DIY: Finishing a Scrapbook

I’m such a sentimental person. I keep concert tickets, letters, cards, magazine cut-outs, anything that takes my interest, is too pretty to throw away, or has any sort of memory attached to it. I used to stick everything onto my bedroom walls and it would drive my mum insane but I loved it all and wouldn’t dare contemplate getting rid of my careful selected treasures. 


But I got older and realised I couldn’t carry on living in an Aladdin’s Cave of my own personal history, and when I moved out of home I decided to take it all down but not stop collecting those little gems that caught my eye. Instead I started scrapbooking. At the end of 2012 I finished my first scrapbook which has taken a few years to fill up, but as it’s all carefully curated it makes it so pretty and means anyone can flick through and find something quirky to peruse.

Left page: Concert tickets and Bestival passes Right page: My appearance in This is Fake DIY magazine, a pic of one of my fave bands Ladytron, an old railcard, and random magazine clippings

Left page: Beautiful Christmas cards – bought and handmade,  cinema ticket stub and clothing tags Right page: VVVintage, photos and more clothing tags

  

Left page: Yup, that’s a key card to my old university halls! Right page: Amsterdam tram ticket stub, Euros, homemade program by Josie Long, flyer for a great boutique in Affleck’s Palace in Manchester

I used the scrapbook to save some genuinely personal things too. I like mixing up the things I find inspiring with genuine memories as it makes for more interesting browsing.

My uni friend wrote my name out in Russian and below that a note from my old housemate telling me to help myself to homemade scones

The personalised wrapper for my grandparents’ Diamond wedding anniversary

The picture of me that my Grandad put on the homemade bottles of wine he sent me off to university with (I still have the dinosaur teddy but not the fireman’s hat sadly!)

Interviewing bands for university radio

Homemade birthday cards

A true Bajan rum punch recipe from our trip to Barbados in 2008

So now this scrapbook is sitting on my bookshelf but it’s not relegated to be forgotten about, and it certainly won’t gather dust. It will be looked through regularly and I’m looking forward to starting this new one.