FAQ {Friday}

I get a lot of craft-related questions from blog readers, website visitors and crafters that I meet at Home Gatherings and events.  The questions are varied, with some looking for technique how-to's, others for project advice or product information, but there are definitely a few questions that seem to come up again and again.  So....in the interest of keeping you, my readers, informed, I'm going to start answering some of those frequently asked questions here on my blog and in time I'll hopefully have a nice little FAQ library assembled.  For consistency, and because the title is a bit catchy, I'll post my Q&A on FAQ {Friday}.

So, without further adieu - here's the first question.

MUST-HAVE TOOLS

Q:  I'm just starting out with scrapbooking, and I need to buy on a budget. What are the top three must-have tools that I won't be able to live without.

A:  You're not alone.  Many of us, in fact most of us, need to (or should) buy on a budget.  There are however a few must-haves tools of the trade.  Here are my top three picks.

A Paper Trimmer:  This will make measuring and cutting your cardstock and patterned paper super easy.  Make sure that you choose a trimmer with a replaceable blade, and one that is capable of cutting/measuring 12 x 12 inch paper.  My recommendation: A Fiskars Personal Paper Trimmer like this one.

A good pair of Scissors:  I recommend a pair that is small, sharp and very pointy (like the ones you see here).  You'll use these to cut out things like letters, hand-drawn shapes and/or stamped images for embellishing your finished pages.  The small size allows you more cutting control, and the point on the end is handy for clipping out tight spaces, or piercing holes for page accents like stitching and placing brads.  I don't think that I need to say more about making sure you're scissors are sharp - because we all know that there is nothing more frustrating than scissors that just don't cut.

Adhesive: Whether you choose a dry bond (like a tape runner), or a wet bond (like CTMH Bonding Memories Glue), you will need a good adhesive to 'stick' your photographs and papers to your layout.  To ensure that your adhesive does not damage your photos (as that would be counter-productive), be sure to choose a glue that is acid-free.  I personally prefer a dry bond style as they generally come in a refillable dispenser and are mess-free.  Dry bonds go on dry, and thus obviously, dry-time is not an issue.

Now those are my top-three must-have tools, but of course there are a few more items that I believe every scrapbooker should have handy at all times.  These are not craft-specific are are pretty vanilla really, so I would think that no additional investment would be required. They are:

• a ruler (metal edge preferred, but not mandatory)
• a pencil
• a white eraser

Do you have a craft-related question you'd like the answer to?  Drop me an email, or leave a comment below and I'll feature your question on a future FAQ {Friday} installment.

Comments

[{leah}]

Thanks for the comment on my blog! And yes, I took the photo at our local beach... ^_^

[{leah}]

Great tips for getting started!! ^_^

And yep! Me, too! I've got a box where my favorite/latest and greatest supplies get tossed for me to just haul out when I wanna scrap! I then dump them back in the box and hide behind the curtain on my scrapbench! Perfect!

Hope you're having a lovely weekend!