Scrapbooking doesn’t need be complicated. You should have more time to enjoy making those memories than the time it takes to record them.
I remember visiting my Nan when I was young. I loved following her around “helping” with her day. She would always check the pockets of each piece of clothing when it came time to do the washing. Most times there wasn’t anything all that amazing. Using an old style twin tub I’m sure that habit saved on washing machine repairs, given the nuts + bolts and other things that were in those pockets 🙂
Other times we stuck gold, well coins mostly, and the occasional dollar note of varying value. Those were the treasures that were worth searching for!
I think it is the same with our memories. It’s not possible to collect and save everything. Not all of it holds the value we are searching for. Just like those coins and dollar notes we want to treasure the moments we share with our loved ones.
Pocket scrapbooking is an easy way to document our lives in what ever way we choose.
If you have been curious about this style of memory keeping, keep on reading to discover …
How to create pocket scrapbooking pages … easy!
The easiest and quickest place to begin recording your memories is with templates. And pocket scrapbooking is no different. You simply drag, drop + clip. It’s that easy. But here I am spilling all the beans.
Let’s take a look at how you can have the time to both create + record memories.
The Quick Start Secret
Pocket pageGrid templates while simple in design are some of the most versatile templates you can have in your supplies. They are the perfect place to begin creating photo albums, vision boards and the ever popular pocket scrapbooking projects. They are the secret to quick + easy pages.
If your like me, you quickly collect boxes of your children’s memorabilia. I know I sure did when our son started kindy. I loved all his art and craft creations. It didn’t take long to see that these boxes would be multiplying fast in the coming years. I needed a solution … and fast.
As a graphic designer I use grids to start any design project. Using grids makes balancing the items on your page a breeze.
Having created my first album of my son’s memorbillia that year, I saw how the grid would help others create their own albums too. The joy we shared from sitting together looking through that album was priceless. And I knew I wanted others to experience that too. (You can read more about it over here.)
Now based upon the 7 popular pocket sizes, I created a whole bunch of pageGrid templates as the perfect starting point for a multitude of projects.
So let’s get started using these versatile templates and create a pocket scrapbooking page.
To follow along there are a few items you will need :
- Free Memory Keeping products (you can grab yours here)
- Photoshop or Photoshop Elements (download a free trial here)
- Your Computer
If you haven’t joined us, I will pause a moment while you sign up and download your free scrapbooking products …
Awesome, I’m so glad you’ve joined us.
Now that we have our supplies, let’s make it happen. Here are my …
3 Simple Steps for Creating Pocket Scrapbooking Pages
Step 1: Choose your template
Each pocket scrapbooking template is a layered PSD or TIF file. These layers are the secret to quick and simple page creation. The main skill you will need in using layered templates is to know how to clip items, such as papers + photos, to the pocket layers. We will cover that next. I’m using the “Round Margin”, JES_pageGrid_12x12_gift_3-1.psd, for this tutorial.
When building your pocket scrapbooking pages using pageGrid templates you simply add:
Let’s add these items to our page and fill up our pockets.
Step 2: Fill your pockets
It’s really easy to fill your pockets : simply drag + drop and clip. So let’s continue with your open template.
- Select the layer you want to work on in the Layers panel, choose Windows > Layers.
- Open the paper, photo or pocket card you want to use. Move it beside your open template so you can see both files open at the same time.
- Drag + drop your paper, photo or pocket card onto the pageGrid template. Click on the item or the item name in the layers panel and drag it onto your template. It should be sitting above the pocket layer you selected above and selected.
- Move your arrow between the pocket and item layers, while holding the Option key and click when you see the bent arrow symbol.
Easy!
#Tip: If you want your paper to be positioned to fill the whole page, hold down the Shift key when you drag it to your page. With both the paper and template sizes at 12×12 inches it will automatically fill your whole page.
Position your items
To position your item, click + hold down your mouse and move it around within the pocket to position it in place. With your items clipped to the pocket layer you can move it around and see only what fills the area.
Need to resize, no worries we will do that next.
Resize your items
- Select the layer of the item you want to resize.
- From the menu, select Edit > Transform > Free Transform (Photoshop) or Image > Transform > Free Transform (Photoshop Elements).
- Click on one of the corners, while holding down your Shift key, drag the corner box toward the centre to resize the item. #Tip: Holding the shift key keeps it in proportion.
- Press Enter/Return key or the green tick to apply your change.
Repeat these steps to fill all of the pockets and complete your pocket scrapbooking page.
#Tip: Remember to save your work often!
Step 3: Add your text
To complete your pockets add your titles, captions and journalling.
- Select the Text Tool (T).
- Click on your page and drag down to the right with you Text Tool to draw a box on your page. A new layer will be added to your Layers panel. This is the space your text will fill.
- Select the font, size and any other text options desired.
- Type your text. To start a new line press the Return (Mac) or Enter (PC) key.
- If more text is added than fits into your box, resize the box by moving the arrow over one of the corner squares until it becomes a double arrow, then click on and drag the square to enlarge the area.
- When you are finished typing, click the tick in the Options bar or press Command + Return (Mac), Control + Enter (PC) keys.
Finishing touches
While it’s not necessary you may like to add some elements of design : embellishments or photo overlays. Simply drag and drop these items to your page and position just like in the step above.
Shadows
Now that you have all your items on your page you may like to add some depth with shadows. I have included three of my favourite shadow styles for your to use with Photoshop + Photoshop Elements. Simply click on the image below to download my free shadow styles.
Finished pages
Once you have finished your pocket scrapbooking page, hybrid + digital crafters you can print + slide into your album’s pocket page protectors, share your pages online or bind in an album with your favourite photo book company.
Printing
To print albums with your favourite company you may need to resize your pages to allow for margin and bleed so they don’t cut off the sides of your designs. I have included an action you can use with Photoshop + Photoshop Elements to resize your pages easily. Simply click on the image below to download my free photobook action.
Now you are ready to record + share more of your everyday moments!
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