Album Covers with Flair

Are your scrapbooks sitting on a shelf somewhere? Do you know which one has which scrapbook pages in it? Are the covers simply that – something to cover your works of art inside? Consider making your scrapbooks over into beautiful coffee table books that invite friends and family to look through and cherish your photos. Here are some ideas to help you decorate your album covers and make them just as special as the precious pages hidden inside.

Album Embossing - An easy way to add a little something to your albums is to have them embossed. You can usually have this done at your local scrapbook store. They can put a title and year on the front of your albums, which looks really stunning in gold or silver. They can also put something on the spine so if your album is on a shelf, you can tell which album it is at a glance.

Photos - I am a visual learner and a picture person; perhaps you are, too. I love to see a photo on an album cover. Even if you don’t have an album with a photo holder built in like the K & Co. albums, you can still add a photo to the cover. You can buy (or even create your own) fabric-covered chipboard frame, use your handy hot glue gun to adhere three sides to the cover, and insert your favorite photo. That’s what I did on this wedding album I made for my friend.

Ribbons & Rub-ons - One of my favorite ways to dress up my album covers is to use rub-ons. They work like a charm and look fantastic. I used a Making Memories Simply Stated rub-on that said CHRISTMAS on the cover of my Christmas album. Then I just tied a broad fancy wire-rimmed ribbon around the front cover. Voila! You have a gorgeous album cover in a matter of minutes.

Iron-on letters - You may have seen the iron-on letters by Nag Posh; they actually have a whole line of iron-on things from floral accents to adorable little animals. I used them on this Disney album cover, along with some rub-ons and an actual postcard in the shape of a Mickey Mouse hat that I got at Disney World. Ironing on the letters was a little scary at first because the heat caused the album to warp for a moment, but it flattened back out, thankfully. The postcard I ran through the Xyron, but you could also try Mod Podge, and even consider sealing it with that or diamond glaze.

Additional embellishments - This album was created by my friend Astrid Crocker. She went all out with the different letter embellishments on the cover of her house album. Note how she mixed and matched different styles but they all work together. Also, using ribbons as binding can be not only functional for a mini-album, but will definitely add flair to your cover.

No matter what technique you use to dress up the cover of your albums, it will make all the difference in the world. You will be proud to display this work of art right on your coffee table instead of hiding it on a shelf. If you have a lot of albums, just rotate them. Your family and frequent guests will look forward to seeing more and more of your work with each and every visit to your living room. You’ve worked hard on the pages in your albums; now show them off!