Many aspects come into play when choosing scrapbook albums.  Your personal likes and dislikes, the subject matter, and viewing plans all interweave themselves in the selection process.  It's really no different than selecting an outfit to wear to a special occasion - the nature of the event and the message you want to convey all play into your choice.  The areas to consider include:

Colorof the album cover should be a top consideration.  Just like the colors you choose for a room decor or in the car you drive, the color choice of your scrapbook album creates a first impression and sets a mood of expectation.  Traditional colors like navy, black, and burgundy convey importance, significance, or sincerity. Whereas bright colors radiate fun or excitement.  See ourarticle on color schemesfor more information.

Designof the scrapbook album cover can be used to create anticipation.  Choices basically are either a solid color cover, with little or no patterns, to a plethora of designs that are unique to the album manufacturer.  Choices are so numerous that choosing an album can be a challenge!  A solid color can be considered for a traditional look, whereas a pattern design can be chosen to complement the topic.  For example, an embossed,leather-like black albummakes for a wonderful heritage album, whereas an album with a birthday motif is perfect to commemorate a child's special day.

Materialsused in album covers generally fall into three categories: leather, cloth, and plastic.  The variations in texture and feel are numerous and, like color and design, should be chosen to complement the subject of the scrapbook album.  For example leather, whether genuine orbonded, has a warm, classy look and feel.  Cloth covers with their texture variations add a three dimensional appeal to the eye and touch.  No matter what material you choose, make sure the album is acid and lignin free for long term preservation.

Sizeis a function of how much "e;room"e; you need to tell your story.  Not only does size include length and width considerations, such as 12"e; x 12"e; or 8 ½"e; x 11"e;, but also thickness, i.e., post bound albums can be as thick or thin as you like, whereas three-ring scrapbook albums have a finite page capacity.  The amount of information you want to put on a page, along with the creativity you want with page layout and the number of pages you expect to create, should therefore dictate your choice. 12"e; x 12"e; scrapbook albums, for example, allow more to be put on a single page, and have plenty of page "e;roominess"e; to creatively layout items on the page.  However a smaller size is very appropriate if the story or event being told has fewer pictures or information.

Thetypeof album you select, such as post bound or three-ring, depends somewhat on how easy you want to be able to add/remove pages, how many you plan to add, and of course, the color/design options available.  Album types are discussedin Part 1.

Take special care to select a scrapbook album that complements your topic.  Remember that you are telling a story with your album and the look and feel of the album are part of that process.

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