Why Scrapbook

Every other Wednesday, I write a post from my dissertation.

There are contradictory messages among scrapbookers and scrapbook industry workers. Today, I will address two of these messages.

The first message is that scrapbooks are created for the family. Care should be taken to use archival products so that the scrapbook will last for generations. Industry workers reinforce the notion that the finished scrapbook will belong to the scrapbooker’s child(ren) one day. They remind customers that their children are not going to care if every page is a work of art, but what their children will care about is that the scrapbook is completed in the first place. By deemphasizing artistry, scrapbooking becomes something attainable to anyone regardless of artistic or creative ability. In other words, industry workers emphasize that there is no excuse not to create a scrapbook for your family. This message deemphasizes that scrapbooking is for the individual scrapbooker rather than for the family. As I’ve discussed elsewhere (and I’m sure will discuss again), scrapbooking is a process for the scrapbooker even when the subject is the family.

The second message is the scrapbook(s) will eventually belong to the children of the household. This raises problems for mothers with more than one child. Do you then make multiple copies of every scrapbook layout so that each child has a copy? Do you make multiple scrapbooks (i.e., a version for the family and a version for each child)?

Though the decision to make one version or multiple versions of the scrapbook may be more based on how much time a scrapbooker has, it does raise important sociological points about how memory works. The decision to make albums of children separate from albums of the family is illustrative of how an individual has memories that are independent of the family’s collective memory. Creating albums for individual children separate from albums about the family emphasizes the individuality of the child as distinct from the collective family unit. Moreover, industry workers caution scrapbookers to focus on family albums rather than trying to create an album for each child. This way they are less likely to become overwhelmed and leave the hobby or not begin the hobby in the first place. By focusing on family albums, this has the potential reduce a mothers own individuality. We see a reassertion of a mother’s own individuality within the scrapbook industry, too, whenever we see albums “all about me.”

What’s most important to remember is that the reasons one person scrapbooks are most likely the same reasons other people scrapbook. At the same time, there are many reasons why people scrapbook. There are many reasons why mothers scrapbook. 

Why do you scrapbook? If you think about leaving your scrapbooks to future generations, who will get your scrapbooks? Why? Join the conversation below.

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Stephanie