "I would be unstoppable if I could only get started."  God bless.

Age 82, diagnosed RA 12/2001, married since 1952, 4 sons no daughters, 4 grandsons 1 granddaughter.  Doing well on Methotrexate and Remicade.