These days many people would like to get started in the scrapbooking hobby, but a lot of them are fearful to start because they thing of the cost. They look at all the embellishments, patterned papers and doodads; they think that they are not creative enough to start.

For those who want to create your own design of a scrapbook, the first thing to do is you have to decide on what kind of scrapbook you would like to create. You even have a budding desire to be a scrapbooker, but when you walk into a scrapbook store, you feel misplaced and don’t know where to begin.

There are so many products available in the scrapbooking industry that it is easy to feel lost or overwhelmed. You don’t need to spend a lot to make a scrapbook, you can make it as expensive or inexpensive as you want.

Here is a “Must Have” starter list; you can use this list as a shopping list when you go shopping and you will be able to focus on those things that you really need to get started making beautiful scrapbooks!

• An Album – These come in a variety of sizes and styles. Select the size album you want to work in and find a color or pattern that works for the theme of your album. Do you want a 3-ring or a post-bound album? A 12×12 inch or an 8×8 inch scrapbook? A quick run-down of the choices available and which one’s work best for which project should help make your decision a little easier. A good album is one that will let your pages lay flat when you are looking at them.

• Refill Pages For Your Album. Refills are not standard sizes, so it is best to pick up a few packs when you purchase your album so that you get the same manufacturer and size. This way you will not have to hunt for the refills later.

• A Nice Sharp Pair of Scissors; use to cut paper, stickers, die cuts, etc. One of the fine tips is the scissors must be comfortable to hold and you want a pair of scissors that are dedicated exclusively to your scrapbooking. Make sure that they are always with your supplies and always nice and sharp.

• Adhesive; use this to adhere your photos and paper to your scrapbook page. There are many different styles of adhesive. Different scrapbooking projects require specific adhesives and it’s important to be prepared.

There are two types of adhesives: wet and dry. Wet adhesives are usually referred to as “glue” and come in liquid, paste,  stick or spray form. While Dry adhesives come in the form of tape, tab, dot and photo corners. To get started you want an acid-free adhesive that will work well on both cardstock and photos.

• Cardstock and Patterned Papers. Select paper to go with the colors you wish to accent in your photos. You may want to purchase paper at your local scrapbook store so that you can select individual sheets for each page.

• Journal Pens. Look for acid-free, permanant, pens with fine tips for hand writing your journaling. If you wish to hand write titles for your pages you may wish to purchase pens that have a fine tip on one end and a wider tip on the opposite end. Read Handwriting on Your Scrapbook Pages to help you get started using journaling pens.